Samuel N Moore (DD 747) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 20 text:

x . PACIFIC PORT y Norman Jo Mcmeekin xxxxxaaaaxaaxaaxxxsxxx H4415-:Quai -- ' ' A' ' i- , - f... '1--1 sun beats merciless a tired task group ' A tropic u ly down upon U fu -L rs-3' -xr-y r-1 ., -. -L .wc as lu oceans on toward an unchorw age in the vast west central pace ific, The ships have bcap under- VJ85' fill' K- -ff' eval-'TLg Tiliill' Sidi-BS are stained with rust, their super- stroctores are torn and twisted - smashed by the wrath of wind and seal., or by war, Their smokey- lese eLa-lS give xo hint of the i il 143 r of the turpines which have ' ' drifan than iaitnrully across ijiifhf io'i c o WQj,'clc jp,p alloc , ,,c oodibl :S miles or ocean, The crews are just as tired as the ships they man. And they are just as tough, and jaat as scaworthy. Hut men are creatures of the land, and they look tc solid ground as howto Tho saltiest of them, although they may love the sea, long for the sight or green trees after days and days of empty blue, who feel of solid earth is wel- come to a man who has walked for months on a rolling, heaving dcck. Finally an anchor chain roars out in a cloud of rust, and a sh- ip lies dead in the water at last, Whey are still in thc forward area, but the men who have lately como from battle, unscratchod, and with the knowledge that they can beat an enemy who dares to die, fc- el far removed from the fight: Th y no not feel far removed from the war, nor will they until they see the hill rising above the Am- erican coast once more. warships being fitted to go forth to fight again, in a lagoon sheltered by crumbs of coral, or a bay surround- ed by jungled mountains, are not removed from war. The harbor is alive with boats, the taxis of the fleet, there are whale boats carrying hifh r-w'?ca officers to conferences and on various operational and longs le vissions. There are launches with supplies, working paztiosl ani ver Bound for the beach, Ships too'are underway, A tanker li Cffllf 511 ',i'g a battleship wh ch is getting ready for se. n if L. it 1 4 CMT of thi horb0r OH submarine patrol. A repair snig has ji.-,h,d gatching up a wounded carrier and is returning to its berth, 3 eestrcycr is tying up al- ongside a tender. Across the calm water glides an LGT, :rr 'ing a cruiser's re- creation party to the beach, Across its bfi .f-v of FT a motor launch filled to the gunwales with men fra: a DDQ AS ii2Sv acn disembark they hear CvL's liberty party being called to the dock, c ' ix -x+ we-veaeae ., -19- Lf ' , ' I, ' 'X ,1 p g., . ' , , A, 1i'wl,'L,Q Y P 3 ' ' .35-.fof 1 QM. j V A. , ' ' -7 5' Cl. 1. l ' A, V Hi p -Ma, . f h 5 LHR

Page 19 text:

in TOKYO OUTER BAY, north of O SHIMA. The column of destroyers re- versed course and swept in for the attack. At 2351 the SAMUEL N. MOORE fired two torpedoes, and two minutes later opened fire with her five inch guns, The men tcpside watched the streaks of the ships's shell fire across the sky as the projectiles sped straight to their mark. They watched one enemy ship explode into a mass of and another catch file a few seconds later. Even violent flame, a vb ' . ' as our shells struck the enemy ships, their guns started their re- turn fire. Their shots fell short, however, and no hits were score- ed on the marauding destroyers. QS the SQUHQFOH retired at hlgh speed through the island chain which guards the entranct to the bay, the official score was two cargo ships suns, one cargo ship prob- ably sunk, and one escort damaged, while the American forces rema- ined intact. The had been luckier than any of them had expected. The sweep was hailed as the first surface action in history in- side TOKYO BAYQ An American newspaper compared it to a nN8Zl swoop around the statue of Lihertyn. Admiral HALSEY, Commanding the THIRD FLEET, was highly pleased with the action, and sent a Hwell donen to the Squadron Commander saying fyou are unpopular with the Em- peror.n Fleet Admiral Ninitz. Commander-inchief of the Navy Pacific forces added his congratulations, as did the Commander of TASK FORCE 38. After rejoing the screen of TASK GROUP 38L1 the SAMUEL N MOORE participated in carrier strikes against the KURE AND KOBE Areas, where great damage was lone to the ships Of JAPANFS diminished NBVYv Those strikes continued until the 25th of the month. July 30 found the force a little YO. After the strikes against NhGOYn farther north and the planes over NAGOYA AND TOK and Tomo the force steamed farther'northward, and on the 9th and lOth of gugust, 38,1 was off the coast of HOhhAIUO, and its planes were hitting both that north- ernmost island fr the empire, and the northern portion of the main island of FCT5HU. A ' . ' By this time the atomic bomb had been dropped on HIROSHIMA, and SOVIET RUSSIA hdd declared war on QPPAN. The men Of TASK FORCE-33' looked forwarl hopefully to a quick end of the war as they attacked TOKYO from the air on the l3th, foace proposals filled the ether, but the war was still in full swims on the morning of the fifteenth oi August SS the carriers of TLSL FUPSE 38 launched additional st- rikes against the TOKYO area, It was on that moring that the official news of JAPnN'S final ncoeptance of our terms was received, The strikes were recalled, Ever though the war had ended. tho fighting went ong Japanese flw urs who had apparently left thai' bases before the acceptance of terms g.d been announced still at,acxed the ShjCSqtVThG men of TASK FORCE 33, even as their heart: filled with elation at the happyd y news that the war was over, still manned their guns, and around them flaming Japanese planes stilf dropped into the seas HM, At lhb3 OH 15 AQ5USt,,l9b5, the SLMUEL N. MOORE CDD7A7l secure ed from general quarters with the world at peace. The job was done, xxxxxxxxxsxxxxxxx ' V ,Q ' '93

Page 21 text:

ta32ae5?W?'f 'i J iTNWWs i i 4 l slit i he-- s, A sQ :p 2L1+idj. ., 5 ' . T 1 3' Qyh2The Fleet ' 'v Recreation Center isn't much when judged by Kindards, but it is 1 nd r it are nan pl.ying football oking into the 3 ale in tl midst of a tropical storm. They are aked to the skin L + n sailor is used to tHnt, and, thoush the il may stick tc their chess, it doesn't roll. THGY knew that YOU ln't need a shine a hundred miles off Tokyo, and there are no trees Bree ' t d. There is a softball game, co plete with fans, in full Wfp, Lthe drizzling rain. Xen in dnngarees walk through mud and u I , 1 f Tung ,'. 'is 1:4 i ' ' . 1 ' u l ' e'i . v, f sf' ' ' 'O P : I .. ,Q 1 ing dry. Ther r nan l8HQlHg, carrying their cases of be opic sun is Ou r leer s lls easily at a dollar a can. if n had h l 4 .,w ,f-- Q- cc ld hav' m-u' 1 fortune None of ther known how good a glass of nilk could be until they had been With? , Then the sun breaks throqgh, and before you know it, the mud vA l k .' e :ve no e re .'l l . . n' a shady spot, The beer had been cold when they started, but the n h t. Pven we 5 ' 'i se i f ' T t me Gi a f n. th ce bu , 1' xc c a's L . ' d . . O ' U ,' t it for so many months. Itfs like that with a lot of things. T pf Aboard the ships hen are at work. Equipment in constant use yen eds frequent overhaul and wears out quickly. 'Steel exposed to the! vnges of the sea nust often he repainted. The rent bulkheads must' repaired - the caved-in gun shield replaced. The boilers must be eaned and the engines ready to carry the men and guns where they KQ a going when they are needed. The radar must be picking 'em up, it 1 the ship's communications in perfect order. The guns must be in rfect shape. Stores and ammunition must be brought aboard and :wed below. A warship must be nore than seaworthy, it must be Ztlewbrthy, and the time is short. - Ae the sun drops below the horizon the forecastles of the myriad .ps are crowded, and, as dusk deepens into dark, movies are start- g. All unnecessary topside lights are out. Only the men who have an there know how necessary the movies can be. Men sit through Y apical ruin squalls to see musical conediesg sit up half the night. ' good wnrless drama. Sometimes they have seen the show before. , t doosn't matter as much as it used to. Movies are the nearestlfi ngs they have to the people and places they love. They cen't walk! 0 ' rw --. in - . -X e- e corner drug store and older a choclate malt and leaving, droi ickol onto the news stand for the evening paper. They can't dropv o their favorite bar f Q -fc' ' - 'st ' or n cock,uil and a chat before dinner. The 't raid the ice box, Motion pictures bring the innumerable little nge they have learned to appreciate closer to them. But most of , movies furnish relief fren the strangely monotonous life they, d. They know new that monotony does not always go with idlenees Perhaps there is a flash red - an enemy plane in the vicinity. projectcra blink off, the flickering welding arcs disappear,s Shing signal lignts je cnt,'the area is black. Then there is ep streak across the sky. The Tag has been successful only in his cide. .He was alone, +The lighas go on. The men return from' 3 nn..-, .. ,, . p. . o listen to a Oneneriul oionli sinuing a love song on the Q J W to laugh at the wise-cracks of nnerica's greatest comedians. Below decks is a man who has just finished a but. ly soaked with sweat 't' f ls, Wln Port , wri ing a letter to'a loved o I? , - Xiiiiiikktiiiiii E F i -llv v 'bpd' Eggs,-1 ,' at ' ' s?mq'f+ev: - T L . i