Shannon (DM 25) - Naval Cruise Book

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. ,fer-f i. 5 iw,-we f - ' i st 1 L 53? . W K fv.,s.v, We welcome the American Sailors. It was indeed a queer sight to see these natives standing on our quarterdeck, dressed in everything from flowing white knee-length kimonas and full trousers wrapped tightly at the ankles, to double-breasted occidental suits, with their arms laden with live chickens and large bottles of liquor, Nor when they left were they empty-handed, for we returned their ges- ture with cartons of cigarettes and candy. Early the next morning, the waters teemed with small boats, manned by happy, curious Koreans. Around the point of the bay to the south sailed a small Heet of boats, apparently from another village to which the word of our arrival already had spread. Trading continued as be- fore, except that it had grown in its fervor. The life of these simple village folk had been disrupted , by .What to them was a great event. lint after the first , excitement, except for those in the boats around the ship, they continued their business as usual, for no mat- ter how great the event they still had to work to eat and live. Farmers went into the fields and fishing craft set out to make their day's catch. On a small rock not far from the ship, half a dozen men and women landed from alboat. Unabashed by our presence they proceeded to disrobe and put on bathing suits. For several hours they swam, searching the coral and sand of the shoal for clams or whatever seafood might be found, Then about HOOD, they again removed their clothes, and, while basking naked in the sun, opened and ate some of the clams they had dug. It was an unusual sight for a group of Americans to behold-an example of a standard of living and code of morals far different from our own, which we deem so perfect. .Shortly after noon, as the Shannon was making all prepara- tions for getting underway, all work in the village and fields Www WN' Q Wyman' , E52 V And the band played on. stopped. lrpople lined the shore and watched the ship, At the same time we could see a long procession of people filing dow-n from-the hills to the village. Everyone was in white, native, holiday dress. At the head of the procession, lll2Ll't'llt'tl two men proudly carrying large American and lxoreaii. flags side .by side. For well over an hour, the lfI'fM'LfsS1oI1 wound its way down the mountain road and through the village, until the people lined the shore and covered the pier, As soon as the gathering was completed, the same steamboat that had once before paid us a visit was loaded, and stood out of the harbor. lielching smoke and strain- ing under the load, it made its way toward the Shannon, As it came near, a twelve piece brass band struck up, and . a chorus of Korean women, robed in immaculate white kimonas, began to sing. From the mast of the boat, fiew 4 large American and Korean flags. In the bow, stood two men holding a wide banner, on the ends of which were painted American and Korean Hags. In the Center of the banner, in large, yellow, block letters was the word t WELCOME and below this, in Hovving script, Our Allied 4- T Forces into Song Jung. A translation into Korean com- pleted tlie banner. The .boat circled the ship three times, as the band played what we assumed to be their national anthem, The Beer Barrel Pollsn, and fluld Lang Sync, The boat then came alongside at the quarterdeck gangway. Time after time, in response to the enthusiasm of the Koreans, the Executive Officer led the crew in three cheers for Korea, for the women, and for the occasion in general. NXfe all happy. All Korea want you. yvhen all Vvag reasonably quiet, their leader stepped for- ward' and' with difficulty in his broken English, delivered this welcoming address: lVc revlmiiie 1110 .dmeriraiz Sailors. life all Koreans wish you happy and lzmlflz. Today we are Kowaiz. To you wglmifiy Iflfv 'wait for you long time. lflf 0 lzofli .-luzericayg 5 . f W . Wi ,Y 2,32 and KIIl'L'Ull today, go T0 flzc cleaflz. If e all happy A It or ea run ll l y 0 11. . - f d The speech was poor in grammar and choice o wor s, but the meaning behind it was unmistakable, VVhatever .it might have lacked was more than compensated for in sincerity and depth of feeling. Captain Ingram then made a gracious f6DlY i9 behalf of the Crew, the Navy, and the United States, which their leader translated in emphatic terms with Howing gestures. At the conclusion of the ceremonies the Captain shook hands with some of the Korean dignitaries, after which they all bowed and we saluted. Our duties elsewhere were pressing, and the Commodore for ns at Fnsan. So, as the Korean fleet from the side, the Shannon got underway, with whistle and siren shrieking, The band played, hats arms wavedg our crew and the Koreans, both afloat was waiting moved away and , and ashore cheered each other. As we moved out into the stream: we broke a small Korean Hag, which had been given us, from our mast, just below our own colors. 67

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The next several days were spent in Sasebo, cont-t1'Ul-lilltl UN' sweeping operations and occasionally escorting ships into the harbor, although we returned to Matsu Shima each night to anchor. September 26th provided a considerable departure from the routine of the previous week. Starting early in the niornutg we went hunting for an anchorage for TG 52.3, and particularly for one which would provide a good typhoon shelter. The most likely possibilities were in the coves of the Goto' Retto islands. Our first stop was Fukae Shima, where we investi- gated Tomiye W'an and the waters between some of the out- lying islands and the coast of Fukae. From there we-headed northeast, checking all the possibilities along the chain. Our last stop-Arikawa Xalan, on the northern coast of Nakadort Shima-was the most promising, but still hardly suitable as a typhoon anchorage for the Bay was open to the north. Upon our return to Sasebo Ko in the late afternoon, Lt. Commander Sujiyama, Japanese Imperial Navy, and his staff re- ported aboard for a minesweeping conference with CominDiv Z, which lasted a little more than an hour. ., After a night in Sasebo Harbor, rare for us, we returned to Matsu Shima Anchorage, where we fueled- and then waited for the signal to proceed on a special mission. Most of the 28th was spent in Sasebo while the Commodore made preparations for a conference he was to conduct the following day. Fusan, Korea was our dt-stination when we ot troin Sasclio, jllsl licfore sunset. lit-fore we lefg C51-gglerlYlaY XY. lf Nlicltt-ls, KLTSNR, a mining expert from the Bm-ein er th'dttance, eatin- alniartl to join the staff of CTG 52,3 temgopf 'trilv ' 1 . The morning of St-ptt-1n.ln-r 20, the Shannon arrived off the entrance to lfnsan, intent on a s aerial niissi ' - and investiuatitnt. I on of mspectlon The city ol lfnsan has a long and interesting history in t-tnnn-t.tion with Ktn-4-att-Japanese and Russo-japanese wars and with the struggle for control of the Tsushima Kaikyo mf Korean Strait, a narrow and very important passage betwleen Korea and japan, on which stands the city of Fusan, It was in these Straits that the Russian fleet, in 1905, after steamin from thc. lialtit- Sept through the Atlantic, around the C3135 of Good Hope, and through the Indian Gcean and China Seas, in hopes of basing in Vladivostok and blockading Japan was completely annihilated by the japanese fieet, undef Admiral Tojo. The harbor at lfusan is large and roomy, and has recently become one of ,lapan's large naval bases, The city has a population of over 2Ull,000, although the area it covers is comparatively small. Because of the dangers from mine fields and numerous derelicts in the channel, we did not enter the harbor, The inspection party-Commodore Farrow and his staff-was met bv a YMS and taken ashore for the conference and tour. WELCOME INTO SUNG IUNG p The Shannon sought an anchorage which would be inore suitable and better protected, Cn information from local authorities, we steamed about 15 miles northeast to a small and very picturesque bay, known on the charts as Yoguamupo Wan. There, in the middle of the afternoon, we anchored, In this bay, there were numerous rocks and Small islands Along its shore, at the foot of the mountains, was a village- whose people apparently made their livelihood from fishing and difficult farming on the terraced slopes, The houses were of either stone or wood, and most had thatched roofs. A great many trees covered the land that was not terraced for farm- ing. It was, indeed, a pretty setting. The people on shore were curious about our ship but cautious, and those in .boats kept their distance, at nrst Soon however, when they saw that we made no hostile move their curiosity overcame their fear. People flocked from their homes to look. Boats already in the bay came closer, and manv more started out from shore, As these boats approached the Crew watched in silence, with reserve. They expected tb find the people the same glum, silent japanese as those that had met us in the bum-boats at Nagasaki and Sasebo. But as they approached, much to everyone's surprise, we could see their smiles and hear their laughs and cheers. The word s0011 got around that these people were Koreans, not Japs A happy people they were, too-singing, laughing, and cheer- ing, It hadn't taken them long to discover that we were the long awaited American Navy. i The First few boats that ventured alongside were greeted with a shower of cigarettes and candy. This was a natural and spontaneous reaction for a group of men who had been at for nine months of war and flaming hell, men who, for that long nine months, had received no friendly greeting or smile of ---e- '- 1 welcome, lt was a refreshing experience for all of us. Vile were as glad as they to see a friendly face. Almost immediately, the international jargon of barter began, augmented .by a mixture of English, Korean, several pidgin adaptations, and a variety of very expressive gestures Cigarettes, gum, candy, shoes, hats, and watches were traded for pipes, chopsticks, money, sandles, books and posters. Each party to a trade thought he got the better of the other. ln relative value to the recipient, the natives undoubtedly fared better than the sailors. In the excitement of greeting and dickering, one bearded old manlgestured so vigorously that he toppled backwardS 0Uf.Of his boat, Amid the howls of American and Korean laugltfer, he was quickly pulled back aboard, drenched bllf happy. Slmffly bfffore sunset, a small coal-burning steamboat RP' Pf03ChCfl fF0H1 the village landing. As it drew near, we could See the 0CPUDHnts and hear their cheers and songs. T116 bfiat was crawling with humanity-people hanging over the glin- Wales, ilftmg' 011 the pilot house, and clinging to the Sfl10ke' Stack. hach man and boy waved a small, rice-paper AmerlC3U of Korean Hilti, which was drawn from a seemingly inexhaust- ftble SUDIQIY. One bespectaclcd young man led the passengelfs in organized' cheering, reminiscent of the most enthusiastic cheering section at a high school football game. Wlien this boat had come alongside, its passengers swarrned over our decks .before they could be stopped-bowing, shaking hands, and shouting greetings to all they met. Each carried some Pflfl to Present to our captain, It is hard to estimate the value of these gifts to these peasant people, but it is sure that the chickens and large bottles of ntilkv-white rice wine yvere f'm0Il-H their most prized possessions, Thev were determlnedi 111 spite of our protests, to show their appreciation with H1939 tokens of friendship and welcome, and insisted that we keep: them. . r i l

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As the boats :tml the town dis- appeared in the distance one of the chiefs rernatrked, The tiovf ernment doesn't need to st-ml any diplornatsg just give at bunch ol' - - - r 4 .5 sailors a few cigarettes :tml some sud candy and they'll make friends. . f 'These guys could win over any- body. That is certainly trite in t Yoguamupo, Korea, or Song lung, ' ' as the natives apparently call it. X This had been a mighty pleasant' ,X X interlude from months of grueling sea duty. But to everyone on .board the Shannon it was much 0 more. There in Korea, a country which, to most people, seems like the end of the Earth, we found an expression of what we had been fighting forf To those somewhat primitive, peasant people, we symbolized America-and America meant free- dom. These people believed in and worshipped a far-away country, which they had never seen, because of the things for which it stands. The Korean spokesman had said, VVe wait for you long time. That made most of us feel a bit ashamed that it had taken us, the United States, so long to get there and fulfill the promises we had made some forty years before. But our shame was far overshadowed by the joy that our coming had wrought. It is a wonderful experience to free a people, whether actually or symbolically. Their happiness and gratitude was, in a measure, payment for the hell and horror we had experi- enced. All that seemed to matter little when we saw its re- sults. Freedom, war, ways of life-much that had before been intangible, expressed in generalities-took on new mean- ing. Our experience in Korea had made many things specific and real. Probably never again will we be given as sincere and ap- preciative a reception, and in no port in the world will the Shannon ever be more welcome than in Yoguamupo, Korea, BACK TO OKINAWA Shortly after leaving Yoguamupo Wan, We anchored off the entrance to Fusan harbor, in the vicinity of the sea buoy. An LCS came alongside at 1600, returning CominDiv 7 and his staff to the ship. Our orders then called for a hurried trip to Okinawa, the main purpose of which was to report to CominPac the findings, of the Korea conference and the progress of sweep- ing operations around northern and western Kyushu. Time was pressing, so we made 25 knots all the way down, and arrived in Buckner Bay at 1700, October lst. LOST: ONE WORKING PARTY On the following day while the Commodore called on Com1nPac to make his report, the Paymaster and a working party of twelve men went over to Brown Beach for provisions and much needed GSK stores During the afternoon gr third of the crew enjoyed a beer picnic and baseball game on Tsuken Shrma Later rn the day the Commodore returned, but there was still no word from the working party This caused a great deal of concern for we were scheduled to leave for Sasebo prior to sunset few more hours would produce the lost Finrlly about 2000 Word was received that the Supply Officer the working party and several tons of provisions were sitting on the dock waiting for a boat to bring them out to the ship Your hours of searching in Pipe clown the chickens on the forecas'cle. ttnirinp, and ph-gtding had produced no trait-.pttrtatinn, The If,,-Obability ttf getting a boat at night was even lt-ss Ui t.'reatt:r' concern than getting 4-ni int-n and supplies back, was tht' approach of a very Severe typht.on. t'onsidc-rable danger and hiss ff prt-ciorrs time would result it' wc- did not get back to Sasebo i ahead tit' the storm. Finally, at 2200, we gave np, and headed north at ltr knots in hopes of making up tht- time which had been lost. This left our men stranded on the beach, all without a change of clothes, and most without even a foul-weather jacket. Luckily, Mr, lllcager had enough money to buy , each man a tooth brush, but that was hardly a necessary item the first day for no one had had any- thing to Cat since breakfast. As we proceeded, the weather got worse and the sea heavier. By the end of the midswatch, We were steaming through 25- to 40-foot seas. Green water washed over the bow constantly, and very heavy spray kept the bridge personnel looking like drowned rats. The impact of each wave, shook the ship so severely that we soon wondered what kept her in one piece. Since we were heading into the sea, our roll was negligible, but the pitch was terrific. As we rode up each wave, the ship would pause momentarily at the crest, and then plunge downward as if the sea had opened up and its bottom had fallen out. This constant pounding, and eventually an engineering casualty, forced us to slow to 18 knots, which speed we main- tained until noon. Reducing the speed only eight knots had eased the strain considerably, but we found it necessary to resume the former rate in order to reach Sasebo before dark. Our calculations proved correct, for, shortly after sunset, October 3, we were moored alongside the Ralph Talbot CDD 3901, in berth 25, Sasebo Ko. By the time we moored, the wind had abated. Since the typhoon was moving much more slowly than had been antici- pated, and since the Shannon was not operating, We l121d.3 short breathing spell. This allowed us some time to spend in upkeep and preparations for painting in case we should get some paint, which was then almost unobtainable. October 4, the Sasebo Officers' Recreation Center waS opened for business on a bring your own basis. A full delegation from the Shannon was on hand for the inaugura- tion, and all those present became charter members. The club was housed in a small, two-story, brick building in one of th-C coal storage yards on the western shore of the harbor. Busi- ness boomed, so, by the end of the month, a frame shed and a small, fenced-in terrace had been built as additions. A large warehouse just across the road was taken oxer and renovated for use as an Enlisted Mens lvecreatton Cetlfel' ns was readv for use the second rieel rn October A Cmfl c next to the building proxrded room enough for tOL1C1 football and baseball games rough the condition and location of the recreation CC s and the adjacent playing frtld was far from ideal 01' eqrrrtc it did provide r plrce for rnrrclr needed relaaatl f KWC Cvery one the chance to get rway from the cramps rrters of s p ind to drrnl 1 little beer This was N 1' f come for liberty had been mighty scarce rn months Pa oon one third of the slnp was sent over t0 brrch timed with plenty of eer - . . Tl' .- - - .- Q' . ' ef 4 C , v ' ' ' C ,n nel l, 5 ' ' , - -' - - ' 1 1 , 's ' , ' ' Arn - -' , f - ' rr- ' 5 A tiff. c ' 5 'lc 7' 1' I X r' Q K . 1 ' ' ad Z , . l ' 1' 2 it - ' 'On' Our departure was subsequently delayed in the hope that a I ,z R f . - - 3 f - d ' '- is- 'i 2 , , quz 'R -, a .hi , 1 -' gg ' -, '. - 'E Y t s ' ' J, vsel- , - ' - , x ' 4 5 , ' - St- ' e ' I - -. I 3' ' liach aftern '- , ' v- 5 , the ' ' ' 4 l 4 nil ' Q xi , 2 ' I 'V b ' 68