Tennessee (BB 43) - Naval Cruise Book

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singapore The Tokyo visiT compleTed, The TENNESSEE and accompanying ships reTurned To Wakayama OcTober 7, The TirsT leg on The long Trip home Through The vasT Pa- ciTic, Indian, SouTh and NorTh ATlanTic Cceans. AT anchor again in Wakayama Bay, all hands learned ThaT The Tlag was noT To make The Trip home on board The ship, buT was To be TransTerred To The cruiser SPRTNCB- FIELD Tor TurTher TransTer To The APPALACHIAN. SaTurday, OcTober I3, Tollowing presenTaTion cere- monies on The quarTer-deck, Vice Admiral OldendorT Told The packed assemblage oT oTTicers and men The Time had come when he musT leave The TENNESSEE. T-le compli- menTed The enTire crew on iTs perTormance oT duTy dur- ing The many occasions when he had direcTed The opera- Tions oT Task groups Trom This ship and said, alThough he had led Them inTo many TighT places, The ship had never Tailed To bring him ouT oT Them. He also gave The ship The elecTriTying news ThaT he had recommended The TENNESSEE Tor The PresidenTial UniT CiTaTion, The TirsT baTTleship in The war To be so honored. The long and proud war record oT The ship, The Admiral said, warranTed The ciTaTion which would honor all hands. The Tollowing morning, The new cruiser SPRINGFIELD slipped alongside and in a shorT Time The Tlag personnel. TogeTher wiTh Their records and gear had been moved To The Admiral's new ship. Early on The morning oT OTober l5, The long voyage oT more Than l6,000 miles around The earTh To The easT coasT oT The UniTed STaTes began. ThaT aTTernoon, The cold and misTy mounTains oT The once arroganT island empire Taded in The disTance as The ship reached The open sea. Singapore, lusTy, Tabulous crossroads oT The OrienT and TirsT porT oT call Tor The TENNESSEE was reached in The gray morning oT OcTober 23. f V , 6 X i f D7 9 gf y y ffl' X V .. X X . Ti' ,f . f i f Wy! , l yin g! X is X O fbk ,. -,ZZ IW 'ig - ' U f I 4, -sl 4' ' f fi' T A lf an ii YQ ff ' -4- 3' .XT f Il lf ll ii- 'I 7 T K i 5 f M y ry, if lf u nay g !,.,ifJM N f 1 ,I if X I 4 My 61 v'I,I'q . I I, tw A J gl If S:- TT llh it il 'awry ii ll in il x l Q-X l fi X f ff li as . T r . is i . - ' if lil : ?Z,4.?.. T fr E ... ,f T n ,If X I I, rl 'I 'l'll wily' y -Z ggi- 2 3 Q jug if . nj CT,-T W ff Trials and Tribulaiions of The Special Sea Defail.

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Tall spires loomed behind The brealcwaTer and a range QT smolcy hills Tilled The background. To The righT sTood The wiTh ancienT Tishing iunlcs and bumboaTs. modern CaThay HoTel, while The waTerTronT Teemed Here was The OrienT oT The TourisT boolcs. ColorTul, bearded lndians sold Their wares or begged in The sTreeTs. BenT Chinese coolies cluTTered The sTreeTs wiTh Their rickshaws as American sailors Tanned ouT over The enTire ciTy. ExquisiTe sillcs sold Tor TanTasTic prices. Seamen sold Their Tive cenT combs, oTTen TooThless Tor S2 in STraiTs money. Singapore was TasTing The TirsT deep draughTs oT Tree- dom aTTer Tour long years oT Japanese dominaTion and Tound iT gOOd. Americans sTruggled wiTh chopsTiclcs over unTamiliaf f T ' V s ' iff? Tood in Chinese resTauranTs3 danced wiTh Tiny Malayan girls in The ciTy's amusemenT parlcs1 lisTened To The sTrange wail as a Mandarin girl sang a song oT love Tor her soldier husband: rode crealxing riclcshaws Through The TwisTed and darlcened sTreeTs oT Singapore, pregnanT wiTh all The mysTery oT The EasT. They dranlc warm beer aT S3 a boTTle3 sTared as Tami- lies coolced Their meagre meals oT rice over a charcoal blaze in The crowded sTreeTsg Traded American cigareTTes wiTh grimy sTreeT urchins Tor Japanese occupaTion money: argued prices wiTh sTreeT vendors OT iewels oT doubTTul value. As iT always musT, The TENNESSEEE sTay in The BriT- ish Crown Colony had To end. The morning oT OcTober 27, The TENNESSEE slipped ouT oT The harbor and inTo The narrow sTraiTs oT Malacca, bound Tor The nexT porT oT call, Colombo, on The Tabulous island oT Ceylon. f E, A Ci'l'y Spread Oui' Before Americans ....