Tennessee (BB 43) - Naval Cruise Book

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can-f . -1-331: .Y -QQ' 146' I. 5-i.:'.f.' Q12 Uni. ' -'Lf-:MFE , A W, .fam -I. 1, Vs gg M... J, 'I ,Q-'iff Q. Z, ,T V . 7' :iii , -, ., 1,1 S 4 '??lZ.m , 4 -L gf., v K Fi vii 4 X I 2 4 . ,4 I I . .1 Ir 'I ,f1,,xS fx um- IA crossing the quafor As The USS TENNESSEE cleaved The swirling waTers oT The Indian Ocean on SaTurday, November 3, iTs righT To enTer The domain oT NepTunus Rex, ruler oT The raging main, was challenged by Davey Jones, legendary sea characTer and personal envoy Trom The CourT oT NepTune. Emerging Trom The hawse pipe, clad in Torn dun- garees, a red bandana abouT his head and a blaclc paTch covering his eye, Jones sTood on The TorecasTIe and hailed The bridge, crying Ship ahoy, and N1VhaT ship? The venerable sea characTer was inTormed by The oTTicer oT The deck ThaT he was now aboard The USS TENNESSEE, veTeran oT acTion in The PaciTic Trom The shrouded AIeuTians To The muddy beaches oT Qlcinawa. Very well, sir, said Jones. I have been awaiTing your arrival. You will noTiTy The commanding oTTicer ThaT I, Davey Jones, have a message To deliver Trom his Royal I-Iighness, NepTunus Rex. S as Eollowing a hurried consuITaTion, during which Time Jones nervously paced The deck, The oTTicer oT The declc inTormed The Tamous visiTor ThaT The commanding oTTicer, CapTain I-Iarley E. Cope, was awaiTing him. Upon meeTing The capTain, The old seadog proved his memory To be good as ever when he recalled having meT CapTain Cope on previous occasions. Ivly congraTulaTions To you, CapTain, said The sea- Tarer. Some Tew years since I TirsT saw you. Around I92I I believe. The capTain acknowledged ThaT iT was and recalled he was on The cruiser USS BIRMINGHAM aT The Time. Jones Then advised The capTain ThaT The ship could expecT a visiT on The morrow Trom none oTher Than I-Iis MaiesTy, NepTunus Rex and his enTire courT and aT- TendanTs. The TENNESSEE, Jones sTaTed, was inTesTed wiTh

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T. Q. Tis as is polliwogs, lowly land creaTures who were noT fiT To enfer The domain of NepTune wiThouT firsf undergoing a severe iniTiaTion. He ordered The scribes To compile a lisT of all The landlubbers on board ThaT They mighf be summoned before The courT on The following day and be properly punished for Their pasT misdemeanors. All landlubbers, Jones said, musT be made To an- swer for Their individual crimes before The courT. A de- Tailed lisT is being prepared and The almosT 600 polliwogs now on The ship musT answer Their subpoenas which will be served upon Them. ln The meanfime, iT is fiTTing and proper ThaT pre-punishmenT be sTarTed Tonighf on These lowly creaTures. AfTer muTTering of The dire happenings which would occur when l-Tis Maiesfy would board The ship on Sunday, Jones haughTily lefT The ship as he had boarded iT and was losT from sighT. Punishmenf of The polliwogs 'began ThaT nighT. Offi- cers, never having crossed The Equafor, made poinTs wiTh The chiefs when They served as mess boys in The CPO mess. Sick bay aTTendanTs prowled The ship, sTeThoscope in hand, seelcing bad planlcs in The declc. ScanTily clad polliwogs roamed Through The ship ThaT nighT To The ieers of Their shellbaclc companions. The Jolly Roger, ancienT slcull and crossbones symbol of piraTe crafT was run up The foremasf of The TENNESSEE The nexT morning aT 0945 when The ship was boarded and Talcen over by l-lis lvlaiesfy, Nepfunus Rex, ruler of all The seas, inTo whose domain The veferan baTTle- wagon had dared To venTure. Accompanying Nepfune was The sTaTely Royal Queen: The soiled and spoiled Royal Baby: a vindicfive Royal Prosecufor: The hearfless Royal Judge: Two Scribes, busily engaged in compiling The names of all Polliwogsi The leering Royal DocTor and Royal DenTisT, heavy-handed . fjfg .4 . .gi fv f':'?i1 , , f5:afi2. 3'-1 ' giii.. -up N -.41 ROY5l Bfifbers: The Royal Jesferi Royal Navigafor: and Royal Gaoler: Davy Jones, who had been aboard The previous day: The elusive Sea l-lag: a fumbling Defense Counselor: The Devil, compleTe wiTh flowing red Tail: The Royal Bears and Royal Police. The parTy was escorfed To a previously arranged plaTform on The forecasTle, where The courT was convened wiTh The judge and king paTienTly hearing The long lisT of charges againsT The luclcless polliwogs. A ieering crowd of shellbaclcs crowded The forecasfle and demanded pun- ishmenT for Them. JusTice was swifT as Tremulous polliwogs were lashed and beaTen To The wiTness sfand and sTood in royal awe before The mighfy ruler of The sea. The charges againsT The polliwogs were varied in naTure and ran all The way from aniEnsign impersonafing a seagoing man To The more serious charges such as a sailor geTTing in 26 hours of saclc duTy in 24 hours. SuiTable punishmenf was inflicfed on all and The Royal Baby, garbed in a royally soiled diaper, received much aTTenTion from Time To Time as paciTying gesfures were implanTed on various parfs of his anaTomy by The con- vicTed landlubbers. OTher punishmenTs included visiTs To The Royal Doc- Tor and DenTisTg a visiT To The sardonic Royal Barbers: The sfockadeg and finally a Trip To The duclcing Tanlc where The Royal Bears playfully mauled all polliwogs before They were allowed To emerge from The Tanlc, dripping weT, and forced To crawl beTween long lines of deTermined shellbaclcs and receive Their lashings. More Than Two hours were required for The cases of all Those charged To be heard and for The punishmenf To be inflicTed. l-lowever, The TENNESSEE Then boasfed of a crew of full-fledged shellbaclcs, worfhy ciTizens of The realm of NepTunus Rex.