US Naval Reserve Midshipmens School - Capstan Yearbook (Notre Dame, IN)

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A V85 . X l 1 .'s W3 . .,? 1241. it 'S n - Q THLETICS occupied a prominent place in the Midshipmanls routine, with several hours each week set aside for calisthenics, tag football, nucom, track, softball,,gymnastics, boxing, wrest- ling, handball and squash. The calisthenics, led by Chief Degralla, were held outside on the drill field, weather permitting, or in the Drill House. Middies who couldn't touch the ground with the palms of their hands when they first began the course were doing it easily before graduation. Athletics were heavily emphasized during the Indoctrination period. A company competition in all sports was held and the regimental champion- ship went to Company Nine. A i'Submarine Squads' was organized for those who couldn't swim and they were given instruc- tion two and three times each week at the pool in Rockne Memorial Hall. The first few calisthenic sessions brought the boys back to their rooms with aching muscles. It wasn't long, however, before all of us were going through the drills with great gusto.

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E VVERE talking about little things that really didn't matter very much over the Friday noon chow of spaghetti and potato chips. Keep this under your watch capj' the fellow across the table was saying to an entranced four- some, it's direct from the feedboxf' The sodden strand was suspended momentarily between plate and mouth. It seemed perfectly human to overhear things if people insisted on dis- cussing them in public. And anyway there was nothing secretive about his tone and he appeared delighted as each new face looked up to share the confidence. Well, it's this way, see? My roomie used to go to college with a man down the passageway whois in the Glee Club and knows a guy who's buddy was Executive Orderly the day before yesterday. Or was it three days ago? Well anyway, this mate was delivering messages all day long but in be- tween times, when there was a slack, he was chat- ting with a Chief who seemed like a pretty good guy. The Chief was chummy with one of the yeo- men who knows his way around. The yeoman told the Chief and the Chief came back and told my pal's pal,s pal that . . . The impatient listeners had been slipping potato chips into their mouths and others half-heartedly ate their spaghetti, but now they paused. Five more minutes of precautionary preface and then followed the most horrendous tale that was ever heard at a chow table. And it concerned the destiny of every man in the group. Some just sat and stared, mouths agape, and some just blanched and carried on. Now each one of the men who had heard the story returned to his room after chow and told his roomie, with the usual admonitions, increasing the line along which the tale travelled by one or two. And each man related the narrative with increas- ing vigor and dramatics. Thus it spread. An Ensign picked it up while shooting baskets in the gym and he let it fall casu- ally that evening while correcting papers in the Seamanship department. Some Lieutenants wondered about it. The Bat, talion Chiefs began to be pestered by inquiries from wild-eyed Midshipmen. They could neither con- firm nor deny so they called the Executive Aide who said he'd check on it. By now it had taken on fantastic proportions and when the Exec heard it, he wet his lips, paused momentarily, and hastened in to see the Captain. The Captain looked up from trying to decide whether Don't Spread Rumors or Idle Chatter Sinks Shipsw should be the proverb of the day and as the fantasy was unfolded he smiled and said, Aw, Scuttlebuttln if r 66 as .... iiaiaj if ,sk . ,Q ...gi