With the Battle Fleet: Cruise of the Sixteen Battleships of the United States Atlantic Fleet from Hampton Roads to the Golden Gate, December, 1907-May, 1908 — John Shaqi
With the Battle Fleet: Cruise of the Sixteen Battleships of the United States Atlantic Fleet from Hampton Roads to the Golden Gate, December, 1907-May, 1908Matthews, Franklin
History
With the Battle Fleet: Cruise of the Sixteen Battleships of the United States Atlantic Fleet from Hampton Roads to the Golden Gate, December, 1907-May, 1908
Matthews, Franklin
United States. Navy. Atlantic Fleet -- Cruise, 1907-1909
"All right; we'll serenade the Captain!" shouted the merry crew. Down to
the lower bridge, where the Captain has his emergency quarters while at
sea, they went. The Captain got a good dose of noise, but being a
discreet man he said never a word. There was a rumor that he wasn't
inside at all and that, knowing what to do on certain occasions, he had
decided to remain in his private rooms below, where not even unofficial
knowledge of any high jinks could reach his ears.
Then the procession started for the quarterdeck, and leaning far over
the rails on the starboard side with the stiff trade wind blowing the
sound from the megaphoned throats of the singers, happy New Year's
greetings were sung to the Georgia, 400 yards back and to starboard.
That ship heard it easily.
Then came a procession through the Louisiana. The members of the crew
were slung in their hammocks, but numerous noises of catcalls and horns
and shouts told that no one was asleep. At every section of every
division on every deck the sailors were greeted with song. They sat up
and cheered. It was fine to have a party of officers come around and
wish you a happy New Year. Every mess of the ship received a call. When
the warrant officers' mess was reached there was a brilliant display of
pajamas and--well, in print one musn't go into particulars too fully.
Regulations must be obeyed strictly even when you're having a good time.
All the regulations were obeyed--several times, and then some--in that
big roundup.
Didn't the bos'n sing:
Bad luck to the day
I wandered away.
and then go into the forty-seven verses about life on the "Old
Colorado"? Didn't the electrical gunner join with the chief engineer in
giving down the twenty-seven bells song? Didn't the carpenter dance a
highland fling? Didn't the scholarly warrant machinist from the Boston
Tech. twang a banjo and set the pace for the "Old New York" and the
"Dear Old Broadway" songs? And then didn't someone remark that "dear old
Kim" hadn't been seen in all the parading that night? A rush was made
for Kim's room but it was barricaded.
"Come out, Kim!" was the order.
"Not on your life," was the response.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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