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Guam has a fine harbor at Apra which our submarines were now using for
refitting after their war patrols, instead of making the long trek back
to Pearl Harbor. The entire ship's company would leave the sub when she
returned from patrol and another would supervise the overhaul while
alongside a sub tender. The crew from patrol would move enmass to Camp
Dealey, on the eastern side of the island, for rest and rehabilitation.
Dealey had a number of quonsett huts at the water's edge, and a great
swimming hole inside the reefs, which had been made by using explosives.
Officers and men had their own retreats and this wonderful change in
living did a lot to keep our submariners from going to pieces. The
destroyers, and we pickets in particular, didn't have this type of
facility but I was invited by some of my submariner friends for a
memorable weekend at Camp Dealey. About eight of the submarines were
about to make a deployment into the Yellow Sea, the first of its kind and
one fraught with all kinds of hazards, so there were no holds barred.
In June of 145, a severe typhoon hit one our Task Forces in the vicinity
of the Philippines. Three destroyers were lost, all low on fuel and unable
to replenish due to weather. They had deballasted all salt water from
their tanks in order to refuel and were consequently in a top heavy
condition. Unfortunately there was a very heavy loss of life. After this
typhoon, a carrier came into Apra with excessive damage to her flight
deck. The cruiser Pittsburg also entered minus her bow. A tug had gone to
sea and returned, towing the hundred odd feet of bow, which she referred
to on the voice radio as a "suburb of Pittsburg!"
Our periods in port were great opportunities to see old friends and listen
to their sea stories. In Guam I ran into an old shipmate from my first
ship, the cruiser Chester, named Shady Gober, the center gun captain of
my turret and coxswain while I was his division officer. Shady in those
Chester days never left the ship and never wore shoes, except for
inspections; his toes were tattooed and he had a rooster tattooed on one
heel; the rooster was supposed to be insurance against drowning. He was
typical of the old timers the Navy had before the war. His uniform was
always spotless and he wore his white hat, no baseball caps then, down on
the level with his eye brows. I haven't seen too many of his type in
recent years, I'm sorry to say. Shady invited me to dinner in the
tremendous CPO club which had about two hundred members of which he was
the senior Chief Petty Officer. He gave me a few cats eyes he had found
on the beach and we had a great time reminiscing. We had put an "Ell on
my turret when Shady was cracking the whip on the center gun. While in
Hawaii I think the choice comment attributed to Shady was that he wanted
to go back to the States where a "lei was a lay"!
After repairs were completed in Guam we never returned to picket duty.
Now it was midJune of 145 and we had control of the air. We made one trip
to Eniwetok with Fullam, the squadron flagship, Commodore Joe Daniels
embarked. Daniels loved to fish as much as I and it was interesting
Hudson was usually assigned an anchorage berth next to the flagship. Very
frequently, as soon as we anchored, Joe would head our way in his Gig and
pick me up for a fishing trip along one of the coral rimmed lagoons in the
many deserted atolls we used during the war. One day he needed a hasp for
securing the heavy wire leader to his line and I provided what he required,
but mine was a bit old and rusty. However, he reluctantly used it, and
then proceeded to hook a tremendous fish which he played for quite a while
before he lost it. Imagine my chagrin when we found out that the hasp I
had provided had given away. I could have crawled under the floor boards,
I was so embarrassed.
It was in early July while in Ulithi, one of the largest atolls used by
our Navy during the war, that Hudson went alongside an anchored oiler to
refuel. While backing away, the communications messenger came running to
me with a dispatch telling me of Pam's early arrival. She was expected in
about three weeks. I was amazed, continued backing and came within a short
distance of hitting a ship astern. The boatswains mate of the watch, an
old timer and 11plankowner" was one of the best men aboard but not the
most astute. When he digested the fact that the Captain had a brand new
daughter the wheels began to grind as he was mentally counting the months
back to our overhaul in San Francisco. He said, "Gee, Captain, you
certainly didn't waste any time, did you."
Later in August, I was to be relieved by Ray Zoeller, in the class of 139.
The squadron was in Eniwetok when he arrived. I had been out with Doug
Syverson for a day in his submarine. While aboard we learned of the first
atomic bomb being dropped on Hiroshima. I was relieved in August and flew
back via Pearl Harbor to San Francisco. Meantime, the second bomb had been
dropped on Nagasaki. Our plane was over San Francisco when we had the word t
he Japanese had surrendered.
You have heard the stories of how wild San Francisco was on VJ day and I
believe much of what you heard is true. I stayed at the Clift Hotel and
called the Bureau of Personnel asking for my orders, which came in about
a week. I was being ordered to the Naval Academy after thirty days leave.
I then flew East from San Francisco.
THE END
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