All the Ships at Sea Making Annapolis Was Easy Good old Barracks B
is no more, and I guess Im its only mourner. It burned down in the
winter of I 941 . Some Newporters claim that spontaneous combustion
did the job. Alaybe so, but I wouldnt have blamed the captain of
the head if he had struck the match. Nothing remains now but a heap
of rubble. Perhaps there isnt even any rubble. I havent been to
Newport for a year, but in 1930, when I arrived there as a hospital
apprentice, Barracks B was the proudest building at the United
States Naval Training Station. Though it had been built in 1904, it
was still referred to as the New Barracks. Its SO new, said
Coxswain Brown, that it aint even finished yet. Theres a couple of
panes of glass missing. That head is cold enough to freeze a
volcano all the way down to hell. All the Ships at Sea What Brown
said about the crews head and wash- room being cold was true it was
also dirty and smelly. These three qualities were brought to our
attention the first thing every day. After leaving our warm
hammocks we were lined up in the head, naked and shivering, to take
our turns in the cold shower. I felt sorry enough for myself each
morning, but I was sorrier for the guy who had to clean the place.
Captain of the head was a tough billet. The job was given as
unofficial punishment to men who were dirty or who didnt rise
promptly at reveille. Yet the captain was an important personage
because the lives of several hundred men revolved about the head.
It was not only their bathroom but also their clubroom, curb
market, and library. It was the only unsupervised spot in the
barracks. We found it possible to sneak smokes there during working
hours, and, despite thedirt and the draft, we could relax there a
little. Fights were held in the head without interruption. The kind
of literature not approved by the chaplain was read- and
hidden-there. Small business was conducted within those cold gray
walls. Here some sailors financed their Newport liberties by
selling half-smoked cigarettes-snipes-four for a cent. The honest
efforts of regimented souls to express themselves decorated the
walls. Scribbled all over were such remarks as Chief Amorary has a
shape like a beer bottle, or John LaPlant, the worlds greatest
lover, blew his nose here. Making Annapolis Was Easy The place had
a certain quality which the chief yeo- man called the sanctity of
the john. But coziness was not part of that quality. Long streamers
of twisted paper lay about, whispering in the multiple drafts.
Soggy cigarette butts, shredded and brown, spotted the deck. The
brass pipes had an overcoat of green mold. The vivid memory of this
salon of discomfort dates back to a day in February, 1930, when I
was summoned to the executive officers office. The sign on the door
said COME IN. I obeyed. The exec, who was reading, looked at me
over his glasses. Lederer Yes, sir. I have your application here
for the Naval Academy Preparatory Class. Thank You, sir...
General
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