Stand by for Action Page #5

- Read that again.

- Yes, sir.

- You are...

- No, no, no. I'll read it.

"You are relieved of your

duties as Commandant..."

Cruise to

Chattanooga as flagship.

- Active service.

- Yes sir.

Dudley, how long would it

take us to get on our way?

There's a PBY plane

leaving at 4:
00, sir.

Good, gives us just

about time to get ready.

Ha! Not much like

my first command!

Took me three months

to get to my ship.

Things move much faster

in this day and age.

Get a hold of the sea at noon one day,

sitting on a PBY at four the same afternoon.

Arrive at Honolulu the

next morning at seven...

Before you can say "Jack Robbin" I'm

pacing the bridge of my flagship.

- And headed right back for

the mainland, sir. - What?

Well, at any rate,

I'll be at sea.

Yes, sir.

- Good morning, sir.

- Morning, sir.

Morning Ludlow,

Morning Dr. Stone.

Fine day, great sailing weather.

Yes, sir.

How are you feeling, sir?

Never felt better in my life.

Salt air and sea,

that's all a man needs.

- Yes sir.

- Smart ship, the Chattanooga.

Proud to have her

as my flagship.

Thank you, sir. It's a great

pleasure to serve with you.

- What is it Dudley? - Just

received this visual message

from our right flank

destroyer, sir, the Murray.

Breakdown in steering gear,

makes maneuvering impossible.

Cannot effect repairs at sea.

Request instructions.

That's a fine thing.

The sun is shining,

everyone is happy.

And the Murray has

a steering casualty.

Serious, sir. Leaves the

right flank unprotected.

Signal the Murray to

return to Pearl Harbor,

and request the base to send

the nearest destroyer available.

Aye aye, sir.

Mr. Martin's instructions were to show

you this at once. It's very important.

Thank you.

Well, looks like this is it.

Priority from the base.

We're ordered to join an East

Bound convoy at noon tomorrow.

Latitude, 23'30 North.

Longitude, 143'20 West.

Gentlemen,

it looks like we're in it.

How far do you make it,

Masterman?

- About 600 miles, sir.

- Six hundred miles?

That means we'll have to

do 25 knots for 24 hours.

- And what about fuel? - Let's

think about getting there.

- Come on, Tim. Back to the mines.

- Yes sir.

I don't know how to break the news to

those poor old sputtering engines.

Check that position, put her on the

course to the rendezvous, Mr. Masterman.

It's a pretty long haul,

sir, at 25 knots...

- In this sea. - We'll make it.

- We've got to make it.

That's an order

you've got in your hand.

Well, I wish the guy

that sent it were here.

This is more like it, sir.

Action.

If the bailing wire that

holds our engines together

don't give way under the strain.

Oh, don't you worry, sir.

She can take it.

These are no better than that.

Signal the Glengow

to stop making smoke.

Aye aye, sir.

It's like standing watch

over a flock of chickens

knowing that a weasel

is loose in the barnyard.

The Warren will join us

at noon tomorrow, sir.

- That flank will be covered.

- The Warren.

With all the modern destroyers

in the United States Navy,

- I get the Warren. - I thought you

put her in commission yourself, sir.

Hm? For coast patrol, yes.

She could've done

that well enough.

To protect a convoys flank?

The Warren.

Aircraft sighted on

the port water, sir.

Bearing 225 degrees relative.

He's crossing to starboard.

Can't make out her marking, sir.

She's none of ours.

Wrong silhouette.

- Mr. Lindsay?

- Yes, sir.

Sound general quarters,

come right 30 degrees to course,

- one mast the battery.

- Aye aye, sir.

Masterman, here's a different

kind of clay pigeon for ya.

- Good hunting.

- Stand by for action!

Load, hurry up, load!

Range, 1-9-0-0.

Scale, 9-7.

Commence firing!

What's the matter?

Those shells aren't bursting!

What's the matter with

Masterman, anyway?

Range, 1-0-0-0.

Scale, 9-4.

Barrage fire.

Commence firing!

Aft to deck!

Aft to deck!

Can't read them, sir.

I'm going in.

Mr. Lindsay, take over.

- Aye aye, sir.

- Look out! Here it comes!

Rapid fire! Commence firing!

Coming around for

another try at us!

- Right at target!

- Masterman! Masterman...

For the love of Mike, you're

forgetting to cut your fuses.

Duck!

Stop firing!

We won't get another

shot at that bird.

He's on his way back

to his perch.

Have the gun crew

stand by just in case.

Aye aye, sir.

Johnson, have the communications officer

encode and dispatch this message to the base.

Yes, sir.

Attacked and bombed by enemy

catapult-type reconnaissance airplane.

Ask the navigator

to add our position.

Yes, sir.

Wish I could add aircraft

destroyed by gun fire.

So do I, sir.

Why don't you tell him

it was my fault it got away.

- That's all, Johnson.

- Yes, sir.

Come in, Masterman.

It was nice of you, sir,

sparing my feelings.

What?

You've downed that Jap

and covered ourselves with glory

if I hadn't developed a case

of the galloping jitters.

That's what you've been

waiting to tell me, isn't it?

Not at all. Sit down.

For anti-aircraft defense we also

have some machine guns aboard.

- They miss, too.

- I know who's fault it was.

- Mine. I bungled the job.

- Masterman.

A man's first action is a lot like

going into his first football game.

He can be letter

perfect in practice,

but when he gets out

on the field,

face to face

with the real thing,

he'll be liable to get

a little over anxious.

Might even develop a case of the

galloping jitters, as you call them.

But after he's been bounced

around a couple of times,

good and hard,

he usually steadies down.

Thanks for the pep talk, sir.

But we aren't playing games.

Maybe John Paul Jones or

the Navy teaches differently.

Harvard teaches a man

to stand on his two feet,

and accept the responsibility

for his own mistakes.

Aboard ship, the only man that can accept

responsibility for a mistake is her captain.

Yes, sir.

Come in.

Rough log and

reports to check, sir.

Thanks.

Did I ever tell you, sir,

why I don't like fish?

What?

It's quite a story, sir.

See, when I was a lad about 10,

my father took me fishing.

And along about noon,

I began to get hungry.

And my father was taking a nap,

so I stuck both fish poles

in the riverbank,

and got me a sandwich

out of the basket.

Well, sir, I no sooner

picked up that sandwich,

then the cork on one line began

to bob up and down like mad.

So I belayed everything

and hauled away.

And I hooked me a beauty.

I was standing there

admiring the fish.

When, so help me, the cork on the

other line began to jump up and down.

Well, there I was, sir.

A sandwich in this hand,

and a live fish in this hand.

Well, I got kind of

mixed up in my hands.

And instead of putting a sandwich

in my mouth, I put the fish in.

And I've never liked fish since.

It's funny what a man will do

in a moment of excitement, sir.

Thanks, Johnson.

I see what you mean.

Thank you, sir.

No offense.

It's a lovely night,

isn't it, sir?

You look a little green around the

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