- Contributed by听
- Jim Arnison
- People in story:听
- Jim Arnison
- Location of story:听
- The Pacific Ocean on board HMS Argonaut
- Background to story:听
- Royal Navy
- Article ID:听
- A2252864
- Contributed on:听
- 01 February 2004
Tales from the Pacific
During the Second World War each night at sea in the Royal Navy the practice was for the Officer of the Day to do his 鈥榬ounds鈥 of the lower deck. This story is about one such ceremony aboard the light cruiser HMS Argonaut while in the Pacific.
For the 鈥榬ounds鈥 the Mess Deck had to be clean and, under the table at each small mess (averaging ten Ratings), was the 鈥楪ash Bucket鈥 in which all the slops from the day鈥檚 meals were emptied. This bucket had to be empty and scrubbed clean prior to the nightly inspection.
The Officer of the Day鈥檚 arrival was signalled by a blast on a bugle and the Officer was accompanied by a Petty Officer. On this occasion the officer in question had obviously indulged somewhat overly on the Wardroom鈥檚 pink gins. As he reached Ten mess he decided to demonstrate that he was in total command of his faculties. Having glared at the ten of us he went down on his haunches and closely inspected the Gash Bucket. As he did so a baby penguin waddled along right under his nose. He looked quickly up at us but we were all at attention and staring straight ahead. His gaze swung to the Petty Officer and thence to the Bugler but they too had their eyes fixed straight ahead. The officer shook his head as if to clear his vision, looked again at the floor, the penguin had disappeared behind some lockers. He straightened, mumbled; 鈥淐arry on鈥 and went back up the ladder, whether to consume more pink gins or to forswear all alcohol is not recorded. As to how a penguin came to be aboard a Royal Navy Cruiser in the middle of the Pacific ocean 鈥 well, that鈥檚 another story.
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