Just want to throw this out that, in their time, frigate captains were the "Top
Guns" in the public eye, and enjoyed the same notariety as today's fighter
pilots.
To our English Brethren, for all of the harsh conditions endured over time, Her
Majesty's Royal Navy still impresses the tar out of me. I continue to devour
the tales of Horatio Hornblower!
Me pappy, a United States Navy sailorman used to tell me that if we looked
really close, all American sailors (and more than a few Marines) can still see
the "P" branded on our palms, from our days of piracy, before Her Majesty
graciously allowed us to conceal our shame while still rendering an honorable
salute after defeating the Spanish Armada.
And then there was that minor falling between 1775 and 1812, (sorry about
that... Hope we didn't muss ye up too overly much...)
And we finally got things straightened out in time to go shopulder to shoulder
against the Boxers over in ol' Chinee...
Just wanted you to know we hadn't forgotten our roots...
Semper Fidelis,
Bill Benson
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Mon Aug 07 2000 - 22:15:55 PDT