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RECENT PUBLICATIONS

"Unjust Enrichment"
Linda Goetz Holmes
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"Attention Fool"
William Weissinger
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"The Ghost that Died in Sunda Strait"
Walter Winslow
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CLAUDE WILLIAM "BILL" LATTIN
NOW THIS SAILOR WAS IN RADIO
THEY SEND AND RECEIVED ALL THE MESSAGES 
THAT TOLD US WHERE TO GO THEY KNEW HOW TO UNCODE THE MESSAGES THAT CAME IN AND CODE UP ALL MESSAGES THAT THE
CAPTAIN SENT NO MATTER WHEN THERE WAS ALLWAYS SOME ONE IN THE RADIO SHACK THEY WERE THE FIRST ONE TO KNOW WHAT ORDERS CAME BACK BUT THEY WOULD NEVER TELL A SOUL THE CAPTAIN WAS THE ONE TO TELL US WHAT WAS OUR GOAL NOW WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO BILL THAT NIGHT WHEN WE WERE SUNK BY THE JAP'S IN THE FIGHT BUT I WILL BET WHAT EVER HE DID HIS FAMILY CAN BE MIGHTY PROUD OF THAT KID HE LIKE EIGHT HUNDRED MORE GAVE HIS LIFE FOR THE RIGHTS ALL AMERICANS ADORE AND TO HIS FAMILY THAT SOME WE NOW KNOW YOU CAN BE PROUD OF THAT BROTHER THAT YOU LOST LONG AGO I AS ONE OF THE THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY EIGHT DON'T KNOW WHY I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO HAVE
NOT SUFFER THE SAME FATE BUT ALL OF THOSE THAT WERE LOST ON THAT NIGHT DID A LOT OF FIGHTING BEFORE THEY
PERISHED IN THE FIGHT SO TO ALL OF THE FAMILIES OF OUR
MEN THAT PERISHED THAT NIGHT YOU CAN BE PROUD OF THE MEN YOU SENT TO FIGHT WE WERE OUT NUMBERED AND WE KNEW WE COULD NOT WIN BUT OUR COUNTRY NEEDED TIME AND
TO GIVE IT SOME LIVES HAD TO END AMERICA THANKS YOU FOR YOUR PRECIOUS GIFT WITH OUT IT OUR WAY OF LIFE
WOULD BE WITH OUT A LIFT THERE IS SOME THAT HAVE TO ANSWER THE CALL AND WHEN NEEDED SOME AMERICANS
HAVE ALL WAYS GIVEN ALL
CLEMENT D. (BUTCH) BURROUGHS HERE IS TO A GENTLEMAN DOCTOR THAT I BARLEY KNEW FOR HE WAS AN OFFICER DOCTOR AND I WAS A SEAMAN TWO NOW REALLY THAT DON'T MATTER BECAUSE
WE WERE ON THE SAME SHIP NOW HE JOINS THE OTHERS THAT
HAVE MADE THEIR LAST TRIP IMAGINE BEING A DOCTOR WITH
A HUNDRED WOUNDED MEN I WONDER HOW THEY KNEW WHERE
TO START OR HOW TO BEGIN BUT WE KNEW THAT OUR MEDICAL STAFF
WAS SECOND TO NONE AND ALL OF THEM STARTED AND
TOOK CARE OF EVERY ONE SO JEAN THIS IS A LITTLE POEM TO
GIVE PRAISE TO YOUR MAN WE HOPE THE HAPPINESS AND JOYS YOU SHARED
UNDER THE WEDDING BAND WILL COMFORT AND KEEP YOU AND GIVE YOU STRENGTH
TO AIM FOR THE LIGHT AHEAD AND MAKE FOR YOU A GOOD LIFE
ONCE THE SORROWS YOU HAVE SHED SO MAY THE LOVE YOU SHARED GIVE YOU COMFORT EVERY DAY AND MAY THE THOUGHTS OF HIM HELP YOU FIND THE WAY AND IF THERE IS ANYTHING ANY OF HIS SHIPMATES CAN DO ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS CALL AND WE WILL BE THERE FOR YOU
     JACK SMITH       

The Rhymes of Jack Smith, one of only two survivors from Gun Turret #3 which was destoyed in an bombing attack on February 4, 1942. While the air battle was in progress, Jack and one other sailor volunteered to leave the 8 inch after gun mount (which was useless in an air attack anyway) and undertake some minor repair elsewhere on the ship). When the last bomb from the last plane hung, and then fell, the ship was hit in a most vulnerable spot which killed everyone in the after gun mount. But Jack was not there.

Jack and his Bride, June are very active square dancers. Some of his rhyme seems to come from the call of the dance floor. But, mainly, Jack loves the use of rhyme to honor his shipmates. Many of his poems are published here.

Jack is now standing watch with his shipmates. He lost his battle with cancer in 2003.

More of Jack's poems are available here in the Adobe PDF format.
Just Click Here.

The free Adobe Acrobat "Reader" is here:

 

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