U.S.S. YANCEY AKA-93

Ken Grooms's Navy A story for the USS Yancey

A Jug of Wine and Thou...

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Story by Harold Hegler

This Story is from former Storekeeper Harold Hegler. One has to be reminded that in the early fifties that the Yancey was "A Fleet Issue Ship" which meant that our routine was to take cargo to Japan/Korea, offload the cargo to another ship or sips and stay in Japan for about three weeks then return to Oakland to repeat the cycle. This meant that our time in port was somewhat short so we bought gifts for mother such as egg-shell china and a few other hard-to-get treasures. One of those nuggets was purchased by Harold Hegler - not for his mother. His story follows:

"One incident a few should remember: After a night of making the bars in Sasebo, Japan I came up with the brilliant idea of bringing back to East Texas, a big jug of sake. I never could stand the taste of the stuff but nevertheless I bought a huge jug of the stuff. It was either a 3 or 5 gallon jug - packed well which I managed to g~ back aboard ship and hid it well. The only problem was that a few others knew of what I'd done and about half way home next time in the middle of the pacific it was decided that the sake shouldn't be carried back to East Texas but should be consumed. And it was!

It two or three days all that was left of my plan was an empty sake jug and several red eyed sailors. I suspect McCulley was one of them. We tossed the empty jug overboard with a good seal. For all I know it may still be bobbling somewhere. East Texas never got to see the big jug of Sake."

The Pacific current flows from Japan past the Aleutians, down the coast of Alaska, then to the Canadian coast and past the coast of Washington. Rest assured, Harold, I will be looking for that jug and will let you know if I find it.

Submitted by Harold Hegler of Daingerfield, TX to Ken Groom

Submitted 2/10/07
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