H.M.S. HOOD

Wairarapa Times-Age, 1 September 1941, Page 6

H.M.S. HOOD

• MEMORIES OF A HAPPY ' SHIP i — 1 SPIRIT CAN NEVER DIE. r NAVAL CHAPLAIN’S STORY. To have served in H.M.S. Hood as a chaplain is both a privilege and an honour for any priest, states a naval chaplain writing in “The Church Times.” She was a beautiful ship, and commanded admiration and respect wherever she went. Such well-known chaplains as the late Chaplain of the Fleet, the Rev. A. D. Gilbertson, the Rev. W. R. Ryan, the Rev. G. P. O. ■ Hill and the Rev. G. St. L. Hyde-Gos-selin served in her, and will join their ■ numerous shipmates in paying a last tribute to their famous ship. In their day there was a beautiful chapel dedicated to St. Christopher, situated right aft —not the ideal place for a chapel in war time, for at high speed it almost becomes a “penance” to say the Lord’s Prayer on your knees because of the vibration from the screws below. On the historic day when war was declared, and we received that memorable signal from the Admiralty addressed to all ships at home and abroad, “Commence hostilities at once with Germany,” that chapel was packed with Admiral, Captain, officers and men who desired to receive the Blessed Sacrament to strengthen them against every peril that, beset them. After a few months it became apparent that, as Flagship of the battle cruiser squadron, we were destined‘io complete a lot of steaming, and frequently at high speeds. It was therefore agreed to build a “war time chapel” in a space on the fore bridge. After the change, it was soon discovered that the new position was more convenient for the ship’s company, and intercessions or Compline were said every night. Men went there as they wished, to say their prayers, and so the chapel became part of the ship’s life. Early in the war we received a visit from the Right Hon. Winston Churchill, who seemed to be in his best form as he addressed that large ship’s company—a section of the flower of Britain’s manhood. It was early morning, and in the cold, crisp air of a certain northern base, his magnetic voice rang ■out: “Twenty-five years ago today,” he ' began, “in my present office of First Lord of the Admiralty, I stood on the ! quarter-deck of another famous ship 1 . . . . England was at war.” He then proceeded to warn us that there • would be hard days ahead, as in the 1 last great struggle at sea; and as I wat- - ched the faces of those fine young men 1 as they hung upon his words, I sensed : a spirit of pride and responsibility in 1 the hearts of his audience. 1

A few weeks later we were again honoured, this time with a visit from his Majesty the King, who, in his unique way, made us all feel that he was as proud to visit the Hood as we were proud to have him on board and to serve in her. Hood was essentially a happy ship, and when she hoisted the Flag of ViceAdmiral Sir James Somerville in the Mediterranean and went into action against the French fleet at Oran, and on several occasions against enemy aircraft, one saw the value of the team spirit and mutual understanding which makes for efficiency. There are two! incidents among many which will al-i ways remain among my most cherished memories. , Last Christmas, we were at sea searching for an enemy raider. At the rqidnight celebration of the Holy Communion, officers and men knelt at the altar to make their Communion; many of them had just come off watch, others were about to go on watch, and so most of them were clad in sea-boots and duffel coats. It was a bitterly cold morning and an angry sea was running, but in the chapel all that could be heard of the outside world was the creaking of the ship as she rolled and plunged into the sea, which seemed to preach its own sermon. At the end of: that service men were still lining up

outside the chapel door, so we had another* Celebration. The second memory which I shall always cherish is in a lighter vein. It was a New Year’s dance in one of the sheltered decks. I had asked the Ad- , miral to present the prizes; he willingly did this, and much more; he joined the captain and officers, who in their turn joined forces with the men for such dances as “bumps-a-daisy” and the “Lambeth Walk.” Such was the spirit of the Hood. It was a spirit of which I believe our Lord Himself would approve. We often talked of meeting the Bismarck, and I hope that those down below knew that they were in action against that ship. They went down as I know they would have wished to go down, if that was their destiny, with guns firing. Yes. Hood is gone, and the Royal Navy in particular, and the ‘ country and Empire in general, will mourn her loss and those who sailed in her.' But as one who left her as recently as February last, I would in conclusion say this: the spirit of the Hood is that which is God-given and not manI made, and the men in whom that spirit ■ dwelt are in God’s keeping. Such men cannot die.