The Swamp Rat Experience

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It was me!

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It was me!

Destroyers carry two small craft the Captain’s gig and a motor whaleboat. Still a large craft that holds a lot of people but open air.

My skill and ambition got me promoted to pilot of our motor whaleboat. I even drove the Captains gig a couple of times but Navy protocol needs an officer there if the Captain is present.
Somewhere in the Caribbean Islands, maybe Jamaica, we made port in one of the places without docks and had to anchor off-shore and ride a ferry called the Liberty boat in.

Well, after a night of carousing my shipmates and I took the Liberty boat back to our ship (a half hour ride)

I had spent time in the cabin on the way in and understood the boat controls.

I decided to commandeer the vessel! I pushed Captain aside and threatened him with my fists!

There was little he could do really since I outweighed him by 100 pounds and he calmed down after seeing I really could run his boat.

As we approached my ship I realized I had committed piracy and probably had made a bad decision. Very fun though!

I returned command to the vessel’s owner and made such amends as I could.

One of my shipmates had seen me driving the boat and chose to pirate it too!

He drove the ferry right into the gangway and caused a lot of damage. To both boats.

In the end Tim got the blame for everything.

Heard he got a big chicken dinner and died in a timber accident.

He was a good man though.