The Wilmington morning star., 1940-12-09
AMERICAN SAu0P
IS WELL TRAJNEn
Service Offe4 Dozens Of p,
ings As Goals For The
Enlisted Men
BY W. B. RAGSnA1p

SbALE
WASHINGTON, Dec.
The american sailor is .
lubber at heart. 'aHs'
His background is not +bs
washed coastal cities. but wave
lands of the south and mjddl as Up
the rolling prairies and +ba TsS,,
rockies. A-sl
For these are tn regions =.
furnish the best phys caI l'a'
mems, have the loves, percs rtss'
OF rejected applicants. sIjcb 'ass
tons as Des Moines and ny, Sis'
are among the Nays mos, '1a'
portant recruiting points, ILL.,
Take a look at the n -,
IN the United States Nav 'l pa3,
well worth looking at. IN ss
long year ssince the conrins r..Ss
congress bought six mercbsrt~ss.
and made them men-of-war in T-s!
he has built up an enviable reo. '.3'
He sweated and bled with Tat-
Paul Jones, with Oliver Es so.s
Perry, with Lawrence and F1,.ns
And in the whole history n "a,
Navy, there has never been = r ~'
tiny of any ship or squadron '''
He has pride and a sense 4.
ownership in his Ship. be if ~.
loWliest putting tug or the rni,5 w
est, new man-of-War. His sp;ri, i,
that of the man working for hs
own team, his own gun crew hi.
own ship-and his own fleet,
The average American ssiIor :
10 IL years old; 5 feet 8 10 incb.,
tall; weighs between AS and IA
pounds, and has had three vow,
Of high school, He is a voluntesr
every stitch of him.
To enlist, he must have bas,
either native born or fully nstlr.
allied, between II and Is years Oh
at least 81 inches tall, without DE-.
pendents and unmarried. He had
to furnish a list of employers or
teachers, to have the proper con.
sent if under 81, and be clear Of
any police or juvenile court record.
Three of every four applicants
go out in the first rigorous phys.
cal test, some for such things as
stiff joints, or eyeballs that bulge
too much. One of every ten falls
out in the intelligence test.
If he passes all points of these
first tests, he is put on the waiting
list. Rarely does the Navy fail 10
have men waiting TO get in,
Called up for service, he gets
second physical examination. The
recruiting officer tells him some
about Navy life, that he can
expect no special assignments, that
he is in for six years, and his pay
an apprentice seaman will be
S21 a month.
He gets a blue-bound booklet coz'
veying some Helpful Hints TO the
Recruit" and sets out for a
training station, at Norfolk, New
port, San Diego or Great Lakes, IL,
Here he gets a third physical
examination, a uniform and a r8'
orous three months of physical, IN
and small boat drills mixed
we'll with lectures and lessons III
naval etiquette and customs NeA''
re goes to the fleet for a montn "
,ound out his kindergarten Tram
.ng aboard ship. .,
Now he gets a pay raise is IlL'sp
seaman, second class OF me-
nan, third class, according 10
whether he is to work aOoV u
below decks. He usually ge'S M
.wn choice in this. If he is a IRE,
nan, he will eat most; II he "IAu'
10 as a yeoman doing paper worn
lie will eat least.
Here his career in the Nav!
.eally starts. He becomes a mem
yer of a division, is allotted Me"
,attle and emergency drill sls.ion'
md drops into the routine OF N0a!
life. What he does from mere m
n is up to his own initiative 'D'
industry. .ot;ros
Above him r dozens OF ra'lnS'
shoot at-boatswain's mate gun
,er's mate, fire controlman, qua.
ermaster, radioman, signal nlsD,
arpenter's mate, phatnla.
nate, aviation machinists nav W.
nd many others, Halt OF '
personnel are speclal sasf.
Around him are ample oppoE'L
tiles to learn. Study courses a.
IL sorts are available, win u.n
er teachers, correspondent
amphlets, and movies to lliuSN'"
1e technical points.
From top to bottom, the Nas%
=, addition to being an ever feaas
Citing machine, is a w!oely ~
ersifed and highly practical u~,
ersity; a place where men les5n
y doing, and study that they iD''
0 more.
Three different kinds OF Na NY
1ore schools lie ready tor wv
AN who wants special training
lows ar aptitude for it. F1Iy
lese schools are kept busy uo-
e new men to take over the "Sn
Navy personnel who, ai'et
e trained themselves and llH.s
e their enlistment perloa,
ling back into private lie, fo[
en- thousand men go lh1''7
csc schools each year.
The ycome out in a stead! p
ssion of electricians, gtnhS-,
ates, radio men, quartermas'e.I'
4, ~ateC nleLdf