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transfusion at the hospital the only place they could find to
stick a needle was the inner side of his big toe. Another boy
had a gaping wound about eight inches long just above his knee.
Another fellow had both legs broken in three places. He was
standing near a pole when the shells hit and the concussion
twisted his legs around the pole, breaking them at every turn.

Lt. (J.G.) Parrot and Lt. (J.G.) Garay proved themselves
heros that morning. They went down into the steam-filled and
oil-flooded engine room and brought out the boys who could not
help themselves. I saw three who were brought up by them but
they were covered with oil and so badly burned that they were
unrecognizable to me. Two boys were left down there because
they were already dead and there was nothing anyone could do
to help them. One boy told me later that he was trapped against
a bulkhead and live steam was spewing at him from a broken pipe.
He couldn’t get out so he said he started praying for the fresh
water tanks to burst and it wasn’t long before they did. He
said that was all that could have saved his life.

I started back to my battle station but the chief boatswains
mate told everyone to get all life rafts into the water and pre-
pare to abandon ship. By this time the ship was sinking and
water was washing over the deck amidships.

I hopped up a ladder and got to my abandon ship station.
The life raft was already in the water and I looked at the icy
water and then at the sinking ship which the Germans were still
firing at and decided that the water was the safer place even
though it was cold so I leaped over the side. I always wore my

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