Stood back to back and left their common home. p - « " ■ " - i uiumwimm si ■P 1 " " » Illlllllllllllll It was a long time coming K. A maaammmamaMasssaa -a PSS I was told the plebe class carries the spirit of the Brigade, and, al- though Navy ' s spirit seemed to be luffing apathetically all fall, I was able to fill the sails at Philly enough to carry on until Christmas. My apprehensions about aca- demic year rang true, and I soon found that my limited organizational qualities in- bued over the summer needed much refining, for there was never enough time. ■ffiBtti mm PK b ii i ii ii i?, ' 9, ifc ' ' ■ iMk -z wmmm. MB 1 IPS ' For all my fears and anxieties, the Brigade returned without any brass knuckles or thumbs- crews, although I soon real- ized there were many other kinds of screws. r flfitai v W jST " iosaa W " am wm MB mmm vm w P B ■-■ -■-■■- ' » " ■- pm Z ■ mm. The for- mal induction over, my in- doctrination would soon be- gin, for I am. There was only time left for a warm congratulation and a salty good-bye. Tecum- seh Court was clear of all but a few proud parents and brothers.
" « ma i - i a tf fr, r, K- fL " - " i mil i mi And then it was over. i I W j g MM " I, having been appointed a midshipman in the United States Navy, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same that 1 take this obligation freely, without any mental reser- vations or purpose of evasion and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God. officers and upperclassmen, I sat haplessly, half watching, and half asleep, until. I was truly unaware of the importance of my being. V 15 ( » ' iiilii ■ Elf JV m, X t ) ■ i If l ) Sitting before the Admiral, the first time we ' d personally met.fluinimiiiiiiii r 01 mf£M rpiv.v r mmumaaaamm.And although it was the late afternoon, this was by no means the end no, this ceremony marked the officia beginning of a new life for me. After long hours of waiting in line, hours of folding shirts and socks, I marched into the in- duction ceremony. There were so many things that had to be done. But there wasn ' t time to really look that first day. The room itself wasn ' t too bad- a few pictures and it might even be livable! The view was really pretty, looking out, and it came to grow prettier and prettier as the days passed by. i ■ i I spent most of the after- noon in my room, mark- ing clothes and discov- ering. I was told I ' d get this meal coming and going, but at that point I didn ' t care how I got it- 1 was starving. Wasn ' t much to look at certainly, but there was no getting around the fact that it tasted good. Ravioli and salad, broccoli, bread and butter. r fittii 5 ft V k PrT After a morning of cus- tom fittings, I was ready for lunch. " My shirts were three sizes bigger than I had thought, but that was because I had been wearing the wrong size I shoes for so long. I discov- ered I took a " small " in everything save my skivvies, and they were a " large. I -1U» I Induction was certainly a learning experience. I was in control! Somewhere in the confusion of registration, however, it got taken away. I can remember a moment, in the beginning, when I was sure, when I knew. «3to ( crr u ' " " ■ ■ " ' " - " % 1 1 « ia v But as much as I hated standing in line, as sure as I was that there was a " better way, 1 I didn ' t know where I was going, and I needed those lines.■ i $S$usBtSsMLM 1 1 ' ts ' ■ ' - 1 N ' s B i n BHHBHUHH I left my folks and my bags and got in line, and got in ne, and got in line, and I got in ne. Whatever it was I ex- pected, I was totally unprepared for what I got. But what was I ready for? No one had ever told me.and I am unable even now to tell you. I was quite young that lazy June morning, and I wanted them to know I was ready. Text from Pages 1 - 848 of the 1974 volume: “ June 29,1970 W ' wammaammssm I arrived in Annapolis with a great excitement: it was the excitement of the unknown, or perhaps better, the excitement of mv youth.
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