To All of Our Brave Sailors, Especially Submariners on Thanksgiving Patrol

USS Reuben James (DD-245), a four-stacker, Clemson-class destroyer, was the first US Navy ship sunk by hostile action in World War II. The ship had been named for Boatswain's Mate Reuben James (c.1776–1838), who had gallantly fought Muslim pirates in the Barbary Wars.


American singer-songwriter and folk musician Woody Guthrie (July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) wrote The Sinking of the Reuben James performed in the YouTube below.

Extreme Creatures ...
Who suffer no attrition upon news their kind are sunk,
Who endure sunless weeks on end in want of their own bunk.
Disturbed from precious sleep by those dreaded, alarming sounds,
When the latest hazard has sprung out of its nearby bounds.
Sacrifices are certain for these devoted volunteers,
Qualifications demanded by a jury of their peers.
In clear illustration of “24-7’s” meaning,
There is no phoning home during silent submarining.

- Juan Caruso Davenport HM1(SS) (nom de plume)
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Submarines are always silent and strange.