Linton Daily Citizen in Linton, Indiana

Sailor Boy Crosses Equator Tells of Initiation Experience

Virgil Lewis, U S S California en route to Pago Pago Samoa, writes from the fleet's equator crossing about the Neptune initiated shellback ritual. He describes the court of Neptunus Rex, the colorful visual mockery, the paddles and salt water ducking, and his own misadventures including being stripped and painted, then subjected to a saltwater slide and electric pitchfork finale. He notes Sydney Melbourne and Auckland port calls, mail opportunities, and the humorous tone of a landlubber transformed.