Seafaring men throughout the ages were known to be associated with some sort of a container or pail or bucket. It is a most useful implement. In the movies or in plays, invariably a sailor is seen with a swab and a bucket. On board ship the novice is depicted throwing a bucket of slops into the wind...that always gets a laugh . You read a lot about sailors' stories telling of people, places and things of the old Navy; but little is mentioned about the second best friend the old Navy man had, the G.I. issued bucket.

To begin with, it was made with the materials that now has to be considered museum quality. It was galvanized so thick that it resisted salt, chemicals and a variety of items such as tools, etc. You could steel wool it for four years and pass it on to the next man for four more years of service. You took a bath in it, scrubbed clothes in it using only one and a half gallons of water. You could sit on It, or use it to stand on to reach something high. Sometimes it might get in the way and men have been known to kick it on occasion. Too often it would get underfoot, usually with oil in it and you might step in it and get stuck while working on a main engine overhaul. It was used for damage control, especially on surface craft to bail out a compartment. It was used to carry sand for Holy Stoning the old teak wood decks. It had many uses.

The handiest use that I have seen it put to was on the old "O" Boats at Coco Solo. We didn't have any heads on these boats at the time. The procedure was to fill them part way with water. They were kept in the only engine room we had. The engine intake air was enhanced with any special aromas which were generated after each use. You were obliged to carry the bucket to the C.O.C., after use, yell up to the Quartermaster on watch to haul it up and dump. The bucket was refilled with water and ready for the next recipient to start the whole process over again.

When we received orders to go to New London, heads were installed in front of the throttleman in the engine room. It somehow gave the engines that little extra boost.

I could tell of the Baptism that many a throttleman received during operation of the head, that's too odorous a tale. As a result we did have the cleanest scrubbed bulkheads in the Navy. I think we should have stayed with the bucket.

Of course this took place at sea in rough waters. In calm waters we had to go topside and make our way to the fantail. There was always a bit of sea splashing about, especially since the "O" Boats were pretty close to the water. Mounted at the fantail was a "U" shaped pipe, situated at the proper height. One would sit within the U and hope the sea would remain calm at least for a while. It rarely ever was so. This was the first automatic washer, similar to the French Bidet.

I don't think the modern boats have anything to compare, unless they have installed the Bidets.