![]() ![]() Originally small launches, they evolved over time to formidable craft like the German E-boats of WWII, which other navies copied. Torpedo boats had been around since the invention of the Whitehead torpedo, back in the 19 th century. Such was the case with the deployment of the Motor Torpedo Boat (MTB) or, simply, PT boat, to the Solomons theater. So, when new concepts and equipment came along, be they related to tactical maneuvers, engineering, ordnance, or communications, there was always resistance. Lord Nelson would have recognized the sound – and probably the actual notes. All the ships that were sunk at Savo Island in 1942 went to general quarters to the sound of a bugle being played over the ship’s announcing system. The Navy remained a hide-bound, rigidly autocratic service, afflicted with the ‘that’s the way we’ve always done it’ aversion to change, any change, from naval operations to naval traditions. ![]() All that changed after the Pearl Harbor attack, or at least the amenities did. Everything was very formal, if not downright stuffy, with dress uniforms required at all times, sterling silver tableware, seating strictly by rank or even lineal number, and full table service provided by stewards. The officers’ wardrooms of the pre-world war II US Navy were modeled after the wardrooms of the Royal Navy, especially in capital ships. This image is in the public domain via Wikicommons. ELCO and Higgins PT boats as published in “Know Your PT Boat” by the US Navy, July 1945. ![]()
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