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By *A dozen or so life vests dangle from a string along a back wall of a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter hangar, each testimony to a daring sea rescue *More than 6,000 boaters line up to aid researcher in forming national panel on boating issues *Florida shores have dodged another offshore drilling threat Introduction to stories of Commander Warwick Bracegirdle DSC ** RAN.
As a Lieutenant RAN, I was fortunate in late 1944 to be appointed to the crack 8 inch cruiser of the Royal Australian Navy, the fabulous HMAS Shropshire. This ship at the behest of Winston Churchill had been gifted to our Navy as a replacement for her sister ship HMAS Canberra, sunk at the Battle of Savo Island on the 9th. of August 1942 with the loss of 84 Officers and sailors. Many of Shropshire's crew had served in Canberra, as had I. Now Shropshire was many things, not only a happy and a lucky ship, but a most efficient fighting unit, she had been in every Pacific landing, bombarding before the troops went ashore, shooting down Japanese aircraft, and had played a big role at that surface action, the last "Great Sea Battle in Naval History, the Battle of Suraigo Straits."
A main reason for her success was the wonderful gunnery department, lead by that legendery Naval and Specialist Gunnery Officer, Lieutenant Commander Warwick Bracegirdle, RAN. In his WW2 service Braces as he was affectionately known, won not one, not two, but three Distinguished Service Crosses. A most unusual feat. He had hand picked most of his Gunnery ratings, being friendly with the drafting officer at Flinders Naval Depot, where every one in the RAN does their training. I am proud to have served with this wonderful man. Post war, Braces went off to live in a small village in England, and he died age 80. Nicholas, his second son contacted me recently from UK, as a result we decided to publish these stories on AHOY, to honour Warwick, and give them a wider readership. Terry Kearns from Atlanta, and myself are delighted and honoured to bring them alive. Hoover p2 In London, the Bewick Moreing Company were advertising for a mining inspector to oversee its Western Australian gold mines, and he should be at least 35 years of age. Hoover said he was 36, he boarded a ship for London, growing a beard enroute to disguise his relative youth. Hoover won the job and was soon on his way by ship to Australia, arriving in 1897, at the gold town of Coolgardie, Western Australia. His arrival coincided with the last big gold rush of the 19th. Century, in one year alone, some 800 gold mines in WA came to be listed on the London Stock Exchange. The job given to Hoover was to pick the mines with prospects, thus he toured the gold fields striking out all the potential Dud ones. To quote Hoover "Good engineers are called in as physicians to mend the lame ducks. This we do by killing the bad ones immediately, at least that is what I do." At Leonora he came across a fledgling mine The Sons of Gwalia, and predicted it as a mine of depth with a golden future, and Hoover urged his company to acquire it, and put him in as its manager. He hated the "Red dust, black flies and white heat" he also did not like the camels he was forced to use prior to the advent of the motor car. In writing to a friend in the US, he said "Its a hell of a country, but the chances of getting on are exceptional, especially with the inside position I now hold." Not impressed by the easy going and independent Australian workers, he tended to employ both Italian and Austrian labourers. Hoover was forging for himself an unenviable reputation, the London Financial Times called him: "One of the ablest mining engineers in Australia."
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