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February 13, 2008

Jim: Literacy or Litter At Sea?

Bosun’s Mate Hitchens stood smartly at attention on the heaving deck. “Yes, sir,” he replied to the Captain, whose eyes glinted grey in the gathering gloom. “That’s what the semaphores from the flagship ordered.”

“It’s damned odd,” the Captain murmured. “But it’s too dark to request clarification. You’re dismissed.”

Hitchens knuckled a salute and went below. He’d scored much higher in knot tying than in signals at the Academy but knew he’d read the message correctly. He grinned in satisfaction as the frigate turned hard to port in the stormy night.

And directly into the guns of the Spanish Armada.

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