In early December 1941 in the Philippines, a young Navy ensign named Kemp Tolley was given his first ship command, an old 76-foot schooner that had once served as a movie prop in John Ford's «The Hurricane.» Crewed mostly by Filipinos who did not speak English and armed with a cannon that had last seen service in the Spanish-American War, the Lanikai was under top-secret presidential orders to sail south into waters where the Japanese fleet was thought to be. Ostensibly the crew was to spy...
In this entertaining history of the Yangtze Patrol, Tolley gives a lively presentation of the Chinese political situation over the past century and describes the bombing of the Panay, the siege of Shanghai, the battle of Wanhsien, and the Nanking incident. He also offers a liberal serving of colorful anecdotes and numerous period photographs.
