Shark Shooter

We were steaming somewhere between Acapulco and San Diego. I had just finished my night watch and was enjoying my breakfast before going below to catch some z's. News travels fast on a ship and I noticed some of the crew were hurriedly moving topside. A disinterested Yeoman at my table didn't move. I asked him  If he knew what was going on. He said that the weapons officer was going to shoot some sharks. My imagination went wild and I envisioned them  firing the 5" cannon.  I ran up topside and found that it was far less dramatic. The weapons office ,who must have narrowly  qualified with the minimum height for an officer, was standing on the tail of the ship with what looked like a Thompson Machine Gun. There were a dozen or so sailors around him, all looking over the edge. I pressed  forward to get a better look and saw there were several sharks tailing us. The officer told the group to stand back as he raised the Thompson. I was skeptical  of the situation and moved way back out of the way. Just as I turned the officer  opened fire. The scene became like a cartoon where someone fires a gun and the recoil drives them back. The officer lost his footing and seemed to be falling back as he fired. The last few rounds caught the lip of the deck and pieces of the lip and the bullets flew all over  . Miraculously, no one was hurt. I expected a big commotion would follow this rash act, but I never heard anything more about the incident. ©2013