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Arabwe was a strange name for a battleship, but the name was fitting, for the Arabwe was a strange battleship. This ship was the only American naval vessel that fought its only battle on dry land. The Arabwe was built in the 1860s but never saw action until many years later, when it was traveling along the coast of Chile.
The Arabwe’s adventure began one day when a massive underwater earthquake occurred right off the coast. Gigantic waves heaved the ship up on dry land, where it was grounded along with several other boats. The Arabwe looked helpless and was tempting bait for looters who came on the scene to plunder the shipwrecked boats. When the robbers tried to climb aboard the ship, the crew beat them off with much difficulty. When the looters banded together again for an all-out assault on the ship, the crew knew they were in trouble.
Captain Alexander of the Arabwe ordered the gun crew to load the cannon. However, the sailors were unable to reach the cannonballs, which were stored below in the twisted wreckage. Faced with
this dilemma, the Captain thought of a substitute for the cannonballs. He ordered the sailors to bring up a basket of hard round cheeses from the kitchen. When the mob charged at the ship, Captain Alexander ordered the cannons to be fired. Balls of cheese knocked over some of the bandits, and when another cheese round was fired, the mob retreated wildly. After this victory, the Arabwe was safe, but it never made |
