Albert Elmer "John" Cummings was with the Asiatic Fleet [Annotator's Note: United States Asiatic Fleet, 1902 to 1942]. The Navy made do with everything. The pay was very low. They did not have enough money to paint their ship [Annotator's Note: the USS Marblehead (CL-12)]. They moved through the Philippines and China. They went to Singapore [Annotator's Note: Republic of Singapore] and Hong Kong [Annotator's Note: now Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China]. The Japanese were swiftly taking the coast of China. If they went ashore, they had to share the sidewalks with the Japanese soldiers. There were a couple of times when they had to protect American civilians and property. The most memorable moment was when they went to Shanghai, China. The Japanese had an old Russian ship they were using as a headquarters. When they passed the Japanese ship, a band played on deck to show honor to the American ship. Cummings's ship had a bugler playback to them. The bugler played "Pop Goes the Weasel" [Annotator's Note: English nursery rhyme and singing game]. Cummings came back to Bremerton, Washington in September 1941. They gave them 30 days' leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time]. They were in Bremerton for three days and then were put on a train to Brooklyn, New York [Annotator's Note: Brooklyn is one of the five boroughs in New York, New York]so they could put a new submarine into commission [Annotator's Note: the USS Gar (SS-206)]. They were there several months before the ship was ready. Then they were shipped to Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: Pearl Harbor, Hawaii].

Albert Elmer "John" Cummings was stationed near the tower for dive submarines [Annotator's Note: in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii]. Cummings was a radioman and stood radio watches. They were there until 1942. Then they went to Albany, Australia. They thought it would be a safe place for the submarine. Then they went to the West Coast of Australia to another base. By this time he was a First-Class Radioman and was put on a relief crew. From the relief crew, he went aboard the submarine Gar [Annotator's Note: the USS Gar (SS-206)] in late 1942. He had never been to radio school, or aboard a submarine, and had never been to submarine school. It was on-the-job training. He made four war patrols on the Gar. On the first patrol, he was a novice. He learned how to operate the radio, sonar, and radar. The radar had a three to four-inch scope. When they got a contact, they just yelled because they could not tell what it was. They took 14 or 16 commandos out to one of the islands. They put them ashore in rubber boats. On the second patrol, they took the beach watchers to an island to observe the Japanese ships. They laid mines [Annotator's Note: stationary explosive device triggered by physical contact] in a Japanese port at night.

Albert Elmer "John" Cummings' submarine [Annotator's Note: the USS Gar (SS-206)] sunk some ships and engaged in some action. They only sighted one ship or two ships together. They knew to sink it if there was an escort. They were attacked on almost every patrol. They stayed until their torpedoes hit the ship or they were depth-charged [Annotator's Note: also called a depth bomb; an anti-submarine explosive munition resembling a metal barrel or drum]. Cummings would sit there with his headphones on and could hear the ship breaking up and sinking on the sonar. They had an instrument that would tell them the different water temperatures outside. This would give false readings on the Japanese radar. They were depth-charged four times on one patrol. They were supposed to attack the supply ships because the Japanese occupied so many islands. On his last patrol, they hit a log in the middle of the night, and it damaged the propeller. They were sent for repairs.

Albert Elmer "John" Cummings returned to the States [Annotator's Note: United States] and was put on a list to be a Warrant Officer. His first permanent duty was at a submarine base in Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: Pearl Harbor, Hawaii]. He worked in the electronic shop. He thought he would never get out of Pearl Harbor because the other two Warrant Officers were there for a year on temporary duty. The other two officers would make fun of his permanent position. Cummings was going to go back to the States to go to Warrant Officer school. This was shortly after he had married and his wife was trying to get out to Honolulu [Annotator's Note: Honolulu, Hawaii]. She could not come until she had a permanent residence and a job. The Warrant Officer school was one year. It was a radio engineering school in Washington, DC. He was there when the war ended in 1945. He stayed in the Navy until 1949. He never saw any major damage on the Gar [Annotator's Note: USS Gar (SS-206)]. There were three radiomen on the submarine. There was an executive officer aboard the ship. Every patrol had a different commanding officer. They would use the Gar as a training station for the commanding officers. The executive officer had been on the submarine for a couple of years. Commander Street [Annotator's Note: phonetic spelling] was very cautious.

Albert Elmer "John" Cummings always had a soft spot for the Marblehead [Annotator's Note: USS Marblehead (CL-12)]. It had a hard time during World War 2 but made it back to the States [Annotator's Note: United States]. He left the Marblehead in September 1941. They had started to build up the Asiatic Fleet [Annotator's Note: United States Asiatic Fleet, 1902 to 1942] but not nearly enough to combat the Japanese forces. World War 2 taught him to take things as they come. Take care of today and worry about tomorrow when it comes.It changed the entire world. After the Depression [Annotator's Note: Great Depression; a global economic depression that lasted through the 1930s], it gave people jobs. The United States gained respect after the war. They managed war in Europe and the Pacific and had enough equipment to complete both wars. The war brought prosperity to the United States and the rest of the world. The stories should be recorded and preserved because it was a turning point in the world. The war was won by both the military and the civilians. Everybody worked for one common goal.

Albert Elmer "John" Cummings was raised in Richmond, Virginia. The Depression [Annotator's Note: Great Depression; a global economic depression that lasted through the 1930s] was tough. His father died when he was six years old leaving his mother with five children. When they were old enough, they left home. He washed cars, worked at a car repair shop, and a car dealership. He was paid five dollars a week. When he was in high school, he was the class clown. He did not graduate with the class because he joined the Navy. His mother had to give permission for him to join. He went to boot camp in Norfolk, Virginia. He did not volunteer for anything. He ended up on a cruiser out in the Asiatic fleet. He was in the Asiatic Fleet [Annotator's Note: United States Asiatic Fleet, 1902 to 1942] for three years. He came back in 1941.