Haha. I read it somewhere in a book, but I think its a true fact.
oh here we go: " Lightoller was reprimanded for a prank he and some shipmates played on the citizens of Sydney at Fort Denison in Sydney Harbour."
Known as the "One Gun Salute" incident;
Lightoller and two shipmates from the RMS Medic, took a small boat over to the Fort Denison in Sydney Harbor in the dead of night.
They climbed the wall and the turret
They loaded up a long gun/cannon with a "ton" of powder, Lit a long fuse, hung up an enemy flag of the Boers... and rowed like mad back for shore.
The little boat that they were in was leaking and they were in danger of sinking, in shark infested waters.
They bailed and rowed like mad
They made it back to their ship, thinking they had failed because there was no blast, when suddenly the whole harbor lit up like lightning! as the powder detonated, creating a montrous roar across the harbor.
Lightoller and his mates couldn't keep from laughing and whooping it up.
They had done it!
The commanding officer had a pretty good hunch who did it, but it seems he also had a sense of humor, and the three men went unpunished.
The entire story is covered on pages 120-125 of Patrick Stenson's book, The Odessy of C.H. Lightoller.