scuttlebutt

Originally (now chiefly historical), a cask with a hole cut into its top, used to provide drinking water on board a ship; now (by extension, informal), a drinking fountain on a modern ship.

[S]o they continue to fire as directed, until they are either sent down to the cock-pit themselves, or have a momentary respite from their exertions, when, choaked with smoke and gunpowder, they go aft to the scuttle-butt, to remove their parching thirst.

In this way, with an occasional break by relieving the wheel, heaving the log, and going to the scuttle-butt for a drink of water, the longest watch was passed away; […]

Gossip, idle chatter; also, rumour.

"That's the scuttlebutt," Bronson said defiantly. "You got some pet coolie down there you want to put in Chien's place." / "Who told you that?" / "It's just scuttlebutt." / "Scuttlebutt travels on words." Holman's voice was shaking. "You tell me one man you heard say that, or I'll beat your fat face in!"

His resolve not to worry about unfounded scuttlebutt lasted about two minutes.

To spread (information) by way of gossip or rumour.

The Pentagon rumor factory hasn't been very busy lately, but some reports are being scuttlebutted about that the U.S. military chiefs are being downgraded in the pecking order and that their military advice has been bypassed or ignored by the Carter Administration.

[B]ased on information coming back to the community after the initial review at the regional level, a concern that there was someone or some entity at the regional office that—who had a purposeful intent of scuttlebutting the Summit sale.

To chat idly or gossip; also, to spread rumours.

During the fighting for Manila, it was scuttle-butted among the troops that they must never put pin-up pictures on the walls of the Manila Hotel because Mrs. [Douglas] MacArthur owned fifty per cent of the property and Brigadier General Courtney Whitney, of MacArthur's staff, owned the other half.

Could that picture (of the water skiier taking a spill in the April issue) possibly be the latest development in the "one man helicopter" which is currently scuttlebutting around the aviation underground?