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Show COMMANDER GIVEN POSTHUMOUS MP Victoria Cross Awarded for Gallant Conduct in Battle Bat-tle of Jutland. LONDON, March 27. For "most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty ' ' in the battle of Jutland, a posthumous Victoria cro?s has just been awarded to Commander Lot'tus William Jones. The London Gazette, in making the announcement, states that ( the full facts have only now been ascertained, ' ' which accounts for the long delay in bestowing the distinction. distinc-tion. The official report states that on the afternoon of May 31, 1916, Commander Jones, in the torpedo boat destroyer Shark, led a division of destroyers to attack the enemy battle cruiser squadron. squad-ron. In the course of this attack a shell hit the Shark's bridge, putting the steering gear out of order, and very shortly afterward another shell disabled dis-abled the main engine, leaving the vessel ves-sel helpless. The commanding officer of another destrover, seeing the Shark's plight came Vjetween her and the enemy and offered assistance, but was warned by Commander Jones not to run the risk of being almost certainly sunk bv trying try-ing to help him. Although wounded in the leg, he went aft to help connect and man tho after-wheel. Meanwhile the forecastle -un, with its crew, had been blown away and the same fate soon befell the after-gun and crew. Commander Jones thpn went to the midship and only remaining gun and personally assisted in keeping it in action. All this time the Shark was subjected subject-ed to a very heavy fire- from enemy light cruisers and destroyers at short range. The crew of tho midship gun was reduced to Ihrcc, of whom one was soon badly wounded in the leg. A few minutes later Commander Jones was hit bv a shell, which took off his leg above the knee, but he continued to give orders or-ders to the gun's crew while a stoker improvised a tourniquet arounr his thigh. Noticing that the ensign was not properly hoisted, he gave orders that another be raised. Soon afterward, seeing that thp ship could not last much longer and that a j German destroyer was closing in, he j gave orders for the surviving members i of the crew to put on life belts. Almost immediately after giving hi order the Shark was struck by a torpedo and sunk. "Commander Joae,'' stated the report in conclusion, " nn fort miritely was not among the few survivors from the Shark who were picked up bv a neutral vefc in the night." |