Show johnpaul John adage jones 7 k A Z r tACIO VIAM H 7 zt e t by ELMO SCOTT WATSON Z N tears TUG HE sixth of july yours ago there was ivas born in Kirk kirkbean bean county of ahli 41 scotland to a gardener named john 11 baul aul a son soa aiho 0 I 1 o was destined to play a role in the founding of a ney new nation for tile first twelve years of hla his life young john paul for lie he was named after ills his father lived the life of any boy of his time and there was nothing to indicate the high destiny that awaited him then in 1759 he was apprenticed to a WhIte whitehaven haven merchant engaged in the american trade and went to sea and it was on the sea that this scotch lad was to win ills hla fame was to become the outstanding american naval officer of the revolution and one of our great sea captains of all time to most americans americana the name john paul jones Is a familiar one but the extent of their knowledge of him Is usually confined to that epic battle between the bonhomme Uon homine bichard and the during which jones uttered hla his immortal words 1 I have not inot yet begun to fight cut but there Is so much more of interest in ills his career than Is given in our school book histories that it deserves d deserves wider knowledge 01 among us of ills his adopted country for one thing if for no other ills his connection with ft ath the early history of our national banner should give him enduring fame faine that eliat flag and I 1 are twins lie he once said born the same day an and the same hour we cannot be parted in life or in death so long as we can float we shall float together if we must sink we shall g go 0 down as one the scotch boy who went to sea in 1759 2759 rose rapidly became a ship owner and by 1773 was making v voyages bages to the west indies and to india 0 in the meantime his brother william paul had been adopted by a certain william jones and became a prosperous planter when he died john paul inherited his estate thereupon he added the jones to his name and settled down own as a planter in america which as s he characterized it was the country of his fond selection since the age of eighteen jones was not long to carry for ward his ambition to become a virginia gentleman por for tile the outbreak of the revolution brought with it the necessity tor for the rebellious colonies 10 organize a navy with kiich which to cope if possible with the 11 mistress stress of the seas and more especially to waylay ships bringing bridging supplies to the british army so one of the early acts of the continental congress was to chouse choose a naval commander ln in calef four captains and a number of first second and third lieutenants and provide ships for or them this new navy was mainly a new england affair and the commander in chief was commodore isek esek hopkins from massachusetts the only officers who were not new IBn glanders were nicholas biddle of pennsylvania and john paul jones of virginia jones first task was arming and manning the flagship of the fleet of eight vessels given to commodore hopkins it was the black prince a merchant ship which was renamed the alfred in january 1770 commodore 11 arrived in philadelphia to go aboard his bis flagship As he be stepped over the side captain gave the signal and lieutenant jones who wits was flag hoisted over the alfred two flags the one which he raised to the mj peak us as the flag of the united colonies was was the orand grand union flag of thirteen alternate red and white stripes with the union jack in the upper lefthand left hand corner where in the future the field of blue with its white stars was to appear at the cili peak lie he ran up as the fleet flag me ime of the f famous amous rattlesnake flags the firt bof which had been suggested by benjamin F franklin ln so go came about john bolm paul anul jones first connection with our national flag after ills his return from tills this voyage during which lie distinguished himself for boldness and skill when the commander ln in cliplef displayed a timidity and 61 a lack of skill not in keeping with his bis high position jones was div en command of the providence a 12 gun brig with iier her lie captured 1 IF prizes along the atlantic coast and on oil october 10 1770 lie he was ninde made cap tain and eh given en command of the alfred a 24 gun vessel on tills ship ile he sol sel out on oil his cruise which resulted in the capture of seven british vessels which lil cli lie brought bi ought into port at boston convinced that more good could be accomplished by harassing the british in their own waters gators than by attacking att ackin their shipping on off the american co coast 1 1 8 t lie began urging congress to ai allow 1 0 w him to carry the war against england across the atlantic accordingly on june 14 1777 congress appointed him to the command of the ranger banger a new ship of 0 18 guns recently completed at portsmouth mouth new hampshire in the very same hour that the resolution giving him command of tile the ranger was passed there was also passed the historic resolution which brought into being the stars stara and stripes and it was this circumstance which inspired jones statement that he and the flag were tw twins ins and it Is here that the stories of john paul jones and our national emblem began to run in parallel channels a story which Is little known to most americans and which has been brought out by a new book the national flig flag by willis pletcher fletcher johnson published recently by tile the houghton BlIff lin company upon taking command of tho the ranger hanger jones immediately begun began preparing the ship for the trip across the atlantic although there Is no record or of the date when lie he raised the stars and stripes over her ber tradition says that it was on the fourth of july of jones cruise of 28 days in british water with the ranger it has been said for daring and success it was unsurpassed in the annals of naval history in addition to capturing the drake he burned the shipping in WhIte whitehaven haven and oft off Carrick carrickfergus fergus and made his name one of terror along the coasts of great britain but the months which followed jones success in the ranger were months of anxiety for him also most alost of hs his troubles however were ashore rather than afloat lie ile was finding it very difficult to pay his men sell his prizes and secure a squadron for another and greater cruise which he had in mind at last an old east india merchant ship was wai secured renamed t the he bonhomme richard in compliment to benamin franklin and to this was joined the Allia alliance pee a 32 gun frigate and three small french vessels the commander of the alliance was capt pierre dandala Dand als who as jones wrote to franklin was ap a crazy man if as jones had complained that the ranger banger was was a poor fighting ship because it was cranky slow and of trifling force he soon found that the bonhomme richard was worse her hull bull was rotten and later in his great battle with the one of the heaviest guns blew up at the start forcing a whole battery to be abandoned the crew was a mixture of americans and europeans and with the untrustworthy support of the crazy dandala Dand als ills his venture was a perilous one at best but disregarding his many handicaps jones sailed from france on august 14 1779 by september 22 he had nearly completed the circuit of the british isles had captured 17 vessels and thrown the entire coast into a state of perpetual alarm what jones could expect if he were defeated and captured was shown by the british authorities proclaiming him as the pirate jones a rebel subject and criminal of the state on september 23 oft off flamborough Flam borough head jones met the baltic trade a convoy of 41 vessels escorted by the and the countess of scarborough g then followed the historic engagement ga of which it hits has been said the annals of the american navy contain no finer example of skill courage and leadership than that found in the duel oft off Flam flamborough borough head rarely has a commander who won his light fight contended with such overwhelming obstacles at st the story of that engagement Is too familiar to need retelling here how jones soon realized that the would destroy him in a long range battle how he out maneu vered pearson the british command i er liow how he closed in and lashed a 8 lied tile tho richard Ill chard to the Ser apts how the alliance came to his aid how the crazy dandala sent a broadside into t the he un protected side of jones ship s and d how in the midst of the shambles shamble sn around him with the Ill Ri chard chari slaking sinking under him jones could still hurt hurl back hta his defiant 1 I have not yet begun to fight so he won his battle and the briton struck his colors As tor for jones colors the stars and stripes they played a glorious part in the battle for the new flag was flying nt at the masthead of the richard Ill chard when it closed with the Ser Serap apts ls once it was shot down but it was immediately rescued and raised again and there it stayed to tile the end for the bonhomme richard was so shattered in the fight that there was no hope of saving it so jones transferred himself and ills men to the alio captured Ser Serap apts ls As a matter of pride and sentiment he would not atlow allow the flag of the richard to be low ered but left it flying as the vessel stink sank with the bodies of her dead jones next nest sailed into tile texel in holland with the Serap ls tle tl e countess and ills his prizes but on oil december 22 holland asked him to leave outside a british blockading fleet was awaiting him but in broad daylight he be took the alliance boldly out of port outran autran the british vessels sailed down the english channel and arrived safely in france it was to be another 15 years before an american was to receive as wild a welcome in france as did jones and that was as when the lone eagle completed his successful flight across the atlantic the king of france gave jones a gold sword and made him a chevalier of france jones did not return to receive the acclaim of ills own countrymen until early in 1781 ue ile reached philadelphia february 18 of that year where congress gave gare him a rote of thanks and the command of the america a new 74 gun ship then nearing completion nut but the revolution ended before lie ho could again put to sea with no more fighting to be done jones could C oil id not content himself to go back to VI virginia r ginta or to settle down to the quiet of commerce on the seas bens his restless spirit led him to seek naval service with russia he became a rear admiral and in 1788 continued his brilliant exploits on the water by defeating the turkish navy at the battle b a we of allman ile he returned to R russia u s la to reap real his reward but lie did no not t stay long if he e returned to paris and there ho he died july 18 1702 what followed Is a striking illustration of the old saying about liow how a republic forgets for more than a hundred years the republic which he had helped establish forgot john paul jones at least so BO far as paying any honor to his ached was concerned in idoo ambassador hornce porter after a long search found jones grave in the old st louis cemetery tor for foreign protestants under instructions froni from P president r s ident roosevelt his remains were exhumed and brought to the united states by au all american naval squadron sent especially for that purpose they wre taken to the united states naval academy ac a dalny and then as a final ironical touch to the way in which the richest riches i t and stingiest stringiest stin giest government in the world rewards its heroes for neither his sillary salary the money lie he had advanced to the united states government nor his prize money was paid until a generation after his death the casket containing his body was left behind it a staircase resting on a couple of rough carpenter horses in one of the buildings at annapolis for seven years t alien when the scandal of this threatened to be alred aired in congress he wits wan burled with the honors duo due hlin him W M by western U union iolli |