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diff --git a/42864.txt b/42864.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2137778..0000000 --- a/42864.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3916 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Story of John Paul Jones, by Chelsea -Curtis Fraser - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - - - - -Title: The Story of John Paul Jones - - -Author: Chelsea Curtis Fraser - - - -Release Date: June 3, 2013 [eBook #42864] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOHN PAUL JONES*** - - -E-text prepared by Sandra Eder, Mary Meehan, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made -available by Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 42864-h.htm or 42864-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/42864/42864-h/42864-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/42864/42864-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/thestoryofjohnpa00fras - - - - - -Famous Americans for Young Readers - -THE STORY OF JOHN PAUL JONES - -by - -CHELSEA C. FRASER - - - - - - - -Barse & Hopkins -New York Newark -N.Y. N.J. - -Copyright, 1922 -By Barse & Hopkins - -Printed in the U. S. A. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -PREFACE - - -For a corking tale of the sea it would be hard to find in all fiction a -story to equal that of John Paul Jones, a figure of sober history. Yet -history was not so "sober" after all, in those days when piracy was an -actual fact, and even nations at times winked at privateering on the -high seas. Jones was born with a love of the salt spray in his nostrils. -He came to this country as a mere lad, but already a skilled sailor. -When the Revolution broke out, he obtained command of a ship, and was -the first to fly the Stars-and-Stripes in foreign waters. Then came his -deeds of daring against the British Navy, and his repeated victories -over tremendous odds. The fight between the _Bon Homme Richard_ and the -_Serapis_ is a classic. "Surrender?" he cried with most of his rigging -shot away, and his vessel sinking, "Why, I have just begun to fight!" - -Belated honors were done to his memory, a few years ago, when his body -was brought home from a neglected grave in France, and reinterred at -Annapolis with all the honors in the gift of the nation. When the -readers young and old lay aside this thrilling story, they also will -understand why America honors his memory. He may be regarded as the -founder of the United States Navy. His flag, whether flying at the -masthead of some saucy little sloop-of-war or on a more formidable ship -of the line, never knew what it was to be hauled down in defeat. His -name has become a tradition among all sea fighters. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. THE STORM 9 - - II. THE LAND ACROSS THE SEA 21 - - III. THE YOUNG SAILOR 31 - - IV. THE YOUNG PLANTER 45 - - V. THE BIRTH OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY 55 - - VI. RAISING THE FIRST AMERICAN FLAG 63 - - VII. AN INGLORIOUS CRUISE 75 - - VIII. THE YOUNG CAPTAIN 84 - - IX. ABOARD THE "RANGER" 98 - - X. IN THE ENEMY'S OWN WATERS 110 - - XI. OUTWITTING THE "DRAKE" 125 - - XII. THE QUEER CONDUCT OF CAPTAIN LANDAIS 130 - - XIII. FIGHTING FRIEND AND FOE 150 - - XIV. DIPLOMACY AND SOCIETY 163 - - XV. AND THE LAST 172 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - John Paul Jones _Frontispiece_ - _From a portrait by Chappel_ - - Fight between the _Serapis_ and the _Bon Homme Richard_ 150 - _From a rare print_ - - Boarding the _Serapis_ 160 - _From a rare print_ - - Paul Jones's Last Burial 178 - _Midshipmen escorting the casket to its final resting place, in - Annapolis, April 24, 1906_ - - - - -THE STORY OF JOHN PAUL JONES - - - - -I - -THE STORM - - -In the summer of 1759, James Younger, a prosperous shipowning merchant -of Whitehaven, England, found himself short of sailors to man a new -vessel he had just secured. Said he to himself, "I know just where I -shall be likely to pick up such fellows as I need. To-morrow I shall go -to Arbigland." - -Arbigland was a small fishing-village directly across the Solway Firth, -a sort of big bay which cuts a wedge into the borderline of Scotland and -England and reaches out into the blueness of the Irish Sea. From this -port fishing-boats in great numbers were wont to go forth in the early -morning of the day and return at sunset with their catch. Practically -every home was the hearth of a fisherman and his family--sturdy, -weather-beaten men who knew the whims of a boat and the tricks of the -sea better than they knew how to read and write; sturdy, hard-working -mothers who knew more about baking bread and rearing good children than -they did about social functions and social etiquette; sturdy lads and -lassies who lived in the open and knew more about entertaining -themselves with the rugged and wholesome interests of nature than they -did about ball-rooms, wine suppers, and "movies." From Arbigland Mr. -Younger had more than once before obtained excellent sailors, as had -indeed many another ship-merchant and short-handed captain. - -Mr. Younger's hopes of securing good seamen in Arbigland were soon -fulfilled. He found no trouble in signing up nearly enough that very -evening, among them several officers. The following morning he completed -his list, but did not attempt an immediate return to Whitehaven on -account of bad weather. That day the winds increased and the sea became -constantly more and more violent. By mid-afternoon the waves were -running so high that the fishermen who had gone out came scurrying in, -glad to find a safe anchorage in the harbor. - -Seeing a knot of idlers gathered on the waterfront, he joined them to -find out what they were looking at. Not until one of them had -painstakingly pointed out to him a small object, now in view on the -crest of a mountainous wave, now vanished from sight in the trough of -another, did he suspect that it could be a boat that had failed to get -in. - -"It's Johnnie Paul and his little dory, I be sure," observed one of the -fishermen, who held a glass to his eyes. "It looks fair bad f'r the lad -this time, an' na mistake. It's gude his ain faither don't ken the boy's -peril." - -"On'y twelve--a mere baby--an' him a-fightin' this nor'easter!" put in -another fisherman, with a sorrowful shake of his grizzled head. "T'bad -Johnnie's recklessness should 'a' got him in this fix. I'm afraid the -lad's love for the sea will spell his doom this blow. He's a muckle -bright lad, too." - -"An' a born seaman. If a lad are ever born to the sea Johnnie Paul are -that chap," said another Scotsman in tarpaulin. "Mind ye, boys, we seen -him make port afore in stoorms a'most this bad. Mayhap he'll do it noo. -He's got the luck o' the devil in his small frame, that he has!" - -Whether it was "the luck of the devil" or just plain unvarnished skill -which brought Johnnie Paul safely into port again that day will probably -never be known. But the chances are, if luck entered into the matter at -all, that good seamanship and intrepid daring performed the largest -share of the performance, for, as the minutes went on and the small boat -came bobbing nearer and nearer, it was evident to every one of those -assembled seafaring men that the youngster was handling his steed with -unusual cleverness. Virtually flying in the very face of disaster and -death, the lad clung coolly to the tiller, his eyes snapping with -excitement, his dark-brown hair tossing, while the vicious nor'easter -almost tore his reefed sail from its fastenings, drenched him to the -skin with its wild spray, and drove his cockleshell of a craft swiftly -forward. - -Held spellbound by the struggle between boy and wave, thrilled at the -magnificence of the lad's courage and the adroitness of his movements -as his tiller-hand avoided yawning danger after yawning danger, Mr. -Younger found himself praying for the safety of the daring young -boatman, as he might have prayed for the deliverance of one of his own -children from such a threatened fate. And it was with a vast sense of -relief and thankfulness that, a little later, he saw Johnnie Paul guide -his frail vessel into the protected waters of the harbor and up to the -wharf, where she was securely made fast. - -Indeed, Mr. Younger was one of the very first to shake the hand of the -dripping boy and congratulate him on his splendid performance. "If I -mistake not, one of these days you will be a great sailor, my lad," said -he, little knowing that he was predicting a truth. - -Johnnie Paul blushed painfully. But quickly the snap and sparkle -returned to his hazel eyes. "Sir, it is what I should like to be--a -great sailor," he said. - -Other words followed. "I shall see your father. Perhaps we can induce -him to let you join one of my vessels," observed the ship-owner from -Whitehaven. "You are very young, but old enough to become an apprentice -or ship's-boy." - -Young John Paul ran home as fast as his legs could carry him, his heart -beating with joy. Oh, such luck! It seemed to him he had always wanted -to be a sailor--a real sailor, one who could tread a big vessel's deck, -climb her rigging, and go far out to sea past that misty blue line that -separated home waters from the mystery and adventure of the domain lying -leagues beyond. - -Since he was a mere baby he recalled that he had always had a passion to -sail something, even so simple a thing as a leaf, the half of a walnut -shell, a bit of wood supporting a paper sail. And, in the beginning, the -duck-pond, a horse-trough, or a puddle of rainwater, had been his sea. -But he outgrew these limitations as he outgrew his kilts: more room must -be provided for his bounding spirits and expanding ambition. Then had -come first thoughts of the seashore; father's and mother's warnings that -the strong tides of the Solway were too dangerous to play with, had only -increased his desire to tussle with them. So he had run away, been -sternly chastised, had run away again--until at length, despairing of -restraining his son from the natural craving of his heart, John Paul -senior threw away his switch and left the youngster to the care of -Providence whenever his footsteps prompted him waterward. - -As time went on, young John had grown into a sturdy lad whose chief -delight was to sail off in the fishermen's boats for a day's catch. What -he dreamed, what he planned, as he watched the far horizon, no one -knows, for he was not the kind of a boy to tell others of his inner -thoughts at that age. But that he did have frequent golden dreams we may -rest assured, since, between the times he was making himself useful in -casting and hauling in the nets, his older comrades often caught him in -abstracted study of distant spaces. - -In those days Scottish schools were not what they are now. There were -very few of them then, and the instruction had not begun to reach the -thoroughness it has since attained. Less than a dozen children attended -the little school in Arbigland to which Johnnie Paul had been consigned -at the age of eight. It was so difficult to get a teacher that sometimes -for weeks at a time there was no one to hold forth in that office. These -occasions were very satisfying to our Johnnie Paul, for the truth is, he -much preferred paddling around the water to fingering over the pages of -his books. But he was not lazy, and during the short time he did spend -under the roof of a schoolhouse, he must have applied himself, for the -records show that at twelve years of age he could figure and read and -write very well indeed for that period. - -The lad's mother had been Jean Macduff, the daughter of an Argyll -Highlander who had moved into the Lowlands, there to abandon his trade -of armorer and become a farmer near New Abbey. Jean Macduff later left -her home and came to Arbigland to accept a position as lady's-maid to a -Mrs. Craik whose husband was a prosperous land-owner possessing an -extensive estate and splendid buildings on top of the promontory hanging -above the shores of the Solway. - -When quite a young man, John's father, a Lowlander, had also found -employment on the Craik estate as gardener, and later by reason of his -faithful work and popularity in the community, he had been made -game-warden. The young gardener and the young lady's-maid soon fell in -love with each other, were married, and in due course of time were -blessed with five children, of whom Johnnie was the youngest. He was -born in the year 1747. William, the brother, had gone to live with a -cousin, William Jones, a childless planter in Virginia, before John was -born. Willie had never been back since that day. He had been adopted by -the distant cousin, and might never return, John's parents said, but it -was hoped and expressed in letters that he would some of these days make -the long voyage back to old Scotland for a brief visit. How Johnnie did -yearn to see this big brother whose letters he loved to read but whom he -had never seen! Of late he had even dared to think of making a voyage -himself to American shores, there to seek out the long-absent one. - -The Paul cottage, overgrown with creepers, and sheltered from the fierce -northeast winds by thick trees and shrubbery, stood so close to the -seashore that it was never free from the sound of lapping waters and -the boom of breakers. It was the boy's delight, before he went to sleep -of a night, and before he arose of a morning, to lie for some time and -listen to the music of the waves, his vivid fancy investing these voices -with the power of telling him strange tales of strange peoples and -strange places, far, far away. - -When young John was not on the water, in school, or at home, he could -usually be found somewhere about Mr. Craik's estate. He was kindly -treated, and the playmate of the sons of the good laird's family. With -the democracy of boyhood he and the Craik lads enjoyed climbing -everything in the neighborhood, from the highest trees to the most -rugged cliffs, where lurked unexplored treasures in the shape of -sea-birds' eggs. They penetrated caves and caverns under the cliffs with -that sublime disregard of tides which is boyhood's happy prerogative. -They lingered at the hearths of Old Elspeth and Meg Merrilies, in the -valley below, drinking in tales of elf and goblin--too frightened to go -home in the dusk, until the servants of the big house finally hunted up -and retrieved them. - -And now all this commonplace existence was to be traded off for the more -alluring one of a sailor's life--if only the stranger from Whitehaven -did not forget to keep his word and ask Johnnie Paul's father and mother -to permit him to go off to sea--and if that father and mother could be -prevailed upon to give their consent! - -Young John had never covered the distance from the waterfront to his -humble home as quickly as he had that stormy afternoon following his -meeting with Mr. James Younger. There he shouted the news to his shocked -mother, and then, still in his wet garments, ran over to the Craik -estate and told his father and Mr. Craik himself. - -Had not the latter interceded in his behalf at the last moment it is -doubtful if John Paul senior and his good wife would ever have allowed -Johnnie to go, when Mr. Younger called that evening and presented the -case to them. As it was, they finally agreed that their youngest son -should become an apprentice to the Whitehaven ship-owner. - -Then John Paul was indeed a happy boy. He did not sleep a wink that -night. All through the long hours he lay listening to the lashing -waves. They had never sounded so sweet before. - - - - -II - -THE LAND ACROSS THE SEA - - -"Gude-by, mither! Gude-by, faither! Gude-by, dear sisters!" - -The big ship which had brought Mr. James Younger to Arbigland in quest -of sailors tugged restlessly at her anchor-chains in the river. Her -sails were being unfurled to the fresh breeze by her crew. The storm of -the day before had subsided during the night, and all was ready for the -departure. - -Already a yawl-load of newly-engaged seamen had reached the vessel's -deck. And now, with a little bundle under his arm and the kisses of his -kinsfolk still warm on his cheek, young Johnnie Paul courageously tried -to keep back the lump that seemed bound to rise in his throat, and -stepped into the last ship's-boat with Mr. Younger himself. As the -oarsmen bent to their task and the boat left the dock farther and -farther behind, John waved his hand to the group on the shore. Beside -his own household Mr. Craik's family were gathered there to see him off, -also every man, woman, and child in the village. He knew them all. Every -one was sorry to see him go, and all wished the lad they loved -God-speed. - -John had not fancied his eyes would blur this way when the final parting -should come. He had never been away from home before in all his twelve -years of life. It is no wonder that for a short time he had an impulse -to ask Mr. Younger to turn about and leave him behind. - -But fortunately for the country in which American children live, this -Scotch lad steeled himself into seeing his bargain through, be it for -better or for worse. So he maintained a steadfast silence, gazed -straight ahead at the scurrying sailors aboard the big ship, which was -now quite close, and, quickly absorbed in their movements, soon -recovered his enthusiasm for the project upon which he had entered. -Landlubber though they might call him, he determined to show these tars -that he was no stranger to the ways, whims and tricks of water even if -he were unused to handling a big vessel. - -Two hours later the high cliffs marking the site of Arbigland were all -that young John could see of the little fishing-village. They were well -out in the Solway, plowing their way toward Whitehaven, on the adjoining -English coast. The sea was still quite rough--rough enough to have made -any lad unused to the rolling motion of a boat prodigiously seasick. Not -so Johnnie Paul. To the disappointment of a number of the old salts who -expected to have sport with him in this way, John went about his new -duties as serenely as if he had been on land. Therefore they found no -opportunity to offer him the remedy they were wont to hand out to the -usual run of shipmaster's apprentices-- - - "Just a wee drap o' saut water, - And if a piece o' fat pork, after, - Tied in a string ye tak' an' swallow, - Ye'll find that muckle change will follow." - -Nor did he have to listen to the suggestion, always gravely given, that -the sufferer should make his will, which did not seem amiss, so awful -are the pangs of that first hour when the novice is afraid he _will_ -die--and the second, when he is afraid he will _not_! - -All in all, the Scotch lad stood that first short voyage to Whitehaven -in fine shape. So bravely had he faced the jibes and rough play of the -sailors coming across the Solway, so well had he performed his duties, -that Mr. Younger's interest in him expanded. When they reached port he -had the boy take quarters with him at his own splendid home, where Mrs. -Younger treated him with as much consideration as if he were her own -son. Here John stayed for almost two weeks, while the new vessel on -which he was to sail was taking on her finishing touches and being fully -provisioned. In the meantime he was not idle, running errands for his -host and hostess, working in their garden, and making himself generally -useful. - -Spare moments he put in thumbing his way through various volumes in the -splendid library of Mr. Younger. Indeed, so assiduously did he apply -himself to reading several books on naval history that, the day he left, -the ship-owner presented him with two such works, much to John's -gratification. With his own meager savings he purchased an oilcloth -wrapper for these treasures and stored them carefully away aboard the -_Friendship_, the new vessel. - -Mr. Younger's line of ships were engaged largely in the American trade; -so when John learned that the _Friendship_ was going to make her maiden -voyage to Virginia, the very State in which his brother Willie was -located, his joy knew no bounds. Just before he stepped aboard for the -last time he mailed a letter to his mother, telling her of the happy -tidings, and as the big ship worked out into the Irish Sea, with her bow -pointed for the New Country across the Atlantic, he looked forward to -the trip with a rare eagerness. - -His ship was commanded by Captain Benson. This skipper was a stern -disciplinarian, none too well liked by the crew. Yet he was kind to the -young apprentice, who found him just in every particular, and admired -his high-spirited nature, so much like his own. - -The lad learned fast. With the sailors he was always a favorite. Before -the vessel reached American waters he could climb a mast or yardarm with -the most nimble of them, and was as fearless as the captain himself when -the waves were running high. - -At last the green shores of America were sighted one morning by the -lookout at the masthead. Near sunset the _Friendship_ dropped anchor in -the quiet waters of the Rappahannock River, not far from the plantation -where Willie Paul lived with William Jones, the cousin who had adopted -him years ago. - -Johnnie's heart beat like a trip-hammer as he made his way, after some -inquiries, up the winding drive which led toward a big white house. All -around stretched acres of fertile fields, now heavy with ripening grain -and tobacco. At the rear of the great house were numbers of smaller -buildings, about some of which he could see negro children playing. -Surely _all_ of this could not belong to the Jones estate! Why it was -bigger than the wonderful premises of the Craiks!--even bigger than all -of the fishing-village of Arbigland itself! The Scotch boy faltered. He -stopped. He must have made a mistake. Once more he swept his eyes around -at the huge fields, from one quarter of which came faintly rolling -toward him the sounds of a rollicking negro chorus. - -Just then a tall figure--that of a young man--appeared on the portico of -the great house. This person gazed intently toward the lad, then -proceeded in his direction. - -As the young man came closer, John saw that he was a splendid-looking -fellow. While slender he had a broad chest and square shoulders, and a -heavy mass of wavy auburn hair crowned his bare head, behind which it -was gathered in the manner of the period. Finer breeches, waistcoat, -stockings, gaiters, and shoes, the boy had never seen. - -The young man's blue eyes looked down into John's pleasantly and -inquiringly. "Well, my lad," said he in perfect English, "can I serve -you in any manner?" - -"Sir," replied John awkwardly, "I fear I ha' been trespassing a wee bit. -I ha' just come this day in a gude vessel, the _Friendship_, all the way -from Whitehaven, England, and I am bent on seeing my brither who has -lived some'r' in these parts this many a year." - -"Your speech shows you to be Scotch. What is this brother's name?" asked -the planter quickly. - -"Willie Paul it was, but now it be Willie Jones because----" - -"Willie Jones! And you are...?" - -"Johnnie Paul, sir." - -"Johnnie," said the young man, seizing him by the shoulders and squaring -him around, as he peered earnestly down at the boy, "look fairly into my -face. Tell me--is there anything you see there which reminds you of -anybody you know?" - -"On'y two things, sir. Ye ha'--asking pardon--the big ears o' my faither -an' the twinklin' blue eyes o' my mither." - -The young man smiled. Those blue eyes twinkled more than ever. "Johnnie -Paul," cried he, "you are very observing; but apparently not enough so -to recognize me as your brother!" - -The next moment his big arms had swept around the little sailor, and -Johnnie had never known such a happy moment. He was overjoyed to meet -finally this brother he had never seen before. Together the happy pair -went up the path and into the great house where the lad from far-away -shores was made the welcome guest of the plantation owner and -foster-father of Willie, William Jones himself. - -Just two weeks the _Friendship_ lay in the river discharging her -consignment of farm implements, so much needed by the new settlers, for -a cargo of tobacco and cotton to be taken back to England. Young John's -services were not required aboard ship during this time, and it gave him -a fine chance to visit with his brother and gain some knowledge of -plantation life. He found that William Paul Jones had married since the -family in Scotland had heard from him last, and that he was now overseer -of his foster-father's estate, with a splendid future apparently -awaiting him. - -The premises boasted of some of the finest horses in the country. It was -John's delight to mount one of these mettlesome animals and with his -brother or Mr. Jones go cantering down the shady Virginia roads in the -neighborhood, or, at slower pace, cover the grounds of the big -plantation. Of an evening they would call on neighbors, else neighbors -would partake of the hospitality of the Jones's. The boy took an -immediate liking to the generous, outspoken class of people he met. The -American boys especially pleased him. In their active, fearless play, -and love for adventure, they seemed a part of his own bold and hardy -Scotch spirit. Many a wrestling bout did he indulge in with the best of -them, and while he was sometimes thrown he had the satisfaction of -knowing that it never was by a chap younger than himself. - -Mr. Jones took a strong fancy to the little Scotchman. Since Willie had -been adopted he had come to regard the elder brother with the strongest -of paternal affection, but now that he had grown up and married, the -foster-father found himself yearning once more for young companionship. -Just before Johnnie left, this kind-hearted planter offered to adopt him -also. But the lad's real love was for the sea. Much as he liked this -interesting, free life in Virginia, he did not feel that he could give -up his precious ships for it. - -So off he sailed for Whitehaven. - - - - -III - -THE YOUNG SAILOR - - -Life before the mast in 1759 was a hard routine, not calculated to make -a "sissy" or a mollycoddle out of any boy. Colleges and training-schools -for turning out ship's officers there were none; every single man who -attained such executive positions did so at the long and laborious -expense of time and actual service in positions lower down the ladder. - -Johnnie Paul knew all the hard work that lay before him, before he had -been aboard the _Friendship_ a fortnight, for there were many old -veterans of the crew--failures themselves in the way of promotion--who -were only too glad to try to discourage the lad because they felt -irritated at their own lack of progress. One of the most persistent of -these was a black-browed, bewhiskered fellow named Tom Whiddon. Whiddon -was a jealous-minded sailor, given to sulky spells, and he seemed to -take pleasure in telling John at every opportunity that the life of a -sailor was a dog's life at the best, and that only men of money having a -"pull" with the owners could ever hope to get an officer's berth. - -The Scotch lad listened to Tom Whiddon's growling complaints with -growing impatience, although politely enough at first. As the seaman -continued to harass him he asked him to desist, but this only caused a -coarse laugh from Whiddon and some of his associates who were -disgruntled at Captain Benson's apparent liking for the young -apprentice. - -Finally came a day when the good ship lay becalmed. At such times a crew -usually has difficulty to while away the hours. Between the times when -they are "whistling for a wind" there is little to do except to talk, -tell yarns, do stunts, and play practical jokes on one another. - -John had already found out to his sorrow, by reason of several other -becalmings on the trip from Whitehaven to America, that when there is a -boy aboard, that boy is likely to be the chief butt of such practical -jokes. As then it was so now. But as then he also now good-naturedly -laughed with them at the pranks they played at his expense. It was only -when Tom Whiddon, with a malicious grin on his face, publicly called him -the "cap'n's baby" that Johnnie's quick Scotch temper got the best of -him. - -Like a flash he stood before the black-browed Whiddon, a belaying-pin in -one hand, his hazel eyes snapping fire, his cheeks burning at the -injustice of the remark. - -"Say that again, Tom Whiddon, an' I'll knock ye flat on this deck!" -cried Johnnie. - -There was a tenseness in his tones, an earnestness in his demeanor that -should have warned Whiddon. But the big bully saw only his own gigantic -proportions as compared with the small bundle of quivering flesh -confronting him. Stung by the lad's threat and the amused looks his -comrades cast in his direction, Whiddon blurted out: - -"Hi say it ag'in--'cap'n's baby'! an' hif you don't----" - -The sailor was about to say, "Hif you don't drop that belayin'-pin Hi'll -trounce you good an' proper, ye little snapper," when the boy's arm -whipped forward, the belaying-pin landed on Whiddon's thick skull and -he measured his length on the deck. - -The crew had not looked for such summary action on the part of the -master's-boy no more than had the burly Whiddon himself. It had seemed -ridiculous to think such a small boy would go to such extremes in -upholding his honor and dignity. Now, as they gazed down aghast at their -fallen comrade, who moved not a muscle, they were almost as stunned as -he. - -When they awoke, one or two of them sprang forward and seized the boy, -but a half-dozen others, including the first and second mates, pulled -them away. - -"Leave the lad alone!" they demanded. "Whiddon got no more than he -deserved." - -This seemed to be the consensus of opinion. The fellow was deservedly -unpopular. Not a hand was lifted for his relief until young John Paul -himself got some water, sprinkled it in his face, and brought him to. -This tenderness of heart was characteristic of the lad in later years. -It is said that when he became skipper of his own vessel, on more than -one occasion his hot temper caused him to cuff or kick one of his -officers for a breach of discipline, while his sympathetic nature -immediately afterward prompted him to invite the culprit to mess with -him in his cabin. - -Merchant ships then plying for trade were not fitted out with the -refinements of a modern hotel, as might be said of many of them -nowadays; after a few days out even the captain's table could not boast -fresh provisions, and long voyages almost inevitably ended with scurvy -among the crew, due to lack of green vegetables and an overdose of -brine. Though the _menu_ lacked variety, the same could not be said of -the names of the dishes which were not only picturesque but in some -cases actually descriptive. For instance, there was "Salt Junk and -Pork," "Lobscouse," "Plum-duff," "Dog's Body," "Sea Pies," "Rice Tail," -"Hurryhush," "Pea Coffee," and "Bellywash." - -With our steam and wireless to-day it is hard to realize the complete -isolation which was formerly the seaman's lot. Empires might rise and -fall, and Jack be none the wiser until he touched at port, or spoke some -swifter craft within hail of the skipper's brazen-throated -speaking-trumpet. Often becalmed for days at a time, in the manner -previously referred to, with nothing to break the sameness of glassy -water and nebulous horizon, the most trifling incident furnished food -for conversation and attention. - -Even when the ship was under headway, the incessant moaning and -whistling of wind through the rigging, the dull flapping of canvas at -every shift of the breeze, itself bore a sense of monotony which made -the crew long for the sight of a friendly sail or a bit of land. Once in -port, the captain, relieved of responsibility, had his own affairs to -occupy him ashore, as did most of his officers. His crew, divided -between land and craft alternately, were entertained aboard by scores of -natives with baskets of gewgaws to sell, and very often guzzled rum -ashore until they could scarcely zig-zag their way back to the yawl. - -Despite its temptations, life at sea had a broadening influence for the -average young man of the time. He returned very much more the man of the -world, with harder muscles, and was far better able to take care of -himself than his stay-at-home brother. On his voyages he gathered a -store of extensive and varied information relating to the races and the -geography of the world, that he could never get out of books. True, his -associations and experiences made him a rough, blunt-spoken fellow as a -rule; but on the whole they made his heart more sympathetic for those in -trouble, more understanding of the big things in life. - -Johnnie Paul was now an attractive lad, high-spirited, quick to anger at -injustice, open and honorable,--traits he seemed to have taken from the -Highland blood of his mother. To his father, the Lowlander, he probably -owed his restraining sense of strategy and caution. But for the latter -inheritance of character it is likely his bold spirit would often have -gotten him into trouble, and he could never have won the fights which he -did later on. While John's rough life, in association with common seamen -from the time that he was twelve years old, and his lack of previous -education, made difficult his becoming what he ardently wished to be--a -cultivated gentleman--he applied himself diligently to that end. During -the long years on the deep which followed, by hard study the boy -educated himself to a considerable degree, not only in seamanship and -navigation, but also in naval history and in the French and Spanish -languages. On a voyage his habit was to seek out a quiet spot, with his -books, at every lull in his tasks. On shore, instead of carousing with -his associates, he was given to hunting out the most distinguished or -best-informed person he could find; by chatting with him, he added to -his rapidly increasing fund of knowledge. His handwriting was always the -painful scrawl of a schoolboy, probably because being far more adept -with his tongue than with his spelling, he preferred to dictate most of -his letters, that their recipients should not suspect his limited -schooling, a matter about which he was always very sensitive. - -For four years following his maiden voyage, John Paul was a member of -the crew of the _Friendship_. His voyages were mainly to and from the -West Indies. During this time he managed to call twice upon his brother -Willie in Virginia, and each time the people there grew to like him -better, and he to appreciate the attractions of the New Country. He also -had been to see his folks at Arbigland once or twice, on occasions when -his ship was laying-over at Whitehaven, and these were happy occasions -for all concerned, as we may suppose. - -John's rise in the merchant service was rapid. When he was sixteen, a -sturdy youth with the nimbleness of a cat and almost the strength of a -man, Mr. Younger retired from business, and as a reward to the -capability and faithfulness of his charge, the ship-owner returned him -the indentures which made him his own master. In addition to this he -presented him to the captain of the _King George_ of Whitehaven, a -slaver, with recommendation that the lad be given an appointment as -first-mate. - -It must be remembered that at this time the slave-trade was not regarded -as anything dishonorable. Numerous vessels were attracted to it as a -money-making venture, and openly plied back and forth between the home -of the black man and the island of Jamaica. Few sailors, few officers, -few of the people at large, thought it wrong to steal lusty young -negroes and negresses away from their parents and kinsmen and offer them -for sale to the Jamaican slave-dealers and plantation owners. - -So young John Paul first engaged in the trade without any compunctions -of conscience. But it was not for long. At the end of two years he had -seen so many broken hearts among the blacks as a result of the forced -partings, had been an observer of so much unnecessary suffering because -of the cruelty of the rough fellows who handled the human freight, that -his heart sickened. In fact, so disgusted was he that he even sold out -the sixth interest which he had obtained in the ship, quitted it, and -boarded the _John O'Gaunt_, at Kingston, Jamaica, bound as a passenger -for Whitehaven. - -On the trip home the captain, mate, and all but five of the crew of the -_John O'Gaunt_ died of yellow fever. Not a man was left, except John -Paul, who knew enough about navigation to bring the afflicted ship into -port. So the lad took charge. With neatness and dispatch he guided the -brig across the dangerous waters of the Atlantic and into her haven. Her -pleased owners rewarded him with a share of her cargo, and gratified him -even more by making him captain and supercargo of a new ship--the -_John_--which was engaged in the West Indian merchant trade. - -Life on a merchantman is rough enough to-day; it was far rougher at that -time. To maintain discipline at sea required a strong hand and a tongue -none too gentle. Kind-hearted enough by nature, John had learned his -lessons by this time; he knew that indecision and softness had no place -in an efficient skipper's makeup before his men, and while good enough -to his crew at all times he insisted that they obey his commands with -respect and promptness. - -During the third voyage of the _John_, when fever had greatly reduced -the crew and every man on board was more or less fretful and irritable, -Mungo Maxwell, a mulatto carpenter, became mutinous to such an extent -that the young commander deemed it advisable to have him flogged, not -only as fitting punishment, but as a salutary example for the -observation of the remainder of the crew. The chastisement duly took -place. It was not unusually severe, but it happened that, unknown to the -youth, the man was just coming down himself with the scourge. He took to -his bed, the fever gripped him, and he never arose again. - -A few envious enemies of John immediately circulated reports that the -mulatto had been struck down and murdered by the young captain. He was -arrested by the governor of Tobago, in the vicinity of which the vessel -happened to be at the time, and taken before the tribunal of that place. -Since the body of the stricken carpenter had been immediately consigned -to the deep, following the custom in such deaths, it could not be -produced to substantiate John's claims of innocence, but witnesses in -his favor were plentiful enough to aid in his acquittal. - -This incident, in spite of its outcome, worried the lad a great deal. -His pride was hurt. In a letter to his mother and sisters, he referred -frequently to it with remorse, and in those parts where he told of -people still throwing it up to him in a condemning manner, his language -was even bitter. Can we blame him? - -A year later, in 1870, when he was twenty, John learned that William -Jones, foster-father of his brother, had died, bequeathing to Willie his -entire property of three thousand acres, the buildings, animals, slaves, -and a sloop. A clause of the will particularly personal was to the -effect that, should the adopted son die without children, the estate, -excepting an adequate provision for Willie's wife, was to go to his -youngest brother, our John Paul. - -The next two years the young captain continued to guide the _Two -Friends_, of Kingston, Jamaica, of which he had taken command some four -years earlier. Numerous voyages were made to the Indian Ocean, and -cargoes of woolen and thread goods brought back. Twice trips were made -to Baltic ports. - -Finally, in 1771, John obtained command of the _Betsy_, of London, a -ship trading with the West Indies. This venture made it possible for the -young man to save a considerable amount of money, a goodly share of -which he fondly anticipated sending home to his mother and sisters. - -Just a year later, in 1772, business having called him in that vicinity, -he ran the _Betsy_ into the Rappahannock. He had not seen or heard from -Willie for over a year. This would be a splendid opportunity. How -surprised his brother would be! - -At the door he was met by a servant who knew him at first sight. The -negro's eyes danced with delight, his mouth spread into a broad grin, -showing two rows of glistening white teeth. But the next moment he grew -very sober. - -"Hush, Marse John," he said in the lowest of whispers. "Ah's suah sorry -t' tell yo', but Marse Willyum am berry, berry sick." - -Going in quickly, the young sailor was grief-stricken to find his -brother lying at the point of death. - - - - -IV - -THE YOUNG PLANTER - - -William Jones was, indeed, too ill to recognize his brother, and died in -that condition. John felt the blow keenly, the more so because he could -not have a last word with the kinsman he had seen so little of, and had -come to regard with such strong affection. - -In accordance with the provisions of the will, the bulk of the estate -was now due to go to Johnnie Paul, provided the latter would accept -Jones as a surname. Our young sailor, after some deliberation, decided -to make the change, settle down, and become a Virginia planter. But he -could not satisfy himself with dropping the name of Paul. This was a -family heirloom which he felt he must preserve, especially now since he -was the only male member of his immediate family possessing it, his good -father having gone some months before. Therefore, he forthwith discarded -his Christian name of John--whose commonplaceness he had never -liked--and became known as Paul Jones. Under this half-assumed -appellation he did the really big things of his career which brought him -fame. Under it he shouldered responsibilities of which any true-hearted, -loyal American citizen might well be proud, although he was only the son -of a poor Scotch gardener, a young man without education, without a -country he could really claim as his own. - -Paul Jones--as we shall now have to call him--found that he had -inherited "3000 acres of prime land, bordering for twelve furlongs on -the right bank of the Rappahannock, running back southward three miles, -1000 acres of which are cleared and under plough or grass, 2000 acres of -which are strong first-growth timber; a grist-mill with flour-cloth and -fans turned by water power; mansion, overseer's house, negro quarters, -stables, tobacco houses, threshing-floor, river-wharf, one sloop of -twenty tons, thirty negroes of all ages (eighteen adults), twenty horses -and colts, eighty neat cattle and calves, sundry sheep and swine; and -all necessary means of tilling the soil." - -With the property came also old Duncan Macbean. This canny, tough old -Scotsman Willie Jones had saved from the tomahawks of the Indians at the -time of Braddock's rout. He had brought him home, nursed him until well -of his wounds, and then made him overseer of the plantation. In this -capacity Duncan had amply proved his efficiency. He had become greatly -attached to the place, and in his will the master had requested that he -be continued as overseer as long as he was physically and mentally -capable. - -Paul Jones sent the _Betsy_ back to London under the command of his -first-mate, with word to her owners that, for the present at least, he -was relinquishing the attractions of the sea. He then settled down in -earnest to the new life that had opened up before him. - -As in everything he undertook, he waded into the duties confronting him -with an interest keen and thorough. He was not afraid to ask questions -of those whose experience warranted them knowing more than he about his -new task, no matter how humble or high their stations. In this way he -learned the tricks of the planter with surprising rapidity. It was not -long before he saw the advisability of rotating his tobacco crops with -sowings of maize, that the fertility of his fields might not be -exhausted, and a number of neighboring planters who had never thought of -such a thing before, followed suit. - -There was not a horse on the plantation, nor in the county which could -unseat him. So much was he liked by his slaves that they anticipated his -every wish, it seemed. In the early day, before the sun had become -intolerable, he rode over his broad acres at a leisurely pace, noting -the crops, the black workers, the pickaninnies at play,--everything. -Apparently nothing tending toward a betterment of the condition of his -help and the acres they tilled seemed to escape him. A gentle bit of -censure here, a pat on a woolly head there, a trinket in a child's -outstretched dusky hand, and he would turn his horse's head in another -direction. - -The surrounding forests contained game in profusion; and the low sandy -marshes around Urbana abounded in great flocks of snipe and other -water-fowl. With old Duncan Macbean the young master often shouldered -the fine Lancaster rifle left by his brother, stuck a brace of pistols -in his belt, and spent a day in the wilds. No better shot than the old -Scotsman could be found in the whole country. Although an old Indian -wound had left him lame, this in no wise interfered with his wonderful -skill with either pistol or rifle. He could shoot from either hand or -either shoulder, from almost any position, and put a ball through a wild -turkey's head at a hundred yards. - -Paul Jones could scarcely credit the evidence of his eyes when he first -saw old Duncan shoot, for he had never seen such accuracy before. An -intense desire came over him to master firearms with equal skill. He -imparted this wish to his overseer, and the consequence was that in the -course of the next two years the old veteran taught him to handle the -pistol and rifle with a deadliness which became the talk of the -countryside. - -However, the ability to shoot was really more a matter of necessity than -an accomplishment in those days. Scattering bands of the Rappahannock -Indians often stole down stream to the holdings of the Scotch-Irish -planters along the tidewater shores, and when opportunity offered, ran -off portions of their live stock, or even sent a wicked arrow through an -unwary white man. In her scrolled coach, creaking and swaying on its -great hinges and leather straps, milady never took her airings down the -rough sandy roads without a guarding retinue of armed slaves and whites. -Nor did men themselves venture forth in the fastnesses without their -fingers playing about hammer and trigger, ever ready to throw up the -former at the slightest suspicious sight or sound, ready to pull the -latter when they became convinced that such a procedure was warranted. - -Young Paul Jones enjoyed his new life to the utmost. The constant peril -from the redskins, the exciting brushes which he and old Duncan Macbean -had with some of them on different occasions, the thrilling hunts in the -forest, all went to satisfy his active, adventure-loving nature. On the -other hand, he had plenty of spare time in which to gratify his -ambitions for study, for becoming a man of power in his own section as -well as in the affairs of the new nation. He continued to study from -books, perfected his knowledge of the French and Spanish languages, and -even traveled over the Colonies quite extensively. He entertained -lavishly at home. His gallantry and courtesy made him very popular. - -In his trips away from home he met many prominent statesmen of the time, -and renewed friendships with others whom he had previously met. Among -the latter was Joseph Hewes, with whom he was unusually intimate. Other -noted men of his acquaintance were Thomas Jefferson, Philip Livingston, -George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, the Lees, and Robert and -Gouverneur Morris. - -For some time the Colonists had been growing more and more restless -under the burdensome taxes and conditions imposed upon them by England, -the mother-country. The governors she appointed seemed to deal with the -people unjustly, even cruelly at times. Protests did no good. If one -official was removed a worse one was put in his place. So life in the -new land, instead of flourishing, became a burden. - -Bitterness began to creep into the voices of the Colonists when they -talked of Great Britain. The man who thought conditions all right was -frowned upon by the majority and called a "Tory." He was told either to -keep his silence, or go back across the seas. The majority--the -"Whigs"--did not want such men howling for the king on the virgin ground -which they had come hundreds of miles to settle and keep free from the -fetters of aristocratic rulers and their smothering taxes. - -In 1774, Paul Jones, then twenty-seven years of age, returning from -Edmonton, stopped over in Norfolk to visit some friends. Several British -ships lay at anchor in the harbor. The Colonists forgot their grievances -under the impulse of their natural hospitality. Wishing to show kindness -to the king's sailors rather than loyalty to his empire, the Americans -entertained the officers at an elaborate ball. - -As customary at such functions wine was furnished. Instead of partaking -of this sparingly, most of the young English officers drank freely, and -became very insolent and abusive. Stepping up to one of the most -talkative of them--Lieutenant Parker, by name--Paul Jones demanded: - -"Did I not overhear you say, sir, that in the case of a revolt in this -country England will easily suppress it?" - -"Thash jus' what I said," replied Lieutenant Parker thickly. "Mean it -too, m'lad. But I might add that if the courage of your men ish no -finer'n the virtue of your women, you'll be licked before the fight's -one day old." - -In an instant the fist of the young planter, as hard as an oak knot -beneath its laced cuff, swung out from his broad shoulder. The British -officer went down like a log. - -At once there was an aggressive movement on the part of his comrades; -but the Americans, now thoroughly aroused to the defense of their -ideals, flocked around Paul Jones in such numbers that the king's men -fell back, picked up their helpless companion, and hurried aboard their -ships. - -Expecting that, after the custom of the day, Lieutenant Parker might -challenge him to a duel, Paul Jones at once proceeded to make -arrangements with a friend, Mr. Granville Hurst, to represent him in the -event of any negotiations. - -"Propose pistols at ten paces," said the young planter. "Advise the -gentleman I will meet him at Craney Island, at such time as he may -desire." - -But this meeting never took place, for the very good reason that -Lieutenant Parker heard about Paul Jones's unerring use of a pistol; his -sloop departed at ebb tide for Charlestown, and, so far as he was -concerned personally, the incident seemed closed. - -The Colonists, however, did not forget it in a hurry. Like wildfire the -news of the encounter spread. Colonial newspapers all gave considerable -space to it. Suddenly Paul Jones found himself the most-talked-of man in -Virginia. He was the hero of men, women, and children. Unofficially he -had struck the first blow of the threatening conflict with England. - - - - -V - -THE BIRTH OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY - - -The following spring--that of 1775--Paul Jones decided to board his -sloop and make a little pleasure trip by sea to Boston. With his crew -and two favorite slaves, Cato and Scipio, he sailed down the river, -worked out into the Atlantic, and keeping close to the New Jersey -headlands, pointed north. - -When he reached New York he dropped anchor, intending to meet some of -his friends in that city. One of the very first of these he encountered -was William Livingston. This patriot's face showed plenty of excitement. -"Paul, have you heard the news?" he asked. - -"I have not been favored," replied Paul Jones. "I trust it is nothing -serious concerning your own family." - -"I fear it _is_ serious; but it concerns my family no more than it -concerns any other family in the Colonies," was William Livingston's -answer. "Paul, my friend, the British have beaten us at Lexington!" - -Paul Jones was gravely concerned. He plied his friend with many -questions. After a long discussion they parted. The young planter -immediately gave up his plans for visiting Boston; he wished to go home -and in the seclusion of the plantation calmly think over the matter and -decide what to do. - -Within twenty-four hours after his arrival he sent to Thomas Jefferson -the following letter: - - "It is, I think, to be taken for granted that there can be no more - temporizing. I am too recently from the mother country, and my - knowledge of the temper of the king, his ministers, and their - majority in the House of Commons, is too fresh to allow me to - believe that anything is, or possibly can be in store except either - war to the knife or total submission to complete slavery. - - "... I cannot conceive of submission to complete slavery; therefore - only war is in sight. The Congress, therefore, must soon meet - again, and when it meets it must face the necessity of taking those - measures which it did not take last fall in its first session, - namely, provision for armament by land and sea. - - "Such being clearly the position of affairs, I beg you to keep my - name in your memory when the Congress shall assemble again, and in - any provision that may be taken for a naval force, to call upon me - in any capacity which your knowledge of my seafaring experience and - your opinions of my qualifications may dictate." - -One morning, a short time after this, Paul Jones received word that two -French frigates had come to anchor in Hampton Roads. With the -hospitality of the true sailor and true Virginia planter he loaded his -sloop with the best green vegetables the plantation afforded, and -started down the Rappahannock to welcome the newcomers. - -The two frigates were in command of Captain De Kersaint, one of the -ablest officers in the French navy, who afterwards became an admiral. -The second in command was no less than the Duc De Chartres, eldest son -of the Duc D'Orleans, who had sent De Chartres to America on a "cruise -of instruction," to fit him for the hereditary post of Lord High Admiral -of France. He was Paul Jones's own age exactly, and with his charming -wife, the Duchesse De Chartres, he received the young planter with a -great cordiality. Their liking for Paul Jones increased as they chatted. -In fact, the Duke himself took such a violent fancy to their guest that -when the latter asked if he might be shown plans of the construction of -their splendid frigate. _La Terpischore_, with a view to offering -suggestions to the Colonists in building war craft, the French nobleman -readily assented. With royal prerogative he ordered his ship's carpenter -to make deck and sail drawings, hull details,--everything that could in -any way aid the young Scotchman in understanding the essential -constructive features of the vessel. - -It was of inestimable advantage to Paul Jones to have had the -opportunity of inspecting at such close range, much less get drawings -of, one of the best and most modern ships of the French navy. It is not -strange that the American frigate _Alliance_, built some time later, -followed closely the same general lines as _La Terpischore_; that she -mounted the same battery--twenty-eight long 12-pounders on the gun deck, -and ten long 9-pounders above. Was this merely a coincidence? Or, on the -other hand, did the young Scotchman have a hand in the matter? - -At a meeting of the Continental Congress on May 10, 1775, the Naval -Committee invited Paul Jones to lay before it such information and -advice as might seem to him useful in assisting the committee in -discharging its labors. Paul Jones felt strongly on the subject of -establishing a navy, and thought that the only way to start was to offer -prizes to the crews of privateersmen. In a letter to Joseph Hewes he -observed: - - "If our enemies, with the best established and most formidable navy - in the universe, have found it expedient to assign all prizes to - the captors, how much more is such policy essential to our infant - fleet? But I need no argument to convince you of the necessity of - making the emoluments of our navy equal, if not superior, to - theirs." - -In this appeal to Congress there was good common-sense. Paul Jones was -not actuated by a love of gain; he was in the struggle because he -thought it a righteous cause. Yet he knew that while he had the profits -of his plantation for the past two or three seasons--some 4000 -pounds--to fall back upon when his Government allowances should fail to -meet expenses, the average Colonist did not. The wives and children of -the latter must be fed and clothed while he was away fighting. Unless -he could be promised ample revenue from prizes, Paul Jones knew that -Jack would fight half-heartedly and in the dumps, even though he loved -his country in every fiber of his being. His pitifully inadequate -Government allowance of eight dollars a month was surely no attraction. - -On November 15, 1776, Congress improved this situation somewhat, but did -not meet Paul Jones's wishes in the matter, by resolving "that a bounty -of twenty dollars be paid to the commanders, officers, and men, of such -Continental ships or vessels of war as shall make a prize of any British -ships or vessels of war, for every cannon on board such a prize at the -time of such capture; and eight dollars per head for every man then on -board and belonging to such prize." - -In addition to this General Washington approved the following -distribution of the prize: "That the captain or commander should receive -six shares; the first-lieutenant, five, the second-lieutenant and the -surgeon, four; the master, three; steward, two; mate, gunner, -gunner's-mate, boatswain, and sergeant, one and one-half shares; the -private, one share." Nothing was said about the poor cook. Undoubtedly -he ranked with the ordinary seaman when the time of distribution came. - -To all intents and purposes an American, the truth remains that Paul -Jones was a Scotchman. His enthusiastic soul was wholly for the cause of -liberty in his new country, but the men who envied him and wanted the -offices for which his high capabilities fitted him so signally never let -him and others forget that he was an alien. This was, of course, quite -absurd; for what were they themselves? What had they been until a few -months ago? The fact is, Paul Jones had served under three masters, -until he was a far more competent officer than many of those in the -established navies of Europe, where influence and patronage often made -officers of men of long lineage and short experience. - -Thus in the _Journal of Congress_, dated December 22, 1775, the name of -Paul Jones heads the list of first-lieutenants, instead of the list of -captains as it should. His friend Joseph Hewes, who championed the -candidates from the southern colonies, had done his best to make the -young planter a captain, but had failed at the antagonism of John Adams, -who represented the candidates from the northern colonies, which -demanded full control of naval affairs. - -When affairs had at last been worked down to a point of action by sea, -the nucleus of the first navy of the new country consisted of the -_Alfred_, the _Columbus_, the _Andrew Doria_, the _Providence_, and the -_Cabot_. Five little ships to face the finely-appointed scores of -frigates and sloops-of-war in the service of the king! - - - - -VI - -RAISING THE FIRST AMERICAN FLAG - - -That winter of 1776 was a cold one. Snow had lain heavy in the streets -of Philadelphia since frigid blasts had brought the first downfall in -December. In January, the Delaware River, like every other stream in the -country, was locked in the grip of ice, ice a foot or more in thickness. -It was only by the constant plying up and down stream of a couple of -sturdy whaling-ships, equipped with steel-jacketed bows, that an open -channel could be maintained in the Delaware for the passage of ordinary -wooden-hulled craft. - -Along the waterfront of the city innumerable masts and spars made a -somber network against the dull blue of the winter sky. On board some of -the larger of the vessels, despite the cold, men were at work repairing -and overhauling. Well down the glittering sea of ice a group of five -ships swung at anchor in the channel. Their decks, too, were a scene of -action. - -All of this was taken in with a few swift glances by a quick-stepping, -stalwart young man who came down to the wharf and paused to look about -him. He was a comely-looking fellow, with broad shoulders, and a face as -bronzed as a South Sea Islander's. - -It was the young Scotchman and planter, Paul Jones. But his immaculate -linen had been discarded. In its place he appeared in the trim uniform -of a Continental marine lieutenant--blue coat with red-bound -button-holes, round-cuffed blue breeches, and black gaiters. - -As he looked about for a boat to take him out to the five ships riding -at anchor, Paul Jones's eye fell on a tall, lithe young man who was just -in the act of tying the painter of a whaler's yawl to one of the wharf -timbers. - -Paul Jones stepped briskly up to him. "Pardon me, my fine fellow," he -said, "but a guinea is yours if you will row me out to the larger of yon -vessels, the _Alfred_, where I am in urgent service." - -The young man wheeled around, displaying features unmistakably those of -an Indian, but of an unusually intelligent composition. His coal-black -eyes swept over his questioner. "I, Wannashego, will take the white -sea-soldier," he replied in excellent English. - -Without further ado, Paul Jones sprang nimbly down into the boat. Its -owner cast loose and followed. - -As his companion pulled lustily away in the direction of the American -ships, Paul Jones sat studying the rower. When and where had this -redskin of the American forest picked up such splendid address? What -marvelous trick of fate had possessed him of such skill with the white -man's oars? - -"You are an Indian, are you not?" inquired the lieutenant presently. - -"An Indian of Narragansett tribe," was the proud reply. - -"Where did you learn to handle a boat in this manner?" - -"On whaling cruises, sir." - -"You belong to one of these whaling-ships at the wharves, then?" - -"Yes, sir; to _Walrus_. She lies upstream a bit, sir. Three years I have -been with her." - -"How is it you came to leave your people, Wannashego?" asked Paul Jones -curiously. - -"My father, Tassa-menna-tayka, a chief who loves the white people, he -sent me from near Martha's Vineyard to learn your ways and be like you," -declared the young Indian. There was a short pause; he turned his head -for a moment to take his bearings, and then continued: "Sir, I ask if -yonder ships are to fight the great country across the sea?" - -"They are, Wannashego." - -"You goin' to fight on 'em?" - -"I expect to." - -"I like to fight on 'em, too," was the sententious rejoinder of the -young redskin. - -"Do you mean that?" asked Paul Jones sharply. "If you do, Wannashego, I -think I can get Captain Saltonstall, of my ship, the _Alfred_, to ship -you, as we are short-handed." - -"Mean it a heap," said the Indian. "I shoot good. Make two bangs--get -two Red-coats." - -Paul Jones laughed. "I hope so. Well, Wannashego, I'll see what I can do -for you." - -Shortly the boat's nose touched the accommodation-ladder over the -_Alfred's_ side. The young lieutenant held out the promised guinea to -Wannashego, but the Indian straightened up proudly. "I don't want -money," said he. "I like America country heap much. You fight for him, -so I help you beat our enemies, the Red-coats." - -It was a crude expression of sentiment, but Paul Jones interpreted it -correctly, and was deeply affected by it. "Wannashego," he cried, -"return to your captain. If he will release you, and you still want to -fight the Red-coat soldiers of the sea, come to me on this ship -to-morrow and I will stir heaven and earth to make you a member of our -crew." - -Captain Saltonstall was to command the ship, but he had not yet arrived. -So, for the present at least, upon Paul Jones rested the duty of -preparing her for sea. Under his leadership, arrangements went on -speedily and smoothly. The _Alfred_ bid fair to be in readiness before -some of her sister ships, it seemed. - -Next morning, before the sun was an hour high, a yawl containing two men -was seen approaching. At first the lieutenant thought it might be -Captain Saltonstall himself, but his glass soon showed him his mistake. -It was the young Narragansett Indian, Wannashego, who evidently had -secured one of the sailors of his old ship to row him out to the -_Alfred_. - -Paul Jones made him welcome, telling him that he was quite sure the -captain would make no objection when he should appear. Thus Wannashego, -the first and one of the very few full-blooded Indians to fight in the -first navy of this country, became a tentative member of the _Alfred's_ -crew. He took hold of his duties happily and energetically, outdoing -many of his white companions. - -As for the temporary commander, from the time the foot of Paul Jones -touched the deck of the vessel his active spirit pervaded everything, -and the officers under him, as well as the men, felt the force of his -executive power. Besides working all day, he and the other officers -stood watch and watch on deck throughout the wintry nights, to prevent -desertions; and although every other vessel in the squadron lost men in -this manner, not a single deserter got away from the _Alfred_. - -"An' I'll bet a herrin' ag'in a p'tater, mates," remarked Bill Putters, -quartermaster, in the confidence of the forecastle, "that this Leftenant -Jones is a real seaman wot could handle this yere ol' gal better'n -Cap'n Saltonstall. I kin tell it by the cut o' his jib, the way he -squares away to tackle any job he undertakes." - -"Bet so, too, Bill," supported the bos'n, Tom Wilkerson; "an' I'll go -you a cooky he's a fighter. He speaks to most of us so soft you might -think his voice was a tune from a fiddle; but, by Johnny! when Pete -Walker didn't do what he told him to, yes'dy, he thundered at him in a -way that made poor Pete's head rattle with the jar, an' Pete perty nigh -dislocated his spinal collum jumpin' to do what he wanted him to. _I'd_ -like to see the leftenant in full charge. If we ever met up with any o' -them pets of the king you bet there would be some fur flyin'--an' it -wouldn't be ours as much as theirs, neether!" - -One day, in the midst of the bustle of fitting out the ship, Commodore -Hopkins, who was to command the little squadron, came on board the -_Alfred_. He was formally received at the gangway by Paul Jones and -shown over the ship by him. - -The commodore was a big, heavy-set man who had spent the best part of -his life at sea. He examined the vessel carefully, but made no -favorable comments, and the young lieutenant began to fear his work had -displeased the senior officer. - -But it turned out otherwise. A little later, standing on the -quarter-deck, surrounded by the officers, Commodore Hopkins turned to -Paul Jones and said: - -"Your work pleases me extremely, and my confidence in you, sir, is such -that if Captain Saltonstall should not appear by the time these ships -are due to sail, I shall hoist my flag on this ship and give you command -of her." - -A flush of gratification arose in Paul Jones's dark face. He bowed with -the graceful courtesy that always distinguished him. "Thank you, -commodore," said he, "and may I be pardoned for expressing the hope that -Captain Saltonstall may not arrive in time! And when your flag is -hoisted on the _Alfred_, I trust there will be ready a flag of the -United Colonies to fly at the peak-halyards. I aspire to be the first -man to raise that flag upon the ocean!" - -Commodore Hopkins smiled. "If the Congress is as slow as I expect it -will be, some time will elapse before it will have adopted a flag; and -there will not be time to have one made, much less, before we sail." - -In this he was mistaken. The Congress had practically decided upon the -flag, and quite certain of its selection, Paul Jones from his own pocket -had already purchased the materials to make it. Bill Putters was an old -sail-maker, therefore handy with a needle, which it was his boast he -"could steer like a reg'lar tailor-man." To him the young lieutenant -entrusted the making of the first official flag of America they had -seen--a task which swelled old Bill up with a wonderful pride, as well -it might. - -One stormy February day, when the channel had been freed from ice enough -for the little squadron to get out, the _Alfred_ was ready to lend her -spotless decks to the formality of the flag-raising. Captain Saltonstall -had arrived some days before. This disappointed Paul Jones. But he was -as ready to do his duty as first-lieutenant, as in the hoped-for higher -office. - -The commodore's boat was seen approaching on the chill waters of the -river. The horizon was overcast. Dun clouds, driven by a strong wind, -scurried across the troubled sky. The boatswain's call, "All hands to -muster!" sounded through the ship. In a wonderfully short time, owing to -the careful drilling of Paul Jones, the three hundred sailors and one -hundred marines were drawn up on deck. The sailors, a fine-looking body -of American seamen, were formed in ranks on the port side of the -quarter-deck, while abaft of them stood the marine guard under arms. On -the starboard side were the petty officers, and on the quarter-deck -proper were the commissioned officers in full uniform, swords at their -sides. Paul Jones headed this line. - -When it was reported, "All hands up and aft!" Captain Saltonstall -emerged out of the cabin. At this Paul Jones, having previously arranged -it, called out, "Quartermaster!" and Bill Putters, perfectly groomed, -stepped from the ranks of the petty officers and saluted. - -In his hand, carefully rolled up, Bill carried a small bundle. Unrolling -this he followed Paul Jones briskly aft to the flagstaff. He affixed the -flag to the halyards, along with the broad pennant of a commodore just -below, saw that the lines were free, and then stood at attention. - -Meantime the commodore's boat had reached the ladder, and he came over -the side. Just as his foot touched the quarter-deck the flag with the -pennant, under Paul Jones's energetic hands, was hauled swiftly upward. -At the top the breeze caught it in all its fullness, flung it free to -the air, and the sun at that moment burst through the clouds which had -enveloped it, and bathed the emblem in all its fresh glory. - -Every officer from the commodore down instantly removed his cap in -patriotic reverence. The drummer boys beat a double-ruffle. A tremendous -cheer burst from the sailors and marines. - -This was not the present well-known Stars-and-Stripes, which was evolved -later, but the Pine-tree and Rattlesnake Flag with the motto, "Don't -Tread On Me!" As an emblem it was not at all artistic; but the men who -now saw it flung to the breeze for the first time thought only of the -sentiment it expressed, a sentiment still paramount in the heart of -every true-blooded American. And among those who so loudly cheered it -no man was more enthusiastic than the young Narragansett Indian, -Wannashego. - -Commodore Hopkins advanced toward Lieutenant Paul Jones and said: "I -congratulate you, sir, upon your enterprise. This flag was only adopted -in Congress yesterday. You are the very first to fly it." - -Within an hour the _Columbus_, the _Andrew Doria_, the _Cabot_, and the -_Providence_, led by the _Alfred_, were making out toward the open sea -under full spread of canvas, ready to meet whatsoever of the mighty foe -that might appear. - - - - -VII - -AN INGLORIOUS CRUISE - - -The first enterprise determined upon was an expedition to the island of -New Providence, in the West Indies. As it had been learned that Fort -Nassau was well supplied with powder and shot--munitions of war sadly -wanting in the Colonies--it was thought a sudden descent might be -profitable. - -The moment the English sighted the little squadron, a warning gun was -fired from the fort, and all haste made to remove and conceal as much of -the powder as possible. Delayed in getting into the harbor by a sandbar -at its mouth, further delayed by poor judgment on the part of Commodore -Hopkins, it was some time before the smaller vessels could work their -way in far enough to effect a landing of their marines. - -Then it was only to find a small amount of arms and stores awaiting -them. Chagrined at his ill success, the commodore carried off the -governor of the island as a hostage. - -Now all sail was set, and the American squadron made its way cautiously -along the New England coast. Although every part of these waters was -swarming with British vessels, it was determined to try to gain an -entrance into Long Island Sound by way of Narragansett Bay. - -Paul Jones went about his arduous duties as first-lieutenant of the -_Alfred_ with his customary energy and determination. But at heart he -cherished a secret dissatisfaction. Coupled with his disappointment at -his own low official station was a growing impression that the senior -officer of the squadron, Commodore Hopkins himself, was incompetent. In -a number of instances during the Providence Island operation, the keen -eyes of the first-lieutenant had caught him in blunders. Although the -commodore might prove brave enough in an encounter, Paul Jones was sure -that he was not above the average in either enterprise or intelligence. -At the outset of the expedition the young officer was wild to meet the -enemy, regardless of numbers. Now, with a grave doubt gripping his -heart, he feared that they might meet Commodore Wallace's British fleet -off Newport. - -But the day passed without adventure. Numerous white sails were seen in -the distance, none of which drew any nearer. Commodore Hopkins, being -well weighted down with the cannon and supplies captured at New -Providence, made no effort to investigate these far-off ships. "It is -well to let sleeping dogs lie," he said when Captain Saltonstall -proposed going after them. - -Paul Jones's intrepid heart was sickened at such display of -indifference. With his capacity for meeting extraordinary dangers with -extraordinary resources of mind and courage, he could only despise the -risks that other men shunned. - -The young Narragansett Indian, who had been appointed boatswain's mate -by Captain Saltonstall, was also clearly disgruntled at the commodore's -weak attitude. But beyond muttering impatiently under his breath when he -heard Commodore Hopkins's remarks about "sleeping dogs," and nudging -Paul Jones, with flashing black eyes, Wannashego was discreet enough to -say nothing. Intuitively the brave redskin knew that his Scotch friend -felt as he did. - -Toward night they entered the blue waters of Narragansett Bay. A young -moon hung trembling in the heavens. The sky was cloudless, and the stars -shone brilliantly. Wannashego slipped noiselessly up to where Paul Jones -stood on the after-deck. The Indian youth pointed down to the gurgling -green swells as they swept aft along the _Alfred's_ hull. "These are the -waters of my people, the Narragansetts," he said softly. "They touch the -land of my old home and playgrounds." - -"Wannashego, do you wish to go back to your people?" asked Paul Jones -curiously. - -He shook his black-locked head. "No," he answered--"if I can fight -Red-coat sea soldiers soon. But if I have to run away when see 'em, like -this, I like to go back an' ketchum whale on whaler-ship ag'in." He -ended with an expressive grunt of disgust, and took himself off as -silently as he had appeared. - -Shortly after this--about midnight--the lookout on the _Alfred's_ -quarter made out Block Island. It seemed that his call had hardly died -away when a cry of "Sail ho!" was heard from the direction of the -_Cabot_. - -With his night-glass to his eye Commodore Hopkins saw, about a half-mile -away, the shadowy form of a ship. Captain Saltonstall also took a look -at her. Several conjectures were raised as to her identity, and then the -glass was handed to the first-lieutenant. - -"What do you think she is, Mr. Jones?" asked Commodore Hopkins. He had -more confidence in Paul Jones than he dared to confess, even to himself. - -"I should say she was a British frigate, sir," was the lieutenant's -prompt reply. "She is too small for a ship-of-the-line, and she does not -carry sail enough for a merchantman under this breeze. It would seem to -me that she is merely cruising about on the lookout for somebody." - -"That 'somebody' is probably ourselves," answered the commodore -uneasily, "if she's a British frigate as you think. She's likely out on -scout duty, and has a squadron of sister ships somewhere nearby." - -Signal lanterns were raised to the foremasthead, asking the _Cabot_, as -the ship nearest the stranger, to engage the attention of the latter. -But before the captain of the _Cabot_ could comply it was seen that the -distant ship had come about and was making straight for the two American -vessels. - -The decks of the _Alfred_ and _Cabot_ were immediately cleared for -action. No drums were beat, or other unnecessary noise made. The men -worked swiftly, went silently to their quarters; the batteries were -masked and lights placed behind, while ammunition was hurried up from -the magazine-room by the powder-monkeys, the youngest members of the -crew. - -The stranger bore down upon them. Presently came a hail from her deck: -"Who are you, and whither are you bound?" - -The _Cabot_ made answer: "This is the _Betsy_, from Plymouth. Who are -you?" - -Every ear was strained to catch the answer. It came ringing over the -clear water through the still night air: - -"His Majesty's ship _Glasgow_, of twenty-four guns!" - -As the _Alfred's_ battery consisted of the same number of long -9-pounders on the gun deck and six 6-pounders on the quarter-deck it -was apparent that, if the stranger had not lied, her strength in guns -must be at least a match for the Britisher. In addition to this, the -American flag-ship had the support of the little _Cabot_, with her own -fourteen guns and crew of two hundred. Commodore Hopkins felt a great -relief when he noted this. The American crews thought they would make -short work of the enemy. But not so Paul Jones. He had already seen too -much incompetence displayed on that cruise to feel anything but serious -misgivings. - -It was now two-thirty in the morning. The moon had gone down. Evidently -in the darkness that prevailed the _Glasgow_ was ignorant of the fact -that there were other American ships in the little squadron, else she -would have approached with greater caution. As it happened they did not -come up during the fray which ensued, and took practically no part at -all in it. - -The _Cabot_ had now got very close to the lee bow of the enemy, and -suddenly poured a broadside into her. Instantly the British ship seemed -to wake up to her danger. She wore around with all haste, and ran off to -clear for action. In twenty minutes she bore down again, this time with -a grimness of purpose that there was no mistaking. - -Paul Jones was in command of the gun deck. The _Alfred_ was so heavily -laden with war trophies that she was down in the water almost to her -portsills; but the sea was calm and her lowness in no wise prevented the -free use of both her batteries, which were used with the utmost -ferocity. - -The fighting was kept up until daybreak. The _Glasgow_ was hulled a -number of times, her mainmast was deeply scarred, her sails and rigging -well riddled with shot. But she had disabled the little _Cabot_ at the -second broadside from her big guns, and had then concentrated her -attention on the _Alfred_ with such good marksmanship that the -wheelblock of the American was carried away and she came helplessly up -into the wind in such a position that the enemy poured in several -disastrous broadsides before her head could be regained. In this -maneuver such poor seamanship was displayed on the part of Commodore -Hopkins and Captain Saltonstall that Paul Jones fairly boiled within -himself; but he could only hold his peace at the time. Later on, in -letters to his friends, he gave full vent to his disgust at the way the -American ships were handled; for only one commanding officer--Captain -Biddle, of the _Andrew Doria_, who gave futile but heroic chase to the -_Glasgow_--did he have particular praise. - -When, with the coming of morning, the British ship retired, she was -suffered to get away by Commodore Hopkins. He seemed to be glad that she -had not stayed to do them worse damage. The brave American seamen fumed -in the privacy of the fo'c'sl' on that voyage in. Old Bill Putters -cursed at every breath whenever he was out of an officer's sight. - -The Government held two courts-martial following the _Glasgow_ affair. -As a result Captain Hazard, of the _Providence_, was dishonorably -dismissed from service, and numerous other officers censured, among them -Commodore Hopkins. Undoubtedly the latter would have met with dismissal -except for powerful political influences brought to bear in his behalf. - - - - -VIII - -THE YOUNG CAPTAIN - - -Although there was a subtle estrangement between Commodore Hopkins and -Paul Jones, each respected the other's character. At the close of the -inglorious expedition which we have dealt with, the senior officer came -to the conclusion that it would be far less embarrassing to both -concerned were the first-lieutenant of the _Alfred_ placed on some ship -other than that occupied by the chief of the squadron himself. - -Therefore, with more adroitness than he had displayed in meeting the -enemy, Commodore Hopkins managed to induce Congress to offer the -energetic Scotchman a berth as commander of the _Providence_, in the -place of the dismissed Captain Hazard. He also permitted him to take -with him a few of his favorite men, among this number Wannashego, the -young Indian. The latter's joy knew no bounds at this turn of events. -His stoical Indian nature prevented any marked display of his -satisfaction, but his demeanor could not wholly hide it from the -attention of his Scotch friend. - -"Now," declared Wannashego, with shining eyes, "I sure we will see some -heap big fighting. If I stay on that other ship, _Alfred_, one day -longer I sure run away to the whaler-ship or my people. That _Alfred_ no -brave-ship; just squaw-ship--'fraid to fight!" - -Paul Jones smiled in sympathy. He too had felt like a different man -since the announcement of the change. Now that he had full and absolute -control of an American ship himself, he determined he should show his -countrymen and the enemy what he could really do. - -The _Providence_, his new ship, was a small sloop of fourteen guns and -about a hundred men. She was far from a pretentious vessel to look at, -but Paul Jones's sharp eyes detected in her certain lines which augured -for speed, and when he once got her out into the broad reaches of the -Atlantic he found that in this surmise of her sailing abilities he had -not been misled. For her size she was a remarkably good sailer. - -For a time the _Providence_ was kept employed in transporting men and -supplies along the shores at the eastern entrance of Long Island Sound, -and as this was done in the face of numerous British ships which hovered -around like so many hornets, the reputation of the new commanding -officer soon began to grow. - -On August 21 Paul Jones sailed on a six-weeks' cruise--a cruise which -historians have termed the first cruise of an American man-of-war. At -least it was the first to be noted by an enemy--the first that shed any -degree of glory on the flag of the new Republic, whose Declaration of -Independence had been signed less than seven weeks previously. - -It was a venture worthy of the Vikings and their rude boats, for the -seas swarmed with English frigates outranking the little vessel in -everything except the alertness of her commander and the courage of her -crew. From Bermuda to the Banks of Newfoundland he boldly sailed, -defying the fastest ships of the enemy to catch him, and striking terror -to British merchantmen and fishermen. - -During the first week of September the _Providence_ sighted a large ship -which she mistook for an Indiaman homeward bound. This stranger proved -to be the _Solebay_, British frigate of twenty guns. Too late the -_Providence_ discovered her error; there was no chance to withdraw in -dignity. - -The _Solebay_ immediately made for the American, who took to her heels, -relying upon her good sailing qualities to escape, as she had on many -another such occasion. But the Britisher proved she was no mean sailer -herself. In fact, she began to overhaul her foe. - -The day was warm and clear. A strong breeze was blowing from the -northeast. The little _Providence_ was legging it briskly over the -wind-tossed waters. But the _Solebay_ gained on her every hour. - -The chase had started about noon. By four o'clock the frigate was almost -within gunshot. The heart of everybody except the commander was in the -lower regions of his jacket. Paul Jones was serene enough; his -confidence seemed not one whit lessened. Presently he displayed the -reason for his attitude. - -"Look," said he to his chief officer, as he handed him a glass; "do you -not notice that his broadside guns are still unleashed? He thinks he -can take us by firing his bow-chaser. What foolishness! Nothing would be -easier than for us to bear away before the wind and run under his -broadside." - -Nearly every ounce of canvas on the _Providence_ had been flung to the -breeze. Still the _Solebay_ drew closer. - -"He should know who we are before we leave him," declared Paul Jones, -with a grim smile. He uttered a quick order. The next moment the -American colors fluttered out at the masthead. - -To their surprise the _Solebay_ acknowledged the courtesy by also -running up the American emblem. - -"He cannot deceive us by that," said Paul Jones. "His lines tell me as -plain as day he is British. But wait; I shall show him something in a -moment!" - -He called out to the man at the wheel: "Give her a good full, -Quartermaster!" - -"A good full, sir!" came back the instant acknowledgment. - -Paul Jones then ordered the studding-sails set. The next moment the helm -was put about, and before the astonished crew on the _Solebay_ knew -what was happening, the American sloop ran directly under his broadside, -and went off dead before the wind. - -The British frigate came about in haste and confusion. But by the time -she was under headway again, the American ship was far off, her -newly-trimmed studding-sails bellying to the breeze and gaining speed at -every leap and bound. Needless to say, the _Solebay_ was now out of the -running, a very crestfallen enemy. Such clever maneuvering her commander -had never witnessed before. - -Three weeks later the _Providence_ was saucily threading northern -waters. - -One day, off Cape Sable, Wannashego and several others of the sailors -asked permission to try to catch some of the splendid fish which -abounded in those cold waters. As they had been on salt provisions for a -long while, Paul Jones readily consented, and the ship was hoved to. The -men got out their lines, and soon began to haul in some fine specimens -of the finny tribe. - -While they fished, a sharp lookout was kept for danger from the British. -It was well this was done, apparently, for presently a sail was made -out to windward of them. At once the fishing stopped, the _Providence_ -set some of her light sails, and the anchor was hauled in. - -As the stranger approached, Paul Jones convinced himself that she was no -such sailer as the _Solebay_, and making sure a little later that she -was a British warship he determined to amuse himself with her. He -communicated his plans to his officers, and patiently waited for the -frigate, which turned out to be His Majesty's ship, the _Milford_. - -The young captain made no move until the British craft got almost within -range, whereupon he doubled on her quarter and sped away under -restrained speed on the new course. Mistaking the rate she was traveling -at to be her best, and cheered at the thought of over-taking her, the -English captain took up the chase with gusto. For seven or eight hours -the pursuit continued, all this time the _Providence_ cunningly keeping -just beyond gunshot of her enemy, yet seeming to exert herself to the -limit in maintaining her position. - -Finally getting discouraged at his want of success, the Britisher began -firing. Turning to his chief marine officer, Paul Jones said: "Direct -one of your men to load his musket, and as often as yonder enemy salutes -our flag with her great guns, do you have your man reply with his -musket!" - -A broad grin spread over the marine officer's face. He soon had his man -stationed on the quarter-deck, and the next time the frigate rounded to -and sent a futile broadside in the direction of the _Providence_, the -marine elevated his musket and banged away. Several times this -performance, a perfect burlesque in the quaintness of its humor, was -indulged in. And each time, as the comparatively mild report of the -musket followed the roar of the enemy's big guns, the American sailors -laughed uproariously and cheered. - -"We have had our fun now, my men," said Paul Jones. "This fellow has -swallowed our bait gloriously; the time has come for us to stop -_fishing_ and go about our business." - -He thereupon ordered more sail spread, and in a short time the -astonished _Milford_--which he would have attempted to capture had she -not clearly been a more powerful vessel--was left well behind. Although -he did not know it then, the Scotch captain was to meet this foe again -within the year. - -Before he returned, this bold tiger of the sea succeeded in capturing -sixteen British vessels. He also made an attack on Canso, Nova Scotia, -thereby releasing several American prisoners; burned three vessels -belonging to the Cape Breton fishery; and in a descent on the Isle of -Madame destroyed several large fishing-smacks. - -When at last Paul Jones reached his own shores again he left behind him -a terrorized enemy who since that cruise have ever called him a -buccaneer and pirate. Why England should regard this valiant -sea-fighter, who never needlessly shed a drop of blood, or took a -penny's-worth of spoils out of the larder of war, in this insulting -light, its countrymen have never satisfactorily explained. But we do -know that Lord Nelson himself was never a cleaner fighter; that the very -brilliancy and extreme daring of Paul Jones's exploits stunned his -enemy, and left them in a species of stupefaction. - -Welcomed home with unusual acclaim, Paul Jones found that during his -absence two things had happened which vitally concerned him. One thing -was the ravaging of his plantation by the British. His fine buildings -now lay in ashes, he was told. His splendid heifers had gone to satisfy -the appetites of the raiding soldiers under Lord Dunmore. His slaves, -who had become to him "a species of grownup children," had been carried -off to die under the pestilential lash of cruel overseers in Jamaican -canefields, while the price of their poor bodies swelled the pockets of -English slave-dealers. To his great pleasure, however, he learned that -his own overseer, canny old Duncan Macbean, had gotten away and joined -General Morgan's riflemen, presumably there to wreak vengeance on the -Red-coats with John Paul's own trusty rifle. - -This was indeed a hard blow to the young captain who, in commenting upon -it, wrote to Mr. Hewes: "It appears that I have no fortune left but my -sword, and no prospect except that of getting alongside the enemy." - -The second bit of news was the belated notification that, while he was -away on his cruise, Congress, on October 10, 1776, had made him a -commissioned captain in the United States Navy. It might be expected -that such an announcement would be very gratifying to him, but not so. -Paul Jones received it with more bitterness of spirit than pleasure, for -he was only number eighteen in the list of appointees. This was an -injustice which he never forgot, and to which the sensitive fellow -referred all through his subsequent life. He thought he ought to have -been not lower than sixth in rank, because, by the law of the previous -year, there were only five captains ahead of him. In the meantime, too, -he had done good service, while the new captains ranking above him were -untried. - -If Paul Jones had a failing it was that of desire for prestige. Rank was -to him a passion, not merely because it would enable him to be more -effective, but for its own sake. He liked all the signs of -display--titles, epaulets, medals, busts, marks of honor of all kinds. -"How near to the heart of every military or naval officer is rank, which -opens the door to glory!" he wrote. But, mind you, Paul Jones did not -have the "swelled head." He never once over-estimated his abilities, -inwardly or outwardly; and he desired fame because he knew he was -entitled to it. If the reward failed to come after he had qualified for -and performed the service, he felt cheated--just as the day-laborer -feels cheated when he does his task and is not paid his wage. - -On November 4, 1776, Paul Jones was placed in command of the _Alfred_, -the ship on which he had made his first cruise as a first-lieutenant -some nine months earlier. In company with the _Providence_, now under -the command of Captain Hacker, he made a cruise of about a month, -captured seven merchant ships, several of which carried valuable -supplies to the British army, and again cleverly avoided the superior -enemy frigates. While making for port they encountered armed transports, -the _Mellish_ and the _Bideford_, both of which had been separated from -their convoy, the _Milford_, in a terrific gale. Although larger and -heavier ships in every way, the Americans attacked and captured them. -Shortly afterward the _Milford_, accompanied by a British -letter-of-marque, put in an appearance, and gave chase. Once more Paul -Jones was too clever for the British frigate. He outsailed and -outmaneuvered her, getting away with all his prizes except the smaller -of the transports, which had fallen astern. - -After his return, in early December, from the cruise in the _Alfred_, -Paul Jones served on the Board of Advice to the Marine Committee, and -was very useful in many ways. He urged strongly the necessity of making -a cruise in European waters for the sake of moral persuasion, and -offered to lead such an expedition. His energy and dashing character -made a strong impression on Lafayette, who was then in the country, and -who heartily supported the project. He wrote a letter to General -Washington, strongly recommending that Paul Jones be made head of such -an expedition. - -About the same time the young captain had an interview with Washington, -in which he appealed against what he considered another injustice. The -_Trumbull_--one of the fine new American frigates just completed and -built in New Amsterdam in accordance with Paul Jones's own plans--had -been placed under the command of Captain Saltonstall, whom the Scotchman -considered incompetent. - -Paul Jones did not get the _Trumbull_ after all; but the interview was -not without its effect. A little later the Marine Committee ordered him -to enlist seamen for his suggested European cruise. And on June 14, -1777, Congress appointed him to the command of the sloop-of-war -_Ranger_, of eighteen guns. - - - - -IX - -ABOARD THE "RANGER" - - -When Paul Jones was ordered to Portsmouth to command the new -sloop-of-war _Ranger_, Congress allowed him to take with him a few of -his favorite petty officers. Of course among this number was Wannashego, -the young Narragansett. The bold Scotch captain had formed a strong -liking for Wannashego, whom he had found not only an able boatswain's -mate and an impetuous fighter, but one most devoted to his own -interests. Indeed, the young Indian fairly worshiped the decking his -splendid officer trod. They had served together ever since their first -meeting, going from the _Alfred_ to the _Providence_, then back to the -_Alfred_ again. And now they were once more to be together--this time in -a long and probably stirring voyage across the big sea, right into the -very home-waters of the enemy himself! No wonder the heart of Wannashego -stirred with happy expectation. - -Another old shipmate to accompany Paul Jones on the new expedition, but -one hitherto unmentioned, was Nathaniel Fanning, now a third-lieutenant. -From this friend, a very keen observer of our hero at all times, as well -as a man of more than ordinary intelligence, we get the following -interesting description of Paul Jones: - -"He was about middle height, so slender as to be wiry, so lithe as to be -compared to a panther, so quick in his movements that we sailors often -spoke of him as 'swifter than chain-lightning.' His face was as brown as -an Indian's. His eyes under ordinary conditions were a steel-gray; but -in moments of excitement you would swear they were as black as coal and -emitting sparks. Though he was not at all big, his neck, arms, and -shoulders were those of a heavy-set man, with a chest that did you good -to see. The strength of his arms and shoulders could hardly be believed; -and he had equal use of both hands, even to writing with the left as -well as with the right. He was a past-master in the art of boxing; -though there were many hard nuts to crack in the various crews he -commanded, I never knew him to come out second best. When aroused, he -could strike blows and do more damage in a second than any man I ever -saw could do in a minute. He always fought as if that was what he was -made for; it was only when he was perfectly at peace that he seemed -uneasy and restless. - -"He was never petulant toward those under him. Even in cases of failure -to carry out his orders, or meet his expectations, he would be lenient. -But if he detected you in any act that was wilful or malicious, he would -assail you like a tiger. He was not a quarrelsome man; but he was the -easiest person in the world for a quarrelsome man to pick a quarrel -with. Good men all liked him; sneaks and tyrants hated him bitterly." - -We may add that all records go to show that Paul Jones was as much a -father to his crew as he was a commander. He interested the sailors in -the smallest details of their work, gave them lessons in rope-splicing, -or reproved a young chap for his "lubberly walk" with a personal -demonstration of the correct swagger to be kept in mind by Jack afloat. -At the same time, with all this kindness of heart, he did not let a -single man take advantage of his goodness. "I tell you, my men," he said -on one occasion, "when I become convinced that a sailor of mine must be -given the 'cat' I will not leave it to be done by the uncertain arm of -others; but I will do it _myself_--and so confounded quick that it will -make your heads swim!" - -On the very same day--June 14, 1777--that Paul Jones was appointed -commander of the _Ranger_, Congress selected the permanent flag of the -United States--the good old Stars-and-Stripes which we still have. Up to -this time nobody had really been satisfied with the "Rattlesnake" -emblem; Paul Jones particularly objected to it. Now Mrs. Betsey Ross, of -Philadelphia, was busy at work making the first new flag from a rough -pencil sketch furnished her by General Washington. - -When Paul Jones heard of the adoption of the new emblem, and saw plans -for it, he was greatly pleased. He took out his own pencil, quickly -copied the plans, and stuck the paper in his pocket. - -As soon as possible he proceeded to Portsmouth, and immediately entered -upon the task of outfitting the _Ranger_ for sea. He found the ship to -be a fine-looking craft, built expressly for speed, with a length six -feet greater than the regular 20-gun vessel of the day. But he thought -her spars too heavy, and ordered his shipwright to "fid them about four -feet lower in the hounds," which was done. He also had fourteen long -9-pounders and four 6-pounders put in place of the regular twenty -6-pound guns intended, and made other changes looking toward her -seaworthiness. He was very proud of her coppered hull, shining like -burnished gold--the first hull thus covered in the new country. - -As the work of outfitting went on, he had the goodwill and interest of -the entire colonial town. Busy though he was he did not neglect the -social side of life here any more than he had elsewhere when on land; -for Paul Jones loved elegance and display, intercourse with the fair -sex; and his splendid bearing, immaculate dress, magnetic personality, -keen wit--to say nothing of his record of daring deeds--made him -extremely popular in all gatherings, particularly where hoop-skirts -abounded. Many a good dame in America did her utmost to marry the -gallant young captain off to her own daughter or another admiring -damsel. But it was no use; Paul Jones, while always professing the -greatest respect and kindliest interest in his feminine associates, -never allowed them to turn his well-balanced head. - -Thus in his social activities there in Portsmouth, the captain of the -_Ranger_ escorted bevies of charming and vivacious damsels and their -mamas and papas aboard the ship and explained her many wonders, and -discoursed on what she probably would do to the English. Then one day he -whispered mysteriously to some of them, and forthwith these pretty -Colonial girls spoke to others. The consequence was, that soon afterward -there was a merry gathering at the home of one of the maids. A "quilting -bee" they termed it; but there, fashioned amid chat and laughter, amid -sober thought and spirit of service to country, slender fingers cut and -sewed together the silken portions of a beautiful American flag--the -first one of stars and stripes that anybody in that locality had yet -seen. From time to time these fair workers looked for guidance to a -pencilled sketch furnished them by their chosen knight. Treasured -wedding and court dresses of some of their mothers furnished rare -patches of blue, and lengths of red and white, and these grew into -beautiful five-pointed stars and graceful stripes under the girls' -careful handiwork. - -During this time Paul Jones was putting the finishing touches to the -_Ranger_ and impatiently awaiting the dispatches he was to carry from -his Government to the American Commission in France. At midnight of the -31st of October these official documents were delivered to him by a -courier who had covered one hundred and forty miles, eating and sleeping -in his saddle. Among the papers was the news of the surrender of -Burgoyne. - -Nothing now prevented Paul Jones from making sail on his long cruise. -The _Ranger_ was in readiness, the wind good. But before making sail -there was one ceremony he must not forget. - -The new flag--his gift from the patriotic Portsmouth girls--must be -unfurled to the breeze. And they must see it! By horse he sent -Wannashego galloping to the homes of each of the five young -seamstresses. In an hour they appeared, eager and excited, despite the -fact that most of the good people of the town were fast asleep. - -With simple ceremony but eloquent suggestion the splendid banner, under -the impulse of Paul Jones's own hands, went up to the _Ranger's_ peak. -As it spread out to the breeze under the star-lit sky, the Scotch -captain said, with a deep feeling none could help noticing: "That flag -and I are twins. Born the same hour from the same womb of destiny, 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 go down as one!" - -To the courier who had brought the dispatches, Paul Jones now turned. He -handed him the receipt for the papers, and on its back he wrote: "I -shall spread this news in France within thirty days." - -When the shore people had taken their departure, cheered by the crew of -the _Ranger_ and leaving their own good wishes behind, Captain Jones -immediately got under way. He took a northerly course, thereby hoping -to avoid most of the enemy's cruisers, so that his dispatches could be -delivered as soon as possible. - -He left no record except the _Ranger's_ log; but Mr. Hall, who was the -ship's carpenter, gives some details of the trip which are far from -uninteresting: - -"I had sailed with many captains in all sorts of voyages, but I had -never seen a ship crowded the way Captain Jones crowded the _Ranger_. He -held to his northerly route, though the wind was adverse, hanging all -the time between north-northeast and east-northeast. It veered slightly -at times, but you could count on it being forward of the beam on a true -course, and often it was near dead ahead. Imagine, then, the situation -of the ship's crew, with a top-heavy and cranky craft under their feet, -and a commander who day and night insisted on every rag she could -stagger under without laying clear down! - -"As it was, she came close to beam ends more than once, and on one -occasion she righted only by us letting the fly-sheets go with hatchets. -During all this trying time Captain Jones was his own navigating -officer, keeping the deck eighteen or twenty hours out of every -twenty-four, often serving extra grog to the drenched men with his own -hands, and by his example silencing all disposition to grumble. In the -worst of it the watch was lap-watched. This brought the men eight hours -on and four off. There was no better way to arrange it; but for all that -a good many of them began to growl. These fellows had all been shipped -from Portsmouth, induced to enlist by unwise glowing accounts of the -Government of the rich prize-money that would probably be made on the -trip. Now, when they found the captain avoiding the enemy rather than -seeking him out, and were subjected to such a terrific bit of sailing, -they became dissatisfied. - -"At first Captain Jones was mighty angry, but as soon as he satisfied -himself that the Government had really been in error, he acted -splendidly by the men. He told them that he would personally guarantee -them a fair revenue from prizes later on; more than that, from his own -pocket he advanced them 147 guineas, to make up the difference in wages -thus far allowed them by Congress but which the Marine Committee had -been unable to make good on account of the poverty of the States. They -quieted down then, apparently satisfied, cheering their commander well. -But Lieutenant Simpson, who had really instigated the mutiny, did not -escape so easily. Wannashego, an Indian boatswain's mate, had caught -Simpson stirring the men up to trouble, reported it to Captain Jones, -and the latter had the officer put in irons for the rest of the voyage." - -As Mr. Hall says in this account, the weather was bad and the voyage -tempestuous. But nevertheless there were times when the tired men sought -recreation in story and song, as seamen always will do, and often over -the dashing waters the following refrain, composed by Midshipman Charley -Bell, went echoing: - - "So now we had him hard and fast, - Burgoyne laid down his arms at last, - And that is why we brave the blast - To carry the news to London! - Heigh-ho! car-r-y the news; - Go carry the news to London! - Yes car-r-y, car-r-y, - Carry the news to London!" - -During the last two days' run the _Ranger_ took two merchantmen loaded -with wines and dried fruit and bound for London. Paul Jones put -prize-crews aboard, sending one on to Brest and keeping the other with -him. West of Ushant they spoke a Dutch East Indiaman, whereupon the -Scotch captain informed the Dutch commander of the surrender of Burgoyne -and dryly asked him to "kindly repeat the news, with my compliments, to -any British captain met." - -A little later, on the 2d of December, the saucy _Ranger_ and her prize -dropped anchor in the Loire, below Nantes, France. - - - - -X - -IN THE ENEMY'S OWN WATERS - - -One of the first things which Paul Jones did on landing on French soil -was to seek out Dr. Benjamin Franklin, who, with Silas Deane and Arthur -Lee, were his country's foreign commissioners. He found these diplomats -domiciled in the fine home of Monsieur De Chaumont, a wealthy Frenchman -with strong sympathies for the Colonists. - -It was the first meeting of Paul Jones and Benjamin Franklin--a meeting -marked with much gratification on the part of each. It was also the -beginning of a personal friendship long-lasting and very helpful to the -Scotch adventurer. Before its conclusion the caller learned, with some -chagrin, that he was not the first to bring news across the sea of the -surrender of General Burgoyne; that Mr. John Austen, of Boston, had -sailed in a French merchantman a day or two earlier, and by reason of -the shorter course, had arrived somewhat ahead of him. However, Austen's -news was mere hearsay, lacking the details and authenticity of Captain -Jones's dispatches. - -It had been the intention of the American commissioners to give Paul -Jones the _Indien_--a fine frigate building secretly at Amsterdam--on -his arrival. But this proved to be one more of his disappointments, for -the British minister to the Netherlands had recently discovered the -destination of the vessel, and had made such protests of a breach of -neutrality that the commissioners had been forced to sell the ship to -France. - -To his previous acquaintance with the Duc and Duchesse De Chartres there -is no doubt that Paul Jones owed his introduction at this time into -French society. The Duchesse herself had been, before her marriage, the -richest heiress in France. While her husband was a spendthrift, and a -man of lax morals generally, she was highly respected in all -communities. This noble family lived in a charming chateau, with even -more charming gardens, on the outskirts of Paris, and as soon as they -heard of the arrival of the already famous Scotch captain they sent him -an urgent invitation to call. - -This he did. An enjoyable meeting resulted, and he was royally -entertained. Later, at a ball given in his honor and attended by the -elite of the social world, he met a beautiful young lady named Aimee de -Telusson, the adopted daughter of King Louis XV. Mademoiselle De -Telusson, after the king died, had been supported by a pension from the -monarch's court, and had lived with her protectoress, Madame De Marsan, -under the patronage of several great ladies, of whom the Duchesse De -Chartres was one. - -Paul Jones was greatly fascinated with the fair Aimee, a feeling which -she seemed to reciprocate. As they became better and better acquainted -she fairly idolized him, and on his part he thought her the most perfect -specimen of womanhood he had ever seen. Although he must have known that -she was very much in love with him, this gallant seaman who was admired -by all the people of France, never declared his own love to her. - -Dr. Franklin wished to keep Paul Jones in European waters, there to -harass the British shipping. On the other hand Lee, who for some reason -entertained a jealousy and dislike for the Scotchman, was bent on -getting him back in American waters as soon as he could. Silas Deane, -the third commissioner, was a nonentity, with little voice in the -matter. However, Dr. Franklin had his way; he thundered forth his orders -that Paul Jones was to stay on that side of the sea--and Paul Jones -stayed. To say that he was grateful to the stout-hearted, venerable -statesman is saying no more than the truth. - -After some delay Dr. Franklin advised him that arrangements had been -completed by the commission for him to convoy a number of American -merchant vessels from Nantes into Quiberon Bay, where a large French -fleet, under Admiral La Motte Picquet, lay waiting with the intention of -sailing for America. Such protection by French warships a week earlier -would have been a distinct breach of neutrality, but now the -much-talked-of "Treaty of Alliance" had been made between France and -America, and henceforth France could not only openly sympathize with the -new Republic but could take up arms in her behalf. - -Of course Paul Jones was glad at this turn of events. He was pleased for -his country's sake; pleased for his own sake, because the situation -promised easier working out of his plans. - -But it seemed that his troubles were not yet entirely over. When he -reached the anchorage of the _Ranger_ he found the crew in a sad -disruption. It appeared that the profligate Simpson, who had been freed -from his irons upon the ship reaching port, had been working the men -into a mutiny by declaring he had heard that their captain had left them -in the lurch. Except for the confidence expressed in Paul Jones by the -majority of his officers and some of the sailors, among whom of course -was Wannashego, it is doubtful if the commander would have found very -many of his crew left upon his arrival. As it stood, the malcontents -were still arguing with the loyal when he put in an appearance. - -Upon learning the cause of the trouble his Scotch ire was so thoroughly -aroused against Simpson that it is hard to guess what he would have done -to him, had the miscreant not made a plausible excuse for securing what -he termed his "misinformation" and uttered voluble apologies for his -part in the affair. - -As soon as order could be obtained, the commander began to refit for the -new enterprise. The craft's masts were re-shortened and other defects of -structure remedied in an effort to put her on a better keel. Then in -company with a tender, the brig _Independence_, the American -sloop-of-war set sail. A little later, flying the Stars-and-Stripes at -her masthead, she anchored off the bay at Quiberon. - -Without delay Paul Jones sent a small boat off to the French admiral, -desiring to know, if he saluted the admiral's ship, whether her -commander would return the salute. - -When the reply came back it was in the affirmative. Thereupon Paul Jones -brought the _Ranger_ into the bay. She hove to, and the next moment her -guns thundered thirteen times. Promptly the courtesy was returned by -nine guns from the admiral's ship, it being the French custom to fire -four guns less than a saluting Republic. It was too dark to bring in the -_Independence_ for her share in the proceeding, but the next morning -this little vessel sailed proudly between two parallel lines of the -fine French fleet, flying her American flag, and in answer to her own -guns there was returned another recognition of America as a nation. - -Returning to Nantes, Paul Jones sent Dr. Franklin a joyous letter, -telling him about the honor paid the American flag for the first time by -another country. - -The _Ranger_ was held in port following this until April 10, 1778. In -the interval her commander had the good fortune to be much in the -company of the Duc and Duchesse De Chartres and the charming -Mademoiselle Aimee De Telusson. The day previous to the date of sailing -of his vessel, the Duchesse paid him the compliment of giving a dinner -in his honor. At this many distinguished families were present, as well -as prominent army and navy officers. During the course of festivities, -the Madame graciously presented her popular guest with a richly-jewelled -watch which she said had belonged to her grandfather, Louis XIV. - -Paul Jones bowed, and replied with fine gallantry: "May it please your -Royal Highness, if fortune should favor me at sea I will some day lay -an English frigate at your dainty feet!" - -The next morning the _Ranger_ put out to sea again. With the salt spray -dashing in his nostrils, with every fiber of his adventure-loving soul -thrilling once more in expectation of a brush with the enemy, Paul Jones -forgot the tameness of politics and the foibles of social functions. - -With gusto he took a brigantine in the Irish Sea on the 14th, and sank -her. Then proceeding into St. George's Channel he ran onto the _Lord -Chatham_, a British merchant ship bound from London to Dublin. This -vessel was valuable enough to keep as a prize, so the Scotch captain -manned her with a prize crew and had them take her to Brest. - -Paul Jones now headed farther northward along the coast of England. In -his mind he was formulating an exceedingly daring plan, none less than a -sudden descent upon Whitehaven, the seaport he knew so well as a boy and -from which he had made his first voyage to America. If he could dash -into Whitehaven, destroy most of the immense shipping which was always -harbored there, and thereby effect an exchange of prisoners in Europe, -he thought the risk would well be worth while. - -But when he arrived in the vicinity of his old headquarters, the winds -were so contrary to his purpose that he gave up the project for the time -being. For the next few days he cruised along the southern coast of -Scotland on the lookout for other enemy prizes. Nothing of great moment -occurred, and with better weather conditions than had previously -prevailed, he made up his mind again to try an attack on Whitehaven. - -The hills were covered with snow when the _Ranger_ came within sight of -them. In the harbor of the town of some fifty thousand inhabitants were -collected almost three hundred merchant-ships and fishing-smacks. The -captain had carefully let down the portlids to conceal his guns, and -adopted whatever other means he could devise for concealing the nature -of his ship. - -Paul Jones determined to wait for night to perform his operations. He -would need the screen of darkness. When that hour had come he ordered -every man mustered on deck. Then he announced his plan to them and -finished by saying tersely: "I call for thirty volunteers to assist me -in this task of reprisal for the numerous burnings the British have put -upon us in America. No man need engage in this enterprise unless he -wishes to. But those who share with me its dangers shall also share with -me its glories." - -It seemed as if every man on deck shouted, "Aye, sir!" As might be -expected Wannashego, the young Narragansett, was among the first. - -Paul Jones smiled with satisfaction. "With so many volunteers I see I -shall have to choose my thirty men from among you. The strongest and -most active are the ones I want." - -He then proceeded to make his selections. When he was done he noticed -that he had forgotten the faithful Indian youth. "I shall make it -thirty-one, on second thought," he said promptly, and at once called -upon the happy Wannashego to step forth with the other volunteers. - -It was a little after midnight when, with his men in two boats, Paul -Jones left the _Ranger_. It was so far in to the piers that it was -almost dawn when they finally arrived at one of the outer ones. All -haste must be made or the light of the approaching day would disclose -their movements and prevent their success. - -Paul Jones ordered one boat, under the direction of Mr. Hill and -Lieutenant Wallingford, to proceed on the north side of the harbor and -set fire to the shipping there, while with the second party the -commander went to the other side, to perform a similar work. - -Two grim-looking forts rose up in the darkness, one facing each section -of harbor. In order to render the guns in these harmless, Paul Jones and -Wannashego were now set ashore, and while they began stealthily and -swiftly to approach the first forts, their crew started off to set fire -to the shipping on the south. - -The Scotch captain and young Indian had a very delicate task facing -them. Before they could spike the cannon the sentinels must be secured. -Stealing along in the shadows of the great walls of the first fort, they -discovered that all of the guardsmen were unsuspiciously enjoying a game -of cards in the guard-house itself. As quick as lightning Paul Jones -and Wannashego sprang forward and barred the door, making the men -prisoners. Then, without loss of time, the two Americans began scaling -the walls of the fort. When the cannon here had been successfully -spiked, they hurried to the second fort, a quarter of a mile distant, -and in the same manner confined the sentinels there and spiked the guns. - -This was surely a daring exploit for two to perform, when the alarm -might be sounded any moment and the whole town swoop down upon them. - -After the task had been performed, Paul Jones naturally expected to see -the fires which his parties were to start. To his great disappointment -no welcome flare showed itself in either direction. In the dim light of -early dawn--that alarming dawn, so little desired--the captain hurried -forward, only to discover that the party under Mr. Hill and Mr. -Wallingford were in considerable confusion. The fires they had ignited -had refused to burn, and their candles had gone out as well. It was the -same situation with the other party; their candles also had gone out, -and there seemed no way to relight them. - -Although the day was coming on apace and danger of discovery grew with -it, the dauntless Scotch commander would not give up his project until -every expedient had been exhausted. Placing sentinels to guard against a -surprise, he sent Wannashego and a few men to the nearest house. The -inmates were forced to deliver lights for the candles. With the aid of -these a fire was soon started in the steerage of a large ship, which was -in the midst of a hundred or more others. To make sure that this blaze -would not burn out, a barrel of tar was placed upon it. In a short time -flames were springing up out of all hatchways in the vessel. - -Now the inhabitants of the town began to appear in hundreds. Individuals -ran angrily toward the burning ship, bent on extinguishing the flames -before they should communicate to the adjoining vessels. - -"They must not be permitted to put out this fire now or our plans are -ruined completely!" cried Paul Jones. With the words he sprang between -the ship and the foremost of those running up, drew two pistols from his -belt, and leveled them at the angry faces. - -"One step nearer and some of you will be dead men!" cried the Scotch -captain. "Back with you as fast as you came, else by the eternal day and -night you shall feel this lead!" - -"Why, it's Paul Jones!" called somebody in the throng, who recognized -him. - -Instantly the crowd fell back in fright. Not a man among them but who -had heard of the things this daredevil had already done to the ships of -their countrymen. - -Paul Jones smiled grimly, as the people continued to retreat before his -menacing pistols. Nor did he once leave his post until the ship back of -him was a mass of flames and the whole shipping in the neighborhood -hopelessly afire from it. Then he stepped coolly down into one of his -boats, which had been brought up, and in company with the other, without -the loss of a single man, he went back to the _Ranger_. - -If the attempt had been made an hour earlier it is impossible to -estimate the damage the Americans might have done, but dawn saved the -town of Whitehaven, also half of the shipping. Paul Jones was -disappointed because his plans had in a measure miscarried. But he had -accomplished much for his country just the same. The excitement along -the coast was intense. Every English port, nervous and trembling, was on -the watch for the bold invader. No Englishman felt safe so long as Paul -Jones roamed the sea at will. Much less did British captains feel -secure. - - - - -XI - -OUTWITTING THE "DRAKE" - - -As the _Ranger_ once more spread her sails and stood out to sea, Paul -Jones turned to his first-lieutenant and said: - -"Mr. Wallingford, have her head pointed across the Firth. There lays my -old home-town of Arbigland which I have seen but once since I was twelve -years old----" - -"Pardon me, sir," interrupted the first officer; "surely you do not -think of attacking your own birthplace?" - -"Indeed not," was the sharp and somewhat impatient rejoinder. "Though it -belongs to the enemy, that would be the act of a man without heart and -conscience. Please hear me out. Not far from my home there lives in the -same county of Kirkcudbright a most important personage to British -interests. This is the Earl of Selkirk. In lieu of the only partial -success of our descent upon Whitehaven I propose to even up matters -this very day by calling upon the good earl and taking him hostage." - -This was a daring conception, and Lieutenant Wallingford gasped. The -_Ranger_ was held to her new course, straight north across the Firth of -Solway. When the ship came in view of the northern coast, her commander -stood watching the high cliffs about Arbigland with a strange mixture of -feelings. We shall never know exactly what thoughts stirred him, as he -was a man not given to referring to his deeper sensations, but we may -well infer that, in the short space of time he stood there studying the -familiar landmarks of his care-free and happy boyhood, he lived over -again the days of that period, climbed again the crags after sea-birds' -eggs, sailed again his toy boats in the quiet coves. - -St. Mary's Isle, a beautifully wooded promontory in the river Dee, was -where the Earl of Selkirk lived in luxurious but quiet style. This was -about a mile up the coast from Arbigland, and although Paul Jones had -never met the Scotch nobleman or any of his family, he knew the location -of the Selkirk broad acres as well as he knew the best fishing grounds -in the Firth. - -He landed on St. Mary's Isle with one boat and twelve men. Pointing out -the path to take, and warning his men to commit no violence other than -that which might be required in securing the earl himself, the captain -awaited their return. In a short time they were back again, bringing a -considerable quantity of silver plate, but without the earl, who they -declared was not at home. - -Paul Jones was very angry because his sailors had taken the silver -plate. He used every argument except force in trying to get them to -return it at once. When he saw that they were bent upon keeping the -spoil, he said no more, but departed with them, for he knew well that -the rules of war made confiscation perfectly legal. - -Later on he wrote the Countess of Selkirk a long letter of apology and -explanation, stating that he would exert every endeavor to return the -plate to her. This he did, and succeeded, although in so doing it was -necessary for him to go down into his own pocket for L150 in order to -buy it back. - -Paul Jones next turned his attention to an effort to capture the British -man-of-war _Drake_, a vessel of twenty guns--two guns stronger than his -own ship. This, too, was a bold undertaking, particularly in view of the -fact that the _Drake_ was known to carry a larger crew and was in her -own waters. But the intrepid sea-king was not to be deterred. He had -encountered this same vessel once before, several days before the attack -on Whitehaven, when he was standing off Carrickfergus, and when she was -anchored in the bay. During the night he had run in and tried to work -into a position where he could board her quickly, surprise her crew, and -overwhelm them before they could offer serious enough resistance to get -aid from the big gray fortification which frowned down over the harbor -from the massive heights above. But, owing to the strong wind which had -prevailed at the time, the plan was frustrated; and the _Ranger_ had -quietly withdrawn to sea again without her foe knowing what a narrow -escape she had met with. - -Then Paul Jones had assuaged the disappointment of himself and his men -with the remark: "Never mind, my brave fellows; that British sloop -shall be ours yet, mark my words. When we are through with Whitehaven we -shall look her up again." - -And now the doughty captain meant to fulfil his promise! - -On the morning of the 24th of April the _Ranger_ was once more off -Carrickfergus. The bay, the castled crag, the picturesque town, and the -handsome British sloop-of-war, all stood out brilliantly in the clear -sunlight. - -But this time the American vessel was not destined to get in close to -her enemy without suspicion. The very night before, word had been -brought of the attack on Whitehaven, and as a consequence the entire -populace of Carrickfergus was ready to look askance at the coming of -every strange ship. As the _Ranger_ appeared in the offing, therefore, -she was immediately observed by the British aboard the _Drake_, and the -American sailors could hear the creaking of the foe-ship's capstan and -the hoarse rattle of the chains as her anchor was tripped in readiness -for an emergency. - -The _Ranger_ now went completely about, her stern toward the shore. This -was the best way possible to hide her identity, for it was seen that a -boat was putting off from the English sloop and pulling toward them, -apparently bent upon investigation. When the boat had approached within -hailing distance of the American, one of its inmates--a British -officer--stood up and cried: "What ship is that?" - -Paul Jones, standing at his sailing-master's elbow, quietly prompted him -in his answers. - -"The _Saltandpepperforbritish_" replied Mr. Stacy so rapidly that all -the words were a meaningless jumble to the Englishmen, who, however, -caught the word "British" with some feeling of ease. Drawing a little -closer, the officer repeated his question: "What ship is that? We cannot -make out your answer." - -"We've had fair winds, but glad to get in here," answered Mr. Stacy, -pretending to have misunderstood the question. - -There was an impatient remark from the British officer at this. He said -something to his men. The boat of the enemy then drew up considerably -nearer. By this time the craft was directly under the _Ranger's_ -quarter. - -"I ask you for the third and last time, what ship is that?" hailed the -British officer. - -"And I answer again and for the last time, she is the _Lord Dunmore_, -bound from Plymouth to London," called Mr. Stacy in an apparently -exasperated voice. Then, again prompted by his captain, he went on: -"Have you heard anything of that American cruiser which has been -prowling about capturing merchant ships and frightening our coast people -half out of their wits?" - -"Yes," was the reply of the officer, now completely off his guard. "We -would give a thousand pounds to meet her." - -"If you will come aboard, our captain says he will give you further -particulars about this impudent American," continued Mr. Stacy. "We -think this news will aid you in finding him." - -Unsuspiciously the British boat now came up, and a ladder was lowered -over the port side. Just then one of the _Ranger's_ own boats was -dropped from the davits; it was quickly filled with men, and as the -British officer clambered on deck and faced Paul Jones the American -sailors made prisoners of his crew. - -"What is the meaning of this?" cried the British officer. "Who are you, -sir?" - -"Captain Paul Jones," came the quick answer. "This is the American -sloop-of-war _Ranger_, about which we promised you information. If you -require further details, it is only proper for me to state that you are -a prisoner of war on that ship at this moment!" - -The officer uttered an exclamation of anger. But his chagrin was not -greater than that of the other men aboard the boat when they were -brought aboard and all sent below. - -This whole proceeding had been witnessed from the _Drake_ in a more or -less hazy manner, but yet in a way to give the British aboard that -vessel a fair idea of the catastrophe which had attended the efforts of -their compatriots to learn the identity of the stranger. She immediately -sent out alarm signals, and in a few minutes smoking bonfires along the -entire headlands were relaying the startling intelligence to inland -points. - -In a little while the _Drake_, accompanied by five small vessels filled -with townspeople curious to witness what they thought would be a battle, -began to work out. She came very slowly, owing to an unfavorable tide. -It was plain to be seen that her "dander was up;" that she meant to -look into the plight of her boat's crew without further delay. - -The _Ranger_ now threw off every effort at disguise. Her portlids were -run up, her guns run out, and everything put in trim for a hard fight. -As the enemy came nearer and weathered the point, the _Ranger_ cunningly -and almost imperceptibly worked herself farther out into the channel -where she would have more sea room for the engagement and be farther -away from the guns of the fort. Thus led on, the _Drake_ followed, -slowly narrowing up the space between. - -Now the British ship ran up her colors. At the same instant up went the -Stars-and-Stripes aboard the American. Having come within hailing -distance, the British commander, Captain Burden, called out: "Who are -you?" - -"The Continental ship _Ranger_," cried back Mr. Stacy, at word from Paul -Jones. "Come on, we are waiting for you!" - -Scarcely were the words spoken when the _Ranger's_ helm was ported, and -bringing her broadside to bear on the advancing ship, she roared out the -first volley. The enemy at once returned the compliment. While her fire -was spirited, somehow it lacked effectiveness, which is probably -attributable to the distress and confusion caused on board of her by the -stunning effect of the American's shooting. In a letter to Joseph Hewes, -Paul Jones thus refers to the manner in which his men handled -themselves: "We have seen that our men fight with courage on our own -coasts. But no one has ever seen them fight on our coast as they fought -here, almost in hail of the enemy's shore. Every shot told, and they -gave the _Drake_ three broadsides for two right along...." - -On board the _Ranger_, Paul Jones walked the quarter-deck unharmed, amid -a constant shower of musketry and the shriek of cannon-ball. Captain -Burden, of the _Drake_, showed an equal disregard for danger, but within -thirty minutes after the beginning of the fight he was mortally wounded -by a musket shot in the head. Paul Jones was unaware of this fact until, -during the hottest of the firing, his friend Wannashego glided quickly -up to where he stood and announced the news. - -"I am sorry for him, for he has shown himself to be a brave man; but it -is the way of war," said the commander. "Did you see him shot, -Wannashego?" - -In his dusky hands the Indian youth held a musket whose barrel was hot -to the touch and from which a tiny thread of smoke still curled. "I sure -see British captain fall," he said with flashing eyes, as he patted his -gun. "I take good aim at him. It is the first chance for me. Bang! They -pick him up and carry him away." - -With the words Wannashego hurried off, reloading his weapon as he ran. -Paul Jones was thunderstruck. After a moment he muttered, "Poor Burden, -your very importance in this conflict has caught the eagle eye of that -young redskin and spelled your doom!" - -The fighting continued fiercely. Twice was the ensign of the _Drake_ -shot away, and twice the gallant British tars rehoisted it. The enemy's -fore and main topsail yards were completely riddled, the main topgallant -mast and mizzen gaff hung up and down the spar, her jib dragged over her -lee into the water, and her mainsails were a sieve of holes. - -Never had Paul Jones seen men fight more tigerishly or with better aim -than his were now doing. As the two ships were going off the wind, which -was light, they both rolled considerably and together; in other words, -when the _Ranger_ went down to port the _Drake_ came up to starboard. -Quite early in the action, the Scotch captain had noticed that his -quarter-gunners had caught the _Drake's_ period of roll and were timing -to fire as their muzzles went down and the enemy's came up. By this -practice they were hulling the British ship prodigiously below her -water-line and everywhere below her rail. - -"What are you firing in that fashion for?" demanded Paul Jones of -Midshipman Starbuck. - -"To sink the British galoots, sir!" - -"That is not my object," said the captain sharply. "Cease this -destruction of the ship, and conduct yourselves so as to capture her -instead." - -The alert fellows instantly changed their tactics, and soon had the -_Drake_ an unmanageable log on the water, with her crew crying for -quarter. When, after the desperate fighting of a little more than an -hour, an accounting was taken it was found that the _Ranger_ had -suffered very little from the inaccurate fire of the British. True, she -had lost two lives, among these Lieutenant Wallingford, and had six -wounded; but her opponent had lost her commander and nineteen others -killed, with twenty-eight officers and men wounded. The only officer -remaining to strike her flag had been her second-lieutenant. - -With a towline fastened to her prize, the _Ranger_ now passed out of the -lough and up St. George's Channel. About midnight she hove to, and there -under the starlight the dead heroes of the conflict were sewn up in -canvas and consigned to the deep with a fitting burial service. - -With a valuable prize and more than one hundred and forty prisoners of -war to look after, Paul Jones was now forced to give up his intention of -cruising around Scotland. After taking a vessel off Malin Head he became -further handicapped, and determined to make for Brest without additional -delay. - -And now came that long-dreamed-of and hoped-for hour when he was to -enter a French port bringing a ship superior to his own--one belonging -to the finest navy afloat, a feat which had never before happened in the -history of naval warfare. As he sailed through the outer roads of Brest -he was met by an escort of French warships, whose crews cheered lustily -when they learned the identity of his prize. - -It was past midnight when the _Ranger_ let go anchor. Everything then -seemed quiet, but like wildfire the news of the daring captain's return -spread over the town. When daylight broke the quays were swarming with -people, and the harbor was dotted with boats bearing passengers, all of -whom were eager to catch a glimpse of the vanquished _Drake_ and her -conqueror. - - - - -XII - -THE QUEER CONDUCT OF CAPTAIN LANDAIS - - -The next morning Captain Paul Jones woke up to find himself -famous--almost overwhelmed with the praise and attentions of the naval -officers of Brest as well as of all France. The Duc De Chartres was the -first to come aboard, brimming with congratulations, and for the two -days the _Ranger_ lay in the harbor her decks thronged with officers of -the French fleet and citizens who were eager to rejoice with the -conqueror. - -Then the other side of the picture began to show; the stern realities of -France's disturbed political condition had to be faced. The _Ranger_, -with her splendid prize, had gone to the deckyard for repairs, and the -problem of feeding and clothing the three hundred men constituting his -own crew and that of the _Drake_ had to be met by Paul Jones. The -Congress still owed him L1500 which he had advanced out of his own -pocket for paying the crews of his former ships, the _Providence_ and -the _Alfred_, and this outlay had depleted his funds to such an extent -that he had very little money left, so little that he now saw he would -have to draw upon the commissioners a draft for 24,000 livres, which -Congress had given him. To his annoyance the three commissioners -promptly dishonored his draft. As a result, the merchant with whom he -had contracted to refit the _Ranger_ and the _Drake_, as well as to -supply his crew and prisoners with provisions, declined to extend -further credit. - -This state of affairs put our hero in a very embarrassing position, and -nettled him intensely. Had it not been for the fine friendship of such -Frenchmen as the Duc De Chartres, Comte D'Orvillers, and M. Chaumont, -through whose benevolence he was for a time able to feed and clothe his -people, heal his wounded, and continue the refitting of his vessels, it -is hard to tell what he would have done. - -In the crude, undisciplined condition of the United States Navy in that -day the crews could not seem to comprehend the idea that it was -necessary to obey every order of the commander of a ship without raising -a question. Almost at the instant of the engagement between the -_Ranger_ and the _Drake_, Lieutenant Simpson, the trouble-maker of the -past, had used his influence in stirring up some of the crew to a state -bordering on insubordination, telling them that being Americans fighting -for liberty they had a right to fight the enemy in any way they chose, -regardless of a commander's program. Paul Jones had stopped this -threatened uprising by confining Simpson below. On reaching port he had -transferred him to the _Admiral_, a ship where the French put men of his -type. - -After Simpson had been imprisoned, an American agent named Hezekiah -Ford, who disliked the Scotch captain, got up a petition condemning Paul -Jones and praising the conduct of Simpson in the sea fight. By smooth -arguments to the effect that they would never get their prize money -unless Lieutenant Simpson were made captain in place of Paul Jones, Ford -induced seventy-eight of the _Ranger's_ crew to sign this petition. The -result was, that the rascally lieutenant was freed at his court-martial, -and sailed away a little later for America, as master of the refitted -_Ranger_. - -When Paul Jones heard of the doings of Hezekiah Ford, he was terribly -incensed. Tucking three pistols in his belt, he betook himself to the -inn where Ford stopped. Without pausing long enough to draw even one of -his pistols, he knocked Ford down with a lightning-like blow of his -fist, seized the coachman's whip and thrashed the scoundrel until he -cried for mercy. Big, long-limbed, weighing half as much again as Paul -Jones, he offered no resistance--just curled up and blubbered like the -coward he was, while the onlookers cheered the Scotchman with keen -delight. Six months later, following other discoveries of his duplicity, -Ford was denounced as a spy and traitor by the governor of Virginia, and -Congress dishonorably dismissed him from the service after he had fled -to London with valuable papers. - -Before the _Ranger_ sailed under the captaincy of Mr. Simpson, Paul -Jones had met the expenses of her crew with the utmost difficulty. The -credit obtained from his French friends did not meet all the heavy -obligations, and after a while, in order to keep his men from starving, -he was forced to sell the _Drake_ at auction to a French ship-broker. -This act was strictly against the rules and regulations of his country, -but in the dire need of his crew and prisoners he felt that extreme -measures must be adopted to raise the funds which he could get in no -other manner. With this money he managed to pay off all indebtedness, -and so it was with a clear conscience, if a bitter heart, that he saw -the sly Simpson finally make off with his own ship, and many of his -crew, leaving him alone in a foreign land. - -War had now broken out between England and France, and Paul Jones was -detained in Europe at the request of the French Minister of Marine. This -official, De Sartine, wished an important command to be assigned to the -famous conqueror of the _Drake_. The difficulties in the way, however, -were great. The American commissioners had few resources, in addition to -which one of them--Lee--was hostile to the Scotchman; and the French had -more native officers clamoring for the better ships than they had such -vessels. - -Thus, about all that could be offered was the command of small warships -or privateers, offers which the proud Jones promptly rejected. To M. -Chaumont he wrote, in this connection, a letter containing the -following extracts: "I wish to have no connection with any ship that -does not sail fast, for I intend to go _in harm's way_. Therefore buy a -frigate with sails fast, and that is sufficiently large to carry -twenty-six or twenty-eight guns on her deck. I would rather be shot -ashore than go to sea in the armed prizes I have described." - -He continued his heckling correspondence with the greatest energy, -alternately cajoling, proposing, complaining, begging to be sent on some -important enterprise. He wrote innumerable letters to De Sartine, -Franklin, De Chartres, De Chaumont, and many others, and finally to the -king himself, who granted him an interview. More as a result of this -conference with Louis XV than from other sources, he was finally -rewarded by being put in command of a small squadron. - -At first he was highly delighted with the appointment, but as time wore -on and he saw what a poor assortment of ships and crews he had, he was -vastly disappointed. But having accepted the command, with true heroic -purpose he made up his mind to carry it through to the best of his -ability. - -The expense of fitting out the expedition was the king's, while the flag -and the commissions of the officers were American. The object of the -French government was to get Paul Jones to operate against the coasts -and shipping of England under the American flag, as the courtesy of -warfare forbade France, as an ally, to ravage the coasts of Great -Britain before the enemy herself had struck a blow at French interests. - -As stated, Paul Jones had a motley array of ships--those which were left -over after the French officers had had their pick. The flag-ship, the -_Bon Homme Richard_, was a worn-out old East Indiaman, which he refitted -and armed with six 18-pounders, twenty-eight 12-pounders, and eight -9-pounders--a battery of forty-two guns. The crew consisted of 375 men -of many nationalities, among which were not more than one hundred and -fifty Americans, including Wannashego, who had faithfully stuck to his -leader during all his trials in Brest. The _Alliance_, the only American -ship, was a good frigate rating as a large thirty-two or medium -thirty-six. She was commanded by a jealous-minded, half-mad Frenchman -named Landais, who was in the American service. The _Pallas_, thirty-two -guns; the _Vengeance_, twelve guns; and the little _Cerf_, of eight -guns, were all officered and manned by Frenchmen. - -Bad as were conditions of ship and crew, however, there was one other -feature of the organization which proved a greater handicap to the -Scotch commodore. This was the famous _concordat_, an agreement between -the various commanders of the ships which Paul Jones was compelled to -sign before his commission would be approved by the French minister of -the navy. While its terms related largely to the distribution of prize -money, it also contained clauses which weakened his authority, and gave -his captains a chance to wink at it if they chose. - -The little squadron, accompanied by two French privateers, sailed -finally from L'Orient on August 14, 1779, on what was planned to be a -fifty-days' cruise. Thanks to the Duchesse De Chartres's gift of ten -thousand louis d'or, Paul Jones had been able to fit out his flag-ship -in a much better condition than the king's fund would have permitted. - -On the 18th the privateer _Monsieur_, which was not bound by the -_concordat_, took a prize which the captain of that vessel proceeded to -relieve of all valuables and then ordered into port. The commodore -opposed this, and sent the prize to L'Orient. This so angered the -_Monsieur's_ captain that he parted company with the squadron. - -But the episode was only the beginning of Paul Jones's troubles with -insubordination of officers. While attempting to capture a brigantine, -some of his English sailors deserted in two of his small boats. These -could not be overhauled, and Landais insolently upbraided the commodore -for their loss, declaring that thereafter he would act entirely upon his -own responsibility (which indeed he had been doing right along!). The -_Cerf_ and the other privateer then pretended to go off to look for the -escaped former English prisoners, and they too failed to appear again. - -Paul Jones was now left with only the _Bon Homme Richard_, the _Pallas_, -the _Vengeance_, and the _Alliance_. It would have been better, as later -events showed, if the latter ship had decamped with the _Cerf_ and the -privateers; for Captain Landais impudently ignored all of Paul Jones's -signals. He even had the audacity to leave the squadron for several days -at a time, as the cruise continued, returning when the whim seized him. -When other prizes were taken he was bold enough to send two of these -into Bergen, Norway, where they were sold to the English, a procedure -entirely against the wishes of the commodore, and one which was a source -of trouble between Denmark and the United States for many years after -the war. - -Paul Jones was also compelled to humor the other French captains. -Several times he changed his course or modified his operations in -compliance with their demands. Had he enjoyed an absolute command he -would have carried out his pet scheme of laying Leith and Edinburgh -under contribution, but he was so afraid that such a venture would -miscarry, owing to the uncertain behavior of his men, that he gave it -up. - -With his old flag-ship, his ragged squadron, and his unruly officers, -Paul Jones then cruised along the Yorkshire coast, and succeeded in -capturing a number of vessels. Finally, as he was preparing to end his -disappointing voyage at The Texel, Holland, in accordance with Dr. -Franklin's orders, chance threw in his way the opportunity for making -the cruise a brilliant success. - -And, Jones-like, this opportunity he seized eagerly. He saw in a flash -that it was his one moment for restoring his waning power to its former -pinnacle. - - - - -XIII - -FIGHTING FRIEND AND FOE - - -It was on the 23d of September, when the squadron was chasing a small -ship off Flamborough Head, that a number of distant sails were seen -rounding the point. A long, steady look through his glass convinced -Commodore Jones that he could not be mistaken: that this was the Baltic -fleet of merchantmen which he had heard were in that vicinity, and which -he had hoped he might meet before he reached The Texel. - -Without delay Paul Jones hoisted the signal for a general chase. Captain -Landais, however, ignored the signal, and sailed on by himself. So angry -was Paul Jones at this cool display of indifference--or cowardice, if -that it were,--that he stamped his foot on the deck, and shouted his -feelings through his speaking-trumpet, but it availed nothing; the -insolent Landais kept right on going. - -When the merchant ships saw Paul Jones's squadron bearing down upon -them, they ran in under the lee of the shore, and, protected by two -British frigates which immediately got in between them and their foe, -made off down the coast at their best speed. These English frigates were -the _Serapis_, a brand-new ship of forty-four guns, and the _Countess of -Scarborough_, twenty guns. - -[Illustration: FIGHT BETWEEN THE SERAPIS AND THE BON HOMME RICHARD] - -The afternoon sun was well down in the heavens by this time. In the far -distance, her sails glinting white and rosy in the path of the sun, and -constantly growing smaller, was the fleeing _Alliance_. And not far -behind her, in pursuit, sped the little _Vengeance_, whose captain Paul -Jones had told to try to persuade the half-mad Landais to return to his -duty. - -This turn of affairs left two ships facing each other on each side. -Commodore Jones ordered Captain Cottineau, of the _Pallas_, to look -after the _Countess of Scarborough_, while he himself took care of the -_Serapis_. He never lost his head; with that "cool, determined bravery," -of which Benjamin Franklin spoke, and with "that presence of mind which -never deserted him," recorded by Fanning, he made up his mind to make -the best of a seemingly hopeless situation, and engage an enemy ship -which he knew to be the superior of his own in almost every respect. - -He now crowded on all possible sail, until the _Bon Homme Richard_ had -come within pistol shot of the _Serapis_. It was then seven o'clock and -the moon was just rising in a clear blue sky. Off some distance, the -_Countess_ had begun to run away, and the little _Pallas_ was making -after her fiercely. Paul Jones was thus left practically alone to meet -his big antagonist of the bristling guns and well-trained, -perfectly-disciplined crew. - -As the _Bon Homme Richard_ approached him, Captain Pearson, of the -_Serapis_, hailed; but there was no reply. "I don't like this fellow's -looks, for all he is apparently less powerful than ourselves," observed -the British commander to his first officer. Uneasily he used his -night-glass again. "I wonder if it can be the blood-thirsty pirate, Paul -Jones," he added a moment later. Then he ordered his sailing-master to -hail again. - -"This is His Majesty's ship _Serapis_, forty-four guns. What ship is -that?" - -Still no answer. - -Once more the hail came over the water, sharper, more peremptorily. -"This is His Maj----" - -By this time Paul Jones had the _Bon Homme Richard_ where he wanted her; -he gave a low signal to Richard Dale, who commanded the _Richard's_ -gun-deck, and Lieutenant Dale cried, "Blow your matches, boys!" At his -words the gunners touched a tiny flame to the touch-hole of each big gun -on the port side, and a heavy broadside was poured into the enemy ship. - -But the British captain was not far behind. Before the echoes had died -out his own guns spat fire with a roar, and great clouds of smoke -drifted up and began to envelope the combatants. Following this the -discharges came fast and furious, both the American and British crews -working their guns with the utmost vigor. - -From the beginning the fight seemed to go against the _Bon Homme -Richard_. There was hardly any stage of the three and a half hours' -desperate combat at which Paul Jones would not have been excused in -lowering his flag--had he not been the prodigious fighter he was. Hardly -had the battle well begun when two of the rust-pitted old 18-pounders -exploded, killing the men working them and rendering the whole battery -useless for the rest of the action. - -Perceiving this, and anxious to take advantage of the loss of defense on -the lower gun-deck resulting, Captain Pearson attempted again to pass -the bow of the _Richard_ and rake her. On the other hand, Commodore -Jones's whole effort was to close with the enemy and board him, for he -knew now that it was only a question of time, if he did not succeed, -before his old shell of a vessel would be sunk. - -After the broadsiding had continued with unremitting fury for almost an -hour, Captain Pearson made another effort to get across the _Richard's_ -bow. But he miscalculated, and the two vessels were brought so close -together that the _Richard_ ran into her enemy's weather quarter. Paul -Jones was quick to make his first attempt to board, but the ships swung -apart before the operation could be completed, and those who had reached -the _Serapis's_ rail had to leap back to save themselves from capture. - -The _Bon Homme Richard_ was now in a sad condition. Little of her -starboard battery was left, and of the 140 odd officers and men -stationed at the main gun-deck battery at the beginning, over eighty had -been killed or wounded. Numerous holes low in the hull, made by the big -balls of the _Serapis's_ 18-pound guns, were letting in water at an -alarming rate. Time and time again did the ship's carpenter and his mate -stop these up, only to have new holes splinter through with a sickening -sound. - -It is no wonder that Captain Pearson, knowing his enemy was in great -distress, thought that, when the crew of the other ship had failed to -board him, Commodore Jones would be ready to surrender. - -"Has your ship struck?" he called through his trumpet. - -And then Paul Jones made his famous reply: - -"I have not yet begun to fight!" - -After the ships had swung apart they continued to fire broadsides into -each other. With the starboard battery of the _Richard_ practically out -of commission, however, it is easy to see that she worked at a great -disadvantage in this sort of dueling. Had not a lucky wind favored her -at this stage, it is likely she could not have floated much longer. -This enabled her to blanket her enemy, which compelled the _Serapis_ to -lose all headway. By more adroit handling of his vessel, waterlogged -though she was, Paul Jones once more brought the ships alongside, bow to -bow and stern to stern. - -"Now, my fine fellows, lash us together!" cried the commodore; and with -his own hands he helped his men to do the job, while the muskets of the -British sailors rattled a storm of lead among them. - -At this critical time, when Paul Jones was bending every nerve to -grapple with the _Serapis_, the renegade _Alliance_ suddenly made her -appearance. The hearts of the gallant commander and his brave lads beat -gladly at this sight. "Now," thought they, "Landais has come back to -help us!" - -Judge of their dismay when, as soon as he could get within range, the -mad French captain turned his broadsides not into the British frigate -but into the already sorely-afflicted _Bon Homme Richard_! She staggered -under the fresh onslaught, the vicious bite of him who should have given -aid. The American sailors cursed the treacherous Landais, and shook -their fists at him. If they could have caught him they would have rended -him limb from limb, so violent was their rage. In the midst of the -maledictions, the culprit turned about and made away again, with the -strange fickleness of purpose that had all along characterised his -movements. - -As soon as the _Serapis_ and the _Richard_ were well lashed together, -Paul Jones drew practically all his crew from below to the upper deck -and the tops, leaving only a small force to man the three small pieces -on the quarter-deck. From this upper position they now commenced -sweeping the decks of the enemy with their muskets. The crew of the -_Serapis_, on the other hand, were forced to take refuge on their lower -decks, from which point they continued to fire their great guns into the -already riddled hull and lower decks of the _Richard_. - -Several times Captain Pearson made desperate attempts to cut the -lashings loose, but at each of these efforts the fire of the American -ship's muskets was so accurate and withering that British seamen fell -one upon another. Not a single British Jack reached the coveted goal, -if we may except one bold fellow who was just opening his heavy -Sheffield knife to sever the key-rope when an unerring bullet from the -watchful Wannashego cut short his life. In another instance, the young -Indian saw a British sailor drawing a bead on Paul Jones, who stood all -unconscious of his peril. There was a report--but it was the report of -Wannashego's reliable gun instead, and the British marine tumbled from -the rigging where he was concealed. - -Soon all the officers of the French marines had been killed or wounded, -and Paul Jones was forced to take charge of them. His voice cheered them -on in their own tongue; he exhorted them to take good aim, and when he -saw a fellow firing ineffectively, he would often take his musket from -his hand and show him, by coolly bringing down one of the foe, how he -should manipulate it. In fact, toward the last the commodore stood on -the quarter-deck rail by the main topmast backstay, and as he gave -orders and encouragement, received loaded muskets from his marines, and -fired them with deadly precision. His indomitable spirit penetrated -every quaking soul, infusing it with new hope and new courage. As one -French sailor said afterward: "Everyone who saw his example or heard his -voice became as much a hero as Paul Jones himself." - -By this time both vessels were on fire in several places. Half the men -on both ships had been killed or disabled. The leaks in the _Richard's_ -hold had multiplied, she was much deeper in the sea; while the mainmast -of the _Serapis_ hung in splinters and threatened to go by the board at -any moment. - -Now, to the surprise of everybody, the cowardly Landais, with the -_Alliance_, once more put in an appearance. This time he fired several -broadsides into both combatants, seeming to take as much delight in -hitting one as the other. As before, the man who surely could not have -been sane, put his helm over and sailed away--very luckily for the last -time. - -While he was making off, a gunner on the _Richard_, thinking the ship -was sinking, called loudly for quarter. No sooner were the words out of -his mouth than Paul Jones sprang forward and felled him with the butt -end of his pistol. - -"Do you want quarter?" called Captain Pearson. - -"No," roared Paul Jones; "you are the one to ask that!" And he purposely -sent a pistol shot whistling close to the British captain's ears. - -As if to make matters worse at this trying moment, the master-at-arms on -the _Richard_, also thinking the ship sinking, opened the hatches and -released nearly two hundred British prisoners, taken from prizes, who -began to swarm on deck in the greatest confusion! - -It was a moment to try the resourcefulness of the quickest intellect. -Paul Jones hesitated just a moment, then he thundered at the prisoners -to man the pumps or he would fill them full of lead. They obeyed like -dumb-driven sheep. As the water in the hold of the sinking ship began to -pour over her bulwarks into the sea again, the men on the _Richard_ -resumed the battle with new vigor. - -Paul Jones had given orders to drop hand-grenades from the rigging down -into the hold of the _Serapis_, through her main hatchway, which was -open. By this same means the enemy had been set afire at various times -before. Now, at an opportune moment, a hand-grenade fell among a pile -of cartridges strung out on the deck of the _Serapis_. A terrific -explosion occurred, killing many of her men. - -It was an opportunity too good to let go. With a shout, the dashing John -Mayrant, cleared the bulwarks of the enemy ship at the head of a yelling -throng of Americans and French, and the next moment a terrific -hand-to-hand struggle with cutlass and pistol was being waged. - -[Illustration: BOARDING THE SERAPIS - -_From a rare print_] - -Seeing his men falling back, Captain Pearson knew that he was a defeated -man, and struck his colors to save those of his crew still alive. - -The capture of the British frigate came none too soon, for the old -shot-torn _Bon Homme Richard_ was settling fast. By the combined efforts -of crew and prisoners, the fire in both ships was extinguished. Then all -bent their efforts to removing the wounded and prisoners from the -_Richard_ to the _Serapis_, together with ammunition and other -valuables. - -All the rest of that night the heroic old craft kept afloat, with the -Stars-and-Stripes--the same flag the Colonial maids of Portsmouth had -given Paul Jones upon his departure in the _Ranger_--flying proudly at -her peak. Then, as if waiting for daylight to illuminate her last action -before man, she slowly sank just as the sun came up across the waters in -the east. The very last vestige anybody saw of her was her flag, still -flying--unstruck! - - * * * * * - -When, two years later, Paul Jones returned to America, he met Miss Mary -Langdon, who had been one of the girls to make this ensign. "I wished -above all things to bring this flag to America," said he; "but, Miss -Mary, I could not bear to strip the old ship in her last agony, nor -could I deny to my dead on her decks, who had given their lives to keep -it flying, the glory of taking it with them." - -"You have done exactly right, commodore," exclaimed she. "That flag is -just where we all wish it to be--flying at the bottom of the sea over -the only ship that ever went down in victory!" - - - - -XIV - -DIPLOMACY AND SOCIETY - - -The desperate battle fought in the bright moonlight was witnessed by -many persons in Scarborough and on the Flamborough Head. These English -people immediately spread the alarming tidings throughout the enemy -country by lighting immense signal fires on the cliffs. Although it was -not definitely known what ship had taken the formidable _Serapis_, -nearly everybody rightly guessed that it had been captained by the -"terrible Paul Jones." The British along the sea coast all the way from -Cape Clear to Hull were in a great fright, and for days to come looked -for the appearance of the "blood-thirsty buccaneer" in their particular -locality. - -With his two new prizes--for the _Pallas_ had succeeded in capturing the -_Countess of Scarborough_ after a short engagement--the commodore now -set off for The Texel, where he arrived October 3. He was none too soon -in getting into port, either. Very shortly after his arrival an English -squadron, consisting of sixty-four ships-of-the-line and three heavy -frigates, which had been looking for him, hove into view. - -The scape-goat Landais, with the _Alliance_, was already in The Texel -when the American-French squadron arrived. Paul Jones at once took steps -for the care of the wounded and prisoners, and then sent special -messengers to Dr. Franklin with news of the great victory and a report -of Landais's scandalous behavior, demanding that he be court-martialed. - -An important problem now to be solved was how to induce the Dutch -authorities to allow Paul Jones and his battered ships to remain long -enough in a neutral port to make necessary repairs to carry them to -France. Indeed, Sir Joseph Yorke, British minister in Holland, lost no -time in demanding that the Dutch government turn over to England "the -pirate and criminal, Paul Jones, and every ship under his command." An -enormous amount of correspondence then passed between the diplomats of -the three countries concerned; conferences were held; even Paul Jones -himself took a most active hand in presenting his arguments in favor of -the step he had taken. The people of Holland were secretly in sympathy -with the revolting colonies; but the wealthy Dutch ship-owners were -gaining a rich harvest from the commerce with England at this time, and -they made their weighty power felt in settling the question. These men -thought the ships should be held by Holland until after the war. -However, the other contingent argued them down, and the States-General -at last sent England the verdict of his country, which was to the effect -that Holland would _not_ deliver over the vessels to England, but would -insist that they depart from Holland waters at the first favorable -weather. - -In the meantime, kind-hearted Dutch maids thronged the decks of the -_Serapis_, _Alliance_, _Pallas_ and _Scarborough_. They brought with -them gifts of food and clothing for the strong and healthy, as well as -an abundance of delicacies for the sick and wounded. More than one -rosy-cheeked, fair-haired girl acted as nurse, and it is no wonder that -under such jolly, tender care the ailing ones made rapid improvement. - -As he watched his ships nearing the finish of their repairs, Paul -Jones's heart became more anxious, and often he looked seaward where the -British ships were grimly patrolling to prevent his escape when the -Dutch authorities should order him out at the first favorable wind. He -hoped intensely that this sort of wind would not come before he had -everything aboard in readiness and his plans for evading the enemy well -formed. - -On the 13th of December the French minister of marine, De Sartine, -demanded that he should fly the French flag, which naturally commanded -greater respect from Holland than the American ensign. In vain he -expostulated to this gentleman and to Dr. Franklin, his friend in Paris; -the latter stated he thought it the best thing to do. Therefore, Paul -Jones made the change, but with great reluctance. It grieved him deeply -to see the flag of another country, other than that under which the -_Serapis_ had had to bow down to, fluttering at her masthead. - -Close upon the heels of this disappointment came another to tear the -heartstrings of the irritated Scotchman. This was an order for him to -relinquish supervision of all his ships except the _Alliance_, which he -was to command as an ordinary captain. The _Serapis_ he must turn over -to Captain Cottineau, who, it was said, would look after the fortunes of -this vessel, as well as the _Pallas_ and the _Vengeance_ and the -_Scarborough_, in the future. Commodore Jones sent vehement -protestations at this humiliating change to the French government and -the American commissioners, but in vain; no other arrangement could well -be made, wrote Dr. Franklin. So our hero bowed in submission, although -when he went aboard the _Alliance_ as her captain he defiantly pulled -down the French flag at her peak and ran up the Stars-and-Stripes. - -The incessant jangling and wrangling with the diplomats of three -countries in addition to his own, had made Paul Jones very sore at -heart. Therefore, he was very glad when, on Christmas Day, 1779, the -weather underwent a change which promised him a chance to get away from -The Texel. That morning he awoke to find such a gale blowing that most -of the patrolling English frigates were driven off the coast. All that -day and the next it howled so furiously that he dared not venture to -steal out himself; but early on the morning of the 27th he made a dash -in the _Alliance_, boldly shaping his course for the Straits of Dover. - -As daring as ever, he sailed down the English Channel, passing close to -the Channel Fleet of the enemy. They gave chase, but he outmaneuvred -them, and finally put in at Corunna, Spain, for repairs. On February 10, -1780, he sailed into L'Orient. - -The following year was passed mainly in France, where Paul Jones applied -himself energetically to trying to collect prize money for his men and -himself, and trying to secure an important command. He wrote rather more -than his usual large number of letters,--to Franklin, the Duchesse De -Chartres, Robert Morris, Arthur Lee, Dr. Bancroft, and many others,--in -an endeavor to carry out some of his pet plans for the betterment of war -operations. In spite of his hard efforts to collect this prize money, -there were many annoying delays caused by technicalities, and his crew -as a whole grew impatient and rebellious. This feeling was increased -when the traitor, Landais, suddenly appeared among them, and abetted by -Arthur Lee, stirred up the men with many lies. - -Wannashego carried this state of affairs to Paul Jones as soon as he -became convinced of the peril of the situation, but even while he was in -quest of his friend, Landais and Lee went aboard and took possession of -the ship. When, on his arrival, Paul Jones found what had transpired he -was so angry that he could hardly contain himself. He came very near to -shooting both the conspirators; but as usual when in a temper he calmed -down with surprising quickness, and departed. The next day the -_Alliance_, under the command of Landais, sailed for America, with Lee -aboard. Paul Jones made no effort to prevent it. "Let them go," he said -to Wannashego; "I am well rid of such a pair of precious scoundrels. As -for the ship, she is not worth fighting over." - -So Landais sailed away with the _Alliance_, but to his own -ruin--something the astute Scotchman had foreseen. On the voyage -Landais's eccentricity caused his friend Lee to put him under arrest, -and on arrival in America a court of inquiry found him unfit for -command, and he never burdened the service again. - -Paul Jones had arrived in Paris this time in a blaze of fame. He was -lionized by society, congratulated by royalty, was the idol of women -high and low. He was bidden by the Duc and Duchesse De Chartres to be -their guest at the Palais Royal, and occupied one of the splendid -apartments of that historic dwelling during his stay in Paris. As soon -as the Duchesse had received the commodore's letter acquainting her with -his victory over the _Serapis_--in these words: "The enemy surrendered -at thirty-five minutes past 10:00 p. m. by your watch, which I consult -only to fix the moment of victory"--she prepared to give a great ball in -his honor. - -And now that Paul Jones was present in person, the charming Duchesse -could not seem to do enough to attest her regard for him. She gave a -wonderful banquet, with him as the chief guest. As the evening waned he -asked her if she remembered his promise to lay an English frigate at her -dainty feet. On hearing her assent, he turned to an attendant, who had -been holding the sword surrendered by Captain Pearson, and taking this -he dropped gracefully on one knee and presented it to the beautiful -Duchesse with these words: "While I am unable to lay so large a thing as -a frigate at the feet of your Royal Highness, I nevertheless am able to -surrender to the loveliest of women the sword surrendered by one of the -bravest of men on such a frigate." - -Of course the petite Aimee De Telusson was present at this meeting, and -to her, as usual, Paul Jones gallantly paid the most marked attention. -His gayety was contagious. His wit was the wonder of all those -assembled. With one and all he was a favorite, this son of a poor Scotch -gardener. - - - - -XV - -AND THE LAST - - -For some time Benjamin Franklin, knowing the need of supplies for -Washington's army, had been soliciting Paul Jones to take command of the -_Ariel_ and transport such goods from France to America. But the Scotch -commodore, dissatisfied with the humbleness of a command on such a small -sloop, had held off stubbornly, hoping that in the meantime a ship of -greater caliber and importance would be presented to him. Honors -bestowed upon him by the King of France, wherein he had been presented -with the Royal Order of Military Merit and a beautiful gold sword, -seemed to have increased his native unbounded ambitions and to have -almost spoiled him for anything but the most exalted of offices. - -But on October 8, 1780, he finally sailed away in the _Ariel_, having a -goodly number of his old crew with him, including his valiant young -Indian friend Wannashego, who was now eager to see his home country and -people, from whom he had been away just one month short of three years. -The young Narragansett's muscles were like steel bands now, and not a -member of the _Ariel's_ crew could throw him. This had been amply -attested in the wrestling bouts which took place on the eve of the -ship's departure from L'Orient, when Commodore Jones had given an -elaborate farewell party. On this occasion the little _Ariel_ had been -bewitchingly decorated from stern to bow, the finest people of France -had been in attendance, and a wonderful mimic sham battle had been -shown, a replica of that terrible fight between the _Bon Homme Richard_ -and the _Serapis_. - -The little _Ariel_ arrived in Philadelphia the 18th of February, 1781, -and there her commander took affectionate leave of Wannashego. For five -years the young Narragansett Indian had fought at Paul Jones's side, -never once flinching, and therefore he seemed more like a younger -brother than a friend. At this time the Scotchman himself was -thirty-three years old. - -Upon his arrival the commodore called on many of his friends, and then -proposed having an investigation of the doings of his enemy, Arthur Lee. -But his friends dissuaded him from this. With the whole country ringing -his praises, as had been the case when he left France, it was easy for -him to forgive his enemies. Congress passed resolutions in which they -complimented him for his victories and service to the States, and a most -appreciative letter was written him by the great George Washington -himself. - -It now seemed to Paul Jones a favorable time to improve his rank--an -object he never lost sight of!--and on May 28 he sent a memorial to -Congress reiterating his claims to stand above the captains who had been -unjustly put ahead of him. He failed, probably on account of the -political influence of the aforesaid captains; but he was rewarded with -the command of the _America_, a fine new 74-gun ship-of-the-line then -building at Portsmouth. He at once went to Portsmouth, and worked for -weeks getting her ready for sea--only to have her turned over to the -King of France! - -With undaunted energy he now attempted to get hold of the _South -Carolina_, formerly the _Indien_. But the plan failed, and he remained -without a vessel. Unable to rest, although his health had for some time -been failing, he was given consent to go off with the French fleet under -Marquis De Vaudreuil, "in pursuit of military marine knowledge," as he -termed his object. Then, in the summer of 1783, came an attack of fever. -On his recovery, he was appointed by Congress as agent to collect all -moneys due from the sale of prizes taken in European waters under his -command. In this work he showed unusual business tact and ability. - -When the war closed, he began a profitable business in illuminating -oils, and continued his activities in securing prize money until all -accounts had been settled. Then Paul Jones set off for Copenhagen to -collect indemnity from the Danish government for the prizes the mad -Landais had delivered to Bergen, and which that country had turned over -to England before the declaration of hostilities between the two. He -arrived in January, 1788, and was magnificently entertained by the -court, being given a pension of 1500 crowns a year "for respect shown -to the Danish flag" while he commanded in the European seas. The -negotiations for indemnity were suspended and transferred, with his -agreement, to Paris. - -When Paul Jones was in Paris, the Russian ambassador to France made a -proposition to him, through Mr. Jefferson, to take a position in the -Russian navy. Russia was then at war with Turkey, and the clever Simolin -so impressed the Scotch captain with the great deeds he might do for -the benefit of the Russian empire and the distress of the Turks, that -he at once began to maneuver for the highest command possible. He -demurred at the rank of captain-commandant, a rank equal to that of -brigadier-general in the present United States army--and maintained that -nothing less than that of rear-admiral was fitting. This was allowed. - -Our hero left Copenhagen on his ill-fated Russian mission, April 11, and -made a flying and perilous trip to St. Petersburg. The Baltic was filled -with ice blocks, but at the muzzle of his pistols the intrepid Scotchman -forced two frightened and unwilling boatmen to row him across the -turbulent stream. On April 23 he was presented to the Empress, and she -conferred upon him the coveted rank of rear-admiral, to the profound -disgust of many of the English officers in the service of Russia, who -looked upon the newcomer as a red-handed and infamous pirate. - -With many a jealous eye on him, Paul Jones departed from St. Petersburg -on May 7, to take command of the Russian squadron in the Black Sea. But -even while he was leaving envy and hate behind him, he was going forward -into feeling even more bitter. His fortune put him in co-command with an -arrogant adventurer, the Prince of Nassau, who at once became extremely -jealous of the American. Nassau advised him to allow Prince Potemkin, in -charge of the fleet, to take the credit for any success which might -result from an engagement, and to hold his tongue--two things which Paul -Jones's nature would not allow him to do. - -It is not advisable to enter into the details of this campaign, but -enough may be given to explain some of the difficulties the man from -across the sea encountered. Following some unimportant engagements, -Captain Pacha, whose fleet lay before Oczakow, protecting that -Turk-infested town from the Russian ships, attempted to attack the -Russian fleet. But one of his ships ran aground, and the others anchored -in much confusion. Paul Jones then made such a fierce attack that the -Turkish ships cut anchor and fled, with him in pursuit. He signaled -Nassau to join him, but the latter paid no attention, and continued to -fire inhumanely into two others of the enemy which were aground and -ablaze. Paul Jones then continued on after the fleeing Turkish ships, -many of which he captured or ran aground. Later on, the cowardly Nassau -came up and proceeded to rake the helpless enemy fore and aft, killing -most of their crews while they pleaded for quarter. - -Paul Jones was so disgusted and incensed at this conduct that he -publicly upbraided Prince Nassau, gaining his further ill-will, and -bringing down upon his head a rebuke from the crafty Prince Potemkin. To -add to his anger, when the Empress made her awards of bravery for this -battle, Nassau received the warmest praise and a valuable estate, -while Paul received only the mediocre award of the Order of St. Anne. - -A little later the despotic Potemkin had made up his mind that he could -not get along with the independent and fiery American seaman, and -secured an order which sent him into the northern seas. This was -practically a dismissal for Paul Jones, who returned to St. Petersburg -in virtual disgrace. By this time, too, Empress Catherine had had her -ears so filled with the lies of his enemies, who seemed to take delight -in besmirching his character and causing him every annoyance possible, -even to the extent of intercepting his mail, that she was sincerely -anxious to get rid of the man whom she had only a little while before -admired so greatly. She did not dare to do this openly, however, owing -to his powerful influence in France, which she feared; so promised him -an important command in the Baltic seas, a command which she secretly -made up her mind should never come his way. - -Patiently Paul Jones waited in his humble lodgings in St. Petersburg for -this commission. Days rolled by. Weeks rolled by. Months began to -multiply. While he waited, he was falsely accused, in March, 1789, of -an atrocious crime, and forbidden to approach the palace of the Empress. -But for the French ambassador, M. De Segur, who had a strong influence -with the Empress, and who proved that Paul Jones was the victim of a -plot, it is hard to tell how he would have come out of this difficulty. -As it was, Catherine once more received him graciously, with profuse -apologies. - -But Paul Jones's health, largely owing to the indignities heaped upon -him in Russia, was now fast failing; he asked for two years' leave of -absence, and it was granted. His services to that country were -considerable, yet they have never to this day been recognized. As an -instance of the ridiculous reports circulated about him, we will state -that he was said to have murdered his nephew--a person who had never -existed! Can we wonder that the sensitive soul of this brave man was -shattered after his harrowing experiences? Can we wonder that his -iron-clad constitution, which should have held life in him not less than -four-score years, began to go to pieces when he was still a young man? - -On August 18, 1789, Paul Jones left St. Petersburg, never to return, and -never again to fight a battle for any nation. He was only forty-two -years old, but though still brave in spirit, so undermined in physical -strength that he remained in Paris and became a spectator rather than an -actor in the great French Revolution, then taking place. - -Acquainted with men of all nationalities and in the highest and most -influential positions, Paul Jones, now that he could do little else, -settled down to entertaining his friends and being entertained himself. -Always he seemed happiest when with the charming Aimee De Telusson, who -to the very end of his last hours remained ever with him, a faithful and -devoted nurse. Had he continued to live in health and strength there is -little doubt but that he would have taken this beautiful, unselfish, and -loving girl, the daughter of a king, to be his wife, for of all his many -warm women friends, with her he was ever the most tender and -considerate. - -A stranger to illness, a conqueror of troubles which had seemed far more -formidable to him, Paul Jones never doubted his recovery. Even when the -doctors shook their heads and said his left lung was entirely gone and -the other affected, he smiled and did not give up. His wonderful Scotch -constitution held out amazingly. A number of times it looked as if he -would win his battle with Death, for he would rise from his bed and seem -his old energetic self again. - -But gradually his strength was sapped. On the afternoon of the 18th of -July, 1792, when forty-five years old, he consigned himself to the -inevitable, and, assisted by Gouverneur Morris, drew up his will. A few -hours afterward, while he lay in bed, his great spirit quietly departed. - -[Illustration: PAUL JONES'S LAST BURIAL - -_Midshipman escorting the casket to its final resting place, in -Annapolis, April 24th, 1906_] - -In 1905, the American Embassy in Paris exhumed the body of America's -glorious hero, after it had lain hidden for one hundred and thirteen -years in the abandoned Cemetery of St. Louis. Under escort of one of our -finest naval squadrons the body was brought to the United States and -buried with much ceremony in Arlington, the National Cemetery at -Washington. - - * * * * * - -_FAMOUS AMERICANS FOR YOUNG READERS_ - - -_Titles Ready_ - - GEORGE WASHINGTON By Joseph Walker - JOHN PAUL JONES By C. C. Fraser - THOMAS JEFFERSON By Gene Stone - ABRAHAM LINCOLN By J. Walker McSpadden - BENJAMIN FRANKLIN By Clare Tree Major - DAVID CROCKETT By Jane Corby - ROBERT FULTON By I. N. McFee - THOMAS A. EDISON By I. N. McFee - HARRIET B. STOWE By R. B. MacArthur - MARY LYON By H. 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