Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1865-02-01

) III bue ClOSeb OI D6lkiTk OdsIIOJ OAO'S
t years after it had been taken from it
j Such was the persevering and chiYalri
] generosity of Captain Jones.
The day after his visit to Lady Selkirl
D was that of his great fight with the Brit
S ish man of war, the "Drake." TIL,
: " Drake" he heard, was lying at ancho
in the barber of Carrickfergus. As HI
t was running in with the fixed intention
to fight her there, he saw her standing
f out to sea in quest of him. They met
The fight was short and furious. In al
hour and four minutes, the "Drake'
struck, having lost her Captain, First
Lieutenant, and forty men. The "Ran.
gers" loss was nine.
The victory electrified Europe. The
audacity, the valor-the admiration Of
the world. Old DR.. Franklin, who
had planned the enterprise, and had sent
out to America for Captain to come and
execute it, was enchanted. In Paul
Jones' subsequent. troubles, he always
had a staunch friend and protector in
Franklin.
A very successful man generally has
enemies. Paul Jones experienced the
truth of this rank. Nevertheless, after
much delay and some notifications, DR..
Franklin succeeded in getting him an
other ship, the ever famous "Bon HON.
me Richard" thus named by Captain
Jones in honor of the venerable editor of
Poor Richards Almanac. She was
large, slow. rotton old ship, and manned
by three hundred and eighty sailors and
landsmen of all nations-French, Irish,
Scotch, Portuguese, Malays, Maltese, and
sprinkling of Americans. 1t was in this
ship that the indomitable Jones fought
the "Serapis," a new British ship of
forty-four guns, one of the stoutest YES
sels in the English navy. This was per-
haps the most desperate and bloody con-
test that ever took place between single
ships It was fought in the evening of
September %, 1778, so near the York
shire coast that the battle was witnessed
by hundreds of spectators on the shore.
Captain Jones perceiving the superior
strength Of the enemy, saw that his only
chance was to come to close quarters and,
early in the fight got alongside and lash
ed his ship to the side of the "Serpis."
By this time, however, the Ben Hon
me Richard" had received eighteen shots
below the water line, had four feet of
water in hold, had had four guns burst and
all the rest disabled but three, had lost a
hundred men in killed and wounded, and
was on fire. Almost any other man
would have given up, for the "Serapis'
was still uninjured. Captain Jones, how
ever, fought on with an energy and reso-
luton undiminished.
With his three guns, all aimed by him
self, he kept laundering away at the foe,
while a force Of fsharp-shooters aloftswept
the decks of the Serapis with musketry.
Such was the vigor of this fire ofmusket-
ry that at length, no man was seen on the
enemy's deck. Then the men of the
" Bon Homme Richard" formed line
along the main yard, and passed hand
granades to the man at the end, who
dropped them down into the hold of the
"Serapis," doing tremendous execution.
For three hours the battle ragged. The
" Bon Homme Richards" pump was shot
away, and then a new danger threatened
her. She had gone into action with nearly
five hundred prisoners in her steerage,
and when the pump was shot away, the
officer in charge of the prisoners, suppos-
ing the ship sinking, released them. At
the same moment a boarding party from
the Scraps" sprang up the sides of the
F" Bon HOmme Richard" This was the
crisis of the battle. Captain Jones never
faltered. The boarders were gallantly
repulsed the prisoners were driven be-
low and the fight was renewed. At half
past ten in the evening, the British ship
being on fire in many places, the Captain
struck his colors. The "Bon Homme
Richard" was 50 completely knocked to
pieces, that she could not be kept afoat
She sank the nextday, and Captain J ones
went into port in the captured ship, with
seven hundred prisoners.
This great victory raised his fame to
the highest point. The King of France
gave him magnificent diamond hilted |
sword, and Congress voted him a gold
medal. After the war was over, the EN-
press of Russia invited him to join her
navy with the rank of fRear-Admiral. He
accepted the post, but the jealousies and
intrigues of the Russian naval officers
disguised him to such degree that he
resigned and returned to Paris. The
last years of his life were passed in OBJ
scurity. He died at Paris in 1892.
Paul Jones was a short thick set man,
of great strength and endurance. He
had keen, bright eye, with look of
in it. His voice was soft and
gentle. In his dress, and in the equip
age of his boat and ship. he was some