The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1894-06-23
OUR JACK TARS.
Something About the Early Wars
in Which They Fought.

SOmGUuluS AOOuO Cu0 GhTly w al .
in Which They Fought.
The American navy has splendid
battle record in the early wars of our
country. From recent history of the
navy. prepared by Edgar Stanton Mac
lay. A. NJ, a book reviewer gains the
following interesting facts:
Our people come honestly by their
aptitude for the sea through English,
Dutch and French ancestry, while even
Spanish and Portuguese strains were
not wanting, particularly, as Mr.. Mac
Law notes. in Maine, a great state of
shipbuilders and mariners; and Italian
and Scandinavian admiXtures also
came duly. Within twelve years after
the Pilgrims landed hundred-ton
craft was launched in Massachusetts,
and in the following year one double
that size. BY 1876 Massachusetts, alone
had built seven hundred and thirty
vessels of from six tons to two hundred
and fifty. while in 1713 she employed
four hundred and ninety-two vessels
aggregating twenty-five thousand four
hundred and six tons, and thirty-four
hundred and ninety-three seamen. The
exploits of buccaneers under men like
Kidd and Bellamy caused merchant
crews to be trained in the use of fire
arms, while the whalers had their ad-
ventures in distant regions. Wars with
France in Canada, including two cap
lures of Port Royal and the reduction
of Louisburg, gave the colonists a
taste of naval warfare, and all these
experiences served to prepare them
for duties afloat when congress. at the
outbreak of the revolution, resolved to
have navy. The construction of five
ships of thirty-two guns, five OF twen-
7ty-eight and three OF twenty-four was
ordered at the close of 1775, and the
same year fourteen merchant vessels,
suitable for cruisers, We're purchased.
Our first naval commander was old
Capt. Ezek Hopkins, whose flagship,
the Alfred, was one of the eight cruis-
ers collected as a squadron at Philadel-
phia.
Early'in January, 1T16. he boarded
,hcr, and then, at a signal by Capt. Dud-
iey Saltonstall. First Lieut.. John Jones
hoisted the first flag ever raised on an
American man-of-war-a yellow silk
flag cmbellished with pine tree and
rattlesnake and the motto: Don't
tread on me- Capt. Hopkins sailed to
the Bahamas, where landing party,
under Capt. Nicholas of the marines
for as early as November 8. 1775. con-
gress had ordered the raising of two
battalions of mar a fort
at New Providence with nearly eighty
guns. Afterward the squadron fell in
with the twenty-gun ship Glasgow.
svhich, however, handled the Ameri-
can vessels roughly and made her es-
cape.
II would be long story to recount
the exploits of our young navy during
this war. In ITS we had fourteen
ships, carrying two hundred and thir-
ty-two guns, but the British had
eighty.nine ships on the North Ameri-
car coast, with two thousand five hun
dred and seventy-six guns, SO that, as
may be imagined, French naval, CO.
operation was much priced. But the
noteworthy naval feature of the war
was the energy of the American priva.
,tecrs. These and boat hotillas from
land captured in all sixteen English
cruisers, mounting two hundred and
twenty-six guns, and while the total
continental loss, including both wreck.
and captures, was twenty-four vessels
with four hundred and seventy guns
that of the British, according to Mr.
Maclay, was one hundred andstwo wal
vessels, with two Thousand six hun
Tired and twenty-five guns, and abou
.'cight hundred vessels of all kind
were captared from the English b.
American cruisers, privateers and b.,
private enterprise Tugr
A Mr. Woodbridge testified to tn,
house of lords that up to February 9
l71s, FIVE hundred and fifty-nine ship
had been captured or destroyed b.
American privateers, exclusive Of thos
rctaken and restored, and that thei
valuc was estimated. with their car
goes, ctc.. ut mor than nine million
dollars. Mr.. Creighton put the esti
enatc at eleven million dollars. and in
srrance rates had been doubled. Nh
Maclay further includes in the goo'
work Of the navy of the revolution tn
supplying of munitions of war and tn
capture of probably twelve thousan
prisoners, including about five hundre
'-- English soldiers. Besides Ezek Hop
asins. the well-known commanders in
cluded Barry. Manly. Mcneil and Hin
man hut the hero whose fame eclipse,
All D,icrs NhS JonH ihui 'OHeS. II
capture Of, the Drake, his raids upo
the shipping Of Whitchavcn. and hi
immortal exploit in the Due de Dura
whose namc he changed in honor q
DIR. Franklin to Bonhomme Richard
when lie destroyed tn Serapis. o.
F.amboroagh. make up 6nc of the bes
paSsages dfitlfis book tYgg ~
The war with France was the secon
great contest of our navy. Before
broke out the demand by the Dey {
Algiers of tribute like that whic
was paid by the powers of Europe ha
stimulated congress to authorize tn
building Of .three forty-four gun an
three thirty-six gun frigates. II is II
teresting to find that even in thos
days our constructors aimed to bull
the lest ships in the world. Just
hundred years ago, April l. l7s4. III
secretary ef war declared that thes
frigates separately ueuid be supcrie