The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-06-02

ships and frigates, yet, when I came to
| try my skill, am not ashamed to own,
| did not find myself perfect in the duties
| of first lieutenant" Another one of
| his sentences in the same letter is worth
/ a good deal to anyone who adopts it as
| a rule of conduct: Il always wish to take
the earliest opportunity of acknowledS-
ing a mistake"
In his thirteenth year it became neces-
! sary for Paul to earn his own living, and
! of course he chose the sea He was
! bound apprentice to a shipmaster, and
! his first voyage was to Fredericksburg
! III West Virginia. Here he had an elder
/ brother living, and his time ashore was
| spent with his brother. So we'll did he
! conduct himself that when this brother,
| William Paul. died thirteen years later,
| all his estate was left to Paul
But there were many years of toll be-
fore the boy still-and he undoubtedly
was ravenous student in all that time.
| When he was twenty years old he re-
turned to Scotland from the West Indies
Fever broke out on the ship and both
the captain and mate died There was
no one among the ships company who
knew enough of navigation to take COM
| mand of the brigantine. Then the young
passenger came forward, and offered to
carry the ship into her port. This he
did. and as a reward was made master
and supercargo by her owners. Before
| he was twenty-one, therefore, ne was
commanding officer.
Jones Became an American.
In 1773 he inherited his brother Will
liam's property, and craving some re-
spite from the laborS and dangers of the
sea, he settled down quietly in Virginia,
thinking to spend the rest of his life
there. Although his origin was humble,
he had acquired an education and bear
ing that fitted him for any society, and
he was received as an equal by the
naughty provincial gentry of Virginia.
Here he first made the acquaintance of
Thomas Jefferson, who remained his life
long friend.
AS soon as war was declared by the
colonies Paul Jones dreams of a quiet
country life vanished. He was as devoted
to America as if born here, and said,
America from my thirteenth year has
He went to Philadelphia carrying letters
from leading patriots in Virginia to Rob
ert Norris, then at the head of the mar
inc committee of congress, and when the
beginning of the United States navy was
made, he was named as the senior first
lieutenant. At this time he had adopted
the name of Jones. He was slight, but
well made, and of a military bearing.
His complexion was dark. and his eyes
were black and very beautiful. He had
a slight impeachment in his speech, which
disappeared under the influence of ex-
element, and his manners, when he
wished, were winning. He was a man OF
deep sentiment and chose with his own
hands to raise the first flag Of therevolu-
ton on the Alfred, f1agShip,of which he
was the first lieutenant. Afterwards he
also raised the stars and stripes, the first
lean man-of-war This was in the har-
Dor of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in
the autumn of III.
His Pluck and Fearlessness.
From the beginning of his career in the
navy, Paul Jones seems to have shown
that steadipess, readiness and audacity
which afterwards raised him to the first
rank among great Seamen. When a first
lieutenant he piloted the whole American
fleet through West Indian waters, I'M
known to him, bristling with reefs and
swirling with dangerous currents. The
commodore of the fleet, being afraid to
trust the native pilot, Paul Jones volun-
teered to take the fleet to a safe anchor
age. Making the pilot go with him to
the foretop masthead, and keeping the
lead going on both sides of the snip, he
led the way through innumerable dan
gers TO q place of safety.
Soon after this he was appointed to
command the Ranger, sloop of war, and
take her to France. He set out boldly
with a good American crew, but a poor
ship, weakly armed. He had for COM
pany in the cabin a monkey-and the |
monkey had for company. an organ. Paul |
Jones cabin furnishings. by comparison |
with those on modern ships of war. seem |
very primitive-but he had two bookcases /
full Of books. He had hoped to have a |