The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-06-08
BARBARY COAST PIRATES.
our SCRAPS WITH THEM EARLY IN
THE PRESENT CENTURY.
Our Tributes TO Them Until We BE-
came Tired of That Sort of Thing.
The Assumption of the Dey OF Al
giers-Deeatur's Daring Exploit.

The Barbary pirates had been the
soourge of the Mediterranean commerce
for many years before the thirteen colo
MES became the United States. Issuing
from their well-fortihed harbors in gal
leys or cruisers. they attacked indiscrimi-
nately the merchantmen of peaceful ma
lions, confscated their cargoes, and sent
the crews into slavery unless tribute or
ransom was forthcoming. Even the Brit
ish paid tribute regularly to these insolent
pirates. who gladly saw in ships under
our new flag another sail on the CONNER
cial horizon. II meant to them a new set
of victims or a new tributary. In 1885 they
seized two American ships and threw their
crews of twenty-one people into slavery.
BY this time the piratical rights OF the
Barbary states were so generally admitted
that Congress thought it no shame to
ransom the prisoners for $4,000. Instead
of resenting the outrage by an instant dec
laration of war; the expediency of follow
ing the example of the great European
Powers and paying tribute against further
molestation was acknowledged.
Much meat, however, made the Mussul-
as our commerce expanded their demands
became more exorbitant and peremptory.
The year 1888 actually beheld the fine fri
gate Crescent sailing from Boston mar
Dor as a United States present 10 the
Dey of Algiers. 'as compensation for not
fulfilling our treaty Obligations i. e., for
not paying tribute lin proper time" The
Crescent was loaded with gifts for the Dey,
and her value at sailing was estimated az
$500 COO Seeing the Dey get SO much out
Of US the rulers of the other Barbary
states naturally wanted more. The Pasha
of TTipoli and the Bey of Tunis became
extremely exorbitant in their demands, and
as these were not satisfied quickly enough
TO suit their august majesties, the Ameri-
can flagstaff was cut down, and war de-
clared in Tripoh on April Is, 1901.
Previous TO this, in the year 1900, Capt.
cambridge, in the sloop-of-war George
Washington, had entered the harbor OF Al
giers and achored under the batteries for
the purpose of paying the annual tribute
to the Dey. After the tribute had been
landed the Dey requested that the vessel
be placed at his disposal, as he wished TO
use her for the conveyance of ENJOYS and
presents 10 the Sultan of Turkey. Balm
bridge at first refused this request, but the
DEFY threatened to blow his ship out of the
water if denial were persisted in, and as
the American consul advised the captain
that war would follow further refusal
cambridge felt it his duty to acquiesce
The argument of the Dey, who must have
been a highly original and humorous old
gentleman, was that the Americans paid
him tribute, and therefore became his
slaves. Therefore he had right TO give
orders to the commanders of their ships
of-war. And this from an under officer
of the Sultan of Turkey
AS the George Washington was about to
sail on the Dey's errand he demanded that
the American flag at the peak give way to
the Algerian colors, but was kind enough
to allow the United States ensign 10 be
flown at the fore as great concession. As
| the ship was under the guns of the Mus
| sulman batteries this last indignity had to
be submitted to, and thus the American
sloop-of-war George Washington sailed
from the harbor of Algiers by order of the
Dey of Algiers and under the Algerian col
ors! On her return from her mission fur
ther indignities We're offered to the ship
and her commander, who had a most hu-
initiating tale for the ears of the American
government when his ship came home in
the summer of 1901.
Before she arrived a squadron of three
frigates, the President Philadelphia and
Essex and one schooner, the Enterprise,
We're ordered to the Mediterranean under
| the command of Capt. Richard Dale They
sailed on the 10Th of May, 1901, not know
ing of Trpolfs declaration of war. But
an outbreak from the Barbary States had
been feared and Dale was TO pacify them
by show OF force off their principal ports
on the 1st of July the squadron arrived
at Gibraltar, where two corsairs of Tripoli
were found. Their being stationed in the
straits was a suspicious incident, and the
Philadelphia watched them so closely that
they were unable to get to sea, and finally
We're compelled to disembark their crews
and send them to the south coast in small
II. -,.s,-<
now made sail for Algiers, and shortly
after the appearance of these two formid-
able vessels off the Dey's dominions a
wonderful revulsion of sentiment was ap-
parent in that old gentleman. He hasten
ed 10 assure the Yankee commodore that
his previous actions and utterances had
been entirely misunderstood; that he had
thropic manner and that nothing could
exceed in warmth the affection that he
had always felt for The United States gov
eminent and people. Meanwhile the Essex
had been employed in conveying American
merchantmen through the straits and the
Enterprise had been cruising off Malta
On Aug. / the Enterprise encountered the
enemys war poiacca, Trlpol in an action
at short range. Though the vessels were
nearly equal in size, crew and armament
1t was found after the Tripous surrender,
that the cool, quick and accurate fire of
tnG americans Hdu klllG0 ana wounded
fifty of the Mussulman's crew of eighty,
while not one of the hundred Americans
had been injured. On the oath of August
the President appeared off Tripon and
shortly afterward brought to-. e..
stopped-a Greek ship that was trying to
enter the harbor. Thirty-fve Tripolitans
were found on board of her. These were
detained and afterward exchanged for six
captured Americans. AS winter cruising
in the Mediterranean was considered dan
gerous, the President and the Enterprise
returned to the United States in Decem-
Der, leaving on the station the Philadel-
phia and Essex, which patrolled the sea so
vgilantly that not a single American mer-
chairman was captured during the winter
Capt. Morris was appointed to command
the Mediterranean squadron in May, 1902.
when his force consisted of the frigates
Chesapeake, Constellation, and New York.
the corvettes Adams and John Adams. and
the schooner Enterprise. This force, al
though not strong enough to capture such
heavily fortified stronghold as Tripoli.
was yet so formidable as 10 overawe the
Emperor of Morocco and the Bey of Tunts.
who gladly joined the Dey of Algiers in a
hasty retraction of their hostile utter
ances and arrogant demands