Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1899-08-20
HOW PAUL JONES FOUGHT.

Some OF the most vivid pictures vet Civ
en- of that greah sea duel, which placed
John Paul Jones at the head of the fight
ing sailors OF history are to be found in
Richard Carwal.~ the new book by VIM
ston Churchill, which is now making such
stir.
When Commodore Jones set sail for Eng
,lish waters in theBonhomme Richard on
the cruise that was to bring him into bat
tie with the Scraps. he had with him ths
following vessels: Alliance. thirty-six:
Pallas. thirty; Cert, eighteen: Vengeance.
twelve. and two Frerxn privateers. The
Bonhomme Richard was an ancient In
diaman, with high poop. She was per-
fecuy rotten. and in the constructors
opinion, not worth refitting Her lowest
deek-too low for the purpose-was pierc-
ed aft with three ports on a side, and six
worn out eighteen-pounders mounted
there. The main battery on the deck
above was composed of twenty-eisht
twelve-pounders. On the uncovered deck
eight nine-pounders were mounted. or her
people less than three-score of the seamen
were American born: nearly four-scora
were British. inclusive of sixteen Irish:
one hundred and thirty-seven were French
soldiers who acted as marines and the rest
of the three hundred odd souls TO fight her
| were from all over the earth-Malays and
Mates and Portuguese. In the hold, when
she met the Scraps and her fleet, were
moro than one hundred and fifty English
prisoners.
Richard Carvel was second lieutenant on
the Richard at the time of the acton, and
it is he who. in the book. tells the story OF
as much as he saw.
THE twilight deepened, until you scarce
could see your hands. There was no
sound save the cracking of the cabins and
the tumblng OF the blocks, and from time
TO time muttered command. An age
went by before the trimmers We're sent to
the lee braces and the Richard rounded
! lazily to. And a great frigate doomed out
of the night beside us, half a pistol shot
away. ss H, sss !
What ship is that? came the hail, IN
tense out of the silence
. L don't hear you.' replied our commo-
dore for he had not yet got his distance.
Again came the hail: What ship is
that?'
John Paul Jones leaned forward over
the rail-
Pass the word below to the first leu
tenant to begin the action. sir
Hardly were the words out Of my mouth
before the deck gave mighty leap. a hot
wind that seemed half OF flame blew
across my face. and the roar started tho
pain throbbing in my ears. At the same
instant the screech of shot sounded over
head, we heard the sharp crack-crack OF
wood rending and splitting, as with great
broadaxe, and a medley of blocks and
ropes ratified to the deck with thud OF
! the falling bodies. Then instead of still
ness. means and shrieks from above and
below, oaths and prayers in English and
French and Portuguese, and in the heath
en- gibbersh of the east. AS the men were
sponging and ramming home in the first
fury OF hatred the carpenter jumped out
under the battle lanthorn at the main
hatch, crying in a wild voice that the old
eighteens had burst killing hair their
crews and blowing up the gun deck above
them. At this many OF our men broke
and ran for the matches.
" Back, back TO your quartersl This
first man TO desert will be shot DOWN.
"It was the calm, stern voice of Jones.
This was the unfortunate opening Of
the great battle, and where after the Rich
ard and the Scraps had come together
and the Englishman thought hts fight was
won and Inquired: Have you struck,
sir? the answer came back in the COM
modores clear tone:
"'Sir, / have not yet begun TO fight
$50 the battle continued, with tho two
ships dashed together. and tho lighting dy-
ing men hardly seeing each other for the
smoke OF the guns and tho burning tim
bers Then the treacherous Landais. COM
manding the Alliance, one OF our own fleet
Increased the odds against the Richard by
pouring broadsides into her-and that's a
story by itself, but for which there Is here
no space.
"Seven times, I say. was that battle lost
and seven times regained again. What
was II kept the crews at their quarters
and the officers at their posts through
that he'll of flame and shot, when a mad
man could scarce have hoped for victory7
What but the knowledge that somewhere
in the swirl above us was still answering
and indomitable man who swept all obsta-
cles from before him, and into whose mind
the thought of defeat could not enter. His
spirit held US 10 our task. for flesh and
blood might not have endured alone.
when the cry went forth that the ship
was filing the English prisoners released
from the hold began to swarm out OF tho
bowels Of tho sinking wreck. They tram
pied roughshod over the moaning heaps OF
wounded and dying and crowded the crews
at the guns who were poweriess before
their numbers
Those of us who had chung 20 hope lost
1t then. Standing with my back to the
mast beating them Off with pike, visions
Of an English prison ship, of an English
gallows, came before me. / counted tho
seconds until the enemy's seamen would DO
pouring through our ragged ports. The
seventh and last time. and we were beat
en-, for we had not men enough left on our
two decks to force them down again.
Yes-I shame to confess it--the heart went
clean out of me, and with that the pain
pulsed and leaped in my head Ike a devil
unbound. At a turn Of the hand ! should
have sunk to the boards. had not voice
risen strong and clear above that tur-
mol. compelling every man TO halt tremb-
ling IN his steps
Cast of. cast on The Scraps Is sink
ing TO the pumps, ye fools, II you would
save your lives"
"That unerring genius Of the gardeners
son had struck the only chord
'4rhey were Ike sheep before US as ws
beat them back into the reeklug matches.
and soon the pumps were heard humping
with a renewed and a desperate yigor.
Then, all at once. the towering mainmass