The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1905-09-02

and profound sense Of the political and
military weight of command on the

ana prOlOullO sense OF the QOul1Ca1 anu
military weight Of command on the
sea-" Il,
BY his contemporaries Paul Jones
is described as five feet seven inches
tall, slender in build. Of: symmetrical
form with noticeably perfect develop
ment Of limbs. His hair and eyebrows
were black and his complexion so swar-
thy that when he went on q special mis-
Aion to Amsterdam he successfully
passed himself for Spaniard. He
was master of the arts of dress and
personal adornment and added to his
charms OF persons an apparently In
exhaustible fund Of ready, pointed wit.
John Paul Jones was a. remarkable
contradiction. Naval skill and bravery
he certainly had, but his letters prove
him to have been boastful and quar-
relsome. He writhed under the sus-
picion Of being an adventurer, and
again and again: he eagerly repels
this charge. He ranked as an officer
Of the United States, but the inde-
pendent manner Of his cruising might
we'll have suggested letters Of marque
than government commission. He
received the first salute to the flag
on the high seas and was the first
to compel a regular British man-of-
war to strike Of the cross Of st. George
to the Stars and Stripes.
On June IA, ,1777 Congress passed
the following resolution:
Resolved, That the flag of the thir-
teen United States Of America be thir-
teen stripes, alternate red and white;
that the Union be thirteen stars in a
blue field; representing new con-
stellation."
"Resolved, That Captain Paul Jones
be appointed to command the ship
Ranger"
At this day it seems singular that
two acts 50 widely different in effect
should be Joined in one resolution.
1t may be that Congress did this mere
ly as a matter of convenience, little
concerned with the effect such action
might produce in years to follow, but
the significance of the unusual COM
bination was not lost on Paul Jones,
He accepted it as distinction, and
used to say:
That flag and are twins; born the
same hour from the same womb Of
N~oSAAJs We NoAAAAOI NC pdA tSO al ll1C
or in death. So long as we can float
we shall float together. II we must
sink, We will go down as onI"
Since July 10, 1892, when he died in
Paris, the body Of Paul Jones, founder;
Of the United States navy. found a
resting place in French soil. Now,
after many years Of forgetfulness, his
coffin was found in an unmarked grave
and all that is mortal Of the sea-
fighter whose fame Is lustrous in the
naval annals Of the Revolution is to
have honored burial under the flag
for which he fought.
History writes Paul Jones a. hero.
He was the greatest sailor of his time,
a fighting genius, but possessed Of
Characteristics 80 contrary to the hero
ic ideal as to make him a puzzle to
students Of his life. He combined the
most admirable qualities with the pet
test Of defects. Absolutely fearless
in battle, his personal bravery arous-
ed the zeal of his men, while his
cruelty and pride antagonized their af-
lection. Eager for recognition and
praise, he was without a sense of. deli
cacy In urging his own merits. Born
OF humble parents he always truckled
to those Of rank, and while boasting
OF his love for humanity and democ-
racy was the most obsequious Of pos
tulants for royal favor. This was par
t1cularly shown in his correspondence
which resulted In his appointment as
rear admiral In the Russian navy.
English writers have scored him
and called him buccaneer, pirate. renA-
gade and tritor. Americans have
praised him for his deathless grit.
exultant valor and scorn of peril, HiA
life has given rise to much romance.
Cooper and Dumas have woven fan
tastic tales about him, scarcely less
fictitious than some of his so-called
biography. And yet the life itself was
one of romance. Sailor at twelve.
captain in the merchant service at
twenty, naval lieutenant at twenty
eight, captain at twenty-nine, commo-
dore at thfrty-two. The most famous
sea victor Of his time, patronized by
kings, thanked and voted gold medal
by Congress. the friend Of Washing
ton, Franklin, Jefferson, Morris, Ham,
1lton and Lafayette. At forty-one a
vice-admiral in the navy Of an empire
and dead at forty-five.
NOTED INDIAN HHTEF