The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-07-23
ANECDOTES OF JONES.
Admiral Many Things Besides Born
Fighter.

| Fighter.
John r. Spears in New York World)
/ must remain forever unique. For he was
| IN youth a Scotch sailor in early man
| mood a citizen of Virginia, and then in
! turn. the adviser of the Continental con
| gress when ships of war were TO be pro-
Vlded; the first lieutenant commissioned
| in the young American navy: the captain
OF a cruiser in most successful hunt
/ for the enemy'S commerce: the first can
/ tain to compel a British man-o'-war to
surrender to an enemy of inferior force;
! the hero of the battle between the Bon
homIne Richard and the Scraps. the
/ most remarkable ship duel known to his
| tory; an American envoy to various courts
OF Europe; a Russian admiral, and, last
/ OF all. the choice of the French Republi-
| cans Tor the post of nigh admiral of the
reefs or France. But in spite of bewil-
| ueLlng honors he was happy to call him
| self in his last public speech the plain.
| simple man whom it delights me to hear
! you call Paul Jones without any rank
! but that of fellowship, and without any
/ ute but that of cOmrade,' and in his
will; written the day of his death.
| ica-''
First Of all John Paul Jones is known
10 history as fighting man. and yet
/ because the writers Of his biographies
nave LleG, usually, TO portray him by
the light of the nineteenth century instead
OF that of the eighteenth, few know him
wholly as he was The fact is, he was
handy with his dukes, a sailor
might say. as well as able in the com
mand of a ship
Thus at the first appearance in Nor
folk society. of which there is a printed
record a British naval officer referring
to the war of the Revolution. which was
then at hand, said that if the courage
1 of the colonial men was on a par with
tire virtue of the colonial women there
the Instruction. John Paul Jones heard
the remark and instantly knocked the
/ naval officer to challenge him to fight
| a duel. and appointed a second to ar
range the matter, but the officer did not
press the challenge.
As lieutenant of the Alfred the flag
snip Of the first colonial squadron, Jones
of his captain. Dudley Saltonstau. Even
tually he presented charges against Sal
tonstal for conduct that was unbecOm-
ing an OFFICER, II not indeed cOwardly.
IN the presence of the enemy Having
| forwarded the charges, he went off on a
cruise IN the province on his return to his
astonishment. he learned that the charges
mad been suppressed. ThereupOn he
write them, and. taking them to Robert
Morris. said that if congress would not
Investigate them he should publish them
! in the newspapers Morris exclaimed
on a duel. whereat the thin lips of John
Paul Jones came together like a steel trap
and he said: 4 conceive il my duty to
rid the navy of Captain SaItonstaII. and
If / am denied the opportunity of doing
it is quite inmateriai what other way
must be resorted to"
=
When in command of the Ranger. and
in the harbOr of Brest France. Jones had
trouble with his first lieutenant, Simp-
son, who aSpired to the command of the
ship To settle the trouble Jones called
Simpson in b cabin and said;
Il command this ship, Mr.. Simpson. by
virtue of my senior rank. by virtue of the
resolution of congress dated June IA last,
and by virtue of the order of the com
missiOners, waited Jan 16 last. but 1 will
urge none Of these considerations upon
you IN your present attitude. So far as
T-far I rr-fI1
mand this ship by virtue of the fact that
I am personally the best man aboard-a
fact which ! shall cheerfully demonstrate
TO YOU at your pleasure
Simpson chose not to defy fate beyond
that point says Buell.. who relates the
story
But the best story told of the personal
proves of Jones is that of his encounter
with Hezekiah Ford. one of the spies en-
plOyed by the traitOrOus Arthur Lee.
American commissioners to France. the
of his honored family. Ford had tried 70
incite a mutiny on the Ranger as she
lay in the harbOr of Brest. Jones learned
the facts just as Ford was starting for
Paris with some documents that were cal
Putting three pistols in his belt. Jones
went hunting Ford. and found him stand
ing beside the postchaise that was about
departing for Paris Ford was a six
foOter and weighed nearly 200 pounds;
Jones was five feet seven inches tall and
spy he jumped at him. knocked him down
and then. grabbing the drivers whip. gave
him horse-whipPing never to be forgot
ten. Jones had fully intended to kill Ford,
but let him live to go off to London at
last loaded with documents belonging to
the American commissioner Jones wrote
in his journal four years later:
To this day ! cannot understand why why
when he was at my mercy.
Nathaniel Tanning one of Jones's lieu
tenants. described him thus: Though of
mOdOre's neck. arms and shoulders were
those of a heavy-set man. The strength
be believed. He was past master of the
art of boxing. To all this he added a
quiclness of motion that cannot be
described except by saying that he was
quicker than chain lightning. Even when
tions were exactly like those of panther
-nOiscless. sleek and the perfection OF
grace. yet always giving one the idea that
It would be wen TO keep out of reach OF
his paws and teeth
He was never a bully. but when there
was call for strong arm to Vlndlcate
honor he always arose and answered
Here
More important than these are the
stories of Jones as naval captain. He
could handle his ship. When cruising in
in chase. Jones fled up wind-close-
hauled-until the frigate was within gun
shot on his lee Then he Wore around
quickly and squared away across the
track of the frigate. The frfgate. as
Jones had hoped it would do. came TO
the wind 10 box around and so save
distance. as her plain supposed. but A
squat that Jones had seen coming caught
the frigate aback and gave her stern
way. with the result that Jones got well
off down wind and escaped. firing a mus
ket as ne went by way of derision-
He could train his men to shoot AS
the Ranger and the Drake reached away
side by side Jones saw that his gunners
were watching the roll of both ships AS
the side OF the Ranger that was toward
the Drake went down the side of the
Drake that was toward the Ranger rolled
up and IL at this moment that his
men fired Every broadside was sending