The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1905-09-08
Was a Phenomenon in Human
Nature and an Anomaly
in Human Character.
ONCE A SLAVE DEALER
Later Joined SmusgIers But Soon Left
This to Engage in Daring Employ
of Capturing Warships Of
the King.
From the Kansas City Star

the human character. However sacred
and endearing is the principle to Amer
leans that all men are born equal and
oorn free a Scots peasant has but a
faint conception of native equality or
native frecdom-yet, although Paul Of
Dumfries was born of humble peasants,
he might. with PAT of Tarsus, nave
said. 1 was born free The devotion OF
the Scots p~eaSantry Is proverbial for
It's ferVor: but the fervor Of Jones
seemed to have but little reference to
heaven! He Invested himself of devo-
ton and humanity also, and attached
himself to an Internal blood-stained
slave dealer. He left the diabolical
traffic in human flesh, and became
commandcr-in-chief in smuggling
goods. He left he business of de-
fraudtng the revenue for the daring
employ Of capturing the w%arships Of
his king"
The above pen picture is from Bio
graphical Sketches of American Naval
Heroes in the Wan of American Revo-
luton published in 1923 by S. Put
nam Waldo of Hartford, Conn; but 1t
must be remembered that in the early
years of Paul Jones activities the slave
trade and smuggling were not uDilorrei
as they afterw ards became.
John Pau Jones, on board the Amer
lean ship Alfred. hoisted the first star
%spangled amer which aver waved
from the mast OF al American vessel.
In December, 1771, he entered the port
of NantZ and communicated to the
French people the first intelligence OF
General Gates capture Of General
Burgoyne and his British army.
In ITS, at Quiberon bay, where the
French fleet with stores for America
was waiting the signal to sail. Jones,
then In command of the Ranger. en-
tered the bay n saluted the French
n ~, ira1 :. tIo l,,y ~, ~, 40,
turned. This is the first recorded
salute the American flag ever received
from a foreign owe
OF the many marvellous exploits of
this marvellous man one is perpleXed in
making q selection TO point a moral
and adorn a tale:" but no mistake can
be made in using the great comba be-
tween lie Bonhomme Richard and the
British frigate Scraps off the coast Of
England on September 90, 1873, as an
object lesson OF John Haul Jones great
courage, wonderfully ~resourceful mind
and pre-eminence as a fighting COM
mander Fortunately We have John
Paul Jones's own report, also that Of
Captain r. Pearson. who commanded
the Scraps.
For genuine hulldog-never-let-go
%tenacity. f@rocity and desperation. this
combat was something terrific. The
scenes depicted seem almost Incredible.
Here is acopy of the communication
Here is a copy of the communication
the captured Scraps off the Texel
Dutch possessions northeast of Hol-
land) October 81. 1773:
Il have only time, my dear friend, to
inform you that l have this day an
chored here. having taken this ship in
the night of the 23d ult. on the coast
Of England after a battle of three hours
and q half; two hours ana u half OF
that time the Good Mar Richard and
this ship being fast alongside Of one
another, both ships beirg in flames and
the Good Man Richard making water
faster than all the pumps could deliver
1t. This ship moAnts ~forty-four guns,
and has two entire batteries. on of
them eighteen-pounders, SO that my
situation was severe enough to have
to deal with such an enemy in such a
dreadful situation. Judge then what ii
must have been when the Alliance
came up towards the close of the
action, and, instead of assisting me,
directed her whole fire against the
Good Man Richard, not once or twice,
but repeatedly, after being spoken to
and showing a private signal of recog-
izance. The Alliance killed eleven
men and mortally wounded an officer
on the Good Man Richards fOrecastle
at one volley. l have lost in killed and
wounded the best part Of my men. The
Good Man Richard went to the bottom
on Inc 1IlOIlllIlS Ol ne LOtl ult. Ill Splte
of every effort to bring her into port.
NO action before was ever, In al
respects, SO bloody, SO severe. and sc
lasting. I beg Of you to communicate
this. with my best respects, to the
gentlemen OF your port.
The fire was not extinguished or
board the Good Man Richard till eighI
hours after the enemy had struck. anG
at last 1t had reached within a few feet
of the magazine. We lost all the stores
and all our private effects; but no lives
were lost from the contlagration. This
Pallas took at the same time an armed
ship Of twenty six-pounders.
John Paul Jones.
IN. B.-The prizes taken and con.
sumed by the Good Man Richard dur
ing her cruise Of about three months
amounts to at least about a million o.
livres."
The brevity and simplicity is on thu
"veni-vidi-vicl' order; but that o
Pearson's IS more replete in thrilling
details. This letter Is written from OF
board the Pallas, off the Texel. Octobe!
6, 1879, and is as follows:
you may be pleased to inform tn,
lords commissioners of the admiralt.
that on the 23d ult.. being close in will
Scarborough about II o'clock, a boa
came on board with a letter from tn
bailiffs OF that corporation giving in
formation of a flying squadron of tn
enemy SHIPS Delne OH tne coast, an
a part of the said squadron having
been seen from thence the day before
standing to the southwark. AS soon a
1 received this intelligence l made tn
signal for the convoy to bear down I'm
der my lee, M repeated with tw
guns; Notwithstanding which the val
Of the convoy kept their wind, with al
sal, stretching out to the southwar,
from under Marlborough head, till be
tween - and !. when the headmost O
them got in sight of the enemy's ship:
which were then in chase of them
they then tackled and mad the best G
their way under the shore for Scarbor
ough, letting fly their topgallant sheet
and firing guns: upon which l made a
the sail I could to the windward to &c
between the enemy's ships and tn
convoy, which l soon effected.
"At l o'clock we got sight Of tn
enemy's ship from masthead. and abou
we made them plain from the deck 1
be three large ships and a brig; upo
which 1 made the Countess of Scar
borough signal to join me. she bein
in shore with the convoy; at the sam
time 1 made signal to the convoy
make the best of their way and re