The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1905-08-04
WRITIEa 81 J0HH I'D J0EES
HIS STIRRING PICTURE OF SEA
FIGHT WITH sEREAPIS.
One OF His Own ships, the Alliance,
jealousy Fired Into the Flag
Ship Repeatedly.

John Paul Jones was phenOmen-
on in human nature, and an anomaly
in the human character However
sacred and endearing is the principle
90 Americans that ali men are born
equal and born free a Scots peasant
has but a faint conception OF native
equality or native freedOm-yet. al
though Paul OF Dumfries was born OF
humble peasants, he might, with Paul
Of Tarsus, have said, I was born free
The devotion OF the Scots peasantry
is prOverbial for its fervOr: but the
fervOr Of Jones seemed 20 have but
little reference to heaven! He divest-
ed himself OF devotion and humanity
also, and attached himself to an in
fernal blood-stained slave dealer. He
left the diabOlical traffic in human
flesh, and became commander-in-
chief in smuggling goods He left
the business Of defrauding the rev.
enue for the daring employ Of cap
turing the warships Of his king"
The above pen picture is from BIO
graphical Sketches OF American Ma
val Heroes in the War Of the Revolu-
dOn,'' published in 1923 by S Putnam
Waldo Of Hartford, Conn, but it must
be remembered that in the early years
Of Paul Jones activities the slave
trade and smuggling were not abhOr-
red as they afterwards became
John Paul Jones, on board the
American ship Alfred, hoisted the
first star-spangled banner which ever
waved from the mast Of an Ameri-
en- vessel In December, 1877, he en-
tered the port Of Nantz and commune
Gated to the French people the first
intelligence Of General Gates captured
nj nd LQ~fN
ISL army.
In 17TS, at Quiberon bay, where
the French feet with stores for Amer
lea was waiting the signal to sail,
Jones, then in command Of the Rang
er. entered the bay and saluted the
French admiral; the salute was
promptly returned. This is the first
recorded salute the American flag
ever received from foreign power.
OF the many marvellous exploits Of
| this marvellous man one is perplexed
in making a selection Ito point
moral and adOrn a tale;" but no mis-
take can be made in using the great
combat between LIE BOnhOmme Rich
ard and the British frigate Sereapis
of the coast Of England on Septemb-
er %, 1879, as an object lesson Of
John Paul Jones great courage, won
derfuIly resOurcefuI mind and pre-
eminence as a fighting commander.
Fortunately we have John Paul Jones
own report also that Of Captain r.
| Pearson, who commanded heSerapis.
For genuine bulldog-never-let-gO
tenacity, ferOcity and desperation
this combat was something terrific.
The scenes depicted seem almost in
credible. Here is a copy Of the COM
municatiOn from Commodore Jones,
dated on board the captured Scraps
of the Texel Dutch possessions
northeast Of Holland) October 81,
1873:
Il have only time, my dear friend,
to inform you that I have this day
anchored here, having taken this ship
in the night Of the 23d ult- on the
coast Of England after a battle Of
three hours and a half; two hours
and half of that time the Good Nan
Richard and this ship being fast
alOnside Of one another, both ships
being in flames and the Good Man
Richard making water faster than all
the pumps could deliver It This ship
mounts fOrty-fOur guns, and has two
entire batteries, one Of them eighteen
Founders, so that my situation was
severe enough to have to deal with
such an enemy in such a dreadful
situation. Judge then what il 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 Rich
ard, not once or twice, but repeatedly,
after being spoken to and showing
private signal Of recognizance. The
Alliance killed eleven men and NOR
tally wounded an officer on the Good
Mans Richard fOrecastle at one vol
l ley have lost in killed and wounded
the best part of my men. The Good
Man Richard went to the bottom on
the morning Of the 25th ult in spite
OF every effort to bring her into port
NO action before was ever, in all
respects, so bloody, so severe, and so
lasting beg Of you to communicate
this, with my best respects, to the
gentlemen OF your port
The fire was not extinguished on
board the Good Man Richard till
eight hours after the enemy had
struck, and at last it had reached with
in a few feet Of the magazine We lost
all the stores and all our private ef-
fects; but no lives were lost from the
cOnfiag ratiOn- The Pallas took at
-UsAl 20 dIqs psWIB UB sun sWBs sql
~ six-pOundeTs.
JOHN PAUL JONES.
~. B.-The prizes taken and con-
sumed by the Good Nan Richard dur
ing her cruise OF about three months
amount to at least about a million Of
dollars"