Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-22

tn remain drone nc trained his crew
few crews had been trained up ID that
time, Every day he drilled them; every
day hc brought them nearer and nearer
10 perfection. 1t Is declared compc
tent authority that the crew OF the Wasp
was the highest il point OF efficiency Of
any IN the war of ISL. Every man on
tin" Sloop except sldkely was New Eng
lander. t!lakclI was Irish. Isorn in Sca-
ford county Down, il October. ISL, hs
vas brought Ia America when hc was TIVE
wears old. His parents settled in Whining
Ton, \. e.. ana when he was ten years
old hc was sent IL New York 10 he cdu-
Gated. Then he went 10 tine University
81 North Carolina to be prepared for the
law, but he had d prediction for the Sea
and in $500 became a midshipman. lie
served III the Enterprise in the Aieditor-
raucan under the gallant Commodore
PrehIc in the war with the Barbary states
and was made lieutenant in 1897
and got command Of the Enterprise in
ISIS. There probably was no better sea
man i'm the service than Blakcly and no
more resourccful man. Though Ie chafed
at delay and beWailcd his luck he never
relaxed III his work.
Half dozen times in March and APRIL
Elakely tried to get the Wasp out but
the hlockad.rs held him tight. once in
the night he almos; got through without
discovery. but again luck was agains.
him. At last the door of opportunitv
opened 4 storm arose That scattered
tn" British watchers, aud on the wings
of that storm the Wasp went kitns cut
oycr the broad Atlantic
1t tho Ist Of May that the Wasp
left Portsmouth. and the next few months
were big with her doinss. Straight across
tho Atlantic she went, headed for the
enemy's country. The English channel
patroled by thirty-five British war
ships. but into tho tick of the feet went
the Wasp. She was there to fight 10
burn. 10 destroy. to terrify. John Paul
Jones won name for himself among the
imInortals by what lie had done in neigh
boring waters thirty-odd years before but
John Paul Jones was a slow sort of in
dividual in comparison with Johnston
Blahely- For thirty-four days Blakely
ranged the English channel. Then he
went into a French port to rcfit Back to
the channel he hurried so soon as repairs
had been made This time he remat ned
six days. Into the forty days Of actual
operations he crowded 50 much OF action
that the British magveled as to where his
audaclty would end. He fought, burned
and sank two man-of-War brigs; he cap
tured one ship, one bark. one galliot. six
briggs and one schooner. and he destroyed
two briggs and sent home one very rich
prize. There seemed to be no limit to his
daring. Some of the vessels that he cap
tured or destroyed he cut out while they
We're under the protection of the frigateS
Chased off time after time. the Wasp
would return again and again. One of
The vessels the Wasp scutted was par
ticulary valuable, being loaded with can
non. muSkets and military stores. THIS
loss was more severe 10 the British than
would have been the sinking Of d frigate.
Whatever sorrow Blakely may have felt
over his leaving the Enterprise just be-
fore the Boxer engagement surely must
have been assuaged in those days in the
British channel. Great and glorious as
was the fight between the Enterprise and
the Boxer. that between the Wasp and
the Reindeer was greater and more glori-
Gus And then for good measure came