The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1931-07-17
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SnOulQ De the COMPLAINT emblem or
brave and honest folk fighting to be
Free" he wrote in his journal. "Of
course, l had no choice but to break
the pennant as it was given to me. But
glad when it was discarded for one
more appropriate"
After his return from this voyage,
during which he distinguished him.
self for boldness and skill when the
commander-in-chief displayed a timid-
ity and a hack Of skill not in keeping
with his high position, Jones was CIV
en- command of the Providence, a -
gun brig. With her he captured 10
prizes along the Atlantic coast and on
October 10, 1776, he was made cap
tain and given command of the Alfred,
24-gun vessel. On this ship he set
out on his cruise which resulted in
the capture Of seven British vessels
which he brought into port at Bos ton.
Convinced that more good could IS
accomplished by harassing the British
in their own waters than by attacking
their shipping off the American coast,
he began urging congress to allow
him to carry the war against Eng
land across the Atlantic. Accordingly
on June IA, 1777, congress appointed
him to the command of the Ranger,
new ship of IS guns, recently COM
pleted at Portsmouth, New Hamp-
shire. In the very same hour that the
resolution, giving him command of
the Ranger, was passed there was
also passed the historic resolution
which brought into being the Stars
and Stripes. And it was this circum-
stance which inspired Jones' state
ment that he and the flag were twins.
And it is here that the stories of
John Paul Jones and our national en-
blem began to run in parallel chan
nelS, a story which is little known to
most Americans and which has been
brought out by new book, 1.-THE Ma
tiOnal Flag" by Willis Fletcher John
son, published recently by the Hough-
ton Mifflin company. Upon taking
command of the Ranger Jones imme-
diately began preparing the ship for
the trip across the Atlantic. Although
there is no record of the date when
he raised the Stars and Stripes over
her, tradition says that it was on the
Fourth of July. But this seems doubt
full, since he did not go to Ports
mouth until July -, and he probably
did not learn of the adoption of the
Stars and Stripes until later.
Of Jones' cruise of % days in Brit
ish water with the Ranger it has been
said, For daring and success it was
unsurpassed in the annals of naval
history" In addition to capturing the
Drake, he burned the shipping in
Whitehaven and off Carrickfergus
and made his name one of terror
along the coasts of Great Britain.
But the months which followed
Jones' success in the Ranger were
months of anxiety for him also. Most
of his troubles, however, were ashore
rather. than afloat. He was finding it
very difficult to pay his men, sell his
prizes and secure squadron for an
other and greater cruise which he had
in mind. At last an old East India
merchant ship was secured, renamed
the Bonhomme Richard, in compli-
ment to BENJAMIN. Franklin, and to
this was joined the Alliance, 80
gun frigate and three small French
vessels. The commander of the ALI
ance was Capt. Pierre Dandais, who,
as Jones wrote to Franklin, was zap
perently crazy man."
If, as Jones had complained that
the Ranger was poor fighting ship
because it was Cranky, slow and of
trifling force" he soon found that the
Bonhomme Richard was worse. Her
hull was rotten and later in his great
battle with the Scraps one of the
heaviest guns blew up at the start
forcing a whole battery to be aban-
doned The crew was a mixture of
Americans and Europeans and with
the untrustworthy support of the
''crazy" Dandais, his venture was a
perilous one at best. But disregarding
his many handicaps, Jones sailed from
France on August IA, 1779. By Sep
TENDER %, he had nearly completed
the circuit of the British isles, had
captured II vessels and thrown the
entire coast into state of perpetual
alarm. What Jones could expect if
he were defeated and captured was
shown by the British authorities pro-
claiming him as "the pirate Jones, a
rebel subject and criminal of the
state"
On September % off Marlborough
Head, Jones met the Baltic trade" a
convoy Of Al vessels, escorted by the
Scraps and the Countess of Scarbor-
Ough. Then followed the historic en-
gagement Of which it has been said
"the annals Of the American navy con-
tain no finer example of skill, courage
and leadership than that found in the
duel off Marlborough Head. Rarely
has a commander who won his fight
contended with such overwhelming OBJ
stacles." The story of that engage
ment is too familiar to need retelling
here-how Jones soon realized that
the Scraps would destroy him In a