Read Ebook: Four American Naval Heroes Paul Jones Oliver H. Perry Admiral Farragut Admiral Dewey by Beebe Mabel Borton Baldwin James Commentator

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 790 lines and 44369 words, and 16 pages

But so good a sailor could not be a good farmer. In two years the farm was in a bad condition and all the money left by his brother had been spent. The agents in Scotland, with whom John Paul had left money for the care of his mother and sisters, had proved to be dishonest, and this money also had been lost.

In the midst of these perplexities, he decided to serve America in the war which every one saw was now inevitable.

Another congress of delegates from the colonies met in 1775, and made preparations for that war. The colonists were organized into an army, with George Washington as the commander in chief.

A fleet of English vessels had been sent across the Atlantic. The swiftest of these sailed up and down the Atlantic coast, forcing the people in the towns to give provisions to the king's sailors and soldiers. Other vessels were constantly coming over, loaded with arms and ammunition for the English soldiers.

George Washington's army was almost without ammunition. There was very little gunpowder made in this country at that time, and the need of it was very great.

It was thought that the best way to supply the American army with ammunition was to capture the English vessels. It was for this purpose that the first American navy was organized.

The first navy yard was established at Plymouth. Here a few schooners and merchant vessels were equipped with cannon as warships. These were manned by bold, brave men, who, since boyhood, had been on the sea in fishing or trading vessels.

No member of the Continental Congress did more to strengthen and enlarge this first navy than John Adams.

In 1775 John Paul settled up his affairs, left the Virginia farm, and went to Philadelphia to offer his services to the naval committee of Congress.

He gave his name as John Paul Jones. Just why he did this, we do not know. Perhaps he did not wish his friends in Scotland to know that he had taken up arms against his native country.

Perhaps he thought that, should he ever be captured by the English, it would go harder with him if they should know his English name. We cannot tell. Hereafter we shall call him Paul Jones, as this is the name by which he was known during the rest of his life.

The young lieutenant was now twenty-nine years old. His health was excellent and he could endure great fatigue. His figure was light, graceful, and active. His face was stern and his manner was soldierly. He was a fine seaman and familiar with armed vessels.

He knew that the men placed above him in the navy had had less experience than he. But he took the position given him without complaint.

We do not know just what this flag was like, but some of the earliest naval flags bore the picture of a pine tree; others had a rattlesnake stretched across the stripes, and the words, "Don't tread on me." Our present flag was not adopted until two years later.

On the 17th of February, 1776, the first American squadron sailed for the Bahama Islands.

On the way, two British sloops were captured. The English sailors told the Americans that on the island of New Providence were forts, which contained a large amount of military supplies. They said that these forts could easily be taken.

The soldiers on a vessel are called marines. A plan was made to hide the American marines in the British sloops. In that way it was thought they could go safely into the harbor of New Providence. Then they could land and take possession of the forts.

This plan would have been successful, but for one foolish mistake. The squadron sailed so close to the harbor during the night that in the morning all the ships could be seen from the shore. The war vessels should have remained out of sight until the marines had been safely landed from the sloops. The alarm was spread, and the sloops were not allowed to cross the bar.

The commander of the squadron then planned to land on the opposite side of the island and take the forts from the rear, but Paul Jones told him he could not do this. There was no place to anchor the squadron, and no road to the forts.

However, he had learned from the pilots of a good landing not far from the harbor. When he told the commander of this, he was only rebuked for confiding in pilots.

The English soldiers abandoned the forts, and the squadron sailed away the same day, carrying a hundred cannon and other military stores.

Best of all, he captured an English vessel bound for Canada, full of warm clothing for the British soldiers. This was a prize that proved of great value to General Washington's poorly clothed army.

In those days there were selfish people just as now. In January, 1777, a jealous commodore succeeded in depriving Paul Jones of his position as captain. He was now without ship or rank. When he appealed to Congress he was put off with promises from time to time. It was not until May that his petitions were heard.

There were three new ships being built for the navy at Boston. Congress gave him permission to choose one of these and have it fitted out as he wished.

While waiting in Boston for these ships to be finished, Paul Jones wrote many wise suggestions about the management of the navy. Congress at first paid but little attention to these suggestions, but was afterwards glad to act upon them.

These were some of the things he said:

"1. Every officer should be examined before he receives his commission.

"2. The ranks in a navy should correspond to those in an army.

"3. As England has the best navy in the world, we should copy hers."

Paul Jones was to carry a letter from Congress to the American commissioners in Paris.

This letter told the commissioners to buy a new fast-sailing frigate for Captain Jones, and to have it fitted up as he desired. They were then to advise him as to what he should do with it.

When Jones with his ship entered Quiberon Bay, in France, the French admiral there saluted the American flag. This was the first time that a foreign country had recognized America as an independent nation.

First, that our navy was too small to win in open battle with the fleets of the English.

Second, that the way to keep the English vessels from burning, destroying, and carrying away property on the American coasts, was to send vessels to the English coasts to annoy the English in the same way.

On April 10, 1778, Paul Jones set out on what proved to be a memorable cruise.

You remember that when he first went to sea, as a boy, he sailed from Whitehaven. This town is on the English coast, just across the Solway Firth from John Paul's old home.

He knew there were large shipping yards there, and he determined to set fire to them. He planned to reach the harbor in the night, and burn the ships while the people were asleep.

Because of the wind and tides, it was nearly midnight when he arrived. He found three hundred vessels of different kinds lying in the harbor. His men were put into two small boats, and each boat was ordered to set fire to half the ships.

Leaving orders that the fire be speedily kindled, Captain Jones took with him a few men, and scaled the walls of the batteries which protected the harbor. He locked the sleeping sentinels in the guardhouse and spiked the cannon.

Then, sending his men back to the harbor, he went, with one man only, to another fort, which was a quarter of a mile away. Here he also spiked the guns.

After all this had been done he returned to his boats to find that his sailors had done nothing. Not one ship was on fire!

The lieutenant in charge told Paul Jones that their torches had gone out. "Anyway," he said, "nothing can be gained by burning poor people's property."

Determined that they should not leave the harbor until something was destroyed, Paul Jones ran to a neighboring house and got a light. With this he set fire to the largest ship.

The soldiers tried to shoot the sailors from the forts; but they could do nothing with the spiked guns. The sailors amused themselves by firing back pistol shots.

On reaching the ship they found that a man was missing. Paul Jones was afraid that harm had befallen him. He need not have been troubled, however, for the man was a deserter. He spread the alarm for miles along the shore. The people afterward called him the "Savior of Whitehaven."

Paul Jones was greatly disappointed by the failure of his plans. He knew that if he had reached the harbor a few hours earlier he could have burned, not only all the ships, but the entire town.

Although the plan to destroy English property to aid the American cause, was a wise one, from a military point of view, yet we cannot understand why Paul Jones should have selected Whitehaven for this destruction. There he had received kindness and employment when a boy. His mother and sisters lived just across the bay, and had he succeeded in burning Whitehaven, the people, in their anger, might have injured the family of the man who had so cruelly harmed them. We wonder if he thought of these things.

There were many Americans held as prisoners, by the English, and the earl could be exchanged for some of these.

So, with a few men, Paul Jones rowed to the shore, where some fishermen told him that the earl was away from home. Paul Jones started to go back to his vessel. But his sailors were disappointed and asked his permission to go to the earl's house and take away the silver.

Paul Jones did not like this plan, but at last consented. He did not go with the men, however, but walked up and down the shore until they returned.

The sailors found Lady Selkirk and her family at breakfast. They took all the silver from the table, put it into a bag, and returned to the ship.

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet