John Paul Jones commemoration at Annapolis, April 24, 1906
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' Houdon, nc National Academy of Design, New York, St^wo/rt, CV^ou.U^ Wesi. ^''w&sS''^} HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES { ^No™ 0^ JOHN PAUL JONES COMMEMORATION AT ANNAPOLIS APRIL 24. 1906 $ COMPILED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON PRINTING BY CHARLES W STEWART SUPERINTENDENT LIBRARY AND NAVAL WAR RECORDS WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1907 RESOLUTION OF CONGRESS CONCURRENTLY ADOPTED JUNE 29, 1906 Trtrflahirb bg tift ^atxat at Sr)irrfi;ntatiiir8 (tljf 9rnatr rnnntrring), That K* there be printed and bound 1 1,000 copies of the addresses delivered at the exercises comniemorative of John Paul Jones, at the Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., April 24, 1906, togetlier with other papers and illustrations germane thereto, to be compiled and published under the direction of the Joint Committee on Printing; 7,000 for the use of the House of Representatives, 3,000 for the use of the Senate, and 1,000 for distribution by the Secretary of the Navy. f'^ CONTENTS Page Introduction 9 I. Addresses at Annapolis, April 24, 1906: Address of President Roosevelt 15 '^4> Address of Ambassador Jusserand 21 Address of General Porter 25 Address of Governor Warfield 35 Prayer of Chaplain Clark 41 II. Papers and reports. Discovery, identification, and transfer of remains of John Paul Jones: Message from the President 43 Report of General Porter 49 Address of General Porter in Paris 73 Official certification by the American Embassy and Consulate of the identification of the body 76 Report of Doctor Capitan 81 Report of Doctor Papillault 87 Report of Professor Cornil 93 Report of Engineer Weiss 95 Report of Rear-Admiral Sigsbee, V. S. Navy loi III. Letters of John Paul Jones: Petition for admission as a Mason 115 Letter to Joseph Plewes 117 Letter to Robert Morris 121 Letter to the Countess of Selkirk 123 Letter from Lord Selkirk 127 Letter from Lord Selkirk. Acknowledgment of return of silver taken April 23, 1778 131 Report of John Paul Jones. Cruise of U. S. ship Hanger a.nil capture of H. B. M. ship Drake 133 Report of John Paul Jones. Cruise of U. S. shi^ Bonhomme Richard and squadron, and capture of H. B. M. ships Serapis and Countess of Scarborough 139 Certificate of Messrs. Van Berckel and Dumas 151 Letter to Robert Jlorris 155 Letter to Mrs. Belches ■ 164 IV. Chronology 165 Appendix: Letter from U. S. Consul-General Gowdy to Representative Landis 195 French officers and officials who took part in the ceremonies at Paris 196 Address of Junior Special Ambassador Loomis in Paris , 198 Address of Rear-Admiral Sigsbee, U. S. Navy, in Paris 201 Address of Vice-Admiral Besson, French navy, at Cherbourg, July 8, 1905. 202 Ceremonies at U. S. Naval Academy, July 24, 1905 203 Order of Rear-Admiral Sands, U. S. Navy 204 Order of Captain Colvocoresses, U. S. Navy 205 List of commanding officers in the French and American naval forces assembled at Annapolis, April 24, 1906 206 Description of swords 208 List of recipients of casts of the bust in National Academy of Design 209 Notes regarding John Paul Jones 210 ILLUSTRATIONS Profile and three-quarters face of Houdon bust Design, New York Frontispiece Speakers' stand and casket 14 Dress sword presented by Louis XVI. {See note, p. 94.) View of the yard over the cemeter}- 94 Place where the body was found 94 French artillery caisson bearing the cofiin loo- American sailors crossing the bridge of Alexander HI 100 Petition of John Paul for admission as a Mason 114 Portrait in British Museum 120 Facsimile of first and last pages of letter to Countess of Selkirk from the original at St. Mary's Isle 122 Facsimile of gold medal 138 Sword said to have been carried by John Paul Jones during the American Revolution 138 Facsimile of letter to Mrs. Belches 164 Wax medallion 164 Facsimile of invitation 206 Facsimile of programme cover 2i)6 Plan of armory 206 INTRODUCTION rIS volume has been compiled in the office of Librarj' and Naval War Records, Navy Department, under authorization of the Joint Committee on Printing. It includes : The addresses delivered at the United States Naval Academy, April 24, 1906, printed from copy furnished by the distinguished speakers of the day; The official report of General Horace Porter to the State Department, with inclosures and illustrations which set forth the search for, dis- covery, and identification of the body of John Paul Jones; An extract from the report of Rear- Admiral Sigsbee describing the most important ceremonies connected with the John Paul Jones expe- dition, including the transfer in Paris of the b9dy from First Special Ambassador Porter to Junior Special Ambassador I^oomis, and from the latter to Rear- Admiral Sigsbee, and its transportation from Paris to the United States Naval Academy and deposit in the now historic brick vault, where it lay under guard for the nine months preceding April 24, 1906; Letters and illustrations selected from authentic correspondence and portraiture for the purpose of showing the character and personal appear- ance of our first great sea fighter ; The chronolog}-, prepared mainly from carded data collected in searches for information in answer to inquiries. General Porter's report includes plans and illustrations which show in part the dangers and difficulties which he encountered and overcame. The reports of the official engineer who supervised the excavations and of the physicians and microscopist who examined the body establish the thoroughness of the explorations of the cemetery and the pathological conditions that existed within the body at the time of death. The illus- tration by means of microphotographs of vital organs of a man born in 1747 is unique. These reports are an important part of the testimony that establishes the identity of the body. The report of Rear- Admiral Sigsbee is a part of the history of France and of the United States of America. In trod ltd , The facsimiles of Jones's writing, dated 1770, 1778, and 1786, having the characteristic signatures Jno. Paul, Jno. P. Jones, and J. Paul Jones (or Paul Jones) have been prepared from the originals now preserved in Scotland. The portraits here reproduced (except those by Henri Toussaint and Miss Beaux) were probably made during the life of John Paul Jones. It is not possible to determine that every statement in the chronology is accurate, but a reference for every item is given in convenient form, and statements known to be incorrect generally have been omitted. SUMMARY THE 24th of April, 1906, was chosen for the commemorative exer- cises in honor of John Paul Jones b)- President Roosevelt because it was the anniversarj- of Jones's famous capture of the British ship of war Drake, off Carrickfergus, in 1778. This date occurred during the session of Congress, the academic year at the United States Naval Academy, and the convention of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Washington. The Secretary of the Navy, Hon. Charles J. Bonaparte, issued the invitations. The admirable arrangements at the United States Naval Academy were made by Rear- Admiral Sands, U. S. Navy," Superin- tendent. Invitations were sent to the President; the ambassador and embassy of France; the principal officers of the Government, legisla- tive, executive, and judicial; the Navy; the Army; governors of States; the militia; patriotic, societies, and distinguished men and women of America. Cards of admission were mailed, as acceptances were received, by the Secretary of the Navy. Special trains were provided for the Presidential and Congressional parties from Washington and the regu- lar train service was increased from New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington to Annapolis. April 24 was clear and cool with a fresh northwesterly breeze. The Presidential train arrived at Annapolis at 12:45 P- i^i- ^nd was met by the Superintendent of the Naval Academy and the academic board with automobiles. A national salute was fired from the U. S. S. Hartford, the famous old flagship of Farragut at New Orleans and Mobile Bay. Two companies of the Thirteenth U. S. Cavalry, under Col. Charles A. P. Hatfield, U. S. Army, furnished an escort to the Superintend- ent's hou.se, where luncheon was served. The President and party, in motor cars, were then escorted by a battalion of midshipmen to the armory, through lines of midshipmen, French sailors. United States sailors, marines, troopers, and thousands of cheering spectators. The President, with the speakers of the day, escorted by the Secretary of the Navy and the Superintendent, entered the armory at 2.24 p. m. and mounted the speakers' stand. The audience rose and remained standing while the Baltimore Oratorio Society sang the ' ' Star-Spangled Banner." Ill /rod tc c do 71 The casket containing the body of John Paul Jones rested upon tres- tles before the stand, under a guard composed of petty ofhcers of the navies of France and the United States. The casket was draped with the Union Jack, and upon it lay a wreath of laurel, a spray of palm, and the gold-mounted sword presented by L,ouis XVI of France to the conqueror of the Serapis. The armory and speakers' stand were deco- rated with the colors of France and the United States of America. Facing the stand and casket were Admiral George Dewey, U. S. Navy; Rear- Admiral Campion, commanding the French squadron ; Rear- Admirals Charles H. Davis and Royal B. Bradford, U. S. Navy, com- manding United States squadrons. Behind these flag-officers were seated their aids, the visiting officers of France, and the heads of departments of the Academy. Seats on each side of this central section faced toward the center of the armory. Sections of seats were reserved for Senators and Members of Congress and other special parties. The audience was representative of the patriotism and traditions of the nation. The Senate, the House, the Cabinet, every branch of the Gov- ernment, and national patriotic societies were represented. The silence that followed the singing of the ' ' Star-Spangled Banner ' ' was broken by the clear, incisive voice of Hon. Charles J. Bonaparte, Secretary of the Navy, presenting the President. The President spoke for thirty minutes and was frequently interrupted by applause. Every speaker was presented by the Secretary of the Navy and each received close attention and warm approval. The official programme was executed without variation. The exercises in the armory closed at 4.3S p. m. with the rendering of "How Sleep the Brave." The audience stood in silence and the casket was taken to the space beneath the stairs in Bancroft Hall, where, in the presence of the distinguished officials, Chaplain Clark, U. S. Navy, offered a simple prayer, the last rite of the official programme. The casket, draped with the Union Jack, was left under the care of a marine guard, where it will remain until transferred to the crypt in the Naval Academy chapel. The President of the United States sent to the President of France the following telegram : ICablegram.] The White House, U'as/ihiffton, April 2. f, /go6. To the President of Fr.\nce: On the occasion of the formal reception at Annapolis of the body of John Paul Jones I wish to thank you and, through you, the great French nation for its distin- guished courtesy in connection with this event — a courtesy of a kind which serves to keep even more vividly before us the invaluable aid rendered by France to this country at what was well-nigh the most critical period of its history. France holds a peculiar place in the heart of the American people, and on behalf of that people I wish all success, prosperity, and happiness to the mighty Republic over which you preside. Theodore Roosevelt. John Paul Jones C o tn m e m o r a t i o n Thus ended the formal official ceremonies relating to the homecoming of John Paul Jones. There is no event in our history attended with such pomp and circumstance of glory, magnificence, and patriotic fervor. Events other than commemorative ceremonies were as follows: April 21, 1906: French squadron of armored crui.sers, Amiral Aube, Condi, and Marseillaise, under Rear- Admiral Campion, arrived at Annapolis. April 23: Rear- Admiral Campion and ranking French naval officers visited Washington; at 2 p. m., reception at the White House, followed by receptions at Navy Department and War Department. In the even- ing a dinner, followed by a reception, at the White House. April 24: At Annapolis, luncheon to Presidential party by the Super- intendent. Receptions by Governor Warfield and Mrs. Warfield and officers of the Naval Academy. April 25: At 1.30 p. m. luncheon given to French officers by the Sec- retary of the Navy at the New Willard Hotel. In evening a dinner, followed by a reception, at the embassy of France. April 26: Assistant Secretary of the Navy Newberry entertained French naval officers aboard the U. S. S. Dolphin on a visit to Mount Vernon. The amba.ssador of France and Rear-Admiral Campion attended at Annapolis the laying of the corner stone of the monument to French sailors and soldiers who died in the American Revolution. April 27: The French squadron sailed from Annapolis Roads. The collection of data presented in this volume has been made possible by the assistance of manj' persons. Gen. Horace Porter; Capt. John S. Barnes; D. Appleton & Co. ; Mr. J. Pierpont Morgan; Mr. Herbert Put- nam, Librarian of Congress, Mrs. A. H. Eastman; Capt. John Hope, R. N.; Rear-Admiral C. H. Stockton, U. S. Navy; Capt. G. P. Colvo- coresses, U. S. Navy; Prof. Philip R. Alger, U. S. Navy; Pay Director Joseph Foster, U. S. Navy; Mr. Robert W. Neeser; Mr. H. C. Gauss; Mr. J. G. Wood, of Edenton, N. C, and many others have furnished information, illustrations, or correspondence. Their courtesy, consid- eration, and interest are gratefullj' acknowledged. Charles W. Stewart, Superintendent Library and Naval War Records, Compiler. I. ADDRESSES AT ANNAPOLIS APRIL 24, 1906 ADDRESS OF PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT Secretary of the navy charles j. donaparte introduced the President in the following words: Fellow-Countrymen: We have met to honor the memory of that man who gave our Navy its earliest traditions of heroism and victorj\ The Commander in Chief of the Navy is of right the first to speak of such a man at such a time. You will hear the President. ON BEHALF of the American people I wish to thank our ancient ally, the great French nation, that proud and gallant nation to whose help we once owed it that John Paul Jones was able to win for the Stars and Stripes the victory that has given him deathless fame, and to whose courtesy we now owe it that the body of the long- dead hero has been sent hither, and that to commemorate the reception of the illustrious dead a squadron of French war ships has come to our shores. The annals of the French navy are filled with the names of brave and able seamen, each of whom courted death as a mistress when the honor of his flag was at stake ; and among the figures of these brave men there loom the larger shapes of those who, like Tourville, Duquesne, and the Bailli de Suflren, won high renown as fleet admirals, inferior to none of any navy of their day in martial prowess. In addition to welcoming the diplomatic and official representatives of France here present, let me also express my heartiest acknowledg- ments to our former ambassador to Paris, Gen. Horace Porter, to whose zealous devotion we particularly owe it that the body of John Paul Jones has been brought to our shores. When the body was thus brought over the representatives of many different cities wrote to me, each asking that it should find its last 15 Addresses resting place in his city. But I feel that the place of all others in which the memory of the dead hero will most surely be a living force is here in Annapolis, where year by year we turn out the midshipmen who are to officer in the future the Navy, among whose founders the dead man stands first. Moreover, the future naval officers, who live within these walls, will find in the career of the man whose life we this day celebrate, not merely a subject for admiration and respect, but an object lesson to be taken into their innermost hearts. Eve.ry officer in our Navy should know by heart the deeds of John Paul Jones. Every officer in our Navy should feel in each fiber of his being an eager desire to emulate the energy, the professional capacity, the indomitable deter- mination and dauntless scorn of death which marked John Paul Jones above all his fellows. The history of our Navy, like the history of our nation, extends over a period of only a century and a quarter ; yet we already have many memories of pride to thrill us as we read and hear of what has been done by our fighting men of the sea, from Perry and Macdonough to Farragut and Dewey." These memories include brilliant victories, and also, now and then, defeats only less honorable than the victories them- selves; but the only defeats to which this praise can be given are those where, against heavy odds, men have stood to the death in hopeless battle. It is well for every American officer to remember that while a surrender may or may not be defensible, the man who refuses to surrender need never make a defense. The one fact must always be explained; the other needs no explanation. Moreover, he who would win glory and honor for the nation and for himself, must not too closely count the odds ; if he does, he will never see such a day as that when Gushing sank the Albemarle. In his fight with the Serapis Jones's ship was so badly mauled that his opponent hailed him, saying "Has your ship struck?" to which Jones answered, "I have not yet begun to fight." The spirit which inspired that answer upbore the man who gave it and the crew who served under him through the fury of the battle, which finally ended "■ The President's mention of the name of Admiral Dewey brought forth hearty applause. The President, looking directly at the Admiral, said in his kindliest manner: "Presidents are all well enough in their way, but it's worth while in life to have had a First of May." The audience again applauded and Rear-Admiral Campion heartily shook the hand of Admiral Dewey. — Compiler. John Paul Jones Commemoration in their triumph. It was the same spirit which marked the com- manders of the Cumberland and the Congress, when they met an equally glorious though less fortunate fate. The Cumberland sank, her flag flying, and her guns firing with the decks awash, while, when sum- moned to surrender, Morris replied, "Never! I'll sink alongside!" and made his words good. Immediately after the Cumberlajid was sunk the Co7igress was attacked, and her commander, Lieut. Joe Smith, was killed. After fighting until she was helpless, and being unable to bring her guns to bear, the ship was surrendered; but when Smith's father, old Commodore Joe Smith, who was on duty at Washington, saw by the dispatches from Fort Monroe that the Congress had hoisted the white flag, he said quietly, "Then Joe's dead!" Surely no father could wish to feel a prouder certainty of his boy's behavior than the old commodore showed he possessed when he thus spoke ; and no naval officer could hope to win a finer epitaph. We have met to-day to do honor to the mighty dead. Remember that our words of admiration are but as sounding brass and tinkling cymbals if we do not by steady preparation and by the cultivation of soul and mind and body fit ourselves so that in time of need we shall be prepared to emulate their deeds. Let every midshipman who passes through this institution remember, as he looks upon the tomb of John Paul Jones, that while no courage can atone for the lack of that efficiency which comes only through careful preparation in advance, through careful training of the men, and careful fitting out of the engines of war, yet that none of these things can avail unless in the moment of crisis the heart rises level with the crisis. The navy whose captains will not surrender is sure in the long run to whip the navy whose captains will surrender, unless the inequality of skill or force is prodigious. The courage which never yields can not take the place of the possession of good ships and good weapons and the ability skillfully to use these ships and these weapons. I wish that our people as a whole, and especially those among us who occupy high legislative or administrative positions, would study the history of our nation, not merely for the purpose of national self- gratification, but with the desire to learn the lessons that history teaches. Let the men who talk lightly about its being unnecessary for us now to have an army and navy adequate for the work of this nation in the world remember that such utterances are not merely 7257-07 2 A ddresses foolish, for in their effects they may at any time be fraught with disaster and disgrace to the nation's honor as well as disadvantage to its interest. Let them take to heart some of the lessons which should be learned by the study of the War of 1812. As a people we are too apt to remember only that some of our ships did well in that war. We had a few ships — a very few ships — and they did so well as to show the utter folly of not having enough of them. Thanks to our folly as a nation, thanks to the folly that found expression in the views of those at the seat of government, not a ship of any importance had been built within a dozen years before the war began, and the Navy was so small that, when once the war was on, our opponents were able to establish a close blockade throughout the length of our coast, so that not a ship could go from one port to another, and all traffic had to go by land. Our parsi- mony in not preparing an adequate navy (which would have prevented the war) cost in the end literally thousands of dollars for every one dollar we thus foolishly saved. After two years of that war an utterly inconsiderable British force of about four thousand men was landed here in the bay, defeated with ease a larger body of raw troops put against it, and took Washington. I am sorry to say that those of our countrymen who now speak of the deed usually confine themselves to denouncing the British for having burned certain buildings in Washington. They had better spare their breath. The sin of the invaders in burning the build- ings is trivial compared with the sin of our own people in failing to make ready an adequate force to defeat the attempt. This nation was guilty of such shortsightedness, of such folly, of such lack of preparation that it was forced supinely to submit to the insult and was impotent to avenge it; and it was only the good fortune of hav- ing in Andrew Jackson a great natural soldier that prevented a repe- tition of the disaster at New Orleans. Let us remember our own shortcomings, and see to it that the men in public life to-day are not permitted to bring about a state of things b}- which we should in effect invite a repetition of such a humiliation. We can afford as a people to differ on the ordinary party ques- tions; but if we are both farsighted and patriotic we can not afford to differ on the all-important question of keeping the national defenses as they should be kept; of not alone keeping up, but of going on Johii Paul Jo7ies Commemoratt with building up of the United States Navy, and of keeping our small Army at least at its present size and making it the most efficient for its size that there is on the globe. Remember, you here who are listening to me, that to applaud patriotic sentiments and to turn out to do honor to the dead heroes who by land or by sea won honor for our flag is only worth while if we are prepared to show that our energies do not exhaust themselves in words; if we are prepared to show that we intend to take to heart the lessons of the past and make things ready so that if ever, which heaven forbid, the need should arise, our fighting men on sea and ashore shall be able to rise to the standard established by their predecessors in our services of the past. Those of you who are in public life have a moral right to be here at this celebration to-day only if you are prepared to do your part in building up the Navy of the present; for otherwise you have no right to claim lot or part in the glory and honor and renown of the Navy's past. So much for what we in civil life outside of public office and within it are to do for you, and must do for you, in the Navy. Let you in the Navy remember that you must do your part. You will be worth- less in war if you have not prepared yourselves for it in peace. You will be utterly unable to rise to the needs of the crisis if you have not by long years of steady and patient work fitted yourselves to get the last ounce of work out of every man, every gun, and every ship in the fleet; if you have not practiced steadily on the high seas until each ship can do its best, can show at its best, alone or in conjunction with others in fleet formation. Remember that no courage can ever atone for lack of that preparedness which makes the courage valuable ; and yet if the courage is there, if the dauntless heart is there, its presence will sometimes make up for other shortcomings ; while if with it are combined the other military qualities the fortunate owner becomes liter- ally invincible. DRESS SWORD PRESENTED BY LOUIS XVI. TO JOHN PAUL JONES. From plates furnished by the Numismatic £ phia and published by permission of the ( Dale. For description see Appendix. ADDRESvS OP AMBASSADOR JUSvSERAND Secretary of the NAVV CHARLES J. BONAPARTE introduced the ambassador in the following words: In those exploits which made Paul Jones famous, French sailors were his comrades in arms. In the long and bloody war which gave us national life France was our generous ally. This day were incomplete without a word from France. I ask you to hear her ambassador. THE PIOUS action and unconquerable energy of a son of America, one who served her in war as a general, in peace as an ambas- sador, has brought back to these shores the ashes of the famous sailor who first made known to the world that the new nation just born beyond the seas was meant to be a great nation; that is, great on land and great on sea. In his search for the sacred relics of John Paul Jones, General Porter had no help but his patriot- ism. For a good citizen this is help enough. The burial which is now awarded to the naval hero is such as he deserved and it fits the circumstances of his life. This life, as the life of many other defenders of American independence, offers this char- acteristic trait : that a French element is, in some way or other, mixed with it. It is difiBcult to name Washington without remembering La Fayette and to name Franklin without thinking of his role in Paris. It is the same with Paul Jones, and at this day, when supreme honors are rendered to his memory, when the Chief of the State has praised him in words the value of which is immensely enhanced by the char- acter and personal fame of the orator, it is a fitting circumstance that French sailors who crossed the ocean for this purpose be now seen mounting guard round his body. Paul Jones's connection with things and men of France began early, and, as most events in his short and brilliant career, was quaint and romantic. It is a pleasant memory to recall that little scene at a road- side inn by Alexandria — near the empty plains where the national capi- tal was one day to rise — that little scene between two young men, one of foreign appearance, in great trouble to make himself understood and A d drc s s e s get horses to continue his journey, which was toward the Congress sitting then at Philadelphia; the other "a slender, black-haired, black- eyed, swarthy gentleman, in a naval uniform and of most martial and distinguished bearing" (as his chance companion described him later). The naval officer proffered his help, made the innkeeper understand, and enabled the foreigner to proceed on his journey. The foreigner was young I<a Fayette, just arrived from France, the other was Paul Jones. On that day began between them a friendship meant to last as long as lives which, unknown to either, were to be for both so glorious. Begun under such auspices, Paul Jones's career continued, more and more connected with France. In 1777 he crossed the ocean ou his famous Ranger in time to receive the first salute offered by any navy to the Stars and Stripes. And it is a satisfaction to think that, while the American ship was commanded by no less a man than Paul Jones, who was to take the Serapis, the French squadron which returned the salute was commanded by no less a man than La Motte Piquet, who was to gather his first laurels when fighting for American independence. During the greatest and most heroical part of his career Paul Jones's main quarters were in France. There he found not only ships and sup- plies, but friendship and admiration. French sailors and soldiers were eager to fight under such a chief, in company with Americans. The recruiting of these last, owing to the di.stance, was not always easj', but of Frenchmen he naturally had an abundance. On board the Bon- honwie Richard, he said in the last year of his life, "part of the voices sounded in my native tongue, but more in the language of France." And the temper of both crews was the same. Concerning his French volunteers he said on the same occasion : " In case of battle I simply let my Frenchmen fight their battle out," which is exactly the method ever followed by American chiefs with American soldiers or sailors. After each of his campaigns he returned to Paris more and more pop- ular at court, in society, and among officers, the good will toward him almost equaling that which everyone there bore to Franklin. When independence was proclaimed, and that treaty was signed at Versailles, which increased by one the number of free nations, the best days of Paul Jones were over. His fate resembled in this that of his French brethren of the sea. The sacred cause of independence had been for most of them the occasion of their life's best work, and fickle fortune had stood, for once, ou the side of the good cause. The work John Paul Jones C o m jn e in o r a t i o 7i 23 done, fortune abandoned them all; she abandoned to a more or less unhappy fate d'Estaing, de Grasse, Suifren, and Paul Jones himself. He died in France, who had proved for him another motherland, and who honored him dead as she had alive. But he had done his life's work, and that work consisted not only in playing splendidly his part in the struggle for freedom, but also in showing the young Republic the importance of having a navy of her own. "This is the best means," he wrote as early as 1775, " to create a great and most desirable sentiment and respect toward us," and he did not conceal that his dream was to be one of ' ' the pioneers of a new power on the sea with untold prospect of development." His dream, or, rather, his prophecy, has been fulfilled. He was one of those pioneers, and the new power on the sea which he helped to raise has proved to have indeed an " untold prospect of development." To no nation can such a development be more welcome than to the one who first applauded the birth of the incipient American Navy, and it is for France a souvenir to be proud of, to remember that the earliest of those ships meant to carry the thirteen stripes and the "thirteen stars in a blue field, representing a new constellation," as reads the resolution of Congress passed in 1777, was the Alliance, an appropriate' name, built exactly on the model of the French frigate La Terpsichore, the plan of which had been given to Jones by the Duke de Chartres out of sympathy for America. Now the smoke of the fights of those heroical days has vanished; per- ennial independence has been secured and peace has been established — real peace, fecund peace, the one which sweeps away, or at least allows the dying out of former animosities and hatred. And such a peace now reigns and has long and shall long reign, I hope, between the nations who met then as enemies on land and on sea. Paul Jones will sleep his last sleep at the place most congenial to his valiant soul, by the shores of that Chesapeake Bay at the entrance of which the combined action of Washington, Rochambeau, and de Grasse ended the war; in that town of Annapolis, where, year after year, are formed generations of officers who continue their ancestors' traditions on board the more and more numerous and more and more powerful American Navy. In this same town of Annapolis, ever noted for its patriotism, when the news came that the war was over and independence secured, thirteen toasts were drunk, each accompanied with thirteen cannon, and the first three of those toasts were: 1. "The third of February, 17S3, in perpetual memory, on which day a virtuous war was concluded by an honorable peace." 2. "The United States. May their confederacy endure forever." 3. "Friendship with France." In such wishes, after so many years, concur the hearts of all French- men and all Americans. In such wishes would surely concur the great heart of the sailor whom we honor on this day. PROFILE OF BUST FROM DE BIRON COLLECTION, shed liy pcniiissioii of the owner, Mr. J. rierpoiit Morgan. FRONT VIEW OF BUST FROM DE BIRON COLLECTION. Published by permissiou of the owner, Mr. j. Pierpont Morgan, ADDRESS OF GENERAL PORTER Secretary of the navy chari,es j. bonaparte imroduced the General in the following words: For more than a century the mortal remains of our first great sailor lay in an unknown grave, lost to his country and the world. The generosity and patriotism of a distinguished citizen, already noted for eminent public service in war and peace, have freed us from this national reproach. I introduce to you General Horace Porter. THIS day America reclaims her illustrious dead. We gather here in the presence of the Chief Magistrate of the nation and of this vast concourse of representative citizens of the Old World and the New to pay our homage to the leading historic figure in the early annals of the American Navy, to testify that his name is not a dead memory, but a living reality, to quicken our sense of appreciation, and to give assurance that the transfer of his remains to the land upon whose arms he shed so much luster is not lacking in distinction by reason of the long delay. The history of John Paul Jones reads more like romance than reality. It is more like a fabled tale of ancient days than the story of an Ameri- can sailor of only a century and a quarter ago. As light and shade produce the most attractive effects in a picture, so the singular contrasts, the strange vicissitudes of his eventful life, surround him with an inter- est that attaches to few of the world's celebrities. His rise from the humble master's apprentice to the command of conquering squadrons; his transition from the low-born peasant boy to the favorite of impe- rial courts; crouching at times within the shadow of obscurity, at other times standing on the highest pinnacle of fame — these are some of the features of his marvelous career that appeal to the imagination, excite men's wonder, and fascinate the minds of all who make a study of his life. The two distinct natures he possessed lend a peculiar interest to his personality. He displayed the fierce temerity of the ancient sea kings combined with the knightly courtesy of mediaeval chivalry. At one time we find him aboard the Bonhomme Richard, the frail merchantman as A ddr esses he had hurriedly converted into a man-of-war, equipped with con- demned guns, whose explosion early decimated his crew, attacking the Serapis, a superior British ship, just oil her own shores, his vessel soon a wreck and sinking, most of his guns disabled, half of his motley crew of Americans and French lying about him dead or dying, the scuppers running with human blood, his ship a charnel house, over 200 prisoners confined in the hold rushing up from their prison and attack- ing the remnant of his exhausted crew, his own consort even, with her treacherous captain, raking his vessel with her fire, flame and smoke issuing from the lower deck filled with splinters, the mad carnage raging till it seemed that hell itself had usurped the place of earth, the undaunted commander in the very thickest of the combat, hatless and begrimed with powder, the very incarnation of battle, preparing to lead a boarding party and try this one desperate chance of success, and when asked by his antagonist, who saw his desperate condition, whether he had struck his flag, replying, "I've just begun to fight!" Then, by the inspiration of his example, forging weaklings into giants, capturing his opponent, snatching victory from defeat, and transferring his crew to his prize just in time to see his own ship sink beneath the waves with the flag still floating defiantly from the mast. At another time we see him arrayed in the height of fashion, display- ing an easy manner and marked elegance in the brilliant salons of the most polite courts of Europe, replying gracefully to the compliments of kings and princes in fluent English, French, and Spanish, showing that he could tread the polished floor of a royal palace as becomingly as the blood-stained deck of a man-of-war. He was a many-sided man. On the water he was the wizard of the sea ; on the land he showed himself an adept in the realms of diplomacy. While his exploits as a sailor eclipsed by their brilliancy his triumphs as a diplomat, he often proved himself a master both of the science of state craft and the subtleties of diplomacy. He early urged upon the Government the policy of weakening the blockade so disastrous to the colonies, which were essentially commercial, by sending war ships into Great Britain's home waters, attacking her vast commerce on the sea, compelling her to keep fleets at home to protect it, raiding her coasts, and bringing to her people an awakening sense of the realities of war in order that they might tire of it. He aimed to save his prizes, so that he could exhibit captured British war ships in French ports, show the John Paul Jones Co mvi em oration 27 people the hopefulness of the cause of the colonies, stimulate the gov- ernment of that power, and encourage it to send armies and fleets to our relief. His chief diplomatic triumph was when he took the captured Serapis and Countess oj Scarborough into the principal harbor of Holland for the express purpose of raising irritating questions regarding the rights of belligerent vessels in neutral ports and embroiling England in a war with Holland. He undertook this mission of his own initiative and against the advice of such experienced diplomatists as De Vauguyon, the French ambassador to Holland, and Dumas, the eminent international lawyer. By his ingenuity and the signal ability of his correspondence he suc- ceeded perfectly in his undertaking, and England soon had another foe arrayed against her. By a rare tact he escaped giving offense to Holland and at the same time avoided wounding the susceptibilities of France. So much was our Government impressed by this and other exhibitions of his rare diplomatic skill that it intrusted him with the delicate and difficult mission of collecting international claims. Washington said of him, in a letter addressed to Congressman Hewes: Mr. Jones is clearly not only a master mariner within the scope of the art of navigation, but he also holds a strong and profound sense of the political and military weight of command at sea. Jefferson, by direction of Washington, intrusted him with a diplomatic mission to Holland to see whether that State could be induced to join us in an expedition against the pirates of the Barbary coast, and made known that it was the President's desire to give him command of a squadron for such a purpose. But his death intervened before the necessary ships could be furnished. Paul Jones had written in French an exceedingly able pamphlet entitled "Treatise on the Existing State of the French Navy," which produced a profound impression. Napoleon, when iirst consul, was so struck by it that he had it reprinted, and the title-page bore the inscrip- tion ' ' Written by the great American and Russian Admiral. ' ' When Paul Jones took his prizes into the ports of Holland the English minister there distinguished himself by constantly alluding in official correspondence to the conqueror of the Serapis as " a certain Paul Jones, a pirate." Next to the Admiral's able and complete refutation of this unfounded characterization, made to the Dutch States-General and 28 A ddrcssrs accepted by them, perhaps his best answer was the explanation he wittily gave sometime afterwards in a conversation. Having been alluded to as a pirate [said he], I looked up the authoritative defini- tions of that epithet, and found among them "Pirate — one who is at war with man- kind." I am holding a regular commission as a naval officer in an honorable service and making war only upon the armed enemies of my country. England is at war with America, France, Holland, and Spain, and engaged in provoking war in several colonies, and it seems to me that she is the pirate, not I. When he landed a force in England and his sailors carried off a quantity of silver plate from Lord Selkirk's estate, Paul Jones purchased it from the crew, who then owned it and counted its value as prize money, paying for it $700 out of his own pocket, a large sum in those days, and as soon as he could procure the means of communicating, returned it and received a handsome acknowledgment from Lord Selkirk. 