Twenty-seven Men to Help him, he Captured a Schooner of Ten

Guns by Boarding from Small Boats in Broad Daylight, although the

Schooner was Manned by 116 Sailors and Soldiers.

PAGE

CHAPTER VIII. PRIVATEERS OF THE REVOLUTION 196

A Tale of the American Patriots who Went Afloat outside of the

Regular Navy-Their Part in Driving the British from Boston—

Remarkable Work of the Lee-Truxton as a Privateer—Daring Capt.

John Foster Williams-When Capt. Daniel Waters, with the Thorn

of Sixteen Guns, Whipped Two Ships that Carried Thirty-four Guns

between them-Great was Joshua Barney-The Story of the most

Famous State Cruisers of the Revolution-Won against Greater Odds

than were Encountered by any Successful Sea Captain of the War—

British Account of the Work of American Privateers-The Horrors

of the Jersey Prison Ship.

CHAPTER IX. JOHN PAUL JONES AND THE BON-

HOMME RICHARD

66

227

A Condemned Indiaman, Ill-shaped and Rotten, Fitted as a Man-

o'-war-A Disheartening Cruise with Incapable and Mutinous Asso-

ciates-Attempt to Take Leith, and the Scotch Parson's Prayer-

Meeting the Serapis-When John Paul Jones had "not yet Begun

to Fight"; when he had “Got her now"; when he would not Sur-

render to a Drop of Water"-Ready Wit of Richard Dale-Work

of a Bright Marine—A Battle Won by Sheer Pluck and Persistence.

CHAPTER X. AFTER THE SERAPIS SURRENDERED 260

Richard Dale too Bright for the British Lieutenant-A Fair

Estimate of Captain Pearson of the Serapis-The Treachery of

Landais-Remarkable Escape from Texel-Honors for the Victor—

"The Fame of the Brave Outlives him; his Portion is Immortality."

Lucky Raids of British Transports and Merchantmen-Disastrous

Expedition to the Penobscot-The Trumbull's Good Fight with the

Watt-The First Yankee Line-of-battle-ship-When Nicholson,

with a Wrecked Ship and Fifty Men, Fought for an Hour against

Two Frigates, each of which was Superior to the Yankee Ship—Cap-

tain Barry's Exasperating Predicament in a Calm-The Last Naval

Battle of the Revolution.

CHAPTER XII.

BUILDING A NEW NAVY

PAGE

303

When England, in her Efforts to Wrest Commerce from the Ameri-

cans, Incited the Pirates of Africa to Activity, she Compelled the

Building of the Fleet that was, in the End, to Bring her Humility

of which she had never Dreamed-Deeds of the Barbary Corsairs—

American Naval Policy as Laid down by Joshua Humphreys-The

Wonderful New Frigates-Troubles with the French Cruisers on the

American Coasts-Trick of a Yankee Captain to Save a Ship-A

Midshipman who Died at his Post-Capture of the Insurgent—A

Long Watch over the French Prisoners-Escape of a Twice-beaten

Ship-The Valiant Senez-Story of Isaac Hull and the Lucky Enter-

prise.

CHAPTER XIII. WAR WITH BARBARY PIRATES . 333

A Squadron under Richard Dale Sent to the Mediterranean-The

Dey of Algiers became Friendly, but the Bashaw of Tripoli Showed

Fight-Fierce Battle between the Schooner Enterprise and the

Treacherous Crew of the Polacre Tripoli-Slaughter of the Pirates—

Tripoli Blockaded—Grounding and Loss of the Philadelphia.

CHAPTER XIV. DECATUR AND THE PHILADELPHIA 345

Story of the Brave Men who Disguised a Ketch as a Merchantman

and Sailed into the Harbor of Tripoli by Night, Drew up alongside

the Captured Philadelphia, and then, to the Order "Boarders

Away!" Climbed over the Rail and through the Ports, and with

Cutlass and Pike Drove the Pirates into the Sea or to a Worse Fate-

'The most Bold and Daring Act of the Age."

66

CHAPTER XV. HAND-TO-HAND WITH THE PIRATES 359

A Fight against Odds of Three Gunboats to One-Decatur and

Macdonough Leading the Boarders-Cold-blooded Murder and the

Vengeance that Followed-When Reuben James Won Fame-Eleven

against Forty-three in a Hand-to-hand Struggle, and the Remarkable

Result―The Handy Constitution-Fired their Gun as the Boat Sank

under them-When Somers and his Mates Went to their Death in a

Fireship-End of the War with the Pirates.

CHAPTER XVI. WHY WE FOUGHT IN 1812.

383

A Stirring Tale of the Outrages Perpetrated on American Citizens

by the Press-gangs of the British Navy-Horrors of Life on Ships

where the Officers Found Pleasure in the Use of the Cat-Doomed to

Slavery for Life—Impressed from the Baltimore—A British Seaman's

Joke and its Ghastly Result-The British Admiralty's Way of Dealing

with Deliberate Murder in American Waters-Assault of the Leopard

on the Chesapeake to Compel American Seamen to Return to the

Slavery they had Escaped-Building Harbor-defence Boats to Protect

American Seamen from Outrage on the High Seas-Other Good

Reasons for Going to War.

APPENDIX.

PAGE

· 415

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

> JOHN PAUL JONES. (From a mezzotint of the painting by Notté),

PAGE

Frontispiece

I

AN EARLY AMERICAN FLOATING BATTERY,
COMMODORE ESEK HOPKINS. (From a French engraving of

the portrait by Wilkinson),

THE FIRST NAVAL FLAGS,

GASPE

DESTRUCTION OF THE SCHOONER GASPÉ, 1772. (From an
engraving by Rogers of the painting by McNevin),
THE STATE HOUSE AT NEWPORT, SHOWING THE
AFFAIR. (From an engraving in Hinton's "History of the
United States"),

3

4

7

THE

BOSTON TEA-PARTY." (From an old engraving), A BRITISH ARMED SLOOP. (From a very rare engraving, showing the first lighthouse erected in the United Stateson Little Brewster Island, Boston Harbor),

A BRIG OF WAR LOWERING A BOAT. (From a picture drawn and engraved by Baugean),

29

THE ADMIRALTY SEAL,

The Founders of the AmerICAN NAVY. (Drawn by I. W.
Taber-the portraits from engravings),

VESSEL OF WAR SALUTING, WITH THE YARDS MANNED. (From an old French engraving),

FACSIMILE OF A LETTER FROM ABRAHAM WHIPPLE TO GENERAL LINCOLN DURING THE SIEGE OF CHARLESTON. (From the original at the Lenox Library),

3377

NICHOLAS BIDDLE. (From an engraving by Edwin),
A FRIGATE CHASING A SMALL BOAT. (From an old French

A CORVETTE. (From an old French engraving),

A LETTER FROM ESEK HOPKINS. (From the original at the
Lenox Library),

48