Bon Homme Richard (CVA 31) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 13 text:

the ?iinfor and ' some f foot- Jv over several owdet, ' ilanie ow ihe Uptain lied and lif U ' as nddled i. and . came !0. 11IE ad won 1 tliera H of It was inidiiiglu whfii the luiilr had Mibsidcd. Sour- seven feet ol ' water was in the Imld ol HOM lOMMK RICHARD, and she was settling last. The lashing that held the two ships together were cut and the vessels drifted apart. Br When Jones came aboard the SKR.M ' IS, li commander, handing over his sword according to ( ustoni, said, I cannot, sir, but feel mortification at the idea of surrendering my sword to a man who fought me with a rope around his neck. Jones gave him back his sword immediately saying, You have fought gallantly, sir, and I hope the King will give you a better ship. Jones described the end of his own ship: The Ensign gaff, shot away in action, had been fished and put in place soon after the firing ceased, and our flag torn and tattered, was left flying when we abandoned her. As she plunged by the head at last, her taffrail momentarily rose, so that the last vestige that mortal eye saw of the BONHOMME RICHARD was the defiant waving of her unconquered and unstruck flag as she went down. And as I had uiv.n ihnii now be{|ueatlK l so desperately dc old ship as their sepulchre, I norial dead the flag they had their winding sheet. The men of BO.MKXMME RICHARD took the SER, PIS to France as a prize jf war. The British captain, trying to explain his defeat to his own government wrote, Long before the close of the action, it became clearly apparent that the American ship was dominated by a will of the most unalterable resolution, and there could be tu) doubt that the intention of the commander was, if he could not conquer, to sink alongside. And this desperate resolve of the American captain was fully shared and fiercely seconded by every one of the ship ' s company. Such was the beginning of the United States Navy: Borrowed siiips, and crews of every possible faith and nationality, welded ultimately into the greatest sea power in the world ' s history by the most unique and persuasive ideal for which men have given their lives — the pride and self-respect of free fighting men fighting in the hope of a free life.

Page 12 text:

magazine. But, then, the English firgate iiho stopped firing, and it was e vident that she too was on fire and her gunners had been called away from their cannon to fight the flames. One of the American crewmen called to Captain Jones to strike his colors, but he replied, I may sink, but will never strike. Captain Pearson heard only parts of the conversation and called out, Quarter, Captain? Are you asking for quarter? It was then that Captain John Paul Jones replied with his famous epitiiet thai has lived through the ages. 1 have not yet begun to fight. riun ihc hatchway of BONHOMME RICHARD opened and there spewed forth some of the :50() prisoners taken from ihe merchanl ship prizes. These men, had they reached SERAPIS, (ould have turned the battle. But, some American seamen quickly rounded up the Britishers and drove them below to man the pumps and control the fires. Halches or board SERAPIS now opened and the English Marines and sailors ran out with cutlasses and boarding pikes. Captain Pearson now was going Id Like the silualion in hand by boarding. But the British were mel .il (he bulwark and ,i haiui in-hand battle ensued. Captain Jones had noled ihal following I he sil.-ii.e of SERAPIS ' guns when the cannoneers were evideniK figliling ihe lues below decks thai the guns fired so constantly that it was evident the powder boys were pulling powder from the magazines and storing it behind each gim for use when the gunners rettu-ned. Captain Jones sent several officers and seamen aloft to the maintop with some grenades. The men walked along the foot- ropes of a spar until they were directly over the main deck of SERAPIS. Then several grenades were lighted and dropped through an open hatch. One ignited the stacked powder, and SERAPIS erupted in a huge gush of flame and smoke. But she remained afloat. Now the battle was a hand-to-hand affair, but Captain Pearson could stand no more bloodshed and he personally struck his colors. As he was doing so, the mainmast of SERAPIS, riddled by shot from the American guns, and weakened by the internal explosion, came down across the decks of BONHOMME RICHARD. The American seamen had won the battle at the bulwark, and 30 of them vaulted over the rails onto the deck SERAPIS just after the explosion. ttictwt apari. frn J coBinBii ' ' sinienderi rope arou imiiiediaii liopethe:

Page 14 text:

Mrs. John S. McCain The New York Times, With an inspiring Good luck and good hunting to wish her well the BON HOMME RICHARD, 27,000 tons of bad news for the Axis, shd down the ways at the New York Navy Yard in Brooklyn at 4 P.M. yesterday, the thirteenth aircraft carrier of the Essex Class built since America ' s entry into the war. More than 40,000 persons, most of them standing in .iwed silence watched the powerful carrier, proud name- sake of one of America ' s greatest fighting ships, as she cased int.. the i)iacid East River waters and glided niajcslicailv lialf wav across to the Maniiatlan shnre! The sjionsor of the ve Washington, wife of Vici Adnn M.S. Joini S. McCain: al M.Cain, Deputy Chi of Naval Air Operations. Flanking Mrs. McCain as she broke the traditional bottle of champagne across the vessel ' s bow, were Mrs. Frank Balsdcl of Brooklyn and Mrs. Allen Raymond of Manhattan, matrons of honor. edi launching were i)rief, am customary reception was cancelled because oi ihc c of Secretary Frank Knox. F ' lags throughout the van! at half mast. . pra er was offered in his nun Admiral Ernest J. King. Connnander-in-Clud ol Navy, was miablc l.i attend because of busiiu Vaship.oi,,n, but a message, hailing the lauiuhm another step toward vu toiA . was read on his belial leath Hew