ANCIENT& not so ancient WISDOM
offering a weekly positive perspective

October 21, 2004

"I have not yet begun to fight."

- John Paul Jones (1747 - 1792) 

(see notes about Ancient Wisdom from last week at the bottom)

Jones was born John Paul on July 6, 1747, in Kirkcudbright, Scotland to John Paul, Sr., and Jean McDuff, with the independence of the Scottish Lowlander and the fighting instincts of the Highlander. At the age of 12, he sailed as a cabin boy on a merchant ship to Virginia. In 1766, Jones became first mate on a slaver brigantine, but soon left that trade in disgust. He was appointed master of his first ship, a merchant vessel, in 1769. 

At the outbreak of the American Revolution in 1775, Jones went to Philadelphia and entered the Continental Navy. In December he was commissioned as a lieutenant on the first American flagship, Alfred.  

Although, Thomas Jefferson and others referred to him as ‘little Jones’ in reference to his height of 5’5”, he was intense about his honor and his duties, and difficult to get along with as a harsh military master. He was always well dressed, carried a sword, and conducted himself with practiced decorum, and outside of his duties, he was surprisingly sociable, a prolific poem and letter writer, spoke some French, and, though never married, he was involved in many romances.  

Jones was quickly promoted to captain in 1776 and given command of the sloop Providence. On his first cruise, he destroyed British fisheries in Nova Scotia and captured sixteen prize British ships. 

In command of Ranger in 1777 and 1778, he operated in British waters, making audacious raids on England’s shore. In recognition of his exploits, he was placed in command of five French and American vessels.  

On September 23, 1779, Jones fought one of the bloodiest engagements in naval history. Jones engaged the 44-gun Royal Navy frigate Serapis with his 42-gun Bonhomme Richard. The first broadside by the Serapis, disabled two of the six old 18-pounders of the Bonhomme Richard and killed a large portion of Jones’ gunner crew. His initial attempt to board the Serapis failed. An hour later, with most of the guns of Bonhomme Richard silenced, its dry timbers afire, and water rising in the hold from a hole large enough to drive a carriage through, a gunner, stating that Jones had been killed, called to offer surrender of the Bonhomme Richard.  Pearson, Commander of the Serapis loudly responded, “Do you ask for quarter?” Jones then made his memorable reply; “I have not yet begun to fight!” as he hurled his pistol at the head of his gunner. After three and one-half hours of battle in full moonlight, the Serapis struck its flag. Jones and his crew boarded the British ship and watched the Bonhomme Richard sink, stern uppermost and with its colors flying. 

In 1788, Russian Empress Catherine the Great appointed Jones rear admiral in the Russian Navy. He left the Russian service in 1789 and moved to Paris. He was appointed U.S. Consul to Algiers, but Jones died before the commission arrived. He died in Paris at the age of 45 on 18 July 1792. He was buried in St. Louis Cemetery, which belonged to the French royal family. Four years later, France's revolutionary government sold the property and the cemetery was forgotten.

In 1905, after a lengthy search, his corpse was discovered and removed from a gravesite in Paris and transported to the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt sent four cruisers to bring it back to the U.S., and these ships were escorted up the Chesapeake Bay by seven battleships. Through the intervention of President Theodore Roosevelt, Jones’ remains were re-interred in an ornate tomb at the Naval Academy Chapel at Annapolis, Maryland in 1913 when the tomb was completed. 

John Paul Jones not only had a brilliant naval career, he also wrote in detail throughout his life to promote professional naval standards, training and protocol. For generations, midshipmen have been required to memorize his dicta outlining appropriate qualifications and duties of a naval officer.  

Courage, superior tactics, and careful preparation won Jones victories. His desire to establish boards to evaluate officers for promotion was visionary for his time. His proposals for a fleet of evolution and naval academies predated the establishment of such institutions in the United States by over a half a century. 

"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 . . .  Every officer . . . should feel in each fiber of his being an eager desire to emulate the energy, the professional capacity, the indomitable determination and dauntless scorn of death which marked John Paul Jones above all his fellows." - -President Theodore Roosevelt's Address to The U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, April 24, 1906. 

In the end, John Paul Jones's legacy rests not so much on what he accomplished as on how he did it. 

Wishing you great courage and conviction in your worthy causes.  

Sincerely,

Comments regarding October 14, 2004 Ancient (and not so ancient) Wisdom:

The response to last week’s Ancient (and not so ancient) Wisdom was interesting. There were 21 ‘remove’ responses, a higher number than normal, of which, 20 were from women. Usually the remove count is about 50/50 - male/female. 

The most scathing comment received was:  

"Nicole Kidman?  A source of "wisdom?"  She may have risen through the normal challenges of life, and her efforts to help her mother were laudable, but the fact that she is a media darling hardly qualifies her as a source of wisdom.  As far as I'm concerned, her "art" has become more sleze (sp) than anything else. You've lost all credibility with me.   If this is the best you can do, please remove me from your list."

Ancient Wisdom is a positive perspective, because in today’s world it is so easy to find fault with others. I included Nicole because I believe she stated an important universal truth, and because I do admire someone that can succeed in an industry where of the nearly 100,000 SAG members, only about 50 might be considered stars and the median income is about $23,000, and about 25% of the 100,000 did not receive any earnings under SAG contracts. It takes great conviction to "make it" in that business.

In my research for Ancient Wisdom, I find out a great deal more about the characters than is popularly known. Let’s just say, they’re all very human and the tabloids would have a field day with them in today’s world. Here are just a few additional facts about John Paul Jones, the US Navy’s most celebrated hero: 

• Sir Winston Churchill called him a "privateer" and even Theodore Roosevelt mentioned him as a "daring corsair."

• He indulged in questionable behavior due to his popularity with women

• He withheld his crew's pay during a merchant cruise to Barbados and sparked a mutiny.

• Having killed the leader of the mutiny, he fled to Virginia to avoid trial in Briton.

• He concealed his identity by adding the surname Jones.

• He failed to be a good team player in the Continental Navy, spurning the naval efforts of others as inadequate compared with his own brilliant accomplishments.

• He shot one of his own midshipmen, Beaumont Groube, for striking colors during a battle, an action that signified surrender.

• Although he successfully commanded the Black Sea Squadron of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia in the Dnieper River, he was forced to leave Russia because of court intrigues regarding his actions.

"Change comes from a positive focus on what is desired." - Jeffrey Hansler