BONHOMME RICHARD, the flagship of John Paul Jones (q.v.), in the most remark able naval victory on record, 23 Sept 1779; originally the Duras, a worn-out, unseaworthy merchant Indianian assigned to him by the French government because none of their own naval officers would serve under a foreigner, and renamed by Jones from Franklin's 'Poor Richard,? because he obtained her by following one of its maxims. She had 21 guns on a side, mainly 12-pounders, with three 18-pounders aft near the water line; and a mongrel crew of Americans, British, Portuguese and other classes. With three other vessels in the squad ron Jones intercepted, off Flamborough Head, on the east coast of England, a British fleet of naval stores from the• Baltic, convoyed by the Serapis (Capt. Richard Pearson) and the Countess of „Scarborough. The latter was cap tured by one of Jones' squadron; the former about 7 o'clock on a moonlight night joined battle with the Richard, having 25 guns on a side, 10 18-pounders —a much greater weight of metal than its foe, and with far more pene trating power than the 12-pounders of the American ship. To neutralize this advantage Jones' policy was to fight at close range; and in the attempt to rake the Serapis the two ves sels swung broadside to and were lashed to gether by Jones, and fought the rest of the battle so close that the guns could not be run out full length, their muzzles touched and the rammers of each had to be thrust into the port holes of the other to load. Only those of the starboard side of each could be used. Two of Jones' 18-pounders burst at the first fire; his lighter guns were gradually silenced by the Serapis; the entire sides of his vessel were shot away, so that the Serapis' shot passed through without touching anything; she caught fire in several places; she had been leaking at the outset and now had several feet of water in the hold; and an under-officer in affright let the 200 or 300 British. prisoners loose and ran to
tear down the colors, but finding the flag-pole gone began to shriek for quarter. Lieutenant i Dale with immense presence of mind set the prisoners at the pumps, not only saving a guard but releasing the pumpmen to fight; Jones broke the officer's head with a pistol-butt, and in answer to Pearson's inquiry if he was ready to surrender, replied, °I have not begun to fight yet') though the Serapis was firing heavily and his own guns were nearly still. Meantime, how ever, the deadly musket fire from the Richard's top gear had made the service of the upper guns of the Serapis almost sure death, and they too were silenced; a cannon-shot brought down her mainmast; the combustibles thrown from the Richard wrapped her upper deck in fire; at last a bucket of hand-grenades flung down her hatchways set off a mass of cartridges strewn along the decks, killing or wounding nearly all those around and wrecking five guns; and just then Jones' ship, the timid, half-insane French captain had been tacking about, occasionally firing grapeshot at random into both vessels, came near, and Pearson struck his colors, though four of hisns were still guns firing and his ship was sound. Jones put Dale aboard the Serapis, and tried to navigate the Richard to a friendly port; but at 9 o'clock of the 25th she had to be abandoned, and she sank about an hour later.