COMMENTS
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From the introduction:
Of all the revolutionary patriots, however, who crossed the ocean to offer their fortunes, and their lives if necessary, that the spirit of freedom might not perish from the face of the earth, there is no name deserving of higher veneration than that of John Paul Jones, and while his name and office are familiar to millions of the youth of our land, yet it is a lamentable fact that many of them know scarcely anything of the early history, the trials and disappointments he experienced in the organization of the American Navy, or the last years of the life of this remarkable man. . . .
Captain Jones' active participation in the revolt of the American Colonies, when even the slightest manifestation of sympathy was appreciated by Washington and the Congress, justifies the many memorials that have appeared, and though the story of his adventures has many times been told, each attempt only adds renewed interest and brings to light new facts in the life of this romantic character in his unselfish devotion to the "cause of freedom and the rights of man."
The purpose of this book is to deal largely with the incidents in the life of Paul Jones so far as they have helped to make the naval history of our country and to show how intimately associated is his name with that which we prize above all else in this world — Liberty; yet it would be hard to tell the story of this courageous man if no mention was made of his adventures under other flags than ours and in other parts of the world. It is therefore essential to the completion of this narrative that brief mention be made of his whole naval career, whether under the banner of America, France, or Russia, and though his life after his entrance into the Russian navy loses its direct importance to us, the well-wishes of four million grateful freemen followed him across the ocean to his native shores and bid him God-speed in his assault on tyranny wherever found.
A decorative historical book that will grace any bookshelf.
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