The New Zealand Tablet THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 1908. ' SAUCY JACK BARRY '

New Zealand Tablet, 13 August 1908, Page 21

The New Zealand Tablet THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 1908. ' SAUCY JACK BARRY '

LSEWHERE in this issue the reader has learned of the relatively .very., large proportion of officers l and of me/i of ..the Catholic"' faith, that go' to ;c6nstitute the .strength of white. .fleet that now- flies" the

'flag "of^he Stars and Stripes'iir Auckland's. spacious harbor. And it is fitting -. that f Catholics should muster strong upon the roll ' of a navy .of - .which a Catholic was- (in the historic phrase).. ' jth9 fatherT" and founder.' The. man who -bears

in the history, of the United States that honored title is' 'Saucy Jack Barry ' — Captain John " Barry, the' Catholic son of Catholic parents, who was born -at Tacumshane, in the* county of Wexford (Ireland) in 1745, and 'passed out' at Philadelphia" on "September 13, 1803. At an early age — while yet a boy — Barry ' went down to the sea in ships.' ' At fifteen years of age he was resident'in Philadelphia," and there he made his home till death fpund.him, crowned with the glory of faijh and patriotic service; a little more than a decade, past the medio del cammin ~di~ questa jvita — the midway. course. of life. „ - . .

The sea called, .to .Barry in the American colonies as it had called to, him in Ireland. One memorable . day — October" 13. 1 775 — he arrived in Philadelphia from London, on, the trading ship Black Prince, of which he was captain. On that same day the Congress of the young Republic — then at-the~beginning~ of the War of Independence — appointed a committee of three to report on the expense of fitting out two armed vessels to intercept stores designed for the British navy, then at Boston. Seven

days later (October 20) they handed in their report, favoring the fitting. out- of two vessels — one to spit big leaden pills at, the enemy with fourteen guns, the • other with - ten. Two Vessels wer2 accordingly purchased, and armed.- .The .first that was. bought and fitted was named the Lexington', from the "first battle in. the War of . Independence. It- carried fourteen nine-pounders, and John. Barry was appointed its captain..,.- Other colonies had, on their own account, fitted out ships with .sundry 'old smooth-bores, and, on these, Catholic captains of 'the fighting race '—such as .Captain John Manly and Captain .Jeremiah O'Brien — had done good service,. But the Lexington -was the, first ship purchased, and- armed and put into commission by the Continental authority — by order of the American , Congress. „ Barry's , commission as., captain of the Lexington was dated December 7, *775. It wo< the first commission issued by the -Marine Committee of th» Continental Congress. On the verg, same day John Paul Jones was appointed lieutenant in 'the little na^'y of two -fighting ships. In Vol. XI. of his papers in the Library -of Congress, Jones states that he was offered' the position of captain. He, however, modestly declined the responsibility, for >(said he) ' I did not find myself perfect in the duties of first lieutenant.' On December -ii, 1775, Congress appointed a committee consisting of one representative from each of the insurgent colonies ' lo 'devise . ways and means for furnishing ihese colonies, with a naval armament ' The result of their deliberations was that an additional fleet of

thirteen vessels — one for each colony — was to be equipped with from thirty-two to twenty-four guns each. With his ' littlp - fighting-machine of fourteen nine-pounders, Barry did good service in lower Delaware Bay, and on April 7, 1776, captured a British ship after some very hot powder-blazing and brought her to Philadelphia — the first prize,' taken by a commissioned Continental naval officer, that was brought to the City of Brotherly Love.

We quote the .following incident as evidence of the grit and the gluttony for taking and giving punishment which earned for ' the father and founder of the American navy ' the title of ' Saucy Jack Barry.' Barry was then (May 28, 1781) in command of the Alliance (30 guns), and was returning from France, when he fell in with the Atalanta (16 guns) and the Trepassey (14 guns). There was a fierce fight, lasting three hours, and Barry got a lump of grape-shot in his shoulder :—: — 'Soon after the commodore "(Barry) was wounded and left on the deck, one of his lieutenants went to him while in the~ cockpit, and — representing the shattered state of the sails an.l rigging, the number of killed and. wounded, and the disadvantages under which they labored from the want of wind, desired to know if the colors should be stiuck. ' " No," said he, " and if the ship can't be fought without, I will be carried on deck." When the lieutenant made known_to the crew the determination of their brave commander, fresh spirit was infused into them, and they one and all resolved to " stick by him." As soon as his wound was dressed, he insisted on being cariied on declc; but. before he reached it the enemy . had .struck. . . This victory .was considered at the time of its achievement a most r brilliant exploit and an unequiyo'cal evidence of the unconquerable firmness and intrepidity of the victor."

The title of ' commodore ' given above to Barry -was popular and non-official ; the grade referred to was first originated in the United States navy on July .17, 1862. On May 19, 1783, Barry took part in the last sea-fight of the War of Independence. - His ship (the Alliance) and the others were^sold, and for a time the young Republic was without a navy. On March 27, 1794, however, a navy was permanently' constituted. Washington appointed six ce.ptains ' by and -with' the consent of the Senate.' Barry's name headed the list. The commission of *'the father of the navy' .was signed by Washington, 'the father of his country,' on February 22, 1797. Barry's" name was "entered as ' Registered No. 1.,' and his -rank—of 'captain was 'dated as 'from the • ij.th.-day of June, 1794.' He thus took first ranlc in the newly-constituted American navy. When, in" 1801, the navy was' reduced to a peace footing," the services of nine captains were retained-; and the first on the list of these was Barry. Failing health, however, cut his " sea-service short. He passed out at his home in Philadelphia. ' A 'nobie -epitaph was written for his tomb by Dr. Rush, one of the 1 signers of the Declaration of Independence-; a beautiful bronze statue to him is the central adornment of Independence Square, Philadelphia ; and in 1900 Congress appropriated 50,000 dollars (;£to,ooo) to keep his memory green in the nation's capital -at 'Washington. -