15/17 Captain Pearson could not believe the condition of the _Bonhomme Richard_ as bad as was represented by the deserter. He had lost a great many men, all his guns were silenced, and, being utterly unable to make any further defence, he hauled down his flag with his own hands. The united efforts of both crews were necessary to extinguish the flames before they reached the magazine. She was kept afloat through the night, while the wounded and prisoners were transferred to the _Serapis_. Then the battered and riddled old hulk plunged downward bow foremost into the depths of the German Ocean. |