The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1857-11-11
HE WENT DOWN WITH HAR-
NESS on.

| We fnd, in the National Intezligeaa-
Ger, letter to the Secretary of the Ma
w, written by Lieut.. Maury, giving in
detail the ordersof events connected with
the loss of the Steamer "Central Amer
ica." Lieut.. Maury, who was broth
law of the braFe Herndon, in the
introduction. says:
AS a tribute to his (Herndon's) men,
ory, as material for history, as an heir
loom of the Navy, and legacy to his
country, desire to place on record in
the Department this simple writing and
memorial of him.
The letter gives the history of the
disasteras cleaned from the most au-
thentic sources, and is thrillingly beau
tiful We make one extract, which we
| know will draw tears from eyes unused
to weep. The letter says :,
There were many touching incidents
Of the most heroic personal devotion to
duty and to him during that dreadful
storm. Even after the ship had gone
down, and her passengers were left in
the water clinging by whatever they
could lay hands on, Offices of knigbtly
courtesy were passed among them.
AS one of the last boats was about to
leave the ship, her commander gave his
watch to passenger, with request
that it might be delivered to his wife,
He wished to charge him with mes
sage for her also, but his ptteranee was
choked. "Tell her -" Unable to
proceed, he bent down his head and bu:
ried his face in his hands for moment,
| as if in prayer, for he was devout man
and true Christian.
In that moment, brief as it was, he
endured the great agony. But it was
| over now His crowding thoughts, no
| doubt, had been of friends, and home;
its desolation beloved wife and love-
| ly daughter dependent alone for support
upon him. God and his country would
care for them now. Honor and duty
required him to stick to his ship, and
he saw she must go down.
CAIN and collected, he rose up from
| that short but mighty struggle with re-
newcd yigor, and went with encouraging
locks about the duties of the ship as be-
fore. He ordered the hurricane deck to
be cut away and RATS to be made. The
life. preservers were also brought up and
distributed to all who would wear them.
Night was setting in, and he directed
Frazer, the I'd officer, to take charge of
the arm chest and send up rocket eye
ry half hour.
Van Rensselacr, his lst officer, was al
so by him. Herndon has spoken of him
| to me in terms of esteem and admirErtou,
and Van Rensselaer, proved himself wor-
thy to the last of such commendatiors
Side by side these two stood at their
post, and perished together With their
harness on.
After the boat which bore Mr. Payne,
| to whom Herndon entrusted his watch,
had showed Of, the captain went to his
state room and put On his uniform. The
gold band around his cap was concealed
by the oil silk covering which be usual
ly wore over it. He took the covering
off and threw it On his cabin foor; ther
walking out he took his stand on the
| wheel, house, holding on to the iron
railing with his left hand. A rocket
was set off; the ship fetched her last
lurch, and as she went down he uncov-
cred.
A cry arose from the sea, but noa
from his lips. The waves had closed
over him, and the curtain Of the night
was drawn over one of the ncst publime
moral spectacles that the sea ever saw.
Just befare the steamer went down a
row. boat was heard approaching. =
Herndon hailed her. It was the boat
swain's boat, rowed by "hard hsnds and
a gentle heart" returning on board from
the brig to report her disabled condi-
tion. If she came alongside she would be
engulphed with the sinking ship. Hern-
| don ordered her to keep off. She did
| SO, and was saved. This, SO far as 1
have been able to learn, was his last or
der. Forgetful of self, mindful of 9TH
ers, his life was beautiful to the last !;
and in his death he has added new
glory to the annals of the sea.
It does not appear certain that her
commander was seen or heard, after she
went down, by any o. those who survived
the wreck. Mr. Childs one Of the pas.
sengers, thinks ne conyersed with him
in the waite. after midnight on Saturday,
only little while before he himself was
picked up. But Herndon was small Of
stature, of delicate frame aud constitu-
tion, and by no means in robust hea.eh.