New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-06-07

and Re Breaks his Leg What are SGtc in Hnnp.
ton roads The Fortress and Cumberland Atrald
| of Isl Vessels for the Southern Maya Craze
| FdlSeho0d, etc.
| Special 10 the New Orleans Crescent
CAMP SHIyERs, near Nortolb) May 81 1GSl.
Mr.. EdH0r-Ou Tuesday last l took advantage
of an opportunity to take look at the walls OF the
famous Fortress Monroe. small steamer was
sent down from Norfolk, under a flag of truce, to
| transfer about ninety persons mainly women
girls and children-to the frigate Cumberland, to
be conveyed to the North, they being the families
of men who had been employed in the Navy.Tard
by the Federal Government, and who had left in
too great a hurry to save anything but their pre-
cious bacon The little vessel Empire was crowded
to its utmost capacity; and the scene on board
made up Of confused piles and groups of trunks,
boxes, bags, furniture, and other baggage some of
the latter crying because they had left their sweet
hearts, and others laughing because they had left
their husbahds-was indescribable. Soon after we
got under way, it was discovered that a man, who
seemed to be a rough aborer, and who had, before
we started, repeatedly struggled himself on board
and been put ashore, was on board still. Captain
Hunter reprimanded him severely, and the vessel
was rounded-to, in order to put him off at Fort
Norfolk. His wife and three children were on
board and she Immediately set up terrible la
mentation. 1t was Of avail that the Captain as
sured her that she had pass she was free to go
with the vessel or stay behind with her husband
she would neither 60 ashore with him quietly
make up her mind to go on the vessel without him,
and when the Captain declared that his orders
were peremptory, and the man must go ashore,
she raised such an cutlery as never heard from a
woman before, tore out her hair by handfulls, and
then fell down in a fainting fit. The Captain was
greatly perplexed and distressed but he had no
choice, and when cuptull of water had set her on
her feet again, the man had to leave the vessel.
The pathetic part of the affair was altogether
spoiled by the woman suddenly becoming calm
and refusing to return with her husband.
Among those who awaited themselves of this op-
portunity Of going North was Mr.. Van Orden, we'll
known in New Orleans as the able and enterprisng
business agent of Spalding & Rogers, who, not
wthstandng his unhealed broken leg and the
danger Of going just now to the North directly
from the seat OF war, determined with his usual
energy, to attend to certain important business in
person. ltappears that several weeks a 90 Mr. Van
Orden was shipWrecked somewhere off the coast of
North Carolina, and was cast upon a small island
with an unprOnounCabe name, which | cannot
now remember. During the storm, a boom of the
ship broke loose, and swinging round, struck Van
Orden's right leg, breaking it just above the ANGLE
and crushing the foot, as also breaking the ship
carpenters leg and crushing foot for young Ross
of circus fame. The ship was entirely lost and
with it two men and two horses and the sury;v-
ors remained among the tfvoor isIaui-
ers several weeks setting and taking of their
ton from the outside world. In consequence of
not having set his leg properly, Mr.. Van Orden
was obliged to break it over again. and this
greatly retarded his recovery, but when he left
here he was able to get about crutches. and |
was confident of soon having the shattered limb
nearly as sound as ever.
At present a trip from Norfolk down Hampton
Roads to Fortress Monroe is full Of interest. Five
miles below the city passed Craney Island but |
gave it so wide a berth that | could make out |
nothing Of its defences four miles further, and |
we steamed past the frowning batteries at Sea |
wells Point from which the Federal ships were
beaten off about two weeks ago. Only two heavy
guns and rifed cannon were mounted in the works
at that time, but their armament has since been in
creased, and they have been otherwise strengthened
SO as to be considered impregnable to any force the
Llncolnites can bring against them. A little fur
Their, and on the northern shore of the Roads
almost as far as my eye could reach, saw point
of the main land covered with the white tents of
part of Yankee force that had been sent over
from the fortress, the other portion having taken
possession of the town Of Hampton, whose inhab-
tants fled from their homes on the approach of
the invaders The grim walls of Fortress Monroe
doomed up before US, and under its guns lay at
anchor the trgate Cumberland, the vessel which
beat such precptate and ignoble retreat on the
night of the attempted destruction of the Navy
Gard-scared away, as people here aver, by the
snOrting of locomotive.
She sent boat with dapper little MILDLY, who
hailed and ordered US to come to anchor. u Have
you an anchor, Capt. Parish ?" asked Capt Hun
ter, who had charge only of the business of trans
terrlng the passengers. Yes sir" replied Capt.
F., i" but can't anchor With here,n and so we
shut off steam and foated with the current. It
looked to me very much as if Capt. Parish had
made up bis mind not to obey the peremptory order
OF Black Republican midshipman The Cumber-
land evidently did not wish us to approach within
half mile of her. 1t would have been an easy
matter to lay us alongside and receive our pas
sengers and baggage, but instead of doing so she
sent small steam tug, crowded them into it. and
tn tFHtt hi If
rather than let approach her. and then requested
our captain to keep away to the other side of the
channel rs far as possible. So we saw little of the
Cumberland, and next to nothing of Fortress Mon
roe, except the outside of its zgzag walls and the
waving tops Of the green trees inside of them
While we We're lying to, awaiting the completion
OF the transfer, noticed a movement upOn the
rampant, and suddenly a jet of white smoke shot
forth, followed by the deep boom of heavy gun |
and shell described its vast curve and exploded
high in the air, far enough on our right looking
towards the fort to place us in no danger, but yet
nearly IN line with our steamer. Another fol
lowed, the shell exploding in equally correct time,
the firing being, evidently, for the purpose of giving
US specimen of their skillin gunnery and to show
US that the old Yankee propensity for boastng is
as strong as ever. AS to their extreme caution
against our near approach to their strong hold and
shlp-ot-War, the question is, were they really afraid
Of US and our one gun toy boat, or were they
Matching some Internal scheme for the destruction
Of Southern rebels, the machinery of which it was
spite of Commodore Pendergrast, The latter, in
all probability.
Heavy guns were heard in the direction of
5eawelrs Point late yesterday afternoon but as
nothing has TRANSFERRED in regard to it, probably it
was only target practice at the batteries.
The steam trigate Merrimac has been successfully |
raised and toWed into dock. 1t is probable that |
she will be speedily repaired and put into service.
The sl0Gp-ot-War Potomac is nearly ready to go |
into dock, and with insignificant repairs, will be |
entirely as good as before, and will at once be |
turned to good account. The work of raising the |
other submerged vessels is going on brskly.
learn that a letter has been published in the |
Delta, purportng to come from an officer of the
First Louisiana Regiment, in which sundry rather |
grave misstatements are made. The writer, am |
told, processes to be officer in the regiment and
for that reason his assertions may have been re-
garded as reliable. have not seen the letter in
question, but person who has read it informs me |
that it relates number of trling incidents that
never occurred and, what is of more consequence |
asserts that the men were suffering from sickness
and want of food, from the bad quality of their
1000 and that the officers enjoying themselves
at DalIs and froiics in Norfolk and Portsmouth, |
can hardly believe that any officer of this regiment
could be induced to invent and publish statement
so entirely devoid of truth, that when he penned
he must have deliberately sat himself down to deal
n sheer untfuth. The editors OF the Delta think,