The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1861-04-19

fIcKENs, Tor the purpose OF obtaining
permit to visit Morris Island, where those
notifications are erected, which are relied
upon to prevent any reinforcement of Fort
Sumpter. He was well receivsd by the
Governor who is described as follows:
He is an affable gentleman, and from his phys
iognOmy resOlule one. PhrenolOgically
speaking, we may say his reasoning faculties
are prominent, with the bump of frmness
largely developed to sustain them. He is evil
IDENTIFY careful man, perhaps too much so,
and will not strike until he is sure he can do SO
with success. Although not so tall, he is in
form and strikingly in feature like ex-Vice
President Breckenridge, and that is about the
same as saying he is tolerable good looking
gentleman. He has pleasant voice, an easy
and dignified demeanor, and presents in all re.
spects the characteristics of high toned
Southerner. We repeat that we believe those
who have blamed him for dilatoriness will yet
feel it incumbent upon them to accord the need
of praise to most of his principal acts. g
The mission was successful, and armed
with the following permit, the correspond
ent made successful inroad upon Morris
Island:
STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA,
HEADQUARTERS, March 20, 1861. I
Col. -, and - have permission to
visit the batteries and forts on the islands in
Charleston harbor. F. W. PICKENS.
1t may be necessary to state that Morris
Island lies farther out to sea than either
Forts Sumpter or Moultrie, and that bat.
teries erected on that island command, with
the Notifications on Sullivan's island, on
the opposite side of the harbor, all the
entrances thereto. We quote the Herald
correspondents account of his visit to the
island: -r..... r..
We had been admonished, before pro.
posing to visit the Notifications, that the
strictest military discipline was reigning-
martial law in the strictest sense and that
some newspaper men who found themselves
within the lines of the Notifications occa.
sionally found great difficulty in getting
out; in fact, one concluded to Join the SER
vice, just for the love of the thing, and we
behold him among the first, illustrated in
comfortable red wooden shirt, linsey woolsey
pants, and beautiful beard, of vermillion
hue, reaching hard by his breast bones, and
boiling with sanguinary temperament
that plainly indicated desire to give the
Yankees Dahlgren.
Is that good?" asks the sentinel of
another. The crowd pushes. We cry
"Colonel bearing and the Governor" seize
our pass, and in few minutes encounter
Colonel bearing on the beach, who very
kindly makes our pathway clear.
BATTERY NO. l.
The first object of interest we discover,
after we find ourselves behind well packed
nd g 1oo1
ing battery, surrounded by determined look
ing men, consisting OF two forty-two
Founders and four beautiful ten inch mOrtars,
the latter of which have power to crack the
clouds when they have nothing else to
crack. This battery is located directly
opposite the sally.port of Fort Sumter, the
weakest spot in that almost indestructible
fortress. 1t was from this battery the acct
dental shot was fred that knocked a piece
out OF one of the ramparts of Fort Sumter,
the mishap, however, being spiritedly RENE.
died by Major Anderson's men, without
return shot from the gallant Major.
BATTERY, NO. 2.
And what sort of structure have we
now come to? 1t looks like terrible en-.
CINE OF some sort from the inside, but, on
clamberlDg to the outer works, we find it
resembles, after we know what is inside, the
ribs of iron devils, close rivetted with clasps
OF steel, and alligator mouths for portfolios.
This is Major Stevens famous iron battery
constructed of railroad iron, so compact that
neither water nor dews can penetrate. Ifa
shell or ball strikes the roof it will either
rebound or be lost in the sand bank that
protects its front, or be lost in the soft
marsh just beyond This battery is supplied
with three sOmbre looking ten inch colum.
biads, directly pointing to tie sallyport of
Sumpter before mentioned, and when the iron
jaws of those portfolios are slowly lifted and
let down, it seems as it human bodies were
crushed in every motion. 10 the genius of
Major P. F. Stevens, who is graduate of
the South Carolina Military Academy, is
the construction of this remarkable battery
to be credited.
BATTERY NO. 3.
What have we here, behind these ram.
parts of sand bags and sand banks, with
turf sodden resorts for rest, or retirement
for the wounded or fatigued? This is a
battery of three ten inch columbiads and
three ten inch mortars. A war ship that
could pass this battery without being sunk
would have to fly over it like balloon, with
great danger at that, for she could never do
so through the channel.
And now we have
BATTERY NO. 4.
1t is composed of three eight inch NOR.
tars. 1t is we'll situated and we'll manned.
Next on the line of this, to the enemy,
humble, low-looking ratification, is
BATTERY NO. 5, -
Il r r.
Founders and two eight inch howitzers.
The accuracy with which these guns have
been fred may be imagined, when, at the
distance of mile and more, buoys have
been sunk. i-H o." i33t 9"
BATTERY NO. 6 o el1 73' -.'
Consists of similar armament to that oil