The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-08-21
Coast ID. fences M nrine and Water Bate.
The Yankees are building, or intend build

| iron, and which, according to their usual
| Chinese clamor, is to demolish Fort Sumter,
| Fort Moul,rie, and other Southern fortifca-
! tons, with the greatest ease. If they can
| construct marine battery thus clad which
| can stand sea voyage to Charleston, (Which
| is doubtful Why can We not construct bat
| terry iron clad which can bo used against
| Fortress Monroe And, again, on the other
| hand, If ship can be made ball proof against
| land battery by being shea.hed with iron,
| Why cannot Forts Sumter, Moultrie, and other
| Notifications, be made equally invulners ble
| by being sheathed Will, the ,eme material?
That the Soath greatly needs marine to
act in conjunction with its harbor batteries, is
| evident enough but, to supply this deficiency,
il work Of time. The Charleston Mercury
suggests that what We need now, for present
emergencies, as 6 substitute for war marine,
is class OF simple, quickly made, rude, but
efficient structures, for occupying channels,
and which, sustained by batteries along shore,
| shall be able, in turn, to give support to the
| batteries in the event Of any powerful domon-
| STATIONS to be made against them by tie land
| ing of large bodies of troops. Could we pro-
vide such a number Of floating, OF marine
| batteries, as would cover the main entrances,
we might nationally expect that any demon
strat.ous Of the enemy through minor chan
| nols would be simply predatory, and easily
met by the coast guard and local militia. Il
t. 10 al. feature, then, the pint t.e of marine
| and land batteries, FORE and floating batteries,
| that We need mostly to address our attention
az the present juncture and what 9e seek to
| do, in this respect, should be done quickly.
We shall have little time to lose between this
aid the first Of October.
The Mercury also contains a communication
If considerable length in relation to The late
Gen. AIsEs, and his views on the subject OF
| national delences. Seeing that the introduc-
ton Of steam power was destined to work
great change in the art Of war, Gen. GAINES
came to the conclusion that "the invasion and
occupation of any inhabited portion of the in
tsrior sections Of this country by a hostile
army, is a thing so utterly impossible and pro-
rosterous that no war minister in Europe
would like to be suspected Of entertaining the
idea" Henc e, he inferred that call the great
battles that will ever be fought on our own
soil in such wars, will be upon or near the en-
frances Of cur principal seaport towns and
inlets." In accordance with this conclusion,
no devised magnificent scheme Of national
defence, the principal features Of which were
| 3 system Of railroads connecting the interior
with toe seaboari and over which the whole
agailabls force Of the country could be trans
ported in few days, and thus save from
i conhagration and utter destruction the cities
If Charleston, New Orleans, Mobile, Nor
| folk, Baltimore and others. Blu. "as d
| fleet of large war steamers, moving from
| twelve to fifteen miles 81 hour, and armed
with PAI3HAN's guns aud improved rockets,
would not only be able to enter cur harbo-s
and return at ali times, and with any change
Of wind or tide, with perfect facility, but
would pass any battery or fcrdfcatons OF
shore with such rapidity IS to he within the
range Of any gun but fsw minutes-too
short time to incur any great or serious in
jury in open day, and much le"s b" night."-
In view Of th-se :acts he came to the conclu-
sion, which We give in his own words, that
"no works on land, No lire Of forts or batteries
On the shores Of the inlots of ,o- s.,,o,,.
('helu0''3 @1 u ~crks now construr led OF
pla,.D-ol can prevent the <Natranee 6 nos
tile feet pGorei!ea :. Steam bower" To meet
this cnange wrought o. TIE, Application os
steam power, he .a3optel, a. -. 0. avs plan
. fer ths aeFoRee .. oar seaports, several novel
contrivarces, among which were floating
batteries or moving forts, from the range Of
| whose gurs the enemy could not escape.
The plan of Gen. GA1sgs had also feature
| for closing harhors against m eheihy, which
he describe, =, length in letter to the Cora-
| ZION Council of Naw Work, in Ostobcr ~ II
| thai letter he say
"Could WA e;T7ays ne certain OF a competent
: force D, %..r steamers at every such point of
expected invas- il, 10 other defence would he
| ne ejed or asked. But the construction OF the
number or armed steamships which would be
eouiessediy necessary for the defence of all
| our great seap0rts, IN this mode. wonld in
| vOlve an expenditure that mus: put il wholly
ol.t uT the question. The only prac ticable
/ means of defending the entrances of our har-
bOTS URLtASt Wal SIe tIHtFS tGtlAs tS %
than entirely G2G!,st assrs--lon. By BARRIsa
! AND LoCKIEG TEBS -. THIS can De effected
| only by placing doatirg obstruction cfm
| pietely across tue chsrnei OF each deep inle.
/ secured to the shore on each side so IS to be
under the guns of our forts. This proposed
| obstruction must be Of such s'zs and form and
| Material, and must De so attached, as to resist
aud entirely overcome the mOmentum of sew
eTal large war steamers advancing at the
greatest velocity, which is fquai to ten
| twelve, or perhaps four cen miles per hour
| in smooth water. The continuance which
nave suggested consists Of two long doat-
| Ing structures OF timber and ron, fpreseptjcs
a surface OF such Il curvature us will cause
al shot that strike II % glance on harm lees
seVar4lly attached at each end to opposite
shores, and meeting at an acnte a-gle in the
centre Of the channel, Rhers they are 20 be
securely fastened when ready for action pre-
senting co-npiete bar 70 any foe seeking an
entrance. The abutmert on shore TO which
each half OF this structure is occurred, aud On
which IL swings. when moved is desirred TO
oe under the gUns OF the fOrtiiicatjons ALREADY
or ia part constructed. When no enemy i.
expected, the entrance is left cpen by draw
ms he two wirgs or sesments Of this great
tio2tiLg gate from each "ther 10y chain or
other strong cables and causing them 10
swing around SO as 10 he parallel 10 he shore
and in contact with il. Tho details OF the
structure, the tas ta2iugs, ana the mode Of
moving the TWO portions towards and from
each other, cannot ne con venieDtly given IL
this place. ana are net essen tjai IT, TnF present
ger erai purpose
"Our war steamers and foati1g, 5attsrt-s
whether constructe in COMO ion with this
plan or independently OF it) !, ing inside Of
the f1oating gate, are important adiunCts OF
the scheme, and would, with the heavy bat
teries of the forts, present combination OF
force ST. III lent for tho destruction of any
hostile squadron"
For more than thirty years Con. GAINES
urged his plans upon the attention Of the Gov
eminent at Washington, but without success