Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1861-06-13
Che Obio 6tatesmam
TIE B II Q.
FortIfications against ships.
From the Richmond Dispatch.

pebWeen SHIPS ana fOruncaLl0ne, which inc0n
testably establishes the general rule that gun
ashore are superior to guns aAoat, and that navs
expeditions are utterly impotent against a wei
fortified coast.
In 1895 British expedition was fitted out, a
an expense OF eight millions of dollars, agains
Quiberon, O port of the French coast. The ba,
OF Quiberon Is pronounced by Brenton, in hii
British Naval History, "the finest on the coas
Of France, or perhaps in the world, for landing
an army" Moreover, the inhabitants of the
country were in open iusurrection, and eager tc
cooperate with the invaders. Ten thousand
soldiers were landed, and arms furnished to as
many more loyalist troops, but the combined
forces failed in their attack upon the fortifca-
tions, and Gen. Hoche, from his imtrencbments,
with 1000 men, held in check body Of Il, 900,
penned up, without defense, in the narrow pen
ineula.
In 1893 the English and Russians made de
scent upon Holland with fourteen ships of the
line and ten frigates, carrying about eleven
hundred guns and great number Of transports,
with an army of thirty-six thousap men. The
defensive army consisted Of only twenty-eight
thousand men. Besides their immense moral
and military superiority, the invaders had the
cooperation OF the Orange party in assisting the
landing OF their troops, and yet they failed TO
get possession of single strong place, and after
loss OF six thousand men, were compelled to
capitulate. "Such," says Allison, twas the
disastrous issue Of the greatest expedition which
mad yet sailed from the British harbor during
the war" Can the United States raise such q
naval expedition against the South as that
against Holland, and If so, is it likely to be more
successful against q united, than that was
against divided people7
In loOl the illusrious Lord Nelson, the Ma.
poleon of the seas, with three ships Of the line,
two frigates, and thirty FIVE smaller vessels,
made desperate attack upon the harbor of Bo
logne, but was repulsed with severe loss.
In 1909 the English fitted out an immense
naval expedition to seize upon the French de-
fense Of the Scheldt. Flushing, at the mouth
Of the river, was but ill-secured, and Antwerp,
sixty or seventy miles further up, was entirely
defeDseless at the time when the British arry.
ed at Flushing. The British attacking force
consisted of twenty-seven ships of the line,
twenty three frigates, thirty-three sloops-of-
war, thirty-eight gun, mortar and bomb vessels,
thirty six smaller vessels, eighty.two gun boats,
innumerable transports, with over forty thous.
and troops and an immense artillery train,
making In all, says the English historian, "an
hundred thousand combatants." Yet the fee.
BILE defenses at Flushing resisted successfully
fire from the feet, compared with which French
officers, who had been at Austerlitz and Jena,
declared that the csnnonade at those battles
was mere jen d'enfans, and we're only re-
duced by the land forces after siege of eiph.
teen days. In the mean time the Notifications
at Antwerp had been repaired, and after fruit
less operation of whole month In the river,
the English were gradually forced to retreat to
the mouth OF the Scheldt, and finally to eyacu.
ate their entire conquest. Such was the reault
OF an expedition comprising naval force more
than three times the number of all the ships In
the navy Of the United States, and having more
than FIVE times the combasants Of the whole
United States Army.
In 1892, large French squadron attacked
Cagliars, whose defenses were so dllapidated as
to deserve the name, but, after bonn.
bardment Of three days, was signally defeated,
and obliged to retire
In 1874, two British ships-the Fortitude, of
,eventy.iour, and the Juno (frigate), of thirty
Two guns--attacked a small town In the Bay of
Mortello, Corsica, which was armed with one
gun in barbette, and garrison Of thirty men
After bombardment of two hours and half,
he ships were forced to haul off with consider
able damage and loss Of life, while the fortif-
,atlons and the garrison vera unharmed. Here
we're one hundred and six guns aaoat against
,ne on shore, and yet the latter was successful.
In 1897, Nelson attacked the little, inefficient
batteries of Santa Cruz, In Teneriife, with eight
Tessels, carrying four hundred guns He was
'epelled with loss of two hundred and fifty
men, while the garrison received little or no
lamage. A single ball from the land battery,
striking the side Of one Of his vessels, instantly
Junk her with all aboard
In 1901, the French, with three frigates and
TX thousand men, we're beaten off from the
,oorly constructed works Of Porto Ferrairo,
which had garrison of only fifteen hundred
n July of the same year, an English feet, car
wing five hundred and two guns, attacked the
french land battery of Algesiros, of only twelve
runs, and was compelled TO retreat With great
oss.
In 1903, the English garrison Of Diamond
Rock, near Port Royal Bay, with only one hun
lred men and fifteen guns, repelled, without the
oss Of O single man, French squadron of two
eventy .fours, frigate and a brig, assisted by
land attack of two hundred troops. The
french lost fly men.
In 1906 French battery on Cape Licosa, Of
nly one gun and garrison of twenty a ve men,
esisted, without the loss of man, the attack |
4 British eighty-gun ship and two frigates,
srrying in all over one hundred and fifty guns
md about one thousand three hundred men,
The assailants lost thirty-seven men killed and |
and the eighty. gun chip was much
isabled.
In 1913 French land battery Of only three
,uns, near Fort Trinidad, drove off an English
evenly. y.four.gun ship and a bomb vessel.
In 1873 Leghorn, with weak defenses and
arrison, drove off an English squadron of six
hips, carrying over khree hundred guns and
ne thousand troops.
In fact, the whole history Of the wars of the
'feuch Revolution IL one continued proof of
be superiority Of Notifications as maritime
rontier defence. The seacoast Of France ia
nly eighteen and half miles from England at
be nsrrowest place of the Channels; IL was
otted with rich commercial towns, offering
azzlipg booty; the French navy was incompe-
snt to their defense; the English navy was
upported at an annual expense Of ninety mil
ons of dollars, Was continually cruising with
|, sight Of French seaports, had acquired an
,timate knowledge Of the French harbors,
avs and creeks; the French harbcrs and towns,
.ripped of their garrisons by necessities of
istant wars, were left with no other defense
ian their Notifications and militia; and yet,
,ough they were frequently attacked, and the
lost desperate efforts made to effect perma
ent lodgment, they escaped unharmed during
he entire contest. .,.
The history Of naval attacks on our own forts
|, the wars Of the Revolution and 1919. teach.
. US the same lesson. In 1776 Sir Peter
arker, with nine vessels, carrying two hund.
ed and seventy guns, was repulsed by Fort
ioultrie, armed with only twenty six guns, and
arrisoned by three hundred and seventy.fve
egulars and few militia. The British were
ntirely defeated, and lost in killed and wound.
a, two hundred and Eve men, while the same
$50 In the iorE was only thirty-two. Gen.
Ioultrie said shat only thirty rounds from the
atterv were fred, and the want of powder