Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1861-09-26
From the New York Evening Post.
THE LATE NAVAL VICTORY.
The Advantages of Land Forts over Attacking
Ships

midablc are seldom successful against fortified
positions on land Ships fight, unless with each
other at great disadvantages. Ships are mostly
constructed of wood, everywhere vulnerable,
and may be sunk by single shell. Moving on
an aglated element, the direction and range of
their guns are often difficult of adjustment. On
the other hand, in fort the batteries and men
are behind almost impenetrable walls-their
magazines ard incombustible, and their fire,
from a solid ground may be reduced to almost
mathematical accuracy. Because Of these dis
advantages on the part of ships, naval assaults
upon land forts have always required an i'm
mense superiority of force to become successful.
Captain Haeck, in his excellent work on mill
tary art and sciehce, has collected numerous in
stances of such assaults, with an almost invaria-
BILE want Of success on the part of the vessel.
We abridge from his account a few of the most
interesting facts:
ain 1887 Nelson attacked the little inefficient
batteries of Santa Crux, in Tenerife, with eight
vessels carrying four hundred guns. But not
withsanding his great superiority in numbers,
skill and bravery, he was repelled with the loss
of two hundred and fifty me., while the garri-
son received little or no damage. A single ball
from the land battery, striking the side of one
Of his vessels, instantly sunk her, with near
hundred scamen and marines.
In 1889 French fotilla of ffty-two brigs and
gunboats, manned with near seven thousand
men, attacked little English redoubt on the
island Of Marcou, which was armed with two
thirty-two Founders, two six-pounders, and four
four-pounders, and two carronadcs, and garri-
soned with two hundred and fifty men. Not
withstanding this great disparity of numbers,
the little redoubt sunk seven of the enemies
brigs and gunboats, captured another, and fore
ed the remainder to retreat with great loss
while the garrison had but one man killed and
three wounded.
In 1901 the French, with three frigates and
six thousand men, attacked the poorly construct
ed works of Porto Ferrairo, whose defensive
forces was a motley garrison of fifteen hundred
Corsicans, Tuscans and English. Here the at
lacking force was four times as great as that of
the garrison, nevertheless they were unsuccess-
full after several bombardments and a siege of
five months
In 1906 French battery on Cape Lcosa, of
only two guns and a garrison of twenty-five men,
resisted the attack of British eighty guh ship
and two frigates. The carriage of one of the
land guns failed on the second shot, so that, in
fact, only one of them was available during the
action. Here was single piece of ordnance
and garrison Of twenty-five men, opposed
naval force of over one hundred and fifty guns
and about thirteen hundred men. And what
effects were produced by this strange combat.
The attacking force lost thirty-seven men killed
and wounded, and eighty-gun ship was much
disabled, while the fort and garrison escaped
entirely unharmcd
In 1913 Lcghorn, whose defences were of
very moderate character, and whose garrison
at that time was exceedingly weak, was attack
ed by an English squadron of six ships, carry
ing over three hundred guns and a land force
of one thousand troops. The whole attempt
was perfect failure.
Let us no" examine the several British naval
attacks on our own forts, in the wars of the rev.
oution and of 1912.
In l776 Sir Peter Parker, with British fleet
of nine vessels, carrying about two hundred and
seventy guns, attacked Fort Moutrie, in Charl-
eston harbor, which was then armed with only
twenty-six guns, and garriSoned by only three
hundred and seventy five regulars, and few
militia. II this contest the British were en-
tirely defeated, and lost, in killed and wounded,
two hundred and five men, while their whole
two hundred and seventy guns killed and wound
ed only thirty-two men in the fort.
In 1914 a British fleet of four vessels, carry
ing ninety-two guns, attacked Fort Boyer,
small redoubt, located on point of land COM
mandng the passage from the gulf into the
bay of Mobile. This redoubt was garrsoned
by only one hundred and twenty combatants,
officers included and its armament was but
twenty small pieces of cannon, some of which
were almost entirely useless, and most of them
poorly mounted, in batteries hastily thrown up,
and leaving the gunners uncovered from the
knee upward while the enemy's land force, act
ing in concert with the ships, consisted oftwen-
ty artilleryists, with a battery of two guns, and
seven hundred and thirty marines, Indians and
negroes. His ships carried five hundred and
ninety men in all. This immense disparity of
numbers and strength did not allow to the Brit
| ish military and naval commanders the slight
est apprehension that four British ships, carry
| ing ninety-two guns, and land force somewhat
exceeding seven hundred combatants, could fail
in reducing a small work mounting only TWEEN
| ty short carronades, and defended by a little
more than hundred men, unprovided alike
with furnaces for heating shot, or easements to
cover themselves from rockets and shells
Nevertheless, the enemy was completely repuls-
ed one Of his largest ships was entirely destroy
ed, and eighty-iye men were killed and wound
cd on board the other; while our loss was only
eight or nine. Here naval force of five to one
was repealed by the and-battery.
Again, in 1914, barbette battery of one four
FOUNDER and two eighteen FOUNDER guns, at
Stonington, repelled British fleet of one hun
dred and thirty four guns. During the engage
meat the Americans exhausted their ammuni-
tion, and spiked their eighteen Founders, and
only one of them was afterwards used Two OF
the enemy's ships, carrying one hundred and
twelve guns, were engaged during the whole
time of attack, and during much of this time
bombarded the town from q position beyond
reach of the land battery They were entirely
too far off for the four FOUNDER gun to be ofany
use. Supposing the two eighteen-pounders to
have been employed during the whole action,
and also all the guns of the fleet, one eighteen
FOUNDER on land must have been more than
equivalent to sixty-seven guns afoat, for the
ships were so much injured as to render it ne
cessary for them to withdraw. The British loss
was twenty killed, and more than fifty wound
ed. Ours was only two killed and six wound,
ed.
The feet sent to attack Baltimore, in 1914
consisted of forty sail, the largest of which were
ships of the line, carrying an army of over six
thousand combatants The troops were landed
at North Point while sixteen Of the bomb yes.
sells and frigates approached within reach Of
Fort Mdllenry, and commenced bombardmeni
which lasted twenty-five hours. During this
attack the enemy threw fifteen hundred shells,
four hundred of which exploded within the walls
of the fort, but without making any impression
on either the strength of the work of the garri-
son, and the British were'compelled to retire
with much loss.
In 1918, a squadron of British ships station
ed off the mouths of the Mississippi, for the
purpose ofa blockade, assembled the river as high
as Fort 81 philin which il n small work cana.