, 1862-06-19

has double propeller engines, and can proba-
bly, outrun any war steamer afloat She has
hitherto carried two rifed twenty four pound
ers, but she Is being fitted up now to carry one
Parrott twenty -pouuder in her stern, and
two twelse-pound howitzers forward
Commodore Edward Montgomery Was
in command OF this boat during the recent en-
eogement, but on receiving an ugly shot-hole
through her boiler, tegether With the moral
effect produced by the sinking Of luis other
boats, the valiant commodore determined to
make charge On the Arkansas shore, which |
and bis crew started on their two weeks trip
to St. Louis via Napoleon and Vteksourg
Lieut. Wm. R. Hosll Of the Cincinnati, is 70
take command Of this boat, which under his
charge, cannot full to win On envlabie reputa-
ton Her cabin is no second-rate arrange |
mcnt, and comfort, which is 4 very scarce
commodity on the iron-clads, will not be |
found wanting on the Little Rebt1.
Speculation has been rite since the late naval
engagement as to the cause Of The desperate
and apparently almost hopeless resistance Of
Mont n1gomers's s feet One supposiiion Was that,
above Fort Pillow, they confidently expected
to sink and destroy our whole fleet. Another
YES, that By engaging us directly in front OF
the city, they hoped to ezasperate us into
shelling the city, and BY 50 dolng, to hre IN =
for the Memphians had successfully resisted
all the kind attempts and propositions Of
their Confederate friends to burn their beau
tiful city for them, and after all their care to
have had the Federals burn it would undouh:-
edly have effected Just what the leading Ee-
ceseionists desired. But flag officer Davis
plan Was not to destroy defsnaeless town. but
armed boats; and he attended eXcellently to
his business The third supposition, and By
| far the most natural and reasonable one Ut the
three, explains Capt. Ed. Montgomery's
I Hr1+ MIN rl- In rEnd ahhfnp with
state OF his pockets. These boats ~er" ,r,,+
at the instigation and unac ~. .noery;sion nf
mon. gumtry, py the Citizens Defense Asso-
clation Of New Orleans, who took held Of and
completed when the exhausted finances Of
Montgomery had but little more than COM
| menced.
The next thing to be done was to get this
mongrci fleet recognized by the government,
| which, after come chaffering, agrcrd to accept
it, but stipulated paying for it only On coudi-
tion that Montgomery was to fight the Fed
ersl feet st OF above The city Of Memphis. II
one gun Was fired below that place the con-
I tract was to be held null and void, and Capt.
| Montgomery and his friends would have theis
labor for their pains. This was more than a
sufficient spur for the captain's courage, and
lie proved himself brave n1au in consequence
thereof. Whether, for all his valiant stand at
Memphis he will succeed in getting reimburs.
ed or not by the bogus Confederaey. remains
to be seen. Hi6 chances arc doubtful, to say
the best for the1n-
TIE NAVY YARD.
About quarter Of mile below the city
corporation is situate1 the Pickering NAVY
Yard which, though now silent and almost for
EakeG, only len days ago teemed with busJ
life. Here the Southern Confederacy had twt
gunbonts In tie coIEse Of construction, au
one far III advance Of the other. So much Ct
that it only needed two more weeks to hayt
turned the
, |
into craft at once, the strongest, switees
and most effective On the river. Sue woutt
have proved tough customer for the bulky
un#ie1dy federal boats to have mastered, IN!
| was considered by all to have been wort
more than the Whole late rebel fleet togethe,
The A1allorg's dimensions were: ltngth, }o
Il ct; breadth Of beam, forty-iEe feet. She III
. calculated to draw about ten feet with armamen
and stores on board. Her armament consist
; ed Of eight heavy pieces Of ordnance, three O
; i side, aud one at either end. The Mdllor
: was as near invuIucrablc as wood and iro
could male her. Twenty-four inches Of whit
+ oak timber WIS covered with layer Of raj
road iron, the T part Of one rail tightly filth
6 into the hollow Of another, forming casin
from two to three inches in thickness, an
which for Durability and st, strengt1 prooebl
/ launched the day before VIC arrived, and tb
:, same night vas taken down the Mississippi b
: | two large steamers. Everything necess4r ART t
/? complete her" was taken along She has III
t doubleday gone NJ the Yazoo River where
b any degree Of caution is taken she will neVt
S come out, Her companion, the Arkausl
:: being in no launching condition was set G
n fire and burned on the ways. 4 fair idea
;. the Mallory can be gained from the ruins
l. this boat, and it causes many an q lculation
7 thanlfuluets to perceive what our opportut
S arrival has frustrated. 4 week longer st n
l. 10, and another at Fort Pillow, would ha7
y given the Confcdcrates all the time ths
J. wanted, and the Western aotilla, as well
:. the Eastern navy would have hadsits Merl
Is mac experience. The Mallory had an If.
n | PROV on her twenty-five inches thick at II
: base, with aprojcctlon Of twenty-eight inch
). backed by 8 solid bow for TWENTY-FIVE fet
}, The EastpoTt when finished would ha
r proved her match, but no one iron clad III Il
n tiotilla at the present time could have Wit
l. stood for fifteen minutes the attack Of such
adversary.
L AN EXPEDITION
J. It is to be sincerely hoped that the expe'
E tion which left here yesterday morning
1t designs as low down as the 1azoo. The ca
a ture or destroyal Of this boat is all that is /
h- for the foti!la to do. Let 1t not then mir
le izs well earned reputation by pro:rastinazi
H. in this matter, but by prompt and emerge
e action finish its work and retfre on the lair
Ut which grateful country will ever ascibe
le | it. L. L. Il