East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1862-07-01
The Fight ofthe varuna.

The Fight Of the varuna.
The following account of the fight Of
the Federal gun-boat Parma with the
entire rebel fleet below New Orlecns,
which we copy from a private letter Of
SoLoN A. PRATT, who was on board Of
that vessel, to his father IN this city, is
sufficiently graphic to make it interest
ing, however late it may be as matter
of news. After speaking of the attack
of the mortar fleet and the line of battle
formed by the squadron for the attack of
forts jackson and Philip he continues;
"On the night of the oath of April, at
half past two o'clock, the signal was
made, and in about half an hour we were
under way, orr ship being the fastest in
the feet, we were ordered to run the
gauntlet and engage the rebel gun boats
above the forts, and our captain did it
like man. We passed the Pensacola
and Mississippi right under the guns OF
fort Jackson and give it to them mighty
sight faster than they could take IL not
man would finch from his gun, and ]
never had sach an internal ringing ring
,nE in my cars before The shells, grape,
canister and shot fell like hail stones on
every side Of us and over our heads, and
still on we went; we would give them
one broadside in fort jackson and the
other in fort Philip, and when morning
came and the smoke cleared away, we
! found ourselves about a mile above the
forts and not friend in sight. There
were seven rebel gun boats around us,
we sunk three of them the first broad
side, and two Of them we disabled so that
they irifted down the river, and then
came the tug of war. We had two left,
one of them was the Star Of the Vest, an
ocean steamer, and the other, the Webb,
large steamer that was built in New
York. l don't know how many guns
they had. The Star ofHs Uest came up
under our stern while we were engaged
with the other, intending to board us,
but Capt. Boggs was too smart for them,
he put on all steam and up the river
we went, and they after US, she kept
right astern Of us so that all the gun that
we could bring to bear on them was our
pivot, 80 pound rifle, and she had
pivot on her forecastle, so we had it nip
and tuck up the river, and she kept gain
ing on us al! the time until she got with
in hundred yards of US, and then our
boys commenced to pick them off with
pistols, musAets, or any thing they could
get hold of, while part of them cut
away two of our broadside guns and
brought them to bear fore and aft, and
thcI she struck us on our starboard
quarter and then backed off and run
into us three times, cutting us down to
the waters edge, and then we gave her
our battery which was loaded with grape
and canister, and when she got that she
tried to run past us, but we gave few
shells that settled her, and in ten min.
utes she was all on fire, and out of a
crew of 10 only about so escaped; and
next came the Webb, she struck us amid
ships on the port side, and settled Us; we
gave her a broadride ont of our port bat
terry, one of our shells striking her boiler
she blew up, and our ship sunk just as
the Oneida came to our relief. was
sent on board the Pensacola, aud after
we had taken New Orleans, and the forts
had surrendered, | was sent on board
the Wmona to go up the river We
are now about five hundred miles above
New Orleans. / must say good bye.
From your affectionate son,
,. S. A. PRATT"
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