Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1863-03-12
ConaltiOu Of the InaIahOIa.--1mDortant


Condition Of the Observation-Disclosures
Joseph Brown, the Cincinnati builder Of
the Indianola, is confident that the boat
was surrendered through either coward
ice, imbecility, or treason" and gives his
reasons for the conclusion:
nIwill state the points Of the Indianola,
and the public may be the better able to
Judge whether she was surrendered tamely
or fought brsvely.
HT6e Indianols is l74 feet long, is 80
feet beam, is 10 feet from the top of her
deck to the bottom of her keel, and 8 4-l2
feet in the clear. Her sides (of WOODY for
five feet down are 80 inches thick, hay-
ing beveled sticks laid outside the hull
(proper) and all of oak. Outside of this
Is a three-inch thick plate of iron. Her
clamps and keelsons are as heavy as our
largest ships, land fully expected her to
weather the coast around to Mobile) Her
deck is eight inches solid, with one-inch
iron plate, all well bolted. Her casemate
stands at an incline Of 264 degrees, and is
covered with three-inch iron, as is also her
ports. She has heavy grating on top of
the casemate that no shell can penetrate,
and every scuttle and hatch is equally
well covered. She is ironed all round
everywhere, except some temporary rooms
on deck, and besides the amount Of wood
and iron already stated, has coal bunkers
seven feet thick alongside Of her boilers,
the entire machinery being in the hold.
HShe has seven engines-tWo for work
ing her side-Wheels, two for her propellers,
two for her capstans, and one for supply
ing water and working the bilge and fire.
pumps. She had five large, fve-hued
boilers, and made abundance of steam.
Her log to Cairo showed that, with half
her complement of fremen, she made 1l3
miles per hour, and could make seven
miles per hour upstream. She turns rap
idly, so much so that her pilots said she
was the easiest handled vessel they ever
steered.
at is simply absurd to state that she
was handled slow, for in point Of speed
or handling, she was little behind the
Queen Of the West, if any. Nor will it
satisfy to say that she had coal barges
alongside of her, for they could, with a
few strokes Of a hatchet, have been cut
loose. Even suppose one of her wheels to
have been disabled, she could have been
handled perfectly without it; nor would both
being disabled make her unmanageable,
for before she left Cincinnati she run from
the landing to the Marine Railway, with
her propellers dragging her Wheels) up
stream, at the rate of two and half miles
per hour. Nor would her doctor or donkey
engine giving out disable her, for she had
ahand-pump that would supply the boilers
up to q pressure of seventy pounds of
steam.
She had also hose for throwing scald-
ing water from the boilers, that would
reach from stem 70 stern, and there was COM
munication from the classmates to all parts
of the vessel without the least exposure.
The pilot-house was also thoroughly iron
clad, and instant communication could be
had with the gunners and engineers, ena-
bling the pilot to place the vessel in just
such position ss might be required for ef-
fective action. Now, after what I have
stated. what must be the inference2 The
public will form their judgment. Mine is,
that either eOVdrdies, iEabeeiEty or treason
surrendered the vessel"