, 1863-03-03

The Dc Soto hearing several men shout from
The shore Surrender was allowed to doat !
down stream, picking up as she 1oated several |
rcachcd point ten miles below the yaWl |
overlook her with others who had been slmi- |
iarly prc*erysd.
DESTRUCTION OF THB DE SOTO. -
We reached the Era No. s aud found her all
right. Our coal barge Wus leaking badly and
hard aground. OF course we had to leave 1t.
The Dc Soto had unshIpped both rudders and
to destroy her, fest with her valuable gun she
should fall into the enemies hands. Her
pines were knocked ont, a shovel full Of live
Goals placed In her cabins, and she was Boon
destroyed.
ArrEMrrED EsoArE.
1t was now ten o'clock Saturday night, and
tancc with Southern society and Southern
prison Life, ne must make cyery c1ertion now;
With sigh for the poor fellows lett nenlho
and G hope that our enemies would bc mercl-
fu1, the PROV Of the En- vas turned t9~aras a1
thunder, lightning, rain and fog. 7 doubt If
nnder any othcr circumstances Red River
would be deemed nayigable. All hands were
set to work to throw overheard the corn TO
ghteph her rFe nP, avg %e Tn know to cerauty ha{
We shnll be pursued. The gnnhoat Webb Is
living at Alexandria, and we know that she
will start IN pursuit of US whenever she learus
of tue destruction Of the Queen and Of the
escape Of portion OF her crew. Our only
hope lies In reaching the Mississippi quickly,
. whence we shall make the best Of our way to
Vicksburg. The Webb is model Of speed.
and can make fourteen miles an hour against
the current. If we do not get aground, and if
our machinery does not break, we hope to out
run her. # am captured . visit to Vicks-
burg will be my portion. We ahall see..
OUR LOSSES.
The following Is the loss by the capture of
the Queen Of tho West, as FIR IS can ascer-
tain:
PRISONERS. Eddison, I'd Master; Henry
Duncan, Sd Master; Davia Taylor. Engineer,
Thompson, (wounded on the Afchafa1aya): Adj't.
G. Y. Bailey one blacksmith, namc unknown, Geo.
Andrews A. ,9S James f9stef ea;peents5s; l. Jar6on'
ner, Carol smith, Ed. Hazleton Charles Fau]kner,
John A. Bates, Norton F. Rice. VIM: Brown. Geo:
n. Hill, soldiers; Ms. Anderson, Of the Herald
K K1lxDEaeo9ge s1t .e bavis jumped overheard from
the Detsoto and IL supposed drowned
The above list are the names Of those who
aoated down the river and were not picked up
by the DeSoto. They will probably be cap
tured by the next Confederate steamer In these
waters, probably the Webb, as she pursues us.
Bod.
| STEAMER EnA, No. s. n TIE xtss1ssTPI,
NEAR V1tKsbCRa, February q. 1858.
We arrived in the Mississippi Sunday morn
ing, about 10 o'clock, without serious acci-
| dent. All day the rain aud fog continued,
| and such was the thickness Of the weather
that ne did not make thirty miles for twenty
four hours. The river was filed with drift
and logs which impeded our progress aad
broke the buckets Of our wheels. We were
ehoEt Of fuel, md we're compelled to touch at
Union Point and take on fen cords Of wet,
soggy wood, with which we found 1t impossi-
miles an hour. When opposite Ellis Cliffs,
our pilot, the same who ran the Queen
aground at Gordon's Landing and thus caused
her capture, ran the Era, although she was
| drawing but eighteen inches Of water, hard
upon the opposite point. Here We laid fo1
four mortal hours within ten feet Of shore,
liable to capture at any moment from guern
1as, until our carpenter could 60 into the
woods, select tree and fashion spar *
shove us of, To crown our misfortunes, thu
starboard wheel was dropping in pieces. VI
had decided that to be captured was our des
tiny, and Col. Ellet was.. s..discussing the practi
cability of Selling sEifs aud dug-outs and at
tempting to run by the batteries at Port Hud
son, fifty miles below.
As soon as VIC were of the point, Col. Ellie
placed the pilot who had caused our trouble
in arrest, and ordered Mr. Mckay, the othe
pilot, to take the wheel. had towards NOR
ming thrown myself upon mattrass in th
cahin. in the hone of snatchine+ n moment,
resi-. and had lust dropped off into most re
freshing slunaber when I heard some on
shout, s.Iherc's eunboat ahead Of u.s." "
. ! at first supposed the stWebb" had PASSED II
during the njcht and was layine to aboY
to capture us. I rushed on deck, bu
as soon as I saw the smoke stacks. lust the,
visible through the lift Of the fog, knew "
:. had escaped. It Was the Federal guuboat In
diaEola sent down to cooperate with tn
Queen. You may be sure no men ever wit
messed more welcome sight than this sam
good steamer lndianola. 1t was miracn1ou
escape, as you will see. From the depths d
d;s,a;r ,,a .ro,a r.is.a - +1o b;ohts ~ ,x,,.,
u''f"'' We i"''s' - 11Ao A'sD D'o u eA-A'e'
ion.
We nrc, some of us, hat1ess, bootless mi
coatless, All Of us were hungry. We In,
cot,n roth,rr for thn 1,st forty,c,obt t,r,.
,'s.' ,...'1"4s ss ~ Nv 41-'s 4o41 sa' noo'
bnt lille stale ana sour corn meal, found Il
the bottom OF barrel on board the Era 8
the time Of her capture. The good peop1o n
thr 1n5;,no,, oct.i, tha nsrt ~ .ooi s.,,,,;
.l'e 1nu4aAoia sieteo @ae p*te VI sooa eauarl
tans, they clothed and led US, and made u
| comfortable. Captain Brown invited Colone
Eret and t1,e two Dobcuians fpto b;s cah,,
,,, ~a-.1o, ~ ';t,, aa,:a;a1s - stec.
~au l'sso u VIZ a'1.'o"9 guy - ,eonce
Wc hid by the lndianola until noon, whc
It was decided TO move below again. III til
bonc of meeting the Webh. W. had sc,,cc1
-. .,,.s-,, 49,. ~.
mo'eo 'n'ee n''les through tne log "nen III
look, out on the Iulianola reported steame
,nn,,,c1,nr. Al h,oAs wcTc called q on,,
tars nd hor ;mncr.o hnv a~ns 49,, 49,. 49,,
'eFs "no uel l"men7e ~" guns we're PR
pared for action. The Era was sent ahead t
. / reccnnoitrc, and her shri1l and prolonge
: whistles showed that shc too had seen Il
i Webb. The engineers clnpped on steam, he
+ watcr hose was got ready, md lively tin
: ""s e4p1eesu. az 'a'0 14lne nv "ets ~
t.rss rS. miles NIL ny away: As ne approached Il
;. mnder Ems, CAus, LOOKING, Tor ~ the Wott'
6 nke iIlgh1ened race horse. She moved
c ~ n5tle: lhen naltea, anu tncn bounded ava
> t M t'hc tne . Win. A. sais motneht lne !arooaf
= DON gun was nfcd, and almost s1multaneon
6 y me staIoo2rd gur. Both shots lacked ell
{ yation and tell short. Long before the smol
n hsd cleared away, long train Of smoke #.
/ moving down tie river ct the rate Of thirl
u miles IN hour. This was tho last OF the Webb
i Had we not met the gunboat NC should inc'
S itably have been captured before VIC coul
9 haze reaehco Natchez.
J. The Webb, we hare e1ucc learned, was a
companicd by three large irst class steamer
G the Grand Duke, Grand Era aud Doublool
o each laden with soldiers, and each protectc,
' as to her machinery, with cotton bales. tt
| Webb turned back these also. aud toyeths
= ! fhev sienup1 mn Rrf.Rfrc-
" |