The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1864-11-16
ADDITIONAL FROM THE NORTH.

|
From our latest Northern files we make
up some additional news.
THE PARTICULARS OF THE CAPTURE OF TIL
| PLORIDA-THE YANKEE STATEMENTS OF
| THE AFFAIR.
The Yankee papers contain the full
particulars of the capture of tho Florida
in Bahia. 1t appears that some Yankee
merchants in the town, desiring the gun
boat Wachusett to sink the little Florida,
carried Lieutenant Morris challenge to
fight the Wachusett He declined, and
then the Yankees actually waited on
him to urge fight, but without success.
The account says:
Captain Morris, however, stated that
if he happened to fall in with the Wa,
chusett during a cruise, he should will
ingly engage in contest with her; but
that, on no account, would he consent to
leave a safe harbor for the express pur-
pose Of having an engagement.
All efforts on the part Of outside par
| ties TO bring on naval battle in open
water between the two vessels proving
unavailing, Captain Collins promptly
| took into consideration the other means
| which suggested themselves for ridding
| the seas of the most dangerous enemy
| Of our commerce. In the evening of the
| same day above mentioned, Thursday,
October 9th, he called council of his
officers to debate the subject. An i'm
portant element in the consideration was
the fact that the convenient harbor of
Bahia has three openings into the At
lantic, by any one of which the Florida
could make her escape, whenever the
darkness Of the night favored her pur-
pose, without the possibility of one
Union vessa preventing it. 1t is stated
that the council of officers were also pos
| sessed Of information that the Florida
| had repeatedly seized and burned Ame
| rican ships within three miles of the
coast of Brazil in defiance Of every law
of neutrality, without the slightest OBJ
lection of any sort being made by the
Brazilian authorities. Taking into con-
fsideration all the facts in the case, the
council advised, with but one dissenting
vote among all the officers of the Wa
| chusett, that the scheme proposed of
seizing the rebel cruiser at her anchorage
should be carried out. Captain Collins
Immediately y gave the orders for accom-
plishing the design agreed upon, saying
that with the very deepest regret he felt
that the conduct Of fhe Brazilian Gov
ernment in permitting piracies within
| tha cEa1nxV of itc chorac nod yr,o1a Tho
step an imperatively necessary one. 1t
may be remarked here that it was found
after the seizure of the Florida, that ar
rangements had been made for her es-
cape from the harbor ON the very next
night for q new career Of depreciation
upon our shipping.
The preparations for the encounter
were made with great celerity and
| complete secreSy, and at about three
o'clock in the morning of Friday, Octo-
ber Z, the cables were slipped, and the
Wachusett bore down upon the rebel
vessel under full head Of steam. So
little expectation was there of such a
proceeding that one-half the officers and
crew of the Florida, seventy in number,
and including Captain Morris, were Ca
rousing on shore, and the remainder,
| having Just returned from a similar ab-
sence, were in no condition to repel an
assault The Florida's officer of the
deck supposed the collision, which he
saw to be imminent, to be merely acci
| dental, and cried out You will run
into us if you don't look out" The de-
| sign of Captain Collins was simply to strike
| the Florida amidships with full steam on,
crushing her side and send her at once
| to the bottom, beyond the possibility of
causing further trouble to any one The
| Wachusett, however, did not strike her
adversary fairly, but hit her in the stern,
carrying away the mizzen mast and main
ward. The Florida was not seriously in
iured by the collision, but the broken
spar fell across the awning over her hatch
way in such manner as to prevent her
crew from getting on deck from below.
The recoil which followed the shock car
ried the Wachusett back several yards.
In the confusion which ensued, several
pistol shots were fired from both vessels,
chiefly at random and entirely without
effect Two of the guns of the Wachu-
sett were also discharged, by accident
according to one report, and as another
version has it, by order of one of the
| Union lieutenants The shots did not
strike the Florida.
Captain Collins, of the Wachusett. i'm
mediately thundered out demand to the
rebel craft, Surrender, or | will blow
you out of the water!" The lieutenant
in charge of the Florida may be excused
| for considerable amazement but had still
presence Of mind to reply, Under the
circumstances, surrender" Without
the delay of an instant, dol ms of gallant
tars Boarded the prize, and made fast a
hawser, connecting her with their own
| vessel. and the Wachusett turned her
course seaward, moving at the top of her
speed, and towing the Florida in her
| wake.
The fleet of Brazilian vessels, which
entirely surrounded the little space OF
water on which the brief battle had been
fought. was so situated that the two
American steamers were obliged to pass
under the stern of one of the largest in
order to penetrate their line. The Wa
chusstt was challenged, but did not deign