Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1864-08-12

lei LEkDER.
oKNfNe. AueUsT u.


s5nnua inos si' . lveIsiOn at Mobile.
TO-. ton of the whole nation is now
-rsI scted with renewed interest to
Hoiiea r ss- tons about Mobile. The old sea-
5o,,s.t,. 4 rragut after compelling the sur
sdl irender Of Fort Gaines at the east end of
Gag Dauphin Island, ran into the Bay, captur-
I'd therebel flagship, the Tennessee, an iron
-r1oe, clad ram, carrying seven guns, and the Sc
lima, cotton clad carrying four guns, and
-s. the rebel Admiral, Buchanan, who il now
a prisoner, minus one leg.
~. The latest telegram from Mobile dated
August 9th, speaks of the surrender of
De- Fort Gaines but says nothing of the sur
render Of Fort Morgan but speaks Of its
having signaled Fort Gaines. General
Maury telegraphed from Mobile onthe sth
of August that our feet was approaching
the city, and that Fort Morgan had been
passed by seventeen of Admiral farragut
feet. There seems to be a difference IN
thesetwo statements, but yet there Is enough
said In the sullen and brief dispatches from
Mobile to assure US that Mobile is in great
&3+ er danger than it has been at any time
since the beginning of the war The cap
ture Of Mobile Bay is not, of couTse, th'
d.
capture Of the city, as the city ;syet defend
I'll ed by the Dog River Bar some three milei
south, and a natural obstruction Of 50 muct
Importance that the heaviest and mos
powerful of the fleet cannot ascend to th'
city.
. Whether the smaller vessels in the fee
Will be able to Pass the a BeE eE & qtspsRS tp %
artificial barriers which are in the way
that point. But even though the feet ma!
not be able to penetrate to the city inmedi
ately,there Is undoubtedly land force unde
General Candy, which with the assistanc'
of the feet in the Bay may be able u
1slrr move upon the city and probably capture
it. There is, it is true, line of defsnce
yba. extending from the Bay, on the south 0
Mobile to the Alabama river on the north
which are IN themselves formidable enough
III but not -garrisoned BY q force sufficient t
DIR hold out against siege.
In addition to this, the present position
of Farragut iuthe Bay viii enable hin
iggt 70 compethe surrender of Fort Morgan, i
it has not already fallen into our hands.
The capture of Mobile, if haply that
as shall be the result of operations in that re
gIon will have an important bearing upol
~ affairs in the vicinity Of Atlanta. Its pos
session will give us the navigation of tn
ALBANIA river as far as Montgomery. Thi
.H5a will enable Sherman to advance into tn
.ss heart of Alabama and Georgia, with bas
of operations at Mobile, or at some poin
on the Alabama river.I GThe fact that No
bile is thus threatened will lend new aggra
yations to the present situation of Hood at
Atlanta. 1t will necessarily require with
drawal from lis forces at that point for tn
defence of Mobile unless he is ready t
peril Mobile for the sake of holding out a
Atlanta.
On the whole, the speedy fall of Mobil
lq may be looked for if Admiral Farragut an,
General Asboth, Who is in that region, ar
allowed to indulge their fighting propensi
ties. Both are men of immense energ,
and daring Farrgut has proven that tn
proved to Be nothing to a man determine
to overcome them .