Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1864-01-27
The Iron. .Clads g. Failure. -

The Iron -Clads q Failure.
i, We are indebted to the Charleston Mer.
curry for the following important transcript
of Northern News So. ....
At the present session of the Yankee
Congress there have beensome very inter-
estipg documents communicated with the
report of Welles, the Secretary of the Ma.
Wy. That worthy, it will be recollected,
had strong faith in the iron.clad monitors,
and insisted that Admiral Dupont should
stoccupy and hold"e Charleston by their
aid. The contractors for building them,
having more faith in than knowledge of
them, also clamored when their costly work
was disparaged. Between the two sets
Admiral Dupont got into bot water, and
the Yankee nation let his reputation down
few pegs But the information given in
his report shows that he was right and his
detractors wrong. twill be of considers
BILE interest to the reader to know what that
report embodied on the subject, and, accor-
DINGHY, we make some luminous extracts
below from the officers commanding the
vessels. We preface them with, the follow
ing extract from the New York JOnrnalao of
Commerce, which, like Sthe rest Of those
papers that lack full faith inSthe wisdom of
the Washington Government, thinks that
the iron. clad invention has not yet proved
tsright to what is claimed forit: -
England and France, which directed
their attention first to the attainment of this
object, have Realized only moderate sue
cess. One essential fault to be overcome
(aside from the wrenching and strain TO
which vessels of this class are subjected,
starting plates and opening seams) is the
violent rolling in comparatively calm water.
Their decks are often flooded with water,
making the use Of artillery impossible, as
under such circumstances no port can be
opened. Speaking of a recent cruise of
the French iron.clad feet, expressly design
ed to test their sea. going qualities, the
Opinson Nationale says, "the rolling was
terrible, especially on board the Normandie,
at irsi reported. SO great success" The
English cuirassed ship Warrior was the
first to exhibit this d.lect, and reports in
both French and English papers use equiv
ocal terms in reference to all the latter ex-
ploits of these ships, built at such enormous
expense and the authors of such great ex.
pectations. Rough weather speedily sends
them into ports, badly damaged. Notwith-'
standing this, progress has been made to:
wards securing the desideratum now de-
manded of French inventors by the Empe-
ror. In the United States the exigencies
of war have stimulated the skill of engi.
neers and artisans to wonderful perform.
ancess but as yet; unless we except the
Roanoke or Ironsides, it is doubtful wheth.
er we have single plated ship which could
live in q rough sea. - --- ..
The upshot of the matter is that 50 far
as relates to an iron.clad navy for deep sea
service, its feasibility remains to be deter
mined. There are skilled naval architects
who already pronounce the'idea visionary
and the attempt a failure, as impenetrabili-
ty brings with it the sacrifice Of speed and
safety-two essential requisites. We shall
know more about this by-and.by. Iron clad
gun.boats and rams for smooth water, for
harbor defence and. inland service-these
depend for success on wholly different con-
siderations, and their value may be regar-
ded as established. go
y We annex below extracts from the re-
ports of the officers, Captain Drayton, who
commanded the monitor Passaic, says:
At the fourth shot from 11.inch guns, I
was struck in quick succession in the lower
part Of the turret by two heavy shot, which
balged in its plates and beams, and forcing
together the rails on which the l1-iuch car
riage worked, rendered it wholly useless
for the remainder Of the action, several
hours being necessary to put it again in
working order. Soon after it was discover
ed that there was something the matter
with the turret itself, which could. not be
moved, and on examination it was found
that part of the brass ring underneath it
had been broken off, and being forced in
board, had jammed; on clearing this the
turret could again be moved, but for some
time irregularly. A little after very
heavy rifle shot struck the upper part of
the turret, broke all of its eleven plates, and
then glancing upward took the pilot house,
yet with such force as to make an indenta-
ton of two and half inches, extending
nearly the whole length Of the shot. The
blow was so severe as to considerably mash
in the pilot house, bend it ever, open the
plates and squeeze out the top, so that on
one side it Was lifted up three inches above
the top on which it rested, exposing the
inside of the pilot house, and rendering it
likely that the next shot would take off the
top itself entirely.
Captain Rodgers, of the Weehawken:
Two or three heavy shot struck the side
armor near the same place. They have so
broken the iron that it only remains in
splintered fragments upon that spot much
of it can be picked off by hand and the
wood is exposed.
The deck was pierced, so as to make