Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1864-02-23
1s5t7d bzs i,sta'- yo1 n. he standard. O
.TRIP OF TfHE Ap. .vANoE. Z. :. !.

LII y.- tfhlR Ukf LIN All ANOhr ..-r- l.
,o,It ID already known that the ". c. steamer Ad-
l. Vance has just returned from short and success
fnl trip to, St. Georges, Bermuda A short history
of the trip may be acceptable to the public general
ly and to the people, of North Carolina especially
i The Ad,Vance LETT her wharf at Wilmingtol, on
Saturday morning, Sth inst, at O'clock About
! 10 o'clock she gob aground on the Lower Slough,
where she remained s9ntil e'elock P, NJ, waiting
for the tide. By night she had succeeded in run
ming the Hhomes blockade = by which, ImeAni she
had passed ont Of reach of the military and Dayai
authorities, some Of whom came on board for some
purpose another ct almost every fort station, &c
And now commenced what is generally termed
running the block" The anxiety Of all on board,
and especially of the officers may. well be imagined.
The sea is calm, and it is very pleasant on deck
Our lights are out and we glide almost noselessly
along, Every eye is. stranBg out upon the dark
bosom of the ocean, and every ear is lis enng at
tentivey for the voice Of the watch ut the masthead
More steam is crowded on, and away We DIRT. But
one 6lockadsr is Seen and that Is 100 far Oft to oc
caSon the least apprehension, even IL we are dis
severed. Presently two lights are seen far to our
rigat but whether on shore OF on vessels We Meth.
er know nor care: By midnight We consider our
selves out of danger and all "turn i'm except those
necessary for working and watching the vessel
The weather remained mild and balny. We
passed several sails each day, to one of which We
showed the Confederate flag, but obtained no re.
sponse On Tuesday evening, we were near Ber
muda, but as We could not 60 in at night, we
tackled about until nothing, when pilot came on
board and carried rs in. >. .-- ~ y . ,-,.-,
The. Advance carried out 670 bales Of cotton,
which were soon rolled out upon the wharf On
Thursday night the cotton was discovered TO be on
fire, supposed to have been the work Of an incend
ary. Comparatively small quantity was con-
sumed-perhaps 40 or so bales burned and in
jured. - -~-s Cd. 5-.-. ..- -s- .,
Ny impressions of Bermuda were favorable. 1t
certainly presents Q romantic appearance. But as
I only design an account Of our trip viii notLoW
speak more of the island. .--5 v-- --' B.. 80.
By Saturday evening we had taken in our return
cargo, and just before night we steamed away. We
found the ocean rougher than on our outward trip,
but still We made good progress until Monday night
when 1t blew furious gale. 1t was well for the
writer that he was "land lubber," and did not
know when to get scared The vessel was eased to
about knots an hour; but even at this speed the
deck was flooded continually with the briny waters
The cold was also intense Truly was the metal
of both ship and crew tested; and just as truly Was
it proven pure. .s... A.. use IL. ....-
With the coming of the day the storm abated
some, though the wind still blew strongly, and the
waves ireqnently broke on deck. 1t becamea mat
ter of doubt whether we could make the distance,
so to run through the bloekadng fleet during the
few dark hours after noon. down that night-or
rather next morning 1t was important to do so,
as the dark hours were growing teartully lever
every night But we Succeeoed
And now behold us, without light on board, the
wind, though much abated still blowing cold and
strong, darting along at 4 speed of nearly 20 miles
an hour. Every man at his pOst-eVery one looking
for what he hopes not to fnd-a blOckader But
We did find, not only one but seven. We lett them
upon right and our left 1t were contrary to the
human mind not to feel deep anxiety at such a
time but do not belieye there was aquang spirit
on board. All felt the utmost confidence in the
vessel and her officers and that confidence gave
them courage. '.-....
And now we are nearly out of reach Of the huge
monsters lying behind US, not one Of which has
perceived US. E All feel relieved congratulations
passng-Ee feel that we are delivered from peril
But bark "We are agroundI we are aground"
passed from mouth to mouth 1t was too true
There we were, too far from our own forts to be
protected by them and with but an hour of friendly
darkness in which to get afioat Like Joshua, we
would then have stopped the sun in his course not
to prolong the light but the darkness but We had
not his fasth and did not try to exercise his power.
On the contrary we went to Werk and threw qu1n-
tity Of lead overheard Still we were aground. The
boats had previously been made ready for lowering,
and now every one was fixing up his little package
of valuabes to take with him. But to give up our
gallant shipi That touched every heart Only at
the last moment would it be done; but the moments
were flying fast Soon the sun and the blockaders
would be upon us with their lights-the former with
his warm beams-tbe latter with their hot flashes.
How long we were aground the writer viii not pre-
sumo to say bat he is honest enough to confess as
be believes all on board would confess that to him
it seemed a long tina Still there were increased
exertions to get off There was no excitement-no
clustering ghuaF--but commands werequietly given
and promptly obeyed flew moments before day
the joyful cry Of I'VE are a6oatF" was rung from
stem to stern through the noble steamer The relief
we all experienced We leave to the imagination Of
the reader. - ..--- pa. 81. -ss. ~! .--'.. BE-
We were soon under the friendly guns Of Fort
6aswell aud that evening came to our wharf at
Wilmington, again successfully running the "home
blockade" The return cargo Of the Ad Vance con-
sisted mostly of blankets and shoes for our State
troops with merchandise for severa! firms and in
dividusls The trip was made, counting FROM the
time when We crossed the bar, in ten days and q
half waa ..-..-.' '.. H -.-'--:.- 10 s.... r 3 y
= To speak of all of the officers and crew and pas
sengers, the jokes told the wit and humor evolved
and the cordiality Of all, would consume too much
of my time and occupy too much of your space;
but must be permitted to say that in my opinion
the service has no more skilful officer and more
perfect gentleman than Capt Guthrie, natiEe son
of North Carolina, Of whom she is justly proud
He is kind, but firm mild, bat decided. The OIL
GERS under him are worthy of him but to name one
I must name all, and ] have already sufficiently
tresPassed upon your colums - '-.-"-
Hoping soon to give you an account Of another
successful trip of the Ad Vance, .A shs -i = &.
"'7 am, respectfully, "-- W. i
The HABsAs OosPUs-The Raleigh Confederate
has positive Information of the passage Of law by
Congress, giving President Davis the power to sus