The Portland daily press., 1864-06-16

while the Nahant got out of the action with
Injuries comparatively not very important.
In examining the reports of the Captains
we can find several other places confirming
the solidity of the Monitors. With the ex-
ception of the Keokuk and Passaic all the
vessels of the squadron were in condition TO
continue the fight, and it was only the signal
OF the Admiral Ito stop the battle) that made
them stop the attack. The Monitors Wee
hawken, Montauk, Patapsco and Catskill, af-
ter hot action of forty minutes, had no seri-
Gus Injuries, not only in their turrets, but in
any other parts OF the vessels. In one word,
from whatever side you look upon the results
oil the battle, they are positively favorable to
the Monitor system OF constructing vessels,
inasmuch as the same is subject to improve
ments which can be partly adopted on the
Monitors building at the present time, and un-
conditionalk on those that are to be built
Passing to the reproach of slowness of fire
from the Monitors, it is easy to prove that
taking into consideration the present state of
artillery, the number Of projectiles fired with
In a certain specified time is not so very i'm
portant as is the degree of destruction they
produce. Five shots from the Weehawken
were quite sufficient to force the Atlanta, a
beautiful iron-clsd corvette which cost the
Southerners million Of dollars, to strike her
flag.
And 1t is certain that shots from a 12-
inch gun fired by the Passaic in forty five
minutes would do great deal of harm to the
Warrior or the Black Prince. In three quar-
tiers Of an hour the Federal squadron let out
l39 projectiles, excluding three shots that
the keokuk made, and remembering that the
Admirels ship, the New Ironsides, scarcely
participated in the fight, it appears that the
mean number Of shots fired from the IA guns
of the remaining seven Monitors, during the
action, was 0, or one shot for every five min
utes; result, IL not particularly brilliant,
still very satisfactory, II We remember that
the continual stoppages in firing are partly
explained by Inevitable accidents In first ex-
periments, and for the most part are set aside
by another system of artillery, possible i'm
provements in loading guns, and port stop
pers.
In conclusion, IL will not be amiss to re-
mark that in examining the reports of the cap
tains who participated in the bombardment of
the 18th April, we are far from affirming that
their vessels were perfect. No, certainly not
Monitors. like all other specimens of ship
building, have their defects. They are not
easily managed; they are unssited for passa-
ges OF long duration for fight against fort
resses they are nearly useless; and notwith-
standing this, it can be boldly asserted that,
not only eight months ago, when we com
menced their construction, but at the present
time, after all the experiments and latest in
ventions, it is difficult TO designate any other
system fer constructing coast vessels more
useful for the defence Of Cronstadt for an at
tack from sea, to navigate narrow and shall
low channels, and particularly is there no 9TH
er system more suitable to the means of con-
struction we had in Russia in the summer of
1863.
The Monitors that are being constructed at
The Petersburg yards. undoubtedly are not in
a condition to cope with Cherbourg, or to /
take Portsmouth, but they will perform their /
part Of duty, and wiIPbe of such use as to
prevent an unmolested bombardment of the /
ortifcations Of the port of Cronstadt, which /
are so important TO Russia.