The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1864-04-03
THE FLORID4'S ESCAPE.
Omelal Report of Commodore Prebel.

The Navy Department has received
the following from Commander Prebel:
UNITED STATES SLoOPoF-WARSr ST.. LOUIS. J
FrNCHAL RoADs, MADEIRA,
March /, u A. n, 1864
SIR; The Florida has succeeded in
getting TO sea ! shall follow at once.
though hopeless of catching her out of
port Nelson said the want of frigates
in his squadron would be found i'm
pressed on his heart ] am sure the
want of steam will be found engraven
on mine Had the St Louis been a
steamer, would have anchored along
side of her, and, unrestricted by the
twenty-four hour rule, my old foe could
not have escaped NE. The Governor.
true 10 his declared intention. would
only allow her to take on board twenty
tons of coal-sufiicient to take her to
the nearest port Her commander
plead for sixty tons, next forty assert
ing that he needed that much to ballast
his vessel. The Governor told him. ut
the suggestion OF Mr. Bayman, that he
came in without it, and he thought he
could 20 without it; but if ballast was
needed, there was plenty Of stone on
the beach that he might take
As it was supposed that she would 90
to sea during the night, and certainly
in the morning and had an intima-
ton that in passing Us, she might pour
in a bIoadside. ] shotted and cast loose
my guns, and had men to man them
got slip-rOpe on the chain, and sta
/ toned lOOkOuts all over the ship and in
+ the tops; cautioned the officers to extra
/ vigilance, and was repeatedly on deck
myself to watch, and see that my orders
were executed. The night was dark
and squally. The Florida lay close into
T the beach, and under the headland,
with all her lights covered, and, not
withstanding all this vigilance she
crept out, unseen, to the eastward, and
{ her departure was not discovered until
+ the morn rose, a few minutes since. A
blockade runner, the Julia, which ar
rived in the afternoon, reports the
Kearsage a. having left Cadiz three
DAYS ago, destination unknown The
. Florida gave out that they were going
to Cadiz for Goals; but think not, and
shall 60 direct TO TcnerifIe, hoping, #
do not find her there, to put the SaCra-
mento on her track.
The prevailing winds would not per
nit me to get to Cadiz from Madeira in
season 10 do her any injury, or even II
l thought that port her destination
Tho authorities here have done al
they could to hasten hor departure and
prevent her full supply, and do not
imagine that the island Will be troub-
bed by the presence Of rebel yessels-of
war very soon again. / waited on the
Governor. to inform him of her inten-
ton to ship men to complete her crew.
/ He assured me that it should not be
allowed, though il might be done clan
destinely, which he could not help /
have reasons to believe that she made
no addition to her crew, and know from
the statement of my gigs crew, that
( three Of the men she brought with her
/ deserted Her crew Is described to me
! as made up Of Spaniards, Frenchmcn,
/ and Portuguese, with few Englishman
and but one American Her first lien
/ tenant is Thomas A. DORM, formerly
midshipman in our service.
/ notice no change in the appearance
/ Of the Florida since ] saw her, except
/ that now she has yards on her mainmast,
/ then she had none, and she has chang
/ ed her billet-head for a shield surround
ed by scroll-worb, in which is borne the
arms Of the rebel States. Nv men have
. been wild TO fight, and drew the shot
from my guns the day she came in, fear
ing that, in their excitement, they
. 4
break the neutrality Of this port One
I thing is certain, the Florida does not
intend to fight unless the chances are
/ largely in her favor, for she sl.ulked
away from the old st. Louis
! am very respectfully.
Your obedient servant.
GiEORGE HESEY PEEGLE,
Commander u S n
Hon GIDEON WElLEs Secretary Of the
Navy, Washington d. G.