Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1868-09-27

I VaDa KiLDlU LuF6o NaJS AhOL4 thb biA-iF
she crossed Mobile bar. ) re vas chased
re bv a cruiser almost to the entrance Of the
le hsrbor and fred on repeatedly, bat the
y pIueky captain declared that he would
D. he sunk ratSer than come to and surrer-
T. der in DeutrGl waters.
About the time OF which write, q
J number of vessels, built in England ex-
, pressly for blockade running, began to
= make tgips between Havana snd Mobile
and Nassau and the Carolina ports, and go
regularly were these trips accomplished
that one of them, the Dsnbgh, plying
between the two former ports, became
known as the Mobile and Havana mail
boat. Her SUCCESS astOnished the public
generally, but was not surprising to those
acquainted with the extraordinary ad
yuntages she possessed for eluding the
vigilance OF the enemy. These vessels
we're all built sitter one mOdel-Of iigh
draft and sharp lines, We y lOug snd very
l1sg ia the water, and with eng ass y
sufficient power " give them Eax
mum speed OF twenty Giies en- hour
they were necessarily of very fraii cju
strucLiUn, and were by no Means safe sea
yoing buals. OIe of them, the
solar, was lost with All ~
oard in u storm in the gulf in '63 |
l. was supposed that in cOnseqleUce
pf her great length she "hugged," uT /
nroke her back ia Oiher words, white |
riding tue enOrm luS waves rolled up Ia 1
the Cuff gDenever sOu'esster disturo- /
that mysterious current known as the /
tiuif Stream.
Au Interesting 70 uU1e night be 7rit- !
rea upon incidents connected " To LiJcK |
ads running ia those stirring times, eut /
the hssiy chrOnicier who depends ca
tirely upon his memory Of affairs only .
that cOme under bis personal oGssrya- !
ton, Can give no continuous history OF I
events, aud must be content to speak 4
only of solitary occurrences that may in
terest his readers.
Sometime during the winter OF 1852
Capt. Mafh il command Of the steamer
Oviets, performed an act OF headlong
courage of N bile haTblr, whicn was
redeemed from the charge of rashness
ny its necessity and by the skill with
| VIII CD lt was executed, The OvietR Tss
new vessel, aud had been lying for
| several months N 3 West In iisu port,
| awaiting an opportunity to TUa iuto
/ Confederate hArn0r fer the purpose of
/ d ting out as y cruiser. Her captain anu
/ crew mad been down with yellow fever,
! aud we're scarcely recovered sufficiently I
/ to work the vessel when she sailed for
/ Mobile, srriviDgin view Of the bl0ckadsng
/ fleet one fine mourning s few hours after
daybreak. To II =ffiPs impeJuJus tenn
! peramz Mt, it seemed ss'sr to dash through /
! the Gordon OF hostile ships than TO retire |
out OF sight aud sJGgd of and on 70 await
the cover OF darkness. Although still /
very feeble, he came upon deck, snd d.
rected his uasTmsd vessel he had guns
but they were not mOuuted,) directly to-
wards the main channel, Where lay the {
flagship al several Others of the hsRv-
lest batteries @ the squadron. With the
stars and stripes flying, he prooeeded |
steadily t0wards the emanuel, and 10
signal of inquiry, replied that he had
United States msils, aud inquired Tor his
anchorage To the comm and TO come I
to, that followed this, he paid no atJsu- :
ton, out putting on full head OF steam, l
hauled dsgn the stars and stripes snu 1
hoisted the Confederate flag at tne fore
while his crew sent forth cheers aud '
shouts Of defiance. Every ship within {
range opened upon her with every gun '
that could be brought 10 bear, and, not
withstsnding the rapidity with which P
she increased her distance from the dan
geTous neighbOrhoOd, the OgietA WE :
soundly battered before shs reached the Z
friendly shelter OF the fort. Seve- '
raj of the steamers shipped their Il
cables and gave chase, but the 9
game was beyond their Teaon, n
ana the heavy thURder of an Armstrong q
lowed by the plunge Of the formidable o
missile IN their Immediate neighborhood, n
brought them to- and they steamed "
sulenly back TO the anchorage. The q
Ovieta had two or three men killed by q
gr ape shot, and 30 close and hot was the IL
q scharge that man ia the fore rigging 81
had the sOles Of his shoes shot OF, he =.
suffering no other material Injury. The "
vessel was built OF teak, and wherever 81
e round shot struck her mud q clean hole q
was not cut, for the ti5res Of this elastic a
wood bent inward to make way for the st
mlssie, and then spTlugIag bark 1T NJ a
Visible mark much greater than would y
be made by musket Dsll in an Urd,usry -
plank. q,
Il Msrch, 1858, the writer hereof y
or issed the GUT IrOm Mobile 10 Havana, 81
aud epexrieuced on that occasion few o.
Of the excitemeut5 and psrIls Of b c< "
For tbres weeks of fair, hi
csIm wea her our little schoO35r, Lue 81
Badger, with her Ca 20 Of oO.t5U, hs =
iaIu in Navy Cove, al almost IEdd- "
locked higbt u the lower part Of Noble Oh
Bay, awaiting the northeF that alone ur
could carry US past the numerous u
Sud wig liant senUinels that ggarded us
every outlet mig Rad day. Al
came ~ last, anu came just As We GU
we're nearly exhausted of prOyis 20
Ions and were about sending 10 NO.
bile for fresh supply. It was peTiIUus az
10 start on such q voyage with only OF
bag OF CRACKERS 10 the locker, but to wait nt
WAS 70 lose the only present cbRncs Ul h
getting out, and we decided unanimously u
there we're but four Of Us, ineluIiug the ~
CSptaiu,) that we would 20, believing -
rom the indications of tine rising storm Va
hat 1t would carry our sWift-sRiiing Io'
and sailed originally Rs 90
/ yscht-aGrJss to the CUBAN coast loi
within three days. A long narrow sand iu
pit, running from east to west, fences IA vi
Noble Bay with the exception Of gate ~
gay two miles wide. Upon the extreme po
1oint Of this sand spit stands Fort Nor "a
ysn, and once past the fort il is your Si2
,hoIOe to strike straight forward for the
main channel or, IL Of light draft, to go ou
,ut through tue SSssh Channel, which pl'
UllOws the southern shore of the sSud al
pit until, eight or ten miles away, il 'tf
rends southwark, and you enter ueep Ah
water THIS was the tavOTite path OF ca
ngress and egress for the blockade run yo
leTs, and to make il more secure batIs- ser
les were buit along the shore, COM $
handing the channel for q great distance. ia
c was near midnight when We took
lur pilot aboard at the fort, aud stole 20
IuIetly out iuto the channel. He steered "a
niles from the fort, aud then bade Us
Goodbye aud took to his boat in q hurry. ~
t was high tine, for the northsr was I@i M
10 put forth its strength, and u! Ln1
ituough We were under the lee Of the AZ AZ
and, which was covered with Trees, the ua.
water was becoming rough with sh0rl ius 1s
hopping sea. We had not gone far be- sMsa M
ore we sighted two of the biockaders on % %sln
ur right, uneOmfortRbly close TO the W Wtl'
hsnns, aud the batteries would have Ie l,e
made il uncomfortable for them had the "
light been clearer. We left them be- ne W
ind, and began to think we should soon III
e outside the circle of danger, when al
uddeoly another loOmsd up directly bs- =
Ore u. Knowing that s.ivsntage would his
70 taken Of the storm and darkness, she hir
lso had taken advantage Of 1t to eSnne cir
Oddly in and throw her huge bulk di- pal
sctly across the channel. There was OeS
ut one measure to take. We promptly tur
vent about, and after running back upon CHI
ur c lurse some distance, up helm and mi
TODD directly southwark, determined to the
AXE the chances of running through the res