The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-12-17

rous Hand" by Walt Whitman; 'story of the
Powder-boat;" "In the Valley OF the Shadow,
! by Albert g. Evans ~ Child's First Sight OF
Snow" by Sarah NJ. B. Piatt; "a Monument oil
Trade" by Edward Crapsey; ''The Pest of the
| Period" chapter of the Morals and Manners oil
journalism, by Richard Grant White; ''The Null
lein that Grows by Sudbury Wood, 10y T. w.
! Parsons: Poisoned Air. by John &. Draper NJ.
D.; 1.-THE Galaxy Miscellany" ;'Drift Wood, " by
Philip Quilibet; "Literature and Art" "Neou-
lac" by the editor. .itGi 81 y !. b.,
From the anonymous "story Of the Powder
Boat" we quote the following; paragraphs with
regard to the conception and execution 0t the
famous plan for blowing Fort Fisher sky-high,
which was one of the little failures of the war,
the responsibility of which the officers of the
army and navy have never yet been able to settle
! between them
| While preparations were making, in 1864, for
| the attack on Fort Fisher, it occurred to Gene
| raj Butler that if large quantity of powder
| could be confined in the form OF huge torpedo,
and exploded close to the works, the effect of
that explosion would be the destruction of the
fort and garrison and even of the neighboring
towns. The idea was suggested by the results
of two very recent explosions; the one at Erithy
in England the other at City Point on
the James, in the close vicinity of the
Generals own headquarters. In October,
1864 on the south bank of the Thames,
near Woolwich, two powder-magaZines and two
barges loaded with powder exploded, killing and
wounding a number of persons. There were $40
barrels of powder in the two magazines, and 200
barrels in the barges. The latter we're moorcd
at the wharyes The total quantity OF powder
exploded was, therefore, about lOi,OOO pounds
or about as tons. The two magazines
were 135 feet from each other, on
the edge of the river Immediately behind the
dixie. The barges were alongside the wharves,
one of which extended 120 and the other l22feet
into the river. Within a few yards of the maga-
zines were three cottages, occupied by the work
men. The magazines and cottages were the
only buildings within mile of the disaster.
There were three distinct explosions; the first
on board the barges, which tore asunder the
large magazine, and so caused the smaller one
to explode. Ot these magazines not one stone
remained upon another. The barges were split
into fragments and hurled into the air. The
embankment was destroyed, and so were the
cottages of the workmen. No damage, other
than the breakage of glass and windows. was
done outside of the tract of twenty acres on
which these buildings were situated. The
shock was, however, felt more or less
throughout London distant, at the nearest
point about fifteen miles; and some of the
statements sworn to before the cOroner's jury
make the distance at which the shock was felt
as great rs forty or fifty miles. A magazine u
quarter of n mile from those blown up was unin-
Jured although piece of iron was thrown
through the roof, and the workmen inside of the
UldSdLlu6 were DTOSIT0lpu Dy inc EXPLOSION
Another magazine lay at distance of quarter
of a mile from this one, and a Government ma
gaZine one mile, and neither received injury.
The explosion at City Point took place on
board an ordnance barge, moOred alongside the
wharf at that place. She contained about eight
tons of ammunition, part of it in boxes. \
similar boat was moored to her oft-shOre side.
The wharf was built on piles, and had upon it
wooden store-house of one story.
About three hundred feet of the wharf was
dos thns stpr hon
Yet although small boat with several men in
it, which was alongside the outer barge was
capsized, none of the men were injured. A
loaded railroad train was on the track on the
opposite side of the wharf and the engineer was
on his engine, but nothing there was injured.
Across the railroad, about one hundred and
siXty-1ive yards from the exploded barge were
some light wooden buildings, suffers tents, etc.
All of these were blown down, or so much in
jured as to require TO be torn down. Several
persons were killed in and around these build
ings and fragments of the boat sufficiently large
and having velocity sufficient to kill a man
were thrown to distance of five hundred yards.
Those persons who were killed were not killed
by the explosion but by the projectiles which
were thrown about by its force.
But, though cited by General Delafeld as
proofs of the insuiiiciency of the explosive force
of powder in large masses to destroy heavy
structures at a distance from the explosion, the
foregoing facts seemed TO General Butler to
justify his reliance on the effects of the plan pro-
posed by him. He believed that by it the forts
at Federal Point might be destroyed, and the
capture of Wilmington, or at least OF the two
entrances to Cape Fear river, rendered an easy
task. In November he communicated this idea
to Admiral Porter, then in command of the
North Atlantic Squadron. That distinguished
officer with his usual promptitude, threw HIM
self heart aud soul into the affair. He did not
anticipate results as terrible as those looked for
by General Butler. He more nearly agreed with
General Delafed But it was, said the Admiral,
San experiment worth trying" If Its results
should prove as great as were anticipated, 1t
would revolutioniZe operations against harbor
defenses. The fate of war would thereafter
depend upon which of the combatauts pos
sessed the greatest amount of powder
Casting about him for the best meaas to pro-
secute the enterprise, the Admiral selected
from his fleet an old war-Worn propel-
Ter of about $50 TONS which had long been
employed in the sounds OF North Carolina.
She was called the Louisiana, and was in many
respects admirably suited for her part in the
enterprise. She was fat-bottomed, and drew
only five or six feet of water. She had done
good service in the shallow waters where she
had hitherto been employed but was fast be-
coming worthless, and could be better spared
than a better vessel. 1t was, too, fitting end
for the old war-worn steamer that she should
go from the ranks of the fleet not int" the de-
grading servitude OF some speculating contrac-
tor, as an old race-horse ends his days in a cart;
nor even into the dull but honorable retirement
of navy yard hulk; but into the very forefront
of the battle, and there gloriously expire in one
brilliant fash-slayng like Samson OF old,
more at her death than she had done during
her whole lifetime
The Louisiana awasaccordingly yorderedtoreport
at Hampton Roads; and, on the evening of the
30th of November, she arrived In that harbor
from Newbern. She was u slow coach, her best
speed being about six knots in smooth water
During the trip from Hatteras Inlet TO Cape
Henry, she was with much ado kept off the
beach, the wind drawing partially on 1t. On her
arrival she was Immediately ordered to Norfolk,
| where her officers and crew were TRANSFORMED to