Wilmington journal., 1876-02-18

rht- Tex AZ was the unfinished hui OF u
large vessel intended to he entirely
plated with IRON. Size had no machln~
..ry nt,r armament. On the eve of
~ evacuation she had been pre-
gar d Ms fire-ship by placing
,er decks a large quantity of pine lnm
b-r and other combustible matter ami
towAd to Drury's Bluff. whence she
,as to be let loose to drift into the
Yankee fleet; but the plan misca rled,
the train laid to fire her went out, aud /
the elpless, unnamed hull drIfted |
down the stream till it lodged on the |
mud fats. where it lay for several days |
after the fall of Richmond. Her esti-
mated cost WIS $75, 1000. She was sold |
by the United States after her pretend |
ed capture for So, 200 Tue other yes
sci, the Beaufort, was captured on
the marine railway, opposite Rockets,
where she was undergoing repairs. She
vas valued ut Sl5, ,000, and was sod
after tue capture by the United States
for 50, 8OO On these two captures the
officers and men of the North Atlantic
squadron base their claim for prize
money, the schedule of captured prop
erty being as follows:
Value OF the Texas. ... 1855, ,666 66
Value of iron plating, etc. lis. 400 20
Value If lumber. ....... $50. 900 O0
Value of the Beaufort. 80. $4,000 90
| IT., GOO, 1ai .e
|
Now when it ia considered that
Richmond was evacuated and the
| shipping destroyed or sbondoned dur
ing Sunday night aud Monday mora
ing; that the Confederates had retired.
and that the Federal troops occupied d
the city early on Monday; that no
United States vessel reached the city
until the following day; that the North
Atlantic squadron was at least tws..ve
m les distant from the city at the tiult
Of the destruction If the Confederate
iron -c'ads; that no battle was fought
and tha not q guu from the Yankee
squadron was fred-when all these
things are considered it would seem
that such claim for prize mnney is
pr posterous-that it is indeed akin
to disgraceful fraud.
But this is not the only claim of the
gallant captors of the abandoned Con
federate vessels. 1t seems that by
section 4,685, page 900. of the Revised
Statutes, it is provided that bounty
shall DO paid by the United States for
each person on board any vessel Oh
ship belonging to an enemy. at the be.
, ginning of an engagement, which is
sunk or otherwise destroyed in any
l such engagement by any ship or vesse
, belonging to the United States. o.
which 1t may be necessary to destro,
l in consequence of injuries, etc. Thi'
bounty amounts to S100 if the enemy's
= vessel was of inferior force, and tt
: $500 if of equal or superior force, the
money to be divided IN the same man
ner as prize money. The librllauts il
the case have taken proof to show tina
i there was on board the ships and shor,
batteries cooperating with the ships
force of 5000, while the forces on tn,
United States feet was much smaller
> Applying this law to facts as c!aimet
Z to have been proved, it is found tina
+ the bounty money in store for th
ctpors, should their claim be allowed
is about 100000
This is the character of the CLAIM
for prize money now being prosecuted
e before the District Court at Washing
s ton, and in support of which Lieu
s tenant Commander Goringe and Ad
i miral Porter have given their testi
g mony. We doubt if the annals of wa
S can furnish parallel case of unmiti
gated retense and deliberate fraud
5 The ouiy thing that can be said in it
: favor is that it is ''loyal," and, Ik
: rascalIty in gen eral, may be considered
one of ''the Legitimate results of tn,
j. war"