Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1881-07-20
AN OLD BLOCKADE RUNNER.
Capt. Prince Gives Some "reminiscences of Peril
Gus Service in the Days Of the Confederacy.
From the PHILADELPHIA Times

Capt. Henry Price is the owner and
master of the fine schooner Etiwan, of
Charleston, s. G.. His vessel reached
this port few days ago with cargo Of
$50, 900 feet of pine lumber, and while
the 'longshoremen were unloading her
he entertained half-dozen interested
listeners with his story of blockade run
ming for two years in Charleston harbor.
81 am now sixty-seven years of age, -
said he, ''and for ffty-seven years I
have been seafaring man, and during
all that length of service, was never ship
wrecked but once, and that was on the
coast of Ireland, in the ship Vulcan,
Capt. Daniel Bunker, of New York.
The ship was homeward bound, loaded
with iron from Stockholm, but, having
sprung leak, she bore up toward Liv-
erpool in distress, and in doing so was
nisled by bright light on shore, which
she mistook for lighthouse. It was
subsequently ascertained that the light
was made by the burning of tar by a
vessel in distress, and that five vessels
were wrecked that night in consequence
of making the same mistake as the Vul-
can. Every seaman on board of the Vul-
can was saved, but with the exception of
lad all on board of the four other YES
sells that were wrecked were lost.
'sFor forty years [ have been
resident OF Charleston, and during the
greatest part of that time have held q
controlling one or more vessels.
While the war lasted [ was sole owner of
the schooner Santee, and had an interest
in half dozen blockade runners; but it
is OF the Santee that l particularly want
to speak. For two years [ landed with
that schooner from thirty to fifty tons of
sand at Fort Sumter every other night,
and during that period of blockade run
ming, / am quite certain that one thou
sand shots and shells were fired at my
vessel by the monitors, gunboats and
barges in the harbor, but with the ex-
ception of long twenty -two-incher fired
from battery Wagner, three miles distant,
the Santee was never struck.
'sThe last night L ran the blockade
thirty-two shots and shells were fired at
me, and owing to the close proximity
with which they whizzed about my ears,
/ refused to run the blockade any more.
and for that refusal was arrested by
Mott Pendle, provost marshal of Charles
ton, and ordered to the front of Lees
army. 1 refused to go, and appealed to
Commodore Tucker, commander of the
confederate fleet at Charleston, and
when l made the fact known to him that
my vessel absolutely foated past the
union gunboats on account of the dead
calm that prevailed and because of the
perfection of the Yankee system of throw
ing calcium light great distance, block
ade running in a sailing vessel under a
dead calm was not advisable, but that [
would be one Of a dozen to volunteer to
run steamboat, provided the govern
ment would furnish the boat. After a
thorough hearing of the case, Commo-
dore Tucker exonerated me. Having no
more sand with which to repair the dam
age made the last day to the fort by the
shots from the union gunboats, in less
than ninety days from the time l quit
carving sand, the 'Rebs walked out of
Sumter and the 'Yanks walked in.
"Wh1le it is true that my vessel. the
Santee, escaped without any other dam
age than the twenty-two-incher men
toned cutting through her mainsail, yet
In single night I came near losing her
at the hands of those upon my own side
Of the contest-the confederates. The
night that Charleston was evacuated the
confederate commander issued orders
that all vessels Of every description
should be burned to prevent their falling
into the hands of the Union forces.
When the squad came ON board the San
tee for that purpose I met them on deck.
told them l knew they had a duty to per-
form, that they were acting under orders.
but before they fired her [ wanted them
to walk down in the cabin and get cup
of coffee. Having had an interest in
several blockade runners, [ always kept
myself supplied with the best tea and
coffee that came into the confederacv.
and, as the squad that came aboard of
the Santee to fire her had not had any
thing better than wheat or chicory or
sweet potato coffee for year or more.
they drank cup after cup of my Java.
While they were doing that I was get
ting in some big talk for the Santee, and
upon giving them my word of honor
that my vessel should never pass from
my possession to that of the Yankees.
they concluded that after breaking bread
with me they could not turn and rend
me; and while that lunch cost me SIS. it
saved my vessel.
"The next day squad of Yankees
came on board the Santee, and the Off
Ger in command took my telescope.
quadrant and other valuable things [
had on board the vessel. These were
subsequently, restored to me by order of
Commodore Dahlgren, to whom [ made
personal complaint of the action of the
officer in question. About that time I
was reasonably well-of. I had pur-
chased 200 bales of Sea Island cotton at
different times with confederate scrip. I
owned 10 likely young negroes, few
houses in Charleston, the Santee and
other ship property, but the day the
Union forces took possession of Charles
ton, my boys, worth easily $25, 900, were
free men. I thought, however, that
could hold on to my cotton, as it was all
hid away, except eight bales on board of
&c o1o