Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-07-16
HOW THE ALABAMA sunk.
The Victory OF the kearsarge-A Bloody Scene
Oh tie Confederate Cruisers heck.

Oh the Confederate Cruisers Beck.
w. f. Howard in the Philadelphia Weekly Times
The kearsarge steamed away TO seward until
about nine or ten miles from the breakwa ter
when she veered and headed direct for the Ala
bama. That stopped the chat the boys had been
passing around about her having weakened and
turned tail and each one seemed TO realize at
last that this was to he no chiid's play. BY this
time about three miles interviewed between the
belligerents, which was rapidly being decreased
When within about mile and quarter from
the kearsarge the Alabama yeered. presenting
her starbOard broadside. and opened the ball by
firing her 1l0-pOunder rified pivot at an eleya-
ton for two thousand yards range. followed
| almost simultaneously by whole broadside.
The guns were worked and served with the ut
most rapidity, and in a few minutes another
broadside was poured in, when the Kearsarge.
being By this time about eight hundred yards
| distant. presented her starbOard battery and the
firing became general. The spirit of carnage
desire to be the upper dog in the fight
stirred each man to emulation. few
brUadsides passed when the Kearsarge
under full head Of steam forged ahead.
steering SO as to pass the Aabama's stern
and rake her fore and aft, and also get between
her and the shore. This manOuvre was check
mated by port helm, causing both vessels to
move in circle revolving around o common
center distant from each other about five or six
hundred yards. The firing, meantime, continued
the fire from the Kearsarge now began to be
felt. The 11-inch shells poured into the Inflated
Alabama with sickcning regularity and pre-
eisiOn, dealing death and destruction on every
hand. Guns were dismounted and their crews
decimated by single shot Early i'm the action
shell struck the blade of the fam breaking it
short off and injurng the rudder Another
landed in the engine room and tore things all to
pieces, damaging the machinery making hole
IN the boiler. and flooding the stoke-hOle with
boiling water
On deck the prospect was no more cheering.
Men dropped dead, cut in twain by shot or shell,
while the groans Of the wounded, struck by the
crashing and flying splinters, mingled with e
mutfered curses Of the seaman and the hOarse
orders of gunners and officers. At haf-past IL,
Mr.. Kell had jib and foretopsails hOsted and at
tempted to stand i'm toward shore distant by this
time about five miles. This was prevented by
her opponent ranging up and pouring In raking
fire Of shot and shell. Word was passed aft
almost Immediately that the vessel was sinking.
whereupon a flag Of truce was suspended from
the quarter and the new officer, Sinclair, sent in
boat to surrender the vessel. During his alb
sence the whole boat. dingey and three cutters
were launched, and preparations made to desert
the doomed vessel Before they could be per-
fected. however, she settled by the stern, her
head rising high out of the water. The mainmast.
which had been already badly shattered by the
firing, went by the board; and few seconds suf-
feed to engulph the shattered hulk Of the late
were many of her crew. and the efforts of Sim
clair, who had received permission from Captain
WinslOw to return and rescue the survivors,
were soon ably seconded by the boats of the
Deerhound, two cutters from the Kearsarge and
two French pilot boats who were near the spot
The whale boat and dingey Of the Alabama, with
the boats of the DeerhOund well freighted, made
quickly for the yacht, which Immediately
steamed to the nOrthward, bearing safely away
from captivity Captain Semmes and a majority
Of his "best bowers" while the cutters trans
ferred their cargoes to the Kearsarge. One pilot
boat turned over thoee she had rescued to the
same sheltering care, willie the other one stood
in for shore and aided in the escape of those who
were lucky enough to get on board Of her. The
Kearsarge picked up and had transferred to her
decks total Of i've officers, sixty-three men
and one dead body. Semmes, on board OF the
Deerhound, reached Southampton with thirteen
Of his oficen and near thirty of his crew and
petty officers. The pilot boat landed quite a
number, and the killed and drowned were never
accounted for