Louisiana capitolian. (Baton Rouge, La.) 1879-1881, 1881-09-01

the vessel had suddenly run aground
There is cheering forward, and soon
Flag-Lieutenant Minor passes aft and
| cries out
"We've sunk the Cumberland"
The next time | saw the Congress she
was aground with some of her sails set
We had taken up a raking position under
the stern and few shots from Oul
broadside guns brought down her flag.
Lieutenant Minor was sent in a ships
cutter to receive her surrender, and at
thelsame time two tugs that had been i'm
provised as gunbOats ran alongside to
take off prisoners. The tugs were driven
off by sharp-shoOters on shore, and Minor
and one of his boats crew were wound
ed by musket balls fired out of the gun
deck ports of the Congress. Buchanan,
then on the upper deck, on top Of the
shield, shouted down the hatchway:
destroy that ID ship! They are
killing our men under flag of truce "
Sadly we proceeded to obey the order,
for we believed that the firing on Minor
was done without the knowledge of the
officers of the Congress. Nevertheless we
resumed our firing, while officers Oh the
poop deck of the doomed vessel were
waving their white handkerchiefs. But
we did not keep it up long, for it was ap-
parent that the Congress had already
been set on fire by our hot shot. About
this time Buchanan was borne below,
wounded by sharpshooter on shore.
ave have done a very good days
work, " remarked to Catesby Jones, as
sometime during the afternoon he passed
ut my division.
Yes he replied, "but it isn't over.
The Minnesota and St. Lawrence are
coming up from Fortress Monroe"
Our crew was made up in a great
measure of green countrymen detailed
from the different volunteer regiments
stationed about Norfolk, but there were
some trained seamen among them. From
the time of taking them in hand till the
day of going into action, an interval of
about two weeks, we drilled them in
cessantly at the guns of the receiving
ship, the old frigate United States.
On the forenoon of the Sth day of
March, 1869, the Merrimac, or. as she
was afterward christened, the Virginia,
cast off from the wharf at the navy
yard and started on her trial trip. We
steamed straight for Hampton Roads.
Whatever was the design of our captain
Franklin j. Buchanan he kept it to him
self. Years afterwards | learned from
Catesby, one of our executive officers
that he had been taken into tho cap
tain's confidence, but am quite certain
that no one else had. We all thought
that we were making an ordinary trial
trip. And yet we were rapidly ap-
preaching the enemy's vessels - the
Cumberland and Congress rigates-that
lay at anchor off Viewpoints News. As a
midshipman had served in both YES
sells, the Cumberland, in which | had
served briefly, being the first vessel l
had ever boarded, while the Congress
had been my floating home for nearly
three years. How natural they looked
their boats at the swinging booms,
the Congress with her wash clothes be-
tween the main and mizzen rigging.
How many of the poor fellows who
scrubbed their blue shirts OH the deck
that morning ever had need again for
shirts after that day ? y
These vessels fred on us at long range
as with the approach of night we steam
ed over to Sewell's Point to send on
shore our dead and wounded.
With early dawn the next morning we
saw the ST. Lawrence back under the
guns of Fortress Monroe, the Minnesota
apparently aground near the scene of
yesterdays battle, and a curious-looking
craft which proved to be the Monitor,
lying near her. We steamed over to-
wards the Minnesota and the Monitor,
lying near her. We steamed over to-
wards the Minnesota, and the Monitor
boldly set forth to meet us half way.
For hours and hours we bombarded each
other without any apparent injury to
either vessel. Seeing that every pro-
jectile that struck our strange enemy
was shattered into fragments against
her turret, | ordered my division to
cease firing. Calling Catesby Jones' at
tention to my idle guns, he said "Well,
we're Just about to try another plan.
We are going to ram her." And we
did.
But for msconception of what the
~ II r