The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1882-11-24
A BRILLIANT BATTLE.

BOatS---A Beetle Among WaspS---
How the AIbemarIe was Driven
From the Sound, the Name of
Which the Ram Bore
Rev Il a Skinner in Philadelphia Times.
At last on brilliant day in August. 1854.
the Albemarle, commanded by Lieutenant
Cook. and accompanied by Z small tender
carrying extra supplies of ammunition and
provisions, made her appearance and
started on her cruise through the sounds.
The mosquito feet fled like sheep before
her and were soon out of sight beyond
Sandy Point which stretched its long tongue
far out from our shore a couple miles below.
Their precipitate fight was only prudent for
their wooden sides could not have stood mo-
ment before the ram. That strange craft
novel sight to those waters, moved leisurely and
silently on, conscious of her superiority and
reservlng her force for a greater foe,
and one which her gallant commander little
dreamed was so near She looked like the
four-sided roof of house submerged to the
caves, while dark line at each end, just
above the water, indicated her deck fore and
aft, her formidable iron PROV or horn being
of course, wholly under water The Confed-
crate flag ioated from short staff on the for
ward end of her roof, and amidships was her
smoke-stack Besides these there were no
other projecting objects about her. She car
ried two heavy guns, one on each side, and
picked crew of tried men; but her ports were
closed; men and guns were concealed within
her mailed walls, and there was no indication
of life about her, except her steady, stealthy
motion, and an infrequent clond of murky
smoke from her chimney, as fresh fuel was
thrown into her furnaces. Such mysterious,
almost solemn, object had never been behold
on the fair Albemarle sound
She had just passed my house, and was hid
den from view by intervening trees, when my
ear was startled by the booming of a heavy
gun. fastening to the shore, hundred yards
distant, could easily take i'll the scene. The
ram had fired shot, as the cloud of smoke in
her vicinity showed of defiance to an APP
preaching enemy, and had taken her position
for a fight Several steamers Of unusual size
and rig were moving rapidly up the sound,
and were just rounding Sandy Point Hurry
ing back to the house, 1 notified my house
hold, already excited by the first appearance
of the RAM and all, white and black, includ-
ing several guests, ran to the fishery, about
800 yards down the shore, and gathered upon
a shady knoll commanding fine view of the
scene at a distance of about two miles, The
negroes at work in the field guessed from the
report OF the rams gun what was going on,
and hurried to the same spot, leaving their
teams and implements in the burrows.
By this time the strange vessels were in full
view, moving swiftly upon the ram, which lay,
sullen and motionless, surprised but not in
undated, while her tender, few hundred
yards in advance, unarmed and helpless,
awaited certain capture or destruction. One,
two three, in single fle came on the attack
ing ships, under full steam, with sails close
furled and decks cleared for action They
We're large sea going gun-boats of light draft,
of the class known as "double-enders," and
carrying each about ten guns, of which the
bow and stern chasers were 100-pOunders.
They were of size far beyond any vessels
ever seen in our waters before, and as they
doomed up the ram seemed but a speck in
comparison. Any one of the three appeared
large enough to take her aboard and stow her
between decks. When within but q mile of
the ram the foremost ship fired q shot at her,
but it was aimed too high, and we saw it
richochet far beyond her. She, however, re-
served her fire till they were close upon her,
Wll5u tll0 llSIlb D6tSdl IL GdIu6SU. m6dlWu1l6
the mosquito feet, which had evidently
warned the larger vessels of the presence of
the ram and thus fastened the attack, had now
cautiously moved up, and lay in the ofing to
watch the conflict
The attacking vessels strictly maintained
their first order. Each in her turn advanced
bow on toward the ram, fired as she
approached her, gave her a brOadside as she
passed to the larboard, rounded her stern with
another shot, then delivered another broad
side as she repassed to the starboard. This
terrific waltz continued for some time, to the
music of tremendous reyerberations, which
walked the echoes along shore and far inland,
amid the depths of silent woods and somber
swamps. Our party gazed with strained Wis
ion and bated breath-the negroes groaning
and shrieking, and almost fearing that the end
of the world had come But the ram-what
had become of her? For more than once we
lost sight Of her. When the huge hulls of her
adVersaries circling about her did not conceal
her from view she was enYelOped in thick
clouds of smoke, which chung to her like
shroud. Once and again we thought she was
sunk, but the steady, gentle breeze would
sweep aside the smoke, and we had glimpses
Of the intrepid Albemarle still afoat and
bravely returning the murderous fire Of her
foes. Repeatedly one or other endeavored to
run her down and sink her by sheer force and
weight, keeping up at the same time their
furious cannonade
She was like tiny beetle surrounded by in
furiated wasps: unframed by their stings.
undismayed by their size and buzzing. But
the activity of the more easily handled gun
boats and the vast superiority of their guns in
number, if not in calibre. were more than
match for her. Her fire began to slacken
Then, as the light south wind scattered the
smoke-clouds over the blue, ripping waters
and the August sun shone clear upon the little
ram, we could see that her Flagstaff was gone
and her smokestack shot away. Yet she kept
her position, only firing at longer intervals
and her adversaries plainly showed the effect
ofh0r fire. One of them had actually been
placed hors du combat and had dropped out
of the fight, while the other two. without ceas-
ing their attacks, were evidently using more
caution Presently the ram was seen slowly
to retire, pursued by them at long range, and
returning with an occasional gun the fire
which they still kept up. She was eighteen
miles from the mouth of the Roanoke, whence
she had come about five hours before. One
of her two guns, as we afterward learned, had
its muzzle shot away, and in consequence of
the loss of her chimney it was impossible to
keep up sufficient steam. In thi- crippled
state she must make her way back, pursued
1 by two swift and heavily armed ships.
Her commander proved equal to the emer-
gency. Among her stores was large supply
Of salt pork. This he ordered to be used for
fuel, instead of the coal, which was now use
less The fierce heat thus rapidly produced
made up for the lack of draught in the injured
smoke stack, and so she steadily 1etreated,
fighting all the way with her remaining gun
until she reached the mouth Of the river,
where she fired the last shot of defiance, as she
had fired the first. The gunboats had mean
while ceased the pursuit, and the engagement
was ended. The crippled double-ender
steamed slowly below Sandy Point, where she
lay couple Of weeks repairing damages. 1t
leaked out that solid shot from the ram had
gone through her boiler, killing several of her
men and wounding others by it's effect. For
several weeks the sound shore in the vicinity
of the fight was strewn with splinters and other
fragments, some painted, some carved or
gilded, showing the results of the rams fire
upon the wooden hulks Of her adversaries,