The Aberdeen examiner. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1866-current, 1883-01-18
THE MERRIMAC AND NOM.
TOR.
A TRUE ACCOUNT OF THR BATTLE BETWEEN
THE MERRIMAC AND MONITOR, BY
ONE WHO PARTICIPATED.

CARRoLToN. Miss, Jan. IL, 1883.
Editor Vicksburg Herald:
Our late war has had one result that |
have never seen mentioned in print. 1t
has rendered absurd the line
truth crushed to earth shall rise
again."
The truth about the fight between the
Merrimac and the Monitor seems destm-
ed never to rise again, the utterly false
account of the Federals prevailing over
it in the face of repeated denials by over
ten thousand eye witnesses of the fight.
The glory of our victories is all that
was left to us poor Confederates after the
war, and our press ought to guard that
jealousy.
In personal notice of myself, that
you were kind enough TO publish in the
HERALD, you say that the "Merrimac"
was finally destroyed by the superior
strength and armament Of the iron-clad
Monitor"
As one of the officers of the "Merri.
mao" l have twice published detailed
account of the fight, and 1 have read two
accounts by other officers of the vessel,
and two more by gentlemen who wit.
messed the battle from the shore. These
several accounts tell but one tale Of
which the following is summary:
The "Merrimac" was an improvised
floating battery, mounting ten guns I'M
der shield protected by iron plates
two inches thick. At a. m. on Satur-
day 9Th day of March, 1862, she started
on her "trial trip" Franklin Buchanan
was in command. By set of sun she had
sunk the Cumberland" of forty guns,
destroyed with hot shot the Congress"
of fifty guns, blown up tender or small
gunboat, silenced the shore batteries at
Newport News, forced the "St. Law,
renee" of fifty guns to retreat to Fortress
Monroe. and driven the minnesota" of
forty guns on a shoal in her efforts to
escape.
When night came on we steamed over
to the opposite side of The Roads, and
anchored till daylight.
The dawn re yealed to us the "Min-
nesota" still aground, and strange look
ing craft near 1t was the "Monitor."
We steamed out toward the minnesota"
and the "Monitor" came boldly out to
meet lis. The battle of the ironclads
was witnessed by the thousands of peo-
pie VINO lined the nelghhorng shores
aud by the crews of the wooden vessels,
Federal and Confederate, who looked on
nj respectful distance. For SIX hours
they bombarded each other without any
serious damage to either. At times they
were SO close together that man might
have jumped from one to the other. Our
nine inch shells broke into fragments
against the monitors turret. Her
eieven-inch shells whonld fly up into the
ar when they struck the sloplng sides OF
the "Merrimac.
buchanan had been sent on shore
wounded after the first days fight, and
Catesby Jones had succeeded to the COM
mand. Passing along the deck while
the tight was at Its helghth, he paused
OF my guns long enough to say to me,
II am getting ready to ram her" In
moment more 1t was done, and the
Monitor never fired another shot at the
"Merrlmac. ;" Our engines had been
slowed down Just before we struck her
or doubtless we should have run her
under. AS 1t was she retreated with all
haste into shoal water, where, owing to
our much greater draught we could not
follow her. Neither could We get so
near the Minnesota as we desired for
fear OF running aground as she had done.
We had to content ourselves with firing
into the minnesota" and we did SO for
fully an hour after we had "knockea
the Monitor out OF the ring" All that
time the latter was looking on from a
safe distance without daring to offer aid
to her helpless consort.
1t was only when we thought the
Minnesota was hopeless wreck, and
when we knew that the 'Monitor" and
other Federal vessels no longer had any