, 1885-03-18
%FARRAGUT'S FLEET.
PASSING THE CONFEDERATE FORTS
BELOW NEW ORLEANS.


chor. The neot was formed in two divis-
ions. That to follow up the west bank and
tackle Fort jackson was the Hartford,
Brooklyn, Richmond, and four smaller ships
That to follow the east bank and engage
Fort St Phillip were tho Cayuga, Pensacola,
Mississippi, Oneida, ~Iroquois, and three small
gunboats. Tho three sloops, Hartford, Rich
mond. and Brooklyn, carried each fifteen
guns in broadside, besides brass pieces in the
tops.
1t was a dark night, yet stars were shin
ing. Tho great river doomed, for the water
was high, and piles Of drift wood coming
down lad kept all look-outs on the alert
The first division, Fnrragut leading, huggod
the west bank rs close as the Hartford's
p1lt would permit. The pilot was Al old
New Orleans man. He had no politics. He
was working for money. He had n little
cage built which let down from the port
ferc-chains-and dropped him just to the
waters eige. His idea was 10 get under tho
smoke. Two midshipmen were stationed 10
signal his orders Farragut and his staf
went forward to the forecastle. Capt. VAIN
right took the bridge and Lieut. Thornton,
he OF Kearsrage fame afterward, took
charge OF the batteries. Tho two lines
steamed slowly up Porter's mortars doubled
their fire. The Confederate forts were silent.
There were no sounds save the swish OF
the current. the dull thump of the engines
and the buzz and restlessness Of the crew.
Farragut stood with his night-glass poering
into tho darkness ahead. wainwright was
beside him. Watson, his signal officer, near.
rs Bailey well up in liner he asked, without
removing the glnss from his eyes. AYE, aye,
sir" snid the signal man softly. All at once
there was n flash ahead that lit up the
heavens, and in an instant the whirr-whizz-
IA.
over tho Hartford's bow. Farragut re-
moved his glass and said quietly, "Gentle-
men, the time has come. wainwright, hnve
your mon stand by their guns. Pilot
ito the man over the side, do you see
that water battery right adeadi Put this
ship as close to 1t as you can got her. By
that time the whole Confederate force was
reused. Fort st. Phillip opened. Fort
Jackson turned loose her classmates; the
water battery had its whole twenty guns in
play. Away ahead in the gloom could be
seon tho preparations of the Confederate
neet-the fire RATS being ignited, the black
smoke skurrying back and forth, and withal
the deadly missiles Kissing by. port"
ycllel the pilot, here we are, STRIP Farm
gut leaned over the side. Cant you get Us
any ~cioserf' The Hartford seemed then
within 100 feet of tho battery.l "Not with
out danger of grounding
IAN right Port it is. Hard-n-porti Now
boysIp and the old man waved his glass.
The crow waited for the ship to sheer, and
then came tho crash. II was the first broad
side that had been fired in that squadron
II was deafening; It was almost p%aralyzing,
but, like the taste Of blood, the stripped
sailors wanted more Of II From that hour
smoke enveloped the ship. Obeying his
orders, the pilot keptS'his ship close to the
west shore. By this time the guns OF jack
son were all in full play. Tho smoke was so
densa that from tho dock nothing could DO
seen but a sheet OF flames issuing from tho
canopy. The fierce hail Of iron from the
fort was like tho hiss of countless steam
valves. Happily the a~rtillerymen had
poor range, and so most of their fire
was Ineffective. The fleet made little
or no reply, but steamed ahead. Pretty
soon the Hartford, Richmond, and
Brooklyn were all in position 10 bring their
guns 10 bear at close range. The orders
were to get as close as the pilots would allow
and sweep the parapets with grape and can
ester. 1t wa hardly five minutes after the
ships batteries had got into this work before
the enemy's fire slackened. They could not
stand 10 The ships passed upward. BY this
time all ahead was black and fire famed.
The Confederates had set afiame a dozen fire
RATS and they were coming down with the
current
Here was a new danger, The forts were
still firing, hut In the dense smoke nobody
could tell where he wns. A great fire raft,
the flames rising fifty feet came swooping
down on the Hartford. To dodge it the pilot
made an error and the ship went ashore in
the mud. The raft swung alongside, and IN
an instant the flames had caught the Hart
ford's rigging. Lieut. Thornton's fire
department was perfect. and IL re-
sponded even in the face Of u
awful danger. The Hartford's engines
backed and then it was discovered that the
ram Manassas was pushing the fire raft and
holding it against tho ships side. Cast
loose that starboard batteryl' yelled Farra-
gut. Quick. Rentlemcnl See that RANT
For Gods sakei give it to himin The ram
got it. The Manassas fell of from the raft,
tho raft slid by the Hartford, and the latter
was free. Capt. Marley, tho commander of
tho Manassas, seeing he was hurt tried &c
mike for shore. Tho Mississippi caught
pushed him into the mud. There wa no
time to stop, or Marley would have been @
prisoner, but ho was helpless, and IL was tho
duty OF the wooden ships to get out OF fire.
Once above the range of fire Of the forts
the enemy's fleet had to be encountered IL
was getting almost daylight. The smoke
was drifting away, and looking ahead the
Gag officer could see the Confederate gun
boats and on-boat and rams. The Fed
eral gunboat Varunh, Capt. Boggs, had nj
ready dashed in among them, and, ns the
result proved. got the worst of ii, for after
Ealf an hours tussle she went down stern
first and lost thirty of her crew. The
Oneida was also being sore beset when the
heavy ships came up. Farragut, through
his glass, could see at a glance where the
trouble lay. The little vessels did not carry
guns enough. He signaled the big ships K
form In cline ahead, +" that Is, single file, and
take the middle Of the channel. The Con
federate feet was formed in two lines. MAI
both sides y he called to his captain as the
Hartfordis bow loomod up through tbs
smoke, and the Richmond, Brooklyn AMI
Mississippi followed. Man both sidesi' wa!
the signnl to the other ships.
1t was dreadful. Is the line steamed NJ
and the heavy batteries poured from botf
sides into the frnil and panic stricken craft
big river steamors were all top-hamper,
They had cotton bales to protect them, buI
ths shells from the nine-inch Dahlgrens sent
these flying into mid-air. Two OF tho craft
were together They seemed filed with
people; the Richmond eheered within twenty
ieot Of them and let 60 \ broadside. The
roof and cabin and "texas' and smoke pipe
AL went BY the board. On either bank, a
the feet passed up, wer9 the wrecks Of the
H1etched feet. The officers and crows had
fed- Grape and cnnnistnr from the bis
ships had knocked thom into match kin
ding. and all were sithor sinking or burn
ing. There was not one vessel left