Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-09-23
HAD TO rraHr THEIR WAY OUT.

to such predicaments our men thought the
proper caper for an army surrounded BY an
enemy was to surrender But Grant rode
among them and said they had fought their wsy
IN and they could certainly fight their way out
Under the inspiration of this, to them new idea
they were ready to follow their leader any
where. The enemy had wedged his superior
force In between our men and the Transports
AT this crisis the Tyler and Lexington got the
range OF the rebels and with ive-second shells
and shrapnel drove them back in confusion
Before they had time to reform our men sue
ceeded In reaching the transports and re-em-
barking. Gen. Grant being the last one to
cross the gangplank. The gunboats covered
the retreat. / he importance of this fight CEN
tiers in the fact that it the first pitched bat
tie in the valley Of the Mississippi river proper
the first battle in which Grant commanded ard
the first battle In which the fiotilla took part
II should no; be forgotten that the gunboats on
this occasion not only rendered a service 10 the
army and to the country in an ordinary sense
but. in view of Gen Grants subsequent career
In larger and more particular sense In this
first fight the dotilla by its great service en-
balmed Its memory In glory and took its place
in undying history"
In describing the capture of Fort Henry by
the hotllla Col Michael said: 1.-The fotilla was
in position below the fort at the time agreed
upon, but the army was detained bv heavy rains
and mud After waiting in vain for three DAYS
for the army to come Foote determined to at
tack the fort alone. The armored vessels
formed the first line and the wooden the second
Firing began at !, ZOO yards and continued till
the vessels were within 600 yards of the works
The lighting terrific. In one hour and
forty minutes the rebel flag was hauled down
and Gen Ilighman surrendered the fort and
garrison to the navy. Upon the arrival of the
army few hours after Foote turned the pris-
oners and all over TO Grant. This was the first
fghtin which the ironclads were engaged They
Themselves NJ
on the severest battling the enemy was able at
that time 20 give them. Some of them we're
struck fairly over thirty times. sustaining only
slight indentations. But for a serious disaster
to the Essex the fort would have been captured
without serious loss TO our side shot pene-
trated the port bow of that vessel killing sew
eral people and cut the middle boiler. The
vessel illed with steam and hot water and all
who could do so jumped into the water to es-
cape being scalded. The fotilla lost two in
killed and nine wounded beside twenty-eight
badly scalded. several Of whom died There
were nineteen soldiers on board, nine of whom
were scalded, four fatally. The fate of the
Essex made apparent class Of accidents to
which the sunbosts were liable"
THE cARoNpELEr's FAMOUS RUN
After describing the part taken bv the fotilla
at Doneson and Pittsburg Landing he described
the dramatic incident of the Caroudelet rum
nIng the gauntlet at Island No. TO- He said:
and only when Gen. Pope telegraphed Foote
that the lives OF thousands of men and the sue
GERS OF our Operations hang upon your decision
and that with two gunboats below all would be
safe did the latter officer consent to take the
hazard. All except Capt. Walker OF the Caron-
deiet believed that any attempt to run a single
vessel by six forts under fire of fifty guns. the
muzzles almost touching the vessels sides must
result in disaster to the vessel. Nevertheless
Wake WAS ready to make the venture At 10
o'clock 2. m. when the little vessel swung loose
and headed down stream on her perilous trip.
terrific thunder storm arose. In the midst of
the peals of thunder the lurid flashes OF light
ming playing about her, she plunged through
the narrow and toaming channel exposed alike
to the enemy's fire and the danger of ground
ing now wrapped in impenetrable darkness
now in the full blaze Of the lightnings glare
hardly knowing whittier she was heading vet
held firmly in her course by her brave pilot. She
made the passage in safety and wel-earned
glory.
This was the first feat Of the kind in the war
preceding that Of Farragut running BY Forts
st. Phillips and jackson three weeks which
fact adds additional luster to the glory of the
precedent sci by the Carondelet The Pitts
burg followed the example of The Carondelet
the following night. and within three days the
rebel army of 1000 men and three general OFF,
cers surrendered to Gen Pope and the island
and batteries 10 Foote."
Immediately after the surrender of Island 10
and the river fight between the fotilla and the
rebel defense fleet at Fort Pillow the speaker
described that remarkable naval battle before
Memphis as follows: Early in the morning of
June 6. 1862. the rebel vessels moved ont into
the stream and formed in double line of battle
ready to meet the advance of the hotila. The
rebels had not long TO wait, for our vessels
were already moving down upon them. The
heights were crowded with men. women
and children. who had gathered to witness. as
they doubtless believed they would see. the
'Llnkum gunboats cleaned out. The confeder-
ates hred the first gun. Our vessels held their
nre until within certain range. The battle was
hardly on when the federal rams Queen Of the
West and Monarch. under command of the i'm
petuous Eilet. sped down through our flotilla,
contrary to the plan agreed upon, and dashed
into the midst of the enemy exposing them
selves to our fire as well that of the enemy
The Queen made straight for the Lowell and,
striking her amidships, sent her to the bottom
As she was rounding to for a chance at the
Gen. Brice the Beauregard ranmed the
Queen IN the stern and disabled her: the
rebel rams Beauregard and Price made for the
Monarch from opposite sides. but were not
quick enough, the Monarch slipping out let
ung her ent MES come together with a crash
that cut the Price to the waters edge The
Monarch turned and rammed the Beauregard
At the same time the Benton gave her raking
oao'' "hiSu utT By THIS
time the entire rebel defense fleet was DESTROYED
save the General Van Doren, which lit ont down
the river with ar vessels in hot pursuit The
exciting chase continued for ten miles, but the
escaping rebel was too fleet and got away. Thus
the rebel defense fleet. from which the confed-
eracy expected so much. was literally wiped out
OF existence in its first pitched battle with the
fotilla.
WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN.
"This victory opened the Mississippi to the
mouth OF the iaZoo and transferred the most
important military operations from the out
skirts to the very heart of the confederacv
Had our tiotiila been beaten the enemy could
have laid siege TO all OF the cities on the Missis-
sippi and Ohio above Cairo without our having
a river force to dispute his victorious feet
"A few days after this victory. than which
history does not furnish one more COMPLETE
our lotilla pushed on down the river and on
the 18th of June engaged two well-built earth
works at st. Charles. on the White river, and
helped in their capture. In this fight the
Mound City had her steam drum exploded bv
shot from the enemy. The scene which fol-
lowed was heartrending in the extreme The
vessel filed with steam, and her crew. to es-
cape being cooked alive, jumped overheard,
only to be shot while struggling in the water
by sharpshooters In the fort. Joseph Fry. a
former officer of the United States navy, COM
manded the fort, and for his barborous treat
ment OF our men while struggling in the water
was treated, after his capture. with the con-
tempt his cowardly, heartless conduct deserved.
Thus, in little over a year after the first
hammer struck in the construction of a
gunboat for service on western inland water,