Rock Island daily Argus., 1892-06-09

With the aid of 1,2OO pounds of tallow,
$50 pounds OF Albany grease, 500 pounds of
soft soap and the force of gravity the ,l4O
tons of steel slid down the ways and hoated
like duck. All newly launched ships float
like ducks, and in so doing the hull of the
Raleigh simply fulfilled her destiny.
Thirty years ago to the month another
warship left this navy yard, steamed slow
ly out of the Elizabeth into Hampton
Roads and in twelve hours revolutionized
the science OF naval warfare. The Confed-
crate Merrinac, with her roof of iron,
crossed the Roads, moved right up to the
United States sloOp-of-war Cumberland,
with thirty guns crushed in her wooden
hull as if it had been pasteboard and sunk
her. Then turning attention to the frigate
Congress, with fifty guns the Merrimac
drove her aground, disabled her, forced
her to surrender and burned her.
For an hour the Congress poured broad
side after br1adside upon the Merrimac
but the solid shot bounded off .the armor
as If they had been baseballs Having de
stroyed two of the best ships in the United
States navy the Merrimac drew back be-
hind Sewells point for the night. That
days work taught the world Il lesson. 1t
marked the end of the wooden warships.
long, symmetrical steel hull of the Raleigh.
which slid down the ways into the Eliza
beth, was the legitimate successor in naval
science to the Merrimac.
The day following that on which she
gained her double victory the Merrimac
steamed out of the roads to complete her
work of annihilation. The Minnesota was
there and several other wooden vessels of
the United States navy. These disposed
of, the cities If Washington and Baltimore
were at the mercy of the Merrimac and if
she could demonstrate seagoing qualities
for brief periods Philadelphia and New
York might be destroyed Confederate
fortunes touched one of the high water
marks when the Cumberland went down
and the Congress was burned But the
surprise was on the other side when the
Merrimac presented herself in the Roads
Tor the second days work Out in front of
the fleet of wooden warships lay a craft as
queer and extraordinary as the Merrimac
in naval architecture. The papers of that
NAY said 1t looked like "a cheesebox on a
raft"
During the night the Monitor. the first
of Ericsson'S creations, had arrived. 1t
had been terrible voyage down the At
lantlc coast for this strange craft. The
escape from Shipwreck had been a narrow
one. But the Monitor had come. And as
the Merrimac moved forward the Monitor
also advanced. What battle it Hasl In
after years every detail of it was analyzed
and studied as a science, and the navies of
the world were rebuilt from the keel up to
conform to the new conditions. 1t was ar
NOR against armor Forward and back
ward, on straight lines and then on curves.
they moved, each seeking the others vul-
nerable point. Solid shot struck the low
sloping sides of the Merrimac, raking her
from stem u stern. Solid shot made great
dents in the ,urret of the Monitor and fell
off into the water. There they pounded
each other for hours and then, shaken and
damaged, they parted with mutual re
spect
The moral effect of the battle of the Mer-
rimac and The Monitor was great. The
north took breath. Washington and Bal
timore were safe. Monitors were at least
match for Merrimacs Build iron
clads" was the lesson of that day in Hamp-
ton Roads, March, 1862, and build iron
Clads" was the order which went to every
navy yard of all the nations of the world.
"A cheese5oX on a raft" describes the
monitor type pretty well. Three of the
monitors lay beside the dock of the navy
yard on the Elizabeth the day the Raleigh
excitement these monitors, which had
been resting peacefully at anchor for more
than twenty years, were hauled up to the
docks and the work of refitting them for
active service was hastily undertaken
Rather straI sc to tell, they were found to
be in good condition, and in Il few davs
they could have taken up position at the
mouths OF Hampton Roads or Chesapeake
bay or wherever wanted to repel attack.
What did the Merrimac look like?'
y citizen of Norfolk answered the cues
tion. He was old enough to be a courier
to Confederate general when the great
naval battle occurred. He saw the Merri-
mac building. He saw her steam down
the Elizabeth and into Hampton Roads. He
saw the Cumberland so under, with her
flag flying, aud he saw the Congress forced
to surrender. And he saw the next DAYS
duel between the hope of the Confederacy
and the drea m of Ericsson.
What die the Merrimac look like?"
The ex-courier glanced up and down the
river, and pointing to a very low, almost
dat rooted building on the Norfolk shore.
said:
There, do you see that warehouse over
yonder? Well, the Merrimac looked lust
like that building would if it was on the
water. She had roof that sloLed down
Just about as that roof slopes. The shot
struck that roof and just bounded off"
'The roof was made of railroad rails laid
close together wasn't it?''
'Oh, no! That's mistake"
Seems to me the northern papers said
so at the time, to account for the solid shot
making no impression.
We'll, that's all wrong. l saw the
armor when it was put on. 1t was in iron
sheets six inches thick, and it was laid on
the roof and bolted. That was the armor
from which The solid shot bounced off. It's
another mistake to say the Monitor didn't
run from the Merrimac. She did run, for
| saw her. She got out into the shallow
water where the Merrimac couldn't ram
her and then pounded away with her guns.
Hullo-there she goesr'
The great steel hull had begun to move.
The truth OF Confederate history was for
gotten in the pride of present OatriotiSrn