The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-09-29

1 also took aboard two men, who stuck to
me to the last. One was Charleston bar
pilot named Samuel Hancock, one Of the
brAvest, most nervy men ever ran across
and the other was a Bahama ureclzer of the
name of Roberts. Roberts ALWAYS visited
my home with me in Sommeryiile when
ever we reached Charleston, but this same
Roberts had il from nv own Inns that if
ever he ran the Ella and Anna into shoal
water or on a reef | would blow his brains
out If it was the last act Of my life. Rob-
erts never failed me. AS for Hancock, he
was one of US, and as true blue a man as
ever trod deck.
"Our first run into Charleston was a COM
plete success. We shot out of Nassau on a
favorable night, ran down inside the reefs
in waters that no federal ship ever could
enter, and then, taking advantage OF an
open, ran out to sea aud headed for Charles
ton bar. We timed our steaniug so as to
reach the bar at high slack water, and un-
der cover of night, with not light show
ing, we quietly swept along in over the bar
and up the harbor.
'Commodore Ingraham was highly
pleased with the success attending the first
run, and gave me every encouragement.
Once In Charleston, [ made up good Grew,
and on good night slipped out of port
| with 800 bales Of cotton. had no trouble
IN reaching Nassau and discharging.
But this tame work was not to last long
| The blockade off Charleston was every day
being made tighter and tighter. As many
as twenty-seven federal ships-of-war lay off
the port, while the monitors blocked the
channel well up inside the bar At Nassau
the maine of every federal ship on the coast
| was known, as was also the name and repu-
| tatlon OF her commander, and to such an
| excellent extent did we have information
Of the federal craft that we could name
war vessel as soon as her sticks showed
| above water.
ut was on the second trip of the Ella
| and Anna that we caught merry music.
We broke through the Gordon off the Ba-
hamas, stole down on Charleston, a run Of
about 400 miles, and were quietly approach
| ing the coast when the night came oot
bright and startling, and then up came the
moon. hesitated what to do, but, recalling
suddenly that the bunkers were none too
| full of coal, quickly determined to make a
dash. By the aid of my night glasses
could make out the position of every block
aiding ship off tho bar. Their hulls were
| all painted black, which caused them to
| loom up heavily in the night.
Hancock was on the bridge with me.
| Roberts, also, was standing by. The pilot
house windows | had closed 80 that the
| quartermRsters could not see, and the lad
ders leading into the fire room were hauled
up on deck by my orders. | was bound
shat there should be no panicky work about
| decks. With the exception of Hancock,
Roberts and myself, not soul could be
seen above the rail. The chief engineer was
standing at the throttle, and for half an
hour had been gradually lifting around the
hand OF the steam gauge.
"'How are you below, chief9 l said in
low voice through the engine room tubes.
The boilers are almost beginning to
BREATHE came baoK the reply.
II knew then that the chief had the
| steam up to maximum strain. Let her go,
Hancock l said, and in we went, fairly
creeping along.
1--WE were now right down on big war
ship, so near that | could hear her yards
croak as she gently rolled TO the swell.
Not sound was to be heard, not even from
| the paddle wheels, they we're SO we'll muf-
fled. We must have passed the outside
ship within 200 yards, when right ahead was
a second craft. Past her we went, almost
as close as we did to the first. 1t was simply
marvellous how difficult it was to the fed =
erals to detect ship painted as was the
Ella aud Anna.
1--WE were now right into the very heart
| of the fleet, when abeam of us there burst
out on the still night air the thunder of a
heavy rifle gun, and with a roar heavy she'll
| passed right over the bridge.
Let her Ror l yelled The signal was
hurled down into the engine room Han
cock took charge. and like the leap of a race
horse at the signal of a starter. the Ella and
Anna jumped ahead fully fifteen knots an
/ hour. And how they did pour it into US.
| Rip, rip, went our rails, as the shells
crashed right through the sides. Every
thing was enveloped in smoke, broken only
! by the flashes OF the guns. The ship
| trembled from stem to stern, aud fairly
shook as the shot struck her. l was ex-
pecting the boiler or machinery to go every
minute, but not a shot struck her in the
vitals.
I'm we tore over that bar as only a
| blockader can RIM, and it was only when
| we heard the dull boom, boom Of an occa-
sional chip below firing at an imaginary
| blockade runner that we felt that we were
through. We slowed down up in the vi
clnity OF Sumter gave the private signals,
and inside OF an hour were moored to the
wharf in Cooper river.
Again We loaded up with cotton and
| slipped out to sea through the Sullivan
island beach channel. Going to sea was a
comparatively easy thing. One had only
to double up on pursuer or steer off into
some dark quarter and if there was any go
TO the engineers at all the blockeders would
soon be left behind. 1t was our practice
| before making start to observe the enemy
| just before nightfall from Sumter The
| blocksding vessels all had regular stations
They would lie at anchor to a hawser
| SndtCHeQ we'll OUT Ou the JlOOOOm, and with
| the anchor just under foot. at the sound
| of the alarm they ran their anchors a-weigh
| got under way and then walked the anchors
up when there was time. The very fact
that the various ships had stations assigned
them often served to help us in. A block
aiding ship often did good buoy work for u.s.
| THE experience of the Ella and Anna on
/ her second trip became the usual one after
that. We expected to run the gauntlet
every time we bore down on Charleston,
but SO far as being struck was concerned,
we cared little so long as the shots kept
away from the engine room aud boilers In
all, the Ella ana Anna made nine round
| trips. Money was plentiful. Nassau was
full of gold, and have seen time and again
bags of gold wheeled down in wheelbarrows
TO the ships, the crews getting their share
when the vessel reached the high sea.
"On the morning of Oct 8, on the ninth
round trip OF the Ella and Anna, l was
standing in for Wilmington bar from Ber-
muda, We had on board a valuable cargo.
In company with US was the Margaret and
Jessie, Capt. Lockwood; the Giraffe, Capt.
! Porter; the Ella, Capt. Swazey, and the
Cambria, Capt. Gale. Quite string of us,
it will be observed, aud all blockade run
ners, with the Ella and Anna in the lead.
"The evening of the Sth had been still
and quiet. There was hardly a ripple on
/ tina hut in tha aarlv mart of tho