Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1893-01-14

was not in command or the expedition,
The vessel was chartered by the army |
authorities, but the commander decided
not to make the attempt There was
no army captain on board, only three |
lieutenants--Webh. Wood and Morris
also DIR. Tenbrocls. Wood, think, was |
TO ranking officer. We arrived off |
I tAarleston January 8, 1861, and the first
shot of the war was fred on that day.
1t was fred at the Star of the West
No answering shot came from Fort
Sumter, and the officers in our party
came to the conclusion that Maj An.
derson had surrendered and that the
confederates were in the fort In CON
sequence they did not go to the fort, fol
they thought that they would faH into
trap and the whole party would be
captured if they did SO. We had no
guns on the vessel with which to repel
an attack. The men, of course, were
armed, but the vessel could not have
withstood a fire from the guns of the
fort.
"There had been a good deal said
about who should fire the first shot and
Maj. Anderson naturally did not want
to be the one to do it. He thought that
the firing by the confederates on the
Star of the West was merely a wish to
draw his fire. He knew nothing about
our expedition and itspurpose, although
the confederates, through somebody's
treachery, were fully posted. Had the
officers on our vessel had any idea that
Mai. Anderson was in the fort we would
have gone there We had supplies on
board enough to last him year, and
we had 600 soldiers to reinforce him.
Both sides made big blunder
really believe that if we had gone into
the fort we could have held it through
out the war You know that Fort
Sumter was never captured-Maj. An
derson only evacuated it. saluting his
colors as he withdrew. No, sir, the
failure of that expedition was not due
to any lack of bravery on Capt. McGow-
ans part
"The expedition was very quietly ar
ranged, yet the confederates were kept
we'll informed of our plans. 1 was
non-commissioned officer then on Gov
ernor's Island. On January we were
ordered out for review in the afternoon.
Gen. Scott, whose headquarters were
over in New York, was expected, so it
was said, to come over to review us.
Well. we were drilled and kept at one
thing and another all the afternoon.
Then, toward dark, we were taken
down to the water and embarked on
vessel. No one had any idea where we
were going. The commanding officer,
Maj Holmes, was so affected at our
| leaving that he shook hands with every
one of us and tears were in his eyes.
The old rascal He afterward skipped
out and went south and joined the con-
federate army and was made a general
Gen. Theophilus Holmes. There was
another officer 81 Johnson-Edward John
sony long after had charge of him and
conducted him prisoner to Fort La
fayette. Holmes, 1 suppose, thought
we were all going away to be killed
1T had been intended to have the
government war vessel, the Brooklyn,
take part in the expedition and meet
us at Charleston. but we saw nothing
of it and afterwards learned that it
had been sent down to Florida to Fort
Pickens.
"The boat on which we embarked
carried us to the Star of the West,
which was waiting out in the bay.
Going down the coast we had very
pleasant sort of time, though no one
knew where he was going. 1t was in
tended to get up to the fort before day.
light, but the pilot whom we picked
up at night below Charleston said that
the lights along the shore had been put
out and that he could not in conse.
quence, get his bearings The officers
had their suspicious of the man, bu,
could not be certain. The consequence
was that we did not get up to Charles
ton till after daylight and We're seen
of course. They then began firing or
us. One shot was imbedded in the YES
sci, but with that exception no harm
was done. But had it not been for 6
mistake in Judgment Fort Sumte,
would have been relieved. ."-Washing
ton Star.