The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-09-27

though for some time the big pumps
I kept her free. This making water so
/ fast may also he attributed 70 the fact
/ that the vessel had lain all summer ex-
( posed to the hot sun of the James
river The oak timber which had been
J fitted to the top edge of the iron huh
/ had shrunk SO badly that when in the
| heavy sea there was water to the depth
] of two CT three feet over it on the
! weather side most of the time. and the
water found its way through the space,
and flowed in great volume into the
ship.
! Soon the wind hauled more to the
south, increasing all the time, the YES
/ sci towing badly and yawinS about
very much. BY S o'clock in the evening
! the wind was blowing very heavily.
causing the Monitor to plunge deeply,
the sea washing over and into the tur-
/ ret. and at times into the hawSer
/ pipes. Commander Bankhead signalled
! several times to the Rhode Island to
stop towing in order to see whether
| that would prevent the influx of water
into the vessel, but she only fell OIL
| into the trough of the sea and made
matters worse, the water coming on
board so fast that it was necessary to
start the centrifugal pumps. 1t was
quite evident to many on board that
unless the wind should abate and the
sea go down, which did not at I'll seem
likely. The enthusiasm of the officers
! and the crew kept them at their posts
until it became necessary TO signal the
Rhode Island for assistance, which was
promptly given.
Captain Stephen D. Trenchard com
manded the Rhode Island and has OF
! fcers and men did not hesitate to jump
hat fnr no
( weather and go to the relief of their
/ fellows. In order to keep the Monitor
! a6oat as long as possible, the large
! cable by which she was toWed was cut.
Two of the Rhode Islands boats
reached the Monitor and the comman-
! der ordered Lieutenant Dana 5. Green
| (who was Commander Wordens first
Lieutenant in the fight with the Merit
mac to put as many men in them as
they could safely carry. This was a
I hazardous operation. The heavy seas
| were sweeping over the decks with ire
mendous force and there was great
! danger of the boats being crushed by
| collision with the ironclad- The first
! two boats reached the Rhode Island
safely amid the storm and darkness,
and again returned to rescue the re-
mainder of the people ON the Monitor,
which was most difficult to find in the
gale and in the darkness. In the mean
time Captain Bankhead and those who
STAYED by him took refuge in the tur-
ret Several of the men had been
washed overheard and lost. BY this
| time the vessel drifted ON soundinGs,
and the captain gave orders 10 let go
an anchor in the hopes that it might
! bring the Monitors head to wind and
that the chain would hold her thare
long enough to get the crew off. The
water in the ship at this time was up
| over the furnace aefapans, and in
creased so rapidly that the entire o :
CINE room had to be abandoned. The
Monitor fortunately came head 20 Wt.d
when the cable brought her up
The vessel was filing rapidly, the
deck had settled so that it was even
with the surface of the water and all
the men left on the turret were ordered
i by the captain to make the deck as
| soon as a chance offered and 'pring for
| the relief heats as soon as they APP
! preached, which they did very care
/ fully The Monitor was as dangerous
as a reef of rocks TO approach IN such
( a sea AT this time there wee eNnrt
| 80 men on board, and several of these
were washed overheard in their ct
tempt to reach the beats, only one of
( whom could be rescued The captain,
I Who had done all that a commander
could 90 TO save his vessel and his
4 crew. stood at his post. helping the lpeu
into the beats. After he had seen TO il
| that all of tF1e mea had ben taE=n
from the tufret ne fUmped in ITO the az
ready heavily laden boat The boats
had scarcely reached the Rhode Is
land when the Monitor sank to the bot
tom. In mastering the reople en- the
! Rhode Island afterwards II WAS found
that two of The officers and u of the
crew had been swept overheard ard
drowned.
Lieutenant Green and Acting Master
Louis N. Stodder (who is yet alive and
is now a captain in the revenue ma
rine service) stood by the aptain 10 the
last. as did also QrartermasteT Richard
Anjier. who remained at his post until
the vessel was sinking, and, when CIR
/ dered by the captain to jump into the
relief boat. said: NO. sir ~; ursN
you do so" One of the Rhode Island
! boats, after it had taken some people
off the Monitor, was driven or ~ be
storm and was given up for lost But,
fortunately, after many perils she was
, picked up by the American schooner
! Colby. and the people afterwards re-
stored to the Rhode Island.
The loss of the Monitor was not only
the loss of a great fighting vessel. but
! in addition there were associations
connected with this little craft which
| made her name dear TO every Union