The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1898-06-18

artillery, gather their sharp shooters,
and pour a devastating fire into the
\ helpless craft. Wounds and disasters,
| by much familiarity. lost their normal
significance and became unnoteworthy.
II forgotlto mention in my dispatch OF
\ last night" wrote Cushing to Lee, that
my ihurdred-pounder Parrot was dis
abled yesterday; a rifle shell carried
away the elevating screw, and about n
foot and a half of the muzS'e Is blown
off," And when one Of the smaller
4 boats lost pilot house and PHO. at one
| sweep. the incident attracted but an In
stant's, notice. All day long and every
daySthe bitter fight held on, and all
right long and every night The sinister
darkness must be probed and fathomed.
lest q moments relapse give the enemy
his chance. LoEgstreet's forces had
| every advantage that numbers, arms.
and equal skill and determinations could
4 bestow; yet mo more vessels are needed
| kere," said Gushing. II can and will
! prevent them from crossing" And, be-
Ing Gushing, he did.
Lamaon, too, magnsfcently supported
by his own men, fought with cool. un-
| fllnchinG pluck, sticking TO his work as
! II he loved It. For hint at the true
nature Of that work, as of the work
! man, the official reports are by far the
richest source To give an Instance:
Eat daylight on the 18th" writes Lam
| son to the rear admiral, IT got under
| way to run to Suffolk, the Mount
Washington Uamson's vesse) leading,
| followed by the AIMED. army steamer
| West End . and the Stepping
Stones.
LAS We turned the bend below Nor
fleets Point. l discovered fresh earth
! work on the point and commenced
Smelling 1t. Seeing nothing but rifle.
men behind 1t. I gave the signal to run
past; but when we were within four
hundred yards, .he enemy opened fire
| from seven pieces OF artillery, which
\ they rolled into the woris from the
woods, One OF the pieces was twenty
FOUNDER rifle, tn. arst shot from which
entered our boilers. Other shots struck
In quick succession, raking our bows
and the forward part OF the decks. The.
engines Immediately stopped, the vessel
| Grltted against the bank, and the cS-
Gaping, steam and hot water drove al
most every one out OF the vessel: but at
! my order they returned and opened
fire from ill our guns, The West End
also got aground. ! sent the
Stepping Stones Captain Ha.ris) an
order TO come up and tow me OFT, which
was Gone;, and as soon as the Mount
Washington was out of range, anchor
ed and sent Captain Harris to tow of
| the West End. We then proceeded
down the river, the Stepping Stones tow
Ing the Mount Washington, and. the
enemy's sharp-shcoters firing from nl-
most every point
A'Whi!e passing the bar and obstruc-
tons near the mouth OF the west
branch, the tide being low, the Noun.
Washington grounded. and almost i'm
medhtelY the enemy opened fire on us
with ten pieces of artillery; six planted
In strong earthwork on Hills Point.
and four In the woods to the right
throwing n cross-firc into our vessels,
Finding that tho Mount washington
would be immovable until the next high
tide, ordered her engineers, firemen
and all others except the men l brought
from the Minnesota TO man the guns, 10
so on board the Stepping Stones, and I |
directed Captain Harris to go down to n |
safe position. and TO come back and tow |
me off at high water The West End, |
belng short of COAL continued on down
the river.
THE enemy kept up a heavy and well
directed fire from his artillery and
snarp-shooters posted In the bushes