The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-02
STEAMBOATS, CAREER.
CRUISER DESTROYED SHIPPING
VALUED AT S1,1OO,OOO.

tecr Continued Her Operations
Several Months After the War Had
Ended and Was Finally Delivered
TO the British Government by
Commander WaddeII,
Washington Letter in Baltimore sun.
The agents Of the navy department WHO
are engaged in the compilation of the Of
fetal records of the union and confederate
navies in the late war have recently
brought TO light. from southern resources.
mass of hitherto unpublished Informal
lion of curious interest and value relatiYe
10 the operations of the confederate priv,
ateer Shenandoah. In destructiveness of
union property the work of the Shenan-
doah was second only to that OF the Ala
bama. and the former enjoyed the pecu-
liar distinction of having far outstripped
the records of all other cruisers in the
length OF her voyage and the fact that she
never met with the slightest opposition
from union arms in her path of destruc-
ton and continued her depredations many
months after the conclusion of the war.
II is worthy of remark that the navy
department at Washington was in posses
sion of information relative TO her outfit
and pans early in the summer of 1861,
but no active search was instituted until
January, 1860, and though the United
States ships Santee, Wachusett Iroquios,
Wyoming and the European and Pacific
squadrons at large were successfully or
dered in pursuit of her, none of them ever
succeeded in coming up with her, nue..
less in engaging her in combat. In the fall
of 1865 her commander gained conclusive
information that the war had gone against
the south, and he leisurely and uninter-
| rUptedly made his way to England, where
he gave himself and his ship into the
hands of the British government.
The Shenandoah was a full-rigged ship
of 1000 tons and 25O-horse power, with
battery of four S-inch guns-two 32-pound-
ers and two 12-pounders. She was origi-
na,ly the British ship Sea King, built in
1863 for the East Indian trade. On her re-
turn to England after her first voyage she
was purchased by confederate agents In
| Europe and fitted out as a cruiser in the
confederate service, primarily to dispense
and destroy the New England whaling
| heet in the northern seas. She had been
| designed as q transport for troops, had
spacious decks and large air ports and
was well suited for conversion into a
| cruiser fast sailer under canvas her
-tcam power was more than auxiliary, as
| she could exceed eleven knots without
pressing. Provided with fifteen months
stores she sailed from London on Oct. g.
| 1854 in command of her English master,
Capt Corbett, for Madeira, Ten days later
she was delivered over to her new com
mander Lieut.. James I. Wadde1, who had
| taken passage from Liverpool with the Of
fcers and men detailed for his command.
Among the latter were some picked men
from the famous Alabama which had been
sunk by the Kearsarge a few months be-
fore. The Shenandoah was commissioned
on Oct 10, and that day cleared for Ma
dera.
The journal of Commander Waddell is
now in the possession of the navy DEPART
ment and it is a most Interesting record
of the career of the Shenandoah
On Oct. so the cry of sail hoP rang
out from the steamboats, masthead. I'M
mediately she bore down upon the distant
| vessel an American bark, the Alma, OF
Seaport, Me-, bound for Bpenos Ayres
with railroad iron. She was on her first
voyage, thoroughly equipped, nicely cop
pered and beautifully clean-a tempting
| prize. Defense on her part was out of the
.--.o~tiO' o. ! the confederates boarded
and scuttled her, after appropriating such
of her furnishings as they could make use
OF and taxing the crew prisoners, six OF
| whom afterwards volunteered their SER
vices as active men on the Shenandoah.
| The Alma was valued at $4,000.
On Nov. 10 the Shenandoah crossed the
| equator The course thence lay south
| along the coast of Brazil. Nothing of in
| terest occurred after crossing the line ex-
| eept the interchange of courtesies with
| neutral vessels until Dec. 4, when the
| American whaleship, Edward, of and out
| of New Bedford three months, was sight
| ed and captured near the island of iris
| tan. The Edward had taken a whale and
| was cutting OUT when captured, her
| crew being so occupied with the fish that
! the Shenandoah had come within easy
| range of her unobserved. The Edward S
| outfit was of excellent quality, and the
confederates lay by two days supplying
| their steamer with necessaries. The
! whaleship was then burned, and Waddell
| landed for day a Tristan and made ar
engagements with the native governor to
receive the Edwards crew, most of whom
We're Sandwich islanders.
| Soon after the departure from Tristan
it was found that a serious accident had
| happened to the propeller shaft of the
| Shenandoah, and it became necessary to
seek some considerable port for repairs.
| Cape Town was nearest, but Commander
! Waddell preferred making Melbourne, If
| possible, the course thither lying nearer
| the more frequented tracks of the United
States vessels. The voyage was marked by
the capture of several merchantmen.
The character of the Shenandoah was
| known at Melbourne and she dropped an
| Choir in Hobsons bay, cheered and sur
| rounded by the steamers in the haven. The
next day the work Of repairing the ship
was begun and during the delay several of
the crew embraced the opportunity to de-
sert, all of them being men who had join
ed the Shenandoah from captured ships.
| The attempt of Waddell to pursue and
| bring back these men was obstructed by
n the United States consul as well as by
| the Australian authorities. The Shenan-
| doah, In q fortified British port was i'm
no position to resist these acts, and on
Feb. 49, the repairs and coaling having
been completed, the port was cleared.
The delay of the steamer at Melbourne
had operated against success for the Shen-
andoah in the South Pacific The whaling
fleets Of that ocean had received warning
Of the presence of the privateer and had
departed for cheterng ports or the Artic
ocean. Learning from a passing steamer
that some United States whaling vessels
were TO be found i'm a harbor of the Caro-
line Islands. Waddell directed his course
thither, reaching the islands early in Ap-
ril.
An English pilot, who had been living
there for some years, volunteered his SER