The Lamar register., 1898-05-07
CHASED THE RUNNER.
BLOCKADE RUNNING DURING
THE CIVIL WAR.
Tirst Montgomery. History Forerunner
of the Present Famous Boat Was
once Merchant Vessel bot Had Good
speed.

Montgomery. whose namesake Is the
present splendid cruiser now so proud
~ pointed to. AZ that time her master
alarms was William II. Baxter. now
hre marshal OF the city OF Detroit. He
was with her during her famous cruise.
which resulted in the court -martialing
of her commanding officer. Commander
Hunter. and saw much service in chase
ot blockane runners Marshal Baxter
said recently. according 10 the Detroit
Journal; THE Montgomery Sas the
only vessel OF the United States navy,
so far as I know. which has ever dis
turhed Spanish soil II was in the early
winter OF 1862 that we were cruising
along the coast OF Cuba We had been
on a rather extended cruise through
the Bahamas and along the coast OF
Florida, and had run In 20 Havana
We did not go into the inner bay, but
Iay outside We were only there for
short time and then bore away for
Pensacola for coal. Along the north
western coast OF Cuba runs coral reef.
some distance out from the shore. and
afiordinE frst-eIass channel inside.
We were heading about northwest,
inside the reef. Subsequent events
proved that she was the steamer
Blanche. blockade runner. bound for
New Orleans, think, with load OF
cotton. Well, OF course we had no
right to molest her. as she was Inside
the three-mile limit. but we had an old
man. "a the captain Is always called.
you know. who was a figh;er FROM
away back. and he loved to fight for
It's own sake. He'd fight anything,
and never aoppsd TO argue a delicate
Qurs.tiUn OF Jurisdiction. So we turned
In our cour-e and beading about south
east vent after her. We wanted that
cotton. We could see by the smoke
thRs was pouring out OF her tunnels
that they were using resin and every
thing else In the attempt TO get away
from US. bEt II was 10 good Our
course was laid 90 that she would have
been cut on before she reached The
hzrfor. though Il would have taken
her right under the guns OF the castle.
First she ran up a Spanish fiagabut
that did no good. Then she hoissed
British Gag. with the Spanish Tag nn-
dsrneath, signitying that she was
British boat. claiming Spanish protec-
ton, and stiIl we kept after her. We
had the heels Of her and pretty soon
We pitched a round shot across her
bows as a signal to heaye 10. She
paid no attention 20 this and We l-,
another one go, She kept right on,
and the 'old man got mad. We had
a big I5-inch gun amidships. mounted
atY s.d around
far enough TO clear our standing star
hoard rigging. and then we began to
pitch shell at her. There we're six
teen Of ehoee l5-inoh shells fired and
every one went clear over Into the wa
ter the other side OF her. Her crew
got scared. however. and turned her
nose In shore. and ran her right on the
sand. They were so close that every
man but one got clear of the ship by
using pike poles TO swing ashore with
They had set fire to her, and by the
time that we got alongside she was a
regular furnace. There was no hope
OF saving anything. so we had to pull
back TO the ship and let the cotton
burn. All along there the shore is fiat,
and there are. or we're. a lot OF little
fishermen's huts. II was one of the
funnles; things ever saw to see those
fishermen come umbling out of their
huts, and jumping on their donkeys, or
burros. as they call them. go scurry-
ing for the hills about half-mile back,
The burros We're so small that when
they began TO go up the hill they looked
more like lot Of big tarantulas than
ANYTHING else. There were so many
legs. and the riders were lying fat on
their backs in order TO duck the shots
as much as they could. Well, the up
shot of it all was that when we reached
Mobile we were on blockading duty
for one week, and then we were order
ed north TO the Charlestown navy yard,
AZ Boston, where the old man.. Com
mander Charles Hunter, WIS court
martialed and dismissed the service.
We were sent aboard the receiving
ship, and good number Of us, of whom
| was one, came home then. The old
Montgomery had originally been a
merchant vessel, running between New
York and Savannah, and was convert
ed into a man of war at the time when
the country was using everything
available. She was propeller, just
such one as you can see by the dozen
any day here in the river during the