The record-union., 1898-09-11
he WAS WITH FARRAGUT,
HENRY PITHER TELLS OF THE
DAYS OF MORTAR FLEETS.
A Sacramento Fisherman Saw a
Mans Head Blown OFF Beside
the Old Hero.

It is not known to many Sacrauen-
tans that there dwells in this city a
man who was with Farragut in 1862,
| when the immortal deeds of the Flag
| Commander of the mortar SQUADRON
were being enacted-but that man is
here and his name is Henry Pither. a
| fish dealer, who lives beyond the gas
works on Front street
A "Record-Union" reporter was
granted an interview with the inter
| esting survivor of that terrible fusil-
lade few days ago, and a more inter-
esting story one never laid down his
pipe to hear, as the Scotsman would
say.
Il have a pretty vivid idea of what
Dewey's crew experienced" said Mr.
Pither, as his eye twinkled and his
mood became reminiscent, for you bet
had to fight as if the evil one had been
after me for hours'-and it may be
said in passing that Pither is one of
those wire-like, spare-looking men that
still suggests the possibility of a good
fight-'for hours, l say, under a CALLING
fire"
But did you ever see Farragut him
self in close quarters?" he was asked
Close quarters? By jingo, man! l
stood not twenty feet from him when a
bit of bursting she'll cut. a nigger's
head clean off and passed SO close to
another that the wind tore his shirt
from the back of him and him stand
ing there naked and dazed like. Did it
phase old Farragut? Devil bit did he
turn any paler than he was, for he was
pale. and we We're all pale, for men
We're droppin like dead birds all around
and warm blood runnin' over us like
tea-blood from our wounds, or from
other mems"
What boat were you on?"
From Cairo 10 Vicksburg I was on
the st. Louis, and the same at Fort
Henry and Donelson; then on the Ben
ton, flagship, to Vicksburg. 1t was
there that we met Farragut's fleet 1
being Immediately under Commander
Foote, then Davis, who was in charge
of a fiotilla. Farragut rSn up close to
meet us, and we were afterward on the
same boat. You know those mortars
were built so that the closer we got to
the enemy the better for us, because
the shots would then glance off. Any
way you looked at it, there was hot
work, and plenty of it. OF course, our
guns were not to compare with the
modern pieces used in the great navies
of the country, but what's the differ
ence whether you die from an old six
FOUNDER that comes rolling out Of an
old-tlme smooth bore, or by a hundred
pound bomb fired by dynamite or gun
cotton from a rif1ed piece as big as a
whale? Both are bad for the diges-
ton. Well, there was all the lead and
iron flynn around that 1 ever want to
see if 1 should live hundred more
years-and you can say in your news
paper for me that any man that fought
in this war and got away alive after
hard service deserves the gratitude of
his country
But how about Farragut? What did
he look like in the engagement
"Oh, I forgot. 1 suppose you've seen
his pictures the old-time ones? Well
he had a face like the old-time actors
like John Mccullough he had a good
voice and a clean-cut jib, with a long,
square, firm chin-and when he looked
at you out of the tail of his eye he
meant business. He was cool, but bold
as a lion, with a solemn. dead earnest
way; no whimsical notions in his head,
but square business in a minute all the
way through
Mr. Pither is very modest concerning
his career but he has many interesting
stories he can tell about the fire that
was directed upon the Hartford and the
Arkansas in the attempt on VickSburg, |
and can describe the whiZZing of heavy |
missiles as clearly as if he had just J