Sunday Washington globe., 1902-04-13


years ago this month planned to destroy the
notorious rebel ram Albemale, the ironclad
Terror of the Sound" This man was
Lieutenant William Barker Cushing and his
old home is in Dela6eld, Waukesha county,
Wisconsin.
Lieutenant Gushing is dead but now liv-
ing just across the Illinois Wisconsin line
in Rockford, ILL.,, is one Of the few survivors
of the handful of men who followed the
Wisconsin man in an act of daring that
thrilled every Northern heart, filled the
Confederacy with dismay and contributed
to history gallant deed to which the ex-
ploit of Lieutenant Hobson, in sinking the
Merrimac at Santiago, Is now frequently
likened.
John McDermaid, the Rockford manu-
facturer was one of the few men that
steamed with Gushing into the jaws of
death and escaped only by a miracle With
each recurring springtime the season of the
year when the intrepid Wisconsin officer
planned the destruction of the rebel mon
ster of the sound, Mr.. McDermaid is wont
to sit at his own hresde, his family about
him, and go over again the scenes of that
night on the Roanoke river, when the Con-
federate destroyer by Yankee ingenuity and
bravery was silenced forever.
After explaining how the rebel roncad
had been built and turned loose on our
feet on the sound how it engaged and
sunk many of the Union vessels and had
become more and more formidable, and
how our navy at last sanctioned a scheme
to destroy it, Mr.. McDermaid tells the
story in these words:
The plans were to take two steam
launches, fitted with torpedOes, and attack
the ram at some advantageous point. Lieu.
tenant Gushing had had some experience
of the same kind and had lost but he was
brave, young and ambitious. and CommO-
dore Porter sanctioned his scheme He
was given leave to superintend at the
Brooklyn Navy Yard the construction of
the launches. This was in the spring of
1864.
1--WE had seen nothing further of Cushing
until October TO- was attached to the
United States steamer Otsego Of the feet
of Edenton, N. c. was detailed to Roa.
noke Island to make some soundings to see
if we could not get deeper draught vessels
from the sea to Albemarle Sound During
the pleasant weather we spent our time at
this work in the flats off Roanoke Island
In rough or stormy weather we could do
nothing.
Zone clustering afternoon while standing
on the rock on the island we espied an OBJ
iect away down the sound, battling with
the wind and the waves We watched it
for hours and as it gradually approached us
we found it to be nothing less than Cushing
and his steam launch and three men. He
had started from New York with two boats,
but had lost one on the way. He had taken
the island water course to the sound. When
at 4 o'clock he arrived at the dock he was a
pitiful-looking object. His smokestack was
gone and his boat was half full of water.
He and his crew we're suffering from the
chill of the atmosphere. I received them
and gave them my quarters and set my men
to pump out aud get the launch in readiness
for any requirement, We soon had it in
good order, and Gushing, his crew recruited,
set out the next morning for the feet of
Edentou
"A few days after that, having accom-
plshed what was detailed to do as to the
soundings, we got under way and started
for the feet. On arriving there we found
that Cushing had arrived ahead Of US, and
as / belonged to the Otsego 1 reported
aboard that ship. found great enthusiasm
among my old shipmates because of an
order that had been issued calling for vol
launch for the purpose Of destroying the
Albemarle. did not grow very enthusias-
tic over joining that expedition. l had
been engaged in many of a similar kind,
and It seemed to me, as was remarked by
other at that time, that was always one Of
the FIRST to be detailed on such adventures.
However, volunteered to join.
About three days afterwards Cushing's
he
ceve his volunteers. AS we stepped down
the gangway some Of our friends and ship
mates made a remark that was not en-
couraging It was: There goes them boys
in their coffin Captain Arnold made few
remarks cheering US on our journey to
death or glory and promotion, but he
rather insinuated that he hardly ever ex.
pected to see US again. We showed off to
the ships Of the feet receiving our volun-
teers from each ship, attended with similar
remarks as the men stepped down the gang
plank into the launch.
Il rather think that il was October "a
when the Otsego took the launch with her
volunteers in tow to the mouth of the Roa-
noke River. We.had also the launch of the
United States steamer Shamrock in tow.
The .Otsego cast US adrift at the mouth Of
the river and returned to the feet vi Eden
ton. There we we're on our journey up the
river TO achieve either death or glory and
promotion When we got about seven
miles up the river, at the bend below Ply
mouth, we were fred into by rebel pickets
stationed in the pilot house Of the sunken
gunboat Sassacus. which had been sent to
the bottom in an engagement with the ram
we were hunting Approaching the stu.
alton and finding that our object had been
frustrated we returned to the feet, where
we remained three days, getting ready for
another attempt. On the evening Of the
| 27th we again headed oui course for the
mouth Of the Roanoke. We entered about
10 O'Clock at night-dark and dreary, wet
and stormy it was We moved along eau.
tiously on the dark side Of the river under
the shadow Of the bamboo swamps and soon
found we had passed the Sassacus and the
rebel pickets unobserved.
All eyes were now searching for the
monster Of the sound the bel ram Albe.
marie. We found ourselves on the opposite
side Of the river from Plymouth, and ob.
serving black lump on the opposite shore,