The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-03-06
SINKING OF THE MERRIMAC.
The Many Inaccurate Statements Re-
gardfng This Famous Naval Battle
montgomery, Ala, Advertiser.)

BOOKS, papers and magazines about the
battle between the Monitor and the
Virginia, or "Merrimac," as she is gen.
orally known. Some of these have
been inspired by hate, and some by ig-
norance. while pension money to
those aboard the Monitor has doubtless
had much to do with it. The greater the
deeds" performed on that vessel. the
greater the pension money, especially
to one whose eyes were damaged viii e
in the turret during the fight. This lat
ter claim of damage lone by and to
the widely known officer in question is
a matter of record.
One of the greatest misstatements
about this matter that has recent y
appeared was an Associated Press dis
patch from New York which appeared
In a great nan papers y st .rday
morning. the Advertiser included.
The statement in question is found in
the notice of the death of a certain
Claude de Lorraine. of, whom it is saia
ne was chief engineer of the Monitor
when that vessel sank the Mel rimac
during the civil war; So at last the
teachings of northern histories. es-
pecially school histories, have borne
fruit-the Monitor sank the Melri-
mac!' Mirabile dictu. wouldn't there
nave been great oodles'' of prize
money for those aboard the Monitor if
1t had only been known sooner that
the Monitor sank the Merr.mac?'
Oh. but wouldn't there though? 1t is
pitiable to think of those poor fellows
on the Monitor going to their graves
with nothing but pension money,
whereas they might have lac great
chests full of prize money as we'll. for
sinking" that terrible Merrimac
lVirginia)
To read accounts emanating from a
certain section. one might fancy that
the Virginia CASUALLY known still as
the Merrimac) was destroyed, or just
about destroyed, by the Monitor, but
was such the case? 1t was after the
sinking Of the Cumberland by the Vir-
ginia and the destruction of the Con-
gress, which after running up two
white iagS to half-maSt as a token. OF
surrender, after receiving the terrible
fire of the Virginia. fired upon b "a
sent to her, and scattering cOSterna-
ton on all sides among the federals.
that the battle between her and the
Monitor took place To describe 1t as
an undecided battle may be correct,
but be it remembered by the boys of
the south that it was the Monitor
which first withdrew, in the ending of
that battle, getting into shallow water
where the Virginia could not follow,
and that the Virginia did net retire
until after the Monitor had done So,
and then slowly, after failing to coax
the Monitor again to combat. There
! was some damage done to the guns
of the Virginia, but the records show
that this was lone during her previous
combat with the vessels of the federal
fleet. n not with the Monitor. 1t
was a wooden vessel of the federal
fleet which did that damage. and not
the irOn-clad.
Another fact which one is not apt to
find in northern histories is that after
this combat the Virginia stood forth
for evera days challenging the Mon
itOr to another trial of st-ength-which
the latter did not accept, and never
did accept. She seemed to find the
guns of Fortress Monroe, under which
she took refuge, much more pleasant
companions than those on the Virginia.
SO she stayed out there. If the Virgin
ia was so badly injured, why did not
the Monitor follow up the work when
she had such excellent opportunities
Those in found that it was
much easier to claim han to Demon
/ Strate.
The Virginia at a later date was
blown up. but it was done by conf5d-
crate hands to prevent her from becom-
ing a trophy of war. No alien hand
took part in her destruction. Anyone
desiring fuller information upon these
] matters will find the document in 1.-The
| Confederate States Navy by j. T.
Scharf, and also something about the
evacuation of Richmond, n the bow
ing up Of the confederate vessels, in
Admiral Semme's thrilling book, MEM
oirs of Service Af1oat."
There have really been three sink
ings of the Merrimac." The first was
the sinking of the war vessel of that
name by the federals to keep her from
falling into the hands of the confeder-
ates. These latter gentlemen, who by
| the way were very enterprising and in
| dustrious, and W. about revolution
lied modern naval warfare in giving
iron-clads, torpedoes in their present
| efficiency and bmarin boats to the
world, did raise the Merrimac, relnod-
! eled her and gave her the name Vir-
| ginia, though the old name is best
known. The second sinking of the
l Merrimac" was done by them. The
| third sinking Of the Merrimac was done
| at Santiago, Cuba, in recent years., by
! AlaDama's splendid and chivalric son,
| Richmond P. Hobson.
1t is significant of a reunited country
| that in the new warship Alabama, now
in Alabama waters, will be found
| combined the form Of armor in both
| the Virginia and the Monitor. Anyone
| observing the picture Of the vessel will
| see there carried out the idea of the
/ defensive arrnor as found upon the
| Virginia and also the turrets Of the
| Monitor type Of vessel. Each was eff
| fective. Combined may they ever be
| more so in her case.
1t is a revelation of the passage of
| time when we remember that the "A'a-
bama" and the "Kearsarge," name
sakes of the combatants in the fierce
naval duel off Cherbourg harbor in 1864,
are now sister ships in the United