The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1911-04-12

low MIN 10 nre IL.
"Pryor was very much agitated.
With husky voice he said. I could
not FIRE the trst gun of the war Cap.
tain James would allow no one else
but himself to FIRE the FIRST gun II
was fred at 4;30 a. m. and burst i'm.
mediately over the fort"
General Beaureeard mentions Ed
mund Euffin In his report and locates
him at "the iron battery" on Morris
island. Colonel De Saussure, COM
mander of the Morris island batteries
says In bis report that his guns open.
ed at 4:4S. after the signal agreed
upon had been given. Colonel De
Saussure's subordinate. Major Stevens.
says that the batteries on Morris Is
land opened after the signal shell had
been fred from Fort johnson. Ruffin
served In the Palmetto guard. which
manned two batteries on Morris is
land. the Point" Cummings and the
Iron batteries Captain Cuthbert OF
| the Palmettos is very explicit in his
report. He says: THE mortar battery
at Cummings point opened fire on Fort
Sumter In Its turn after the signal
shell from Fort Johnson. having been
preceded Ivy the mnrtrr batteries on
| Sullivan's island and the Marion artil
lery Morris iSlrnd, ~ the dawn of
| day the iron Iw't,ry commenced its
work The first shell fred bv the yer
cradle Edmund Rp"in nrrSt directly
bn q
The dawn Ut dHv .n,rn WIS rho
time Itullin fired ms rn'ru,rind - rl;tr
ed by Srvpr;il witnesses more ihnu an
hour after the Si"ru g''n N"auwhilp
/ the bomlnrdmrni nad upru ru,rg on
steadily from. the >r,prai BATTERIES
bearing upon the damned tort
Doubleday Fires Sunt:rs First Shot
Captain Doubleday nrli"vcd thai the
Edmund Rutin shot WAS the one that
struck the wall of the magazine where
be was lying He himself fired the
first shot In return The guns used
were thirty-two and fortytwo pound.
ers The gunners aimed well. and fire
was concentrated upon an ironclad
Confederate battery about a mile dis
tant The shot rolled off like peas, and
as 1t was waste of iron Doubleday's
men took for a target the famous old
Fort Moultrie of Revolutionary fame
the one Colonel Moultrie held against
a British feet That work was liter
ally buried under sand bags. and the
shot had very little effect there. There
x.iSi
crate batteries as participants. but
there was large party of people. ap
parently noncombatants. on the beach
of Sullivan's island. near Fort Moul-
trie Irritated at the fact that they
had been unable to do any damage to
the enemy's batteries, a couple of the
Sumter gunners surreptitiously. when
no officer was near. turned two guns
on this crowd. The first shot fell short
but the second went crashing through
the Moultrie house. which was filed
with citizens watching the duel be
tween Sumter and Moultrie Natural
ly the crowd promptly dispersed.
/ The first night of the bombardmcn'
was one of great anxiety to the little
band cooped up in Fort Sumter rhr
shells dropped into the fort AT reg
ular intervals all night. The second
days bombardment began at the same
hour as the first ((7:3O in the morn
ing At daylight the enemy's fire,
which had been slow all night. warmed
up. and the aim of the gunners was
better than il had been the day be
fore Fire broke out in the officers
quarters of the fort and was extin
guished. but it soon broke out in sew
eral places at once.
Flagstaff Shot Down.
When the flames broke out the Con
I federate batteries increased their fire,
and perfect storm of shot and shell
came upon the fort The flagstaff was
shot down. and for the first time the
old flag dropped to the ground. This
incident was interpreted by the Con
! federates as signal of distress, and
here again General Beauregard showed
that soldier is not necessarily by
any means steeled against the finer
| feelings of man. AS soon as he
heard that Anderson's flag was no
longer flying he sent three of his
aids. W. Porcher Miles. Roger A.
Pryor and Captain Stephen D. Lee. to
see If Andersons people needed and
would receive assistance in subduing
flames which had broken out In the
barracks of the fort. caused by redhot
! shells which the enemy was firing on
purpose. II might be supposed. to start
a confagration
The Fort Sumter gunners. Of course.
had to slow up on their fire In order to
enable some of the men TO turn from
fighting the Confederates to lighting
flames Seeing this. the gunners In
the Confederate batteries cheered
when a lone gun was fred from Sum
ter. When the Confederate aids ap-
peared at the fort and announced to
Major Anderson the humane mission
upon which they had come Anderson
said. present my compliments to
General Beauregard and say that
thank him for his kindness. but need