St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1913-10-18
The Memphis Commercial APP

The Memphis Commercial APP
peal Of Sept. % contains ar
interesting account of the cap.
ture of one Of the Federal gun
boats which had run past the
batteries at Vicksburg in Febru'
airy, 1863. 1t was written by L.
Saunders King, Of Opelousas,
only son of the late Judge John
E. King, whose residence stooo
for many years before that date
on the site of the present home
of Mr.. A. Moresi, on Market
street. Young King was only
18 years old at that time and a
very promising youth. He and
a number Of other st. Landry
men formed part of Miles
Legion, but he and our gallant
old friend, Edmond F. Dejean,
whose home was and still is near
|Opelousas, are the only survivors
whose names we can recall. He
returned to Opelousas after the
war, studied law, engaged in
the newspaper business, narrow
|ly escaped death on Sept. q,
1868. at Pallets farm in a
bloody pitched battle with riotous
negroes, when Capt. NJ. G. May
was desperately wounded, and a
few years afterwards settled in
Mississippi, His account OF a
memorable and thrilling histori-
cal event which occurred more
than fifty years ago, and the
gallant part he took IN it, which
he so nodes fly relates, is quite
interesting. Read it.
To the editor of the CONNER
cial Appeal
In the Sunday edition of the
New Orleans Tines Democrat of
Aug. 81 appeared an article from
Mr.. Galbreath purporting to be
an account of the capture of the
Federal gunboat Indianola in
February, 1868. The account is
so garbled and inaccurate that
numerous friends and comrades
have importuned me to give a
true and accurate. account of the
capture, as I saw it. Mr.. Gal
breath has Admiral Faragut's
whole fleet passing the batteries
at Port Hudson, while as a matter
Of fact only one vessel, the Hart
ford, and a small tender to the
flagship. the Albatross, succeed
ed in passing. The Mississippi,
commanded by Lieut.. Dewey,
now Admiral Dewey. was dis
abled and sunk, while the balance
of the feet turned and never
passed Port Hudson until after
its surrender on July 9.
In the latter part of February,
1863, while the command with
which I served, Miles Louisiana
Legion, was stationed at Port
Hudson, the Queen of the West,
a Federal gunboat, ran the
batteries at Vieksburg and was
patrolling the river between that
point and Port Hudson. Lieut.
Col. Fred B. Brand of Miles
Louisiana Legion, an old United
States naval officer, conceived
the idea of rigging up an old
Mississippi River steamboat,
the DR.. Baty." with cotton
bales and volunteers and under
take by some desperate means to
capture this gunboat, and after
discussing this matter very free
ly with some of his younger
officers and men the plan
was finally settled upon. None
but volunteers for the desperate
attempt were asked to take the
risk. All arrangements being
made and Gen. GARDENERS per-
mission obtained, we weighed
ancher, in ships parlance, and
started up the river with a 20
pound parrot gun, commanded
by Capt. j. Watts Kearney, two
12-pound brass pieces from
Boone's Louisiana Battery and
about $50 picked sharpshooters.
], who was then sergeant-major
Miles Legion, at the special
request of Col. Brand, was de-