Year: 1865

cept to fit it out When the expedition
did prepare TO start, it was going to the
attack, on the supposition that the pow.
der vessel originally prepared by General
Butler would blow the forts down, and
the troops would have nothing to do but
walk in. He soon saw Butler depended
entirely on this powder boat, and that
there would be no assault from the De-
ginning 1t is not true, as Bntler says,
he gave the navy thirty-siX hours start.
The transports started before the navy
disappeared. 1t was Buffers duty TO
have rendezvoused at Beaufort, and wait
until the monitors and powder-boat, on
which so much depended, were ready
The movements of the light transports
should have been subordinate to large
and slow moving frigates and iron-clads,
| and he should have been where he could
have arranged with me, says Porter, all
the details of the attack; bnt no, he kept
out of nv way, and, think, studiously
| Butler states that Admiral Porter was
quite sanguine, be had silenced the guns
of Fort Fisher, and that he was urged, II
that were so, to run by the batteries INTO
Cape Fear river, and then troops conld
land and hold the beach without diff
Guilty. orwithout liability OF being shelled
by the enemy's guuboat Tallahassee, seen
OH the river Porter says this is de
liberate misstatement adding: Gen
eral Butler does not say who urged me,
but never saw him OF lis stan after the
landing on, the beach; nor did have any
|. conversation with him, or see him, eX
cept on the deck of his vessel, as passed
by in the flagship, from the time left
Fortress Monroe until he left here after
his failure.


Admiral Porter further says, i'll denial
of Buffers statements, that he never had
the slightest intention of passing the
batteries until the fort was taken The
department saw his plan, and the utter
impossibifty of doing so, he would GER
tainly not have been influenced by Gen
eral Buffers opinion iu nautical matters,
OF risked his vessels TO amuse him.


Admiral Porter says: "All the next
paragraph in General Buffers report in
relation to what the Admiral SAID ana
what the Admiral declined to do, is false
from beginning to end never had any
conversation Of the kind with any one
Indeed the whole report is tissue OF
misrepresentations, including the part
that saws the instructions he received
did not contemplate siege &c, when
he knows he never received any instruc-
tions, and joined the expedition without
orders"


In reply to what General Butler says
about the weather assuming a threaten
ing aspect, and the surf rolling in on the
beach, and the landing becoming diff
cult, Admiral Porter says: Il assert the
landing on that day was smoother than
when General Terry landed there. There
was no necessity for General Butler re-
embarking his men on account OF the
weather General Grant never contem-
plated the withdrawal of the troops
He sent them there to stay, and having
once effected landing he knew that the
most difficult part was done"


After further review, Admiral Porter
SAYS in conclusion: Permit me to say that
| do not see what it matters whether
General Buffers troops landed one day
or another. He decided the fort cOuld
not be taken when he did land. He
could not expect the rebels to leave a
work ike that with less than five hun
dred men in it, and he certainly could
have tried to assault that number Gen
eral Terry had two thousand three hun
dred to contend against, and he carried
the works without very serious loss,
considering the Importance of the posi-
ton to the country.