To reach New Orleans, Farragut had to pass these forts. On April 23 he made the attack, and the battle that followed is famous in history as "The River Fight." The river was hidden under dense clouds of smoke, and the roar of the guns was deafening. Farragut not only passed the forts-he annihilated them, destroyed most of the enemy's gunboats and captured the remainder. The next day he was at New Orleans, where he forced the surrender of the city under threat of bombardment. VICKSBURG AND PORT HUDSON. Farragut's next important naval operations were in running the batteries at Vicksburg, trying to keep the river open, and in the famous expedition against Port Hudson. BATTLE OF MOBILE BAY. The most brilliant achievement of Farragut's naval career, and the one that made him an Admiral, was the battle of Mobile Bay, on August 5, 1864. The bay was defended by three forts, Morgan, Gaines and Powell. There were thirty guns at Morgan and twenty-one at Gaines. Inside the bay were gunboats and rams, and beside these there was the most formidable of ships then known, the ironclad Tennessee, from which floated the flag of the Confederate commander Buchanan. To make entrance to the bay still more difficult and dangerous the channel had been mined with torpedoes. Farragut's ships were lashed together, two by two, with the Brooklyn and Octorora leading. Beside these vessels were the monitors in single file, the Tecumseh leading them. Farragut was in his favorite place, high up in the rigging, where an officer had passed a line around him for fear he might fall overboard if he should be wounded or the vessel met with an accident. The Confederate vessels had taken up a position in single file across the channel. Farragut's orders were to go slowly and take the fire of the enemy at Fort Morgan. When the fleet came within range of the Confederate gunboats, the Hartford, Farragut's flagship was singled out for attack, and for twenty minutes that vessel fought the enemy's fleet and fort together. A few minutes later the Tecumseh was seen to rise out of the water and then as suddenly sink. At the same moment the Brooklyn, which was immediately ahead of the flagship, began to back water. "NEVER MIND THE TORPEDOES; GO AHEAD!" "What's the matter?" asked a voice from the flagship. "Torpedoes," was the reply. "Never mind the torpedoes; go ahead!" shouted Farragut. The flagship shot ahead of the Brooklyn and began pouring broadsides into the fort. The other vessels followed the gallant leader, and imitated the Hartford's example by pouring a storm of shell, shrapnel and grape upon the fort, that completely silenced its batteries. BATTLE WITH AN IRONCLAD. When the Hartford had cleared the torpedo ground and was steaming up the channel, Buchanan saw the blue flag of Farragut, and started to ram the Hartford with his ironclad, the Tennessee. Farragut signalled his other vessels to run the Tennessee down, and then followed a desperate attempt to sink the ironclad by ramming her. Three of Farragut's ships collided with her, receiving more damage than they inflicted. Farragut rammed her with the flagship and gave her a broadside of nine-inch solid shot, which did no damage. The Tennessee replied with a broadside, which went crashing through the wooden sides of the Hartford, leaving her deck strewn with dead and wounded. Farragut renewed the attack, but just as he was bearing down on the ironclad the flagship was rammed by one of his own fleet, and the Hartford was cut down to within two feet of the water. The crew believed that she was sinking, and there were loud cries of "Save the admiral," but Farragut saw that she would float, and he ordered her to again attack the ironclad. By this time the monitors, which had been firing steadily, had made a hole in the Tennessee, and with her steering apparatus shot away, many of her guns disabled and her commander wounded, she hoisted the white flag and surrendered. A bombardment of the forts was followed by their surrender, and the city and bay of Mobile were once more in the hands of the government. When Farragut returned to his home in New York he was welcomed as a popular hero, and his praises were sung throughout the land. The citizens of New York presented him with $50,000; Congress made him a viceadmiral and afterwards an admiral-the first time that any one had borne this rank in the United States navy. GEORGE PEABODY. CHAPTER XXXIII. A GREAT BUSINESS MAN AT NINETEEN-HOW HE SAVED AMERICAN CREDIT ABROAD-REFUSED HIGH "I HONORS FROM QUEEN VICTORIA. T WAS George Peabody who taught the world how a man might be the master of his fortune, not its slave," said W. E. Gladstone. "George Peabody is the best man that ever lived," said Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (now King Edward VII. of England) at the unveiling of the Peabody statue in London, 1869. These eulogies were pronounced upon the first American millionaire philanthropist. Although George Peabody was an American, his benefactions were not confined to his native land. Three millions of dollars of his great fortune were given to build homes for the poor of London, and a year before his death he endowed an art school in Rome. But his charity began at home, and was dispensed with such wisdom and forethought that it has become perpetual, and the thousands that have lived to call him blessed will be succeeded by other thousands who will have equal cause to praise his beneficence. Not only did he benefit mankind by direct and noble gifts, but he set an example to the millionaires who came after him, and the list of rich men who have endowed educational institutions, libraries, training schools, art galleries, hospitals and homes, and in other ways have sought to ameliorate the condition of less fortunate people, is now a long one. Near the top of that galaxy of philanthropists are such illustrious names as Stephen Girard, Peter Cooper, John Jacob Astor, George W. Childs and Leland Stanford. Almost without exception the American millionaires who have used their great wealth for the benefit of mankind have begun life in poverty-practically penniless, but none started from a smaller beginning than George Peabody, who was born to hard work in the little town of Danvers (now Peabody), Mass., February 18, 1795. At the age of eleven he was taken from school to be one of the bread winners for the family and apprenticed to the keeper of a country store. So faithfully did he perform his duties and such advancement did he make in his work that at the age of sixteen he was offered a clerkship in the dry goods store of his brother, David Peabody, in Newburyport, which he accepted. Although he only worked for his brother a short time he was so prompt and reliable that he established an enviable reputation for ability— and integrity. A fire destroyed David Peabody's store, and George accepted employment with his uncle, John Peabody, a dry goods merchant of Georgetown, D. C., now a suburb of the National Capital. Here business difficulties of all sorts beset him. His uncle was heavily involved in debt, and was a very poor business man besides. George undertook to put the establishment upon a solid business basis, but all of his plans were defeated by the unbusiness-like conduct of his uncle. Seeing that ultimate failure was inevitable, he resigned his position and accepted another one in the big wholesale house of Elisha Riggs in Georgetown. HOW HE WON A PARTNERSHIP. Here he found the opportunity for the display of those fine business qualities with which he was so richly endowed. He quickly mastered the details of the wholesale business, and displayed such rare ability in buying and selling that he completely won the confidence of Mr. Riggs, who made his young clerk manager of the entire establishment when Peabody was but nineteen years of age. He had been manager of the business but a few months when Mr. Riggs invited him to dinner one day, and at the conclusion of the meal surprised and delighted the young man by announcing that he wanted to take him into partnership. Young Peabody saw two objections to such an arrangement, and promptly and frankly stated them. "I have no money with which to buy an interest in the business," he said. Mr. Riggs assured him that he (Riggs) was taking all the risks. "If you manage the business successfully," he said, "your profits will soon pay for your share." "But I am not yet twenty years of age," replied young Peabody, “and therefore cannot become legally responsible with you for the acts of the firm." This remark pleased Mr. Riggs, for it showed him the careful consideration the young man gave to all business affairs. He found an easy way |