half miles of the forts; and, at nine o'clock, the guns of Fort Jackson opened upon our fleet. Capt. Porter, in command of our mortar-vessels, directed the fire in response, and trained his guns, so that, by ten o'clock, their terrible missiles began to reach their object. Three more fire-rafts came menacingly down to consume our valuable ships; but they were disposed of with the same coolness and bravery as the first. For a whole week, the roar of cannon and mortars told the frightful power of the combatants; but the only apparent effect on the fort was an alarming fire from our hot shot, which threatened to consume every thing combustible it contained. The fire was, however, finally subdued. A change in the position of the fleet was necessary; and, after a council of war, Capt. Farragut calmly decided that some, at least, of his vessels of war must pass the forts. "Whatever is to be done," he said, "must be done quickly. When, in the opinion of the flag-officers, the propitious time has arrived, the signal will be made to weigh, and advance to the conflict." An officer of a French vessel which had been up to the forts told Capt. Farragut that it was impossible to pass them. His reply was, "I am ordered to go to New Orleans, and I intend to go there."

Farragut could depend upon the prompt obedience and extraordinary skill of his commanders and men. Ile says, "Every vessel was as well prepared as the ingenuity of her commander and officers could suggest, both for the preservation of life and the vessels."

Capt. Bell, with "The Pinola," "Itasca," "Iroquois,” “Kennebec," and "Winona," had been despatched to perform the difficult task of cutting away the obstructions which the Confederates had established near the forts. A rocket from the fort gave our daring men a momentary light; and, with chisels and hammers, they assaulted the chains. A storm of shot and shell fell upon them: but they wrought on until the chains parted; and slowly the vessels swung around, leaving the channel clear. Three days after, a gallant recon

noissance, and a gun from "The Itasca," announced that the passage was still open. At two o'clock, the signal rose on the flag-ship; and the men promptly prepared for the dreadful work before them. Some had slept quietly; others had paced the decks with nervous anxiety; but many of our men had been engaged in solemn prayer.

"The Hartford," with the flag of Capt. Farragut, "The Richmond," and "The Brooklyn," moved up close to the west bank, opening fire upon Fort Jackson as they advanced. "The Cayuga," "Pensacola," "Mississippi," "Oneida," " Varuna," "Katahdin,” “Kineo," and "Wissahickon" passed close along the eastern shore, responding to the fire of Fort St. Philip. Capt. Bell, commanding a third line, consisting of "The Sciota," "Iroquois," "Pinola," "Winona," "Itasca," and "Kennebec," moved between the two other divisions. The mortar-boats, under Capt. Porter, kept their position, and opened a new and most terrific fire upon the forts; while "The Harriet Lane," "Westfield," "Owasco," "Clinton," "Miami,” "The Jackson," and "The Portsmouth," attacked the water-battery below the fort. The roar of these guns, the rolling thunders of the forts and batteries, the blazing shells streaming in circles through the air, made the scene terribly sublime.

Capt. Bailey, with "The Cayuga," first drew the fire of the forts as he passed through the opening in the obstructions. He, however, ran close under the guns of Fort St. Philip, which received broadside after broadside of grape and canister as his whole line passed safely through this frightful gantlet. "The Pinola," "Sciota," and "Iroquois," of Capt. Bell's line, also rushed through unharmed.

The most terrible destruction seemed to centre upon the flag-ship "Hartford." A frightful fire-ship came down, with the ram "Manassas" in its rear. Moving as if directed by an evil spirit, it came directly on toward "The Hartford." Farragut's guns kept up their fire as though no danger were near. Sheering a little, he avoided the fire-raft for a moment, poured in a most destructive broadside upon Fort Jackson,

and ran aground. The fire-ship dashed against him, and instantly the rigging of "The Hartford" was in flames. At this awful moment, there was no disorder: the firemen turned the hose upon the flames; the engines tugged away, and moved the vessel from the ground; the orders of Farragut were calm and imperious, and promptly obeyed; the gunners served their guns, and fired as regularly as if they were out of harm; the flames were subdued; and the head of the noble ship was turned upward, and rushed by the forts. The terrible ram "Manassas" drove her huge iron beak furiously into the starboard gangway of "The Brooklyn,” firing from her opened hatchway at the smoke-stack of the latter as she came up, whose bags of sand protected her smokepipe, and her ingenious chain-armor saved her hulk. The ram passed on, and "The Brooklyn" rushed up the stream. Still under the raking fire of Fort Jackson, she was furiously assailed by a large rebel steamer; but she hurled against her a heavy broadside, and sent her out of the fight. Next, abreast of Fort St. Philip, with only thirteen-feet soundings, she brought all her guns to bear, and poured in a storm of grape and canister that silenced the fort; while the men were seen from the masts of "The Brooklyn," by the blaze of her shells, running in terror for a place of safety.*

The apparently impossible was achieved. Farragut's squadron had passed the forts, the rebel squadron was destroyed, and the great battle was over. The sequel of this naval engagement, which will ever be renowned in history, rapidly developed. Our vessels of war moved on to New Orleans, silencing every battery on their way. The scene in the city beggars all description. We have no pleasure in detailing the anguish and the rage of these misguided people. Their obstinacy and insolence, however unwise, were perfectly natural. The flag of rebellion was hauled down, and the stars and stripes waved in its place. The rebel army, under Lovell, had wisely left the city to the

*See Greeley, ii. pp. 83-93; also Headley's Farragut, pp. 67-69.

mercy of its conquerors. Ships and cotton had become, by their own hands, blazing masses of fire on the water: their stores were consumed, or given up to pillage; their forts were surrendered; their costly munitions of war were destroyed or captured; their capital was taken; and the American fleet moved boldly up the Mississippi to be hailed with shouts of joy by the fleet from above. Europe saw that there was no safety in acknowledging the Confederacy.

66

66

THE MONITOR AND THE MERRIMACK."

In the ordinary materials of a navy, the Confederates could not rival the United States. It was, therefore, a just conclusion upon their part, that, by at least one iron-clad, they must be made stronger than the Union at any given place or time. For this purpose, they raised our fine ship "Merrimack," cut her down, and covered her with enormous plates of iron, weighing in all over seven hundred tons. They furnished her also with a strong cast-iron beak, designed to be driven furiously into the sides of our wooden vessels, and sink them.

She was finished, and had received her battery of eight nine-inch Dahlgren, and four seven-and-a-half-inch Brooks rifle-guns, by the fifth day of March, 1862.

At about one o'clock on the 8th, she was seen, in company with two gunboats, rounding Sewall's Point, and advancing toward Newport News. Her advent had been for some time expected and dreaded; and, now that she actually appeared, all true hearts were moved with dread.

Receiving the terrific broadsides of "The Congress" as she passed, without showing the least concern, she bore down upon "The Cumberland." The fire of both these brave ships was well delivered; but their heavy shot glanced from the armor of "The Merrimack," doing her no harm. Presently, with a full head of steam, she drove her strong beak into the side of "The Cumberland," and opened a chasm, through which

the water rushed; and she began at once to fill and settle. Her brave officers and men resolved never to strike her colors to the defiant rebel monitor; and, firing broadside after broadside, they went down with their colors flying.

"The Congress" had been engaged by "The Jamestown" and "Yorktown," consorts of "The Merrimack ;" and, attempting to escape, she ran aground. She gallantly maintained the unequal fight until the crushing shot of "The Merrimack " had torn her almost literally to pieces, and she had taken fire in several places; then, to save her wounded from the flames, she lowered her flag.

"The Minnesota," "Roanoke," and "St. Lawrence," attempting to escape one after another, ran aground in water so shallow, that they could not be reached by the monster, or they would have been destroyed with the utmost ease. Evening coming on, "The Merrimack" with her two attendants turned her prow toward Norfolk. Her Confederate officers and men, proud of her achievements, had no doubt of being able to finish the destruction of our squadron in the morning, and move on to New York if they pleased. The joy in Norfolk, and soon throughout the Confederacy, was unbounded, only equalled by the dismay and forebodings at Fortress Monroe and through the North.

At eight o'clock that evening, a small, low, nondescript vessel made her appearance: it was Ericsson's "Monitor," commanded by Capt. John Lorimer Worden. But, seeing her diminutive size, the hearts of our brave officers and men sank within them.

The night wore away; and, early on the 9th of March, "The Merrimack" came out again. Moving deliberately toward "The Minnesota," she saw what, in derision, was termed a "Yankee cheese-box," steam directly up by her side.

The great battle promptly began. The heavy shots of "The Merrimack" rolled harmless from the turret of "The Monitor ;" and her commander, amazed at the audacity of the little craft, and seeing that he could not penetrate her armor,