672 



NAVY, U. S., OPERATIONS OF. 



that foreign officers can lend their official po- 

 sitions to the spreading before the world, for 

 unworthy objects, untruths patent to every 

 officer of this squadron." Previous to the 

 preparation of this paper the blockading fleet 

 before Charleston had been strengthened by 

 the New Ironsides, Powhattan, and Canan- 

 daigua. 



On January 80th, the gunboat Isaac Smith, 

 Lieutenant Conover, while engaged in reconnoi- 

 tring the Stono river, was obliged to surrender 

 to a rebel land force. She had passed some 

 miles beyond Legar6ville, as she had been in 

 the habit of doing for weeks previous, and was 

 on her way back, when three shore batteries, 

 previously concealed, opened a concentrated 

 lire upon her from heavy rifled guns. Lieut. 

 Conover replied with vigor, and endeavored to 

 steam down past the batteries, but a shot in 

 the Smith's steam chimney effectually stopped 

 the engine, and with no wind, little tide, and 

 boats riddled with shot, she was left at the 

 mercy of the enemy. Eesistance appearing 

 useless, the ship was surrendered, after 24 men 

 had been killed and wounded. It subsequently 

 appeared that, from information communicated 

 by a deserter, the enemy had planned the am- 

 buscade by which the Smith was captured, and 

 had aimed at her boiler and machinery, which 

 were very much exposed. 



On the morning of Feb. 1st, the Montauk 

 again engaged Fort McAllister, at a distance of 

 about 1,400 yards, the water being too shoal to 

 permit her to approach nearer. Some injury 

 was done to the parapets of the fort, and the 

 Montauk was hit 46 times, but without receiv- 

 ing material damage. For eight months pre- 

 vious the privateer Nashville had been lying 

 under the protection of the fort, watching an 

 opportunity to run the blockade; and to pre- 

 vent any attempt by the gunboats to cut her 

 out, the river had been staked and a line of 

 torpedoes laid across the channel. She had 

 been frequently observed close under the fort, 

 ready to make a dash if the opportunity offered, 

 or quietly waiting for an ironclad to tow her 

 to sea. On the morning of the 27th, a re- 

 connoissance discovered the Nashville aground, 

 and Commander Worden seized the opportunity 

 to bring the Montauk close up to the obstruc- 

 tions in the river, and commence a bombard- 

 ment upon her. In less than 20 minutes the 

 Nashville was in flames from exploding shells, 

 and half an hour later her magazine blow up 

 with terrific violence, leaving not a vestige of 

 the vessel in sight. The Montauk was struck 

 five times by shots from Fort McAllister, and 

 while she was dropping down beyond the range 

 of the enemy's guns a torpedo exploded under 

 her, inflicting a slight amount of injury. 



By this time several additional ironclads had 

 arrived at Port Royal, and for the purpose of 

 subjecting their various mechanical appliances 

 to the fall test of active service, before enter- 

 ing upon more important operations, Admiral 

 Dupont ordered them to make a concentrated 



attack on Fort McAllister. This took place on 

 March 3d, the Passaic, Capt. Drayton, the 

 Patapsco, Commander Ammen, and the Na- 

 hant , Commander Downes, participating, under 

 the command of Capt. Drayton. The Passaic, 

 by skilful pilotage, was brought up to within 

 about 1,000 yards of the fort, and for eight 

 hours withstood its chief fire, retiring only 

 when her ammunition was expended. Few 

 of her shots failed to strike above the parapet 

 of the fort ; but beyond disfiguring the face of 

 the work they eifected no injury which a 

 night's work would not repair; and, in the 

 opinion of Capt. Drayton, the fort could " not 

 be made untenable by any number of iron- 

 clads which the shallow water and narrow 

 space would permit to be brought in position 

 against it." The Passaic was struck 34 times 

 in all, 9 shots being against her side armor, 13 

 against her deck, 5 against her turret, and 2 

 against her pilot house. In all these parts of 

 the vessel the bolts were more or less started 

 by the violence of the concussion ; and indenta- 

 tions, varying from half an inch to 2 inches, 

 were made in the armor. A 10 -inch mortar 

 shell, loaded with sand, fell on the deck over 

 the bread room, crushing in the planMng, and 

 would have gone through, had it not struck on 

 a beam. " Had it been loaded with powder in- 

 stead of sand," said Capt. Drayton, "it might 

 have set the vessel on fire. This certainly does 

 not say much for the strength of the deck, the 

 injury to which has been so much more serious 

 than to that of the Montauk, that I must at- 

 tribute it to a worse class of iron, unless heavier 

 guns have been mounted since the attack made 

 by Commander "Worden." Everything about 

 the guns and carriages was reported to have 

 worked well, except that the concussion of the 

 15-inch gun broke all the bolts holding the 

 side of the box to the turret. The Patapsco and 

 Nahant were unable to approach so near the 

 fort as the Passaic, and received but a slight 

 fire from the enemy, who directed their efforts 

 chiefly against the latter. The Patapsco was 

 struck but once, and the Nahant not at all. 

 Satisfied with the experiment (for such the en- 

 gagement had been on the part of the iron- 

 clads), Capt. Drayton immediately returned to 

 Port Royal, where the Passaic, and also the 

 Montauk, underwent repairs. 



By the commencement of April, the prepara- 

 tions, which for many months previous had been 

 making for a combined attack by the ironclads 

 upon the fortifications of Charleston harbor, 

 were completed, and on the morning of the 6th 

 the whole fleet crossed the bar, with the inten- 

 tion of reducing Fort Sumter on the same day, 

 and thence proceeding up to the city. But the 

 weather becoming so hazy as to prevent the 

 pilots from seeing the ranges, the attack was 

 deferred until the next day, and the fleet an- 

 chored about five miles from Fort Sumter. At 

 noon, on the 7th, this being the earliest hour 

 at which, owing to the state of the tide, the 

 pilots would consent to move, signal was given 



