The Warship Under Steam 105 



warfare between steam-driven vessels was 

 fought between the North and South. 

 The former States were called the 

 " Federals ", and the Southern the 

 " Confederates ". The Federals had a 

 wooden frigate, called the Merrimac, which 

 was in danger of falling into the hands of 

 the Confederates. To avoid this she was 

 set on fire and burned almost to the 

 water-edge. 



In this condition she came into the 

 Confederates' hands, and their naval 

 authorities, having heard of the British 

 Warrior and the French La Gloire decided 

 to emulate those craft with the Merrimac, 

 so they cut her down still further to the 

 water-line, and erected upon her, begin- 

 ning two feet down and coming four feet 

 above the water-line, what was really an 

 armoured fort. The wooden backing was 

 made exceptionally strong, of pitch pine 

 and oak, and then this was coated with 

 two thicknesses of plating, mainly manu- 

 factured from railway metals torn up from 



