Rensselaer Republican, Volume 15, Number 46, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 July 1883 — CAREER OF THE RAM ARKANSAS. [ARTICLE]

CAREER OF THE RAM ARKANSAS.

-How She Passed Through a Whole Fed* eral Fleet. 'W Perhaps the construction of the lam 'Arkansas, together with her brief but astonishing career, furnishes one of the most curious incidents in the history of the Confederate navy. The construction of the ram waa begun at Memphis, but her hull had scarcely been launched •when it was found necessary to tow it away to a place offering greater security. One Federal fleet had sailed up the Mississippi almost to Vicksburg, while another was pounding away* at Fort Pillow above Memphis,, and the skeleton of the Arkansas was towed •down the great river and up the Yazoo to be finished. The Yazoo was, for .some months, a safe retreat for a considerable number of vessels, government and private, but the Arkansas was the only one which the Federal fleet was troubled about. After the upper Federal fleet had -captured Memphis and the lower one had reached Vicksburg, the Confederates began the work of locking up the Yazoo river. It is a sluggish stream, its banks low, it bottom a bed of mud and snags and, at that period, when the few plantations up as far as Yazoo CitA were being deserted and all traffic on the river had ceased, no locality could have presented a more desolate aspect. The Federals would soon know what was going on up the sluggish stream, and the most active precautions were taken to prevent a visit. Gangs of men were detailed to fell trees and construct rafts at various points, little camps of scouts and sharp-shooters •were established along the banks, and when thp work was declared finished it had been so well done that a Federal gun-boat could not have made her way from the Mississippi to Yazoo City in two weeks’ time if allowed to pass unmolested.

The Yazoo being narrow, the Confederates had ”a great advantage to begin with. There was no rapid current to contend with in placing their rafts, .and when one was secured in position it .-could be depended upon to remain there. In one spot in the river near its mouth was an almost solid raft half a mile long and so Secured that a hundred locomotives oould not have pulled it apart. All the rafts were of green timber, thus baffling any attempt to bnarn them out, and the sharp-shooters in the woods could have easily picked ofFanywaen landing from a craft trying to make its way up the river. The Yazoo was securely locked up, but the Federate consoled themselves with the idea that they held the key, They could blockade its mouth and, if they • could not go up, the Confederates could not come down. The Arkansas wras powerless as long as she was hidden away up the stream, and if she came down she would find a welcome prepared for her. IBfo men in the camps scattered along (the river were sorely tried. There was •a weirdness and desolation that checked any enthusiasm. The stream was full •of alligators —great, slimy reptiles, whidf||ept in the summer sun by day ■and 'fafipht and bellowed along the banks *oy night. The chirp of a bird was a rare thing. In place of it was the lonesome scream of the crane as it ■BtriledNabove the trees, and the angry /hiss of the cotton-mouth and moccasin .as they found their haunts invaded. ' The mosquitoes were a plague that at \4imes threatened to drive every camp from .the river. Under the dense shade of the banks they knew no rest, but .swarmed in great clouds and bit with (the fierceness of snakes. Men who -could stand marching and fighting were ■used up by these pests and had to be from thier posts. It was expected that the Federals would make attempts to get up the river, but the -only expeditions sent out consisted of aooat-boats to examine and report on the obstructions. All things considered, the further completion of the Arkansas was a matter of wonder. A shipyard had to be improvised,' and every spike, bolt, rope, damp or piece of iron of any sort must •be seat away for. The nearest point ' where any of these things could be obtained was Vicksburg, and the nearest railroad was at least thirty miles away. To finish the ram required nails from •one point, bolts from another, iron plates from another, and indeed the whole Confederacy may be said to have contributed.

Had the Arkansas been bnilt at Charleston dr New Orleans, and the designs of the draughtsmen carried out, she would hate been a much more formidable craft than the Merrimac and at least the • equal of the Tennessee. ■lt was designed to provide her with powerful engines; but, after she had been hurried up the Yazoo, Commodore Lynch could find nothing better than the engines belonging to a river steamer. While these would drive the steamer ten miles an hour, they would not push the Arkansas over four. Her first weak point was in her speed; the second in her roof and plating. There were a dozen vulnerable spots, and those who looked her over carefully when she was ready to sail declared that she would be sent to the bottom by the first Federal gun-boat which got within range. The ram was provided with ten guns, manned by a volunteer crew, and about the middle of July, 1862, was ready to run down the river and make the attempt to reach Vicksburg. She was placed in charge of Lieut. Com. Brown, and he gave the crew to understand that the ram should go to the bottom before hauling down her flag. The crew was then culled over, and such as did not take kindly to this desperate proposition were replaced by others.

Scouts, deserters and negroes had kept the Federal fleet posted in regard to the progress of the Arkansas, and when she was ready to drop down the river her reception was likewise ready, An iron-clad and two! rams had run up the Yazoo about a mile to have the first dash at the Confederate, and just below the mouth of the stream the entire Federal fleet, consisting of ten or twelve craft, were drawn up in a double line. If the Arkansas'get into the Mississippi she must run the gauntlet through this fleet exposed to the full broadside of each ship at short range. There was a determination to destroy her at every hazard, and no one doubted that she would be blown out of water by the terrible fire that could be concentrated upon her. The iron-clad Carondelet, assisted by the Tyler and the Queen of the West, was waiting in the Yazoo when one morning the Arkansas was suddenly sighted coming down. She had passed the big raft in the night, and the heavy timber along the banks had concealed bar smoke until she was close upon the Federals. The fight opened at once, and vyth great vigor. The Carondelet moved up to meet the ram, firing as she advanced, and her two companion-craft opened fire from their bow guns and began a fire of musketry at the portshutters of the ram. The Carondelet had not fired above four shots when a solid ihot from the Arkansas disabled her engines. A second entered one of her ports and killed five men, and in less than ten minutes she had fourteen men killed and wounded and w'as aground on the bank. It is claimed by the Confederates aboard the ram, and by others watching the fight from the shore, that the Carondelet struck her flag. This issue is avoided by some Federal historians and denied by others. She was certainly crippled and run ashore, and her two companions were driven down into the Mississippi. Had the trio pulled down their flags in token of surrender the Arkansas would not have gained a point. Her destination was Vicksburg, and she must reach that pqint to be of any benefit to the Confederacy. She passed the disabled Carondelet within twenty feet, steaming as fast as she could, and yet not making over five miles an hour, and when she reached the Mississippi she was in plain sight of 10,000 spectators on the bluffs at Vicksburg. The Federal fleet was ready for her, and the Arkansas was to run such a gauntlet as was never before prepared for a vessel. Orders were given the engineer to give her all speed possible, and the ram took the center of the river and steamed aliead. The moment the Confederate appeared every Federal gun which could be brought to bear opened fire, and the ram was hit five or six times before entering the lines. When the broadsides were brought to bear the effect was tremendous. It seemed to the crew of the ram as if she was being lifted bodily out of the water by the heavy concussions. Her speed was so slow that she was retained under fire much longer than an ordinary vessel would have been, and the striking shot and shell had every advantage. When it was seen that the Arkansas was likely to pass through the lines unscathed her way was blocked, but she did not deviate from her course an inch. The vessels in her path had to move aside or take the chance of a collision with her iron beak. When the ram finally opened fire she had plenty of targets all around her, and her guns were worked rapidly and wth telling effect. She entirely disabled another gunboat, beat off two of Ellet’s rams, and paid her compliments to almost every vessel in the lines. The fire upon her never slackened for a moment, and even after she had run the gauntlet she was followed and fired upon until safe under the gunp of Vicksburg. Her escape was a bitter pill to swallow. Sbe was ungainly, slow, under fire for the first time, and there were not twenty men aboard who had ever before assisted to fire a cannon. Member of the crew were repeatedly knocked down by the concussions, and in two instances, became so terrified that they fell down and remained heplesa throughout the affair. The Arkansas was moored to the banks by chains and ropes, her crew reinforced, damages repaired end then phe was ready to take part in the defense of the city. She had run the gauntlet with three killed and two

wounded, and had been penetrated by five or six solid shot, but not materially damaged. The two Federal fleets—the one above and the other belqw the city—now planned to destroy the Arkansas at the tmnk. THe oner moved down and the other up in the night and • suddenly Opened a terrific bombardment against the confederate batteries, the object being to silence them until the ram could be destroyed. Neither purpose was accomplished. The city was shaken as by an earthquake, and tons of metal were hurled back and forth, but the fleet ultimately withdrew without having accomplished anything, Three or four vessels hurled shot and shell at the ram for more than an hour, and she replied with every gun which would bear, but the conflict added only three or four to her list of killed and wounded, and nothjng of aocount to her damages. Again, on the night of the 22d, the fleets engaged the batteries as before, and Porter made for the Arkansas with the Essex, believing he could strike her a blow which would crush in her side. He approached with a full head of steam on, made a dash for the monster, and struck a glancing blow which ran the Essex ashore and secured her a terrific pounding before she got off.

The Essex, however, was to be revenged at a later date. When it was realized what the Arkansas had accomplished the Confederates determined to use her .to recover possession of Baton Rouge. A land force moved to cooperate with her, but from the hour the ram left Vicksburg she was thq subject of disaster. First one part and then another of her engines gave out and had to be repaired in a rude way. She got aground several times, sprung a leak twice, and was once on fire. Just above Baton Rouge her engines were again disabled and she had to make fast to the bank. While in this condition the Essex and other crafts advanced upon her and opened a hot fire. The career of the ram was ended. She was at once abandoned, several fires started to consume her, and whpn the flames were well under way she was turned tfdrift to go to destruction. The Essex had the credit of her destruction, and the monster which had caused so mqch anxiety , for long months was finally out of the way. M. Quad.

Queer Lapses of the Memory. About three years ago I came to Harrison Squarp in the ears and mounted my horse for home. After galloping about a mile I suddenly found or imagined I had gone wrong. I could not recall the surroundings. I turned my horse’s head back and went near to my starting-place; again turned and rode home over the same familiar road that I had so often traveled. The loss of mind or identity of locality did not last more than twenty minutes. On a previous occasion I took the boat for Nahant at 2 o’clock, dined with a friend, and slept at the honse of another friend. The next morning I went home quite well. Awakening the next morning my wife alluded to my visit to Nahant the day before, of which I had given her a full account on my return. I answered that I had not been to Nahant, and stuck to it. The whole thing had left my memory. Being alarmed, my wife sent for the doctor, who came and found me asleep. I awoke and found him feeling my pulse, and I asked him why he had come, and my wife stated the fact erf my having denied the visit to Nahant. I replied: “You have been dreaming, I am very well, and do not require the doctor.”'The whole details of my visit to Nahant were fresh in my memory, but the fact of my having denied all knowledge of them had become pompletely blotted out. Many years ago, when navigating a ship through Java Sea, one night about 12 o’clock we passed close totwo little islands called the Brothers. J went below to get a map and told an officer of the deck to call me at 2 a. m., when I intended to change the course to clear a shoal of somewhat doubtful locality. I awoke soon after 3 o’clock, wholly unconscious of having been called, and went on deck and scolded the officer for not calling me at 2 o’clock. He answered that lie had called me and informed me of the state of the wind and weather as in duty bound, and that I, apparently wide awake, had ordered the course altered two points. When at sea in charge of a ship I had a habit of waking up at almost any hour, and the end of a watch at night generally found me wide awake and preparing to go on deck to see that all was going right. — Capt. JR. C. Forbes , in Boston Traveler.

Cattle on the Highway. A land-owner gives the following reasons why cattle should not run in highways: 1. They have no right there. 2. They prevent his setting trees along the line of his land, as it will cost too much to build a fence around every tree to protect it. 3. He cannot his gate open a minute for fear some unruly animal will plunge into his garden or fruit orchard. 4. In drawing loads he must open and shut gated every time, requiring hindrance and labor. To which he might have added, that as street cattle are valued on account of their skill in “picking a living,” they will break gates even if they are shut; and the food they eat in gardens is rather costly. Beside, they frighten little children on their way to school/and they spatter the foot-paths with manure. r The Athens (Ga.) Banner says: ”We don’t want the Colonels ruled out of politics. They could not be mlqd out of the bar-rooms and hotels during the war, and now they must have sdtoe showing, so let them stay in politics; th«sr are harmless,”

The tiiuwth of the West. Few stories of industrial development, says ~an-exchange, can compare with that of the Northwestern States of America. Fifty years ago only, Ohio, Michigan and Indiana were comparatively unexplored, while such States and Territories as Wisconsin, California, Kansas, Oregon, Montana, lowa, Nevada and many other had no existence. From interesting data recently issued, we find that half a century ago Chicago had but twenty-nine voters; the first house was not yet erected in St. Paul; San Francisco was but a struggling Mexican settlement; Milwaukee had no place on the map, and Bnffalo, which had just been incorporated, was scarcely beginning to feel that commercial impulse, which, following the completion ol the Erie canal, was destined to make it one of the moat important cities of the union. The commerce of New York was very trifling, and there was no railroad between that city and Albany* Now the progress being made in the far Northwest is surprising, and Oregon Territory is, perhaps, advancing more rapidly than any other section. It is twice as large as New York State, having an area of 95,274 square miles. In 1870 its population was only 90,823, but by 1880 the number had increased to 174,000. Within ten years the population of Portland, its largest city, bad trebled itself. The State raised 12,67t,000bushels of wheat last year, aa compared with 3,127,000 bushels ten years ago-, thus showing that in the decade the crop had increased fourfold. The salmon fishery is another important source of revenue in this. State. Washington Territory, which was formerly a part of

Oregon, is also advancing. It has a good climate and fertile soiL The lumber traffic promises to be very great. Fir, pine, oak, and cedar of superior qualitity and almost unlimited quantity are to be had in the Puget sound district ;in fact, it is estimated that this region of the State alone will yield 160;.000,000,000 feet of valuable timber. One mill there cuts up 180,000 feet daily; another is preparing for a daily cut of 250,000 feet, while 7,000,000 feet are shipped monthly to foreign ports along the coast. Prices of lumber have advanced, and wages also have risen recently. Montana is another promising Territory, with an area of 143,776 square miles or about three time the superficies of New York State. The cattle trade is being pushed forward rapidly, and it is expected that dead beef will be sent through from Montana to New York in refrigerators. Dakota, the largest of all the Territories in the Northwest, is making great strides in grain culture. The valley of the Red river of the North is being opened up and the use of machinery is so extensive that even persons of little experience in . agriculture can find the culture profitable. The Yellowstone country is another region which will shortly be thrown open to settlers by increased railroad facilities. In Nebraska the yield of wheat last year was nearly 15, r 000,000 bushels, or more than four times the quantity raised in 1873. Indeed, the progress of the wheat culture in the West and on the Pacific slope .is one of the most significant features of .the agricultural developement of America.

Shaved by Sections. A commercial drummer, with several heavy cases in hand, panted into Wartk’s barber shop, Trentou, N. J.. One side of his face had a several days? growth of whiskers, while the other side was, perfectly smooth. He threw himself into a chair. “Shave me,”' he said, brusquely. The astonished barber began to adjust a cloth about his neck, looking at „the drummer’s face meanwhile with eloquent curiosity.* “Been in the barber chair once this morning, haven’t you?” queried the barber.

“Twice,” said the stranger correcting him; “once in Philadelphia and oneein Brjstol. Got my face lathered iix, Philadelphia and then saw I couldn’t make my train unless I started. Got the barber to wipe off my face, and I ran and got on just as the train was moving. At Bristol I thought I’d have time to do some business and get shaved and eatoh the next train. Got through with my business, ran into a barber shop, got lathered again, and got half my face shaved, when I heard the train coming. Jumped up and paid the barber, and again bad my face wiped off, and struck for the depot and got the train just as it was moving. People on the train looked at nae and then turned away and whispered. They thought I was an escaped lunatic. I want & close shave, please, and take your time to it. I’m going to make up for this helter-skelter business in the morning.”— Trenton Times.

Hew He Made It. “So you have found hotel-keeping a source of great profit nueried a New Yorker of a Colorado naan whom he met in Chicago. I “Well, I suppose thqr hotel has met expenses, though I ain’t sure,” was the reply. I “But they tell me you have made $300,000.” “Yes, but you Bee it have a saloon attached to the hotel, and a silver mine attached to the saloon, end a faro-room attached to the mine, and I act as judge at all horse-races and as umpire at all prize-fights. Oh, we (don’t expeot a Western hotel to make a dollar.”— Wall Street News. \ In 1860 there were only 23,000,000 sheep in the United State i, with an annual wool clip of 60,00 000 pounds. The census of 1880 shou s 50,010,600, with 300,000,000 pounds c f wool.