Four American Naval Heroes Part 17

All the vessels of this expedition were to meet at Ships Island, about one hundred miles from the mouth of the Mississippi. When Captain Farragut arrived there on February 20th, he found only a part of his fleet awaiting him. The other vessels arrived one by one.

This was the most powerful squadron that had ever been under an American commander. It consisted of steam sloops, gunboats, and mortar boats, forty-eight vessels in all.

An army of fifteen thousand men was at hand to a.s.sist Captain Farragut.

This army had been brought from the North on transports, and was under the command of General Benjamin F. Butler.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE HARTFORD.]

In the channel, at the mouth of the Mississippi, were heavy mud banks, made of deposits brought down by the stream. To take the large vessels over this bar was Captain Farragut's first great task. The water was so shallow that the keels of the ships would sometimes stick in the mud, and then it was with the greatest of difficulty that they could be hauled off.

It was the 18th of April before all the vessels were in the river and ready to attack the forts; and in the meanwhile, a great naval battle had been fought in other waters.

The Confederates had captured the Norfolk navy yard, and with it the United States vessel _Merrimac_, which was there at the time. They removed the masts of this vessel, and then fitted her with an iron prow, and built sloping sides over the deck, covering them with iron rails laid closely together side by side.

Five of the best Northern war vessels lay in the bay outside of the harbor.

On March 8th, 1862, the _Merrimac_ attacked this fleet. She drove her iron prow straight through the side of the _c.u.mberland_. This vessel sank almost immediately, and but few of the men were saved.

Then the _Merrimac_ attacked the _Congress_, drove her ash.o.r.e, and set her on fire with red hot shot. Meanwhile, broadside after broadside had been fired at the _Merrimac_; but the shot bounded harmlessly from her sloping iron sides.

Night came on, and before attempting to destroy the other three ships, the black monster waited for the daylight.

There was consternation all through the North. How could a stop be made to this fearful work of the _Merrimac_? There was no telling what she might do on the morrow.

That same night there steamed into Chesapeake Bay a queer looking little vessel which had been built by a famous mechanic, Captain John Ericsson.

She was named the _Monitor_. She had a low, flat deck, pointed at both ends. In the center was a round, revolving turret. The vessel was completely plated over with iron, and in the turret were two enormous guns, larger than any that had ever been used before.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CONFEDERATE FLAG.]

On the morning of March 9th, when the _Merrimac_ steamed out to finish her work of destruction, a stupendous cannon ball came thundering against her black side. As the turret of the little _Monitor_ swung round, there came another and another,--such a battering as never ship's side had felt before that day.

The broadsides returned by the _Merrimac_ fell harmlessly on the flat deck and iron turret of the _Monitor_.

This battle lasted for nearly three hours. Neither vessel was injured to any extent. Finally the _Merrimac_ withdrew, leaving the _Monitor_ in possession of the bay.

In one respect, this was the most wonderful battle ever fought upon the water. It showed to all the nations of the world that new navies must be built. In one day all the war-ships in the world had become old-fashioned. The days for wooden war vessels were over.

Let us now return to Captain Farragut. As I have said, by the 18th of April he had succeeded in taking all his vessels over the bar of the Mississippi. But still greater difficulties were ahead of him.

Before he could capture New Orleans, he must pa.s.s the two forts, Jackson and St. Philip, on opposite banks of the river. First of all, however, he must break through a barricade which was below the forts. This reached from sh.o.r.e to sh.o.r.e, and was made of old hulks of vessels and cypress logs, fastened together with huge iron chains.

[Ill.u.s.tration: MAP OF THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI.]

Should the barricade be broken and the forts pa.s.sed, there was still a Confederate fleet to be overcome. This consisted of fifteen ships, gunboats, and steam rams similar to the _Merrimac_. They were drawn up across the river above the forts. Captain Farragut was not discouraged by any of these things, but began at once to carry out his plans.

All along the banks of the river were thick woods. The forts themselves were almost hidden by the trees. Captain Farragut stationed his mortar boats close to the banks, below the chain barricade; and, in order that they might be better hidden from the forts, large branches of trees had been tied to the tops of the masts.

This mortar flotilla was commanded by Captain Porter. The mortars could throw thirteen-inch sh.e.l.ls for a distance of two miles.

Captain Farragut's plan was to send these mortar boats forward to bombard the forts, while the other vessels, breaking through the chains, should sail boldly up the river.

On the morning of April 18th, the sh.e.l.ls from the mortars began to rain down upon the forts. For six days and nights this firing never ceased.

The answering shots from the forts did but little harm. The Confederates could not take aim at boats which they could not see.

Meanwhile, two of Captain Farragut's gunboats crept up the river at night, and broke a pa.s.sage through the chain barricade. Then, on the night of April 23d, the entire fleet sailed through this opening and boldly attacked the forts.

The whole river was at once a scene of confusion. Every gun, both of the forts and of the Confederate fleet, which had hastened down the river, was sending shot and sh.e.l.l into the Union fleet.

The Confederates piled every kind of inflammable material upon huge rafts, set them on fire, and sent them floating down the river. They hoped, in this way, to burn the invading fleet. The river was a blaze of light. The din from the cannon was terrible.

But Captain Farragut and his vessels kept steadily on. They pa.s.sed the forts, and destroyed or captured every vessel in the Confederate fleet.

This was accomplished with the loss of but one ship of the Union squadron.

When the news of this victory reached New Orleans, the whole city was thrown into wild confusion. Men, women, and children rushed to the levee and set fire to the goods there.

Everything that would burn was set on fire, and sent down the river to meet the victorious fleet that was coming. Ships loaded with burning cotton, and even a half-finished ram like the _Merrimac_ floated down stream, a ma.s.s of flames.

[Ill.u.s.tration: GENERAL B.F. BUTLER.]

About noon on April 25th, the fleet rounded the bend of the river, and came in sight of the city. That same morning, the mayor of New Orleans had ordered the state flag of Louisiana to be hoisted upon the city hall.

Captain Farragut demanded that this should be hauled down. He also ordered that the stars and stripes should be raised over the buildings belonging to the United States government.

Meanwhile, Commander Porter with his mortar boats had been steadily bombarding Fort Jackson and Fort St. Philip. On April 28th, these forts surrendered, and the Union forces took possession.

On the following day, the flag of the United States was floating over the city hall of New Orleans. General Butler and his troops took possession of the city on the first of May.

On the 11th of July, on the recommendation of President Lincoln, Congress pa.s.sed a resolution thanking Captain Farragut for what he had done; and a few days later he was further rewarded by being raised to the rank of rear-admiral.

IX.--THE BATTLE OF MOBILE BAY.

After the capture of New Orleans, Admiral Farragut was ordered at once to proceed up the river. He was to pa.s.s, or to attack and capture, all the Confederate forts between New Orleans and Memphis.

But for many reasons, he thought it unwise to attempt this expedition.

The increasing shallowness of the river would make it almost impossible to use his best sea-going vessels. The upper forts were located on high bluffs, and it would be difficult to attack them from the river.

Admiral Farragut knew that, should he be able to pa.s.s these forts, or even to silence their guns, he could not hold them without a large land force. But he was too good a soldier to do anything in disobedience to orders.

[Ill.u.s.tration: GENERAL N.P. BANKS.]

In the face of all these difficulties, he pa.s.sed and repa.s.sed the forts at Vicksburg and Port Hudson. He made it plain to the Confederates that none of their batteries on the Mississippi could stop the movements of his fleet. But he found, as he had expected, that the forts could not be held until armies came to his a.s.sistance.

A large land force under General Grant besieged Vicksburg until it surrendered on July 4, 1863. Five days later, an army under General Nathaniel P. Banks succeeded in capturing Port Hudson.

These were the last Confederate strongholds on the Mississippi. Their capture gave to the Union forces the entire control of the river.