more advanced point on the Orange | Gen. Shields had 6,000 infantry, 750 cavalry, and 24 guns, well posted some three miles south of Winchester, and half a mile north of the little village of KERNSTOWN, covering the three principal roads which enter Winchester from the south-east, south, and south-west. 25 Gen. Banks had remained with Shields until about 10 A. M. ;" when, a careful reconnoissance having discovered no enemy in front but Ashby's cavalry, he concluded that Jackson was too weak or too cautious to risk an attack, and departed for Washington via Harper's Ferry. Before noon, however, Shields was advised by Col. Kimball, on his left, that a Rebel battery had opened on his position, and appeared to be supported by a considerable force of infantry. Thereupon, Sullivan's bri and Alexandria Railway," leaving but two regiments of cavalry to "occupy Winchester and thoroughly scour the country south of the railway and and up the Shenandoah Valley." Gen. Banks had already thrown across the Potomac, at Harper's Ferry," the 28th Pennsylvania, Col. Geary, following himself," taking possession of Bolivar and Loudon Heights, Leesburg, Charlestown," and Martinsburg," and pushing back the Rebels to Winchester, which Stonewall Jackson evacuated" without a struggle. Gen. Shields, commanding Lander's division," pursued Jackson to Newmarket," where he found him strongly posted and ready for action. He thereupon fell back rapidly to Winchester, pursued by Jackson's cavalry, under Turner Ashby. Gen. Banks, having dis-gade was pushed forward to support patched one division toward Centerville," Jackson's spies assured him that Shields had but four regiments left, and might easily be captured or routed; so Ashby drove in our pickets and pressed hard upon Shields, who kept the larger part of his force concealed until Jackson was induced to advance in force and attack. In the slight skirmish which occurred," Gen. Shields was struck by a fragment of shell which broke his arm, and so injured his shoulder and side that he fought next day's battle in bed. Jackson had 10 regiments of infantry, all Virginians, but reports their aggregate strength at only 3,087 men, with 27 guns and 290 cavalry." and 290 cavalry." Kimball, and our artillery opened 21 March 19. 2 March 22. 20 Gen. F. W. Lander, one of the bravest and best of our early commanders, had died March 2d, of congestion of the brain, caused by hard-tery and Col. Ashby's cavalry. ship, exposure, and anxiety. 24 Pollard says the Confederate forces amounted to 6,000 men, with Capt. McLaughlin's bat 25 Sunday, March 23. FIGHT AT KERNSTOWN.-THE MERRIMAC. 115 strongly posted behind a high and heavy rëenforcements for Jackson solid stone wall, crossing a hill, where a desperate stand was made by Jackson's famous 'Stonewall Brigade,' and others, whose fire was for a few minutes rapid and deadly; but their position was soon flanked and carried by our eager, determined advance, and they retreated in disorder, leaving 2 guns, 4 caissons, and many small arins. Night now fell, and saved them, doubtless, from a heavier loss. Our men secured their prisoners, cared for their woundedthose of the Rebels having mostly been carried off by them prior to their retreat and sank down to rest on the battle-field. The Rebels retreated a few miles, rapidly but in good order, ere they, too, rested for the night. Jackson attributes his defeat in part to Gen. R. B. Garnett's error of judgment in repeatedly ordering his men to retreat, when he should have held on and fought. It seems clear, however, that the capital mistake was his own in fighting at all, when his total force, according to his own estimate, was less than 5,000 men, and he estimates our infantry on the field at over 11,000. He makes his loss 80 killed, 342 wounded, and 269 missing, mainly prisoners; total, 691; while Shields claims 300 prisoners, and estimates the Rebel loss in killed and wounded at 1,000 to 1,500." Our own loss in this engagement was 103 killed, including Col. Murray, of the 84th Pennsylvania; 441 wounded, and 24 missing. were at hand, immediately sent an express after Williams's division-by this time well on its way to Harper's Ferry-desiring its immediate return; but Gen. Banks, hearing of the battle by telegraph from Winchester, had already stopped at Harper's Ferry and anticipated this order; himself rejoining Shields early next day, and resuming command. He pursued Jackson vigorously up the Valley to Woodstock, but was unable to bring him to bay. We have seen that Gen. McClellan's council of corps commanders decided, on the 13th of March, to abandon his original plan of debarking at Urbana, on the Rappahannock, and advancing thence on Richmond by West Point, at the head of York river, making this a secondary base. This most unfortunate decision is rendered unaccountable by a destructive if not disastrous naval collision which had just occurred in Hampton Roads, and of which the results were well known to the council. 27 Of our naval officers' most calamitous, cowardly, disgraceful desertion of and flight from the Norfolk Navy Yard and Arsenal at the beginning of the struggle, the revolting particulars have already been given." Among the vessels there abandoned to the Rebels, after being fired, was the first-class 40-gun steam-frigate Merrimac, which, by Capt. McCauley's orders, had been scuttled and Gen. Shields, well aware that partly sunk, so that only her rigShields's official report says: "The enemy's loss is more difficult to ascertain than our own. Two hundred and seventy were found dead on the battle-field; 40 were buried by the inhabitants of the adjacent vil lage; and, by a calculation made by the num- ging and upper works were burned; | March 8th, a strange craft was deher hull being saved by a speedy scried from our vessels off Newport submersion. Having thus fallen News, coming down the Elizabeth an easy prey to the Rebels, she river from Norfolk, past Craney was adopted by them as the basis of Island, attended by two unremarkaan iron-clad, whereof Lieut. John M. ble steam gunboats. Two other Rebel Brooke furnished the original plan, gunboats, which had, evidently by which Chief Engineer Williamson preconcert, dropped down the James and Naval Constructor Porter, to- from Richmond, had been discovered gether with Lt. Brooke, ultimately at anchor off Smithfield Point, some fashioned into the terrible engine of 12 miles distant, about three hours destruction known to us as the Mer- before. The nondescript and her rimac, but designated by her rebuild- tenders gradually approached our ers the Virginia. Messrs. Brooke, war-ships awaiting her, and, passing Williamson, and Porter, were all across the bow of the Congress friggraduates from our navy, as was ate, bore down on the Cumberland, Commodore Franklin Buchanan, who in utter disdain of her rapid and became her commander. In prepar- well aimed but utterly ineffective ing her for her new service, the hull shots, which glanced as harmless of the Merrimac was cut down near- from the iron shield of the foe as ly to the water's edge, after she had though they had been peas. Not a been plugged, pumped out, and gun was fired by the mysterious and raised; when a sloping roof of heavy terrible stranger until she struck the timber, strongly and thoroughly Cumberland with full force under her plated with railroad iron, rose from starboard fore-channels, at the same two feet below the water-line to moment delivering a most destructive about ten feet above: the ends and fire; while her blow had opened such sides being alike and thoroughly a chasm in the bow of the Cumbershielded. A light bulwark, or false land that her forward magazine was bow, was added, designed to divide drowned in 30 minutes. Still, her the water, and serve as a tank to reg-fire was kept up until, at 3:35 P. M., ulate the vessel's draft; and beyond the water had risen to the main this projected a strong iron beak. Being thus rendered thoroughly shotproof, she was armed with 10 heavy and most effective guns; and so, having been largely refitted from the spoils of the deserted Navy Yard, became at once the cheapest and most formidable naval engine of destruction that the world had ever Whether she had or had not the ability to live in an open, turbulent sea, was left undecided by her brief but memorable career. seen. A little before noon, on Saturday, hatchway, and the ship canted to port; when, giving a parting fire, Lt. Morris ordered every man to jump overboard and save himself if possible. The dead, and sick, and severely wounded, were unavoidably left in her bay and on her decks, to the number of at least 100; and she sank to the bottom in 54-feet water, with her flag still flying from her topmast. Meanwhile, the Congress-which had exchanged broadsides with the Merrimac as she passed-was attacked THE ROANOKE GOES IN. 117 by the Rebel gunboats, and was bat- | white flag flying to intimate her surtling them to the best of her ability, render. Having fired several shells until, seeing the fate of the Cumber- into her, the Merrimac left her to enland, she set her jib and topsail, and, gage the Minnesota, giving opportuwith the assistance of the gunboat nity for her crew to escape to the Zouave, ran aground not far from shore in small boats, with their our batteries at Newport News, wounded. About dark, the Merriwhere she was soon again assailed mac returned and poured hot shot by the Merrimac, which, taking po- into the deserted hulk, until she was sition about 150 yards from her stern, set on fire and utterly destroyed, her raked her fore and aft with shell, guns going off as they became heated while one of the smaller steamers -a shell from one of them striking from Norfolk kept up a fire on her a sloop at anchor at Newport News, starboard quarter; while the Patrick and blowing her up. At midnight, Henry and Thomas Jefferson-Rebel the fire had reached her magazines, steamers from up the James-like- containing five tuns of powder, and wise poured in their broadsides with she blew up with a tremendous exprecision and effect. The hapless plosion. Of her crew of 434 men, Congress could only reply from her 218 answered to their names at rolltwo stern guns, whereof one was soon call at Newport News next morning. dismounted and the other had its Capt. John Marston, of the steammuzzle knocked off. Her command- ship Roanoke, whereof the machinery er, Lt. Joseph B. Smith, Acting- was disabled, being off Fortress MonMaster Thomas Moore, and Pilot roe, was in command of our fleet, William Rhodes, with nearly half when, at 1 P. M., one of his look-out her crew, having been killed or vessels reported by signal that the wounded, the ship on fire in seve- enemy was coming. Signaling the ral places, without a gun that could steam-frigate Minnesota to get under be brought to bear on her destroyers, way, and slipping his cable, he had Lt. Pendergrast, on whom the com- the Roanoke taken in tow by two mand had devolved, at 4:30 P. M. tugs, and started for the scene of hauled down our flag. She was soon action; but, before he reached it, he boarded by an officer from the Mer- had the mortification of seeing the rimac, who took her in charge, but Minnesota hard aground. Continuleft shortly afterward; when a small ing on his course, but unable to make Rebel tug came alongside and de- tolerable headway, he came in sight manded that her crew should get out of the Cumberland, only to find her of the ship, as her captors intended virtually destroyed; having soon to burn her immediately. But our after the further mortification of seesoldiers on shore, who had not sur- ing the Congress haul down her flag. rendered, and who regarded the Con- Continuing to stand on, he was soon gress as now a Rebel vessel, opened himself aground astern, in 3 fathoms, so brisk a fire upon her that the tug and was obliged to be hauled off by and her crew suddenly departed; one of his tugs; when he decided to when the Merrimac again opened on come to the relief of the stranded the luckless craft, though she had a | Minnesota, hoping with assistance to pull her off; but found himself unable to do so. Meantime, at 5 P. M., the frigate St. Lawrence, towed by the Cambridge, passed them, and soon also grounded, but was hauled off by the Cambridge, when she returned to the harbor of the fort. The Minnesota, Capt. Van Brunt, having, in passing Sewell's Point, received and returned a fire from the Rebel battery, which crippled her mainmast, had approached within a mile and a half of Newport News, when she grounded, with an ebbing tide, and was still hard at work trying to get off, when, at 4 P. M., the Merrimac, Jamestown, and Patrick Henry, having finished their work at the News, bore down upon her. The shallowness of the water forbade the Merrimac to come within a mile of her, from which distance she fired for the next two or three hours, but once hulling the Minnesota by a shot through her bow. The Jamestown and the Patrick Henry, taking position on the port bow and stern of the Minnesota, where only her heavy pivot-gun could be brought to bear upon them, kept up a vigorous and effective fire on her, by which several of her crew were killed and wounded; but they finally desisted and retired, one of them apparently crippled. At 7 P. M., the Merrimac hauled off also, and all three steamed toward Norfolk, leaving the Minnesota deeply imbedded, by the fire of her broadside guns, in the mud-bank on which she rested; so that it was impossible, even at high tide, by the help of steam-tugs and hawsers, with all hands at work through the night, to haul her off. was dark enough, until, at 10 P. M., the new iron-clad Monitor, 2 guns, Lt. John L. Worden, reached Fortress Monroe on her trial trip from New York, and was immediately dispatched to the aid of the Minnesota, reporting to Capt. Van Brunt at 2 A. M." Though but a pigmy beside the Merrimac, and an entire novelty for either land or water—“ a cheese-box on a raft”—the previous day's sore experience of the might and invulnerability of iron-clads insured her a hearty welcome. Never had there been a more signal example of the value of a friend in need. At 6 A. M., the Rebel flotilla rëappeared, and the drums of the Minnesota beat to quarters. But the enemy ran past, as if heading for Fortress Monroe, and came around in the channel by which the Minnesota had reached her uncomfortable position. Again all hands were called to quarters, and the Minnesota, opening with her stern guns, signaled the Monitor to attack, when the undaunted little cheese-box steamed down upon the Rebel Apollyon and laid herself alongside, directly between the Minnesota and her assailant. Gun after gun from the Monitor, responded to with whole broadsides from the Merrimac, seemed to produce no more impression than a hailstorm on a mountain-cliff; until, tired of thus wasting their ammunition, they commenced maneuvering for the better position. In this, the Monitor, being lighter and far more manageable than her foe, had decidedly the advantage; and the Merrimac, disgusted, renewed her attentions to the Minnesota, disregarding a broadside which would have sunk Sunday, March 9. The prospect for the coming day |