had not a gun nor a man on board, and therefore could not return their fire. In ominous and silent disdain, it seemed to be making for the Confederate iron-clads: the Queen of the West, leaving part of her crew ashore, fled, making the best of her way to the Red River; the Indianola was ordered to be blown up, which was accordingly done. erate cruisers. erate cruisers. The Confederate government constructed several powerEarlier Confed ful iron-clads, the Merrimac, the Albemarle, the Tennessee, the Atlanta, the Louisiana, the Manassas, the Mississippi, the Arkansas, the Virginia: these were intended for harbor defense. I have already (Chapter LIX.) referred to the earlier Confederate privateersthe Savannah, the Petrel, the Sumter, the Nashville, etc.; some of them were of insignificant size, and some had a brief career. Of the iron-clads, all, without exception, were either captured or destroyed; and by these earlier cruisers compar atively little damage was done to the national commerce. But at length, in some of the British ship-yards, powerful The Anglo-Confed vessels were constructed for the Confederate service. Of these, the Oreto was the first completed, nominally for the Italian government. She was built at Birkenhead; left England without any difficulty, in spite of the remonstrances of the American minister; made the island of Nassau; thence she ran into Mobile, still carrying British colors. In January, 1863, she escaped out of Mobile, and now, under the name of the Florida, commenced a destructive cruise. In three months she had captured 15 vessels, turned two of them into cruisers, and burnt the rest. In August she crossed the Atlantic, reaching Brest September 4th; was there detained, and then released. Again crossing the Atlantic, she reached Bahia, in Brazil; was unlawfully captured in that port by a United States ship, for which act the Brazilian government de manded and received reparation. She was brought into Hampton Roads, and was there sunk by, as it was affirmed, an accidental collision with another vessel. Great Britain becomes the naval base of the Confederacy. Great Britain had now become the naval base of the Confederacy. In her ship-yards were built many fast steamers intended to run the blockade, and some formidable as cruisers. These Anglo-Confederate ships succeeded in driving American commerce from the sea." The Tallahassee, in a cruise of 10 days, destroyed 33 vessels; the Chickamauga burnt vessels to the value of half a million dollars; the Georgia, which had been built, under the name of the Japan, at Glasgow, was, after accomplishing much destruction, captured by the national frigate Niagara about 20 miles from Lisbon. Of the Confederate cruisers there were only seven that were formidable, and of these five were built in Great Britain. Of the British-built ships, by far the most important was the Alabama. She was constructed, under the name of "The 290," expressly for the Confederates, by Laird, a Liverpool ship-builder, who was also a member of the House of Commons, and, against the urgent remonstrances of the American minister, was permitted by the British government to escape (July 29, 1862). Under command of an English captain, she went to Terceira, and there was joined by another English vessel, equipment. from which she received her armament; and, soon after, still another brought her Semmes, the former captain of the Sumter, and a crew. The 290, or Manner of her she occasions. On Sunday, August 26, 1862, having received her armaThe devastation ment, and being in other respects ready, "The 290" steamed out of port. When in the open sea, Semmes appeared on deck in full uniform, and announced that the ship was henceforth the Confederate steam-ship Alabama. The British flag was hauled down, the Confederate hoisted and saluted. The crew were British. On the 29th of August she began her cruise; on the 5th of September she made her first capture, burning the ship, and putting the crew into irons. By the close of October she had made 27 prizes. Her manner of operation, as in deed was the case with all the Anglo-Confederate cruisers, was to approach, under the British flag, her prey, and when it was entrapped, to hoist the Confederate; Semmes then either burnt or bonded his victim. Having received a supply of coal at one of the West India Islands, he lay in wait for the California treasure-ships, capturing one-the Ariel-which, however, was outward, and not inward bound, and therefore not a very profitable prize. On January 11th he sunk the Hatteras, one of the blockading ships off Galveston, having lured her within reach by hoisting British colors and hailing as her majesty's ship Petrel. The broadside of the Alabama was 324 pounds, that of the Hatteras 94. After a battle of a quarter of an hour the Hatteras went down. Semmes subsequently cruised in the West India seas for a time, and then went to the coast of Brazil. He then crossed the Atlantic to Cape Town, August 5th, and thence to the Malay Archipelago, which he reached in November. After an unproductive cruise of three months in those waters, he returned homeward, destroying on his way but few American vessels, for there were but few now at sea. On the 11th of June he went into the French harbor of Cherbourg. Captain Winslow, commander of the national ship of war Kearsarge, learning that the Alabama was in Cherbourg, at once sailed for 'that port, and a battle took place between the two ships on Sunday, June 19th, 1864. Their proportions and armaments were about equal. The Alabama was 220 feet long, 1150 tons; she carried one 7-inch Blakely rifle, one 8-inch smooth-bore 68-pounder, six 32-pounders. The Kearsarge was 2144 feet long, her tonnage 1030; she carried two 11-inch Dahlgren guns, one 30-pounder rifle, four 32-pounders. The Alabama had about 140 officers and men, the Kearsarge 22 officers and 140 men. As a protection, Winslow hung his anchor cable over the midship section of his ship on each side. The gunners of the Ala Her battle with the Kearsarge, and destruction. bama were trained artillerists from the British practiceship Excellent. At twenty minutes past 10 the Alabama was seen coming out of Cherbourg Harbor, attended by an English steam-yacht, the Deerhound. Winslow at once retired out to sea, so that there should arise no questions about the line of jurisdiction. When seven miles out, he turned and steered directly for the Alabama, which had followed him. The Alabama opened fire at the distance of a mile. When within about 900 yards, the Kearsarge returned it, and so manœuvred as to compel the Alabama, with a full head of steam, to move in a circular track during the engagement, and cut off her retreat to the French shore. In one hour and two minutes the battle was over. The Alabama was dreadfully shattered. Semmes had hauled down the Confederate flag and hoisted a white one. The bow of his ship rose high in the air, the stern rapidly settled, her mainmast broke off as she sunk. Though she had fired 370 shell and shot, she had not inflicted any se vere damage on the Kearsarge. The officers and crew of the Alabama were in part res Escape of her cap- cued by the boats of the Kearsarge; in part, tain to England. at the request of Winslow, by the Deerhound; in part by two French pilot-boats. Among those taken out of the water by the boats of the Deerhound was Semmes. The Deerhound, instead of delivering up those she had rescued, steamed off to the English coast, and there landed them. The Alabama had captured, during her cruise, 65 vessels, and had burnt all except when there was a motive for sparing them. She had destroyed property supposed to be worth ten millions of dollars; she had driven American commerce from the sea. She was built by British hands in a British ship-yard; her crew, her guns, her gunners were British. She sailed under the British flag, and found a welcome in British harbors. She never was in Confed. erate waters, never saw Confederate land, and used the Confederate flag only when in the act of making a prize. In 1863, the Shenandoah, under the name of the Sea Other Anglo-Con- King, was built at Glasgow. The Confeder federate cruisers. ates bought her in September, 1864. She went out to Madeira to receive her arms, stores, and crew, and thence sailed to Australia and the North Pacific. She burnt 25 ships and bonded 4, continuing the destruction long after the war was over. The captain, at length finding that the Confederacy was overthrown, returned to England, and surrendered his ship to the British government. Another of these Anglo-Confederate cruisers, the Stonewall, was built in a port of France for the Danish government, and sold to the Confederates; she was eventually surrendered to the Spaniards at Havana, and by them given up to the United States. The American government demands reparation for these wrongs. The international relations of Great Britain and the United States were thus, by the affair of these Confederate cruisers, brought into a most perilous condition. While the Alabama was yet occupied in her destructive career, the American minister, Mr. Adams, was directed "to solicit redress for the national and private injuries already thus sustained, as well as a more effective preventive of any repe tition of such lawless and injurious proceedings in her majesty's ports hereafter." Under this form of urbanity— this courteous solicitation of a twofold redress for the national and the private injury—was presented to the consideration of the British administration one of the most momentous questions which has ever occupied the atten tion of that country. |