Arrived at Norfolk, I reported to Commodore Forrest, and was
ordered by him to go aboard the _Confederate States_, the
receiving ship. This was a line-of-battle ship, named formerly the
_United States_, which had escaped destruction by the Federals
upon their evacuation of the navy yard. On the receiving ship,
where there were a number of officers awaiting orders, I had
my first experience of a hammock. Like one of the heroes of my
favorite Marryatt, I signalized my entrance into the hammock on
one side by pitching out on my head on the other side. Unlike
Marryatt’s heroes, however, no shot-box with a sharp edge had
been kindly placed on the deck, by a sympathizing mess-mate, to
meet my descending skull. Having little to do aboard, I made the
acquaintance of Captain James Barron Hope, who was acting as
Commodore Forrest’s Secretary, and assisted him in the discharge
of his pleasant duties. Captain Hope is widely known as a writer
of both fervent verse and delightful prose. He has been for some
years the proprietor and editor of the Norfolk _Landmark_, which
is published at Norfolk, where he lives. His latest literary
work is the noble Centennial Ode which was read last year at the
celebration at Yorktown.
Having provided myself with the gray uniform of the Confederate
Navy, I was taken to see Commodore Franklin Buchanan, who commanded
the _Virginia_ in her first fight, when he was severely wounded.
The _Virginia_ was in dock, and was being put in order for another
cruise; and Commodore Buchanan was deeply chagrined at the prospect
that she might be ready before he had recovered. On March 25
Commodore Josiah Tatnall was placed in command of the squadron at
Norfolk.
Much has been written about the _Virginia_, but those who saw her
will agree, I think, that it was marvellous that she should have
accomplished what she did. The plating consisted of railroad iron
rolled flat, and the bends were protected by iron knuckles. There
was no plating below the water-line, and the prow with which she
did so much execution did not look much more dangerous than a
champagne bottle, which, in shape, it resembled. The great defect
of the _Virginia_, however, was the weakness of her engines, which
prevented her from manoeuvering rapidly, and which placed her at so
terrible a disadvantage in the fight with the Monitor. The engines
broke down frequently while she was in the United States service.
Their peculiar construction, taken in connection with the great
draft of the vessel, twenty-two feet, and her length, three hundred
and twelve feet, rendered her management in narrow channels and in
presence of the enemy a very difficult matter.
The Confederate fleet at Norfolk consisted of the _Virginia_, eight
guns; the _Patrick Henry_, eight guns; the _Jamestown_, two guns;
and the _Beaufort_, the _Raleigh_ and the _Teaser_, one gun each.
The _Patrick Henry_ and _Jamestown_ were ordinary river steamboats,
hastily and rudely adapted to the reception of heavy guns; while
the _Raleigh_, the _Beaufort_ and the _Teaser_ were small and
weak tug-boats. An ordinary rifle ball would have perforated the
boiler of the war-tugs, and a shell from a field-piece, if it hit
at all, would be tolerably sure to send any one of them to the
bottom. With this fleet, however, it was determined to attack the
Monitor and the other United States vessels of war near Fortress
Monroe. I volunteered for service in the fleet, and was assigned
to duty on the _Beaufort_, which was commanded by Lieutenant W. H.
Parker, one of the finest officers in the Navy. Picked men from
the infantry regiments stationed at Norfolk were placed on each
of the vessels; and, the _Virginia_ now being in tolerable order
again, the whole fleet, on the morning of April 11, 1862, steamed
past Norfolk, and gaily down the river, the _Virginia_ leading the
line. The wharves along the river were crowded with ladies and
soldiers. Hats were tossed in the air, handkerchiefs were waved,
and cheer after cheer rent the air. The enthusiasm of the hour
made every one feel like a hero. Captain Parker told me that the
main object of the expedition was the capture and destruction of
the Monitor. Commodore Tatnall was desperately in earnest, and one
of the midshipmen of the _Virginia_ told me that he heard the old
Commodore say, as he stumped up and down the quarter-deck, gritting
his teeth: “I will take her! I will take her! if h--ll’s on the
other side of her.” The “her” was understood to be the Monitor. The
plan of operations was bold and simple. When the Monitor came out
to meet us, the _Patrick Henry_, the _Jamestown_, the _Beaufort_
and the _Raleigh_, at a signal from the _Virginia_, were to run
down upon the enemy, endeavoring to strike her on the bows and
quarter. The Monitor was to be mobbed by the gun-boats while the
_Virginia_ engaged her attention. On each of the Confederate
vessels boarding parties were detailed with prescribed duties.
Those numbered one in each vessel were provided with hammers and
wedges, and were to endeavor to chock the turret of the Monitor
so as to prevent it from revolving, in which case her line of
fire could only be changed by moving the vessel. Those numbered
two were supplied with balls of tow, steeped in turpentine, which
were to be ignited and thrown down the ventilators, which were
then to be covered. Those numbered three were to throw a wet sail
over the pilot-house so as to blind the helmsman. Meanwhile other
boarders, armed with pistols and cutlasses, were to guard against
any attempt on the part of the enemy’s crew to escape from the
confinement which was prepared for them. I had command of the
boarders on the _Beaufort_. The general idea was that the Monitor
would be overwhelmed by the combined attack; and that by the means
indicated we could prevent her from doing much harm. The _Virginia_
would play an important part by endeavoring to ram her, and we
hoped to be able, with our four boarding steamers, to take the
Monitor in tow and haul her back to Norfolk, when we might break
her open, and take the crew prisoners at our leisure. Commodore
Tatnall expected that probably half his gun-boats would be sunk or
crippled in the attempt, but he was quite sure of throwing on the
deck of the Monitor men enough to ensure her capture. It is just
as likely that the Monitor would have towed us to Fortress Monroe,
if she had not sunk the whole concern before we reached her. The
weather was dirty, and we lay at anchor during the night off Craney
Island. Betimes the next morning we dropped down to Hampton Roads.
The enemy’s batteries fired several shots at us without effect.
We could see that the Monitor had steam up, and was lying close
under the protection of the batteries. She looked like a huge black
plate with a cheese box of the same color upon it. The flag ship
_Minnesota_, with a large number of men-of-war and merchantmen,
was below the forts. Signal guns were fired, and we hoped that the
enemy would engage us. The day wore on and still the Monitor and
her consorts skulked under the guns of the forts. The _Virginia_
ran within range of the formidable fortress, and then fired a
gun of defiance, but the Monitor would not come to the scratch.
Within the bar at Hampton three merchant vessels were lying, and
the _Jamestown_ and _Raleigh_ ran in, captured them and brought
them out. This exploit, almost within gunshot of the Monitor, did
not affect her movements. We did not get the fight we sought. It
was a terrible disappointment. But in the critical condition in
which the United States Navy was at the time, it was the wiser
part for the Monitor to decline the engagement. Had we succeeded
in disabling her, the whole coast would have been at the mercy
of the _Virginia_. Obstructions had already been placed in the
Potomac in expectation of a naval raid on Washington, and there was
considerable perturbation at New York and Boston.