PERSONAL NARRATIVE--NORFOLK
At Norfolk I had the pleasure of intercourse with such friends as John
Tattnall, son of Commander Tattnall; Benjamin Loyall and Lieutenant
Walter Butt of the ironclad "Virginia," with the clergy of the city and
with many charming families. How can I ever forget the old-time Virginia
hospitality that was meted out to me--the enthusiastic reception I had
from all kinds and conditions of men? How well I remember Mr. Tazewell
Taylor! He was well up in genealogy, and not only knew all of the old
families of Virginia, but the principal families of the whole South. It
was quite delightful to hear him, "in the midst of war's alarums," talk
over "old times" and old folks. Those days before the war were all so
different from what we have known since. No one born since the war can
write intelligently of the blessed old days in the South.
But if any one would read a true account of the trials and woes of a
Southern household during the dreadful war-time, let him read "The Diary
of a Southern Refugee During the War," written by Mrs. Judith W. McGuire
for the members of her family, "who were too young to remember those
days." Mrs. McGuire's book is a wonderful record of hope, joys, sorrows
and trials, and of the way in which, amid it all, the faithful women of
the South cheered the hearts of the heroes in the field.
One Sunday in March I preached a sermon at St. Paul's Church, (old St.
Paul's, built in 1739,) exhorting the people to the work before them,
reminding them that in the conflict in which we were engaged, not only
the rights of our people and the glory of our nation, but the Church of
God was imperilled. It was my "old war sermon," rearranged for Virginia.
At the solicitation of clergy and people formally presented, I repeated
it several times in Norfolk. On Ash Wednesday I preached again in St.
Paul's to a fine congregation and was requested to repeat my sermon,
which was on the Good Samaritan, the following Sunday in the same church
and subsequently in Christ Church.
I met many persons of distinction in the city. General Huger, who was in
command in Norfolk, called upon me. General Howell Cobb was there as
Commissioner on the part of the Confederate Government to arrange with
General Wood on the part of the United States, about the exchange of
prisoners.
In the latter part of February, I became interested in the
transformation by which the "Merrimac" became the "Virginia" of the
Confederate Navy. One day I slipped off from my patient, General Loring,
while he was sleeping, and went to Portsmouth to visit the wonderful
craft. The part that appeared above water suggested to me a book opened
at an angle of forty-five degrees and the fore edges of its cover placed
on a table. At the bow was a sharp projection by which it was expected
to pierce the side of any ship it might run against.
All the machinery was below water. The roof was about thirty-eight
inches in thickness, of timber very heavily plated with iron. The fore
and aft guns were the heaviest, carrying shot and shell eighty-five and
ninety pounds in weight. The others were very heavy also and magnificent
of their kind. She carried ten guns in all. Her new steel-pointed and
wrought iron shot were destined to do some terrific work. She was likely
to escape injury unless struck below the water-line, and there was not
much danger of that occurring as she was in a measure protected below
that line also. She drew rather too much water, as Lieutenant Spotswood
told me at the time of my visit.
While I was at Norfolk, the great battle between the "Virginia" and the
"Monitor" and ships of war "Congress" and "Cumberland" took place. I
witnessed the destruction of the "Congress" and the "Cumberland." The
first days fight was on the 8th of March. By special invitation, the
Rev. J. H. D. Wingfield, (who afterwards became Bishop of Northern
California), celebrated the Blessed Sacrament in his church, (Trinity
Church, Portsmouth), for the officers of the "Virginia" before they went
into battle.
When the "Virginia" cast off her moorings at Norfolk Navy Yard and
steamed down the river, the "Congress" and the "Cumberland" (frigates)
had been lying for some time off Newport News. Officers and men on the
"Virginia" were taking things quietly as if they were really on an
ordinary trial trip. As they drew near the "Congress," Captain Buchanan,
the Commander of the "Virginia," made a brief and stirring appeal to his
crew, which was answered by cheers. He then took his place by the side
of the pilot near the wheel.
My friend Lieutenant J. R. Eggleston commanded the nine-inch broadside
guns next abaft the engine-room hatch, and he was ordered to serve one
of them with hot shot. Suddenly he saw a great ship near at hand bearing
down upon the "Virginia." In a moment twenty-five solid shot and shell
struck the sloping side of the "Virginia" and glanced high into the air,
many of the shells exploding in their upward flight.
In reply to this broadside from the "Congress" one red hot shot and
three nine-inch shells were hurled into her and the "Virginia" steamed
on without pausing. Suddenly there was a jar as if the vessel had run
aground. There was a cheering forward and Lieutenant Eggleston passed
aft, waving his hat and crying: "We have sunk the 'Cumberland.'" She had
been struck about amidship by the prow of the "Virginia," and in sinking
tore the prow from the bow of her assailant and carried it down with
her. The "Virginia" then moved some distance up the river in order to
turn about in the narrow channel.
As soon as the "Congress" saw her terrible foe coming down upon her, she
tried to escape under sail, but ran aground in the effort. The
"Virginia" took position under her stern and a few raking shots brought
down her flag. Captain Porcher, in command of the Confederate ship
"Beaufort," made an effort to take the officers and wounded men of the
"Congress" prisoners. Two officers came on board the "Beaufort" and
surrendered the "Congress." Captain Porcher asked them to get the
officers and wounded men aboard his vessel as quickly as possible as he
had been ordered to burn the "Congress." He was begged not to do so as
there were sixty wounded men on board the "Congress," but his orders
were peremptory.
While he was making every effort to move the wounded, a tremendous fire
was opened on the "Beaufort" from the shore. The Federal officers begged
him to hoist a white flag lest all the wounded men should be killed. The
fact that the Federals were firing on a white flag flying from the
mainmast of the "Congress" was brought to the attention of the Federal
officers, who claimed, however, that they were powerless to stop the
fire as it proceeded from a lot of volunteers who were not under the
control of the officers on board the "Beaufort." The fire continuing,
Captain Porcher returned it, but with little effect. He estimated the
loss in the Federal fleet, in killed, drowned, wounded and missing, of
nearly four hundred men. The total loss of the Confederates did not
exceed sixty. Captain Buchanan and his flag-lieutenant were wounded and
taken to the Naval Hospital at Norfolk. Catesby Jones succeeded to the
command of the "Virginia." About an hour before midnight the fire
reached the magazine of the "Congress" and she blew up.
The next day the "Virginia" steamed out towards the "Minnesota," when
the "Monitor" made her appearance. The latter came gallantly forward,
and then began the first battle ever fought between ironclads. It
continued several hours, neither vessel, so far as could be ascertained
at the time, inflicting by her fire any very serious damage on the
other.
The "Virginia" then got ready to try what ramming would do for the
"Monitor." What it did was to silence the latter forever in the presence
of the "Virginia." Unfortunately, just before the "Virginia" struck the
"Monitor," the former stopped her engine under the belief that the
momentum of the ship would prove sufficient for the work. Had the
"Virginia" kept on at full speed, she would undoubtedly have run the
"Monitor" under. As it was, the latter got such a shaking up that she
sought safety in shoal water whither she knew the "Virginia" could not
follow her. It should be remembered that the "Virginia" drew twenty-two
feet of water and was very hard to manage, whereas the "Monitor" was
readily managed and drew but ten feet of water.
The following day the Rev. Mr. Wingfield was called upon to offer up
prayers and thanksgiving for the victory, on board the gallant ship. It
was a solemn, most impressive and affecting scene, as those valiant men
of war fell upon their knees on the deck and bowed their heads in
reverence and godly fear. The weather-beaten faces of many of the brave
seamen were observed to be bathed in tears and trembling with emotion
under the influence of that memorable service.
After this Commodore Tattnall was placed in command of the "Virginia,"
and on the morning of the 11th of April the "Virginia" went down Hampton
Roads with the design of engaging the enemy to the fullest extent. I
received a concise cypher telegram, ("Splinters," was all it said), from
my dear friend John Tattnall, son of the Commodore, and I at once set
out to see what was going on. With General Loring, (who was by that time
fully recovered from his illness), and quite a party of friends and
officers, I went down the bay in a cockle-shell of a steamer, to witness
the engagement. In order to provoke the enemy, Commodore Tattnall
ordered two of his gunboats to run into the transport anchorage and cut
out such of the vessels as were lying nearest the "Virginia." This was
successfully done within sight of and almost within gun-shot of the
"Monitor," but she could not be drawn into an engagement. Although the
enemy refused to fight, the "Monitor" threw a number of shells, several
of which passed over our little steamer. We deemed it, therefore, good
military, (and naval) tactics to withdraw and let the contestants attend
to their own business.