112 THE MERRIMAC [1862 Ericsson's ironclad was the with the necessity for speed. Monitor; her keel was laid on October 25, 1861; she was launched on January 30, 1862, and on March 6 left New York for Fort Monroe. On Saturday, March 8, a fine day with a calm sea, the blockading fleet in Hampton Roads were on their usual watch; off Newport News the frigate Congress of fifty guns and the sloop of-war Cumberland of twenty-four, both sailing vessels, swung lazily at anchor. Soon after noon a monster, resembling "a huge half-submerged crocodile," belching out smoke was descried coming from the direction of Norfolk. No such ship had ever before been seen in American waters; few, if any, of the Union men had ever looked upon her like elsewhere, but all knew at once that she was the Merrimac. The Congress and the Cumberland cleared their decks for action. The Merrimac opened with her bow gun on the Congress, received a broadside and gave one in return. The Cumberland and the shore batteries fired at the monster and their balls, rebounded from her iron sides as if they had been of india rubber. Passing the Congress, the Merrimac steered directly for the Cumberland, brought her guns to bear upon the Union sloop-of-war, killing and wounding men at every shot, and, steaming on under full headway, rammed the Cumberland, opening "her side wide enough to drive in a horse and cart." Water poured into the hole; "the ship canted to port," the masts swaying wildly. She delivered a parting shot and sank "with the American flag at the peak. This action had lasted thirty minutes. Seeing the fate of her sister ship, the Congress slipped her anchor, set her jib and top-sails and, assisted by a tug, ran ashore, hoping in the shoal water to escape the Merrimac, which drew twenty-two feet. But she did not get beyond the Confederate range of fire. The 1 B. & L., 698, 712; O. R., N., VII, 21. Сн. ІІІ] ALARM IN WASHINGTON 113 Merrimac raked her "fore and aft with shells."1 Being now on fire she hauled down her colors and hoisted a white flag. A misunderstanding that ensued with regard to her surrender led to the Merrimac firing hot shot into the Congress; this completed her destruction. As soon as the Merrimac was sighted, the frigate Minnesota left her anchorage at Fort Monroe and steamed toward Newport News to the support of the Congress and the Cumberland. She ran aground and, as there still remained two hours of daylight she was apparently at the mercy of the ironclad, but the pilots were afraid to attempt the channel at ebbtide. The Merrimac therefore returned to Sewell's Point and anchored, to await the light of next day when her commander expected to return to destroy the Minnesota and the rest of the fleet at Fort Monroe. That night there was consternation in the Union fleet and among the Union troops in Fort Monroe and at Newport News. The stately wooden frigates, in the morning deemed powerful men-of-war, had been proved absolutely useless to cope with this new engine of destruction. The following 2 day in Washington, a Sunday, was one of profound disquietude. Seward, Chase, Stanton and Welles hastened to the White House to confer with the President, who was much perturbed. "Stanton," wrote Hay in his Diary, "was fearfully stampeded. He said they would capture our fleet, take Fort Monroe, be in Washington before night." The President and Stanton "went repeatedly to the window and looked down the Potomac - the view being uninterrupted for miles to see if the Merrimac was not coming to Washington." 3 The despatches from the War Department that day reflect the general excitement and apprehension. The capability of the Merrimac for future performance was much 10. R. N., VII, 23. 2 J. Hay, I, 54. 3 Welles's Diary, I, 65. 114 THE MONITOR [1862 exaggerated, but one consideration could not rationally be ignored. She had broken the blockade at Norfolk and might do as much at other ports. During the excited meeting at the White House, Welles said to the President and his advisers: "The Monitor is now in Hampton Roads. I have confidence in her power to resist and, I hope, to overcome the Merrimac." 1 The Monitor had been towed from New York and, despite a gale and stormy passage, had reached Hampton Roads on the Saturday evening at nine. Thence, in obedience to further orders, she proceeded two and a half hours later to a point alongside the Minnesota. At daylight on March 9, the Confederates saw a "craft such as the eyes of a seaman never looked upon before an immense shingle floating on the water, with a gigantic cheese box rising from its centre: no sails, no wheels, no smoke-stack, no guns: they knew it was the Monitor. At eight o'clock the Merrimac bore down upon the Minnesota and opened fire on her. The Monitor, which was commanded by Lieut. John L. Worden, steered directly for the Merrimac, "laid herself right alongside" and opened fire. The Monitor was of 776 tons burden, drew only ten and a half feet and had two 11-inch Dahlgren guns fired from a revolving turret; the Merrimac was a ship of 3500 tons carrying ten cannon. It was said that a pigmy strove against a giant; David had come out to encounter Goliath. Then, for nearly four hours ensued a fierce artillery duel at close range; the distance between the two vessels varied from half a mile to a few yards. "Gun after gun was fired by the Monitor" without result except to draw broadsides from the Merrimac, which apparently had "no more effect 1 Welles's Diary, I, 63. 2 O. R. N., VII, 53. CH. III] THE MERRIMAC AND MONITOR 1 115 than so many pebble stones thrown by a child." At one time Lieutenant Jones, who was in command of the Merrimac, inquired, "Why are you not firing, Mr. Eggleston?" "Why, our powder is very precious," was the reply, "and after two hours' incessant firing, I find that I can do her about as much damage by snapping my thumb at her every two minutes and a half." 2 Jones determined then to ram the Monitor as the Cumberland had been rammed the previous day. But the engines and boilers of the Merrimac were defective; her speed was only five knots; she was unwieldy and her iron prow had been twisted off and lost in her encounter with the Cumberland. Opportunity offering, however, she made for her antagonist at full speed, but the Monitor being easily handled, got out of her way, receiving only a glancing blow. "She gave us a tremendous thump,' wrote the Chief Engineer, "but did not injure us in the least."3 The Merrimac got the worse of the collision, springing a leak; she had, also wrote Jones, "received a shot which came near disabling the machinery.' But Worden was hurt. pilot house, which was constructed of iron logs in the manner of a log cabin, he used a look-out chink to direct the movements of his vessel. A shell struck and exploded just outside, severely injuring his eyes and leading him to believe that the pilot house was seriously damaged. He "gave orders to put the helm to starboard and sheer off." 5 Jones, either because he thought the Monitor had given up the contest or because his own boat was leaking badly, steered towards Norfolk and the struggle was over. The Monitor was uninjured and in condition to engage the Merrimac if she appeared on the morrow. But the Merrimac was too badly damaged for 10. R. N., VII, 11. 2 B. & L., I, 702. 3 O. R. N., VII, 26. 5 B. & L., I, 727. In the 116 THE MONITOR [1862 further operations; she had to dock for repairs and did not reënter Hampton Roads until a month later. "Captain Ericsson," wrote the Chief Engineer of the Monitor from Hampton Roads on the day of the fight, "I congratulate you upon your great success. Thousands have this day blessed you. I have heard whole crews cheer you. Every man feels that you have saved this place to the nation by furnishing us with the means to whip an iron-clad frigate that was, until our arrival, having it all her own way with our most powerful vessels." 1 This momentous encounter demonstrated that the naval ships of the future must be iron-clad. The "wooden walls of England" were no longer her security.2 The performance of the Monitor on Sunday did not entirely dispel the apprehensions in Washington and throughout the country, occasioned by the destructive work of the Merrimac on Saturday. McClellan had decided to transport his army to Fort Monroe and, using that as his base, advance on Richmond by the Peninsula between the York and James rivers. But this movement required the control of the sea in Hampton Roads and at Fort Monroe by the Union Navy and this was rendered dubious by "the possibility of the Merrimac appearing again." He therefore asked Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Fox [March 12], who was still at Fort Monroe, "Can I rely on the Monitor to keep the Merrimac in check so that I can make Fort Monroe a base of operations?" Fox replied: "The Monitor is more than a match for the Merri 1 O. R. N., VII, 27. 2 Authorities: The Correspondence and several reports in O. R. N. VII; B. & L., I; III; Welles's Diary; J. Hay; Swinton; Chesnut. Other Confederate vessels and gunboats, Union frigates and tugs, Confederate and Union shore batteries had a part in this contest but, as their action did not seem to me material, I have omitted the mention of them in the narrative to avoid burdening it with too much detail. |