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board of the Seneca , several miles ap the Beaufort River. On the followingday that vessel was sent to Beaufort, supported by two gun-boats. This visitbrought to view an extraordinary scene. On the wharves were hundreds ofnegroes, wild with excitement, engaged in carrying movables of every char-acter, and packing them in scows. As the gun-boats appeared, a few mountedwhite men rode away rapidly. A very beautiful rural town had been abandonedby all of the white inhabitants, quite as though fire and sword awaited them hadthey remained. Instead of that, I was directed by the flag-officer to assure the
peaceable inhabitants that they would
particularly as we had no gun on either flank of the■bastion to reply with, for the 32-pounder on the rightflank was shattered very early by a round shot, and onthe north flank for want of a carriage no gun had heenmounted. After the fourth fire the 10-inch Columbiadbounded over the limber and became useless. The 24-pounder rifled cannon was choked while ramming downa shell, and lay idle during nearly the whole engage-ment. The shells for the 9-inch Dahlgren were also toolarge. The fourth shell attempted to be rammed homecould not be driven below the trunnions, and was thenat great risk discharged. Thus far the Are of the enemyhad been endured and replied to with the unruffledcourage of veterans. At 10:30 our gunners became sofatigued that I left the fort, accompanied by one of myvolunteer aides, Captain H. Hose, and went back to Cap-tain Read’s battery (one and three-quarter miles to therear of the fort) and brought the greater part of his menback to take the places of our exhausted men inside thefort. . . . Two o’clock had now arrived, when I noticedour men coining out of the fort, which they had bravelydefended for four and a half hours against fearful odds,and then only retiring when all but three of the guns onthe water-front had been disabled, and only 500 poundsof powder in the magazine; commencing the actionwith 220 men inside the fort, afterward increased to 255by the accession from Head’s battery. These heroic men
be protected in life and property. This
retired slowly and sadly from their well-fought guns,which to have defended longer would have exhibitedthe energy of despair rather than the manly pluck ofthe true soldier.”
Of the attack upon Fort Beauregard, GeneralDrayton says:
“The attack upon the fort, though not so concentratedand heavy as that upon Walker, was nevertheless verysevere. Its armament was 19 guns, of which the follow-ing, viz., 1 8-inch Rodman, bored to 24-pounder andrifled, 2 42-pounders, 110-inch Columbiad, 2 42-pounders,reamed to eight iuches, and 1 32-pounder in hot-shotbattery, were the only guns capable of being used againstthe fleet. The force on Bay Point was 640 men, com-maded by Col. R. G. M. Dunovant, 12th Regiment SouthCarolina Volunteers. Of the above, 149 garrisoned FortBeauregard, under the immediate command of Capt.Stephen Elliott, Jr., Beaufort Volunteer Artillery, Com-pany A 9th Regiment South Carolina Volunteers. Theinfantry force of Colonel Dunovant’s regiment wasintrusted with the protection of the eastern part of theisland, and of the defense of the bastion line at theIsland Narrows, where an attack was expected from theenemy. ”
Editors.