8

THE DEFENSE OF CHARLESTON.

Smith came up the Stono, and leisurely anchored just above our masked bat-teries. Fire was now opened upon her. She endeavored to make her escape,returning our fire as she passed, but was so roughly handled, and at suchclose range, that she dropped anchor and surrendered. Her armament con-sisted of one 30-pounder Parrott and eight 8-incli heavy Columbiads. Hercrew was of 11 officers and 108 men. Upon examination the damage she had

^___ N sustained was found to be slight.

She was thoroughly repaired and,under the name of the Stono , becamea guard-boat in the Charleston har-bor, with Captain II. J. Iiartsteue,C. S. N., as commander.

As a corollary to this engagement

JWAWDSQ/f.

INTERIOR OF FORT PUTNAM, FORMERLY TIIKCONFEDERATE BATTERY GREGG, CUMMING’SPOINT, S. C. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH.

on the morning of February 1stanother Federal iron-clad, after-ward ascertained to be the sin-gle-turreted monitor Montauh,appeared before Fort McAllister,at Genesis Point, in the Georgia district, and, accompanied bythree gun-boats and a mortar-boat, approached to within ashort distance of the work, and opened a heavy lire upon it. The actionwas very brisk on both sides. The parapet of the fort was breached, andboth guns and gunners were fully exposed. Nevertheless, after a four-hours’combat the monitor slowly retired, evidently in a damaged condition. Theimportance of the success of this engagement lay in the demonstrated factthat iron-clads were not as formidable as they were supposed to be againstland-batteries. As yet, their final test of invulnerability had not been fullyascertained. Reflecting upon the result of that encounter, I wrote to Briga-dier-General Ripley, February 8th, 1863, minute instructions, J. because,

SOUTH-EAST ANGLE OP THE CONPEHEItATE POIiT MARSHALL,ON THE EASTERN EN1> OP SULLIVAN’S ISLAND.

PROM A PHOTOGRAPH.

4 “But I consider also that the attack on Sumter, angle, and east face,—taking their position closewhenever it takes place, will probably be made at along the eastern shore of Morris Island, aftor si-long range with their heaviest gnns and mortars. leneingWagnor. By adopting this plan their stoam-This being admitted, they will necessarily attack it ers, gun-boats, etc., would bo, moreover, fartherwhere it is weakest,— i. e., the gorge, south-east removed from the batteries of Sullivan’s Island.