THE CONFEDERATE CRUISERS.

BY PBOFESSOB JAMES BUSSELL SOLEY, 17. S. KT.

T he first of the ocean cruisers of the Confederatenavy, as distinguished from the privateers,was the Sumter. This steamer, formerly theSabana, of the New Orleans and Havana line, wasaltered into a sliip-of-war in April and May, 1861,and, under the command of Captain RaphaelSemmes, escapedfromthe Mississippi earlyin July,after an unsuccessful chase "by the Brooklyn , whichwas at the time blockading the mouth of the river.Her cruise lasted six months, during which shemade fifteen prizes. Of these seven were destroyed,one was ransomed, one recaptured, and the remain-ing six were sent into Cienfuegos , where they werereleased by the Cuban authorities. In January theSumter arrived at Gibraltar , where she was laidup and finally sold.

The Confederate Government early recognizedthat in order to attack the commerce of the UnitedStates with any hope of success it must procurecruisers abroad. For this purpose it sent severalagents to Europe. The foremost of these was Cap-tain James D. Bulloch , of the Confederate navy,who arrived in England and established himself atLiverpool in June, 1861. Having satisfied himselfas to the scope and bearing of the neutrality laws,he lost no time in closing a contract with the firmof Fawcett & Preston, engine builders, of Liver-pool , for a screw gun-vessel. The steamer wasnamed the Oreto, and it was announced that shewas being built for a firm at Palermo ; presumablyfor the Italian Government. She was a duplicate ofthe gun-vessels of the English navy. The construc-tion of the vessel proceeded without interruptionduring the fall and winter of 1861-62. The Amer-ican Minister, Mr. Charles Francis Adams , twicecalled the attention of the Foreign Office to hersuspected character, and pro formd inquiries wereset on foot, but they failed to show evidence of herreal destination. The Oreto therefore cleared with-out difficulty for Palermo and Jamaica, a Liverpool merchant, representing the Palermo firm, havingsworn that he was the owner, and an English cap-tain having been appointed to the command. Onthe 22d of March the vessel sailed from Liverpool .At the same time the steamer Bahama left Hartle-pool for Nassau , carrying the Oreto’s battery.

The new cruiser arrived at Nassau April 28tli,consigned to Adderly & Co., the Confederate agentsat that port, and a few days later she was joinedby the Bahama . The consignees immediately setabout transferring the arms and ammunition, buton the representations of the United States consulat Nassau the Oreto was inspected by CaptainHiekley, of H. M. ship Greyhound, who reportedthat she was in every respect fitted as a man-of-war. She was thereupon libelled in the vice-admiralty court, and after a trial, in which thesympathies of the court were plainly apparent, sheWas released on the 7tli of August. The Oreto,or Florida , as she was henceforth called, nowsailed for Green Cay, took on board her battery,consisting of two 7-inch rifles and six 6-inch guns,

and became a veritable Confederate cruiser, underthe command of Commander J. N. Maffitt , of theConfederate navy. Her course was first shaped forCuba. Here Maffitt hoped to obtain certain essentialparts of his ordnance which had not been suppliedat Nassau , and also to ship a crew. The authori-ties in Cuba , however, prohibited any shipment ofmen or supply of equipments, and presently thecrew, which numbered only twenty-two, was at-tacked by yellow fever, until nearly every one onboard, including the captain, was prostrated by thedisease. After delaying a week at Cardenas andHavana, Maffitt determined to attempt to run theblockade at Mobile.

The squadron, at this time off Mobile, was com-posed of the sloop-of-war Oneida and the gun-boatWinona, under Commander George H. Preble . TheOneida was just completing repairs to her boilers,and was working at a reduced speed. At 5o’clock on the afternoon of the 4th of Septemberthe Florida was sighted in the distance. At thismoment the Winona was just returning from achase in company with the schooner Bachel Seaman.From the appearance of the stranger, and from herEnglish ensign and pennant, Preble was satisfiedthat she was an English gun-vessel inspecting theblockade. When she came abreast of the Oneida,as she showed no signs of stopping, Preble firedacross her bow three times. The Florida con-tinued at full speed, but made no reply. Upon thisPreble fired into her, the Winona and Bachel Sea-man joining in from a distance. The Florida re-ceived some damage from shot and shell, but shewas not disabled, and in a few moments she hadpassed out of range, and was making her way upthe main ship-channel to Fort Morgan.

The Florida remained four months at Mobilecompleting her repairs and equipment and fillingup her crew. On the night of January 15th, 1863,she ran the blockade outward. It was a dark,stormy night. Seven vessels now composed theblockading squadron, several of which had beenselected for their size and speed, with the view ofpreventing the escape of the Florida . Although hercoming was expected, she succeeded in passingdirectly between the flag-ship Susquehanna and theCuyler, the fastest of the blockaders. The Cuylerstarted in pursuit and chased the Florida duringthe whole of the next day, but at night lost sightof her.

Within ten days after leaving Mobile the Florida captured and burnt three vessels. Maffitt then putinto Nassau , where he was warmly received and,in violation of the neutrality regulations, per-mitted to remain thirty-six hours and to take onboard a three-months’ supply of coal. During thenext five months, comprising the spring and earlysummer of 1863, fourteen prizes were captured,one of which, the brig Clarence, was fitted out as atender and placed under the command of Lieu-tenant Charles W. Read . Proceeding northwardon a roving cruise in the Clarence, Read captured,

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