THE DUEL BETWEEN THE “ALABAMA” AND “KEARSARGE.” 621

■word of honor that when this was done he wonldcome on board and surrender. Captain Winslowgranted the request. With less generosity he couldhave detained the officer and men, supplied theirplaces in the boat from his ship’s company, securedmore prisoners, and afforded equal aid to the dis-tressed. The generosity was abused, as the sequelshows. Fullam pulled to the midst of the drown-ing, rescued several officers, went to the yachtDeerhound, and cast his boat adrift, leaving anumber of men struggling in the water.

It was now seen that the Alabama was settling fast.The wounded, and the boys who could not swim,were sent away in the quarter-boats, the waist-boats having been destroyed. Captain Semmesdropped his sword into the sea and jumped over-board with the remaining officers and men.

Coming under the stern of the Kearsarge from thewindward, the Deerhound was hailed, and her com-mander requested by Captain Winslow to run downand assist in picking up the men of the sinkingship. Or, as her owner, Mr. John Lancaster, re-ported: “The fact is, that when we passed theKearsarge the captain cried out, ‘For God ’s sake,do what you can to save them’; and that was mywarrant for interfering in any way for the aid andsuccor of his enemies.” The Deerhound was builtby the Lairds at the same time and in the sameyard with the Alabama . Throughout the actionshe kept about a mile to the windward of the con-testants. After being hailed she steamed towardthe Alabama , which sank almost immediately after.This was at 12:24. The Alabama sank in forty-fivefathoms of water, at a distance of about four and abalf miles from the breakwater, off the west en-trance. She was severely hulled between the mainand mizzen masts, and settled by the stern ; the main-mast, pierced by a shot at the very last, broke offnear the head and went over the side, the bowlifted high from the water, and then came the end.Suddenly assuming a perpendicular position, causedby the falling aft of the battery and stores, straightas a plumb-line, stern first, she went down, the jib-boom being the last to appear above water. Thussank the terror of merchantmen, riddled throughand through, and as she disappeared to her lastresting-place there was no cheer; all was silent.

The yacht lowered her two boats, rescued Cap-tain Semmes (wounded in the hand by broken ironrigging), First Lieutenant Kell, t welve officers, andtwenty-six men, leaving the rest of the survivors tothe two boats of the Kearsarge. Apparently awarethat the forty persons he had rescued would beclaimed, Mr. Lancaster steamed away as fast asbe could, direct for Southampton, without waitingfor such suitgical assistance as the Kearsarge mightrender. Captain Winslow permitted the yacht tosecure his prisoners, anticipating their subsequentsurrender. Again his confidence was misplaced, andbe afterward wrote : “ It was my mistake at the mo-menttliat I could not recognize an enemy who, under

I' The controversy in reference to the Deerhound issummarized thus in a letter to the editors from ProfessorJames Russell Soley, U. S. N. :

“ A. neutral ship, in general, could have no right to take

the garb of a friend, was affording assistance.”The aid of the yacht, it is presumed, was asked ina spirit of chivalry, for the Kearsarge, compara-tively uninjured, with but three wounded, and afull head of steam, was in condition to engage asecond enemy. Instead of remaining at a distanceof about four hundred yards from the Alabama ,and from this position sending two boats, the otherboats being injured, the Kearsarge by steamingclose to the settling ship, and in the midst of thedefeated, could have captured all — Semmes, offi-cers, and men. Captain Semmes says: “Therewas no appearance of any boat coming to me fromthe enemy after the ship went down. Fortunately,however, the steam-yacht Deerhound, owned by agentleman of Lancashire , England, Mr. John Lan-caster, who was himself on board, steamed up inthe midst of my drowning men, and rescued a num-ber of both officers and men from the water. I wasfortunate enough myself thus to escape to the shelterof the neutral flag, together with about forty others,all told. About this time the Kearsarge sent one,and then, tardily, another boat.”

This imputation of inhumanity is contradicted byMr. Lancaster’s assertion that he w r as requested todo what he could to save ‘ ‘ the poor fellows whowere struggling in the water for their lives.”

The Deerhound edged to the leeward and steamedrapidly away. An officer approached CaptainWinslow and repoi’ted the presence of CaptainSemmes and many officers on board the English yacht. Believing the information authentic, as itwas obtained from the prisoners, he suggested theexpediency of firing a shot to bring her to, andasked permission. Captain Winslow declined,saying “it was impossible; the yacht was simplycoming round.” Meanwhile the Deerhmmd in-creased the distance from the Kearsarge; anotherofficer spoke to him in similar language, but withmore positiveness. Captain Winslow replied thatno Englishman who carried the flag of the RoyalYacht Squadron could so act. The Deerhound con-tinued her flight, and yet another officer urged thenecessity of firing a shot. With undiminishedconfidence Captain Winslow refused, saying theyacht was 1 ‘ simply coming round,” and wouldnot go away without communicating. The escapeof the yacht and her coveted prize was mani-festly regretted. The famed Alabama , “a formi-dable ship, the terror of American commerce, wellarmed, well manned, well handled,” was de-stroyed, “ sent to the bottom in an hour,” but hercommander had escaped; the victory seemedalready lessened. It was held by the Navy De-partment that Captain Semmes violated the usagesof war in surrendering to Captain Winslow throughthe agency of one of his officers and then effectingan escape during the execution of the commission ;that he was a prisoner of the United States Govern-ment from the moment he sent the officer to makethe surrender. ])

part in hostilities even to the extent of rescuing- the drown-ing sailors of a ■belligerent, their situation being a part and aconsequence of the battle. In the case of the Deerhound,however, the interference was directly authorized by CaptainWinslow’s request, addressed to Mr. Lancaster, and, there-