4RLF DS5 iff THE BEACON BIOGRAPHIES EDITED BY M. A. DEWOLFE HOWE DAVID G. FARRAGUT BY JAMES BARNES THE DAVID G. FARRAGUT BY JAMES BARNES LONDON KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUBNER & CO. LIMITED PREFACE. Perhaps no man who ever achieved signal success in some special walk of life was better fitted for it, either by inclination or by training, than David Glasgow Farragut, first admiral of the United States Navy, ivas fitted for the art of naval warfare. His preparatory training for his profession con sisted, not of a several years 1 course of scientific study at the Naval Academy, for there was no naval academy in his day, but of hard service both in the routine of peace, and the work of war. He was an officer in the naval service of his government at an age when most boys are still at their mothers apron-strings or scribbling on their slates at school. His book education (if such it may be called) at that period was the little practical learn ing that his friend and guardian, Lieu tenant Porter, found time to teach him, and to have him taught by others. While a boy of tivelve, Farragut was recommended for bravery in action, and, viii PEEFACE subsequently, with reason, though ivith seem ing injustice, denied the only reward then possible, promotion, on the ground that he was too young for the untried responsi bility. Manliness even then was the key note of his character. He was always a man, in the finest and noblest sense of the word. A work of this kind requires but a brief introduction. He who reads FarraguVs letters and diaries knows the man, his char acter, and much of his history. There is not a story of the Civil War which does not devote some of its most important chapters to Admiral FarraguVs achievements. The volumes of reports to the various secretaries of the navy, shortly to appear, will embody all of his official correspondence, which ex tended over a period of half a century. The author wishes to acknowledge with gratitude the kindly assistance of Loyall Farragut in the preparation of data and personal information contained in this small volume, and also his indebtedness to Mr. PREFACE ix FarraguVs invaluable u Life of David Glasgow Farragut," constant reference to which greatly lessened his labor and in creased his interest in the compilation of the present work. JAMEg BARNES . NEW YORK, March, 1899. CHBONOLOGY. 1801 July 5. David Glasgow Farragut was born at Campbell s Station, East Ten nessee. 1810 December 17. Appointed midshipman in the United States Navy. 1811 August. Sailed on his first cruise. 1812 June. Sailed from New York on second cruise after declaration of war. 1813 June. Put in command of the Alexander Barclay as prize- master. 1814 March 28. His first battle, Essex, Phoebe, and Cherub. July 1. Arrived at New Ycfrk a paroled prisoner. November 30. Exchanged. xii CHRONOLOGY 1815 April. Sailed from Boston for the Medi terranean in the ship-of-the-line Inde pendence, 74, returning in the fall of the same year. 1816 Spring. Sailed from Boston for the Medi terranean a second time, wintered at Port Mahon, visited his father s birth place. 1817 Spring. Began an extended cruise in the Mediterranean. 1818 January. Went to study at Tunis with United States Consul Charles Folsom. December. Exported for duty on board the Franklin at Messina. 1819 Spring. Cruise to the Mediterranean con tinued. First promotion. Appointed acting lieutenant on board the little brig Shark. CHBONOLOGY xiii 1820 November 20. Arrived at New York to undergo his examination. 1822 May. Went to sea in the John Adams. December 1. Returned to Norfolk. 1823 February. Sailed in the schooner Grey hound for West Indies. Became execu tive officer of the Seagull. July. Obtained command of the Ferret. September. Married to Miss Marchant at Norfolk, Va. 1825 January 23. Commissioned lieutenant, and ordered to the frigate Brandywine to convey Lafayette to France. 1826 May. Arrived in New York. Ordered to the receiving .ship Alert at Norfolk, Va. 1828 October. Ordered to the Vandalia. December. Sailed for the Brazil station. xiv CHEONOLOGY 1830 February. Arrived back at Norfolk. 1832 December. Ordered to the Natchez. 1833 g January. Ordered to Charleston on ac count of the nullification troubles. May. Sailed for the coast of Brazil. 1834 June. Took command of the Boxer at Eio Janeiro. July. Eeturned to Norfolk in her. 1838 August. Took command of the Erie, and sailed for Vera Cruz. December. Witnessed the capture of San Juan d Ulloa by the French. 1839 January. Gave up the Erie. 1840 December 17. Mrs. Farragut died. CHRONOLOGY xv 1841 February. Became executive officer of the Delaware. September 9. Commissioned commander. 1842 June. Took command of the Decatur, and sailed for the South American sta tion. 1843 February. Arrived back at Norfolk. December. Married Miss Loyall at Nor folk. 1844 April. Ordered to the receiving ship Pennsylvania. July. Ordered to Navy Yard, Norfolk. 1847 February. Took command of the Sara toga, and sailed for the Gulf of Mexico. 1848 February 19. Arrived in New York. Ordered to Navy Yard at Norfolk. xvi CHEONOLOGY 1850-51 Employed in compiling a book of ord nance regulations. 1854 August. Ordered to California to estab lish a navy yard. 1855 September 14. Commissioned captain. 1858 July. Left California. Ordered to take command of the Brooklyn, and convey Minister McLane to Mexico. 1859 January. Ordered to Hayti. 1860 Took an exploring party to the isthmus of Chiriqui. 1861 April. Forced to leave Norfolk, Va., at the breaking out of the Civil War, be cause of his loyalty. Eemoved to Hast- ings-on-the-Hudson, N.Y. CHRONOLOGY xvii 1862 January. Given command of the Western Gulf Squadron, and sent against New Orleans. April 24. Attacked and passed Forts Jackson and St. Philip with his fleet, and captured New Orleans. June 28. Passed the batteries at Vicks- burg. July 16. Commissioned rear-admiral. 1863 March 14. Passed the batteries at Port Hudson. August 1. Sailed for New York. 1864 January. Sailed for the Gulf. August 5. Attacked and passed the de fences of Mobile Bay, and conquered the Confederate fleet. August 23. Eeceived the surrender of Fort Morgan. December 12. Beached New York. December 23. Commissioned vice-admi ral. xviii CHKONOLOGY 1865 January 23. Ordered temporarily to the James Eiver. April 4. Entered Richmond. 1866 July 26. Commissioned admiral. 1867 June 28. Sailed from New York in the Franklin for an extended cruise in Eu ropean waters. 1868 November 10. Beached New York. 1869 Summer. Visited the Pacific coast. 1870 August 14. David Glasgow Farragut died at Portsmouth, N.H. September 30. Public funeral held in New York. DAVID G. FARRAGUT DAVID GLASGOW FARRAGlJtV I. DAVID GLASGOW FAKRAGUT came of good stock. His father, George Farra- gut, was a man who had led a rest less, active life, full of movement and enterprise. In his veins flowed the blood of a long line of soldiers, sailors, and adventurers, forbears who had much to do with the history of Italy and Spain ; for he was born in the island of Minorca, in the Mediterranean Sea. On the blank leaf of an old Bible, now in the possession of the admiral s family, there is the following record : "My Son, Your father, George Far - ragut, was born in the Island of Minorca, in the Mediterranean, in 1755, the 29th of September, in Ciudadella, and came away from that island the second day of April, 1772. Came to America in March, 1776. Your mother, Elizabeth Shine, was born in North Carolina, 2 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT Dobbs County, tiear. Kinnston, on the Neuse Eiver, in 1765, on the 7th of June. Her father, John Shine j mother, Ellenor Mdven." The Scotch blood David Farragut in herited from his mother s side was just the admixture necessary to produce the composite temperamental qualities which showed throughout his crowded life, coolness in the face of danger, the can- niness of judgment of the Celt, and the dash and daring, the chivalrous manner, distinguishing the Latin. He inherited also no small amount of humor a char acteristic plainly Scotch and a deeply religious nature that showed itself upon more than one occasion. George Farragut, his father, had been a little of everything, a " soldier and sailor too." He had been an officer in the navy, a major of cavalry in Tennes see, and an explorer and pioneer in the unsettled portion of what was then the borderland. At last he had settled DAVID GLASGOW FARRAGUT 3 down as a farmer and planter in the semi-tropical groves of Louisiana. David Glasgow Farragut was born at Campbell Station, near Knoxville, Tenn., July 5, 1801. In 1809 his father, who had been sailing master of a schooner in the United States Navy, was transferred to the naval station at New Orleans. In this same year he purchased a farm of nine hundred acres on the Pascagoula River. It happened that, upon a visit of Commander David Porter to the plantation, the latter met, and took a great fancy to, the little boy David ; and, this fancy growing, he pro posed to the father that lie should prac tically adopt him and bring him up with the intention of making him an officer in the navy. It is evident that even at this early age (Farragut was then short of nine years) he must have displayed some thing that attracted the officer s atten tion. At any rate, the proposition was 4 DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT left to the boy s own decision ; and he made up his mind to accept it. When Porter sailed from New Orleans for the North, the lad bade farewell to his own father, and set sail with Mrs. Porter and his adopted parent. David was placed at school at Chester, while Porter remained at Washing ton. The Secretary of the Navy, Paul Hamilton, who in the mean time had met the boy, had been so impressed by his manly bearing that he had prom ised him a midshipman s commission as soon as he reached the age of ten. The fact is, however, that the commis sion, when it came, bore the date of Dec. 17, 1810 ; and at that time Farra- gut was but nine years and five months old. Porter was not promoted to be a cap tain until July 12, 1812, but was given the command of the frigate Essex, then lying at Norfolk, Ya., in August, 1811. The little midshipsman, now ten years DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT 5 and one month old, was ordered to join him there. What he writes of himself in referring to this time of his life is so complete that it can here be inserted word for word. " On reaching the Essex," he writes, "I was exceedingly pleased with the ship and her officers. John Downes was the first lieutenant ; James P. Wilmer, second ; James Wilson, third ; William Finch, fourth ; John M. Gamble, marine officer ; Robert Miller, surgeon ; Richard K. Hoffman and Alex. M. Montgomery, assistant surgeons ; David P. Adams, chaplain ; John R. Shaw, purser. The ship was soon refitted and ready for sea, when we received orders to join the coast squadron under Commodore Rodg- ers, consisting of the frigates President, United States, Congress, and Essex, with the brig Argus. Nothing occurred of note until we went into port to winter. We cruised on the coast, and exercised 6 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT the crews until they were brought to as great a state of perfection and discipline as ever existed, probably, in the navy. Our ship, the Essex, was the i smartest in the squadron ; and Commodore Eodg- ers complimented our captain highly. So efficient had our crew become that they were divided into three watches, and that arrangement remained in force iintil the day of the ship s capture. "We went to Newport, E.I., on Christmas Eve, 1811, and anchored off the bluffs, not being able to bring up in the harbor. About four o clock in the morning it commenced to blow very hard from the north-east with sleet and snow, and we let go another anchor, and at half-past six let go a third and a fourth ; but she dragged the whole of them, and went ashore just off the bluffs. She heeled over very much ; and in a short time the main and mizzen topgal lant masts were blown away, everything being so clogged with ice as to render it DAVID GLASGOW FAKEAGUT 7 impossible to house the masts. It was understood that we lay on a bank, and, if the ship should beat over, nothing could save us from being dashed against the cliffs, which seemed a perfect mass of ice. The only hope left of saving the lives of the crew was to cut away the masts as soon as the ship was sufficiently near the bank ; and the men were ac cordingly stationed at the galley with axes, ready to execute the order, for no one could keep the deck. The captain and first lieutenant were on the lookout by turns, a few minutes only at a time, the cold being so intense that one of the men, an Indian or mulatto, was found in his hammock frozen. Fortunately, the gale abated at this critical period without doing us any further injury; but there was great destruction on the coast from its fearful effects. The Nau tilus came in soon afterward, with the loss of her guns, and otherwise severely crippled. 8 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT " During the remainder of the winter the midshipmen of the squadron were sent to school to a Mr. Adams ; and early in the spring the squadron went to New York, where some of the ships under went repairs." The long-expected war with Great Britain was close at hand. Notwith standing the fact that the right to search our vessels-of-war had been explicitly dis avowed by her after the unhappy Ches apeake affair of 1807, Great Britain showed a deference more and more scant toward the neutral rights of a power so obviously feeble as was the United States ; and the bonds of peace so long strained were ready to break. The ships of the United States navy, that was so shortly to acquire a glory before unknown to our modest naval annals, came igno- miniously near to being ordered out of commission and prevented from taking any part in the war 5 but at the last moment bolder and better counsels pre- DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 9 vailed, and early in the month of June, 1812, a small squadron was brought together in New York Harbor. It con sisted of the President, 44, under the command of Commodore Bodgers; the Essex, 32, Captain Porter 5 and the Hor net, 18, Captain Lawrence. The rest of the little navy was scattered along the coast, under repairs or fitting out for sea. War was declared between the United States and Great Britain on the 18th of June, 1812. On the 21st the frigates United States, 44, under the command of Captain Decatur, the Congress, 38, under the command of Captain Smith, and the brig Argus, 16, Lieutenant Commander St. Clair, joined the squadron and set sail. The Essex left the harbor some weeks later, having had to overhaul her rig ging and restow her hold. Captain Porter, as soon as he had put the highlands behind him, headed for the Banks of Newfoundland, where he 10 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT had numerous adventures and captured several prizes, among them the British sloop-of-war Alert, the first armed vessel to fall into the hands of the American navy. On one occasion, by a ruse, he succeeded in passing the line-of-battle- ship Antelope in a fog, though near enough to u smell her," as a sailor would say, which, by the by, in those days, was more than a figure of speech. On another occasion Porter cut out from a fleet of transports an armed barque, upon which he found many sol diers and some general officers. The vessel convoying this fleet was the Mi nerva, and she deliberately refused to engage the Essex, although the anxiety of the latter to bring her to action was evident. Owing to the crowded condition of the ship, Captain Porter was compelled to make a cartel of the Alert, and de spatched the captured officers and men to Halifax under parole. DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 11 Turning to the southward, off the coast of Long Island, Porter ran across two British frigates and a brig that proved afterward to have been the Acosta, Shannon, and Eingdove. As the Essex had the weather-gauge, they en deavored to decoy her into gunshot. Failing in this, they set out in chase of her ; but she outran them all. Captain Porter entered the Delaware, sailing up to New Castle and thence to Chester, where he overhauled his ship once more before putting to sea. While lying there at anchor, a mes sage was brought to him by a little ves sel which the British had allowed to proceed in shore. It was from Sir James Yeo of the frigate Southampton, nothing short of a challenge to a con flict off the Capes. After presenting his compliments in the usual stilted fashion of the day, Sir James s spleen evidently got the better of him ; for he wrote that he would " be glad to have 12 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT a tete-a-tete anywhere between the Capes of Delaware and Havana/ when he would have the pleasure of break ing his own sword over his (Porter s) "d d head" and put him " forward in irons. " Porter replied that he ac cepted with pleasure Sir James s polite invitation, and would prefer to meet him off the Delaware Capes, where " Captain Porter pledges his honor that no other American vessel shall interrupt the tete - a - tete. The Essex may be known/ goes on Captain Por ter, "by a flag bearing the motto of Free Trade and Sailors Eights ! and, when that is struck to the Southamp ton, Captain P. will deserve the treat ment promised by Sir James." In writing of this incident, Farragut says, "We put to sea immediately, but could not find Sir James." The Essex finally sailed from the Dela ware under orders to join Commodore Bainbridge, then cruising off the coast DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 13 of Brazil in the Constitution in com pany with, the sloop -of -war Hornet , under command of James Lawrence. Several rendezvous were appointed; but, owing to the Constitution having captured the Java, and the Hornet hav ing captured the Peacock, the meeting did not take place at any of the ap pointed harbors, and Captain Porter was left to choose his own sailing- grounds. A bold idea entered his head. It was nothing less than to sail around the Horn into the Pacific, and carry destruc tion to the British shipping in the Western waters. He would of course have no base of supplies, would be cut off from all help and assistance ; but such a venture tempted his spirit greatly. The Essex received a severe buffeting in the icy waters of the Straits of Ma gellan, but she succeeded at last in working her way up the coast of South America. 14 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT The history of the eventful cruise that followed would make a separate volume. It has been told delightfully by Captain Porter himself in the book entitled " Porter s Narrative/ 7 the first edition of which was suppressed by the United States government, owing to the too familiar and detailed descrip tion of some unlicensed portion of a sailor s life in the Pacific Isles. David Farragut, although of such tender years, already began to display some of the marks of his future great ness. He was ever willing, eager, and trustworthy. Upon one occasion he was _made prize- master of the captured ves sel Barclay, and sailed and all but navi gated her for three weeks without assist ance. At this time he was but twelve years of age. It seems hardly possible, as we think of it, that such responsibil ity could have been placed in the hands of a little boy ; but Captain Porter had not judged amiss. Farragut was a DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 15 man in all but years, stature, and expe rience. In the space of a few months Porter captured vessel after vessel, until he had more prizes than he could man. They all were lying in the harbor of one of the Marquesas Islands, the beautiful Nukahiva. Among the nine vessels in the squadron were the Atlantic, which had been armed and equipped as a consort of the flagship and renamed the Essex Junior, the New Zealand, the Seringapatan, and the Sir Andrew Ham mond. The prisoners outnumbered the crew on the Essex, there were not enough officers to take charge of the vessels, and it was with great reluc tance that Captain Porter was forced to sail away, leaving a force of ma rines in command of a lieutenant, and a battery commanding the harbor that had been named Massachusetts Bay. On the 9th of December, 1813, the Essex, accompanied by the Essex Jun- 16 DAVID GLASGOW FABftAGTJT for, under Commander Downes, sailed for Valparaiso, Chile. An interesting episode, which, might be touched upon before leaving this part of the subject, is the fact that, during the stay at Nukahiva, Porter had taken sides with one of the tribes that were then at war in the interior of the islands, and had settled the conflict for good and all with the aid of his bullets and powder. This side-show warfare had given the sailors some employment ; but Farragut was forbidden to take part in the expe ditions of the land forces, for the reason, as he expressed it afterward, that his "legs were too short to climb the mountains." Early in January of the year 1814 they arrived off the coast of Chile and finally came to anchor at Valparaiso, whence the Essex was doomed to de part under another flag. The action that brought us so much glory, and which gave the watchword, "Remem- DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 17 ber the Essex" to our navy, is so well described in Admiral Farragut s own words that it is well to quote verbatim, without further preamble. " After looking into Conception, we ran down to Valparaiso, where we lay until the arrival of the British frigate Phoebe and sloop-of-war Cherub. This occurred early in February. The frig ate mounted thirty long eighteen-pound- ers, sixteen thirty - two-pounder car- ronades, one howitzer, and six three- pounders in the tops, with a crew of three hundred and twenty men. The Cherub had eighteen thirty -two- pounder carronades, eight twenty-four- pounders, two long nines, and a crew of one hundred and eighty men. "When they made their appearance off the port, our whole watch, being a third of our crew, were on the shore on liberty. The mate of an English mer chantman, which was lying in port at the time, went immediately on board 18 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT the Phoebe and stated to Captain Hill- yar that one-half of our men were on shore, and that the Essex would fall an easy prey. The two ships then hauled into the harbor on a wind. The Phoebe made our larboard quarter, but the Cherub fell to leeward about half a mile. On gaining our quarter, the Phoebe put her helm down, and luffed up on our starboard bow, coming within ten or fifteen feet of the Essex. "I should say here that, as soon as the enemy hove in sight, we fired a gun and hoisted a cornet for all boats and men to return, and that in fifteen minutes every man was at his quarters, and but one was under the influence of liquor, he a mere boy. When the Phoebe, as before mentioned, was close alongside, and all hands at quarters, the powder- boys stationed with slow matches ready to discharge the guns, the boarders, cutlass in hand, stand ing by to board in the smoke, as was DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 19 our custom at close quarters, the in toxicated youth saw, or imagined that he saw, through the port, some one on the Phoebe grinning at him. My fine fellow, Fll stop your making faces, he exclaimed, and was just about to fire his gun, when Lieutenant McKnight saw the movement, and with a blow sprawled him on the deck. Had that gun been fired, I am convinced that the Phoebe would have been ours. But it was des tined to be otherwise. We were all at quarters and cleared for action, waiting with breathless anxiety for the command from Captain Porter to board, when the English captain [Hillyar] appeared, standing on the after-gun, in a pea- jacket, and in plain hearing said, " Captain Hilly ar s compliments to Captain Porter, and hopes he is well. 7 " Porter replied, Yery well, I thank you ; but I hope you will not come too near, for fear some accident might take place which would be disagreeable to 20 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT you. And with a wave of his trumpet the kedge anchors went up to our yard- arms, ready to grapple the enemy. " Captain Hillyar braced back his yards, and remarked to Porter that, if he did fall aboard him, he begged to assure the captain it would be entirely acci dental. " Well, said Porter, you have no business where you are. If you touch a rope-yarn of this ship, I shall board in stantly. ? He then hailed the Essex Junior, and told Captain Downes to be prepared to repel the enemy. "But our desire for a fight was not yet to be gratified. The Phcebe backed down, her yards passed over ours, not touching a rope, and she anchored about half a mile astern. We thus lost an opportunity of taking her, though we had observed the strict neutrality of the port under very aggravating cir cumstances. " We remained together in the harbor DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT 21 for some days, when the British vessels, having completed their provisioning and watering, went to sea, and com menced a regnlar blockade of our ships. One night we manned all our boats for the purpose of boarding the enemy out side. The captain, in his boat, with muffled oars, pulled so close up to the Phcebe that he could hear the conver sation of the men in the forecastle, and thereby learned that they were lying at their quarters prepared for us. So the attempt was given up, and we returned on board. "It was understood in our ship one day that Captain Porter had sent word to Captain Hilly ar that, if he would send the Cherub to the leeward point of the harbor, he would go out and fight him. We all believed the terms would be ac cepted, and everything was kept in readiness to get under way. Soon after the Phcebe was seen standing in with her motto flag flying, on which was God 22 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT and our Country ! British Sailors Best Eights ! This was in answer to Porter s flag, Free Trade and Sailors Eights ! She fired a gun to windward, and the Cherub was seen running to leeward. In five minutes our anchor was up, and under topsails and jib we cleared for action. In fact, we were always ready for that. When within two miles of our position, the Phcebe bore up, and set her studdingsails. This I considered a second breach of faith on the part of Hillyar ; for by his manoeuvres in both instances it was evident that he was either wanting in courage or lacked the good faith of a high-toned, chivalrous spirit to carry out his original intention. However, as Captain Hillyar subse quently proved himself a brave man in more than one instance, I shall not deny him that common characteristic of a naval officer, and have attributed his action on these two occasions to a want of good faith. He was dealing with a DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 23 far inferior force ; and it was ignoble, in the extreme, on his part, not to meet his foe, when he had the ghost of an excuse for doing so, ship to ship. "On the 28th of March, 1814, it came on to blow from the south ; and we parted our larboard cable, dragging the star board anchor leeward. We immediately got under way, and made sail on the ship. The enemy s vessels were close in with the weathermost point of the bay; but Captain Porter thought we could weather them, so we hauled up for that purpose and took in our top gallant sails, which had been set over close-reefed topsails. But scarcely had the topgallant sails been clewed down, when a squall struck the ship, and, though the topsail halyards were let go, the yards jammed, and would not come down. When the ship was nearly gunwale under, the maintopmast went by the board, carrying the men who were on the main topgallant yard into 24 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT the sea ; and they were drowned. We immediately wore ship, and attempted to regain the harbor, but, owing to the disaster, were unable to do so. There fore, we anchored in a small bay about a quarter of a mile off shore and three- quarters of a mile from a small battery. "But it was evident from the prepara tions being made by the enemy that he intended to attack us. So we made arrangements to receive him as well as we possibly could. Springs were got on our cables, and the ship was perfectly prepared for action. "I well remember the feelings of awe produced in me by the approach of the hostile ships. Even to my young mind it was perceptible in the faces of those around me, as clearly as possible, that our case was hopeless. It was equally apparent that all were ready to die at their guns rather than surrender, and such I believe to have been the deter mination of the crew almost to a man. DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT 25 There had been so much bantering of each other between the men of the ships through the medium of letters and songs, with an invariable fight between the boats crews when they met on shore, that a very hostile sentiment was engen dered. Our flags were flying from every mast; and the enemy s vessels displayed their ensigns, jacks, and motto flags as they bore down grandly to the attack. "At 3.54 P.M. they commenced fir ing, the Phcebe under our stern and the Cherub on our starboard bow. But the latter, finding out pretty soon that we had too many guns bearing on her, likewise ran under our stern. "We suc ceeded in getting three long guns out of the stern ports, and kept up as well- directed a fire as possible in such an unequal contest. "In half an hour they were both compelled to haul off to repair dam ages. During this period of the fight we had succeeded three times in getting 26 DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT springs on our cables, but in each in stance they were shot away as soon as they were hauled taut. Notwithstand ing the incessant firing from both of the enemy s ships, we had so far suffered less than might have been expected, con sidering that we could bring but three guns to oppose two broadsides. We had many men killed in the first five or ten minutes of their fire, before we could bring our stern guns to bear. "The enemy soon repaired damages, and renewed the attack, both ships tak ing positions on our larboard quarter, out of reach of our carronades and where the stern guns could not be brought to bear. They then kept up a most galling fire, which we were power less to return. At this juncture the cap tain ordered the cable to be cut ; and, after many ineffectual attempts, we suc ceeded in getting sail on the ship, hav ing found that the flying-jib halyards were in condition to hoist that sail. It DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGTIT 27 was the only serviceable rope that had not been shot away. By this means we were enabled to close with the enemy, and the firing now became fearful on both sides. "The Cherub was compelled to hanl out, and never came into close action again, though she lay off and used her long guns greatly to our dis comfort, making a perfect target of us. The Phcebe, also, was enabled by the better condition of her sails to choose her own distance, suitable for her long guns, and kept up a most destructive fire on our helpless ship. " Finding, as Captain Porter says, the impossibility of closing with the Phcebe, he determined to run his ship ashore and destroy her. We accord ingly stood for the land ; but, when we were within half a mile of the bluffs, the wind suddenly shifted, took us flat aback, and paid our head off shore. We were thus again exposed to a galling fire 28 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT from the Phcebe. At this moment Cap tain Downes of the Essex Junior, came on board to receive his orders, being under the impression that our ship would be soon captured, as the enemy at that time were raking us, while we could not bring a gun to bear, and his vessel was in no condition to be of service to us. " Captain Porter now ordered a hawser to be bent on the anchor and let go. This brought our ship s head around, and we were in hopes the Phcebe would drift out of gunshot, as the sea was nearly calm ; but the hawser broke, and we were again at the mercy of the enemy. The ship was now reported to be on fire, and the men came rushing up from below, many with their clothes burning, which were torn from them as quickly as possible ; and those for whom this could not be done were told to jump overboard, and quench the flames. Many of the crew, and even some of the officers, hear ing the order to jump overboard, took it DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 29 for granted that the fire had reached the magazine, and that the ship was about to blow up. So they leaped into the water, and attempted to reach the shore, about three-quarters of a mile distant, in which effort a number were drowned. "The captain sent for the commis sioned officers, to consult with them as to the propriety of further resistance, but first went below to ascertain the quantity of powder in the magazine. On his return to the deck he met Lieu tenant McKnight, the only commissioned officer left on duty, all the others having been either killed or wounded. As it was pretty evident that the ship was in a sinking condition, it was determined to surrender, in order to save the wounded , and at 6.30 P.M. the painful order was given to haul down the colors. "The loss of the Essex in this famous action was fifty-eight killed (including those who soon died), sixty- six wounded, and thirty- one missing. 30 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT Most of the missing were probably drowned. Captain Hillyar s official re port acknowledged a loss of four killed and seven wounded on the Phcebe, and one killed and three wounded on the Cherub. The Phcebe received eigh teen twelve-pound shots below the water line, and both the British ships were considerably cut up. It was estimated that they threw seven hundred eighteen- pound shots at the Essex, and that the latter fired each of her twelve long guns seventy-five times. The battle lasted two hours and a half, and was witnessed by thousands of people from the shore." With characteristic modesty Farragut has dwelt but little upon the part that he played in the action. He does not mention the fact that he was wounded, but the record shows that he received a slight wound in the height of the engagement. One small incident of the action shows DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 31 what Captain Porter thought of the little midshipman, and how he depended upon him as upon a grown man. A quarter-gunner, named Eoach, was the Essex s only coward. He had de serted his gun after the last spring had been shot away, and word was brought to Captain Porter on the quarter-deck. Turning to Farragut, the captain drew a pistol from his belt, and, extend ing it, said, "Go below, Mr. Farragut, find this man, and do your duty." The midshipman did not flinch, but made his way down among the wounded, searching and inquiring everywhere for Eoach 5 and, had he found him, it is safe to state that the quarter- gunner would have received his just deserts. How ever, he could not be found. While he was searching in the hold, Farragut ran across another man crawling along by the aid of his arms alone, both legs being mangled below the knees. In his hands he carried a huge boarding pistol. 32 DAVID GLASGOW PAEEAGUT His quest was the same as Farragut s. It was McCall, captain of the next gun to Eoach s. After the surrender, Farragut was ordered with the other prisoners on board the Phcebe; and he had not been there an hour before he was fighting again. This time it was at fisticuffs with an English middy over the possession of the Essex* s pet pig. It is satisfactory to record that both the fight and the pig were won by the little Yankee. " After some delay, arrangements were made to turn the Essex Junior into a cartel. She was disarmed, and all hands were embarked on her for home. In due time they arrived off the shores of Long Island, where they were stopped by the British razee Saturn, under the command of Captain Nash, and were de tained. Porter, angry at the lack of respect shown to himself and to Captain Hillyar s parole, called away a boat, and succeeded on a foggy night in reaching DAVID GLASGOW FAREAGUT 33 the shores of Long Island. At last the Essex Junior , was allowed to proceed, but was stopped again by the frigate Narcissus, which shows how complete a blockade the British had established along our coast. The next morning, the 7th of July, 1814, the Essex Junior dropped her anchor in Kew York Harbor, and the officers and men set foot on their native land. "Thus," says Farragut, " ended one of the most eventful cruises of my life." II. IT must have been with, great regret that, in reporting this action, the Secre tary of the Navy felt himself compelled to write, " Midshipman Farragut is too young for promotion. 7 It would have seemed, indeed, rather preposterous to think of a lieutenant, five feet in height and but twelve years old, with a huge epaulet on his shoulder, dining in the ward- room with grown men and grizzled veterans, while boys of his own age, in roundabouts and tasselled caps, were playing at marbles and peg-tops on shore. So the little midshipman, still on parole, was taken to Chester by Captain Porter, and put to school again. On the 30th of November 1819, Farragut was officially notified of his exchange, and at the same time received orders to the brig Spark, Captain Thomas Gamble, then fitting out at New York. He was quartered on the sloop -of- war DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 35 John Adams, then doing duty as a re ceiving-ship ; and, before he could join his ship, peace was proclaimed between the United States and Great Britain. In April, 1815, he received orders to the Independence, 74, Captain Bain- bridge, then lying at Boston and mak ing preparations to sail with a squadron to the Mediterranean, as war had been declared by our government against Algiers. In company with the Con gress and the Erie, the Independence sailed, but arrived too late to enable Farragut to see active service in the war. Commodore Decatur had already thrashed the pirates into submission, and had made peace. It is interesting to note that Midship man Farragut served with the largest American fleet ever assembled in British waters a fleet that, under the direc tion of Commodore Bainbridge, had been brought to as great a state of perfection as was possible in the old sailing days. 36 DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT Fleet sailing and the use of signals were Commodore Bainbridge s hobbies. There was plenty of time for the exer cise of both. The names of the vessels under his command were as follows : Independence, 74 ; Congress, 36 ; Erie, 22 ; Macedonian, 36 ; Ontario, 22 ; Chippewa, 16 ; Boxer, 16 ; Spark, 12 ; Epervier, 16 ; Enterprise, 12 ; Flambeau, 12 ; Torch, 12 ; Firefly, 14; Spitfire, 12; and Lynx S, 15 vessels, 320 guns. Six of the fleet had been captured from the British or were named after prizes. After Farragut s return to America in the fall, everything went smoothly and evenly for a year or two. He made three other cruises of considerable in terest to him, but of little moment other wise ; and in the spring of 1819 he was once more in the Mediterranean in the frigate Franklin and was appointed from her to be the acting lieutenant of the brig Shark. In referring to this promotion, which took place while DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT 37 he was yet very young, Farragut writes : "One of the important events of my life was obtaining an acting lieutenancy when but little over eighten years of age. This caused me to feel that I was now associated with men, on an equality, and must act with more circumspection. When I became first lieutenant, my duties were still more important ; for, in truth, I was really commander of the vessel, and yet I was not responsible an anomalous position, which has spoiled some of our best officers. I consider it a great advantage to obtain command young, having observed, as a general thing, that persons who come into author ity late in life shrink from responsibility, and often break down under its weight." In 1822 Farragut was ordered to sea in the sloop-of-war, John Adams, and during the ensuing cruise he gained a knowledge of the Gulf of Mexico and of the treacherous Gulf Coast that proved of infinite value in after years. 38 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT Early in the following year the young sailor was again outward bound on a cruise that proved one of stirring adventure and unusual hardship. He was assigned as lieutenant to the schooner Greyhound, one of the vessels of the mosquito fleet sent out to break up piracy in the West Indian seas. About the last of August, 1823, Farragut sailed back to the United States. The mis sion of the mosquito fleet had been ac complished. On the 24th of September, 1823, David Glasgow Farragut married Susan C. Marchant, of Norfolk, Ya. His wife, who was a very beautiful and accomplished woman, shortly afterward became a con firmed invalid. But during her lifetime she had from her husband all the devo tion and care of a great heart and soul. In all his relations with her for sixteen years he showed the full measure of the tenderness which was characteristic of his domestic life in general. DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 39 In August, 1825, Farragut was com missioned first lieutenant, and was as signed to the frigate Brandywine, which had been designated to convey the Marquis de Lafayette back to France. For a dozen years or more from this time Farragutfs life was that of the ordinary naval officer in time of peace, with the exception that by his constant and thorough application to detail he was gradually fitting himself for the first place in his profession. It was of course to his advantage that in 1838 he had the opportunity of wit nessing the attack and capture of San Juan d Ulloa by the French fleet under Admiral Baudin. In 1841 he was ap pointed executive officer of the line-of- battle-ship Delaware, and on the 27th of September he received his commission as commander. His first command by right of rank was the Decatur, then on the South American coast, whence he re turned to Norfolk in February, 1843. 40 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT On the 26th of December of the same year, only a day less than three years after the death of his first wife, Com mander Farragut married Miss Virginia Loyall, like Miss Marchant a lady of Norfolk. The issue of this marriage was one son, who is now living in New York. Upon the breaking out of our war with Mexico, Farragut obtained, al though with great difficulty, the com mand of the sloop-of-war Saratoga, and as promptly as was possible repaired to the scene of action. But he arrived there just too late, for Vera Cruz had surrendered to General Scott. Of all the service Farragut had seen in the navy, this cruise was the most mortify ing. It amounted to nothing in the way of fighting ; and it resulted in very unpleasant relations with his com manding officer and with the depart ment, although Farragut was completely justified in the end. DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 41 It was not until 1851 that Farragut received his commission as captain. During his forty-one years of service" in the navy he had sailed in almost every sea, and so improved his oppor tunities that not only was he one of the best officers on the navy list, so far as seamanship went, but he had also gained that general knowledge that comes to a close observer, and by study and application had become a proficient linguist. * Soon came the troublesome times that preceded the outbreak of the hostilities between the North and the South. Far ragut had always claimed to be a South erner. He was born in Tennessee, his early boyhood had been spent in Louis iana ; and, having married in the South and hailing from Norfolk, it was ex pected that he would cast his lot with those who left the regular service and adhered to the fortunes of the Confed eracy. 42 DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT Many officers who had been supported in the service, and who had fought be neath the old flag disowned their alle giance to both, and tendered their swords to the cause of secession. But Farragut, beyond all doubt, thought of the time when he had stood on the quar ter-deck of the Essex. The flag that flew from her peak was the only one he knew and recognized. The navy was his home. He had no near kinspeople in Virginia, it is true ; but, even if he had, he would have resisted all induce ments and temptations to turn against his country. As he was living at Norfolk, and yet made no concealment of his views upon secession, he soon found that not only were his friends falling away from him, but that it would soon be unsafe for him to continue living in the neighborhood, and there openly to speak his mind. "Very well," he said, "I will go where I can live with such sentiments, " DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGTJT 43 and he hastened his preparations for departure. Soon after the fall of Fort Sumter came the conspiracy to seize the Nor folk Navy Yard. The struggle was on, and the direful future was full before the nation. The day before the burning of the navy yard, which took place on the 19th of April, 1861, Far- ragut started northward. He stopped at Washington, but the government was in a bewildered condition. Those were the blank days of uncertainty and hesi tation. No one knew which way a friend might turn. The authorities were at their wits ends. Those who were eager to take the field of action at once, found that there was no place ready for them. Farragut was one of these. He was un attached and assigned to no command ; and so he moved to New York City, and thence to Tarrytown on the Hudson. The battle of Bull Eun opened the eyes of the Washington administration 44 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT to the enormous extent of the task be fore them. The country had accepted the fact that it was plunged into civil war. 3sTo longer was it to be an affair of months. Delays but increased the un certainty, and determined action was needed. The West Gulf Blockading Squadron was organized to co-operate with the land forces that had been placed in command of Major-general Butler. It was a fortunate chance, or it may have been a God- directed guid ance, that settled upon David Glasgow Farragut to head the expedition. Por ter, his foster-brother, the son of his old guardian, had been chosen to take charge of the attached flotilla of twenty bomb-schooners; but it was not until the 20th of January, 1862, that he re ceived his final orders. On the 3d of the following month, on the flagship Hartford, he set sail from Hampton Eoads, and in seventeen days he ar- DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 45 rived at the place of rendezvous at Ship Island in the Gulf of Mexico. Never before this time had any Ameri can naval commander the same task placed before him. It was not a siege that he was expected to lay against the coast-board cities, or a blockade of the ports of entry ; nor was it expected that he would have to meet vessels in combat on the deep. His orders were to reduce and capture New Orleans. But, owing to the unprepared state of the Union forces, and the hesitation and difficulty experienced by the administration, the Confederates had found time to construct heavy batteries, besides forts that com manded the narrow reaches of the river. Every site of importance was guarded by armed men and guns. It is an old adage that one gun well mounted and protected on shore will offset the value of a ship s whole broad side, and nothing that took place in our recent war with Spain has proved 46 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT to the contrary. The gunners on land have a stable platform. They can choose their time and mark well their distance. The gun itself must be dismounted or destroyed before the efficiency of the battery is affected. With a ship, espe cially a wooden ship, it was a different matter. One lucky shot might put her out of action. She was a large target, comparatively speaking ; and her men were protected by bulwarks that could be pierced through and through by heavy ordnance. When the expedition set sail, its desti nation was a secret ; but it was not kept so long. Soon the whole North knew of the matter, and at first there was much complaint of the delays which the fleet encountered before entering the Missis sippi. The upper portions of the river were held by Commodore, afterward Eear- Admiral, Foote. He had large forces of river-boats, makeshift ironclads, and DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 47 other converted craft, mounting guns of all kinds and calibres. But Farragut commanded a fleet composed of as fine vessels as were in existence in those days. Six steam, frigates, sixteen gun boats, twenty-one mortar- vessels, and five smaller craft at last lay anchored off the shallow bar that guarded the entrance to the river. The great steam frigate Colorado, under the command of Captain Bailey, drew too much water to cross the bar ; and Farragut, in making out his plans, was reluctantly compelled to leave her behind him. It was with difficulty that the Mississippi and Pensacola were forced across, and even the Hartford had but little margin to spare. Every detail of this preliminary work was supervised by the Flag Officer himself. Nothing was too slight to escape his notice. As dash and daring won the way for him in many cases afterward, precision, care, and painstaking atten tion served him at the start. 48 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT At last, to his great satisfaction, all the vessels crossed over and anchored at the head of the Pass & L 7 Outre and the South-west Pass. Before them on both sides of the river the Con federate batteries showed plainly. The first gun was fired on the 16th of March, and a heavy but rather in effective cannonade was kept up dur ing most of the day. It had been brought to the ears of the Flag Officer that the Confederates intended to set free fire -rafts to drift with the cur rent down upon the Northern ships. About eleven o clock on the 16th one was sighted, drifting slowly down, a mass of flame and smoke ; but the only effect was to cause some of the vessels of the bombarding fleet to change their anchorage. Fortunately, the blazing mass held to the middle of the stream, and passed safely through the squadron. In order to be prepared against another such attack, Farragut had all the row- DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGTJT 49 boats of the fleet (over one hundred and fifty) supplied with grapples, rope, and buckets ; and a systematic plan was made to dispose of any other fire-ship that should put in an appearance. That very night another one was sighted, even larger than the first. The steamer Westfield was signalled, and in obe dience set out, and with full head of steam crashed bows on into the burn ing mass. At the same time the row- boats approached it, and, managing to get some lines on board, towed it ashore, where it burned away merrily, lighting the sky until early in the morning. One of Farragut s mottoes was that "men trained to arms will always do their duty if ably led," and on this principle he acted during his whole career. No one ever flinched in fol lowing him. For a week the bombardment was kept up steadily ; but, though the gun ners of the forts were often driven from 50 DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGtTT their guns, the works were not reduced. One thing that marked the great com mander was the fact that, despite his assertion of individual authority, he was, unlike other leaders of whom history tells, open to suggestions from those who served under him ; and, when it was rep resented that supplies and ammunition would soon run short, a council of war was called on board the flagship. At the end of the conference orders were issued, the gist of which is contained in the following extract : "The Flag Officer, having heard all of the opinions expressed by the different commanders, is of the opinion whatever is to be done will have to be done quickly. . . . When, in the opinion of the Flag Officer, the propitious time has arrived, the signal will be made to weigh, and advance to the conflict. . . . He will make the signal for close action, No. 8, and abide the result, conquer or be conquered. " DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 51 His orders were to get to New Orleans, and he had determined to carry them out. Every device was employed during the following days to render the chances of success more favorable. Cables were slung over the sides of the vessels to protect their vulnerable parts, sand-bags, coal, hammocks, and splinter nettings were spread and rigged, and, as it was known that the attempt to run the forts would be made at night, no lights were to be allowed. Decks and gun-breeches were whitewashed, to make them more visible in the darkness. The orders is sued at this time from the flagship took care of every little detail of the ad vance. Nothing seems to have been forgotten. The orders concluded with the following weighty sentence: "I shall expect the most prompt attention to signals and verbal orders either from myself or the captain of the fleet, who, it will be understood in all cases, acts by my authority. " 52 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT The chain that weeks previously had been thrown across the river had been cnt on the 24th of April. The 26th was the night appointed for the attempt; and two o clock in the morning was the hour at which the signals flashed and were answered, the anchors weighed, and the vessels formed in line. The attack was ordered to be made in three divisions. The first, led by Cap tain Bailey in the Cayuga, was further composed of the Pensacola, Mississippi, Oneida, Varuna, Katahdin, Kineo, and Wissaliickon ; the second, led by Farra- gut in the Hartford, of the Brooklyn and Eichmond; the third, led by Captain Bell, of the Scioto, Iroquois, Kennebec, Pinola, Itasca, and Winona. The latter was to engage Fort Jackson, and the former St. Philip. Porter, with the Harriet Lane, Westfteld, Owasco, Miami, Clifton, and Jackson, was to take up a position where he could pour in an enfilading fire while the fleet was passing DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 53 the forts. The fleet had hardly formed into line, when the enemy was aware of the movement, and signal lights flashed along the batteries. The Cayuga, leading the first divi sion, steamed silently up the river. Both shores became darting sheets of flame as the Confederate batteries opened with all their strength. The heavy guns of the fleet were now replying. Never before had such furious cannon ading taken place. Never before had such a weight of metal been exchanged in any conflict. All at once down the river came a blazing fire-ship, pushed forward by the rebel ram Manassas. Straight it bore for the Hartford! In order to avoid a collision, Farragut sheered off, and found himself aground immediately. Before he could work off the bank, the fire-ship was upon him. It seemed all up with the Hartford; and, in truth, nothing but strict disci- 54 DAVID GLASGOW FAKEAGUT pline saved her, for not a man left his post. The hose was manned, and streams of water turned on the flames that leaped up from the frigate s sides and flaunted in the rigging. Soon the powerful engines backed her off, but she was all ablaze. ^Nevertheless, the gunners of the starboard battery kept replying to the forts. The men detailed to fight the flames kept busily at work, and the fire was at last extinguished. Once more Farragut led his column up the river. The Confederate fleet, composed of thirteen gunboats and two ironclad rams, made a formidable foe. But this naval action was something for which the men and officers had long been trained ; and one vessel of the fleet, the Varuna, commanded by Commander Boggs, sank two of the enemy before she in turn was sunk. At last, as day dawned, Farragut found himself above the forts ; and he DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGTJT 55 counted fourteen out of the seventeen vessels that had started some hours be fore. The Itasca, the Kennebec, and Winona had been so mauled and con fused that they were forced to turn back, and, as day came on, to return down the river. The Kineo, which had been in collision with the Brooklyn, and had twelve shot in her hull be sides, had managed to fight her way through. The Hartford, Cayuga, and the Varuna had encountered the great est dangers. It seemed almost a miracle that so many vessels had managed to survive the awful storm of shot and shell that had been poured into them. The day dawned warm and beautiful. Below, the stars and bars still floated above the forts ; but they were harmless now, and out of range. Their useful ness in protecting the city was gone. They were no longer to be considered. The seventeen vessels of the enemy 56 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT were all either wrecked or captured. In the Northern fleet the casualties amounted to one hundred and seventy- one. The loss of the enemy has never been stated. Announcing his success in a letter to Porter, who was still below the batter ies with the bomb- vessels, Farragut em ployed the following sentence, which is typical of the man. The bearer of the despatch was Captain Boggs, who, owing to the loss of his vessel, was now without command. He made his way in an open boat through the bayou, and reached Porter safely. Said the Flag Officer tersely, "We have had a rough time of it, as Boggs will tell you." Before the fleet was able to come peacefully to anchor off the city, there was a small action with some batter ies farther up the river at English- town ; but these Farragut succeeded in silencing without delay. Afterward, in writing of his ex- DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 57 perience during the passage of the lower forts, Farragut said: " Captain Wain- wright and myself were hallooing our selves hoarse at the men not to fire into our own ships. It was one of the most awful sights and events that I ever saw or experienced. The smoke was so dense that only now and then could you see the flash of the cannon, the fire- ships and rafts. " General Lovell, the Confederate com mander of the land forces, had seen best to withdraw his troops from the city as soon as the fleet hove in sight ; and he turned the government over once more to the former mayor, Monroe, who seems from all accounts to have been a very self-important personage, with a great sense of what is termed the "high- falutin. ? From him Farragut demanded the surrender of the city. The message was borne to the mayor by two officers, Captain Bailey and Lieutenant Perkins, who pushed their way afoot through the 58 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT angry mob, alone and unprotected. At every step threats were made against their lives. Farragut insisted that the stars and stripes should be displayed on the public buildings, that by noon of the following day it should appear on the City Hall, the Mint, and the Custom-house. The mayor s reply to this demand was a long-winded rigma role, which, in the light of the circum stances and succeeding events, was most amusing. He condescended to pity Far ragut for the thought that such a thing was possible. "Let me tell you," he wrote, "that the man lives not in our midst whose hand and heart would not be paralyzed at the mere thought of such an act, nor could I find in my entire constituency so wretched and desperate a renegade as would dare to profane with his hand this sacred emblem of our aspirations." Perhaps David Glasgow Farragut smiled, when he read this composition. At all events, DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 59 he did not waste time over the matter ; for he immediately returned the follow ing reply : "UNITED STATES FLAGSHIP HARTFORD, " AT ANCHOR OFF THE ClTT OF NEW ORLEANS, "April 28, 1862. "Sir, Your communication of the 26th instant has been received, together with that of the city council. I deeply regret to see ... a determination . . . not to haul it [the State flag] down. Moreover, when my officers and men were sent on shore to communicate with the authorities and to hoist the United States flag on the Custom-house, they were insulted in the grossest manner; and the flag which had been hoisted by my orders on the Mint was pulled down and dragged through the streets. All of which goes to show that the fire of this fleet may be drawn upon the city at any moment, . . . and an amount of distress ensue to the innocent population 60 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT which I have heretofore endeavored to assure you that I desired by all means to avoid. The election is, therefore, with you ; but it becomes my duty to notify you to remove the women and children from the city within forty -eight hours, if I have rightly understood your deter mination. Very respectfully, " Your obedient servant, "V. G. FARRAGUT, 11 Flag Officer, Western Gulf Squadron." "His HONOR THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS." The individuality of the men crops out most strongly in their correspond ence, and there can be no better insight into Farragut s heart than that to be obtained by a perusal of his letters and reports. Two days before he wrote to the mayor, the following general order had been sent out to the squadron : DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGTJT 61 "UNITED STATES FLAGSHIP * HARTFORD, "OFF THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS, April 26, 1862. " GENERAL ORDER. " " Eleven o clock this morning is the hour appointed for all the officers and crews of the fleet to return thanks to Almighty God for his great goodness and mercy in permitting us to pass through the events of the last two days with so little loss of life and blood. At that hour the church pennant will be hoisted on every vessel of the fleet, and their crews assembled will in humilia tion and prayer make their acknowledg ments therefor to the Great Dispenser of all human events. "D. G. FARRAGUT, " Flag Officer, Western Gulf Blockading Squadron" Not wishing to waste time by further parleying with Mayor Monroe, Farragut ordered Captain Morris of the marines 62 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT to take a small party ashore, and hoist the flag on the Mint. He did so, and left it flying without a guard, warning the angry spectators that the guns of the Pensacola would reply to any effort to displace it. - Shortly afterward the Flag Officer turned the control of New Orleans over to General Butler. There were plenty of fields for action further up the river. Vicksburg still commanded the channel, and prevented a junction with Foote. One of the remarkable things that had been brought to light during the battle for the possession of the river was the fact that for the first time in modern warfare ramming tactics were employed. Farragut created a new departure when he gave orders for ramming the enemy s ironclads formidable vessels, hastily constructed though they were with the wooden prows of his own steamers. He speaks thus of these extemporized instru- DAVID GLASGOW FABEAGUT G3 merits of offence, first employed by the rebels. " These rams are formidable things ; but, when there is room to ma noeuvre, the heavy ships will run over them." Then, referring to the affair of the Merrimac that had happened some time before, he adds, "The difficulty at Hampton Eoads was that the ships were all at anchor and near shoal water. " One can imagine the breathless expec tation with which the onlookers saw the old frigate Mississippi bearing down full speed on the Hollins ram Manassas. It may have been fortunate for the wooden frigate that the ram avoided her on slaught ; and even Farragut writes of his great relief at seeing the Manassas drift by, a little later in the engagement, on fire from her own engines. Farragut was now in his own country, Louisiana, familiar to him from the recollections of his boyhood ; and of his feelings when he appeared there as the conqueror of his own people he writes 64 DAVID GLASGOW PAEEAGUT as follows : u It is a strange thought that I am here among my relatives, and yet not one has dared to say, < I am happy to see you. There is a reign of terror in this doomed city ; but, although I am abused as one who wished to kill all the women and children, I still see a feeling , of respect for rne. ?/ After Butler had taken possession of the city, Farragut advanced up the river with his fleet. Baton Eouge was still unsubmissive. Its capture was impor tant. So Captain Palmer was sent to demand the surrender of the city from the mayor. But, while negotiations were pending, Parragut himself put in an appearance, and took possession without more talk; and Palmer then went on up to Natchez under orders to take the place at once, while S. P. Lee pro ceeded to Yicksburg on the same mis sion. Antry, the Confederate leader then in command of the latter place, replied that the Mississippians did not DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 65 know how to surrender, and, if Farragut would teach them, he might come and try. From the banks of the river, pro tected under the levees, the Confederates shielded themselves, and inflicted a con stant annoyance upon the fleet by means of an irritating and deadly sharp-shoot ing and isolated firing, making use of every advantage of the natural intrench - ment to pick off men and officers on board the ships. This caused Farragut to write the following letter to General Lovell, in reply to the accusation that he had employed his guns upon defence less women and children : "UNITED STATES FLAGSHIP HARTFORD, " BATON ROUGE, June 17, 18G2. "Sir, I have to acknowledge the receipt of your communication of the 12th inst., together with its enclosure, in which you are pleased to say that vengeance will be visited upon the wo- 66 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT men and children of Eodney if our vessels are fired upon from the town. Although I find no such language con tained in the letter of Lieutenant Com manding Nichols, or even any from which such inference might be drawn, still I shall meet your general remark on your own terms. You say you locate your batteries at such points on the river as are deemed best suited, etc., without reference to the people of the towns, and claim no immunity for your troops. Now, therefore, the violation is with you. You choose your own time and place for the attack upon our defence less people, and should therefore see that the innocent and defenceless of your own people are out of the way before you make the attack ; for rest assured that the fire will be returned, and we will not hold ourselves answerable for the death of the innocent. If we have ever fired upon your * women and children, it was done here at Baton Eouge, when DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT 67 an attempt was made to kill one of our officers landing in a small boat, manned with four boys. They were, in the act of landing, mostly wounded by the fire of some thirty or forty horsemen, who chivalrously galloped out of the town, leaving the women and children to bear the brunt of our vengeance. At Grand Gulf, also, our transports were fired upon in passing, which caused the place to be shelled, with what effect I know not ; but I do know that the fate of a town is at all times in the hands of the mili tary commandant, who may at pleasure draw the enemy s fire upon it, and the community is made to suffer for the act of its military. "The only instance I have known where the language of your letter could possibly apply took place at New Or leans on the day we passed up in front of the city, while it was still in your possession, by your soldiers firing on the crowd. I trust, however, that the time 68 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT is past when women and children will be subjected by their military men to the horrors of war. It is enough for them to be subjected to the incidental in conveniences, privations, and sufferings. "If any such things have occurred as the slaying of women and children or innocent people, I feel well assured that it was caused by the act of your mili tary, and much against the will of our officers ; for, as Lieutenant Commanding Nichols informs the mayor, we war not against defenceless persons, but against those in open rebellion against our country, and desire to limit our punish ment to them, though it may not always be in our power to do so. "Very respectfully, "Your obedient servant, "D. G. FAHKAGTJT, * l Flag Officer, Commanding West- " ern Gulf blockading Squadron. " MAJOR-GEN L. MANSFIELD LOVELL, Command- "ing Confederate troops, Jackson, Miss." DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT 69 Farragut was now below Vicksburg, but his future movements were uncer tain. He was confronted with more difficulties and threatened with more dangers than any naval commander before or since. The powers at Wash ington were apparently in doubt as to whether they should command him to proceed up the river and pass the city or to go down again to the open waters of the Gulf, and the opinions of his own officers were about in the same divided condition. As we look back upon the state of mind of the great commander at this time, we not only marvel that he man aged to maintain his health and strength under the strain and worry, but we see that his foresight and prophecy were ever clear and coherent. Above the city and away up the Miss issippi lay the specially constructed fleet of gunboats, under the command of Davis and of Foote, vessels that had 70 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT been built to navigate in shallow waters and to cross the shifting bars. They drew but from six to eight feet of water, while the sea-going craft under Far- ragut drew from ten to sixteen feet. With their tall spars and great topsides, the latter must have looked strangely out of place, as they lay at anchor be tween the wooded banks. Ko vessels of their kind had ever been so far from the Delta; and the country people would Hock to the shores to watch them, and occasionally, if they possessed an old musket or long-barrelled rifle, they would amuse themselves by taking pot shots at any head that might appear above the bulwarks. The vessels were constantly running aground ; and Far- ragut makes in a letter the following pithy statement: "It is a sad thing to think of leaving your ship on a mud- bank five hundred miles from the nat ural element of a sailor. " The river was falling, it was hard to DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT 71 keep the vessels coaled and provisioned, and the uncertainty of a junction with the land forces and the conflicting orders from Washington were enough to send a man demented to his grave ; but Farragut knew what he could accom plish, although apparently he stood alone. If it was necessary to pass the city of Yicksburg, he perceived that the at tempt should be made at once. Why it should have been considered necessary at this juncture, we cannot now, looking at it in the light of subsequent events, see. It was impossible to maintain the con trol of the river, at any important point, without land forces. Troops were needed successfully to reduce a city. Those on the transports, few in number, that accompanied him, could find but little foot-hold on the low flooded shores ; and, as they were always forced to ap proach the enemy on his best guarded front, co-operation with the army was essential. 72 DAYID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT Up to this time another difficulty, from an entirely different source, had harassed the river squadron ; and, odd to relate, it was something hundreds and hundreds of miles away, it was the Merrimac. The fear of that one ironclad had seemed to divert the at tention of the whole navy department to Hampton Eoads 5 and the disaster that might follow the further success of the rebel monster drew every official mind. The whole seaboard was in a frightened condition. People were ready to believe that the Mwrimac might at any time steam past Sandy Hook and reduce the city of New York. Even Boston was in a perturbation. "When the little monitor had succeeded in driving her huge adversary back to the shelter of the land, this feeling had not abated; and it was not until the authentic news came that the famous ironclad had been destroyed that the country at large breathed easy. No one felt this relief DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 73 more than did Farragut, when he wrote : "It was well that the Herrimac was blown up, for I never would have had another vessel. Everything was seized for Hampton Eoads, to look after the Merrimac. Thank God, she is gone ! I hope now that they will send us a monitor. She would keep the river clear, and save thousands of lives, as well as the navy, which the river will use up." When the orders came at last for clearing the river, Farragut was hot for starting at once ; but his officers de murred. "My officers oppose my run ning by Vicksburg as impracticable," said he. "Only one supports me, so I must give up for the present. In ten days they will be of my opinion, and then the difficulties will be much greater than they are now." It turned out ex actly as he said. All sorts of reports were abroad about him, statements that he had 74 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT been wounded, that lie had lost both his legs, that he was ill with brain fever 5 and the gossips at Washington were in dulging in all sorts of conjectures. But his splendid constitution had enabled him to live through enough to have killed men of tenderer fibre. He was taking excellent care of the old Hartford, "the hen 77 as he called her, of his "little flock of chickens." While he was at Warrenton, a few miles below Vicksburg, waiting for the mortar boats and gunboats to get into position, he wrote the following letter : i Here we are once more in front of Yicksburg, by a peremptory order of the department and the President of the United States, to clear the river through. With God s assistance, I intend to try it as soon as the mortars are ready, which will be in an hour or two. The work is rough. Their batteries are beyond our reach on the heights. It must be done in the daytime, as the river is too DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 75 difficult to navigate by night. I trust that God will smile upon our efforts, as he has done before. I think more should have been left to my discretion ; but I hope for the best, and pray God to pro tect our poor sailors from harm." The plan of attack and general orders were issued on the 25th. Porter was ordered up with his flotilla to shell the heights. But it was not until the 28th that the gunboats were ready and the mortar- vessels armed with sufficient am munition and in proper position. The guns at Yicksburg were known to be powerful and well placed. Farragut intended to test them without more ado. On the 28th of June, at four o clock in the morning, the Iroquois, the Oneida, the Richmond, the WissahicJcon, the Scioto, the Hartford, the Winona, the Pinola, the Brooklyn, and the Kennebec came up into range of the rebel fire in the order named. The Iroquois fired the first shot as the column moved up 76 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGTJT stream, the Richmond, Hartford, and Brooklyn on the right forming the star board column close nnder the batteries. At times, apparently, all the Confed erate gnns were directed on the flag ship Hartford, as she moved with just sufficient speed to give her steerage way. As she drew near, she opened a frightful fire from her starboard broad side. The ground was high and the gunners on the bluffs had excellent pro tection. The whole ridge broke into flame. At the slowest possible speed the ships went on ; and of this anxious mo ment, when opposite the city, feeling the full concussion of the cannonade, Far- ragut wrote that very morning: "The Hartford fired slowly and deliberately and with fine effect, far surpassing my expectations in reaching the summit bat teries. The rebels were soon silenced by the combined efforts of the fleet and the flotilla, and at times did not reply at all. For several minutes I passed up at the DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 77 slowest speed, and even stopped once, in order that the Brooklyn and the sternmost vessels might close up." Every vessel succeeded in running the bend and joining Davis s fleet with the exception of the Brooklyn, Katahdin, and Kennebec, who failed to pass owing to a misunderstanding of the general orders. That night, in his cabin, Far- ragut concluded the letter he had begun before the action. 11 ABOVE VICKSBURG, June 29. "My last sheet was closed as a letter for my wife and boy, in the event of any accident happening to me in the fight which I knew was to come off in a few hours. " There were difficulties in the way, and the mortars did not get their fuses right until it was too late for us to move against the town that evening. So I postponed it until the morning of the 27th. We were under way by two 78 DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT A.M., and off Yicksburg by daylight. The scene soon became animated, as both parties were doing their best to destroy each other. "We had no difficulty in driving them from their guns ; but the batteries were so elevated that the gunners could lie down until we had poured in a broad side, and then run to their guns and reopen fire as each ship passed. They kept it up pretty well, though we fort unately received little injury. Occa sionally a vessel was struck by a large shot. Wainwright s cabin was well cut to pieces, but we lost but one man killed and eleven wounded. "I was in my favorite stand, the mizzen rigging, when all at once the captain of the gun on the poop -deck wished to fire at a battery which would require him to point his gun near me, and requested me to get down, which I did, to avoid the concussion. I was only a moment in doing so, when the whole DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT 79 mizzen rigging was cut away just above niy head ! Although, the shot would not have struck me, I would have tumbled on deck. But, thank God, I escaped with only a touch on the head, which did not break the skin, and has not given me a thought since. This same shot cut the halyards that hoisted my flag, which dropped to half-mast without being perceived by us. This circumstance caused the other vessels to think that I was killed. "It seems to me that any man of com mon sense would know that this place cannot be taken by ships, when the army in its rear consists of ten thousand or fifteen thousand men, and they don t care about sacrificing the city. We did not attempt particularly to destroy the city. It was more important to fire at the batteries. The soldiers have no in terest in preserving it, as they know it is only a matter of time for it to fall into our hands. As soon as General Hal- 80 DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT leek sends the soldiers to occupy it by land, we will drive them out of the forts. " To-day is Sunday, and we had prayers at eleven o clock. I signalled the fleet to return thanks to Almighty God for his mercies." On July 1, Commodore Charles H. Davis came down the river from Mem phis, and the Mississippi flotilla at last joined the Gulf fleet. Farragut had already reported to the government at Washington that the forts could be passed, and had proved that he could do it ; but he also urged the necessity of attacking from the rear, before Vicksburg could be taken. At last, to his great delight, he received an order, dated May 22, from Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy, which ordered him to send the mortar batteries in ad vance, and to proceed to the reduction of Mobile. In answering this, Farragut represented that the mortar- vessels, un less protected by strong armed guards, DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 81 were practically at the mercy of the rebel rams. One of the latter was even then blockaded in the Yazoo Biver. This was the Arkansas. She was not blockaded long, however; for on the 15th of July, before daylight, she dashed out of the river, and ran the gauntlet of the vessels of both squadrons, and anchored safely under the guns of Yicksburg. She had sustained some rough handling before she arrived at her haven of ref uge, which she did in a crippled con dition. Parragut felt great chagrin at the mere fact that she had managed to elude him. Several attempts were made to disable her further, but none were successful. After the commander of the Gulf fleet reached !N"ew Orleans again, he had remained there but a week, when the news was brought him that assistance was needed at Baton Bouge, where a few thousand Federal troops were oc cupying the abandoned earthworks of 82 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT the Confederates. They were under the command of General "Williams, who lost his life in the defence of his position on August 5. The Arkansas left Vicks- burg on the 3d, under cover of night, to assist in the taking of the Yankee fortifications at Baton Eouge. But a short distance below Yicksburg her machinery gave way ; and upon the appearance of the TJ.S.S. Essex, her commander set her on fire and ran her ashore, where she blew up. The story of her end quickly spread abroad. Parragut reported to the department, stating his pleasure at sending on this news. "It is the happiest moment of my life, 77 he writes, "that I am able to inform the department of the destruction of the ram Arkansas. Not because I held the ironclad in such terror, but because the community did. ? ? And then, in writing a private letter on about the same date, he expressed himself thus: "My last trip up the Mississippi was a DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 83 fruitless one ; but it was well done, be cause it showed the enemy that we were prompt and always ready to be upon them with a sharp stick. I received the news in the middle of the night, and at daylight was off in the Hartford for Baton Eouge, after the Arkansas. I had told the secretary that I did not believe she would ever leave the forts at Vicksburg, but that, if she did, she was mine. Before I got there, she was blown up. My delight would have been to smash her in Hartford style, but I would have been just as well pleased for Bell to have done it : he would have done it just as well. Although Bill Porter did not destroy her, he was the cause and thought his shells did the work ; for they would have hardly de stroyed her unless he had made the at tack. I insist that Porter is entitled to the credit of it. He said to his officers, "That fellow keeps me uneasy; and, after I get my breakfast to-morrow, I 9 84 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT will go up and destroy him. And he , did, to the best of his ability. " ^ On the 12th of August, Farragut re ceived his commission as rear-admiral, dated July 16, 1862, together with the thanks of Congress, which he had so richly deserved. Previous to this time, early in July, Porter had been ordered home to take charge of an important commission ; and thus Farragut lost the services of the man on whom he depended more than any other. Soon he left the river, and anchored at Pensacola, where he heard of strange things the Confederates were doing for the defence of Mobile. Farragut s contempt for rams and rumors was unbounded. Upon one oc casion he spoke as follows: "I cer tainly believe very little that conies in the shape of reports. ... I mean to be whipped or to whip my enemy, and not to be scared to death. " Upon another occasion he said, in writing to his family : DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT 85 " Don t believe a word about the rams. There is nothing here that my gunboats cannot whip. 77 And, in the general or ders issued before an attack, he makes the following statement in the form of advice to the officers who expected to serve with him: "Let it be your pride to show the world that danger has no greater terrors for you in one form than in another ; that you are as ready to meet the enemy in one shape as in an other ; that you have never, in your wooden ships, been alarmed by fire- rafts, torpedoes, chains, batteries, iron clad rams, gunboats, or forts. The same Great Power preserves you in the pres ence of them all." In order to recuperate the health of his crew and prepare for the coming conflict, he took time and pains in attending to every detail, and gave his hard- worked men as much liberty as possible. During the early part of the month 86 DAYID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT of September the weather was delight ful, and everything went swimmingly. A few extracts from his letters written at about this date show not only Far- ragut s frame of mind, but his mental attitude toward life. He writes on Sep tember 3 : " The health of myself and all on board is excellent, the temperature is delightful, and my crew are getting back to their accustomed tone. I re ceived letters from the department by this mail, entirely different from the last. They talk about my < wisdom, 1 judgment/ etc. ; but, when the Arkan sas was at Yicksburg, I was to destroy her at all hazards. I would have given my admiral s commission to have got ten up to the Arkansas. I wanted a wooden ship to do it. The ironclads are cowardly things, and I don t want them to succeed in the world." "Ox SEPTEMBER 21. "As to prize money, I never count DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT 87 upon it. If any comes, well and good. But I am not so anxious to make money as I am to put an end to this horrid war. . . . "You can t imagine what a time I have of it to keep some of the officers from going home, as they say, * only for a week ; but they hope that, when they get North, they may be relieved. But I won t let them go unless on medical survey. They complain. But I tell them it is of no use, we must all do our duty, and, when that is completed, we can all go home." Farragut could hardly sleep at night, he testifies, by reason of the constant turn of his thought to Mobile. He did not care how much the enemy knew of his plans to close up that port, say ing to himself that the only thing he would keep secret was "the day he would do so. ?? The most careful plans were laid at 88 DAYID GLASGOW FARRAGUT this very time ; and they were the same, practically, that were afterward carried out to the letter. He knew that the Confederates were constantly making the batteries and forts at Mobile Bay stronger, and he was also informed that they were constructing rams under the direction of his old friend and shipmate, Commodore Buchanan, for whose ability he had much respect. But he never doubted. Reports at this time from the Missis sippi caused a change in his designs. The Confederates had been extremely active at Yicksburg and up the river at Port Hudson. They seemed to recog nize that, if they did not show a stronger force on the river and prevent a free passage between the loyal States north ward and the Gulf, they would be sub ject to rear attacks and constant harass- ments. At all costs they determined to close the Mississippi. The authorities at Washington made note of it. DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT 89 In November we find Farragut once more on board his old flagship, the Hartford, off New Orleans. The stream was low, too low, indeed, for an im mediate start ; and he was forced to wait until he could have sufficient draught beneath his vessel s keel. Blockading was hard service. The delay was de bilitating, and before long he was act ually " spoiling for a fight. 7 Upon the arrival of General Banks, who superseded General Butler, Baton Eouge was occupied, under Farragut s advice; and thus a base of operations was secured against the time when the river would be high enough to proceed to Port Hudson. Two events that happened at this juncture, cast a gloom over Farragut s mind. One was the recapture of the city of Galveston, the other was the loss of the U.S.S. HatteraSj which was sunk by the Confederate steamer Alabama. Had it not been for the fact that the 90 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT work in hand demanded all his atten tion, Farragut would have started for the coast of Texas. In fact, one morn ing he got under way in order to run out into the Gulf, and found himself aground in the South West Pass. So badly did he fetch up on the bar that the Hartford was in actual danger of leaving her bones there. Galveston was never retaken. Port Hudson, fifteen miles above Baton Eouge, was now the objective point of operations on the Mississippi. Banks had been persuaded to join in the enterprise, and to detach troops to make demonstrations in the rear ; and every thing was in readiness for the fleet to make the attempt to pass the batteries. It was a more difficult undertaking than that of passing Vicksburg, toward which Grant had been working his way. The flagship was accompanied by the Richmond, armed with twenty six, eight, and nine inch Columbiads, the Missis- DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT 91 sippi with twenty-one, the Monongaliela with sixteen heavy guns, and the gun boats Albatross, Kineo, Sachem, and Genes- see each carrying three Columbiads and two rifled thirty-two-pounders. The Mississippi was the only side-wheeler in the fleet. On the 14th of April all the fleet were anchored just out of the range of the Con federate guns. That night the Hartford displayed the signal to advance, and, with the Albatross, lashed to her side, led the line, followed by the Eichmond lashed to the Genessee, and the Mononga- hela with the Kineo. Last came the Mississippi and the Sachem. There were nearly four miles of batteries along the banks, rising line above line, like a ship s broadsides. No sooner had the vessels hove in sight than signal lights flashed and bonfires blazed on the heights and close to the water 7 s edge, throwing their red dancing lights the width of the rippling stream. It was a 92 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT frightful sight, the zone of fire of those concentrated forts. Silently the vessels went ahead, but it was not long before they were all replying to the cannonade that greeted them. The guns of their starboard batteries were fired as rapidly as they could be loaded. There was no breeze stirring, and the smoke soon discounted the lights that had been lit on shore; but through the choking mists the vessels held their way. The mortar batteries below now had the range, and the sky was seamed with the fiery trails of burning fuses. Pilots were stationed in the mizzen rigging, where they could talk with those at the wheels, forward lookouts were stationed, and the lead was kept going from both bows and stern. Once the speed of the Hart ford had to be checked, owing to the thickness of the smoke ; and it was just in time, for it was discovered that she was heading straight inshore. For an hour and a half the combat lasted, until DAVID GLASGOW FABEAGTJT 93 word came down from Pilot Carrell that they had passed the forts and had turned the bend of the river. Then Farragut found that, excepting for the presence of his little consort, the Alba tross, he was alone. None of the other vessels had succeeded in getting by. For a long time he could hear the sounds of the fight below, and mightily must his spirit have been tempted to turn about and once more enter the thick of it ; but he resisted this temptation, knowing that even the presence above the forts of the two vessels that had been successful, would help to defeat the purposes of the enemy, who were using the Eed Eiver as the highway for supporting their land forces, and as a port of refuge and a ship-yard for building their rams and gunboats. During the night the Albatross had a narrow escape. She had anchored up stream, some distance above the Hartford, and after midnight she drifted 94 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT down the river, and was mistaken for a rani. The guns of the Hartford were trained upon her, and only the timely answer to a hail saved her from destruc tion. One thing Farragut had witnessed with the greatest anguish. It was the burning of the great Mississippi. She had grounded opposite the forts, and had been set on fire. Further than that fact he knew nothing at the time. He could not tell how it had fared with the rest of his fleet. There was no way of communicating with them, and he was forced to report with his usual hon esty that the passage of Port Hudson had been "a disaster. 7 It was not until later, when the reason for the failure of the other vessels to get by was made known, that the disaster proved not to have been so great as he at first assumed. When all the reports of the various commanders of the fleets were admitted, it was seen that they had but met with DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 95 the reverses and evil chances incident to the game of war, whenever and wher ever played. In the light of some of the happen ings in the recent war with Spain, it is interesting to take an extract from the official report of Captain Smith, of the Mississippi, who explains graphically and reasonably the loss of his command. "I consider that I should be neglecting a most important duty," writes Captain Smith, "should I omit to mention the coolness of my executive officer, Mr. Dewey, and the steady, fearless, and gallant manner in which the officers and men of the Mississippi defended her, and the orderly and quiet manner in which she was abandoned after being thirty-five minutes aground under the fire of the enemy s batteries. There was no confusion in embarking the crew 5 and the only noise was from the enemy s cannon, which did not cease until some time after the ship was en- 96 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT veloped in flames and the boats had passed out of the range of their guns." This executive officer was George Dewey, admiral of the United States Navy. Tinder the date of April 2d, 1863, the Secretary of the Navy wrote to Admiral Farragut, after receiving the combined reports of action: "The de partment congratulates you and the officers and men of the Hartford upon the gallant passage of the Port Hudson batteries, and also of the battery at Grand Gulf. Although the remainder of your fleet were not successful in following their leader, the department can find no fault with them. All appear to have behaved gallantly, and to have done everything in their power to secure suc cess. Their failure can only be charged to the difficulties in the navigation of the rapid current of the Mississippi, and matters over which they had no control. 7 - Very soon important operations were I DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 97, begun in earnest against Mobile ; but before lie left the river Farragut assisted in those against Donaldsonville, where his guns opened with such a flanking fire on the enemy that he assisted ma terially in the reduction of the place. Grand Gulf was also bombarded ; and his vessels kept shifting from one place to another, doing good service as the occasion demanded. Early in August, we find Farragut in his old flagship in New York, and with him the Richmond and the Brooklyn. All of them required extensive repairs. They were visited by thousands of people, anxious to see the heroic old ships with their battle scars and bruises. It was not until January, 1864, that everything was in readiness for the sec ond great expedition to the Gulf; and in the midst of a snow-storm, Farragut put out from Sandy Hook, with his flag again flying from the Hartford. The word " Mobile 7 was written on 98 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT the mind of every man from forecastle to cabin. Upon his arrival the admiral made a survey of the forts and surround ings of Mobile, and immediately made the following report: "On the morn ing of the 20th inst., I made a recon- noissance of Forts Morgan and Gaines. I went in over the bar in the gun boat Octorara, Lieutenant Commander Lowe taking the Itasca in company as a precaution against accident. We passed up to Land Island, and laid abreast of the light-house on it. The day was uncommonly fine, and the air very clear. We were distant from the forts three (3) and three and a half (3) miles, and could see everything dis tinctly. So it was easy to verify the state ment of the refugee Mclntosh in respect to the number of guns visible on the bas tions of the fort. I could count the guns and the men who stood by them ; could see the spiles that had been driven across from Fort Gaines to the channel opposite DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 99 Fort Morgan, the object of which is to force the ships to keep as close as pos sible to the latter. There was no vessel in the bay except one transport steamer. "I am satisfied that if I had one iron clad at this time, I could destroy their whole force in the bay, and reduce the forts at my leisure, by co-operation with our land forces, say five thousand men. We must have about two thousand and five hundred men in the rear of each fort, to make regular approaches by land, and to prevent the garrison s re ceiving supplies and re-enforcements ; the fleet to run the batteries, and fight the flotilla in the bay. But without ironclads, we should not be able to fight the enemy s vessels of that class with much prospect of success, as the latter would lie on the flats, where our ships could not go to destroy them. Wooden vessels can do nothing with them unless by getting within one or two hundred yards, so as to ram them or pour in a broadside. 100 DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT "I am told by Mr. Shock, the first engineer, that two of the ironclads now being constructed at St. Louis are fin ished, and that three or four ought to be at this time. If I could get these, I would attack them at once." He was fortunate in possessing very full and elaborate descriptions and maps of the Confederate works and the vessels of the inner harbor, which he ob tained from a Northern mechanic who had been employed in Mobile at the be ginning of the war, and who had used his time to good advantage. Managing to escape, he had reached Pensacola, and reported what he had learned to Farra- gut. He was given a billet on board the Octorara. Although it was seen that what this man had told was true, that the shores bristled with heavy guns, the channels were alive with torpedoes, some formid able vessels were in waiting, and a huge rani had been constructed, Farragut DAVID GLASGOW was nothing daunted. All lie was to do, all he wished for, was to get at them. But many months were to go by before the orders were received and everything was in readiness. There had been some desultory bom bardment of the forts; but unaccount able delays had been made by the department, and winter, spring, and midsummer passed before everything was ready. Meantime affairs had been going better with the Northern forces on land and sea. Considerable victories had been gained, the Mississippi was opened, and the Kearsarge had sunk the Ala bama. Farragut had been praying for a heavy ironclad, and at last he was informed that the double-turreted mon itor Tecumseh had arrived at Pensacola. Then orders to attack were immediately issued. On the 4th of August Farragut wrote his wife a letter that has already been .103 m^ID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT published ; but it is so beautiful, so full of interest aud of the very essence of the man, that it is well to insert it here : "FLAGSHIP HARTFORD, " WESTERN GULF BLOCKADING SQUADRON, " Off Mobile, Aug. 4, 1864. " My dearest Wife, I write and leave this letter for you. I am going into Mobile Bay in the morning, if God is my leader/ as I hope He is; and in Him I place my trust. If He thinks it is the proper place for me to die, I am ready to submit to His will, in that as all other things. My great mortification is that my consorts, the ironclads, were not ready to have gone in yesterday. The army landed last night, and are in full view of us this morning ; and the Tecumseh has not yet arrived from Pen- sacola. "God bless and preserve you, my dar ling, and my dear boy, if anything DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT 103 should happen to me; and may His blessings also rest upon your dear mother and all your sisters and their children ! " Your devoted and affectionate hus band, who never for one moment forgot his love, duty, or fidelity to you his devoted and best of wives. "D. G. FARRAGUT. "To MRS. D. G. FARRAGUT, " Hastings on the Hudson, N.Y." A few hours after writing this letter the Tecumseh joined the fleet; and at daylight the next morning the signal was made to weigh anchor and to make in toward the harbor. Strange to say, according to the orig inal plan, Farragut was not to lead in the Hartford. The wooden vessels were lashed together in the following order. The Brooklyn, Captain James Alden, commander, led the fleet, with the Octorara, Lieutenant Commander C. H. 104 DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT Green, on the port side. Next came the flagship Hartford, Captain Percival Drayton, with the Netacomet, Lieuten ant Commander J. E. Jewett; the Richmond, Captain T. A. Jenkins, with the Port Royal, Lieutenant Commander B. Gheradi ; the Lackawana, Captain G. B. Marchand, with the Seminole, Commander E. Donaldson ; the Monon- gahela, Commander F. H. Strong, with the Kennebec, Lieutenant Commander W. P. McCann; the Ossipee, Com mander W. E. LeRoy, with the Itasca, Lieutenant Commander George Brown; and the Oneida, Commander E. M. Mul- lany, with the Galena, Lieutenant Com mander C. H. Wells, completed the line. It was only at the earnest solicitation of his officers that the admiral had given the honor of leading to the Brooklyn; but so much depended upon his own personality in the conflict, and the safety of the flagship that it was deemed best not to submit her to the earliest and DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 105 heaviest fire. "Exposure is one of the penalties of rank in the navy/ said Farragut in discussing the matter ; i and, no matter where the flagship is, she will be the main target of the enemy. " On steamed the fleet. The batteries and forts could be seen lying ominously silent. Under the protection of the guns the Confederate rams and ironclads lurked in readiness. Huge columns of smoke poured up from their funnels, showing that the fires were blazing and that they were ready for the spring into action. At 6.45 the Tecumseh fired the shot that opened the ball, but the forts did not reply for twenty minutes. Then they broke out into sheets of flame and smoke. The Confederate rams and iron clads joined in, concentrating their fire upon the wooden vessels. Farragut had himself lashed in the rigging below the maintop, in order to be in a posi tion where he could overlook the move- 106 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT merits of every vessel. All at once he saw the Brooklyn ahead of him re verse her engines, and a cry rang out that sounded above the roaring of the cannon. Looking ahead through the smoke, he saw a sight that would have caused a fainter heart than his to fail entirely. Where was the Tecumseh? What had become of the vessel in which he trusted so inuchl She had been placed under the command of a man whom he knew and loved, the brave Craven. Nothing could be seen but the tops of her turrets slowly going down in the muddy waters of the bay. She had struck the first of the torpe does. The whole line was thrown into confusion, for the channel was compara tively narrow 5 but no such word as " fal ter " did the admiral know. " Signal for close action!" he shouted to the group of officers below on the quarter deck. "Full speed ahead !" and, pass ing the Brooklyn, he swept on to the DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 107 head of the line, the place where he had felt that he should be. In front of him were the little buoys that were supposed to mark the hidden mines ; but what cared he for them I He deter mined, as he afterwards expressed it, "to take the chances." Every vessel in the fleet broke out into mighty cheers, and followed their beloved leader. Turning to the north-west, he kept to the channel, endeavoring to come as close to the forts as was prac ticable. "Damn the torpedoes. Go ahead!" may never have been spoken by him, but it was his sentiment ; and to-day it possesses a significance in the ears of the navy, it is a watchword that will never die. The masonry flew from the fort as his heavy broadside crushed into it ; and then, as he put his helm a little more to starboard, he saw the great ram Tennessee coming out to meet him. This was the craft that the Tecumseh was expected to van- 108 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT quish. She was probably then the most formidable vessel in the world. Pre senting but a little target, her sloping iron sides were built at an angle de signed to deflect the heaviest solid round shot. She had four ports a side from which she fought, filled with four seven- inch Brooks rifles. Forward and aft she carried two nineteen-inch Coluni- biads. The Hartford gave her a broad side as she approached, but did not stop, continuing straight on for the gun boats, Selma, Gaines, and Morgan, who were pouring a raking fire into her, to which she could not reply, even with her single heavy bow gun ; for its car riage had been shattered by a shell from the fort. It is said that Farragut always fought as though it were a personal conflict, as if he kept his anger under full control, but was determined to kill, no matter what dangers threatened. It was his one desire and aim to reach the enemy s DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 109 heart. Without ceremony, then, he cast off the Metacomet from his side, gave her orders to head for the Selma, and turned his own attention to the Morgan and the Gaines. He forced them into the shallow waters, where the latter caught fire beneath the very guns of the fort, and the Morgan fled to the mouth of the Mobile Eiver. The Metacomet succeeded in run ning up to the Selma and capturing her. Farragut turned from watching the chase, and rejoiced to see that all of his vessels, except the ill-fated Te- cumseh had passed the batteries. He de scended to the deck, and was telling his signal officer to order the fleet to come to anchor, when a cry went up, "The ram ! the ram ! the Tennessee!" Farragut had often spoken in his per sonal correspondence of the contempt he personally felt for what he termed the "ram fever, " but now whether the fever was to be a scare or a scourge 110 DAVID GLASGOW FAKRAGUT must be proven. Steering straight for the fleet, came the monstrous Thing. Admiral Buchanan, bold and tried, was in command of her. Farragut changed the signal that was about to be hoisted 5 and once more he swept aside the age of steam and gunpowder, and went back to the tactics of Andrea Doria, to the days of the beaked ships. " Signal the vessels to run her down ! " he said tersely ; and immediately he gave further orders to get up the Hart ford s anchor that had just been let go, and to join in the charge full speed. Captain Strong was in the Monongahela, the rearmost vessel, and was still moving up the bay, when he perceived that he was the rain s first object of attack. He sheered out from the fleet, and with a full head of steam he drove straight at her. He struck her fair and square. The iron prow and cutwater of his vessel were crunched and carried away; and, as he swung out, he poured a broad- DAVID GLASGOW FAKRAGUT 111 side at the ram from a range of but fifteen yards. His guns were of eleven inch calibre ; but the shot bounded harmlessly from the heavy mail. He wheeled, and, despite his crippled bows, came back once more to the attack. Be yond all doubt this first bold charge had saved some of the vessels of the fleet, for it had stopped the Tennessee s mad on slaught. Now came the Lackawanna, the foam rolling away from her cutwater, as, under full headway, she struck the rani abaft the quarter. She glanced off from the iron sides, but she had almost rolled the huge craft over with the shock she gave. So great was the force, however, that she stove in her own topsides, her stern being cut away within three feet of the water s edge. She had sprung a bad leak. Luckily, a gunner on the Lackawanna had fired his piece just at the moment it bore upon one of the heavy shutters of the Tennessee. The 112 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT muzzle of the great gun was but twelve ieet away, aud the solid shot broke the shutter iuto fragments that carried death and destruction into the ironclad. Through the shattered port the rebel gunners could be seen. Words were exchanged between the opposing crews ; and, in their anger and desire to do something, the Yankee gunners heaved a holystone, and even a spittoon was thrown through the opening at their jeering foes. Some one forward on the Lackawanna shouted out, "Here comes the Hart ford!" and down she charged. With her huge weight the force of the blow would have been almost overwhelm ing but the Tennessee sheered a little, and the Hartford} s impact was but a glancing one. She ground along her adversary s side, and came to a stand still. At the distance of only fifteen feet she poured in her whole broadside of nine-inch solid shot, but they broke DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 113 into fragments or fell harmlessly back into the water. But those of the Ten nessee ripped through the sides, and strewed the Hartford? s deck with dead and wounded. One 150-pound shell, in exploding, drove the fragments through the spar and berth deck into the hold below among the wounded. Farragut circled off, in order to come back once more, and there and then sink or be sunk. The LacMwanna and the Hartford were now driving down two sides of a triangle with the ram as their objective point. By some accident the former ves sel struck the flagship a little forward of the mizzen, ripping away her bulwark to within two feet of the water line. At first it was thought that the brave old Hartford would go down ; but, when the admiral perceived he still floated, he called for a full head of steam again, intending to send the wounded hulk on board the enemy once more. But the 114 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT slow little monitors had by this time crawled up. The ChicJcasaw and the Manhattan were getting in their work. Lieutenant Perkins, the crack shot of the navy, sighted one of the heavy guns, which caught the rani on her stern port shutter and traversed her full length. Another shot carried away the steering gear, smashing the chains. Her smoke-stack was now tottering, and soon fell over the side. By the hammer ing and pounding many of her shutters became jammed. She ceased to reply, and lay there, as an eye-witness wrote, "Like a bleeding stag at bay among the hounds. " Her fate was sealed. The brave Admiral Buchanan was wounded. Her commander, Johnston, looking out from her forward port, saw the Ossi- pee under Commander LeEoy bearing down hard upon him. Not far away, upon the same vindictive errand of destruction were sweeping forward the Monongdhela and the LacJcaivanna. If DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 115 they struck him in his helpless con dition, down he would go ; and, just in time to prevent the catastrophe, he hoisted the white flag. The Ossipee was so near at that moment that a collision could not be prevented, and she rasped along the ram s sides. Commander LeEoy received Captain Johnston s sur render on the deck of his own vessel which now made fast to the Tennessee. It was ten minutes past ten when Farragut brought his fleet to anchor to repair damages. The killed and wounded in all of his vessels amounted to three hundred and thirty-five, twenty- five of whom met their death on board the Hartford. The loss of the Te- cumsehy which had gone down with her captain and one hundred and thirteen of her crew, cast a gloom over all the fleet, despite the victory. But one little incident must not be forgotten. As the Hartford dashed ahead to lead the line, she dropped Acting Ensign 116 DAVID GLASGCAY FAKKAGUT Melds with a boat s crew to pick up the survivors of Craven s ship ; and in the storm of shot and shell he pulled to within about six hundred yards of the forts, and saved many lives of those struggling in the waters. During the height of the action Farragut found time to call attention to this brave deed. The only other vessel besides the Tecumseh that was lost was the gun boat Philippi which was heavily hit and ran ashore. When the news of this great victory reached the North, the people cheered for days. The forts at Mobile were sur rounded. Fort James fell easily into the hands of the northern forces ; and, after a short bombardment, Fort Morgan capitulated. Mobile, which had been a thorn in the flesh of the administration, was completely in the Union power. The British Army and Navy Gazette, up to that time altogether in favor of the Confederacy, as had been most DAVID GLASGOW FAKBAGUT 117 British papers, took a decided change upon receiving news that Mobile had fallen. In an editorial published in August of that year it says, " Already a fleet of transports has sailed from New York to supply the doughty admiral, whose feats of arms place him at the head of his profession, and certainly con stitute him the first naval officer of the day, as far as actual reputation, won by skill, courage, and hard fighting goes." Under date of August 12, Farragut writes, "Of course, you see how the papers are puffing me ; but I am like BrownelPs old cove, All I want is to be let alone, to live in peace (if I sur vive this war) with my family. " Great deeds and simple needs, of a truth ! Then he goes on: "The small gunboats arrived just in good time. The Glasgow and Loyall were my chief dependents for light work. The latter was mistaken by the enemy for a torpedo boat. I have quite 118 DAVID GLASGOW FAKKAGUT a colony here now, two forts, a big fleet, and a bay to run about in." How this attitude makes us love the man ! When everything was reduced to his satisfaction and placed in good order, Farragut returned to Pensacola, and he sailed thence for the North on November 30, 1864. Great were the honors of fered him. Presents and tokens of es teem were showered upon him, but he received them all with the quiet dignity of a great and simple mind. A man brave in spirit, possessing a religious sentiment, and, above all, a sense of humor can never have his head turned by anything that may happen him on earth. He saw no further active service dur ing the war. On July 26, 1866, Con gress created the grade of admiral, and conferred the office on Farragut with the applause of the nation. In company with his wife, in June, DAVID GLASGOW FABKAGUT 119 1867, lie made a cruise in the frigate Franklin in European waters. It was forty years since lie had seen the shores of Europe. Then he was a midshipman ; now he bore the highest rank that his country could confer upon him. Everywhere he was feted, toasted, and generously greeted. Crowned heads and great people were anxious to meet him. The journal he kept during this cruise is so interesting that it could be read with profit by any one interested in the man. No American before or since has been paid such honors. And with what de light do we turn to his own comments on these affairs ! His humble belief in his God, his simple faith, and his sturdy republicanism made him proof against any temptations to indulge in self-praise or to show by word or deed that all this adulation had changed his character. Nothing had changed it. The truly great are the really simple ; and, whether 120 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT Farragut was talking with a king or a cartographer, his manners were the same. He was the admiral, the officer, the American gentleman, interested, cour teous, and self-assured, no matter in what surroundings. After a very fine voyage, with good weather and favoring winds, the Franklin put into the harbor of Cherbourg on the evening of July 14. Under the date of the 21st of the month the admiral makes the following entry in his journal : " Went to Paris with Mrs. Farragut, and let the officers go as they wished to see the Exposition. . . . Called upon by nearly all the Americans in Paris. We visited the Exposition daily during our stay. I did not see half of the depart ments," and here the sailor crops out ; for he adds most pertinently, " saw pretty much all the boats and guns, however," then continuing : " Vice- Admiral Hal- stead was exhibiting a new system of iron clad with upper decks and tripod masts, DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 121 upper works for comfort of the crew. I do not think an ironclad can be so constructed as to float easily with all the appurtenances for sail and steam, and the additional superstructure of decks, hav ing at the same time armor thick enough to resist 15 or 20 inch shot." What would the admiral have said to the armored belt, the great barbette and turret plating of to-day, to military masts and fighting tops and all of it? It is a strange thing how the old sailors of the days of heave and haul stuck by their wooden ships. They hated to see them go. Farragut had often said, "I am not afraid of the ironclads ; and off Mobile on June 21, 1864, while expect ing the fleet of Admiral Buchanan to come out and give battle, he wrote thus : "The question has to be settled, iron versus wood 5 and there never was a bet ter chance to settle the sea-going quali ties of ironclad ships. We are ready to day to try anything that comes along, 122 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT be it wood or iron, in reasonable quanti ties. 7 Everywhere he went in Europe he closely observed everything that had had to do with his craft and calling, but especially did he make note of the trans ition then going on in naval architecture. The unending struggle between armor and armament had begun. On July 26 the admiral made the fol lowing entry in his journal : " Heard that the empress was coming to Cherbourg in her yacht. I hastened down to Cherbourg, exchanged notes with Admiral Eeynaud, and promised to participate in the honors to her Majesty. " At ten o clock P.M. received an in vitation to dine with the emperor in Paris." So the admiral left Captains Pennock and LeEoy to do the honors, should the beautiful but capricious lady put in an appearance; and he was off again for Paris. That evening, in company with the American minister, General Dix, he DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 123 appeared at the Tuileries ; but let Farra- gut tell the story of his first informal meeting with royal ty, the emperor Napoleon III. : "On entering [he writes] I was met by his Majesty, who shook hands and welcomed me to France. General Dix was placed on the right and I on the left of the emperor, the ministers of foreign affairs and marine in front. The others, ten in number, I did not know." They talked of ships and naval inventions; and the admiral s only comment, after re cording the substance of some of the talk, was: "He led the conversation in everything, and talked freely on subjects that he felt an interest in." And so it was through his entire cruise in foreign waters. Everywhere did he create the same impression of force and character : everywhere Americans could look upon him with pride. He dined with the Grand Duke Constantine of Bussia, he reviewed the Bussian fleet with honors 124 DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT only accorded to visiting royalty, he dined with the king of Sweden, Charles XV. ; and in return for all these civilities he gave numerous receptions on board the flagship. In fact, the admiral, dur ing this visit, spent his whole income for the time in entertaining; not for himself, he felt, but for the honor of his country. Of his dining with the King of Denmark and his son George, King of Greece, the admiral writes, "The king was pleased to drink the prosperity of my country and my own individuality. 7 There was one little incident that must have ap pealed to him greatly, and one that shows how kindly must have been the feeling of Eussia to the Union during the war. In the signal orders of the Eussian navy this sentence occurs: "Let us remem ber the glorious examples of Farragut and his followers at New Orleans and Mobile." In England he was no less welcome. Every facility for visiting shipyards and DAVID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT 125 proving-grounds was given him. The Lords of the Admiralty could not do enough for him. The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh became really his friends ; and with the queen he held a delightful and most informal interview. Leaving England, he went with his fleet to the Mediterranean. Everywhere it was the same story, fetes, receptions, and a royal welcome. From Gibraltar to the Bosphorus, and from Constantinople back again, the Franklin and the Ameri can fleet, officers and men, were guests of honor. Farragut visited his father s birthplace, the island of Minorca; and he might have been a prince returning to his own. But all this left no impres sion upon him except as evidences of good will to him and his country 5 and the hero of Mobile " the sea king of the sover eign West, " as Holmes calls him re turned as simple and unspoiled as he had left. 126 DAYID GLASGOW FABBAGUT The Franklin arrived in New York on the 10th of November, 1868. The fol lowing summer the admiral made a visit to the Pacific Coast with his wife. "While on his return East, he was taken ill with heart disease, and was delayed in Chi cago by a severe illness, but managed to reach home. The navy department placed the steamer Tallapoosa at his disposal, and with his family he was conveyed to Portsmouth, N.H. He knew he was near his end; and, as he reached the harbor and listened to the sound of the salute of honor, he looked up at the blue flag flying from the masthead. "It would be well," said he, "if I died now in harness. J The sloop-of-war Dale was then lying dismantled in the Portsmouth Navy Yard. One day the old admiral wandered aboard. The quartermaster in charge of the vessel was an old sailor; and, noticing that the admiral 7 s DAVID GLASGOW FABBAGUT 127 step was faltering, lie assisted him. As Farragut went over the side and the sailor saluted him, the great admiral turned and looked back through the gangway. "This is the last time/ 7 he remarked with a sad expression on his face, "that I shall ever tread the deck of a man-of-war." It was a true fore boding. He died at the house of Bear- Admiral Pennock, the commander of the navy yard, on the 14th of August, 1870, at the age of sixty-nine. Great is the love and veneration in which the country must ever hold his name. Those who have seen the statue of him in Madison Square, in New York, can realize what the presence of the man in the full zenith of his power must have been. His simplicity, his words, and his spirit animated, beyond all doubt, the heart of America s living naval hero, the man who had served with him and had seen him fight, George Dewey. 128 DAYID GLASGOW FAEEAGUT The noblest tribute that can be paid to the great deeds of the living is to compare them to the great deeds of the dead. To say truly of any naval officer, "He is like Farragut," is the highest praise our lips can speak to-day. BIBLIOGEAPHY. Those readers who wish for a more ex tended knowledge of our first and, per haps, greatest admiral, can wisely be referred to the following list of books. This list does not pretend to include every biography or history of Admiral Farragut. Its purpose is merely to af ford a selection which will enable the reader to cover the ground from all points of view. I. LIFE AND CAREER OF DAVID GLAS GOW FARRAGUT, by P. C. Headley (New York, 1865 : D. Appleton & Co.). This work, which is faulty and inaccurate in many respects, is yet interesting and informative, inasmuch as it discloses the popular appreciation of the admiral while he still stood in the great glare of the war. This was the first biography of him to appear. II. f FARRAGUT AND OUR NAVAL COM MANDERS, by J. T. Headley (New York, 130 BIBLIOGEAPHY 1867: E. B. Treat & Co.), contains a briefer and juster, although far from errorless, account of the admiral. III. OUR ADMIRAL S FLAG ABROAD, by J. E. Montgomery (New York, 1869 : G. P. Putnam & Son), is a very careful and complete though somewhat lengthy narrative of the European cruise which Farragut made in the Franklin the previous year. It is full of interest ing incident, and goes far to make up the full history of the last part of the admiral s life. IV. In the ESSAYS IN MODERN MILI TARY BIOGRAPHY, by Mr. C. C. Ches- ney (London, 1874 : Longmans, Green &Co.), the author devotes a considera ble chapter to " Admirals Farragut and Porter and the Navy of the Union. " The value of this lies chiefly in its worth as a foreign scientific opinion. V. THE LIFE OF DAVID GLASGOW FARRAGUT ? embodying his Journal and BIBLIOGEAPHY 131 his Letters, by his son, Loyall Farragut (New York, 1879 : D. Appleton & Co.), is by far the most interesting work to read in this connection, containing as it does the ever valuable diary and letters of the admiral. His accounts of his ex periences on land and sea, from Persia to the Pacific, show him to have been an able writer, a keen observer, and a shrewd critic of men and deeds. The life itself is of course of especial interest, coming from such an intimate and au thentic source. VI. ADMIRAL FARRAGUT by Captain A. T. Mahan (New York, 1892: D. Appleton & Co. ), is the work of a naval officer who has made himself famous as a scientific author of many books relating to his profession. As one might expect, the volume in question is one of research and criticism rather than of personal biography. It is well worth studying as the best representative work on Farragut from the standpoint described. 132 BIBLIOGEAPHY VII. MIDSHIPMAN FARRAGUT, by James Barnes (New York, 1896 : D. Appleton &Co.). THE BEACON BIOGRAPHIES. M. A. DEWOLFE HOWE, Editor. The aim of this series is to furnish brief, readable, and authentic accounts of the lives of those Americans whose personalities have impressed themselves most deeply on the character and history of their country. On account of the length of the more formal lives, often running into large volumes, the average busy man and woman have not the time or hardly the inclination to acquaint themselves with American biography. In the present series everything that such a reader would ordinarily care to know is given by writers of special competence, who possess in full measure the best contemporary point of view. Each volume is equipped with a frontispiece portrait, a calendar of important dates, and a brief bibliography for further reading. Finally, the volumes are printed in a form convenient for reading and for carrying handily in the pocket. The following volumes are the first issued : PHILLIPS BROOKS, by the EDITOR. DAVID G. FARRAGUT, by JAMES BARNES. ROBERT E. LEE, by W. P. TRENT. JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL, by EDWARD EVERETT HALE, JR. DANIEL WEBSTER, by NORMAN HAPGOOD. The following are among those in preparation : JOHN JAMES AUDUBON, by JOHN BURROUGHS. EDWIN BOOTH, by CHARLES TOWNSEND COPELAND. AARON BURR, by HENRY CHILDS MERWIN. JAMES FENIMORE COOPER, by W. B. SHUBRICK CLYMER. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, by LINDSAY SWIFT. KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUBNER & CO. (Limited), PATERNOSTER HOUSE, CHARING CROSS ROAD, LONDON. 14 *Sp~ 4Y4 14 DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED LOAN DEPT. This book is due on the last date stamped below, or on the date to which rene Renewed books are a RECTP UD T! & 2Z18^ yt- TBT^ C o LD 295465 WL UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA