a fleet there, without an interruption of a single hour, for over three years. This was made possible by our having very stanch vessels and using heavy ground-tackle. Our ship rode out several southeast winter gales while lying at the in-shore station, just at the edge of the bar and close to the breakers, which, with an unbroken wall of foam, entirely hid the shore from our sight. We would listen. to their ominous roar, as our ship strained at her cables and labored through the foaming surges that swept by her, while we anxiously watched the drift-lead to see whether her anchors held, and calculated how much more force she could resist before she would commence to drag. Once we shipped a sea that swept our decks and stove the bulwarks, but we sustained no other damage.

Admiral Farragut cared as little for danger as any prudent man ever did; but in one of his letters, written from the Gulf, he says: "It is storming now. I suppose it is the true equinoctial gale; and these are the times that try the commander of a squadron. I could not sleep last night, thinking of the blockaders. It is rough work lying off a port month in and month out."

The Admiral was usually considerate as well as cheerful; and even when obliged to be severe, he was apt to temper his sternness with some shrewd idea or oddity. Once, a steamer was captured off Mobile, whose captain stoutly protested that he was not liable to capture; so he was taken on board the "Hartford." The Admiral recognized him as a person he had known before the war. The captain produced his ship's papers, claiming that he was bound on a voyage to Matamoras, and was therefore not liable to seizure. Farragut said, "If you are bound to Matamoras, what are you doing up here, off Mobile?" He replied that he had been blown out of his course. Farragut said, "Well, then, that settles it. I shall have to hold you for being guilty of such very bad navigation."

Soon after the establishment of the blockade off Mobile bar, the Confederates were busily employed in planting

a line of obstructions across the entrance to the bay. We could see them at work constantly, except when they were interrupted by storms. On the first favorable night after their work was completed, the executive officer of our ship, Roderick Prentiss, and the navigator, Mr. Mitchell, took our first cutter, and, with muffled oars, pulled in to Sand Island, remaining there undiscovered until the Rebel picket-boat had visited the island and started back toward Fort Morgan. Then they followed her in cautiously, going toward Fort Gaines: they made a careful examination of the obstructions, taking soundings and measurements. When the Rebel picket-boat approached, on her trip from Fort Morgan over toward Fort Gaines, our cutter drifted off out of sight on the shoals; and when the Rebels had passed, she resumed her work of examination, continuing it toward Fort Morgan. They sounded across the main ship-channel, and swept for torpedoes, finding many; but Prentiss refrained from disturbing them, for fear some accident might alarm the pickets on Mobile Point. Just before the Rebel picketboat came around again, our cutter silently pulled out to the ship. They found a solid line of heavy piling, or obstructions, extending from Fort Gaines to the edge of the main channel. Then the line was continued by torpedoes thickly planted, leaving only a narrow passage close to Fort Morgan for the blockade-runners to pass through. These obstructions and torpedoes were constantly broken away or damaged by storms, but were repaired or renewed, and were still in place when the fleet passed the forts and captured Mobile.

The ironclad ram constructed by the Rebels at Mobile was one of the most formidable vessels of her class ever completed by them. The officers of the fleet managed to keep themselves well informed as to the progress made in her construction, as well as the plan upon which she was built. After she was completed, we obtained seasonable information of the time when she was to come out, to

raise the blockade. On that night, our ship was stationed at the entrance to the main channel, and ordered to send in a picket-boat to give the alarm if the ram came out. An officer was sent in with our first cutter, while an anxious night was spent by all the fleet, for there were only wooden ships to meet the heavy ironclad. No ram appeared, and just before daylight a southeast gale sprang up suddenly. The picket-boat could not make headway. against the gale, but managed to work off to the westward enough to keep from being driven ashore; then our ship got under way, running down to leeward so as to pick up the cutter, the crew of which had become wellnigh exhausted.

We were subsequently informed that the ram ran aground, and this was why she did not come out as expected. She received such serious damage that it was a long time before she was made fit for service; and she never attempted to come outside again.

The cruisers of the British navy and other foreign navies frequently visited the blockaded ports, entered the harbors, and examined critically into the sufficiency of the blockade. Of course, they usually communicated with the senior officer of the blockading fleet before entering the port. The Confederate cruiser "Oreto," or "Florida," was built in England for the Rebels. She was the exact counterpart in appearance of the British men-of-war that had visited the blockading fleets; and owing to this circumstance, she was enabled to run the blockade into Mobile, by flying the British naval ensign, and manoeuvring as if she were a man-of-war intending to communicate with the fleet. This successful ruse caused the blockaders to be very anxious to catch her when she attempted to run out from Mobile.

A few months afterwards, we learned from prisoners and others that the "Oreto" was ready for sea, and would try to run out at the first favorable opportunity. Soon after, one of the severe storms called "northers" VOL. II. -15

began to blow, during which, on the evening of the 16th of January, 1863, we saw her spars standing out in bold. relief against the northern sky behind Fort Morgan. The "norther" blew so violently that we were in doubt as to whether or not she would attempt to cross the bar. After dark, in obedience to orders, our ship ran in, anchoring at the entrance of the main ship-channel. We expected the "Oreto" would come out when the tide was most favorable, which was about midnight. Most of the officers and men remained on deck, in spite of the violence of the gale. We watched and waited until long after midnight; but, as the force of the gale had greatly increased, we concluded that she was afraid to make the attempt, and those not on watch went below. Two of our officers and our signal quartermaster possessed unusual powers of vision, being able to discern objects at night when no other persons on the ship could see them. One of these officers, Ensign Chester, volunteered to take the watch. At about three o'clock in the morning, he sent for the captain, saying he could see a vessel coming out. The captain, with his best glass, could see nothing; and being afraid of giving a false alarm, he sent for Rogers and Seymour, the other keen-eyed men. Sure enough, they also were able to see the vessel coming out. The fury of the gale had somewhat abated, so we felt sure it was the "Oreto." We immediately burned the Coston signal, indicating "A steamer running out," slipped our chain, hoisted our running lights,— two red lights at the mizzen-peak, and ran in to head her off. By this time she was visible to all on deck, as her sails could be seen against the sky, though her hull could not be discerned. She changed her course so as to run across our bows before we could reach her.

We

were rolling so violently that we could not cast a gun loose, if we had, it would have gone overboard; so we followed her. When her stern settled in the trough of the sea, we could see the light in her binnacle, which was the only light she carried. As she ran under the stern