Farragut on the Mississippi: Boggs and Varuna

The Varuna, Captain Boggs, attacked the rebel gunboats with such fury that he sunk five in succession, their dark hulls disappearing with awful rapidity under the turbid waters. Even then his work was not done, for a ram came driving full upon him. He saw at once he could not avoid the collision, and knew that his fate was sealed. But, instead of hauling down his flag, he resolved, since he could not save his ship, to carry his adversary down with him, and, bidding the pilot throw the vessel so that her broadsides would bear on the vulnerable part of the rebel, he sternly received the blow. The sides of the Varuna were crushed by it as though made of egg-shells. As the ram backed off, the water poured in like a torrent, and he ordered the pilot to run her, with all steam on, ashore. In the mean time his broadsides, fired at such close range, made fearful openings in the enemy's hull, and she too began to settle in the water, and attempted to haul off. But those terrible broadsides were too swift for her, and they were poured in till the gun-carriages were under the water. The last shot just skimmed the surface as the hissing guns became submerged, and the gallant vessel went down with her flag flying, carrying her dead with her. A more fitting tomb for them could not be found than the full of that immortal boat.

A boy, named Oscar, only thirteen years old, was on board, and during the hottest of the fire was busily engaged in passing ammunition to the gunners, and narrowly escaped death when one of the terrific broadsides of the enemy was poured in. Covered with dirt and begrimed with powder, he was met by Captain Boggs, who asked where he was going in such a hurry: "To get a passing-box, sir; the other was smashed by a ball." When the Varuna went down, Boggs missed the boy, and thought he was among the killed. But a few minutes after he saw the lad gallantly swimming towards the wreck. Clambering on board, he threw his hand up to his forehead, in the usual salute, and with the simple, "All right, sir: I report myself on board," coolly took up his old station. Though a boy, he had an old head on his shoulders, and, if he lives and is given an opportunity, will be heard from in the future.

The Kineo was accidently run into by the Brooklyn, and badly stove, yet she fought her way steadily forward, though receiving twelve shots in her hull, and, with twelve others, passed the terrible ordeal. The description of the conduct of one boat is a description of all. Though riddled with shot from the forts, they closed in with the rebel gunboats so fiercely that in an hour and a half eleven went to the bottom of the Mississippi.

The victory was won, and the combat ended, yet the maddened enemy could not wholly surrender, and the ram Manassas came down on the Richmond. The Mississippi, seeing her intentions, instantly steamed towards her, when the affrighted crew ran her ashore. Even after the surrender was made, and while terms of capitulation were being agreed on, the rebels cut adrift the Louisiana, which had cost nearly two millions of dollars, and sent her down past the fort amid our mortar-fleet. She failed, however, to do any damage, and soon went ashore.

The forts being passed, New Orleans was ours; yet still the former, though completely cut off, refused to surrender.

Farragut sent Captain Boggs in an open boat through a bayou, inland, to Porter, to report his success. One would have thought from his letter that he had encountered scarcely more than pretty stormy weather. "We have had a rough time of it, as Boggs will tell you," he says, and then proceeds to tell him that as soon as he goes to New Orleans he will come back and finish the forts.

The next morning he steamed up towards the astonished city. The inhabitants had deemed it unapproachable by any naval armament whatever, and in their fancied security were building vessels of offensive warfare that soon would have given us far more trouble than the Merrimack. Lovell, in command of the troops in the city, immediately left, for it lay completely at the mercy of our vessels. The mayor undertook to avoid the humiliation of a formal capitulation, and wrote a ridiculous letter to the commander; but it mattered little how it was done, -- the great commercial port of the Confederate States surrendered, and the most difficult part of opening the navigation of the Mississippi was accomplished.