Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 12.djvu/48

38 edge with spectators. As we steamed down the harbor, we were saluted by the waving of caps and handkerchiefs; but no voice broke the silence of the scene. All hearts were too full for utterance; an attempt at cheering would have ended in tears, for all realized the fact that here was to be tried the great experiment of the ram and ironclad in naval warfare. There were many who thought that as soon as the Merrimac rammed a vessel, she would sink with all hands enclosed in an iron-plated coffin. The least moved of all were those who were about to do battle for the 'cause' they believed in. On board the Merrimac the officers and men were coolly employed in the multifarious duties that devolved upon them, while the men of the Beaufort and Raleigh were going into battle with the same insouciance they had exhibited in the battles of Roanoke Island and Elizabeth City.

"The James river squadron, consisting of the Patrick Henry, Jamestown and Teaser, under the command of Capt. John R. Tucker, had been previously notified by Commodore Buchanan that the Merrimac would go out on the 8th, and Tucker was directed to come down the river as close to Newport News as he deemed prudent, so as to be ready to dash by the batteries and join our division when the battle commenced. The commodore could not have given the order to a better man. Eager to engage the enemy, Tucker, the most chivalric and bravest of men ably seconded by his gallant captains, Barney, Webb and Rochelle was only too ready to fly the Confederate flag in Hampton Roads. At daylight on the 8th he was at anchor off Smithfield point, some ten miles above Newport News, and in full view of the enemy, as afterward reported by Lieut. George U. Morris, who in the absence of Captain Radford fought the Cumberland.

"As we got down toward the mouth of the Elizabeth river, about 12:30 p. m., the Beaufort took a line from the port bow of the Merrimac to assist her in steering. Being very near the bottom she steered badly. We