Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 16.djvu/161

 The Wee Nee Volunteers of Williamsburg Dintrii-t. 155

influence enough at headquarters to get the order countermanded. Our disappointment was considerably mollified when, on the morning of the 3ist, we heard that, on the night before, the steamer engaged in transferring troops had been mistaken by our batteries for a vessel of the enemy's and sunk with all on board. Fortunately, it was not in very deep water, and there were very few casualties. One man swam to Mount Pleasant, almost entirely across the harbor, another to Fort Sumter, and the rest were taken off by another boat.

September ist, 1863, Orders received this morning directing me to conduct the Twenty-fifth to Johnson, there to take steamer to- night for the purpose of being transferred to Morris Island to consti- tute a part of the garrison of Fort Wagner, relieving one of the regiments in that fort. These orders were not this time counter- manded, and the regiment, in fine spirits, marched to Fort Johnson in the afternoon. There we found a row-boat large enough to carry one company. This boat was turned over to Company A, under the command of Lieutenant H. B. Olney, which embarked upon it and started late in the afternoon for Cummins Point. The rest of the regiment was embarked on a steamer about dusk. The changes of the garrison were always made at night to prevent the enemy from sinking our boats, as nearly the whole of the harbor was under the fire of their batteries. It was the custom to make a detail of 'boats from our naval vessels in the harbor to transfer the troops from the transport steamers to Cummins Point. The steamer, on which the Twenty-fifth was embarked, stopped near Fort Sumter. The usual detail from the navy failed to report, and the steamer was deficient of sailors to man the few boats which she had on board. One boat with a few men pushed off. The captain of the steamer offered me a scow large enough to carry about fifty men if I could find oarsmen. There was no difficulty in this. A number of men, mostly from the Beauregard Light Infantry and Wee Nee Volunteers, expressed their desire to go and ability to row. I soon had the scow full, and with Dr. W. C. Ravenel, our surgeon, Lieutenant F. J. Lesesne, acting Adjutant, and about fifty men and officers, started to Cummins Point, When about half way, the monitors came up and commenced to bombard Fort Sumter. The steamer, with the balance of the regi- ment on board, being in great danger, returned to Fort Johnson. The harbor was not very rough, the moon shone brightly, and spurred on by the expectation of a shot from the monitors, my oars- men made rapid progress. We were soon wading out of the water under the guns of Battery Gregg. The boat drew so much water