Sun Nov 13 1864 Thomas H Dudley, US Consul, Liverpool, writes CMDR Thomas T Craven, USS Niagra, "The Laurel went to Madeira, where she lay some three days. The steamer Sea King, that sailed from London on the 8th of October, went off the island and on the 18th signaled the Laurel to come out. She immediately got up steam and both steamers went to a small barren island within sight of Madeira, anchored alongside in 17 fathoms water, and the Laurel transferred to the Sea King the six guns and carriages, a large quantity of shot, shell ,powder, etc. After this was done the captain of the Sea King called all the men back, told them he had sold the vessel to the Confederates, and that she was hereafter to be a privateer, the same as the Alabama, but that she would not fight. He then did all he could to get the men to enlist. Some did so under the influence of liquor, which was served out in profusion. She is to be called the Shenandoah. My informant does not know Captain Semmes, but was told he was to be her commander. When they left her she had the Confederate flag flying. The Sea King is about 222 feet long, 32 feet beam, and draws some 13 or 14 feet of water; is ship-rigged, three masts, bright, and heavily sparred. Her bulwarks are high. Her screw is so constructed that it can be taken up out of water. She is an excellent sailer and altogether a fine vessel for the business of privateering. A part of the guns are 68 and the others 32 pounders. She also has two 20-pounders, making eight in all. I much fear another vessel is to go either from England or France. Eleven guns, 68-pounders, with their carriages, are now lying in Liverpool ready to be embarked in some vessel."
J Leanardo Calancha, President of Panama, writes RADM G. F. PEARSON, Pacific Squadron, "From your hand I received yesterday the note, dated 11th instant, on board of the frigate Lancaster, which you were pleased to write me, with two objects of different signification, in my opinion. The first tends to inform the government of the state of having prevented the consummation of a deed without doubt of immense importance to the commerce of the world, as is well indicated in the note I have the pleasure to reply to. The president felicitates the honorable admiral on the dexterous manner in which he has prevented the occurrence, vast in disastrous consequences, and at the same time gives him his thanks for the respect with which he has tributed to our sovereignty by proceeding outside Colombian waters to apprehend the individuals. The second is to solicit permission from the executive power of the state to send over the Isthmus the seven prisoners now on board of the Lancaster. In regard to this point I am with pain obliged to reply in the negative to the honorable admiral. The national constitution, in paragraph 1 of article 17, reserves to the General Government all foreign affairs, and article 89 prohibits all functionaries or public corporations from exercising any function or authority that clearly has not been confirmed [conferred] on them. In view of the aforesaid disposition of the fundamental chart of Colombia, it is not permitted me to concede the permission solicited by the honorable admiral. I hope the honorable Mr. Pearson, weighing the force of the reason given, will do full justice to a negative emanating from want of power to give the permission. The honorable admiral, from the fact of soliciting the permission, recognizes the necessity of it, founded on the sovereignty of Colombia in the territory and on international law, and I hope the honorable admiral, respecting the sovereignty of the South American Republics, sisters and neighbors of the daughter of the great Washington, will renounce the idea of sending across the Isthmus the seven prisoners taken from the Salvador."
CDR Richard T Renshaw, USS Massasoit writes RADM David D Porter, North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, from Hampton Roads, "In obedience to your orders I left this place with the Massasoit on a cruise at 7:10 a. m., 4th instant; returned this day at 4:30 p. m. for want of coal, and have respectfully to report as follows: 4th instant. - 11:45 a. m., spoke Bremen bark Guttenburg, from Bremen, bound to Baltimore; she had no information to give us; 3:15 p. m., exchanged number with Sassacus; 3:40 p. m., exchanged number with Ticonderoga; 5:20 p. m., exchanged number with Montgomery. 5th instant. - 7 a. m., exchanged number with Fort Jackson; 6:10 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Virginia, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; she had no news of the Tallahassee; 9:20 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Reliance, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 10:40 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer City of Troy, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; her captain informed us that it was reported in New York that the Tallahassee was on our eastern coast; 10:50 p.m., spoke U. S. S Fahkee, from New York bound to Hampton Roads; 11:40 [p. m.], spoke U. S. prize steamer Annie, from Wilmington, N. C., bound to Hampton Roads; she informed us that the Tallahassee left Wilmington eight days previous to this date. 6th instant. - 7:05 a. m., exchanged number with Tunxis; 11 a. m., U. S. transport steamer Thos. Collyer, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; her captain informed us that the Tallahassee was reported to be on our northeastern coast; 12:50 p. m., exchanged number with Niphon; 1 p. m., [spoke] Bremen ship Astronom, from Bremen, bound to Baltimore with passengers; 1:30 p. m., exchanged number with New Berne; 1:40 p.m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Illinois, from New York bound to New Berne, N. C., going into Hampton Roads for a harbor; 3:30 p. m., spoke American brig Harkaway, from Santiago de Cuba, bound to Baltimore; 4:20 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer New Jersey, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 5 p. m., exchanged number with Monadnock and Susquehanna. 7th instant. - 8:45 a. m., spoke American ship Grey Eagle, from Baltimore, bound to Rio de Janeiro; 11:55 a. m., spoke American brig C. W. Baker, from Philadelphia, bound to New Berne, N. C., going into Hampton Roads for a harbor; 7:30 p.m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Fulton, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 11:30 p. m., spoke bark Eva, from Port Royal, bound to Baltimore. 8th instant. - 2:20 a. m., spoke steam tug Alvin Baker, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 6:20 a. m., exchanged number with Vicksburg; 7:15 a. m., spoke U. S. S. Calypso, with prize steamer Lady Sterling in tow; 12:50 p. m., spoke English ship Caprera, from Halifax, bound to Baltimore; 2 p. m., spoke supply schooner Rachael Seaman, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 2:30 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Thorn, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 7:30 p. m., a number of transport steamers passed out and proceeded south. 9th instant. - 3:5O a. m., spoke U. S. transport St. Cloud, from Hatteras Inlet, bound to Hampton Roads; 12:SO p. m., exchanged number with Mohican and Calypso, with prize steamer Lady Sterling in tow. 10th instant. - 3:30 p. m., exchanged number with R. R. Cuyler; 9 p. m., spoke U. S. S. Shenandoah, bound to Hampton Roads; 11:55 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Admiral DuPont from New York bound to Hampton Roads. 11th instant. - 5:20 a. m., spoke U. S. transport Constitution, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 9:15 a. m., spoke U. S. transport Star of the South, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 1 p. m., exchanged number with Wachusett; 1:05 p. m., spoke prize steamer Florida, bound to Hampton Roads; 3:05 p. m., exchanged number with Colorado; 10:04 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Fairbanks, from New York bound to Hampton Roads; 10:55 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Lyon, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 12 m., spoke brig Chattanooga, from Cienfuegos, bound to Baltimore. 12th instant. - 9: 30 a. m., spoke English ship John, from Genoa, bound to Baltimore; 12:20 p. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer Albany, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 12:30 p. m., exchanged number with Niphon; 12:50 p. m., exchanged number with Montgomery; 1:45 p. m., spoke prize steamer Lucy, from Beaufort, N. C., bound to Hampton Roads. 13th instant. - 4:05 a. m., spoke U. S. transport steamer General Meigs, from New York, bound to Hampton Roads; 9:30 a. m., spoke American ship John Clark, from New York, bound to Baltimore. In conclusion, I have to state that we have always been outside of Cape Henry, except when occasion required us to overhaul vessels inside; also that we have not been at anchor, until the night of the 12th instant, [when] we anchored for a time on recommendation of the pilot."
RADM Jonathan Dahlgren, South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, writes LCDR R F R Lewis, USS Nantucket "You will proceed to Tybee Roads in the U. S. S. Harvest Moon and assume the command of the naval forces stationed there, carrying out any unexecuted orders which may have been transmitted to Captain Stone and receiving from him such information as may be useful while doing duty there. On the arrival of Lieutenant-Commander A. W. Johnson you will give him all the necessary information and transfer the command to him. After which you will return in the Harvest Moon to this anchorage and resume your duties on the Nantucket."
RADM David Glasgow Farragut, West Gulf Blockading Squadron, writes SECNAV " I consider it my duty to call the attention of the Department to the present condition of the force on this station. The vessels are becoming used up, the boilers of most of them require several months repairs, and some of the officers consider their vessels unsafe to keep the sea. The class denominated double-enders I have had but little service out of compared with the screw gunboats. The latter have done pretty much all the blockading duty, on account of the general complaint of the commanders of the double-enders of their vessels being so weak as to work and twist in a gale and also to settle amidships, some of them to the extent of 4 inches when ready for sea, besides which they all steer so badly that I forbid them crossing the bows of any vessel, although I have had a third rudder put on three out of five of them. None of them that I can find out use the forward rudder; this arises, I believe, from two causes. First, the rudder is embedded in the woodwork, so that the water does not act sufficiently upon it; and, second, there is not sufficient space in the bow or stern to allow the helm to be put at a sufficient angle to the keel before striking the side, and from their great length and little depth they work so much that the commanding officers are generally afraid of them and are always anxious to avoid sea duty. As they are valuable vessels in smooth water, they are usually sent on inside duty when this can be done. The Conemaugh, now gone home for repairs, has only been out here eight or nine months, and during that time she has not been outside two months, but kept mostly in the Mississippi River and Sound, and she was sent North because, by the report of the board of survey, it would occupy all our mechanics too long a period to repair her. The Octorara has recently been four months in New Orleans, in the hands of the machinists, and lately one month in Pensacola, and has not done four months sea duty since she has been on this station, but, like the others, kept in the Mississippi Sound when we could spare her. The Metacomet and Sebago are the best of them; the latter is much the strongest built of all. The double-enders that I have named are well commanded, and yet, with the exception of the two last mentioned, are unfit to go to sea, according to the report of their commanding officers, without taking off some of their guns, which I shall do if I find myself compelled to send them to keep up the blockade off Texas. The Genesee I do not know the extent of the weakness of. She has now been upward of two months in Pensacola repairing, but her commander is one of those nervous, complaining officers, that it is not easy to form a very just idea of his vessel; he has always said that "she is good for nothing." The Port Royal's boilers are also said to require extensive repairs, as well as new bottoms; the Sebago's also. The screw gunboats nearly all require new bottoms and extensive repairs to boilers, so that although with these vessels I manage to keep up the blockade of the Dog River Bar, it is only by changing them every few days for repairs, and I am being very hard pushed to maintain the blockade of Texas with vessels that cannot catch anything but sailing vessels and schooners. Some of these screw gunboats are weakly built. The Owasco was condemned by survey the other day and sent up here. I find her lodge and hanging knees rent and split so badly that the officers thought she would roll herself to pieces in a gale off Texas. With all these lame vessels I can only keep three, and at times four gunboats and one ironclad (the Chickasaw) to blockade the enemy, who has three ironclad casemated rams, two iron casemated floating batteries, and two gunboats, also protected as to their machinery with iron, all lying under a line of forts and the whole protected on the outside by a line of obstructions, piles, and torpedoes. I had a beautiful view of everything yesterday when up the bay. The day was remarkably clear and we could count every gun, and I could not but regret the loss of time through the want of troops to render aid to our forces in Georgia. I have made the above statement of the condition of the gunboats in order that the Department may not be surprised if we do not catch all the blockade runners on the coast of Texas."
LT Frederic S Hill, USS Tyler, writes RADM Samuel P Lee, Mississippi Squadron, "On the 7th instant, having positive information that Colonel Warfield, Second Arkansas (rebel) Infantry, Captain Warfield, C. S. Army, and three other rebel officers were at the house of a Mr. Carson, in Arkansas near Island 68, I dispatched a party on shore at 2 a. m., surrounded the house and negro quarters without alarming a soul, and searched the premises thoroughly. The stable was situated some distance from the house, and, in the darkness, escaped the attention of my officers at first, and when subsequently searched evidences of the hasty departure of the desired parties were all we obtained. They had selected this stable in preference to the house, and thus escaped capture. Mr. Carson, who is the father-in-law of Colonel Warfield, also has a son in the rebel Army, and all his sympathies and proclivities are strongly and avowedly with the rebellion, and his house has long been the rendezvous of the rebels in his vicinity. You can judge therefore of my surprise when he introduced one of his guests to me as Mrs. Warfield, the mother of two of the rebel officers I was in search of, and requested the protection of my vessel in shipping her cotton by the first transport steamer that might pass. I at first indignantly refused, but she exhibited to me the permit of Mr. Ellery, the Treasury agent at Memphis requesting the cover of a gunboat for this shipment; the permit duly endorsed by Major-General Washburn, as also a permit for herself to land at her plantation, sanctioned by my district commander and, in the face of all these documents, as I was upon the spot and a steamer then at hand ready to take the cotton, I considered it proper to give her the required protection, although with a very bad grace. Permit me, admiral, respectfully to call your attention to the anomaly of using every exertion to capture rebel officers at 2 a. m., whose cotton I am called upon to protect in its shipment to a market at 10 a. m. of the same day, thus affording them the means of supplying themselves with every comfort money can procure ere they return to their brother rebels in arms with Hood."
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