a ee ee ba ib

   
   

4S

474 Chronicles of the Cape Fear River Blockade Running

‘thin long range—but in the

McLean was now placed at the wheel. It was a close race for ined so rapidly in the race that

hours, neither apparently gaining or losing a foot; but Provi-
dence again befriended us. As the day advanced, the breeze,
which was very light from the northward at daylight, continued
to freshen from that quarter. We soon set all of our canvas, and
so did the chaser, but as the latter was square-rigged, and we
carried fore and aft sails, our sheets were hauled flat aft, and
the Chameleon was kept close to the wind by the steady old
helmsman. I do not doubt that we would have been overhauled > 7 not reach the coast near Charles
but for this favorable contingency. Head to wind, our pursuers our departure from Nassau.

would certainly have overtaken us, and off the wind her chances reinforced by all the light cru
would have been almost equally good. But she began to drop

gradually to leeward as the wind continued steady, and by two
o’clock in the afternoon she was five or six miles distant on our
lee quarter. Although we had not increased the distance be-
tween us much, if any, since the commencement of the chase, we
had weathered upon the chaser until her sails had become useless
about twelve o’clock, when she furled them. As the snowy cloud
of canvas was rolled up like magic, and the tall, tapering spars
were seen in its place, I supposed the cruiser was about to retire
from the contest; but she still followed with the tenacity of a
bloodhound. Apparently to no purpose, however, till about two
o’clock, when the chief engineer, Mr. Schroeder, appeared on
the bridge with the report that the journals were heated, and
it was absolutely necessary to stop in order to ease the bearings.

This was a predicament, indeed, but when I looked down into
the hold and saw the clouds of vapor rising from the overheated i:

journals, as a stream of water was being pumped upon them, I |
saw that Schroeder was right in the assertion that unless the
bearings were instantly eased the machinery would give way.
I had implicit confidence in Schroeder, and it had been justly
earned, for he had served long under my command, and had
always displayed, under trying circumstances, great coolness,
presence of mind, and ability. He made every preparation for
the work before him, taking off his coat, and when every-
thing was in readiness, the order to stop the engines was given. |
In a few moments we lay like a log upon the water, and the |

chaser was rapidly lessening the distance between us. The sus-
pense became almost intolerable. Our fate was hanging by a

thread ; but in ten minutes the journals had been cooled off, the
bearings eased, and the Chameleon again sprang ahead with
renewed speed. The steamer in chase had approached nearly

it was abando =
acct resume her station under easy steam, we followed
ar ;

her wake till dark, when we evaded her without difficulty and

Charleston.
‘nued on our course toward
Seated precious day had been lost, and subsequent un

The blockading fleet had been

‘sers from the approaches to the
drew in to the land, we were so
the course of the Chameleon in
that we did not reach the bar till

I was tempted to force the pilot to make the attempt, but finally
Ww

impossible under the
surances that access was 1Mposs
marie a this was the last night during that moon,

be crossed during the dark hours, the course

f the Chameleon was again, for the last time, shaped for
3)

] t the
within us, while the conviction forced itself upon us tha
?

miseries
uch blood had been shed, so many
Sees soba; 008 so many sacrifices cheerfully made, was
?

about to perish at last.

circumstances.
when the bar could

re described by
The closing scenes of blockade running a
Colonel Scharf in his History of the Confederate States Navy

as follows:

e, 2 . . . in
“The military and naval expeditions against Wilmington

1865, resulted in the capture

Fight vessels left the
one of

. at
which took four one-hundred-pounder —— “half he
the time of their sailing there were over two and a Steg? The
pounds of bacon stored at Nassau awaiting dacs lorie ore
confidence reposed in the defense of bbe caps hs Charlotte,
abated on the part of the blockade runners, an saa tcl tee
the Blenheim, and the Stag, all British steamers,

]
the fall of Fort Fisher, and were —, ag aa as
\ | cruisers in the river. The blockade runner “'W", pt.

Maffitt, O. S. N., in command, succeeded in passing over the bar
5 . . ad |