RUNNING THE BLOCKADE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXVII, Issue 8062, 8 January 1887, Page 6

RUNNING THE BLOCKADE.

In the spring of 1864, when the Federal Government had placed so many blockaders outside and inside of Charleston bar that they were in danger of colliding with each other every time the sea got np, I shipped at Nassau on an English blockade runner called the Deerhound. She was loaded with arms, clothes, shoes, medicines, tents, and dry goods, and the cargo was worth at least 800,000dols in gold. At that time not more than two blockaders per month slipped into Charleston, and it was well understood among us that we had nineteen chances of going to the bottom or being captured to one of getting safely in. Indeed, the risk was known to be so great that the Confederate agent had hard work to get a crew. It was only a short run, as you know, but the four of us who might be classed as roustabouts were promised lOOdols in gold apiece to make the trip. If we got in, we were to be retained by the steamer at Sdols per day each until she was ready to come out with cotton. If we were sunk or captured, that was our own look-out. The Confederate agent who had the matter in charge was a hustler. There were half-a-dozen Yankee spies in and about Nassau, with some of the Federal cruisers constantly in port, and it was useless to expect to get away without our departure being known. It was, however, given out and generally credited that we were bound for Savannah. We were ready to leave late in the afternoon of a Monday, but a Yankee cruiser arrived that day at noon, and some of the spies put off and warned the captain of what was up. He had come in for water, provisions and repairs, but down went his anchor in the harbour, and he kept up a full head of steam. If we left he would follow, and even if we could outrun him he would keep near enough to bother ua off Charleston In this emergency a lot more freight was brought down to the wharf and everybody turned to as if we had at least another day's work. A number of barrels and bales were hoisted into the hold before dark, but only to bo hoisted out again when our scouts reported that the cruiser bad banked her fires and allowed a number of her crew to go ashore on leave. At ten o’clock at night the weather turned nasty, and it began to drizzle. Half an hour later the Deerhound slipped away from her dock so quietly that few knew of her departure. We ran within a quarter of a mile of the cruiser, but the weather was so thick that the best glass could not have made us out to be craft he was so anxious to follow. When we got fairly out the steamer was driven for all she was worth. There was every chance that our absence would be observed before morning, and a long start would be our only salvation. As it afterwards turned out we were not missed until daylight, and then the cruiser got under way at once. Why he headed for Charleston instead of Savannah I never ascertained. He probably acted on the idea that if we said one place we were bound for the other, Had all gone well with us W 6 should have appeared off Charleston bar in the early hours of evening, thus giving us all night to slip past the blockaders. When thirty miles away, at 5 o’clock in the afternoon, an accident happened in the engineroom, aud we lay like a log on the sea. Half an hour later we sighted the cruiser, who had come out of Nassau after us. We had overrun our distance to the north by ten or twelve miles on purpose. The cruiser came down within six miles of us before he bore away to the west. We could make him out very clearly, although the weather was hazy, but he could not see us. The blue white colour of the steamer made her blend with the horizon, and seem a part of it at that distance. Our coal was smokeless, and left no trace on the sky. It was not until the cruiser was almost out of sight to the west that we had our repairs completed, and started ahead at half speed. We ianin to within ten miles of the bar, and the cruiser had been lost to sight for two hours, when the lookout, who had a strong night glass, discovered him again. He was standing out to sea, and was scarcely two miles away and dead alwad of us. Our course was changed two or three points, every light extinguished, and we crept out of his path, He was off our quarter and a mile away wheii he discovered us, and the very first warning we had was the roar of a big gun and the scream of a shell which flew over us. Wsi were in for it now. It was either run to sea or hold straight for the bar. Our captain decided upon the latter course, and the Deerhound dashed forward at her best speed. Dp went half a dozen rockets from the cruiser, and bang! bang! went her guns, and five minutes later every blockader on the station was firing rockets. It was understood that a runner was approaching. As we drew near the bar we saw light after light dancing on the waters. I believe there were twenty blockaders on the station. Red and blue lights were burned, rockets were exploded, and the Deerhound was pushed into the thickest of them. The first craft we passed was not a pistol-shot away; the second we almost grazed; the third gave us a shot which took the ornament off the steamer’s stem. Then all of them seemed to open fire, and shot came from all points of the compass. We were struck three times inside of a minute, but no one was hurt and not much damage was done. We kept driving ahead, never swerving a point, and after a few minutes all the shot came from astern, thus proving that we had passed through the fleet. Shell and round shot screamed over us and splashed around us, but we swept np the channel unharmed, and were finally out of range and safe in Secessia.