THE ATTACK ON HUMAIT.

Westport Times, Volume III, Issue 337, 29 August 1868, Page 2

THE ATTACK ON HUMAIT.

Among other terrible incidents connected with the capture of Humaita from the Paraguayans by the Brazilian squadron, the following. The monitors had scarcely passed Tayi when they observed several chatas concealed in the bend of the river. One monitor had been left on guard near Humaita, and during tne night seven of these chatas surrounded it. The commander, however, being on the alert, had the portholes closed, and boiling water got ready, lowering the vessel slightly so as to entice the enemy. At dead of night they came noiselessly, and, springing on deck, made for the hatchway, but found everything closed down, and not soul to be seen anywhere. While all were thus huddled together on deck the porthole in the tower was opened, and a stream of boiling water came pouring over the astounded crowd. In a few moments the deck was strewn with dead and dying in the mostintense agonies, while the rest flung themselves into the river to cool themselves, or to meet death in a less torturing manner. Another account of the attack published in the Buenos Ayes Standard says : The waters of the River Paraguay have been the scene, on the night of the first instant, of one of the most bloody and barbarous events of the war. Twenty-five canoes, manned by 700 chosen, young, active, and expert swimmers, armed with sabres, revolvers, and hand-grenades, assaulted, under favour oi'the night, the ironclads Herbal and Cabral, which formed the vanguard of the first grand naval division of the Brazilians. The wretched Paraguayans, accustomed to look with contempt on the Brazilians, so much so that lately, when an ironclad passed rather close to them, they shouted " Macaqidtos ! macaqidtos /" and blindly, to obey the orders of the desdot who sacrifices them without remorse, rushed headlong on the enterprise, and absolutely succeeded in reaching the deck of one of the vessels, which, taken by suprise at the audacity of the attack, had no to time to weigh anchor. On seeing this, the ironclads in reserve bore down in support of their comrade, crushing to splinters, by the weight of their fire, the frail canoes of the assailants, and destroying the crews wholesale in their attemnt to swim on shore. On board of the attacked ironclad the butchery was frightful. The miserable Paraguayans,

finding themselves on the deck, bristling with spikes, were unable to move* and were scalded to death by jets of steam directed against them by the Brazilians. Those of them who escaped this horrible death were suffocated by the atmosphere of powder and smoke, drowned in attempting to swim on shore, or torn in bits by the fearful fire from the turrets of the ship, raking the deck fore and aft. The iron clad is said to have suffered by the hand-grenades thrown down the funnel by the Paraguayans, and is obliged to return to the Cerrito to repair