FEARFUL DESCRIPTION OF THE ENGAGEMENT BY THE DOCTOR ON BOARD THE 'CONGRESS.’

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 56, 24 July 1862, Page 6 (Supplement)

FEARFUL DESCRIPTION OF THE ENGAGEMENT BY THE DOCTOR ON BOARD THE 'CONGRESS.’

Tin; following loiter from Dr. Shippen, who was on board (be frigate Congress, will be found to possess much interest:—“There comes the JHerrimac at last,” said one of our officers, who hastened down to my room. I was reading a lately received newspaper with much interest, and I replied, ‘ Don’t interrupt me : I am busy.’ ‘lt’s no joke,’ he answered, ‘she is coming down this time.’ 1 saw the speaker take his sword and revolver and hurry on deck ; so the thing seemed serious, and I lollowod. Sure enou h, there was the s(range-looking hull slowly steaming down the river ; but she turned and seemed going back, as if after a trial trip, and wo began to think it was a false alarm that had stirred us up. But she soon turned again, and began to approach us (the Congress) slowly. We beat to quarters at once, and as soon as she got within range opened fire on her. Wo might as well have fired on a moving iceberg. The shot glanced oIT her iron sheathing like hailstones otf a tin roof. She gradually approached us and passed ns by, delivering her fire as she wont, and with awful effect. She then steamed up ahead of the Cumberland, turned round deliberately, and ran into her near the bow ripping an enormous rent in her side, and himnon by her own sharp prow while she fired right into the factored chasm. Then she backed out and repeated her tremendous onslaught and fierce fire, and the fate of the Cumberland was settled. She fought bravely, pouring in tremendous broadside,

but with apparently the same want of effect which had attended our discharge of shot. Now she settled and heeled over and went down, with most of hep wounded, the living sailors and those not wounded beyond the ability of motion alone getting over into her boats with the officers, and escaping to shore, while some swam from the ship and so escaped to land. Having finished with the Cumberland, this marine monster came back to us. She lay off our port bow, forging slowly a-head, then backing, so as to keep her desired and selected position, and opened upon us an awful fire. The first shell burst inside our ship, and killed every man at gun No. 7. Shell after shell, and sometimes two at a time, burst among us. The surgeon began his work, and attempted an amputation ; a huge fragment of wood fell on the breast of i lie subject and crushed him instantly. Operations were now out of the question. The wounded were in crowds, horribly cut up. The slightest wound noticed was a hand shot off. Whole quarters of the human frame wore torn away from some bodies—a head, right shoulder, and entire legs and arms from others. The ship too, was on fire. The shells had kindled her woodwork in several places. Nearly all the guns were dismounted the bulkheads blown to pieces—rammers and handspikes shivered—the powder boys all killed. The inside of the ship looked like the inside of a burnt and sacked house. Everything was in fragments, black or red—burnt or bloody. The hor-rible-scene lasted for about half-an-hour. Wo then struck. A rebel tug sent a boat to us, and soon came alongside herself. Our great concern was for the wounded. We were told to come ourselves and bring others aboard as prisoners. We begged for a little time to get the wounded ones, but were told to ‘ hurry.’ ‘We can’t hurry men badly hurt.’ ‘But you must; lam going to burn the ship, and that quick,’ said the officer in command; but he was mistaken, he did not burn her. At this moment an Indiana Regiment on shore opened a heavy fire on the tug from rifles and a howitzer. I saw one rebel officer fall under it. The tug found it too hot for her, and she backed out. Where she wont I did not see ; in the meantime our own small boats and some from the Cumberland ran alongside, and we began getting a'l the wounded in them and pushed off for land. Ido not think one wounded man was left on shipboard. Twenty-seven came in the small boats. Probably SO were left dead on the decks and in the cockpit. The ship was on fire, as before stated, and she burned and blew up during the night.”