FARRAGUT
FARRAGUT
the maintoiJ. Captain Dia3'toii, seeing the danger
of the admiral being thrown to the deck by a
sudden lurch, ordered a sailor aloft with lashing
with which he secured the admiral to the
shrouds. The Tecumseh was within two hundred
yards of the Tennessee and five hundred yards
ahead of the Hartford when Farragut from his
outlook saw the monitor reel, lurch and go down
headforemost. A torpedo had exploiled by con-
tact with her hull. The gallant Craven went
down with his ship, as did most of the crew.
The Brooklyn backed down to the starboard bow
of the flag-sliip; the Manhattan had passed ahead;
the Winuebayo and ChickasaiD were abreast of the
Hartford, Brooklyn and Metacomet. The Brooklyn
was ordered to go ahead but failed to move, and
the Hartford and Metacomet by a dexterous move-
ment passed close under the stern of the Brooklyn.
With an exclamation, "Damn the torpedoes! "
given in response to the warning of danger such as
had already lost to the navy the Tecumseh and her
crew, Admiral Farragut gave the order, " Four
bells? Captain Drayton, go ahead! Jouett, full
speed! " and the Hartford and Metacomet crossed
the torpedo line five hundred yaids from Mobile
Point, and Mobile bay was imlocked to the
Union fleet. Meanwhile the Hartford was being
terribly punished by the guns from the fort and
Admiral Buchanan ordered the Tennessee to ram
the flagship, which order failed of execution
through the dexterous movement of the helm of
the Hartford, and the Tennessee turned back to
meet the oncoming wooden vessels of the invad-
ing fleet, which she passed, exchanging shots
with each in turn. The dlonongahcla gave the
Confederate ram a glancing blow with her prow.
The order was then given by Farragut to pursue
the enemy and destroy the fleet, but a thick rain-
squall enabled them to escape under the guns of
the fort. At half-past eight, three hours after
the first signal and an hour and a half after the
action began, the Hartford was at anchor four
miles above Fort Morgan and the crew was sent
to breakfast. While so engaged the Tennessee
left the protecting fort and made for the fleet.
Farragut directed the remaining monitors to
attack the 'Tennessee and the wooden vessels to
charge the ram bows on at full speetl and to use
their guns only as the ships swung into position.
The Hartford's anchor hanging to the water edge
struck the Tennessee and the two vessels laassed,
scraping their respective sides, the Hartford dis-
charging seven nine inch guns at close range
against the sloping sides of the Tennessee without
effect. The admiral mounted the port mizzen-
rigging to watch the encounter and both the
Lackawanna and the Hartford made a circuit to
get a position, when a collision between the two
vessels cut the Hartford to within two feet of the
water line. At this moment the monitor came
up and gave fight to the Confederate ram.
Admiral Buchanan was struck by an iron splinter
which broke his leg and he turned over the
command of the ram to Captain Johnston, who
soon afterward hauled down the Confederate
flag. The same night Fort Powell was abandoned
and blown up; on August 7 Fort Gaines surren-
dered, and on the 23d Fort Morgan capitulated.
The loss on the flagship was twenty-five killed
and twenty-eight wounded out of a companj- of
three himdred. The Brooklyn had eleven killed
and forty -three wounded and the total loss to the
Federal fleet in the battle was three hmidred
thirty-five killed, one hundred thirteen of whom
went down with the Tccnmseh. The Tennessee
was a factor in the fight for three hours. Far.
ragut remained in the bay till November, but
advised against taking the city and recommended
maintaining a strict blockade. On Nov. 30, 1864,
he sailed from Pensacola, and reached New York
Dec. 12, 1864, with the Hartford. The citizens
of New York presented the admiral with the sum
of S.50,000 with which to purchase a home in that
city, and on Dec. 22, 1864, congress created the
grade of vice-admiral of the navy and the Presi-
dent nominated Rear-Admiral Farragut to the
position. On July 2'>, 1865, congress further
honored the hero of Mobile Bay by creating the
grade of admiral and the senate unanimously
confirmed his nomination to the position and
rank, which was held subsequently by David
Dixon Porter and George Dewey. He com-
manded the European squadron, 1867-69, visited
California in 1869, and in January, 1870, he per-
formed his last public service in command of the
naval force participating in the obsequies of
George Peabody at Portland, Maine. In the
summer of 1870 he became the guest of Rear-
Admiral Pennock, then commandant of the navy
yard at Portsmouth, N.H., and he died there,
surrounded by his family and friends. His body
was sent to New York, where the final and
jiublic funeral ceremonies were held on Septem-
ber 30, President Grant, the members of the
