The Cruise of the Alabama and the Sumter / From the Private Journals and Other Papers of Commander R. Semmes, C.S.N., and Other Officers

by Raphael Semmes

CHAPTER XI.

"The poor old Sumter"—The vessel laid up—What the Sumter did—Official report—A narrow escape—Movements of Captain Semmes—Useful missions—Appointment to the Alabama.

Meanwhile the search for coal had been continued by the Sumter and at length a promise of a supply had been obtained. It so happened, however, that this supply, so long sought and so hardly won, would after all never be required.

The little Sumter's days as a cruiser were numbered. By no means a new boat when first converted by Captain Semmes into a vessel of war, the hard work and rough usage she had experienced in her seven months at sea, had been too much for her already enfeebled constitution, and she was now little better than a wreck. At last she fairly broke down altogether, was surveyed by a board of her officers, pronounced unseaworthy, and on the 24th of February Captain Semmes makes the following entry in his journal:—

"And so the poor old Sumter is to be laid up. Well! we have done the country some service, having cost the United States at least a million of dollars, one way or another!"

And so she unquestionably bad. Eighteen vessels captured; seven burned, with all their cargo on board; and two released on heavy ransom bonds, represent in themselves no inconsiderable amount of damage. Add to this the amount really expended in pursuit of her; the enormously increased rates of insurance; the heavy losses from reluctance to entrust goods in United States bottoms, or to send ships themselves to sea under the United States colours, and we have an aggregate of loss that a million of dollars can hardly cover.

Her career was now over; but she was ere long to find a successor under the same command, beside whose exploits her own were to sink almost into insignificance. The events of the few months that elapsed between the final abandonment of the Sumter and the Alabama's start on her adventurous career, may best be gathered from Captain Semmes' own official report to the Secretary of the Navy at Richmond.

Nassau, New Providence, June 15 to 20, 1862.

SIR,—I have the honour to inform you of my arrival at this place, on the 8th instant, in twenty days, from London. I found here Lieutenants Maffit and Sinclair, and received from the former your letter of May 29th, enclosing a copy of your despatch to me of May 2d. As you might conclude from the fact of my being here, the original of the latter communication had not reached me; nor, indeed, had any communication whatever from the department. As you anticipated, it became necessary for me to abandon the Sumter, in consequence of my being hemmed in by the enemy in a place where it was impossible to put the necessary repairs upon her-to make her fit to take the sea. For some days after my arrival at Gibraltar, I had hopes of being able to reach another English or a French port, where I might find the requisite facilities for repair, and I patched my boilers, and otherwise prepared my ship for departure. In consequence of a combination of the coal merchants against me, however, I was prevented from coaling; and, in the meantime, the enemy's steamers, Tuscarora and Kearsarge, and the sailing sloop Ino, too, arrived and blockaded me. Notwithstanding the arrival of these vessels, I should have made an effort to go to sea, but for the timely discovery of further defects in my boilers, which took place under the following circumstances:—An English steamer, having arrived from Liverpool with an extra quantity of coal on board, offered to supply me. I got steam up to go alongside of her for the purpose, when, with a very low pressure, my boilers gave way in so serious a manner as to extinguish the fires in one of the furnaces. I was obliged, of course, to "blow off;" and upon a re-examination of the boilers, by a board of survey, it was ascertained that they had been destroyed to such an extent as to render them entirely untrustworthy. It was found, indeed, to be necessary either to supply the ship with new boilers or to lift the old ones out of her, and renew entirely the arches and other important parts of them, which could only be done in a machinist's shop, and with facilities not to be found at Gibraltar. In this state of things, it became necessary, in my judgment, either to lay the ship up, or to sell her. Of course, the remaining by her of myself, my officers and crew, in her disabled and useless condition, was not to be thought of. Still, I felt that the responsibility was a grave one; and deeming it more respectful to the department that it should be assumed by some one higher in authority than myself, I reported the facts to the Hon. James M. Mason, our commissioner in London, and requested him to assume the power.[7]

[Footnote 7: The following is the letter here referred to:—

C.S. Steamer Sumter, Bay of Gibraltar,
March 3rd, 1862.

SIR,—I had the honour to address you a note a day or two ago, requesting you to assume the responsibility of giving me an order to lay the Sumter up, that my officers and myself may return to the Confederate States, to take a more active part in the war. I now enclose you a copy of a letter addressed to me by the wardroom officers of this ship on the same subject, by which you will perceive that there is no difference of opinion between us as to the policy and propriety of the step indicated. Each succeeding mail is bringing us intelligence that the enemy is pressing us on all sides, and it would seem that we shall have occasion for every arm and all our energies and resources to defend ourselves. The most that we could hope to accomplish by remaining where we are would be, perhaps, to occupy the attention of an additional steamer of the enemy. One steamer will always remain to watch the ship, in whatever condition she may be; and probably no more than two would continue the blockade if the officers remained by her. The enemy, having some 300 armed ships afloat, one ship would seem to make no appreciable difference in his offensive force. I would not press this matter upon you so earnestly if there was any certainty of my hearing from the Secretary of the Navy in any reasonable time; but my despatches are liable to capture, as are his despatches to me, and many months may therefore elapse before I can receive his orders. I can readily understand how, under ordinary circumstances, you might hesitate about giving me this order, but there are frequent occasions in which responsibility must be assumed, and I respectfully suggest that this is one of them. To lay the Sumter up without an order from the naval department involves responsibility either in you or in me; and, as I stated to you in my last note, it appears to me that the responsibility may be assumed by you with more propriety than by myself, as you are a high functionary of the Government, while I am a mere subordinate of a department. The question of expense, too, is to be considered—the expenses of the ship, with the utmost economy, being, in round numbers, 1000 dollars per month. Should you decide upon giving me the order, do me the favour to telegraph me as follows, viz.:—"Your request is granted—act accordingly." Address me also by mail, as it will take some days to wind up affairs, and I shall have ample time to receive your letter before leaving for London.

Respectfully, &c. &c. (Signed) R. SEMMES

Hon. Jas. Mason, Com., &c., London.]

This he did very promptly, and in a few days afterwards I discharged and paid off in full all the crew, except ten men, and detached all the officers, except Midshipman Armstrong and a Master's Mate. I placed Mr. Armstrong in charge of the ship, supplied him with money and provisions sufficient for himself and his diminished crew for ten months, and departed myself for London, whither most of the officers also repaired on their way to the Confederate States. Upon my arrival in London, I found that the Oreto (Florida) had been despatched some weeks before to this place; and Commander Bullock having informed me that be had your orders to Command the second ship he was building, himself, I had no alternative but to return to the Confederate States for orders. It is due to Commander Bullock to say, that he offered to place himself entirely under my orders, and even to relinquish to me the command of the ship he was building; but I did not feel at liberty to interfere with your orders. Whilst in London, I ascertained that a number of steamers were being prepared to run the blockade with arms, &c., and instead of despatching my officers at once for the Confederate States, I left men to take charge of these ships, as they should be gotten ready, and run them in, deeming this the best service they could render the Government under the circumstances. I came hither myself (accompanied by my First-Lieutenant and Surgeon), a passenger in the British steamer Melita, laden with arms, &c., with the same intention. It is fortunate that I made this arrangement, as many of my officers still remain in London, and I shall be able to detain them there, to take them with me in the execution of your order of the 2nd of May, assigning me to the command of the Alabama. In obedience to this order I shall return by the first conveyance to England, when the joint energies of Commander Bullock and myself will be dedicated to the preparation of this ship for sea. I will take with me Lieut. Kell, Surgeon Galt, and Lieutenant of Marines, Howell—Mr. Howell and Lieut. Stribling having reached this port a few days before me, in the British steamer Bahama, from Hamburgh, laden with arms, &c., for the Confederacy. At the earnest entreaty of Lieut. Commanding Maffit, I have consented to permit Lieut. Stribling to remain with him as his First Lieut., on board the Florida; and the Florida's officers not yet having arrived, Mr. Stribling's place on board the Alabama will be filled by Midshipman Armstrong, promoted.

It will, doubtless, be a matter of some delicacy and management to get the Alabama safely out of British waters without suspicion, as Mr. Adams, the Northern envoy, and his numerous satellites are exceedingly vigilant in their espionage. We cannot, of course, think of arming her in a British port. This must be done at some concerted rendezvous, to which her battery (and the most of her crew) must be sent in a merchant vessel.

The Alabama will be a fine ship, quite equal to encounter any of the enemy's sloops of the class of the Dacotah, Iroquois, Tuscarora, &c.; and I shall feel much more independent in her upon the high seas than I did in the little Sumter. I think well of your suggestion of the East Indies as a cruising-ground, and hope to be in the track of the enemy's commerce in those seas as early as October or November next, when I shall doubtless be able to make other rich "burnt-offerings" upon the altar of our country's liberties.

Lieutenant Sinclair having informed me that you said, in a conversation with him, that I might dispose of the Sumter either by laying her up or selling her, as my judgment might approve, I will, unless I receive contrary orders from you, dispose of her by sale upon my arrival in Europe. As the war is likely to continue for two or three years yet, it would be an useless expense to keep a vessel so comparatively worthless so long at her anchors. I will cause to be sent to the Alabama her chronometers, charts, &c., and I will transfer to the vessel her remaining officers and crew.

In conclusion, permit me to thank you very sincerely for this new proof of your confidence, and for your kind intention to nominate me as one of the "Captains" under the new Navy Bill.

I trust I shall prove myself worthy of these marks of your approbation.

(Signed) R. SEMMES.

Hon. S. Mallory, Sec. of the Navy.