The naval victory.
--The moral effect of the late brilliant naval victory near New Orleans will be prodigious.
If there is one field of action in which, more than any other, the
North thought itself the master of the world, it is old Ocean.
The splendid enterprises of
Paul Jones,
Hinman, (the one a Scotchman, the other a Cavalier,) and others in the Revolution; of
Perry,
Chauncey,
McDonough,
Decatur, and others in the late war, were enough to make the
North consider itself unconquerable upon the sea. Nor have we any disposition to deny that they have shown more aptitude for maritime affairs than any people of modern times.
But the sceptre is passing from
Judah! The very waves refuse to recognize their ancient rider.
Upon the eve of those naval expeditions which were expected to strike terror to the heart of the
South, a little Southern fleet defeats a Yankee squadron of three times its force, without the loss of a single man!
A noble beginning for our little navy!
The naval seals of the old
United States, crowded as they are with brilliant achievements, present nothing to surpass this splendid victory of
Commander Hollins. It will strike astonishment to the
Yankees; it ought to inspire the
Confederates with the determination to organize a strong naval power, to break up this blockade, and to contest with Yankeedom the supremacy of the seas.
Hollins has broken the charm of Yankee invincibility on the waters.
He has opened the grandest of all theatres of adventure, enterprise, and heroism, to the chivalric
South.
If the beginning is followed up with the same spirit and energy, the
Confederate flag will become as famous on the sea as on the shore, and introduce us gracefully and with prestige to all the world.
