European dates as late as the 25th of June, are received.
The most important intelligence in them, to readers on this side of the
Atlantic, is the sinking of the C. S. steam corvette
Alabama by the
Federal gunboat
Kearsage, in Cherbourg bay, on Sunday, the 19th ult. The
Alabama reached
Cherbourg on Saturday, the 11th of June, from
Cape Town, with thirty prisoners, the crews of two merchant vessels which she had captured and destroyed on the passage, and which she landed immediately upon arriving.
She entered the harbor for the purpose of making repairs, as she was in an unseaworthy condition.
While there, it appears that the
Captain of the
Kearsage challenged
Semmes for a fight between the two vessels — the challenge was accepted, and on the 19th the
Alabama steamed out to attack the Yankee boat.
At the same time, the
Deer Hound, a steam pleasure yacht, owned by
John Lancaster, an English gentleman, steamed out with
Mr. L. and his family to see the fight.
Mr. L. furnishes the London
Times with the following:
Account of the fight between the Alabama and Kearsage.
To the Editor of the London Times:
Herewith I send you a copy of my log respecting the engagement between the Confederate steamer
Alabama and the
Federal steamer
Kearsage:
Sunday, June 19, 9 A. M.--Got up steam and proceeded out of Cherbourg harbor 10.30--observed the
Alabama steaming out of the harbor towards the
Federal steamer
Kearsage. 11.30--the
Alabama commenced firing with her starboard battery, the distance between the contending vessels being about one mile. The
Kearsage immediately replied with her starboard guns; a very sharp, spirited firing was then kept up, shot sometimes being varied by shells.
In the manœuvring both vessels made seven complete circles at a distance of from a quarter to half a mile.
At twelve a slight intermission was observed in the
Alabama's firing, the
Alabama making head sail, and shaping her course for the land distant about nine miles. At half-past 12 observed the
Alabama to be disabled and in a sinking state.
We immediately made towards her, and on passing the
Kearsage were requested to assist in saving the
Alabama's crew.
At ten minutes to one, when within a distance of two hundred yards, the
Alabama sunk.
We then lowered our two boats, and, with the assistance of the
Alabama's whale boat and dingy, succeeded in saving about forty men, including
Captain Semmes and thirteen officers.--At 1 P. M., we steered for
Southampton.
I may state that, before leaving, the
Kearsage was apparently much disabled.
The
Alabama's loss, so far as at present ascertained, in killed and wounded, &c., was as follows, viz: One officer and one man drowned, six men killed, and one officer and sixteen men wounded.
Capt Semmes received a slight wound in the right hand.
The
Kearsage's boats were, after some delay, lowered, and, with the assistance of a French pilot-boat, succeeded in picking up the remaining survivors.
Mr. Mason, the representative of the Confederate Government at
London, has sent a copy of
Captain Semmes's official report to the London
Times.
Capt. Semmes's says that in an hour and ten minutes the
Alabama was found to be in a sinking state, the enemy's shells having exploded on her sides and between decks.
For a few minutes he had hopes of reaching the
French coast; but the ship filled rapidly, and the furnace fires were extinguished.
Capt. Semmes says:
‘
I now hauled down colors to prevent the further destruction of life, and dispatched a boat to inform the enemy of our condition.
Although we were now but four hundred yards from each other the enemy fired at me five times after colors had been struck.
It is charitable to suppose that a ship-of-war of a Christian nation could not have done this intentionally.
’
Some twenty minutes after my furnace fires had been extinguished, and the ship being on the point of sinking, each man, in ordnance to a previous order which had been given to the crew, jumped overboard and endeavored to save himself.
There was no appearance of any boats coming from the enemy after the ship went down.
I was fortunate myself in escaping to the shelter of the neutral flag on board
Mr. Lancaster's yacht
Deerhound, together with forty others.
Newspaper reports concerning the fight — gallantry of the Alabama's crew — How Captain Semmes was Rescued — the Hauling down of the Confederate flag, Etc.
The
English and
French newspapers have various and lengthy accounts of the fight.
From the London
Times's Southampton correspondent we take the following:
‘
At length the
Alabama's rudder was disabled by one of her opponent's heavy shells, and they hoisted salls; but it was soon reported to
Capt. Semmes by one of his officers that his ship was sinking.
’
With great bravery the guns were kept ported till the muzzles were actually under water, and the last shot from the doomed ship was fired as she was settling down.
When her stern was completely under water,
Captain Semmes gave orders for his men to save themselves as best they could, and every one jumped into the sea and swam to the boats which had put off to their rescue.
Those of them who were wounded were ordered by
Captain Semmes to be placed in the
Alabama's boats and taken on board the
Kearsage, which was as fat as possible obeyed.
Capt. Semmes and his
First Lieutenant,
Mr. J. M. Kell, are staying at Kelwavie Hotel, in
Queen's terrace, where the gallant commander is under the care of
Dr. Ware, medical gentleman of this town; his right hand being slightly splintered by a shot.
When the men came on board the
Deerhound they had nothing on but their drawers and shirts, having been stripped to fight; and one of the men, with a sailor's devotedness, insisted on seeing his captain, who was then lying in
Mr. Lancaster's cabin in a very exhausted condition, as he had been entrusted by
Capt. Semmes with the ship's papers, and to no one else would he give them up. The men were all very anxious about their
Captain, and were rejoiced to find that he had been saved.
They appeared to be a set of first rate fellows, and act well together in perfect union under the most trying circumstances.
Mr. Lancaster is clearly of opinion that it was the
Kearsage's eleven inch shells which gave her the advantage, and that after what he has witnessed on this occasion wooden ships stand no chance whatever against shells.
Both ships fired well into each other's hull, and the yards and masts were not much damaged.
The mainmast of the
Alabama had been struck by shot, and as the vessel was sinking broke off and fell into the sea, throwing some men who were in the maintop into the water.
Some tremens us gaps were visible in the bulwarks of the
Kearsage, and it was believed that some of her boats were disabled.
She appeared to be temporarily plated with iron chains, &c. As far as could be seen, everything appeared to be well planned and ready on board the
Kearsage for action.
Great pluck was shown on both sides during the action.
On board, the
Alabama all the hammocks were let loose, and arrangements had been made for sinking her rather than that she should be captured.
As far as is known, not a relic of the
Alabama is in the possession of her successful rival.
When she was sinking
Capt. Semmes dropped his own sword into the sea to prevent the possibility of its getting into their hands, and the gunner made a hole in one of the
Alabama's boats and sunk her for the same reason.
Before leaving the
Deerhound,
Capt. Semmes presented to
Mr. Lancaster's son one of his officer's swords and a pistol, in remembrance of the occurrence, and the kind treatment he and his men had received on board the yacht.
Mr. Mason, the
Confederate agent,
Capt. Bullock, and
the Rev. Mr. Tremlett arrived at 4 o'clock this afternoon from
London, and proceeded to Kelway's Hotel to meet
Capt. Semmes.
The shell that did the mischief to the
Alabama struck her just above the water line, knocking her bunkers to pieces, the water almost immediately putting out her fires.
When the battle was at an end the
Deerhound steamed over to the
Kearsage, and
Mr. Lancaster was asked by the officers of the
Federal ship to try and pick up the scores of the
Alabama's crew and officers who were floating and swimming about.
He lowered his yacht boats, and one of them, commanded by a man named
Adams, was steering his boat into a group of a dozen struggling persons when he passed a drowning man at some short distance with an officer's cap on.
One of the men in the boat cried out, "That's Semmes," and the drowning man called out, "I am the
Captain; save me; I cannot keep up any longer."
Adams went and dragged him into the boat —
Semmes then said; "For God's sake, don't put me on board the
Kearsage, but put me on board your yacht."
Adams promised to do so, and laid
Semmes down in the bottom, and covered him with a sail to conceal him from the
Kearsage's boats, which were evidently anxiously searching for him. When
Adams had saved a boat load he took them on board the yacht, and
Semmes was at once placed below.
As soon as all that were seen in the water were picked up,
Mr. Lancaster was anxious to get away, and began to steam out to sea. He expected that he should have been brought to by a shot from the
Kearsage, but she was too disabled it appears to go after the
Deerhound to overhaul her, and thus
Semmes escaped being made prisoner.
Semmes's Speech to his crew.
[Paris (June 21) correspondence London Post.]
As
Captain Semmes is in
England, you will get better accounts of the combat than reach us in
Paris.
A French account says that before leaving
Cherbourg he called his men, and addressing them, exclaimed--"We must conquer or die!" To which the crew replied (I give the words in
French): "Hurrah pour le Sud!
Vive
Lee!
Vive son armee!
Viva la
France!
la nation genereuse qui seule partique d'une manfere impartiale la neutralite!"
Scene at the Hauling down of the Confederate flag.
[From the
London Star (special report), June 21.]
Captain Semmes directed the
First Lieutenant,
Mr. Kell, to go below and report the state of the ship.
That officer soon returned, saying she was in a sinking state, and the
Captain decided on striking his flag.
The flag had been already three times shot away, but replaced.
A large number of the crew rushed aft, conjuring the
Captain not to strike, and expressing their readiness to sink in her and die with honor; and one of the seamen, named
Smith, cutlass in hand, stood by the flag and declared he would not allow it to be lowered.
The
Captain leveled his revolver, and insisted on its being hauled down, which was done, and a white flag hoisted.
Meantime the whaleboat and dingy, the only two boats uninjured, were lowered, and the wounded men placed in them,
Mr. Fulham being sent in charge of them to the
Kearsage.
When the boats were full a man who was unwounded endeavored to enter one, but was held back by the surgeon of the ship,
Mr. Llewellyn, son of the rector of a parish in Willshire, "See," he said, "I want to save my life as much as you do; but let the wounded men be saved first." "
Doctor," said the officer in the boat, "we can make room for you." "I will not peril the wounded men," was his reply.
He remained behind and sank with the ship — a loss much deplored by all the officers and men. He is the only officer known to be lost.
Message from the Alabama to the Kearsage.
When
Mr. Fulham reached the
Kearsage he had his sword by his side, and let it fall into the water, lest he should have to surrender it. He went on board the
Kearsage, and was asked by
Captain Winslow if he had come to surrender the ship.
He said he had no such orders, but was sent to ask for assistance, as they were sinking fast.
The
Kearsage then ceased firing and lowered her boats, while
Mr. Fulham returned towards the
Alabama, which sank ere he could reach her, and, after picking up a few of the swimmers, he contrived to reach the
Deerhound, where he found
Captain Semmes, twelve other officers, and about twenty-eight men.
Heroism of some of the Confederate crew.
Numerous acts of gallantry are related as having occurred on board the
Alabama during the fight, one or two of which are worth recording.--
Mr. Ginley, the
Captain's coxswain, was struck by a shot which shattered the lower part of his arm, leaving it hanging by flesh and skin; he deliberately took out his knife, cut off the piece of his limb, and continued serving his gun.
An 11 inch shell, which fell on the deck, was taken up and thrown overboard to explode, by two men, named
Townsend and
Marr, the latter of whom is already known to the
Alabama men from his having jumped into a heavy sea and saved the life of a man who had fallen overboard.
A man named Searno was loading a gun, when a shot struck the ramrod and broke it in two.
He looked up and abused them for not waiting to have the shot properly in for them.
One man was sent forward to clear the jib boom rigging, which had been damaged; he received a most painful wound, which was mortal, notwithstanding which he completed the work and returned to the deck, when another shot cut him in two.
Another man, though mortally wounded, refused to admit that he had been struck, and continued to do his work until he fell dead on deck.
French official statement.
[From the
Paris Moniteur, June 2.]
The Confederate steamer
Alabama, carrying out the design it had announced several days beforehand, left Cherbourg Roads yesterday at 10 A. M., and advanced against the
Federal corvette
Kearsage, which hovered in the offing at a distance of about fifteen miles. The iron clad frigate
Couronne left her moorings simultaneously with the
Alabama, and accompanied her five miles, in order to prevent hostilities from taking place in French waters.
The action commenced at 11 o'clock, far beyond that limit.
The firing was gallantly kept up on both sides for two hours, after which the
Alabama was compelled by the severe injuries she had sustained to make for
Cherbourg.
The
Kearsage immediately gave chase, but a few moments later the
Alabama sank.
It was then one o'clock. The
Kearsage saved seventy-two of the crew and returned to
Cherbourg, where she anchored in the course of the afternoon.
Ten Confederate and three Federal wounded were landed and taken to the
Cherbourg hospital. Nine more of the
Alabama's crew were brought back to
Cherbourg by a pilot boat.
The steam tug
Var was sent from
Cherbourg by the
Perfect Maritime to afford assistance to the
Alabama as soon as she appeared to be in danger, but only arrived after all the survivors had been picked up.
A Yankee Howl about the Alabama — another vessel for Semmes.
The
London correspondent of the New York
Herald, speaking of the sinking of the
Alabama says:
‘
The sinking of the
Alabama on Sunday morning has been the theme of every tongue, and the gossip of every coterie.
Capt. Semmes is the hero of the hour.
As one of the daily papers expressed it, he "is the guest of
England." And before he had been on shore forty-eight hours arrangements were made for furnishing him another ship, more swift and powerful then the ill fated craft that has just met such a righteous retribution in Cherbourg bay.
A gentleman told me yesterday he had seen the steamer that was now fitting out for
Capt. Semmes herein the
Thames.
And he added that she would he put under his command in such a way that the
Government could not possibly interfere.
I believe every word of this is ture.
’
There is a malignant spite in this English metropolis, coupled with a love of gain, that would rig out and arm a hundred Alabamans, utterly regardless of public morality, national right or public policy.
A gentleman of my acquaintance had a long conversation with the second officer of the
Alabama, and he gave him these particulars: The arrangement was made at
Cherbourg with the captain of the yacht
Deerhound to go out and witness the fight, and rescue
Semmes if he were defeated. --The officer also said they had only four or five days provisions on board, and the
French Government had forbidden them a supply; so they had to go out and meet the
Kearsage or have the ship sold and the crew disbanded.
Trusting in that luck which had ever attended his craft, the bold buccaneer sallied out — to meet more than his match.
If
Capt. Wilkes exceeded his duty in taking
Mason and
Slidell from the
Trent, then
Capt. Winslow is somewhat to blame in allowing
Semmes to escape.
But some of his apologists may reply that he inquired after
Capt. Semmes of the first boat load of wounded and prisoners that came on board, and was told he was drowned.
In a few days a new
Alabama, and part of a new and part of the old crew, will be cutting the salt sea foam at a speed of sixteen knots an hour, sinking and burning what merchant vessels "yet remain under the Stripes and Stars," and fitted out, as before, with British gold, mounted with British guns, and supplied with British shot and shell, and accompanied by the malignant joy of ninet-nine hundredths of Englishmen.
Four American sailors who were captured by the
Alabama on one of the last ships that she burned have lately landed in
England.
They describe the
Alabama as a "perfect hell on earth." They say there was not a particle of discipline on board; that they considered their lives in jeopardy every hour, and that they did not believe
Semmes himself felt any personal security against his lawless myrmidons.
The Danish question — Adjournment of the Conference — no prospect of Peace.
The Danish Conference held a meeting in
London on the 22d.
The formal business of the meeting was to receive the reply of the belligerent powers to the proposal made by the
English Government at the last sitting, to refer the division of Schleswig to arbitration.
This proposal was declined by both belligerents.
The
Germans refused to submit the question as to the division of Schleswig to arbitration.
The Danish Government also declined to refer the vital question of a frontier to the proposed arbitration.
No other proposition of any kind was made, and the meeting accordingly resulted in the final rejection of the only proposal that was before it.
The Conference adjourned
sine die on the 25th, and hostilities were to be resumed on the 27th.
The torie of the
British press, except the
Star and
News, was warlike, and there was some prospect that
England would take part.
In the House of Commons, June 21,
Mr. H. Berkley moved his annual resolution in favor of the ballot in voting for members of Parliament.
Lord Palmerston opposed the motion, and it was rejected by a vote of 212 to 123.
The Japanese Ambassadors were in leave
Paris on the 21st of June
en route for
Japan direct.
They had signed a convention confirming former treaties, tendered apologies for the assassination of a
French Lieutenant in
Japan, and guaranteed the payment of an indemnity.
