State

fZ ■ * " Charge of Ihe federal Marines on Fori Fisher. Il «as repulsed — hut the infantry came on. The Flag Goes Down By MANLY WADE WELLMAN Men of Fort Fisher Iff Fort Fisher, at the mouth of the Cape Fear River, was the most formi¬ dable coast defense of the Confed¬ eracy. The Union fleet that reduced it in January 1X65, was the strongest naval force gathered during that war for any single operation. Fort Fisher's capture meant the closing of Wilming¬ ton. the South's last open port, and final assurance of Lee's defeat. When Rear-Admiral David Porter began a three-day bombardment on January 13, Colonel William Lamb had some 800 men of the 36th North Carolina as artillerists, of whom 100 were unfit for duty. Against these sailed nearly 60 warships with 600 cannon — almost as many guns as Lamb had men — with 1 1 .000 Union infantry' in transports under General Alfred Terry. Lamb made his wife and children leave their cottage be¬ hind the fort and cross the Cape Fear to the mainland. Meanwhile, Major- General W. H. C. Whiting arrived, in a concentrated fury against Gen¬ eral Braxton Bragg, commander of the department of the Carolinas. Joins the Doomed Whiting had heard Bragg issue or¬ ders for a retreat from Wilmington, and he knew that the Confederate commander would sacrifice Fort Fish¬ er and its garrison. Whiting, franti¬ cally brave and bitter, had refused to be a part of that abandonment. With¬ out orders, alone except for a few staff officers, he came to join Lamb as a volunteer. Shells struck the turf-lopped de¬ fenses at a rate of 1 30 to the second Lamb, ill-furnished with ammunition, replied only occasionally to the bom¬ bardment that nibbled at his barri¬ cades all day and all night of the 1 3th. It was impossible to repair dam¬ ages or to bury the dead without dan¬ ger to the living. Many of Lamb's guns were disabled, and the crews of others were so depicted that commis¬ sioned officers swabbed and loaded the pieces. But some help arrived, from nearby forts. There were some 650 artillery¬ men of North Carolina troops, and 50 sailors and marines, swelling Lamb's garrison to 1,500. Several were wounded even as they scuttled from the river docks to the fort. Meanwhile, under cover of the naval guns. Gen¬ eral Terry landed troops well north¬ ward of the fort. Full 8.500 men were put ashore and organized in line. They extended clear across Federal Point to the cast bank of the Cape Fear River and dug in. On the morning of the 14th. Por¬ ter sent in his smaller gunboats through shallow water and brought new fire to bear against Lamb’s guns on the ramparts. Lucky or skillful shots smashed several of these. Replying to this fire as best he could. Lamb watched, from near the angle of his L-shapcd defenses, the grim fire-belch¬ ing ships of war. Glancing northward, he saw Terry’s heavy blue line of infantry. Beyond that — surely. Bragg must be mustering help. Bragg Is Absent But Bragg was doing nothing of the kind. This high-ranking pet of Presi¬ dent Davis was ever daunted at the thought of close combat, and he would seek none now. Lamb's assurance of desertion came when the Union troops captured a Confederate supply boat at the riverside and a gunboat from up river fired a shot to sink it. Nobody replied to Whiting’s and Lamb's pleas for more troops. The sun went down on the 14th and Lamb counted 300 sick, dead and wounded — barely 1 ,200 were left to defend his mile and a half of works. They ate what they could inside Fort Fisher. Rations were short, and kitchens demolished. Inspection showed that the northern face of the works had suffered most, with the out¬ er pallisadcs knocked to splinters and all the heavy guns but one out of com¬ mission. Sleeplessly Lamb waited out the night. At sunrise the bombardment redoubled — Porter's guns were pelt¬ ing some Southern infantry landing south of the fort. These got into Bat¬ tery Buchanan and prepared to move across the shell-torn open space to Fort Fisher. Northward. Yankee infantrymen crept forward to dig rifle pits. From these a line of sharpshooters sniped at men at the lop of the works. Lamb ordered three light cannon rolled out to reply with grape and canister. Short¬ ly after noon, another large enemy force was seen approaching along the sea beach. These were Porter's brave naval volunteers, sailors and marines. Every ship, large and small, had sent its contingent, to muster under Lieuten¬ ant-Commander K. R. Brecse. The Union tars wore pancake hats and bell- bottomed pants, and carried revolvers and cutlasses as though they were a boarding party, 2,000 strong. While Terry’s infantry pointed toward the THE STATE. NOVEMBER 1. 19 5 2 5