Oct 7/63

 

Flag Str Phil^a Oct 7^th 63

 

Sis

            I received your letters of the 21^st & 4^th just after mailing my last. We are now laying out by the fleet, and have been since night before last. There has not been any thing done yet by the fleet, but the Rebels night before last made a desperate attemt to blow up the Ironsides, and actually did succeed so far as to explode torpedo one under her, but did not damage her in the least. One of the number that is on board here a prisner says there was only four of them, and an Officer besides him escaped. The machine was built for the purpose something on the plan he says of their steam ram only smaller and very little of it is to be seen / above the water, and the torpedo contained sixty lbs of powder, and was carried in front of them and as they pushed it in under it was maid to go of. They left Charleston he says about dusk, and got to her between 8 & 9 oclock The comeing up of course they where challenged, and not giveing a satisfactory answer the sentry was ordered to fire, and the fire was cept up for about ten minutes by the guard, and all the time one says from the Ironsides that they where hollowing at them to stop firing that they wanted to come on board, and all the time where backing out, and in a little while it exploded, and they allso fired with small arms and wounded the Officer of the Deck fatally They did not get it placed right under or it might of been a serious thing. The prisner on board here says the explosion destroyed the machine, and that he left it before going to the Ironsides swam to a schooner from which he was fetched on board here / yesterday morning and was taken before the Admiral, and came out as scared a man as ever you saw. The Admiral told him he was an assassin and that he should prepair to die that he was going to hang him, and ordered him in double irons. While the Sergeant was putting them on, he wispered to him very earnestly wether he thought he would hang him, who told if the Admiral told him so he would do it certainly, which served as food for him all day. at dinner time the Admiral called him in again and I guess he told him a prety strait tail for he took the irons off of him which eased him a great deal and by evening his appetite commenced to return to him, and he was able to eat a little. The weather since the equinoctial is much more pleasant but the nights are very cool. I will now close wishing to be remembered to all inquireing friends and much love to all, I am still well.

                                                                                                                       

Charley.

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