The Progressing attack on Charleston — the armament of the iron clads.
The Monitors that are now engaged in the attack on Charleston are the Passage, Capt. Drayton; the Pattered Capt. Ammon; the Wechawken, Capt Deas; the Nahant, Capt. John Rodgers; the Callskill Capt. Fairfax, of Trent memory; the Nunataks of Capt Geo. Rodgers; and the Montank, Capt Worden, formerly of the original Monitor.--The Keckuk is also backed for the affair. In addition to these is the iron frigate New Ironsides, Commodore Turner, which has been the flag ship of the Charleston blockading fleet for a month past. Her armament consists of fourteen guns and two 250 pound rifles. The Wab. a, with her large crew, 780 men and heavy armament, draws too much water, 23 feet, to cross the , as also the Powhatan formerly commanded. Com Gordon, and the Pawnee will remain, it to receive the rear expected to attempt recapture of Port Royal during the absence of the iron-clad fleet. The correspondent of the Philadelphia Press says:‘ The prime cause of the delay of the attack on Charleston has not been with the army as many supposed, for it has been said from the his hest authority that the troops have been waiting the word from the Admiral, nor has the delay been caused by the weather alone, but the presence tharieston harbor of the torpedoes with which been proved, Monitors, unassisted are enable .
’ The same, correspondent alluding to in the attack upon. Charleston, through apprehension of torpedoes, in the harbor, says:
‘ But Captain Ericson, of New York, has a plan by which this difficulty is obviated has already down four of these machines free of which were most in a gale of wind while the remaining one with difficulty, the steamer has safety towed into Port Royal harbor. It may be of interest to desperate the principle on which these are constructed. An iron frame, floated to the water's edge by iron sponsons is pushed ahead of the Monitor as she runs in. Its length, from the show of the Monitor, is from 20 to 30 feet. An aperture bows, intended to receive it. The breadth of the "obstruction remover," as it is called, is 12 feet. From each side of the extremity a strong iron bar or shaft runs down also 12 feet, the Monitor drawing but from 8 to 10 feet water, thus rendering it impossible for any torpedoes over which this "Obstruction Remover" passes to injure the vessel.
A number of iron bars are used, not only to form a net work so as to either push forward or explode every torpedo has than twelve feet under water, but also to strengthen and steady the masts. At the bottom a heavy tie bar unites these two vertical rode, upon which reats the percussion torpedo containing seven hundred pounds of power.--Above this is a hammer which catches in a spring so stiff as to require two men to set it, but constructed so that the lever, which protrudes in front, forming the handle or other end of the hammer, will cause the spring to give with little pressure. This is to remove "plies" The experiments made upon this machine in the North have demonstrated the fact that it is a complete success, and an amount of powder greater than has ever been proposed for any torpedo before caused no injury to the vessel, and indeed did not disturb any of the ties of the "obstruction remover." It will be readily soon that under no circumstances can any strain be given to the Monitor; for, supposing the apparatus to be destroyed, as it floats independently of the Monitor, supporting itself, the worst that can happen is its loss.
’ On the 27th ult. several regiments left Hilton Head, S. C. to participate in the attack on Charleston.--A correspondent of the Baltimore American, writing from that point on the 25th, says:
‘ This morning four of the iron clads left for North Edisto to await the high lides to enter Stono Inlet, and to proceed by that route, if not to Charleston, so near it as to make them unpleasant neighbors, and to render the occupation of James Island by the rebels impossible with the batteries they have in position. They have few or no heavy guns, having placed them in positions where they will be of no use.
Our enemies will have no time to change the useless batteries they have placed on Morris and Sullivan's Island.--useless because we would have to go out of our way to attack them. After Charleston has fallen — as fall it will — Dixts will set up a howl that the reason was that they had not placed their butteries properly. With no less than six hundred heavy guns to defend so miserable, a spot, two years to prepare their defences, without hindrance from "Old Aba." and choosing their positions, their excuses will be puerile and unsatisfactory to the "Southern Confederacy."
The arrival of the Ericsson to day do doubt will give us at once the means of aggression. We will be successful. But do not suppose that Charleston will fall in a day. Rely upon it that a day of reckoning is near at hand, and that when the smoke clears away the whole coast will be ours.
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