"U.S. Flagship 'Minnesota,' "Off Lockwood's Folly Inlet, "_January 11, 1864_. "Sir: At daylight this morning a steamer was seen beached and burning one mile west of this inlet. Mr. O'Connor, from this ship, boarded her with the loss of one man, shot under the fire from the enemy's sharp shooters occupying rifle pits on the sand hills, which were high and near, and got her log book, from which it appears that she is the _Ranger_; that she left Newcastle [England] November 11, 1863, for Bermuda, where, after touching at Teneriffe, she arrived on the 8th of December; that she sailed from Bermuda January 6, 1864, made our coast January 10, about five miles northeast of Murrell's Inlet, and landed her passengers. The next morning at daylight, intercepted by this ship, the _Daylight_, _Governor Buckingham_, and _Aries_, in her approach to Western Bar, she was beached and fired by her crew, as above mentioned. The attempts of the _Governor Buckingham_, aided by the _Daylight_ and _Aries_, to extinguish the fire and haul the _Ranger_ off were frustrated by the enemy's sharpshooters, whose fire completely commanded her decks. This ship, drawing about twenty-four feet, was taken in four and one-half fathoms of water in front of the wreck, and the other vessels stationed to cross fire on the riflemen on the sand hills opened a deliberate fire with a view to dislodge the enemy and allow an attempt to haul off the _Ranger_ at high water at night. Meanwhile, the _Ranger_ was burning freely forward and the commanding officers of the _Governor Buckingham_ and _Daylight_, who had a good view of her situation, thinking that it was not practicable to get her off, she was also fired into, which, as her hatches were closed, had the effect of letting the air in, when the fire burned freely aft and doubtless burned the _Ranger_ out completely. Meanwhile, black smoke was rising in the direction of Shallotte Inlet, and the _Aries_, withdrawn last night from her station there, was ordered to chase. She soon returned, and Acting Volunteer Lieutenant Devens reported a fine-looking double-propeller blockade runner, resembling the _Ceres_, beached and on fire between Tubb's and Little River Inlets, and that the enemy's sharpshooters prevented his boats from boarding her. This was probably the same steamer that was chased the previous evening by the _Quaker City_, _Tuscarora_, and _Keystone State_, and escaping from them made the western shore, where, communicating and learning of the presence of the blockaders in force, and perhaps being short of coal, was beached by her crew and fired rather than be captured.