Sketches From My Life: By The Late Admiral Hobart PashaHobart-Hampden, Augustus Charles
History
Sketches From My Life: By The Late Admiral Hobart Pasha
Hobart-Hampden, Augustus Charles
Adventure and adventurers; United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Blockades
We couldn't have steamed three miles further. On the wild spot where we
anchored there was fortunately a small heap of anthracite coal, that
probably had been part of the cargo of some wreck, of which we took as
much as would carry us to Nassau, and arrived there safely. Thus the
attempt to get into Savannah was a failure. It was tried once afterwards
by a steamer which managed to get well past the fort, but which stuck on
a sand-bank shortly after doing so, and was captured in the morning.
It is not my intention to inflict on my readers any more anecdotes of my
own doings in the 'D----n;' suffice it to say that I had the good luck
to make six round trips in her, in and out of Wilmington, and that I
gave her over to the chief officer and went home to England with my
spoils. On arriving at Southampton, the first thing I saw in the 'Times'
was a paragraph headed, 'The Capture of the "D----n."' Poor little
craft! I learned afterwards how she was taken, which I will relate, and
which will show that she died game.
The officer to whom I gave over charge was as fine a specimen of a
seaman as well can be imagined, plucky, cool, and determined, and by the
way he was a bit of a medico, as well as a sailor; for by his beneficial
treatment of his patients we had very few complaints of sickness on
board. As our small dispensary was close to my cabin, I used to hear the
conversation that took place between C---- and his patients. I will
repeat one.
_C._ 'Well, my man, what's the matter with you?'
_Patient._ 'Please, sir, I've got pains all over me.'
_C._ 'Oh, all over you, are they; that's bad.'
Then, during the pause, it was evident something was being mixed up, and
I could hear C---- say: 'Here, take this, and come again in the
evening.' (Exit patient.) Then C. said to himself: 'I don't think he'll
come again; he has got two drops of the croton. Skulking rascal, pains
all over him, eh!' I never heard the voice of that patient again; in
fact, after a short time we had no cases of sickness on board. C----
explained to me that the only medicine he served out, as he called it,
was _croton oil_; and that none of the crew came twice for treatment.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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