Show PRAISE FOR THE KEARSARGE A British View of the Famous Battle with the Alabama The old Kearsarge which sank th = Alabama has herself come to a violent end She was wrecked a few day a0o in the Caribbean sea happily without loss of life It is all but thirty years says the London News since she fought her great fight off Cherbourg so she has kept the seas a long time She deserved an honored place on the re tired list of the American navy for she had claims on national gratitude only second to those of the Constitution Her fight with the Alabama was a duel conducted very much on the model of the old personal contests in the age of chivalry After a hot pursuit she had at last cornered the confederate cruiser which had wrought so much ruin to American commerce and It was well understood that pursuer or pursued pur-sued must perish She watched the mouth of Cherbourg harbor which her enemy was under short notice to leave and the fight was Inevitable The steamers in port come out to see it and some of them carried excursion parties from Paris The Kearsrge won by superior artillery superior discipline dis-cipline superior patriotism Her crew had a nobler Idea to fight for than the medley of mercenaries that crowded the privateer These were a desperate gang and they had given their of ficers endless trouble before the Kear sarge took the reformation of their manners in hand As the Alabama steamed out of harbor at 10 oclock on Sunday morning June 19 she found her antagonist waiting for her and the two approached each other in evernar rowing circles firing all the time The Kearsarge was better prepared for de fense as well as for attack Her commander com-mander had roughly armoured her in the most vulnerable parts by laying all his spare chain cables in folds over the sides The Alabama opened fire at a distance of about a mile and when the ships had made seven complete circles she suddenly turned and headed for the land She was sinking for both shot and shell had reached her with fearful effect on ship and frew A British yacht the Deerhound which had come out to see the fight came up In time to save about forty of the crew as they jumped for their lives The last shot was fired as she went down It was a glorious victory We can say so with a clear conscience now as the Daily News was among the few metropolitan journals that said so when lit was won |