and rendered almost impregnable by military art, was a work of extreme danger, nay, of impossibility to less resolute men.

The relative positions of Fort Henry and Donelson, the former on the Tennessee river and the latter on the Cumberland, should be clearly understood, in order to comprehend the difficulties of this undertaking.

Fort Henry had been occupied by Federal troops, and it became necessary to effect the reduction of Fort Donelson, in order to open the river to the navigation of the national flotilla, and to reach Nashville, the capital of Tennessee.

The surrender of Fort Henry took place on the 6th of February. One of the gunboats, the Essex, being disabled, was obliged to return to Cairo for repairs, while the Lexington, Conestoga and Tyler, returned to the Ohio, in order to reach the Cumberland river to make the ascent to Fort Donelson. Commodore Foote having completed his preparations, left Cairo on the 11th of February for the scene of action—the Carondelet having previously been sent forward to reconnoitre the position.

On the same day General Grant issued his orders for the movement of the land forces in two divisions, on the following morning. The distance from Fort Henry to Fort Donelson across the land lying between the two rivers, is fourteen miles. There are several roads running from Fort Henry to Dover, near which Fort Donelson was situated. The divisions were disposed by brigades, one of which was to be thrown into Dover to cut off the retreat of the enemy, if attempted by that route. Fort Donelson takes its name from Andrew Jackson Donelson, a citizen of Tennessee, and its construction was commenced as early as May, 1861. It occupied the best position for defence on the Cumberland river, standing on the summit of a fine slope, rising to the height of one hundred and fifty feet from the river, on its right bank, and mounted sixteen guns. There were two water-batteries, one of which was about twenty or thirty feet above the river, and defended by nine pieces, eight thirty-two-pound guns, and one ten-inch columbiad. The second was some sixty feet above, and was mounted with one ten-inch columbiad, and two thirty-two pound carronades.

Both these batteries were sunken or excavated in the hill-side. In the lower one, strong traverses were left between the guns, to secure them against an enfilading fire. The elevation above the water at the time of the gunboat attack, gave them a fine command of the river, and made the task of attacking them in front an arduous one. The range of the guns in arc, was, however, quite limited.

The third occupied the summit of the hill, and mounted four 128pound guns. The camp was behind the fort on the hill, but within range of gunboats on the river.

THE NAVAL ATTACK,

On the night of February 11th, the St. Louis, (the flag-ship,) Louisville, and Pittsburg, sailed from Cairo. The Carondelet, as already stated, had been dispatched a day or two in advance, and at Paducah, on the noon of the 12th, the fleet was joined by the Conestoga and Tyler. Of these the three first were iron-clad vessels. From Paducah the fleet was accompanied by sixteen transports, carrying six thousand infantry, and cavalry and artillery.

The fleet followed the flag-ship of Commodore Foote, as they turned out of the Ohio, and began the ascent of the Cumberland. Passing onward from the Ohio, sweeping through Kentucky and Tennessee up to the western boundaries of Virginia, the fleet carried the national ensign, which was met with continual cheers and responses from the people on the banks.

About four o'clock in the afternoon, a messenger steamer, the Alps, met the fleet, with a dispatch from General Grant, requesting all haste to be made, as the gunboats were anxiously expected. Putting on steam, the Alps took the St. Louis and Louisville in tow, leaving the transports to hasten as rapidly as they could be urged. The former arrived within two miles of the fort at twelve o'clock, on the night of Thursday, the 13th.

On the morning of that day, the Carondelet, by order of General Grant, had bombarded the fort, and single-handed, commenced the attack on the works. On the previous day she had advanced and fired eight shots, but without drawing out any reply. The attack of the 13th was differently met by the fort, as the shells were briskly responded to, and a vigorous fire was maintained for two hours. The Carondelet kept her bows hard on the fort, carefully guarding against presenting her broadside to the enemy. She fired one hundred and twenty-eight shots in ninety-five minutes. At the end of that time, a ball from one of the 128-pound guns entered her port-bow, and struck a portion of her machinery. Six men were slightly wounded by the splinters which flew from the ship's timbers. She retired beyond the range of the guns, to ascertain the amount of damage, and in the afternoon, after repairing, was again ordered to the charge, and fired a number of shots, but without sensible effect.

The morning of the 14th found the flotilla lying in the wake of the flag-ship. The transports had arrived, and the troops, with the artillery, were landed about two miles from the fort. The arrival of the fleet, and the thousands of determined soldiers, inspired the troops already at the scene of action with new vigor; long and tumultuous cheers came down the hills from the army under General Grant, which could be seen

in the distance, watching the movements of the fleet. General Grant and his staff had gone on board the St. Louis, before daylight, and an attack by the land forces was agreed upon, to be made as soon as the signal gun should be given from the river. Accordingly, at two o'clock, P. M., all the vessels comprising the flotilla, the iron-clad boats St. Louis, Carondelet, Pittsburg, and Louisville, and the two wooden boats, Conestoga and Tyler, got under way. They were then about two miles from the fort. The line of battle was immediately formed, the flag-ship taking the extreme right, with the Louisville, Pittsburg, and Carondelet at the left, four abreast; the Conestoga and Tyler, not being iron clad, remained in the rear, about a quarter of a mile. The fleet proceeded at a speed of about three miles an hour, up the river. At twenty-five minutes to three o'clock they reached the termination of a long range of woods to the right, and came in full view of the fort.

The fortifications were distinctly visible, consisting of three tiers of frowning batteries, on the slope of a steep hill, one hundred and fifty feet in height. About half-past two o'clock, the enemy opened fire from a battery about twenty feet above water level, by discharging a 32-pounder, but the shot fell far short. This was followed by another ball of larger dimensions, which also fell short. The Union men were anxious to show the enemy a specimen of their fighting power, but the Commodore would not permit them to fire a gun for fifteen minutes, until they got within certain range of the fort. At a few minutes before three o'clock, the St. Louis opened the battle on the national side, and the other boats quickly followed. For a while all the shot fell short of the mark.

The boats kept advancing slowly and steadily for about half an hour, when the order was given to slack the engines, so as to prevent them from coming in too close range. The firing then increased to a terrific rate on both sides. The enemy poured 32 and 64-pound balls into the vessels with great effect, and the gunners returned their 8-inch shell and 64pound rifle balls with unusual skill. In the heat of the action, a shot from the enemy's water battery carried away the flagstaff of the St. Louis; almost the next shot took the chimney guys of the same boat. A well sent ball from the St. Louis soon struck the flagstaff of the enemy, which was on the top of the hill behind the batteries. This terrible fire lasted about half an hour, when a 64-pound ball from the middle battery cut the tiller ropes of the gunboat Louisville, rendering her steering apparatus unmanageable. About the same time a shot entered one of the windows of the pilot-house of the Carondelet, mortally wounding the pilot. Thus the control of two Union boats was in a great degree lost. Shortly after this, a 32-pound ball penetrated the pilot-house of the St. Louis, mortally wounding one of the pilots, injuring two other pilots, and