It was known to all that there was to be a fight, and I remember looking at the many men that crowded the decks of these steamers as the bells rang, signaling the engineers to put on steam, when the wheels began slowly turning, lashing and churning the water nearby; the boats gently swung round with their prows down stream, then getting out into the main channel, a full head of steam was turned on; that heaving sound, characteristic of a boat under full headway, began; and the men raised their hats and cheered wildly and long. They seemed more bent on a pleasure excursion than to give battle and meet a determined and powerful foe. I remember looking at them in this jolly mood, and wondering how many of the merry ones would soon find a grave on a battlefield, and what number would return maimed and wounded.
