It was
some time before quiet was restored, and then Frank found, to his horror,
that, out of twenty-five men which had composed his gun's crew, only ten
were left. Four had been instantly killed, and eleven badly wounded. The
deck was slippery with blood, and the turret was completely covered with
it. The shrieks and groans of the wounded and dying were awful. Frank had
never before witnessed such a scene, and, for a moment, he was so sick he
could scarcely stand. But he had no time to waste in giving away to his
feelings. After seeing the dead and wounded carried below, he returned to
his station, and, with what was left of his gun's crew, fought bravely
during the remainder of the action.
The fight continued until after dark, when the captain, knowing that it
would be impossible to capture the fort without the assistance of the
troops, ordered a retreat.
That same night a consultation of the naval and military commanders was
held, and it was decided to renew the attack on the following morning. A
battery of two thirty-pounder Parrotts was taken off one of the
"tin-clads" and mounted on the bank, about half a mile back in the woods,
and a mile from the fort.
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