sailor sitting near by where I was
standing, upon seeing the ceiling broken above my head, said, "Don't be
alarmed; lightning nor shells never strike twice in the same place."
Another shell went crashing through the ward-room, down through an old
family Bible (which Acting Ensign Milton Webster had captured ashore),
and then out of the ward-room through a passage-way in which some
negroes off the Otsego were lying concealed, killing them, and then
exploding in the river. In the meantime, the remainder of the fleet
kept up a constant fire.

During the battle, Acting Ensign Milton Webster performed some acts of
daring, by taking the end of a hawser in a cutter, manned by negroes,
ashore, and making it fast to a tree, under a shower of bullets and
shells. The cutter was pierced several times with bullets, but nobody
in it was hurt. The hawser was made fast to the tree for the purpose of
drawing the stern of the Valley City around so as to bring her guns to
bear on the enemy.

After a brisk fire from the fleet for four hours, the rebels ceased
firing, but annoyed the fleet during the night by squads of infantry
firing from behind the dykes and then running away. It was dangerous to
have a light aboard the vessel, and we were therefore compelled to take
our suppers as best we could in the dark.

Tuesday, December 20.--We are engaged in burying the dead and
skirmishing with the enemy, the rebels with their accustomed barbarity
firing on the burying party. We were annoyed all day by the
sharpshooters and batteries of the enemy, but continued to hold our own
and to keep the enemy back.

On Wednesday, December 21, the Valley City weighed anchor at 2:10
o'clock p.m. The Confederates were firing musketry at the Wyalusing. At
2:40 p.m. the Valley City steamed ahead, around the turn which opened
up the far stretch of the river. This stretch of the river was covered
by rebel artillery. The Valley City had scarcely showed her bow around
the turn, till she received a severe shot from the rebel batteries,
which plunged diagonally through the pilot-house, which was lined
outside with half-inch iron, knocking off the door thereto, wounding
three men--the pilot John A. Wilson, Charles Hall, and John Wood: the
latter two were mortally wounded. The Valley City immediately dropped
out of range of said battery, and came to anchor at 3:05 p.m. In the
evening the fleet dropped farther down on the near stretch of the
river. The Valley City l