the pickets and
advanced with determination upon the Union lines. The latter were
gradually forced back of the levee, the Iowa regiment fighting with
great steadiness, and the negroes behaving well individually; but they
lacked organization and knowledge of their weapons. Accordingly when
the enemy, who were much superior in numbers, charged the levee and
came hand to hand, the colored troops, after a few moments of
desperate struggle, broke and fled under the bank of the river.
Nothing saved them from destruction but the presence of the Choctaw,
which at 3.30 A.M. had opened her fire and was now able to maintain it
without fear of injuring her friends. The Confederates could not, or
would not face it, and withdrew at 8.30 A.M. What the fate of these
black troops would have been had the Confederates come upon them in
the flush of a successful charge seems somewhat doubtful, in view of
Taylor's suggestive remark that "_unfortunately_ some fifty of them
had been taken prisoners."

Immediately after the surrender of Vicksburg, Porter followed up the
discomfiture of the Confederates by a series of raids into the
interior of the country through its natural water-ways.
Lieutenant-Commander Walker was again sent up to Yazoo City, this time
in company with a force of troops numbering 5,000, under Major-General
Herron. During the month that had passed since Walker's last visit,
the enemy had been fortifying the place, and the batteries were found
ready to receive the vessels. General Herron was then notified, and
when his men were landed, a combined attack was made by the army and
navy. The Confederates made but slight resistance and soon fled,
abandoning everything. Six heavy guns and one vessel fell into the
Union hands, and four fine steamers wore destroyed by the enemy.
Unfortunately, while the De Kalb was moving slowly along she struck a
torpedo, which exploded under her bow and sunk her. As she went down
another exploded under her stern, shattering it badly. This gunboat,
which at first was called the St. Louis, was the third to be lost of
the seven. The Cincinnati was afterward raised; but the De Kalb was so
shattered as to make it useless to repair her.

At this same time Lieutenant-Commander Selfridge, with a force of
light-draught gunboats, entered the Red River, turned out of it into
the Black, and from the latter again into the Tensas; following one of
the routes by which Grant had thought to move his army below