Abraham Lincoln : a history : the full and authorized record of his private life and public career . Union transports in the adjacent waters, to whichshe could have done incalculable damage. Forabout two months she thus remained a vagueterror, though the menace was effectually neutra-lized by the Monitor and the merchant war vesselsassembled in triple and quadruple force to opposeand annihilate her. On her part the Merrimacprofited by the blockade to which she was sub-jected, by being repaired and much strengthened,by a new steel and wrought-iron prow, by iron plat-ing on her hull, and improve
Abraham Lincoln : a history : the full and authorized record of his private life and public career . Union transports in the adjacent waters, to whichshe could have done incalculable damage. Forabout two months she thus remained a vagueterror, though the menace was effectually neutra-lized by the Monitor and the merchant war vesselsassembled in triple and quadruple force to opposeand annihilate her. On her part the Merrimacprofited by the blockade to which she was sub-jected, by being repaired and much strengthened,by a new steel and wrought-iron prow, by iron plat-ing on her hull, and improved ammunition. Onthe 11th of April she descended again to HamptonRoads, in company with three rebel gunboats andnine small tugs. But beyond getting the variousunarmed vessels out of the way the Union fleetmade no movement; for its orders provided thatthe Monitor and other vessels should not be sepa-rated, but that if the Merrimac came out into favor-able waters they should all go at her. The positionis one of defiance on both sides, wrote a newspapercorrespondent; the rebels are challenging us to. monitor and merrimac 233 come up to their field of battle, and we are daringthem to come down. The Union fleet understoodtoo well its primary duty of keeping the Merrimacfrom any possibility of reaching the army trans-ports in York River, while on their part the rebelofficers were also restrained by orders to remainfor the protection of No battle grew outof this game of strategy, and at night the rebelvessels withdrew. We must anticipate somewhat the chronologicalorder of events to bring within the present chapterthe final fate of both the Monitor and the progress of the Peninsular Campaign, whenthe Confederates found McClellans army advancingagainst Richmond in such powerful numbers, itbecame necessary to draw in all available detach-ments for the defense of their capital, and on the 1stof May the evacuation of Norfolk was determinedupon. On the 4th of May the Me
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