Harvard memorial biographies ...

Thomas Rodman Robeson.

255

me by actual measurement, and hundreds from six feet to a boat's
length."
In this battle he made the very first use under fire of the
new signal system, and he was promised that a pair of signal
flags should be specially prepared for him in recognition of
this, with his initials upon them; but he never received them.
During the following month his eyes troubled him considerably,
having been injured by their arduous employment, and he
began to think of returning to his regiment. On March i th
General Burnside's expedition sailed from Roanoke Island for
Newbern, North Carolina, Lieutenant Robeson being still
quartered on the flag-steamer Philadelphia, as signal officer.
In a letter written March 15th he gives some account of the
battle of Newbern:"We arrived Wednesday evening at Slocum's Creek, the place
where we were to land our troops, after a beautiful day's sail up
the Neuse River, and anchored there for the night. Early Thursday morning we began to land the troops, our gunboats shelling the
shore in every direction to drive away any Rebels that might be
there. The army were landed very rapidly, and by two o'clock
commenced their march towards Newbern, a distance of about
twelve miles, - the gunboats keeping up a constant fire on the shore
in advance. I was on the gunboat Delaware, Commodore Rowan's
flag-ship for the fight, which led the fleet up. We had to proceed
in single file, as the river is full of all sorts of obstructions, such
as torpedoes, piles pointed with iron, and sunken vessels. About
three o'clock one of the batteries opened upon us, and continued
firing for a short time; but they did not come very near us, and it
came on rainy and foggy, so about six we drew off. The army
marched about seven miles without meeting any of the enemy, and
encamped for the night.
" At seven in the morning I went on board the Delaware with
Commodore Rowan, and proceeded slowly up the river in a dense
fog. At half past seven the firing commenced on shore, and we
commenced firing at the batteries. There were four forts along the
shore, mounting thirty-two guns in all. They fired at us, each in
turn, as we came up; but none of them held out more than an
hour, deserting their forts as the army advanced. At half past ten
they signalled to me from the shore that they had taken the island