February 9, 1863, The Charleston Mercury
Parties who accompanied Mr. BUNCH to the British steamer Cadmus, on Saturday afternoon, bring us some additional information, though not of the most agreeable character, in regard to the late naval action. If the statements given by the officers of the Cadmus be true, the substantial fruits of our victory are far less important than previous accounts had led us to believe.
The steam gunboat Mercedita, which was thought to have been sunk, is said to be at Port Royal, having been towed there from this Bar in quite a disabled condition. She was struck by the Palmetto State, and a shot from the latter passed through the boiler of the Mercedita, causing the water in it to rush into the hold of the vessel, and inducing a temporary impression in the minds of those below, which was communicated to the officers on deck, that the vessel was sinking. She lost several in killed and wounded.
The Yankee gunboats Quaker City and Augusta were also struck, and had parts of their crews killed and wounded, but the latter was not much damaged, and is now off here blockading.
The iron-clad New Ironsides is still off the Bar, and is said to go off shore early in the morning and to return after dark, hoping to catch our iron-clads should they make another night attack on the Yankees. The Ironsides is reported to go about nine knots when doing her best, and is armed principally with eleven inch guns and one two hundred pounder PARROT gun, on a pivot, forward.
The impression prevails in the Yankee fleet that Savannah will be assailed before Charleston, and their language in reference to their expected attack on the latter city is less boastful than heretofore.
The Monitor iron-clad Montauk, which bombarded the battery near Savannah a few days since, it is said, was considerably injured in that action, and her turret refused to work during part of the fight.