to fire on two rebel steamboats lying at the navy-yard wharf and a 10-inch columbiad sand battery established on the same wharf. The effect of the firing was apparent, by driving the rebels from the sand battery on the what, disabling the steamboat Time, and injuring the iron steamboat Neaffie, which escaped by steaming off and being a small boat. After firing for a short time I directed the most of these guns to fire on the enemy's forests and batteries, particularly Forts McRee and Barrancas, the light-house batteries, Wheat's and the church batteries, which soon attracted attention by their superior armament (10-inch columbiads) and superior firing, having the range and time of flight very accurately from previous practice with the same guns at the same distance. Our fire from 10-inch columbiads on these batteries, &c., was well directed and effective, but our fire from James rifled guns in casemate was not effective, owing to the long range and probably inherent defect in the principle by which a rotary motion is given to these shot and shell, for I observed that the firing from these guns was very irregular and uncertain for ranges over 2,000 yards.

I ordered Captain Duryea, First Artillery, commanding Battery Scott, ably assisted as he was by Lieutenant Closson, of the same regiment, to direct the fire of his powerful battery, consisting of two 10-inch columbiads, one 42-pounder rifled gun, and two 10-inch sea-coast mortars, to fire on Fort McRee and sand battery south of it. I at the same time ordered the four 10-inch se-coast mortars int he ditch, commanded by Lieutenant Langdon, and one 13-inch and one 12-inch sea-coast mortars, Battery Totten, commanded by Captain Blunt, and one 8-inch columbiad and two 42-pounders in casemate, of Lieutenant Jackson's battery, to fire on Fort McRee and sand battery south of it, for the purpose of co-operating with the Navy in endeavoring to take and destroy that important fort and its outworks, which guard the enemy's right flank and the entrance to the harbor of Pensacola. The direct fire of these guns was excellent, and, together witch the heavy firing from United States steamships Niagara and Richmond, produced a marked impression on this stronghold of the enemy, by silencing the guns of the fort and by driving the detachments from the guns in the sand battery, which would no doubt have decided the fate of Fort McRee, by enabling the command from the Navy to take the fort, but for the opening of an unexpected and concealed battery, armed with rifled cannon of large caliber or possibly a 10-inch columbiad, which was served with effect, on the Richmond.

I will concluded my report of the first day's firing on our part by remarking that in the afternoon it was good and effective, both from the batteries inside the fort as also those outside, and reflected great credit on the skill and coolness of the officers commanding the several batteries and their assistant and the insisted men serving the guns. I will add, the firing from our batteries was kept up till dark, when it ceased by my order, in accordance with those of the colonel commanding, to enable the magazines of the batteries outside of the fort as well as the service magazines of those inside to be replenished with powder, shot, and shell.

Our batteries opened fire on the enemy the second day about the same hour as the day previous, the ten 10-inch columbiads each firing a shell every fifteen minutes and the rifled 42-pounders a solid shot at the same rate. The 10-inch columbiad en barbette, bastion C, was under the command of Lieutenant Seeley, Fourth Artillery, who was assigned to it his own request. The mortars were fired every half hour. Our