irst
western steamboat was built at Pittsburg in 1811. It gave an impetus to
river navigation by steam, and before long the boats were ploughing the
principal streams of the country. The first steamer to cross the
Atlantic was the _Savannah_, which made the voyage in 1819, but ocean
navigation was not fairly begun until 1838, when the _Sirius_ and _Great
Western_ made the voyage from England to the United States. It is a
noteworthy fact that one of the greatest of English scientists, after
demonstrating that ocean navigation by steam was impossible, was a
passenger on the _Great Western_ on her first trip across the Atlantic.

When the great Civil War burst upon the country the National Government
not only failed to comprehend the gigantic nature of the struggle, but
was almost wholly unprepared for it. The navy consisted of 90 vessels,
of which only 42 were in commission, while 21 were unfit for service,
and of those in commission there were but 11, carrying 134 guns, that
were in American waters. The remainder were scattered over the waters of
the globe, such being the policy of President Buchanan's Secretary of
the Navy, who, like the Secretary of War and other members of the
Presidential Cabinet, were secessionists who did all they could to pave
the way for the establishment of the Southern Confederacy.

On the authority of Maclay, the total number of officers of all grades
in the navy on August 1, 1861, was 1,457, in addition to whom an immense
volunteer force was called for and 7,500 volunteer officers were
enrolled before the close of the war. Three hundred and twenty-two
officers resigned from the United States navy and entered that of the
seceding States, of which 243 were officers of the line. The 7,600
sailors in the navy at the opening of the war was increased to 51,500
before the close of hostilities.

In a work of this nature the difficulty is to select the most striking
and interesting incidents from the scores that formed a part of the War
for the Union. One of the many heroes who was brought into prominence
was John Lorimer Worden, who was born in Dutchess County, N.Y., March
12, 1818. He entered the navy when sixteen years old and became a
lieutenant in 1840. His services in the Mexican War were unimportant and
he was a first lieutenant of the Brooklyn Navy Yard when the Civil War
broke out.

In the month of April, 1861, when a conflict was inevitable, the
Government was anxious to send dispatches