Wisconsin Tribune

CHEESE VS. CANNON SHOT

The greatest ammunition we have heard of lately was used by the celebrated Commodore Coe of the Montevidean navy, who, in an engagement with Admiral Brown of the Buenos Ayrean service, fired every shot from his lockers.

“What shall we do, sir?” asked his first Lieut; “we've not a single shot aboard; round, grape, canister and double-headed are all gone.”

“Powder gone eh?” asked Coe.

“No sir; got lots of that left.”

“We had a darn'd cheese—a round Dutch one—for dessert at dinner to-day, do you remember it?” said Coe.

“I ought to; I broke the carving-knife in trying to cut it, sir.”

“Are there any more aboard?”

“About two dozen; we took 'em from a drover.”

“Will they go into the 18 pounders?”

“By thunder, Commodore! but that's a—I'll try 'em.”

And in a few minutes the fire of the Santa Maria, (Coe's ship,) which had entirely—was re-opened, and Admiral Brown found more shot flying over his head. Directly one of them struck the mainmast, and as it did so, scattered in shreds in every direction.

“What the devil is that which the enemy is firing”—asked Brown, but nobody could tell.

Directly another one came in through the port and killed two men who stood near, and then striking the opposite bulwarks burst into shivers.

“By Jove this is too much; this is some new fangled Paixhan or other; don't like 'em at all!” cried Brown; and as four or five more of them slapped through his sails, he gave the order to veer, and actually backed out of the action, receiving a parting broadside of whole cheese.

This is an actual fact, our informant says, from the lips of the first Lieutenant of Coe's ship. The cheeses were exported from New York week before last, to England and France.