A large proportion of these were of the crew of the flagship, and most of those from a single shell which penetrated the ship's side and exploded between decks where the men were working their guns.

The sight of the mangled and dying men which met my eye as I boarded the ship was sickening.
Grand Gulf is on a high bluff where the river runs at the very foot of it.

It is as defensible upon its front as Vicksburg and, at that time, would have been just as impossible to capture by a front attack.

I therefore requested Porter to run the batteries with his fleet that night, and to take charge of the transports, all of which would be wanted below.
There is a long tongue of land from the Louisiana side extending towards Grand Gulf, made by the river running nearly east from about three miles above and nearly in the opposite direction from that point for about the same distance below.

The land was so low and wet that it would not have been practicable to march an army across but for a levee.