Here's a bit of a conundrum. The Colonel commanding the Confederate States Marine Corps, Lloyd J. Beall, sent a dispatch, in April 1864, to Secretary of the Navy, Mallory, stating specifically that there was "also a marine guard at sea on board of the CSS ALABAMA." This was just two months prior to the sinking of the famed cruiser. What I would like to know is, why would Beall, who would most definitely have all the facts and figures at hand, as reports were constantly sent to the Navy Department in Richmond, on a regular basis, state that there was such a complement on the ALABAMA, even though there was only one CSMC officer attached to the vessel? Could there have been, such as was the case with the CSS SHENANDOAH, a small guard formed from the enlisted sailors of the CSS ALABAMA, but not officially recorded in any existing source? Because the deck logs of the ALABAMA, for the months prior to her sinking, went down with the vessel, we may never know if such a guard was formed from the personnel serving on the vessel, other than Beall's official statement. If only lieutenant Howell had left a diary or journal of his time on the cruiser, we would know more about such matters.