made port in Rio de Janeiro in December 1957 and then proceeded to round Cape Horn to enter the Pacific Ocean at the start of the new year. In February 1858, Merrimack made port in Talcahuano, Chile, and from there sailed to the Chincha Islands. At the end of February, the ship put into port in the small coastal town of Callao with shore leave authorized for the crew. Parker took the opportunity to travel to Lima, where he witnessed "some type of revolution" which was underway under the leadership of Lizardo Montero Flores. In March 1858, Merrimack sailed for Panama, where Parker had the foresight to predict that a Panama Canal would one day be constructed. After a layover at Perico Island, Merrimack headed into the open Pacific Ocean, reaching the Sandwich Islands (now Hawaii) in September 1858. The ship remained in Honolulu until October and then set course for a return to Central America. In December 1858, Merrimack arrived at El Realejo, Nicaragua, and remained in this port for a total of three months, during which time Parker met the President of Nicaragua. In March, the ship then returned from Panama, where it was placed under a new squadron commander, Commodore John B. Montgomery; the ship then headed to Valparaiso, arriving in June 1859, and remained at this station until October when Merrimack was relieved by . The ship then set a return course for the United States, stopping in Rio de Janeiro in November. It was at this time that the crew was informed of the John Brown Raid and, according to Parker's biography, he had already come to the conclusion that civil war between the North and South was inevitable. In December 1859, Merrimack reached Norfolk, and the vessel was laid up for an overhaul and the crew discharged. During the voyage, Parker had written a naval guide entitled Instructions for Naval Light Artillery (New York, 1862) and had translated a French instruction, entitled Tactique Navale, into English. Virginia State Navy and Confederate States Navy As the United States broke up in 1861, the Parker brothers followed separate paths. Foxhall A. Parker, Jr., remained in the U.S. Navy, while William "went south" to join the Virginia State Navy and, in June 1861, the Confederate States Navy. He commanded the gunboat CSS Beaufort into 1862, taking part in the Roanoke Island battle on February 7–8, 1862 and