Enemy threatening Richmond.--The city is safe.--Battle of Gettysburg.--
Great excitement.--Yankees in great trouble.--Alas! Vicksburg has
fallen.--President is sick.--Grant marching against Johnston at
Jackson.--Fighting at that place.--Yankees repulsed at Charleston.--
Lee and Meade facing each other.--Pemberton surrenders his whole
army.--Fall of Port Hudson.--Second class conscripts called for.--
Lee has got back across the Potomac.--Lincoln getting fresh troops.--
Lee writes that he cannot be responsible if the soldiers fail for
want of food.--Rumors of Grant coming East.--Pemberton in bad odor.--
Hon. W. L. Yancey is dead.
JULY 1ST.--The intelligence of the capture of Harrisburg and York, Pa.,
is so far confirmed as to be admitted by the officers of the Federal
flag of truce boat that came up to City Point yesterday.
Of the movements of Hooker's army, we have the following information:
"HEADQUARTERS, CAVALRY DIVISION,
"June 27th, 1863.
"GENERAL:--I took possession of Fairfax C. H. this morning at nine
o'clock, together with a large quantity of stores. The main body of
Hooker's army has gone toward Leesburg, except the garrison of
Alexandria and Washington, which has retreated within the
fortifications.
"Very respectfully,
"Your obedient servant,
"J. E. B. STUART, _Major-General_."
The Northern papers say that our cruiser Tacony, taken from them, has
destroyed twenty-two of their vessels since the 12th inst.; but that our
men burnt her at last. Her crew then entered Portland, Maine, and cut
out the steam cutter Caleb Cushing, which they subsequently blew up, and
then were themselves taken prisoner.
The President has decided that the obstructions below the city shall not
be opened for the steam iron-clad Richmond to go out, until another
iron-clad be in readiness to accompany her.
Capt. Maury, at Mobile, writes that the two iron-clads, Trent and
Nashville, now ready for sea, might take New Orleans and _keep it_. The
President directs the Secretary of War to consult the Secretary of the
Navy, and if they agreed, the attempt should be made without loss of
time. So, probably, we shall have news from that quarter soon.
The militia and Department Guard (soon to be called the National Guard,
probably) were notified to-day to be in readiness at a minute's warning.
It is said positively that Dix is advancing toward the city. Well, let
him come.
JULY 2D.--The President is unwell again; to what extent I have not
learned. But the Vice-President is ready, no doubt, to take his place in
the event of a fatal result; and some would rejoice at it. Such is the
mutability of political affairs!
The Attorney-General Watts, being referred to, sends in a written
opinion that foreigners sojourning here, under the protection of the
Confederate States, are liable to military duty, in defense of their
homes, against any government but the one to which they claim to owe
allegiance. This I sent in to the Secretary of War, and I hope he will
act on it; but the Assistant Secretary and Mr. Benjamin were busy
to-day--perhaps combating the Attorney-General's opinion. Will Mr.
Seddon have the nerve to act? It is a trying time, and every man is
needed for defense.
The enemy were drawn up in line of battle this morning below the
fortifications. The Department Guard (my son Custis among them) were
ordered out, and marched away; and so with the second class militia. A
battle is looked for to-morrow; and there has been skirmishing to-day. A
dispatch from Hanover Court House says the enemy is approaching likewise
from the north in large force--and 15 guns. This is his great blunder.
He cannot take Richmond, nor draw back Lee, and the detachment of so
many of his men may endanger Baltimore and Washington, and perhaps
Philadelphia.
JULY 3D.--My son Custis stayed out all night, sleeping on his arms in
the farthest intrenchments. A little beyond, there was a skirmish with
the enemy. We lost eight in killed and wounded. What the enemy suffered
is not known, but he fell back, and ran toward the White House.
This morning, Mr. Ould, agent for exchange of prisoners, reported that
"not a Yankee could be found on the face of the earth." And this induced
a general belief that the enemy had retired, finally, being perhaps
ordered to Washington, where they may be much needed.
The Secretary of War, believing the same thing, intimated to Gen. Elzey
(who for some cause is unable to ride, and therefore remains in the
city) a desire to send several regiments away to some menaced point at a
distance. In response, Elzey writes that none can be spared with safety;
that the enemy had apparently divided his force into two bodies, one for
Hanover, and the other for the Chickahominy, and both _strong_; and he
advised against weakening the forces here. He said he had not yet
completed the manning of the batteries, the delay being in arming the
men--and he hoped "Hill could hold out."
We have 3400 convalescents at Camp Lee, and as many more may be relied
on for the defense of the city; so we shall have not less than 22,000
men for the defense of Richmond. The enemy have perhaps 35,000; but it
would require 75,000 to storm our batteries. Let this be remembered
hereafter, if the 35,000 sent here on a fool's errand might have saved
Washington or Baltimore, or have served to protect Pennsylvania--and
then let the press of the North bag the administration at Washington!
Gen. Lee's course is "right onward," and cannot be affected by events
here.
My friend Jacques (clerk) marched out yesterday with the Department
Guard; but he had the diarrhoea, and was excused from marching as far
as the company. He also got permission to come to town this morning,
having slept pretty well, he said, apart from the company. No doubt he
did good service in the city to-day, having his rifle fixed (the ball, I
believe, had got down before the powder), and procuring a basket of
edibles and a canteen of strong tea, which he promised to share with the
mess. He said he saw Custis this morning, looking well, after sleeping
on the ground the first time in his life, and without a blanket.
We have nothing further from the North or the West.
JULY 4TH.--The Department Guard (my son with them) were marched last
night back to the city, and out to Meadow Bridge, on the Chickahominy,
some sixteen miles! The clerks, I understand, complain of bad meat (two
or three ounces each) and mouldy bread; and some of them curse the
authorities for fraudulent deception, as it was understood they would
never be marched beyond the city defenses. But they had no
alternative--the Secretaries would report the names of all who did not
_volunteer_. Most of the poor fellows have families dependent on their
salaries for bread--being refugees from their comfortable homes, for the
cause of _independence_. If removed, their wives and little children, or
brothers and sisters, must perish. They would be conscribed, and receive
only $12 per month.
My friend Jacques did not return to the company yesterday, after all,
although I saw him get into an ambulance with a basket of food. He got
out again, sending the basket to Mr. K., the young chief of the bureau,
and Judge Campbell allowed him to remain.
Mr. Myers the lawyer is much with Judge Campbell, working for his Jew
clients, who sometimes, I am told, pay $1000 each to be got out of the
army, and as high as $500 for a two months' detail, when battles are to
be fought. Mr. M. thinks he has law for all he does.
A letter from Gen. D. H. Hill shows that it was his intention to bring
on a battle on the 2d inst., but the enemy fled. It was only a feint
below; but we may soon hear news from Hanover County.
Col. Gorgas (ordnance) writes that as his men are marched out to defend
the city, he can't send much ammunition to Gen. Lee!
A letter from Lieut.-Gen. E. Kirby Smith, dated June 15th, shows he was
at Shreveport, La., at that date.
The poor militia were allowed to return to their homes to-day; but an
hour after the tocsin sounded, and they were compelled to assemble and
march again. This is the work of the Governor, and the Secretary of War
says there was no necessity for it, as Confederate troops here now can
defend the city, if attacked.
JULY 5TH.--This morning the wires refused to work, being cut, no doubt,
in Hanover County.
The presence of the enemy in this vicinity, I think, since they refuse
to fight, is designed to prevent us from sending more troops into
Pennsylvania. I trust the President will think of this matter, if he is
well enough; some of his generals here are incapable of thinking at all.
_We have just received intelligence of a great battle at Gettysburg,
Pennsylvania._ I have not heard the day; but the news was brought by
flag of truce boat to City Point last night. The Yankee papers, I am
told, claim a victory, but acknowledge a loss of five or six generals,
among them Meade, commander-in-chief (vice Hooker), mortally wounded.
_But we still held the town_, and "_actions speak louder than words_."
More troops are marching up into Hanover County.
JULY 6TH.--Yesterday evening we received Baltimore and New York papers
with accounts (and loose ones) of the battle of Gettysburg. The Governor
of Pennsylvania says it was "_indecisive_," which means, as we read it,
that Meade's army was defeated.
The forces (Federal) are withdrawing from the neighborhood of this city,
another indication that Lee has gained a victory. Dix has done but
little damage. In retreating from Hanover County, he burnt the bridges
to retard pursuit.
The "War Department Guard" have returned, my son among them, sun-burnt
and covered with dust. They were out five days and four nights, sleeping
on the ground, without tents or blankets, and with little or nothing to
eat, although the Commissary-General had abundance. The President,
however, is better to-day, and able to get out of bed; but his health is
apparently gone, and it may be doubtful whether he will ever be quite
well again.
The Vice-President went down to the flag of truce boat on Saturday, some
say to Fortress Monroe, and others to Washington. It is surmised that he
is authorized by the President to have a definitive understanding with
the Federal authorities, whether or not private property is to be
respected hereafter in the future progress of the war. If not, Gen. Lee
will have orders to desolate the Northern States, where he has the
power. Some, however, think he goes to Washington, to propose terms of
peace, etc.
There is a rumor in the city, generally credited, that another battle
was fought in Pennsylvania on Friday, and that the enemy was
annihilated; these rumors sometimes assume form and substance, and this
one, as if by some sort of magnetism, is credited by many. It is certain
that Mr. Morris, superintendent of the telegraph office, has called upon
his friends for the largest Confederate flag in the city to hang out of
his window. He says nothing more; but he may have sent dispatches to the
President, which he is not at liberty to divulge. There may be later
news from Lee; or Vicksburg may be relieved; or New Orleans taken; or an
armistice; or nothing.
I am glad my son's company were ordered in to-day; for, after a week of
fine fair weather, it is now raining furiously. This would have
prostrated the _tender_ boys with illness.
JULY 7TH.--It appears that the fighting near Gettysburg began on
Wednesday, July 1st, continued until Sunday, the 5th, and perhaps
longer. Up to Friday the Northern papers claim the advantage.
This morning at 1 P.M. another dispatch was received from the same
(unofficial) source, stating that on Sunday the enemy made a stand, and
A. P. Hill's corps fell back, followed by the enemy, when Longstreet's
and Ewell's corps closed in their rear and captured 40,000
prisoners--who are now guarded by Pickett's division. It states that the
prisoners refused to be paroled. This might possibly be true.
This account is credited. Col. Custis Lee, from the President's office,
was in my office at half-past two P.M. to-day, and said nothing had been
received from his father yet--but he did not deny that such accounts
might be substantially true.
The President still keeps his eye on Gen. Beauregard. A paper from the
general to Gen. Cooper, and, of course, referred to the President, in
relation to the means of defense in his department, and a call for more
guns, was sent back to-day, indorsed by the President, that by an
examination of the report of Gen. Huger, he thought some discrepancies
would appear in the statements of Gen. B. Thus, it would seem, from a
repetition of similar imputations, the President has strong doubts of
Gen. B.'s accuracy of statements. He is quick to detect discrepancies.
Gen. D. H. Hill sends in a characteristic letter. He says the rivers are
all swollen, and he can make no movement to-day in pursuit of Dix's army
of the Pamunky--or rather "the monkey army." He says that the Brooke
Pike outer defenses are so defective in design, that a force there
could be driven off in five minutes by the enemy's sharpshooters. He
wants them amended, and a certain grove cut down--and recommends that
engineers be put to work, with orders to leave their "kid gloves
behind." He thinks more is to be apprehended from an attack on
Petersburg than Richmond; and requests that Gen. Wise be ordered to
march thither from Chaffin's Bluff, on the first alarm. He had not heard
of the reported victory of Lee.
JULY 8TH.--I am glad to copy the following order of Gen. Lee:
"HEADQUARTERS ARMY NORTHERN VIRGINIA,
"CHAMBERSBURG, PA., June 27th, 1863.
"GENERAL ORDERS NO. 73.
"The commanding general has observed with marked satisfaction the
conduct of the troops on the march, and confidently anticipates
results commensurate with the high spirit they have manifested. No
troops could have displayed greater fortitude, or better performed
the arduous marches of the past ten days. Their conduct in other
respects has, with few exceptions, been in keeping with their
character as soldiers, and entitles them to approbation and praise.
"There have, however, been instances of forgetfulness on the part
of some, that they have in keeping the yet unsullied reputation of
the army, and that the duties exacted of us by civilization and
Christianity are not less obligatory in the country of the enemy
than in our own.
"The commanding general considers that no greater disgrace could
befall the army, and through it, our whole people, than the
perpetration of the barbarous outrages upon the innocent and
defenseless, and the wanton destruction of private property, that
have marked the course of the enemy in our own country. Such
proceedings not only disgrace the perpetrators and all connected
with them, but are subversive of the discipline and efficiency of
the army and destructive of the ends of our present movements. It
must be remembered that we make war only upon armed men, and that
we cannot take vengeance for the wrongs our people have suffered
without lowering ourselves in the eyes of all whose abhorrence has
been excited by the atrocities of our enemy, and offending against
Him to whom vengeance belongeth, without whose favor and support
our efforts must all prove in vain.
"The commanding general, therefore, earnestly exhorts the troops to
abstain with most scrupulous care from unnecessary or wanton injury
to private property; and he enjoins upon all officers to arrest and
bring to summary punishment all who shall in any way offend against
the orders on this subject.
"R. E. LEE, _General_."
We have no additional news from the battle-field, except the following
dispatch from Winchester:
"Our loss is estimated at 10,000. Between 3000 and 4000 of our wounded
are arriving here to-night. Every preparation is being made to receive
them.
"Gens. Scales and Pender have arrived here wounded, this evening. Gens.
Armistead, Barksdale, Garnett, and Kemper are reported killed. Gens.
Jones, Heth, Anderson, Pettigrew, Jenkins, Hampton, and Hood are
reported wounded.
"The Yankees say they had only two corps in the fight on Wednesday,
which was open field fighting. The whole of the Yankee force was engaged
in the last three days' fighting. The number is estimated at 175,000.
"The hills around Gettysburg are said to be covered with the dead and
wounded of the Yankee Army of the Potomac.
"The fighting of these four days is regarded as the severest of the war,
and the slaughter unprecedented; especially is this so of the enemy.
"The New York and Pennsylvania papers are reported to have declared for
peace."
But the absence of dispatches from Gen. Lee himself is beginning to
create distrust, and doubts of decisive success at Gettysburg. His
couriers may have been captured, or he may be delaying to announce
something else he has in contemplation.
The enemy's flag of truce boat of yesterday refused to let us have a
single paper in exchange for ours. This signifies something--I know not
what. One of our exchanged officers says he heard a Northern officer
say, at Fortress Monroe, that Meade's loss was, altogether, 60,000 men;
but this is not, of course, reliable. Another officer said Lee was
retiring, which is simply impossible, now, for the flood.
But, alas! we have sad tidings from the West. Gen. Johnston telegraphs
from Jackson, Miss., that Vicksburg capitulated on the 4th inst. This is
a terrible blow, and has produced much despondency.
The President, sick as he is, has directed the Secretary of War to send
him copies of all the correspondence with Johnston and Bragg, etc., on
the subject of the relief of Pemberton.
The Secretary of War has caught the prevailing alarm at the silence of
Lee, and posted off to the President for a solution--but got none. If
Lee falls back again, it will be the darkest day for the Confederacy we
have yet seen.
JULY 9TH.--The sad tidings from Vicksburg have been confirmed by
subsequent accounts. The number of men fit for duty on the day of
capitulation was only a little upwards of 7000. Flour was selling at
$400 per barrel! This betrays the extremity to which they had been
reduced.
A dispatch to-day states that Grant, with 100,000 men (supposed), is
marching on Jackson, to give Johnston battle. But Johnston will
retire--he has not men enough to withstand him, until he leads him
farther into the interior. If beaten, Mobile might fall.
We have no particulars yet--no comments of the Southern generals under
Pemberton. But the fall of the place has cast a gloom over everything.
The fall of Vicksburg, alone, does not make this the darkest day of the
war, as it is undoubtedly. The news from Lee's army is appalling. After
the battle of Friday, the accounts from Martinsburg now state, he fell
back toward Hagerstown, followed by the enemy, fighting but little on
the way. Instead of 40,000 we have only 4000 prisoners. How many we have
lost, we know not. The Potomac is, perhaps, too high for him to pass
it--and there are probably 15,000 of the enemy immediately in his rear!
Such are the gloomy accounts from Martinsburg.
Our telegraph operators are great liars, or else they have been made the
dupes of spies and traitors. That the cause has suffered much, and may
be ruined by the toleration of disloyal persons within our lines, who
have kept the enemy informed of all our movements, there can be no
doubt.
The following is Gen. Johnston's dispatch announcing the fall of
Vicksburg:
"JACKSON, July 7th, 1863.
"HON. J. A. SEDDON, SECRETARY OF WAR.
"Vicksburg capitulated on the 4th inst. The garrison was paroled,
and are to be returned to our lines, the officers retaining their
side-arms and personal baggage.
"This intelligence was brought by an officer who left the place on
Sunday, the 5th.
"J. E. JOHNSTON, _General_."
We get nothing from Lee himself. Gen. Cooper, the Secretary of War, and
Gen. Hill went to the President's office about one o'clock. They seemed
in haste, and excited. The President, too, is sick, and ought not to
attend to business. It will kill him, perhaps.
There is serious anxiety now for the fate of Richmond. Will Meade be
here in a few weeks? Perhaps so--but, then, Lee may not have quite
completed his raid beyond the Potomac.
The _Baltimore American_, no doubt in some trepidation for the
quiescence of that city, gets up a most glowing account of "Meade's
victory"--if it should, indeed, in the sequel, prove to have been one.
That Lee fell back, is true; but how many men were lost on each side in
killed, wounded, and prisoners--how many guns were taken, and what may
be the result of the operations in Pennsylvania and Maryland--of which
we have as yet such imperfect accounts--will soon be known.
JULY 10TH.--This is the day of fate--and, without a cloud in the sky,
the red sun, dimly seen through the mist (at noonday), casts a baleful
light on the earth. It has been so for several days.
Early this morning a dispatch was received from Gen. Beauregard that the
enemy attacked the forts in Charleston harbor, and, subsequently, that
they were landing troops on Morris Island. Up to 3 o'clock we have no
tidings of the result. But if Charleston falls, the government will be
blamed for it--since, notwithstanding the remonstrances of Gen. B., the
government, members of Congress, and prominent citizens, some 10,000 of
his troops were away to save Vicksburg.
About one o'clock to-day the President sent over to the Secretary of War
a dispatch from an officer at Martinsburg, stating that Gen. Lee was
still at Hagerstown awaiting his ammunition--(has not Col. Gorgas, Chief
of Ordnance, been sufficiently vigilant?)--which, however, had arrived
at the Potomac. That all the prisoners (number not stated), except those
paroled, were at the river. That _nothing was known of the enemy_--but
that cavalry fighting occurred every day. He concluded by saying he did
not know whether Lee would advance _or recross the river_. If he does
the latter, in my opinion there will be a great revulsion of feeling in
the Confederate States and in the United States.
Another dispatch, from Gen. J. E. Johnston, dated yesterday, at Jackson,
Miss., stated that Grant's army was then within _four_ miles of him,
with numbers double his own. But that he would hold the city as long as
possible, for its fall would be the loss of the State. I learn a
subsequent dispatch announced that fighting had begun. I believe
Johnston is intrenched.
To-day Mr. Secretary Seddon requested Attorney-General Watts, if he
could do so consistent with duty, to order a _nolle prosequi_ in the
District Court of Alabama in the case of Ford, Hurd & Co. for trading
with the enemy. Gen. Pemberton had made a contract with them, allowing
them to ship cotton to New Orleans, and to bring back certain supplies
for the army. But Mr. Attorney-General Watts replied that it was not
consistent with his duty to comply, and therefore he demurred to it, as
the act they were charged with was in violation of the act of Congress
of April 19th, 1862.
We lost twelve general officers in the fall of Vicksburg--one
lieutenant-general, four major-generals, and seven brigadiers.
Dispatches from Jackson, Miss., say the battle began yesterday, but up
to the time of the latest accounts it had not become general. Johnston
had destroyed the wells and cisterns, and as there are no running
streams in the vicinity, no doubt Grant's army will suffer for water, if
the defense be protracted.
From Charleston we learn that we lost in yesterday's combat some 300
men, killed and wounded--the enemy quite as many. This morning the
Yankees assaulted the battery on Morris Island, and were repulsed in two
minutes, with a loss of 95 killed and 130 wounded, besides prisoners.
Our loss was five, killed and wounded. Nothing further was heard up to 7
o'clock P.M.
From Lee we have no news whatever.
A letter from Governor Vance, of North Carolina, complains of an insult
offered by Col. Thorburn (of Virginia), and asking that he be removed
from the State, and if retained in service, not to be permitted to
command North Carolinians. The Governor, by permission of Gen. Whiting,
proceeded down the river to a steamer which had just got in (and was
aground) from Europe, laden with supplies for the State; but when
attempting to return was stopped by Col. T., who said it was against the
rules for any one to pass from the steamer to the city until the
expiration of the time prescribed for quarantine. The Governor informed
him of his special permission from Gen. Whiting and the Board of
Navigation--and yet the colonel said he should not pass for fifteen
days, "if he _was_ Governor Vance or Governor Jesus Christ." The
President indorsed on this letter, as one requiring the Secretary's
attention, "if the case be as stated."
Again the blockade-runners are at their dirty work, and Judge Campbell
is "allowing" them. To-day Col. J. Gorgas, who is daily in receipt of
immense amounts of ordnance stores from Europe by government steamers,
recommends that passports be given N. H. Rogers and L. S. White to
proceed _North_ for supplies. This is a small business. It is no time to
apply for passports, and no time to grant them.
We now know all about the mission of Vice-President Stephens under flag
of truce. It was ill-timed for success. At Washington news had been
received of the defeat of Gen. Lee--which may yet prove not to have been
"all a defeat."
JULY 12TH.--There is nothing additional this morning from Charleston,
Mississippi, or Maryland. Telegraphic communication is still open to
Jackson, where all was quiet again at the last accounts; but battle,
then, must occur immediately. From Charleston we learn that Beauregard
had repulsed every assault of the enemy. It is rumored that Lee's
account of the battle of Gettysburg will be published to-morrow, showing
that it was the "most brilliant and successful battle of the war." I
hope he may say so--for then it will be so.
Our papers are publishing Milroy's papers captured at Winchester.
JULY 13TH.--The _Enquirer_ says the President has got a letter from
Gen. Lee (why not give it to the people?) stating that his operations in
Pennsylvania and Maryland have been successful and satisfactory, and
that we have now some 15,000 to 18,000 prisoners, besides the 4000 or
5000 paroled. Nonsense!
Lee and Meade have been facing each other two or three days, drawn up in
battle array, and a decisive battle may have occurred ere this. The
wires have been cut between Martinsburg and Hagerstown.
Not another word have we from either Charleston or Jackson; but we learn
that monitors, gun-boats, and transports are coming up the James River.
Altogether, this is another dark day in our history. It has been
officially ascertained that Pemberton surrendered, with Vicksburg,
22,000 men! He has lost, during the year, not less than 40,000! And
Lovell (another Northern general) lost Fort Jackson and New Orleans.
When _will_ the government put "none but Southerners on guard?"
Letters to-day from the Governors of South Carolina, Alabama, and North
Carolina show that all are offended at the Confederate government. Judge
Campbell's judicial profundity (and he is the department's
correspondent) is unfortunate at this crisis, when, not great
principles, but quick and successful fighting, alone can serve.
It appears that President Lincoln has made a speech in Washington in
exultation over the fall of Vicksburg, and the defeat of an army
contending against the principle that all men were created equal. He
means the negro--we mean that white men were created equal--that we are
equal to Northern white people, and have a right, which we do not deny
to them, of living under a government of our own choice.
JULY 14TH.--To-day we have tidings of the fall of Port Hudson, on the
Mississippi River, our last stronghold there. I suppose some 10,000 or
12,000 of our men had to surrender, unconditionally. Thus the army of
Gen. Pemberton, first and last, some 50,000 strong, has been completely
destroyed. There is sadness and gloom throughout the land!
The enemy are established on Morris Island, and the fate of Charleston
is in doubt.
We have nothing authentic from Gen. Lee; but long trains of the slightly
wounded arrived yesterday and to-day.
It has been raining, almost every day, for nearly two weeks.
The President is quite amiable now. The newspaper editors can find easy
access, and he welcomes them with smiles.
A letter was received to-day from a Major Jones, saying he was
authorized to state that the Messrs. ------, engine-makers in
Philadelphia, were willing to remove their machinery to the South, being
Southern men. The President indorsed that authority might be given for
them to come, etc.
Gen. Beauregard writes for a certain person here skilled in the
management of torpedoes--but Secretary Mallory says the enemy's
gun-boats are in the James River, and he cannot be sent away. I hope
both cities may not fall!
A heavy thunder-storm, accompanied with a deluging rain, prevails this
afternoon at 5-1/2 o'clock P.M.
JULY 15TH.--There was a rumor of another battle beyond the Potomac, this
morning, but it has not been confirmed.
From Charleston we have no news; but from Jackson there has been
considerable fighting, without a general engagement.
The _Enquirer_ and _Sentinel_ to-day squint at a military dictatorship;
but President Davis would hardly attempt such a feat at such a time.
Gen. Samuel Jones, Western Virginia, has delayed 2000 men ordered to
Lee, assigning as an excuse the demonstrations of the enemy in the
Kanawha Valley. "Off with his head--so much for Buckingham!"
There is some gloom in the community; but the spirits of the people will
rebound.
A large crowd of Irish, Dutch, and Jews are daily seen at Gen. Winder's
door, asking permission to go North on the flag of truce boat. They fear
being forced into the army; they will be compelled to aid in the defense
of the city, or be imprisoned. They intend to leave their families
behind, to save the property they have accumulated under the protection
of the government.
Files of papers from Europe show that Mr. Roebuck and other members of
Parliament, as well as the papers, are again agitating the question of
recognition. We shall soon ascertain the real intentions of France and
England. If they truly desire our success, and apprehend danger from the
United States in the event of a reconstruction of the Union, they will
manifest their purposes when the news of our recent calamities shall be
transported across the ocean. And if such a thing as reconstruction were
possible, and were accomplished (in such a manner and on such terms as
would not appear degrading to the Southern people), then, indeed, well
might both France and England tremble. The United States would have
_millions_ of soldiers, and the Southern people would not owe either of
them a debt of gratitude.
JULY 16TH.--This is another blue day in the calendar. Nothing from Lee,
or Johnston, or Bragg; and no news is generally bad news. But from
Charleston we learn that the enemy are established on Morris Island,
having taken a dozen of our guns and howitzers in the sand hills at the
lower end; and that the monitors had passed the bar, and doubtless an
engagement by land and by water is imminent, if indeed it has not
already taken place. Many regard Charleston as lost. I do not.
Again the _Enquirer_, edited by Mitchel, the Irishman, is urging the
President to seize arbitrary power; but the _Examiner_ combats the
project defiantly.
Mr. Secretary Seddon, who usually wears a sallow and cadaverous look,
which, coupled with his emaciation, makes him resemble an exhumed corpse
after a month's interment, looks to-day like a galvanized corpse which
had been buried two months. The circles round his eyes are absolutely
black! And yet he was pacing briskly backward and forward between the
President's office and the War Department. He seems much affected by
disasters.
The United States agent of exchange has sent a notice to our agent that
the negroes we capture from them in battle must be exchanged as other
soldiers are, according to the cartel, which said nothing about color;
and if the act of Congress in relation to such soldiers be executed, the
United States would retaliate to the utmost extremity.
Captains H. W. Sawyer and John Flinn, having been designated by lot for
execution in retaliation for two of our captains executed by Gen.
Burnside for recruiting in Kentucky, write somewhat lugubriously, in bad
grammar and execrable chirography, that, as they never served under
Burnside, they should not be made to suffer for his deed. They say we
have two of Burnside's captains at Atlanta (and they give their names)
who would be the proper victims.
I saw a paper to-day, sent to the department, with a list of the United
States officers at Memphis who are said to have taken bribes; among them
is Col. H----r, of Illinois, Provost Marshal General (Grant's staff);
Col. A----, Illinois, ex-Provost Marshal; Capt. W----, Illinois,
Assistant Provost Marshal; Capt. C---- (Gen. Herbert's staff), and "Dan
Ross," citizen of Illinois, _procurer_.
On the 9th instant Gen. D. H. Hill (now lieutenant-general, and assigned
to Mississippi) asks if troops are to be sent to cover Lee's _retreat_;
and fears, if the enemy establish themselves at Winchester, they will
starve Lee to death. Speaking of the raid of the enemy to the North
Carolina Railroad, he said they would do the State infinite service by
dashing into Raleigh and capturing all the members of the legislature.
He also hits at the local newspapers here. Their mention of his name,
and the names of other officers in the campaign round Richmond, informed
the enemy that we had no troops at Goldsborough and Weldon, and hence
the raid. And, after all, he says the enemy were not more numerous than
our forces in the recent dash at Richmond. He says it was no feint, but
a faint.
To-day an order was issued for the local troops to deliver up their
ammunition. What does that mean?
And to-day the President calls for the second class of conscripts, all
between eighteen and forty-five years of age. _So our reserves must take
the field!_
JULY 17TH.--At last we have the authentic announcement that Gen. Lee has
recrossed the Potomac! Thus the armies of the Confederate States are
recoiling at all points, and a settled gloom is apparent on many weak
faces. The fall of Charleston is anticipated. Subjugation is not
apprehended by the government; for, if driven to an interior line of
defense, the war may be prolonged indefinitely, or at least until the
United States becomes embroiled with some European power.
Meantime we are in a half starving condition. I have lost twenty pounds,
and my wife and children are emaciated to some extent. Still, I hear no
murmuring.
To-day, for the second time, ten dollars in Confederate notes are given
for one in gold; and no doubt, under our recent disasters, the
depreciation will increase. Had it not been for the stupidity of our
Dutch Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Memminger, there would have been
no financial difficulties. If he had recommended (as he was urged to do)
the purchase by the government of all the cotton, it could have been
bought at 7 cents per pound; and the _profits_ alone would have defrayed
the greater portion of the expenses of the war, besides affording
immense _diplomatic_ facilities and advantages. But red-tape etiquette,
never violated by the government, may prove our financial ruin beyond
redemption. It costs this government five times as much to support an
army as it does the United States; and the call for conscripts is a
farce, since the speculators (and who is not one now?) will buy
exemptions from the party who, strangely, have the authority to grant
them.
The last accounts from Jackson state that Burnside is reinforcing Grant,
and that heavy skirmishing is going on daily. But all suppose that
Johnston must retreat. And Bragg is in no condition to face Rosecrans.
Whether Lee will come hither or not, no one knows; but some tremble for
the fate of Richmond. Lee possibly may cross the Potomac again, however,
if Meade detaches a heavy force to capture Richmond.
What our fate would be if we fall into the hands of the invader, may be
surmised from the sufferings of the people in New Orleans.
JULY 18TH.--Lee has got over the Potomac with a loss, in crossing, of
1500; and Johnston has abandoned Jackson, Miss.
But we have _awful_ good news from New York: an INSURRECTION, the loss
of many lives, extensive pillage and burning, with a suspension of the
conscription!
Gen. Morgan is in the enemy's country.
JULY 19TH.--We have no news this morning. But a rumor prevails, which
cannot be traced to any authentic source, that Texas has put herself
under the protection of France. It is significant, because public
sentiment seems to acquiesce in such a measure; and I have not met with
any who do not express a wish that it may be so. Texas, Louisiana, and
Arkansas are now isolated, and no protection or aid can be given them by
the government here; and it is natural, after the fall of New Orleans
and Vicksburg, for the people to hope that the invaders may be deprived
of their prey just at the moment when they anticipated a realization of
its enjoyment.
Hon. Wm. Porcher Miles writes that, after consultation, the officers
have decided that it would be impracticable to hold Morris Island, even
if the enemy were driven from it at the point of the bayonet. Therefore
they call loudly for Brooke guns of long range, and guns of large
calibre for Sumter, so that the fort may prevent the enemy from erecting
batteries in breaching distance. They say, in their appeal, that since
the fall of Vicksburg there is no other place (but one) to send them.
They are now idle in Richmond. I understand the Secretary of War, etc.
are in consultation on the subject, and I hope the President will, at
last, yield to Gen. Beauregard's demands.
Gen. Maury also writes for guns and ordnance stores for the defense of
Mobile, which may be attacked next. He will get them.
If the insurrection in New York lives, and resistance to conscription
should be general in the North, our people will take fresh hope, and
make renewed efforts to beat back the mighty armies of the
foe--suffering, and more than decimated, as we are.
But if not--if Charleston and Richmond and Mobile should fall, a peace
(submission) party will spring up. Nevertheless, the _fighting_
population would still resist, retiring into the interior and darting
out occasionally, from positions of concentration, at the exposed camps
of the enemy.
JULY 20TH.--Nothing from Lee or from Johnston, except that the latter
has abandoned Jackson. From Bragg's army, I learn that a certain number
of regiments were moving from Chattanooga toward Knoxville--and I
suspect their destination is Lee's army.
But we have a dispatch from Beauregard, stating that he has again
repulsed an attack of the enemy on the battery on Morris Island with
heavy loss--perhaps 1500--while his is trifling.
A thousand of the enemy's forces were in Wytheville yesterday, and were
severely handled by 130 of the home guards. They did but little injury
to the railroad, and burned a few buildings.
An indignant letter has been received from the Hon. W. Porcher Miles,
who had applied for a sub-lieutenancy for Charles Porcher, who had
served with merit in the 1st South Carolina Artillery, and was his
relative. It seems that the President directed the Secretary to state
that the appointment could not be given him because he was not 21 years
of age. To this Mr. M. replies that several minors in the same regiment
have been appointed. I think not.
Governor Brown writes a long letter, protesting against the decision of
the Confederate States Government, that the President shall appoint the
colonel for the 51st Georgia Regiment, which the Governor says is
contrary to the Confederate States Constitution. He will resist it.
A Mrs. Allen, a lady of wealth here, has been arrested for giving
information to the enemy. Her letters were intercepted. She is confined
at the asylum _St. Francis de Sales_. The surgeon who attends there
reports to-day that her mental excitement will probably drive her to
madness. Her great fear seems to be that she will be soon sent to a
common prison. There is much indignation that she should be assigned to
such comfortable quarters--and I believe the Bishop (McGill) protests
against having criminals imprisoned in his religious edifices. It is
said she has long been sending treasonable letters to Baltimore--but the
authorities do not have the names of her letter-carriers published. No
doubt they had passports.
A letter from Lee's army says we lost 10,000 in the recent battle,
killed, wounded, and prisoners. We took 11,000 prisoners and 11 guns.
Thank Heaven! we have fine weather after nearly a month's rain. It may
be that we shall have better fortune in the field now.
Some of the bankers had an interview with the government to-day. Unless
we can achieve some brilliant success, they cannot longer keep our
government notes from depreciating, down to five cents on the dollar.
They are selling for only ten cents now, in gold. In vain will be the
sale of a million of government gold in the effort to keep it up.
Gen. Morgan, like a comet, has shot out of the beaten track of the army,
and after dashing deeply into Indiana, the last heard of him he was in
Ohio, _near Cincinnati_. He was playing havoc with steam-boats, and
capturing fine horses. He has some 3000 men we cannot afford to
lose--but I fear they will be lost.
JULY 21ST.--We have intelligence to-day, derived from a New York paper
of the 18th inst., that the "insurrection" in New York had subsided,
under the menacing attitude of the military authority, and that Lincoln
had ordered the conscription law to be enforced. This gives promise of a
long war.
Mr. Mallory sent a note to the Secretary of War to-day (which of course
the Secretary did not see, and will never hear of) by a young man named
Juan Boyle, asking permission for B. to pass into Maryland as an agent
of the Navy Department. Judge Campbell indorsed on the back of it (to
Brig.-Gen. Winder) that permission was "allowed" by "order." But what is
this "agent" to procure in the United States which could not be had by
our steamers plying regularly between Wilmington and Europe?
JULY 22D.--Col. Northrop, Commissary-General, sends in a paper to-day
saying that only a quarter of a pound of meat per day can be given the
soldiers, except when marching, and then only half a pound. He says no
more can be derived from the trans-Mississippi country, nor from the
State of Mississippi, or Tennessee, and parts of Georgia and Alabama;
and if more than the amount he receives be given the soldiers, the
negroes will have to go without any. He adds, however, that the peasants
of Europe rarely have any meat, and in Hindostan, never.
Col. Bradley T. Johnson, who commanded a brigade at Gettysburg, writes
that on the first day we carried everything before us, capturing 8000
prisoners and losing but few men; the error was in not following up the
attack with all our forces immediately, and in not having sufficient
ammunition on the field.
The newspapers to-day contain pretty accurate accounts of the battle.
JULY 23D.--We have the following dispatch from Gen. Beauregard, which is
really refreshing in this season of disasters:
"CHARLESTON, July 22d, 1863.
"The enemy recommenced shelling again yesterday, with but few
casualties on our part. We had, in the battle of the 18th inst.,
about 150 killed and wounded. The enemy's loss, including
prisoners, was about 2000. Nearly 800 were buried under a flag of
truce.
"Col. Putnam, acting brigadier-general, and Col. Shaw, commanding
the negro regiment, were killed.
"(Signed) G. T. BEAUREGARD, _General_."
It is said the _raiders_ that dashed into Wytheville have been taken;
but not so with the raiders that have been playing havoc with the
railroad in North Carolina.
Another letter from J. M. Botts, Culpepper County, complains of the
pasturing of army horses in his fields before the Gettysburg campaign,
and asks if his fields are to be again subject to the use of the
commander of the army, _now returning to his vicinity_. If _he_ knows
that Gen. Lee is fallen back thither, it is more than any one here seems
to know. We shall see how accurate Mr. B. is in his conjecture.
A letter from Mr. Goodman, president of Mobile and Charleston Railroad,
says military orders have been issued to destroy, by fire, railroad
equipments to the value of $5,000,000; and one-third of this amount of
destruction would defeat the purpose of the enemy for a long time. The
President orders efforts to be made to bring away the equipments by
sending them down the road.
Col. Preston, commandant of conscripts for South Carolina, has been
appointed Chief of the Bureau of Conscription; he has accepted the
appointment, and will be here August 1st. The law will now be honestly
executed--if he be not too indolent, sick, etc.
Archbishop Hughes has made a speech in New York to keep down the Irish.
JULY 24TH.--Nothing from Lee, or Johnston, or Beauregard, or Bragg--but
ill luck is fated for them all. Our ladies, at least, would not despair.
But a day may change the aspect; a brilliant success would have a
marvelous effect upon a people who have so long suffered and bled for
freedom.
They are getting on more comfortably, I learn, on the Eastern Shore of
Virginia. Only about 25 of the enemy's troops are said to be there,
merely to guard the wires. In the Revolutionary war, and in the war of
1812, that peninsula escaped the horrors of war, being deemed then, as
now, too insignificant to attract the cupidity of the invaders.
The Secretary of the Treasury sent an agent a few weeks ago with some
$12,000,000 for disbursement in the trans-Mississippi country, but he
has returned to this city, being unable to get through. He will now go
to Havana, and thence to Texas; and hereafter money (if money it can be
called) will be manufactured at Houston, where a paper treasury will be
established.
Gen. Jos. E. Johnston has recently drawn for $20,000 in gold.
A letter from the Commissary-General to Gen. Lee states that we have but
1,800,000 pounds of bacon at Atlanta, and 500,000 pounds in this city,
which is less than 30 days' rations for Bragg's and Lee's armies. He
says all attempts to get bacon from Europe have failed, and he fears
they will fail, and hence, if the ration be not reduced to 1/4 pound we
shall soon have no meat on hand. Gen. Lee says he cannot be responsible
if the soldiers fail for want of food.
JULY 25TH.--Gen. Beauregard telegraphs that preparations should be made
to withstand a bombardment at Savannah, and authority is asked, at the
instance of Gov. Brown, to impress a sufficient number of slaves for the
purpose.
Gen. Jos. B. Johnston telegraphs the President that Grant has fallen
back to Vicksburg, and, from information in his possession, will not
stay there a day, _but will proceed up the river_. Gen. Johnston asks if
this eccentric movement does not indicate a purpose to concentrate the
enemy's forces for the reduction of Richmond.
Grant's men, no doubt, objected to longer service at this season in the
Southwest; perhaps Lincoln thinks Grant is the only general who can take
Richmond, or it may be necessary for the presence of the army in the
North to enforce the draft, to overawe conspirators against the
administration, etc. We shall soon know more about it.
Misfortunes come in clusters. We have a report to-day that Gen. Morgan's
command has been mostly captured in Ohio. The recent rains made the
river unfordable.
It appears that Gen. Pemberton had but 15 days' rations to last 48 days,
that the people offered him a year's supply for nothing if he would have
it, and this he would not take, red tape requiring it to be delivered
and paid for, so it fell into the hands of the enemy. He had a six
months' supply of ammunition when he surrendered, and often during the
siege would not let his men reply to the enemy's guns.
Advertisers in the papers offer $4000 for substitutes. One offers a farm
in Hanover County, on the Central Railroad, of 230 acres, for a
substitute. There is something significant in this. It was so in France
when Napoleon had greatly exhausted the male population.
JULY 26TH.--Letters were received to-day from Gens. Beauregard, Mercer,
Whitney, and S. Jones.
It appears that Beauregard has some 6000 men of all arms, and that the
enemy's force is estimated to be, or to have been (before losing some
3000), about 10,000. It is true the enemy has the benefit of his
floating batteries, but we have our stationary ones. I think Charleston
safe.
Gen. Mercer _squeaks_ for the fate of Savannah, unless the government
impresses slaves to work on the fortifications. All our generals
_squeak_ when an attack is apprehended, for the purpose of alarming the
government, and procuring more men and material, so as to make success
doubly sure.
And Gen. Whiting is squeaking loudly for the impressment of a thousand
slaves, to complete his preparations for defense; and if he does not get
them, he thinks the fall of Wilmington a pretty sure thing.
And Gen. Jones squeaks from the West, asking that the 3000 infantry he
was at last compelled to send to Gen. Lee, near Winchester, be returned
to him to oppose the enemy's raids. But what were they sent to Lee for,
unless he meant to give battle? Such may be his intention, and a victory
now is demanded of him to place him _rectus in curio_.
Beauregard says Fort Wagner, which has made such a successful defense on
Morris Island, was located by Gen. Pemberton, and this is evidence of
some military skill. But all the waters of Lethe will not obliterate the
conviction of the people that he gave his army in the West to the enemy.
If he had not been Northern born, they would have deemed him merely
incompetent. Hence the impolicy of the government elevating Northern
over Southern generals. All generals are judged by the degree of success
they achieve, for success alone is considered the proof of merit, and
one disaster may obliterate the memory of a dozen victories. Even Lee's
great name is dimmed somewhat in the estimation of fools. He must beat
Meade before Grant comes up, or suffer in reputation.
Gov. Bonham has demanded the free negroes taken on Morris Island, to be
punished (death) according to the State law.
JULY 27TH.--Nothing but disasters to chronicle now. Natchez and Yazoo
City, all gone the way of Vicksburg, involving a heavy loss of boats,
guns, and ordnance stores; besides, the enemy have got some twenty
locomotives in Mississippi.
Lee has retreated as far as Culpepper Court House.
The President publishes another proclamation, fixing a day for the
people to unite in prayer.
The weather is bad. With the exception of one or two bright days, it has
been raining nearly a month. Superadded to the calamities crowding upon
us, we have a rumor to-day that Gen. Lee has tendered his resignation.
This is false. But it is said he is opposed to the retaliatory
executions ordered by the President, which, if persisted in, must
involve the life of his son, now in the hands of the enemy. Our officers
executed by Burnside were certainly recruiting in Kentucky within the
lines of the enemy, and Gen. Lee may differ with the President in the
equity of executing officers taken by us in battle in retaliation.
JULY 28TH.--The rumor that Gen. Lee had resigned was simply a
fabrication. His headquarters, a few days ago, were at Culpepper C. H.,
and may be soon this side of the Rappahannock. A battle and a victory
may take place there.
Col. J. Gorgas, I presume, is no friend of Pemberton; it is not often
that Northern men in our service are exempt from jealousies and
envyings. He sends to the Secretary of War to-day a remarkable statement
of Eugene Hill, an ordnance messenger, for whom he vouches, in relation
to the siege and surrender of Vicksburg. It appears that Hill had been
sent here by Lieut.-Gen. Holmes for ammunition, and on his way back to
the trans-Mississippi country, was caught at Vicksburg, where he was
detained until after the capitulation. He declares that the enemy's
mines did our works no more injury than our mines did theirs; that when
the surrender took place, there were an abundance of caps, and of all
kinds of ordnance stores; that there were 90,000 pounds of bacon or salt
meat unconsumed, besides a number of cows, and 400 mules, grazing within
the fortifications; and that but few of the men even thought of such a
contingency as a surrender, and did not know it had taken place until
the next day (5th of July), when they were ordered to march out and lay
down their arms. He adds that Gen. Pemberton kept himself very close,
and was rarely seen by the troops, and was never known to go out to the
works until he went out to surrender.
Major-Gen. D. Maury writes from Mobile, to the President, that he
apprehends an attack from Banks, and asks instructions relative to the
removal of 15,000 non-combatants from the city. He says Forts Gaines and
Morgan are provisioned for six months, and that the land fortifications
are numerous and formidable. He asks for 20,000 men to garrison them.
The President instructs the Secretary, that when the purpose of the
enemy is positively known, it will be time enough to remove the women,
children, etc.; but that the defenses should be completed, and
everything in readiness. But where the 20,000 men are to come from is
not stated--perhaps from Johnston.
JULY 29TH.--Still raining! The great fear is that the crops will be
ruined, and famine, which we have long been verging upon, will be
complete. Is Providence frowning upon us for our sins, or upon our
cause?
Another battle between Lee and Meade is looked for on the Upper
Rappahannock.
Gov. Harris, in response to the President's call for 6000 men, says
Western and Middle Tennessee are in the hands of the enemy, and that
about half the people in East Tennessee sympathize with the North!
Some two or three hundred of Morgan's men have reached Lynchburg, and
they believe Morgan himself will get off, with many more of his men.
The New York _Herald's_ correspondent, writing from Washington on the
24th inst., says the United States ministers in England and France have
informed the government of the intention of those powers to intervene
immediately in our behalf; and that they will send iron-clad fleets to
this country without delay. Whereupon the _Herald_ says Mr. Seward is in
favor of making peace with us, and reconstructing the Union--pardoning
us--but keeping the slaves captured, etc. It is a cock-and-bull story,
perhaps, without foundation.
JULY 30TH.--Raining still! Lee's and Meade's armies are manoeuvring
and facing each other still; but probably there will be no battle until
the weather becomes fair, and the gushing waters in the vales of
Culpepper subside.
From Charleston we learn that a furious bombardment is going on, the
enemy not having yet abandoned the purpose of reducing the forts and
capturing the city. Mr. Miles calls loudly for reinforcements and heavy
cannon, and says the enemy was reinforced a few days since.
An indignant letter was received from Gov. Vance to-day, in response to
the refusal of the government and Gen. Lee to permit him to send with
the army a newspaper correspondent to see that justice was done the
North Carolina troops. He withdraws the application, and appeals to
history for the justice which (he says) will never be done North
Carolina troops in Virginia by their associates. He asserts also that
Gen. Lee refused furloughs to the wounded North Carolinians at the
battle of Chancellorville (one-half the dead and wounded being from
North Carolina), for fear they would not return to their colors when fit
for duty!
Hon. Wm. L. Yancey is dead--of disease of the kidney. The _Examiner_,
to-day, in praising him, made a bitter assault on the President, saying
he was unfortunately and hastily _inflicted_ on the Confederacy at
Montgomery, and when fixed in position, banished from his presence the
heart and brain of the South--denying all participation in the affairs
of government to the great men who were the authors of secession, etc.
JULY 31ST.--Hon. E. S. Dargan, member of Congress, writes from Mobile
that Mississippi is nearly subdued, and Alabama is almost exhausted. He
says our recent disasters, and Lee's failure in Pennsylvania, have
nearly ruined us, and the destruction must be complete unless France and
England can be induced to interfere in our behalf. He never believed
they would intervene unless we agreed to abolish slavery; and he would
embrace even that alternative to obtain their aid. He says the people
are fast losing all hope of achieving their independence; and a slight
change of policy on the part of Lincoln (pretermitting confiscation, I
suppose) would put an end to the revolution and the Confederate States
Government. Mr. D. has an unhappy disposition.
Mr. L. Q. Washington recommends Gen. Winder to permit Mr. Wm. Matthews,
just from California, to leave the country. Gen. W. sends the letter to
the Assistant Secretary of War, Judge Campbell, who "allows" it; and the
passport is given, without the knowledge of the President or the
Secretary of War.
The news from Mexico (by the Northern papers) is refreshing to our
people. The "notables" of the new government, under the auspices of the
French General, Forey, have proclaimed the States an Empire, and offered
the throne to Maximilian of Austria; and if he will not accept, they
"implore" the Emperor of France to designate the one who shall be their
Emperor. Our people, very many of them, just at this time, would not
object to being included in the same Empire.
The President is still scrutinizing Beauregard. The paper read from the
general a few days since giving a statement of his forces, and the
number of the enemy, being sent to the President by the Secretary of
War, was returned to-day with the indorsement, that he hoped "a clearer
comprehension of the cause," in the promised further report of the
general, would be given "why the enemy approached Morris Island before
being observed." So, omitting all notice of the defense (so far) of the
batteries, etc., the attention of the President seems fixed on what the
general omitted to do; or what he might, could, or should have done.
END OF VOL. I.
A REBEL WAR CLERK'S DIARY.
VOL. II.