N 
ally opposite, and in the walls of which a formidable 
breach was already begun. Col. Olmstead surren¬ 
dered because he believed that the fire of another 
hour would have blown up the fort Not one of the 
garrison was killed and only three were wounded. 
Inside the fort its appearance was sufficiently 
ruinous. Eleven guns were disabled, the parapet 
and traverse on all sides shattered, the area torn up 
by shot and shell, and covered vriib bricks arid frag¬ 
ments, the blindages over the case mates of the gorge 
curtain splintered and shivered, and the brickwork 
everywhere was rent and crushed by shot The 
wall of the magazine was badly crushed, the case¬ 
mates in the rear in ruins, and so much rubbish 
under the blindages that it was difficult to pass 
beneath them. On the angle where the breach was 
made, the wreck was nearly complete. Another 
hour would probably have opened the wall from 
parapet to base. The ditch. 20 feet in width, was 
nearly filled with the fragments of the wall, and the 
storming party would have found a bridge already 
made for their advance. In the casemates the guns 
were buried out of sight, and the arches looked just 
ready to tumble. The shot which damaged the 
walls of the magazine opposite, entered through the 
casemates of this angle, not over the parapet. 
Onr Western Generals. 
The Rural has heretofore contained brie! 
sketches of several commanders who have won 
brilliant records upon the battle-fields of the West, 
and we now give biographies of others, whose 
labors in defence of the Union will never be for¬ 
gotten by a gralelu! people: 
Henry Wacer IIalleck, one of the four Major- 
Generals of the United States army, was born in 
Oneida county, New York, and entered the military 
academy as a West Point cadet in 1835. He stood 
third in the class, and was breveted Second Lieu¬ 
tenant of Engineers, July 1,1839. lie was Acting 
Assistant Professor of Engineering at the Military 
Academy from J uly, 1839, to June, 1840. In 1S41, was 
the author of a military work on “ bitumen and its 
uses.” etc. Appointed First Lieutenant in January, 
1845. In 1846 he wrote a work entitled the "‘Ele¬ 
ments of Military Art and Science.” In 1847, was 
breveted Captain, for gallant conduct in affairs with 
the enemy on the 19th and 20th days of November, 
1847, and for meritorious service in California. Was 
Secretary of State of the province of California in 
the military governments of Gen’s Kearney, Mason, 
and Riley, from 1847 to the end of 1849. He was 
Chief of the Staff to Commodore Shubriek, in naval 
and military operations on the Pacific coast, in 1847 
and 1848; and was a member of the convention in 
1849 to form, and of the committee to draft, the 
constitution of the State ot California. In July, 
1853, ho was appointed Captain of engineers, and 
resigned on August 1. 1854. Shortly after the out¬ 
break of the present rebellion, the Government 
called upon IIalleck, he responded, was made a 
Major-General August 19, 1861, and superceded 
Gen. Fremont in the command of the Department 
of Missouri.” Subsequently his department was 
enlarged, embracing portions of Kentucky, Ten¬ 
nessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, etc., under 
the title of the ‘‘Department of the Mississippi.” 
The masterly manner In which Gen. IIalleck dealt 
with the rebellion in Missouri is so fresh in the 
minds of our readers, we need not repeat his maneu¬ 
vers and successes. He has just taken the field in 
person, at Pittsburg Lauding, Tennessee. 
Gen. Buell is a native of Ohio, a graduate of 
West Point, and now in the meridian of life. He 
has been in the service twenty years; was in the 
Mexican war. When the present war broke out, he 
was in the regular service in California. Congress 
made him a Brigadier-General, and gave him com¬ 
mand ot a division of the Potomac. When Gen. 
Anderson resigned his command, Gen. BueJl was 
appointed to take his place in the department of 
Ohio. It was under his supervision the army 
that marched from Bowling Green to Nashville 
was raised and disciplined. Ou the recon¬ 
struction of the Departments, he was created 
a Major-General. He is a man of great physical 
strength and powers of endurance; has light hair, 
blue eyes, and wears a full beard. He is 42 years 
of age. 
Gen. W. 11. L. Wallace, ‘who was mortally 
wounded at the battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a 
native of Illinois, and a graduate of West Point 
Prior to the present war he was Captain of the 
Washington Territory Mounted Volunteers, in 
which position he took part in the Indian War. At 
the commencement of the rebellion be raised a reg¬ 
iment of Volunteers, and was appointed its Colonel. 
With this regiment of noble and daring fellows, be 
was at Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, where he 
greatly distinguished himself. 
Gen. John A. McClernand is at present a rep¬ 
resentative* from the Springfield district, in the State 
of Illinois—the residence of President Lincoln. He 
has represented the same district for a number of 
years in the Congress of the United States, having 
served with much distinction during the Adminis¬ 
tration of President Polk, when he was regarded as 
one of the leading men in the nouse. He is about 
fifty years of age, nearly six feet high, straight in 
Stature and slim in figure. He was among the 
warmest friends of Judge Douglas, and, although 
strongly sympathizing with the Southern people 
until the present war broke out, when Sumter fell 
he asserted his determination to stand by the Ad¬ 
ministration of Mr. Lincoln at all hazards, in 
doing which he gave great offence to such of 
his old confreres its Burnet of Kentucky, Lamar 
of Mississippi, and Pryor of Virginia These 
gentlemen were on excellent terms with each 
other, and they could not endure the idea of sepa¬ 
rating from so profound a Democrat as McCler- 
nand. He is a fine speaker, of nervous tempera¬ 
ment, and a high sense of honor. When the war 
broke out, Governor Yates, of Illinois, sent him 
to Washington, on a special mission, for the purpose 
of looking to the defence of the Mississippi. He 
discharged this duty with so much accuracy, zeal, 
and promptitude, that the President appointed him 
a Brigadier-General at the earliest moment It will 
be recollected that he exchanged his prisoners, on a 
recent occasion, with General or Bishop Polk, of 
the rebel army, under circumstances which exhib¬ 
ited a good deal of real diplomacy. He is a fine 
classical scholar, well read in history, and a brave 
and determined man. 
Gen. Crittenden is a Kentuckian, son of the 
Hon. J. J. Crittenden, and brother to the rebel Gen¬ 
eral George B. Crittenden. When the rebels first 
assumed a warlike attitude in Kentucky, he took 
command of the Home Guard, (not the stay-at- 
home,) and checked the progress of the rebels 
toward Louisville. He comes of a good stock, and 
gives a good account of himself. 
Gen. Hurlbut is a Carolinian by birth, but a 
citizen of the State of Illinois. At the outbreak of 
our troubles he served iu Missouri, under Gen. Fre¬ 
mont. He now commands a part of Gen. Grant’s 
army. Delias the chivalry, the courage, and the 
magnanimity of the true soldier. 
Gen. Smith is a native of Pennsylvania, a grad¬ 
uate of the military academy; has been a teacher of 
infantry tactics. He was at the battle of Fort Don¬ 
elson, and for his gallantry was created a Major- 
General. lie was severely wounded at the battle 
of Pittsburg Landing. His wounds are. red stripes 
aud his deeds stars upon his coat of arms. 
Items and Incidents. 
The Siege of Yorktown.—T he correspondent 
of the N. Y. Post says:—Not the least remarkable 
among the incidents of the siege, is the defiance 
cast back and forth by the opposing armies, in the 
stirring notes of the military bands. In the soft 
twilight of these lovely spring days, the bands of 
the rebel regiments saucily play the air of “Dixie,” 
and the lines are so close together that the music is 
distinctly heard in our camp, while we send back 
the glorious strains of the “Star Spangled Banner,” 
and drown the cheers of the enemy with shouts that 
find a ringing echo in the woods. Our troops are 
eager to set upOD the enemy, and are full of confi¬ 
dence and enthusiasm. 
McClellan and Halleck. — In speaking of 
Generals McClellan and Halleck, to his friends af 
Elizabeth, on Saturday week, General Scott said:— 
There are two men who can be depended upon 
under all circumstances and in every emergency— 
I mean General McClellan and General Halleck. 
There is no doubt they must take things as they 
meet them, and they have great opposition to con¬ 
tend with; but McClellan is at this moment at the 
very work his heart loves, and which will call forth 
all the abilities of his powerful mind — that of 
trenching, engineering and besieging. And in 
regard to General IIalleck, he will do his work like 
a soldier. There cau be no fear of these two able 
soldiers doing any base or disloyal act They are 
honest to the core, and will never betray their 
country. 
Jeff. Davis Expected at Havana.— Mr. David 
Gray, of the Buffalo Courier , says in his last letter 
from Havana: 
A Havana merchant astounded me just now by 
expressing as the opinion of many Cubans, the idea 
that Jeff Davis might be expected as the guest of 
Havana before many weeks. He asserted positively 
that the bulk of that slippery gentleman’s cash is 
now* on deposit in the Bank of Havana. 
A Slight Change.—H untsville. Ala., now held 
by Union troops, is the home of Leroy Pope 
Walker, late rebel Secretary of War, who predicted, 
on t.he fall of Sumter, that the rebel flag would wave 
over Faneuil Hall. Instead, the Stars and Stripes 
float in triumph over his own town. 
Our Rebel Prisoners.—I t appears that since 
the 1st of January last, and without counting those 
captured at Pittsburg Landing, w*e have taken over 
tw’cnty-four thousand prisoners from the rebels, as 
follows: 
Keh’y 8—Roanoke Island. .......2,527 
“ 13—Springfield. Mo .. 600 
“ 16—Fort Donelson . __ .13,300 
March 8—I'ea Ridge, Ark__1,600 
“ 14—Newberu_ 200 
April 7—Island No. 10 .... 5,500 
“ 12—Pulaski.. 385 
Other places_ 854 
the w'hole with earth. Into these they crawled with 
the utmost agility, whenever the voice of a mortar 
was heard. Every battery on the island is provided 
with one of these rat-holes, in convenient proximity 
for the gunners. It is difficult to conceive of an 
engine more terrible in its destructive effects, at the 
distance of three miles, than these enormous shells. 
A Supply of Cotton. —The fall of Fort Pulaski, 
says the Chicago Tribune, must bring down the 
price of cotton. It opens the way for our gunboats 
to Savannah, and whatever its defenses, it is quite 
impossible that it could loug resist an attacking 
force by land and river. Perhaps there is but one 
more important city in the South, and that is New 
Orleans. It commands an extensive system of rail¬ 
roads—no less than thirteen in number—which 
ramify in all directions to the north, soulh and west. 
As a center of the cotton commerce of half the Gulf 
States, it is no less important. A half a million of 
bales is annually shipped from that port. In six 
wy?eks more, shilling calico will be abundant as clo¬ 
ver and lresh butter. 
Total.....24,666 
The loss of this fighting element has proved a 
very severe blow to the South. Drafts, conscrip¬ 
tions, and all the agencies of persuasion and force 
are resorted to, to fill up the decimated ranks, and 
strengthen Beauregard and Lee. If our Govern¬ 
ment retains these prisoners, the enemy will be 
weakened to that extent; if they are exchanged or 
Department of the Mississippi. 
A special from Cairo to the Chicago Journal 
says that a reconnoissance was made tow*ard Corinth 
on Thursday, and when nine miles out they enp- 
tured a rebel camp and equipage, and advanced to 
Fea Ridge, within six miles of Corinth. They re 
mained from 11 A. M. till 3 P. M. No signs of the 
enemy were seen. Mr. Stevenson, of Dansville, 
Illinois, who accompanied the reconnoissance, re¬ 
ports that he heard the constant rattling of cars and 
sounding of whistles towards Memphis, and they 
got the impression that the rebels were evacuating 
Corinth for the latter place. 
Generals Buell and Beauregard had effected ar¬ 
rangements for an exchange of wounded prisoners. 
.Passengers by the McClellan bring further ac¬ 
counts of Corinth being evacuated by the rebels, 
who will make their next stand at Columbus, Mis¬ 
sissippi. 
The passengers report that on Thursday, over 
thirty deserters from the rebel army entered our 
camps and begged to be enrolled among our troops. 
They all corrobated the statement received the day 
before relative to the evacuation by the rebels of 
their present position, and asserted that Beauregard 
had withdrawn a considerable portion ol his force 
for the defence of Memphis. 
A special to the Missouri Democrat, dated Cairo, 
20th, says: Passengers who reached here this after¬ 
noon on the N. W. Thomas, which left Pittsburg 
Landing Thursday night, bring the highly important 
intelligence that an engagement took place on 
Thursday between the advance guards of the Na¬ 
tional and rebel armies, and that the rebels were 
driven back toward Corinth,and IIalleck was push¬ 
ing his whole army vigorously forward. 
Major-General C. F. Smith died at Savannah, 
Tennessee, at 4 1*. M.. of the 25th, of dysentery. He 
was taken sick shortly after the occupation of 
Savannah by our forces under him. and has been 
suffering and sinking slowly for some weeks, though 
his condition was not thought dangerous until the 
past week. His family have been notified of bis 
death, and are on their way to Savannah. 
PiTT8nr roii Landing, April 26th. 
To IJon. E. M. Sbinton, Secretary of War: Gen¬ 
eral C. F. Srniib died at 4 P. M., yesterday, 25th. 
His remains will be sent to St Louis, where they 
will be buried with military honors. lie is a great 
lops to the army. 
1 have not ordered military honors to be paid to 
his memory here, but wait your orders. 1 he enemy 
have been‘strongly re-enlbrced since the last battle. 
H. W. Halleck, Major-General. 
OFFICIAL WAR BULLETIN. 
to have their families removed frbm their houses, 
which the water threatens to carry down the river. 
Com. Foote, owing to the wound received at Fort 
Henry, has a-ked to be relieved from the command 
of the Western fleet, but the Department has it is 
understood, ordered Captain Charles N. Davis to 
repair to the squadron as his second in command, 
thus relieving him of much of the physical labor of 
his responsible position. 
Department of tlie East. 
We give below such items* of interest as we 
have been enabled to gather concerning operations 
before Yorktown, The weather has been such as to 
retard all movements: 
HEADQUARTERS Ah XT OF POTOWAO, > 
Camp Winfield Soott, April 26, 11 A. M. ) 
To Horn E. M. Stanton, Secretary of War :—Early 
this morning an advanced lunette of ihe rebels, near 
M arwir-k Creek, was carried by an assault by Com 
pauy 11, 1st Massachusetts regiment. The work bad 
n ditch six leet deep, and had a strong parapet, and 
was manned by two companies ofinfantry; no artil¬ 
lery. Our men moved over open soft ground some 
600 yards, received the tire ol the rebels at 50 yards, 
and did not return if. but leaped over the ditch and 
parapet in the most gallant maimer. The rebels broke 
and ran as soon us they saw our tm*n intended to 
cross tlieparapeb Our loss was three killed, one mor- 
tally wounded, and forty-two otherwise wounded 
\Ve look fourteen prisoners, destroyed the work snfti 
eiently to render it useless, and retired. The oper 
alien was conducted by (ien. C. Grover, who man¬ 
aged the affair most handsomely. Nothing could 
have been hHler than the conduct of all the men 
under fire. The supports, who were also under 
artillery fire from other works, were the 1st and J 1th 
Massachusetts. In spite of the rain, onr work pro¬ 
gresses well. G. B. McClellan, 
Major-General. 
The correspondent of the Associated Press, at 
Camp Winfield Scott, April 27th, says: 
During Friday, the enemy constructed a rifle pit 
in front of Gen. Hamilton's line, with a view of 
picking off the men working our field pieces which 
had been posted in a position to command their 
works. 
released on parole, they will either return volunta¬ 
rily or be forced back into the traflor ranks. 
Miss Carrie E. Cutter, daughter of brigade 
surgeon Calvin Cutter, formerly of Warren, Mass., 
went out with the Burnside expedition, as her 
father’s clerk. She assisted and comforted our sick 
and wounded men, after the battle of Roanoke 
Island and Newbern, and contracted a typhoid 
fever, of which she died on the 24th ult, aged only 
19 years. She was beautiful, educated and devoted, 
—another precious sacrifice on the altar of liberty. 
A decision has been given by a judge in Savan¬ 
nah, that a recent draft of militia men was illegal. 
The Savannah Republican says that since this deci¬ 
sion, “ the entire number raised in this county have 
refused to report themselves for duty.” The Repub¬ 
lican “ can see no reason for the prejudice against 
drafted men.” 
Burnside Taking it Cool.— By the Jersey Blue 
to-day. we learn that the rebels have ordered Gen. 
Burnside to leave Newbern. Ou the 10th Inst,, a 
rebel officer, under a flag of truce, was brought to 
Gen. Burnside, and communicated a message trom 
the rebel commrnander, notifying him to evacuate 
Newbern and the other points occupied by the 
Union forces, and allowed him twenty days to 
accomplish the work, by which time tho rebels 
would storm his position. The scene is a most 
interesting one. Gen. Burnside received the mes¬ 
sage, and made substantially this reply: *‘I do not 
need so much time; come on whenever you like— 
we will meet you on the way. I expect to pay yon 
a visit before the time expiree.” The indications 
were, when the Jersey Blue sailed, that the General 
meant to keep his word. 
Hunter on Contrabands.— The following order 
was issued by Gen. Hunter after the surrender of 
Fort Pulaski: 
Headquarters Department of titr Sooth. ) 
Fort Pulaski, C'ockspcr Jsua.ni>, Ga., April 13. lKi’,2 J 
All persons of color lately held to involuntary 
service, by the enemies of the United .States, iu Fort 
Pulaski and on Cockspnr Island. Ga., are hereby 
confiscated and declared free, in conformity with 
law. and shall hereafter receive the fruits of their 
own labor. Such of said persons of color as are 
able-bodied, and may berequired, shall be employed 
in the Quartermaster’s Department, at the rates 
heretofore established by Brig.-Gen. T. W, Sher¬ 
man. By command of 
Maj.-Gen. Davip Hunter. 
Chas. G. Halfine, Asst. Adjt-GeneraL 
Com. Foote's Shells. —The Western correspond¬ 
ent of the New York World thus describes the 
effect of the shells fired from the mortar-boats:— 
The effect of these shells upon the island was truly 
terrific. The earth is plowed and furrowed as with 
an earthquake. Small caverns were excavated by 
the tremendous explosions, and in one place an 
unexploded shell has penetrated the depth of six¬ 
teen feet, leaving a round hole like a ball. Huge 
cottonwood trees, two and three feet in diameter, 
were hit and blown to atoms. The rebels could not 
stand such missiles, and would not. They con¬ 
structed “rat-holes,” by felling large trees and 
placing short logs slantingly against them, covering 
War Department, April 26, 3862. 
This Department lias learned with deep regret 
that the gallant Major-General O. F. Smith, whose 
patriotic valor and skill was sigually exhibited at 
the capture of Fort Donelson, died at Savannah, 
Tennessee, at 4 o’clock P. M. on the 25th inet., and 
it is ordered that the customary honors be paid to 
his remains, E. M. Stanton. Sec’y of War. 
Major-General Halleck has issued the following 
order of thanks to the troops and officers in com¬ 
mand: 
GENERAL ORDERS, NO. 16. 
Headquarters Department of the Mississippi, ) 
Pjttsburg Landing, Tenn., April 13,1862. j 
1. The Major-General Commanding this Depart¬ 
ment thanks Major-General Grant and Major-Gen¬ 
eral Buell, and the officers aud men of their respec¬ 
tive commands, for the bravery aud eudurance with 
which they sustained the general attacks of the 
enemy on the 6th, and for the heroic manner in 
which, on the 7th inet., they defeated and routed the 
entire rebel army. The soldiers of the Great West 
have added new laurels to those which they had 
already won on numerous fields. 
2. While congratulating the troops on their glori¬ 
ous successes, the Commanding General desires to 
impress upon all. officers as well as men, the neces¬ 
sity cd greater discipline and order. These are 
as‘essential to the success as to the health of the 
army, and without them we cannot long expect to 
be victorious; but with them we cau march forward 
to new fields of honor and glory, till this wicked 
rebellion is completely crushed but, and peace re¬ 
stored to our country. 
3. Mtyor-Cencrals Grant and Buell will retain the 
immediate command of their respective armies in 
the field. 
By order ol' Major-General Halleck. 
N. H. McLean, Ass’t Adjutant Gen. 
General Mitchell, after the occupation of Hunts¬ 
ville, Alabama, found a dispatch from Beauregard 
calling for re-enforcements. The dispatch had 
passed over the wires previous to the occupation of 
ihe town by the Federal troops, and about two- 
thirds of the re-enforcements called for had already 
passed down to Corinth. The remainder are col¬ 
lected at Chatanooga, and at other points, being 
unable to move forward on account of General Mit¬ 
chell's obstructions. Beauregard’s dispatch was 
partially written in cypher, but easily translated by 
General Mitchell. The rolling stock captured by 
General Mitchell has been sent to Nashville. The 
following is a copy of the dispatch: 
Corinth, April 9,1862. 
To General' Samuel Cooper , Richmond: All pres¬ 
ent probabilities are that whenever the enemy 
moves on this position, he will do so with an over¬ 
whelming force of not less than 85.(100 men. We 
can now number only about 36,000 effective men. 
Van Dorn may possibly join usiu a few days with 
about 15,000 more. Can we be re-enforced born 
Pemberton's army? If defeated* here we lose the 
MississippiValley, aud probably our cause. Whereas, 
we could even afford to lose, for a while, Charleston 
and .Savannah, for the purpose of defeating Buell’s 
army, which would not only insure us the Valley of 
the Mississippi, but our independence. 
A special to the Missouri Democrat, from Com. 
Foote’s gunboat flotilla, dated the 23d ult, says: 
All is quiet here, if we except two mortar boats 
remaining in position, which occasionally threw a 
shell over at Fort Wright The rebels have not 
replied to-day. None of their gunboats can be seen. 
The weather is fair. The flood has overrun all the 
plantations and houses along the river. Great dis¬ 
tress prevails among the inhabitants along the 
banks, some of whom offer to give all they possess 
At daylight, yesterday morning, three com 
panies ol' Massachusetts regiments and two com¬ 
panies of the N. Y. 16th were sent, out to capture 
those who might occupy it. by getting between them 
and their reserves. The result was in every way 
successful, with a loss of three killed and forty-three 
wounded. The number of killed and wounded on 
the part of the rebels was more than ours. Four 
feen of the enemy were taken prisoners. 
The following is the official list of the killed, all 
of Company IT., 1st Massachusetts regiment: Geo. 
P. Noyes, Win. D. Smith and Walter B. Andrews. 
Allen B. Kingsbury mortally wounded. 
The enemy opened to-day a brisk fire on our men 
near York river, without doing any damage. One 
ot the gunboats shelled the rebel works near York¬ 
town this P. M. for about an hour. The enemy 
responded without doing any harm. The rain has 
ceased and everything indicates pleasant weather. 
The Herald correspondent of the 22d states that 
Gen. McDowell’s force occupies Fredericksburg, bis 
headquarters being in the house of Mr. Lacey, one 
of the aids to the rebel General Smith. The health 
of the troops is excellent, only seventy-five being 
on the sick list, including the wgmnded. 
The flotilla succeeded in clearing the Rappahan¬ 
nock of obstructions and reached Fredericksburg 
on Saturday. 
Work has commenced on the Acquia Creek and 
Fredericksburg railroad, which will soon be in run¬ 
ning order. The bridges over the Rappahannock 
will be immediately rebuilt. 
An immense amount of flour remains in Freder¬ 
icksburg, and over 1,000 bushels of corn are now at 
the mills being ground for the use of the troops. 
The cotton factory in Falmouth continues to run as 
usual, and the small store supplies the soldiers with 
a ready means ot disposing of their money, fabulous 
prices being asked for the most trifling articles. 
The reports of barbaraties perpetrated upon our 
dead at Bull Run have not been exaggerated. The 
rebels dug up the remains of our soldiers, and made 
spurs of their jaw bones, cutting up their skeletons 
into every imaginable form, and Bending trinkets 
home to their friends. 
The rebel army is reported as being greatly 
demoralized by the recent Union victories, the news 
of w*hich tbs rebel authorities in vain endeavor to 
suppress. The rebels quartered in Fredericksburg 
last week moved off toward Gordonsville, uud it is 
believed are encamped but a short distance from 
this place. 
Headquarters of the Rappahannock. ) 
April 27, 1862. j 
To the Hon. E. M. Sbanlon :—I have just returned 
from the camps opposite Fredericksburg. I was 
told the Richmond Examiner of the 26th inst. had 
been received in the town, announcing as follows: 
“New Orleans Taken—Great Destruclion of Prop¬ 
erty. Cotton, aud Steamboats—There were Steam¬ 
boats enough saved io take away the Ammunition— 
Great Consternation of the Inhabitants! 7 ' 
Irvin McDowell, Major-General. 
Advices from the Division of Major-Gen. Banks 
to the 26th state that deserters from Jackson’s militia 
report him making very slow progress towards 
Gordonsville, and that 800 militia have deserted 
since his escape. The Shenandoah bridge has not 
yet been burned, but pickets are stationed there 
ready to apply the torch on our first approach. 
Jackson is resting’on the left side of the Shenan¬ 
doah, with his whole force about sixteen miles hence. 
His scouts frequently make a dash ou our pickets, 
and one of the latter was killed this r. M. The 
spongy nature of the soil prevents our advance at 
present. The weather is clear and pleasant. 
We learn from Gen. Fremont’s Division that on 
the 21st ult. Gen. Milroy, at the head of a recon- 
noitering force, overtook the rear guard of the 
enemy’s cavalry, six miles west of the railroad, near 
Buffalo Gap, Augusta county, Western Yirginia. 
They fled, rapidly pursued by onr cavalry. Gen. 
Mil ray learned that their main body stopped the 
previous night six miles beyond Buffalo Gap, but 
finding they were cut off at Staunton by Gen. Banks, 
they bore south-west through both Bath and Alle- 
gliauy counties, towards the James river. A com¬ 
pany that was sent by Gen. Milroy down the north 
fork of the Potomac, in Pendleton county, captured 
eight rebels, including Garrett, a notorious guerrilla. 
We gather the following intelligence of move¬ 
ments on the coast from dispatches emanating from 
Fortress Monroe: 
Richmond papers of the 21st contain a telegraph 
report of the landing of our forces at Elizabeth City 
and an engagement near that point They admit 
that their forces retired to the Dismal Swamp Canal 
with the loss of thirty-eight killed and wounded, 
and say that the Federal loss is heavy. They also 
notice the occupation of Fredericksburg, and com¬ 
plain of the withdrawal of their troops, which were 
there in force, without a contest 
Sunday, April 27. 
To Hon. E. M. Slanton: —A fugitive black just 
arrived brings the Petersburg Express ot yesterday, 
which contains the following: 
Mobile, April 25. — The enemy passed Fort Jack- 
son at 4 P. M. yesterday. When the news reached I 
here the excitement was boundless. Martial law 
was put in full force and business was entirely sus¬ 
pended. All the cotton and steamboats, except such 
as were necessary to transport coin and munitions of 
war. were destroyed at one o’clock to-day. The 
operator bade ns good bye, saying the enemy had 
appeared before the city. This is rhe last we know 
regarding the tall. We will send particulars as soon 
as they can be bad. The negro bringing ilie above 
reports that the rebels have two iron-clad sb-amer*’ 
and that it is believed that the Merrimac is coming 
out to-morrow. John E. Wool. 
A letter in the Times from Newbern, April 20th, 
says: I learn that there was yesterday quite a serious 
picket skirmish between the 17th Massachusetts reg¬ 
iment and the rebel troops who are watching our 
movements near Trent, twelve miles west of this 
place, on th# line of the railroad. The 23d Massa¬ 
chusetts have been engaged rebuilding bridges, sup¬ 
ported by the 24th and 17tb. Freqnent sorties have 
been made with the apparent design of driving us 
back from the advanced position now occupied by 
us, and the troops have had to work with a sword or 
musket in one hand and a hammer in the other. 
Yesterday the pickets of the 17lh Massachusetts 
regimeDt were surprised by the rebels, and after a 
brief skirmish eleven of our men were made prison¬ 
ers. One of the rebels was killed. More troops will 
probably be thrown forward to protect the roads. 
Capt Elder, who reached New York last week on 
the Oriental, states that on the 16th a reconnoitering 
party of the 8th Michigan volunteers went out under 
the command of Col. Fenton, fo accompany Lieu 
tenant Wilson, of the Engineer Corps, to Wilming¬ 
ton island, for the purpose of erecting fortifications. 
They encountered a regiment of Georgia troops in 
ambush, and a skirmish ensued, which ended iu the 
complete route of the rebels, leaving their dead on 
the field. Our troops pursued them for two miles. 
As it was nearly dark when they returned, our 
informant could not ascertain the number of rebels 
killed and taken prisoners. 
The Sunday Mercury states, on the authority of 
officers of the steamer Boston, that Fort Jackson, 
six miles below Savannah, is in possession of our 
troops, and that our pickets are within four miles of 
Savannah. 
The steamer Atlantic, from Port Royal 24th, brings 
85 of the Fort Pulaski prisoners, 1,957 bags unginned 
cotton, and 3G bags of ginned. No news. 
The Yankee has arrived from the neighborhood of 
Fredericksburgh, and reports that one day last week 
the Anacosta, while passing Lowry’s Point, on the 
Rappahannock, was fired upon by a small body of 
rebel infantry. She threw a few shell at them, which 
caused them rapidly to disperse. The flotilla is still 
actively engaged in seizing the rebel craft In all, it 
has captured sixteen rebel schooners. 
AFFAIRS AT WASHINGTON. 
The ratification of the Seward-Lyons treaty, for 
the suppression of the African slave trade, will soon 
be exchanged. The main points are a mutual right 
of search, without regard to the number of vessels 
to be employed, and a summary trial and punish¬ 
ment of those engaged in the illegal traffic. 
Senor Don Lorenzo Montufar has presented his 
credentials to the President as Minister of the Repub¬ 
lic of Salvador. He said bis government had 
ordered him to say that it earnestly desires the 
peace, prosperity, and glory of the United .States, 
over which our Executive so faithfully presides, 
adding that the people of Salvador are eminently 
American, and says that they offer up their vows to 
Heaven that the great people of the United States 
may ever prosper, and that the Republic founded 
by the immortal Wasbington may each day become 
more powerful, and manifest stronger sympathies 
with the people of the American continent, who 
profess their principles and love their institutions. 
To which the President replied, that Republican¬ 
ism in this country is demonstrating its adaptation 
to the highest interests of Society, the preservation 
of the State itself against the violence of faction 
elsewhere on the American continent. It is strug¬ 
gling against the inroads of anarchy, which invites 
foreign intervention. Let the American States, 
therefore, draw closer together, animate aud reas¬ 
sure each other, and thus prove to the world that, 
although we have inherited the errors of ancient 
systems, we are nevertheless capable of completing 
and substituting the new one which we have chosen. 
On them largely depends the progress of civiliza¬ 
tion aud tho happiness of mankind. 
Mr. Cameron, ex-Secretary of War, was arrested 
ast week at the instance of Pierce Butler, for tres¬ 
pass id et armis , assault and battery, and false 
imprisonment. It will be remembered that Mr. 
Butler wqs arrested for State purposes and confined 
in Fortress Monroe. The President has communi¬ 
cated to Congress the following correspondence 
thereon, which has been referred to the Judiciary 
Committee: 
FROM MR. BREWSTER TO MR. SKWAKD. 
Walnut Street, Pm ladelfuia, April 16, 1862. 
Sir:—B y the direction of Simon Cameron. I send 
you a summons issued out of the Supreme Court of 
this State, on the suit of Pierce Butler vs. Simon 
Cameron. July 1st, 1862. No. 17. 
The writ is returnable the first Monday in May. 
and is for trespass vi et armis, assault and battery 
and false imprisonment. 
The cause ol the action is no doubt founded on 
the 'misconduct of Gen. Cameron, in causing the 
arrest of the plaintiff; Pierce Butler, and pluck) <* 
him in Fortress Mouroe, or some other lortificatiom 
without authority ol law, while he, Gen, Cameron, 
was Secretary of War. 
As I am instructed, the act was not the act of 
Gen. Cameron, but was that of those who com¬ 
manded it to be done, for just reasons and for the 
public good, You will please communicate the 
fact of this suit to the President and such other offi¬ 
cial persons as should properly be advised ot it, and 
Rave such action taken as shall relieve the defend¬ 
ant, Simon Cameron, Irom the burden, cost and res¬ 
ponsibility of defending this suit. 
By the direction of Gen. Cameron I have, as his 
private counsel, ordered your appearance, while I 
also invite aud request the intervention of the proper 
authorities in his behalf and for his protection. 
rr t) oui ?,V Benj. It. Brewster. 
To Hon. W. 11. Seward, Sec'y of State. 
MR. SEWARD TO MR. BREWSTER. 
Defakthk-st of State, ) 
Washington, April 11, 1862. > 
To L'enj. F. Hrexcster, Esq.: —Sir: I have received 
your letter of yesterday, slating that, by direction 
of Mn Simon Cameron, you transmit to me a sum¬ 
mons issued out of the Supreme Court of Pennsyl¬ 
vania, at the suit of Pierce Butler, against Simon 
Cameron, for trespass vi et armis, assault and bat¬ 
tery and false imprisonment, in causing the arrest 
of the plaintiff without authority of the Jaw. 
The communication has been submitted to the 
President, and I am directed by him to sav in reply 
that he avows the proceedings of Mr.'Cameron 
referred to, as taken by him, while Secretary of 
War, under the President's direction, and deemed 
necessary for the prompt suppression of the existing 
insurrection. 
The President will at once communicate by cor¬ 
respondence to the Attorney-General of the United 
States, and also to Congress. 
1 am, Sir, Aft, W. H. Seward. 
