HAIL, SACRED UNION. — ON THE MOUNTAINS 
HAIL, SACRED UNION. Wedding Song. 
THE CITY OF LONDON, 
London City now covers one hundred and 
twenty-one square miles, having increased three¬ 
fold since the year 1S60; and bricks and mortar 
still invade and capture the green fields. The pop¬ 
ulation. according to the report of the Registrar 
General, augments at the rate of about one thousand 
per week—half by birth and half by immigration. 
Notwithstanding the enormous wealth of the 
metropolis, it is recorded in the report of the Regis¬ 
trar. as a remarkable fact, that “one in six of those 
who leave the world die in some one of the public 
institutions —a workhouse, hospital, asylum, or 
prison. Nearly one in eleven of the deaths is in a 
workhouse. 
This shows that poverty follows close at the heels 
of wealth, and fastens on the multitude with relent¬ 
less grasp. Every sixth person dies a pauper or a 
criminal! Can this he said of any other city on the 
globe? And how great a number there must be 
who barely manage to escape this fate! The severe 
competition for subsistence and wealth which char¬ 
acterizes London life is a terrible ordeal for any 
human being to pass through, and thousands fall 
in the attempt, crushed beneath the golden Jug¬ 
gernaut. 
It is now notorious, says a London exchange, that 
in the large establishments, where some hundreds 
of assistants are employed, the great majority of 
them are broken down tradesmen, crushed by the 
competition of capital. Even these occupations are 
obtained with difficulty, and the less fortunate grad¬ 
ually sink lower and lower in the scale, until they 
are driven into the public institutions, where they 
meet an untimely death. 
The list is further swelled by that numerous class, 
who. bom in a respectable sphere and well edu¬ 
cated, sink into degradation from the sheer love of 
display and vanity of living beyond their means. 
It is on record that, out of eight thousand convicts 
who have passed their probation through Penton- 
ville, one thousand had fallen through this wretched 
vice; and it is stated that most of the number were, 
originally, respectable in more than an ordinary 
degree. 
These statements teach us that the greatness of 
London has been purchased at a fearful cost of 
human poverty, misery, and crime, the result of the 
eager pursuit of wealth. 
sweet com-mun-ion, Of hearts in ho 
In blush- ing trust the 
No pain may hide their 
sweet com-mun-ion. Of hearts in ho 
sweet com-mun-ion, Of hearts in ho 
beauteous bride, Is fold - ed 
grow-ing jov, No lone - ly 
safe by man - ly pride, W bile lion - or and af - fee- tion fond, Knit close the precious bond, Knit clo 
toil then’ bauds era- ploy,Each heart the oth-er's grief shall bear, Ics ten - der gladness share, Iu ten 
ness n- greed, They crown with faith each word and deed, In gathering cloud or 
peaceful way, Se- rene and fair be-neath the ray, That beams on no - ble 
sun- ny light, Their love shall still be bright,Their love Bhall still he bright, 
bosoms given, As ear-nest sure of heaven, As ear-nest sure of heaven 
ON THE MOUNTAINS, 
Three rountinus or heaiiuas—slowly. 
1 On the mountain, far have 1 wandered, Birds of summer there have I 
2 O’er the meadows 1 have been roaming, Thro’ the woodlands, strolling ; 
3 In the gar- >ien I luvve been walking,Fai - ry forms were shining so 
4 Homeward coming breathing the fragrance,Friends beloved soon have 
Gai-ly singing. Swiftly springing, Ev - er building nests of the green, 
Flowers were blooming,Bees were humming, Beauty filling, blessing the day. 
Frail and sleii - der, Clothed with splendor,Wiuging thro’ the orient light. 
Soft and du - teous, Calm and beauteous. Love the day hath happily crowned 
[From Asaph, a collection of Sacred and Secular Music, by Lowell and William Mason.] 
lower battery of field pieces was nearly silenced, 
when a 42-pound shot from the upper battery struck 
the Mound City on the port side, near the second 
gun from the how, passing through the casemate, 
killing five or six men, and knocking a large hole in 
the steam drum. Instantly the hot steam hurst out 
in dense volumes, filling the engine-room, gun-room 
and pilot-house, and scalding over one hundred and 
twenty-five persons. The shrieks of the poor fel¬ 
lows confined between decks in the scalding vapor 
were said to bejjeart-rending beyond description. 
Many were instantly suffocated, but all who were 
able groped their way to the ports and jumped over¬ 
board, into the river, and a minute after the explo¬ 
sion, fifty or sixty of them were struggling in the 
water. The Conestoga immediately came up and 
sent out two boats to pick them up. One of the 
Mound City’s boats was also launched by Master’s 
Mate Simmes Browne, one of the few officers who 
was not seriously hurt. During this time both gun¬ 
boats and the small boats were drifting down the 
river. As the Mound City drifted near the shore 
near the lower battery, a sortie was made from the 
battery, which some supposed to be an attempt on 
the part of the enemy to board the Mound City, but 
which afterwards proved tijl be for the purpose of 
firing on the scalded men in the river, which the 
prisoners say they did at the command of Captain 
Fry. The field pieces of the lower battery were 
were also turned upon the boats that were picking 
up the wounded, and a 12-pound shot knocked away 
the Conestoga’s boats. Many were hit by the firing, 
and only 27 out ol the Mound City’s crew of 180, 
answered to their names at the calling of the roll, 
and were all that escaped UDhnrt. 
Another singular accident now occurred;—The 
Mound City’s starboard broadside guns had been 
loaded just before the shot struck the steam drum, 
and had not been fired since, but nearly half an 
hour afterward one of the wounded gunners had 
become entangled in the lanyard which is attached 
to the lock ol' the gun, and in his writhing with the 
pain fired the gun. The hall took effect on the 
New National, which had landed her troops and 
come up to the rescue of the Mound City. The 
ball struck her behind the wheel, and ranging for¬ 
ward, cut off the steam pipe, immediately disabling 
her and slightly scalding the second engineer. 
Col. Fitch, who had now gained the summit of the 
ridge a short distance below the lower battery, 
tearing that oue of the other gunboats might 
meet with an accident similar to the Mound City’s, 
signaled the gunboats to cease firing, and that he 
would storm the batteries. The gunboats accord¬ 
ingly ceased firing, and after making considerable 
of a detour, the 46th attacked the batteries iu the 
rear, delivering their- fire as they came up, charg¬ 
ing over the guns and killing lire gunners at their 
posts. The rebels fought stubbornly, asking no 
quarter, and receiving none from the men of the 
46th, who were enraged at the dastardly firing upon 
the helpless men in the river. Only two of those who 
were in the battery were taken prisoners, the rest 
were killed. 
The Indianians then came over the brow of the 
ridge and down into the wooded bottom land next 
the river, in pursuit of those who had been firing on 
the Mound City's crew, the rebels retreating rapidly 
up the bank ol the river, the 46th firing on them 
as they fled, killing the greater portion of them. In 
the flight, Capt. Fry, their commander, was wounded 
by a ball in the back, was captured, and is now a 
prisoner on hoard the Conestoga. The rebel loss in 
killed is not known, but must have included the 
greater portion of their force, as we have only 13 
prisoners, and only a few are known to have 
escaped. Opinions differ also as to the number of 
the rebels, some setting it as high as 500, and saying 
that Col. Fitch’s estimate of 150 referred only to the 
gunboat’s crew, who manned the upper battery. 
Col. Fitch, in his report, states that the casualties 
in his regiment are unimportant, being only five or 
But for the one shot which 
compare his own conduct with our course toward 
them only ten days before at Memphis, when all of 
the small boats belonging to the nearest of our gun¬ 
boats were sent out to save the drowning crew of 
their gunboat Gen. Lovell, He told him that being 
a prisoner, was now bis protection, but if justice 
were done him, he. would be hanging to the nearest 
tree. Fry first denied that he bad given the order, 
but on being confronted with some of his men, who 
persisted in sayin 
I told my friend that our army must fall back, it 
being harder to provision it over these seven miles 
of mud than over the one thousand miles of rails 
between this and Manassas. The use of cavalry 
and artillery wa9 out of the question. Even the 
by-paths that led from the York river railroad to 
the Williamsburg road were almost impassable, so 
boggy is the ground. Moreover, it is so covered 
with forests, that a general engagement cannot take 
place, though many predict it to-morrow. It can 
hardly be done, even if McClellan were willing to 
risk it.” 
LIQUID FIRE 
Some experiments were recently tried at the 
Washington Navy Yard with an apparatus for the 
ejection of liquid lire, which, to all intents and pur¬ 
poses, is the lamed Greek fire revived, the secret 
of which has been lost. The chemical composition 
of this fire may not be the same, but its effects are 
as terrible as those attributed to the inextinguisha¬ 
ble fire of the Greeks. The. composition aud the 
apparatus for ejecting it are the inventions of Prof 
B. F. Greenough, of Boston, who, though for many 
years nearly blind, has pursued his chemical inves¬ 
tigations with unabated zeal, until he has produced 
what promises to be a terrible auxiliary in warfare. 
The experiments were made under the direction 
of a Board, consisting of Capt, G. V. Fox, Assistant 
Secretary of the Navy, Capt. Dahlgren, Capt. Wain- 
right and Lieut. Dad get, A target was erected 
upon a platform fifty feet long by thirty wide, the 
target being made of solid oak timber three feet in 
thickness. Thu fluid was ejected in an inert state 
from a pipe throe-sixteenths of an inch in diameter, 
and was thrown some thirty to fifty yards before it 
reached the target. At a distance of several feet 
from the muzzle the fluid ignited, expanding to a 
diameter of two feet, with an immense combustion, 
which covered the target aud platform with liquid 
fire. The fire was apparently inextinguishable, 
burning rapidly on the water and consuming the 
target. It emitted fumes of smoke which darkened 
the atmosphere, and would have suffocated any 
human being who had come within its influence. 
The experiment was quite successful. 
We understand that experiments have also been 
made with shells filled with this liquid, and with 
great success. The composition, the secret of which 
ig that he had given the order, 
he became silent. 
Almost all who were badly scalded have since 
died. Thirty-five of them died on the way up on 
the Conestoga and Musselman, and were buried 
near Island 67. Eight men were dead when the 
boats arrived at Memphis, and the entire number of 
the Mound City’s dead is not far from one hundred 
and twenty-five. 
Item* anil Incidents. 
A Touching Scene. —The Philadelphia Inquirer 
gives the following as an incident occurring at 
Fortress Monroe on the arrival of the wounded 
from the late Richmond battles: 
“ Among those brought to White House was a 
rebel Colonel who had been shot through the lungs. 
As hi appeared to be dying, Mr. Barclay asked 
him if he wished anything done. He said ‘Yes,’ 
and gave the Commissioner the names and address 
of his wife and children. 11 And now,’ says he, ‘ ask 
God to forgive me for ever having anything to do 
with this -wicked rebellion.’ Mr. Barclay asked if 
he desired him to pray with Mm. He answered in 
the affirmative, and after a prayer, petitioning the 
forgiveness of Almighty God for his sins, and His 
fatherly interposition on behalf of the soon to be 
widowed wile and orphaned children, the penitent 
Carolinian raised Ms trembling arms and threw 
them about the neck of Mr. Barclay, and kissed 
him again and again. The bystanders were all id 
tears as they turned from the affecting scene and 
walked silently away.” 
Generous and Nobi.e.—A tew nights ago, says 
the Fall River Press, one of the ladies of our city, 
a passenger on the Metropolis, wMle coming from 
New York with some sick and wounded prisoners, 
seeing that they were not cared for as her generous 
nature would dictate, and learning from them that 
the wants of the inner man were the strongest, 
called the steward of the boat to her, saying, “Can 
these men have sapper?” “No, marm, there has 
been no provision made of that kind by the Govern¬ 
ment, and we cannot provide these unless we pro¬ 
vide all.” “Can you get them suppers if I will 
pay for them?” “Yes.” “Very well, do so.” The 
supper was accordingly got, with all the delicacies 
on hand. No stint, hut the best, for which the sum 
of $150 was paid. No one was informed of the act 
—no herald or newspaper reporter was there to 
proclaim it. One of the recipients of her noble 
bounty is the author of the above. 
Maryland as a State in the Union.—O n 
Saturday week, the bids for the Maryland Defense 
Loan were opened at Annapolis. The amount to 
he awarded was $250,000; the amount tor which 
bids were made, was nearly $2,500,000. No bid was 
made under par, and they ran up to nearly two and 
a half per cent, premium. To obtain the amount 
asked for it was not necessary to accept any bid un¬ 
der two per cent premium. IV hat a contrast does 
this present to the Maryland of one year ago. How 
proudly such facts compare with the prostrated 
credit and the financial ruin of her Southern sisters. 
Yankee Energy. —The rebel papers in a thou¬ 
sand ways pay their tribute to Yankee resolution 
and industry. Thus the Petersburg Express of the 
5th says:—-• The Yankees were busily entrenching 
themselves all Tuesday. This was witnessed by 
our scouts from the tops of tall trees. The floods, 
in all probability, tilled their trenches yesterday, 
and rendered them untenable, but the Yankees, with 
their characteristic energy, will bale out the water 
as fast as it falls.” 
Beauregard's Bells. —The ship North America, 
which arrived at Boston on Saturday, had on board 
the bells which were contributed by the people of 
Louisiana for the prosecution of the war against 
the Union, under the proclamation issued by Beau¬ 
regard. There are nearly eight hundred of them, 
A votes from the East and a voice from the West, 
A voice from the shade where the patriots rest, 
A voice from the vales and each echoing height, 
On the ear it breaks through the dropped curtain of night; 
The voice of a trumpet it pnaieth afar, 
And thrills through the nation a trumpet of war; 
From the roar of the lakes to the ocean’s wide bound, 
A marshaling host doth re-echo the sound. 
They gather! they gather) true hearted and brave) 
While star spangled banners exultingly wave; 
He who sits on the stars, with his scepter of might, 
Sustaineth the arm which supporteth the right.” 
ROCHESTER, N. Y., JULY 5, 1862. 
THE WAR’S PROGRESS 
The Capture of Fort St. Charles. 
A correspondent of the Missouri Democrat , 
writing from Memphis, June 19, gives the following 
details ol the fight at Fort St. Charles, which was 
briefly alluded to in our telegraphic dispatches of 
last week: 
The gunboat Conestoga and transport Jacob Mus¬ 
selman have just arrived from White River, and 
bring the news of the capture of Fort St. Charles, 
on that river, by the gunboats of the expedition 
which left here on Friday last. The fleet consisted 
of the gunboats Mound City (flag ship,) St. Louis, 
Conestoga, and Lexington, and the transports New 
National, White Cloud, and Jacob Musselman, hav¬ 
ing on board the 46th Indiana regiment, in command 
of Col. G. N. Fitch. 
On Saturday last the fleet reached the mouth of 
White river, and on Monday, the 18th, began to 
ascend the stream. On Tuesday morning, at about 
seven o’clock, being within two miles of the sup¬ 
posed locality of the fort, and the Mound City being 
in advance, Captain Kitty began shelling the woods 
on each side ol the river, as they moved up, in order 
to cover the landing of Col. Fitch’s troops from the 
transports. The landing was effected a little over a 
mile below the fort, on the south-west bank of the 
river. 
The fort, situated on a ridge of about 75 feet iu 
height, which runs nearly parallel with and about 
two hundred feet back from the south-west bank of 
the river, was not completed, having only breast¬ 
works for the two batteries, but no works of defense 
for the rear. The upper battery of forty-two-pound¬ 
ers was on the point of the ridge where it puts in 
CURIOUS MICROSCOPIC WRITING MACHINE. 
A correspondent writing of the wonders of the 
Great Exhibition says:—“ Unquestionably the most 
curious and ingenious instrument in the whole ex¬ 
hibition is a machine for microscopic writing, con¬ 
structed by a Mr.Peyers. The operator writes with 
a pencil on a sheet of paper placed at the bottom of 
the instrument, which is connected with a series of 
levers and gimbals with another very minute pencil 
at the top, which reproduces on a tablet what is 
written below, in characters so infinitessimally small 
that they can be discerned only by the aid of a pow¬ 
erful magnifier. A line a quarter of au Inch in 
length at the bottom becomes one of only a quarter 
of an inch at the top. Or, more clearly, the words, 
Mathew Marshall, Bank of England,” are thus 
legibly recorded within a space only two and a half 
millionths of an inch in length. Or, to show still 
more startlingly the astounding capacity of this 
instrument, it is claimed that the contents of the 
entire Bible can be repeated no less than twenty¬ 
mo times within the space of a square inch! Again, 
not only is the microscopic tracing distinctly legible 
under a suitable magnifier, but it is a perfect fac 
simile of the operator’s autograph. The practical 
utility of this machine can readily be seen, when it 
is known that the Bank of England, for instance, is 
to use it for the purpose of marking its notes, and 
thereby rendering the prevention or detection of 
forgery almost certain.” 
close to the river; these two guus bad been the arm¬ 
ament of the gunboat Pontcliartrain, which the 
rebels had sunk so as to obstruct the channel of the 
river immediately abreast or the battery. Two 
transports had also been sunk close to her. The 
battery on the point of the ridge was manned by 
the former crew of the Pontcliartrain. The lower 
Captain of the Poutchartraiu, and who was ouce a 
Lieutenant in the United States Navy. 
At about half-past eight, when the Mound City ap¬ 
proached within less than a mile, the first or lower 
battery opened fire upon her. This was the first indi¬ 
cation of the exact location of the batteries, as they 
had been concealed by the heavy timber in the 
intervening bottom land, which was only cleared 
along the river’s edge, aud at one or two other 
places, so as to give the guns of the batteries a clear 
range. Tho Mound City immediately moved up 
and delivered several broadsides, and leaving the 
St. Louis aud Conestoga engaged, passed on up to 
engage the upper battery, which had now opened 
fire. The tight had lasted about 30 minutes after 
the firing hud become general on both sides, and the 
six sliehtly wounded 
burst the Mound City’s steam ili um, there would 
not have been a man hurt on the fleet, as not a sin¬ 
gle shot that struck tho gunboats did any damage 
whatever except that. No one was bur: on either 
of the gunboats, and none of the transports were 
struck except the New National, by an accidental 
shot from the. Mound City. 
Col. Fitch was so exasperated at the murderous 
fire that had been poured upon the scalded men who 
were struggling in the water, that when he came on 
board the Conestoga, where Captain Fry was a 
prisoner, he reproached him bitterly for his inhu¬ 
man conduct iu giving the order, aud asked him to 
G i r own hands are Heaven’s favorite instruments 
r supplying us with the necessaries and luxuries 
