The Civil War Day By Day Sesquicentennial Thread

[farmersdaughter]

Battle of Mathias Point
June 27 1861


The Battle of Mathias Point, Virginia was an engagement between the Union gunboats USS Thomas Freeborn and USS Reliance together with a landing party of about 36 Union sailors or marines and Confederate States Army defenders at Mathias Point on the Potomac River near Pope's Creek in King George County, Virginia. The action occurred on June 27, 1861, in the third month of the American Civil War, before significant battles, other than the Battle of Fort Sumter, had taken place. The Confederates repulsed the Union attack and killed the commander of the Union Potomac Flotilla, Commander James H. Ward. Ward was the first Union Navy officer killed during the Civil War. The battle at Mathias Point was an early action in connection with the blockade by the Union Navy of the Southern States in general and the Chesapeake Bay in particular and the corresponding effort by Confederate forces to deny the use of rivers in Virginia, including the Potomac River, to Union military and commercial traffic. The Confederates completed placement of an artillery battery at this location immediately after the battle and maintained their position until the Confederate withdrawal from Manassas on March 9, 1862 at the beginning of the Union Army buildup for the Peninsula Campaign

Background

On April 15, 1861, the day after the small U.S. Army garrison surrendered Fort Sumter in the harbor Charleston, South Carolina to Confederate forces, President Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers to reclaim federal property and to suppress the rebellion begun by the seven Deep South Slave states which had formed the Confederate States of America. Four Upper South States which also permitted slavery, including Virginia, refused to furnish troops for this purpose and began the process of secession from the Union.[2] On April 17, 1861, a convention in Richmond, Virginia immediately passed an ordinance providing for Virginia's secession from the Union and authorized the governor to call for volunteers to join the military forces of Virginia to defend the state against Federal military action.[3] The Virginia Secession Convention made the act of secession subject to a vote of the people of the state on May 23, 1861, but the actions of the convention and Virginia political leaders, especially Governor John Letcher, had effectively taken Virginia out of the union.[4] In view of developments in Virginia, President Lincoln also did not wait for the vote of the people of Virginia on secession to take action as if Virginia already had joined the Confederacy. On April 27, 1861, he extended the blockade of the Southern States that he had declared on April 19, 1861, to include the ports of Virginia and North Carolina.[5]

Battle

In late June 1861, Commander James H. Ward, commander of the Union Potomac Flotilla, learned that the Confederates were installing a battery on a wooded promontory at Mathias Point in King George County, Virginia that would effectively control traffic on the Potomac River at that point. This not only could prevent men and supplies from moving to and from Washington, D.C. via the Potomac River but would permit communication between Confederate forces and Confederate sympathizers in southern Maryland across the river or even permit a Confederate raid into Maryland. On June 27, 1861, Ward took his flagship, the USS Thomas Freeborn, along with the USS Reliance and a company of sailors or marines[6] under Lieutenant James C. Chaplin[7] to attack the Confederate position, to remove trees from the location so that the Confederates could not hide a battery on the point and instead to put a Union battery at the point.[8]

When the Thomas Freeborn arrived at Mathias Point at about 10:00 a.m. according to some sources and 1:00 p.m. according to others, its crew began to bombard the woods in order to give cover to Lieutenant Chaplin's landing party.[9] Union skirmishers immediately became engaged with Confederate skirmishers and drove them back. The landing party worked at establishing a position for artillery, which they had brought on the boats with them but had not yet brought ashore.[10] Soon, 400 to 500 Confederate soldiers arrived and began to move against and fire upon the small Union force.

Ward initially had accompanied the landing party but he quickly returned to the Thomas Freeborn in order to direct more firing of the ship's cannon at the location of the Confederate force when they began their counterattack. Lt. Chaplin evacuated his party to their small boats after the initial Confederate approach in force. The cannon fire from the Thomas Freeborn beat back the counterattack. Ward ordered Chaplin to land again and throw up sand bag breastworks when the firing from the Thomas Freeborn temporarily quieted the Confederate force. After coming under fire from the Thomas Freeborn, Colonel Ruggles ordered that his men, under the immediate command of Colonel J. M. Brockenbrough, approach through the forest where the Union force was at work in order not to expose the men to fire over an open field. This delayed their further counterattack. Meanwhile, Chaplin and his small force hastily completed the construction of the small breastwork and after trying to hide the exact location of the work with branches, again began to withdraw from the shore about 5:00 p.m. in order to retrieve their artillery. At this time, the Confederates, further supported by four companies of men under the command of Major R. M. Mayo, renewed their counterattack against the Thomas Freeborn and against the landing party, which was moving toward the boats.[11][12] Heavily outnumbered and under fire, Chaplin and his men were unable to retrieve and unload their guns for the battery and were forced to withdraw completely.[13]

Chaplin and one other member of his party were the last to withdraw.[14] Chaplin personally saved this man who was unable to swim to the small landing boats, which had already shoved off, by carrying him out to the closest boat. In the meantime, after the gunner on the Thomas Freeborn was wounded, Commander Ward was shot through the abdomen by a rifle shot while trying to sight the ship's gun and died with about 45 minutes. His mortal wounding unsettled the crew of the Thomas Freeborn and they fired no more rounds in support of Chaplin's force even though they had not fully withdrawn to the Thomas Freeborn and the Reliance. Ward was the only member of the Union force killed at the battle although four others were badly wounded.[15] Ward was the first Union Navy officer killed during the Civil War.[13]

Aftermath

The Confederates continued to hold their position and operate the battery on Mathias Point, which they completed placing on the pooint on the day after the battle. They were not attacked by land forces and did not abandon the location and nearby batteries until Confederate forces withdrew from Manassas and other northern Virginia locations on March 9, 1862 in order to protect Richmond from Union forces which were being deployed for the Peninsula Campaign.[16][17]

Commander (later Vice Admiral) Stephen Clegg Rowan, captain of the USS Pawnee, temporarily succeeded Commander Ward as the commander of the Potomac Flotilla. He went on to participate in the actions against the Confederate forts at Hatteras Inlet in the fall of 1861 and was succeeded as commander of the Potomac Flotilla by Captain (later Rear Admiral) Thomas Tingey Craven.[14]

Fort Ward in Alexandria, Virginia was named in honor of Commander Ward. Fort Ward, which was one of the defenses of Washington, D.C. during the Civil War, was completed in September 1861. The fort has been largely restored and serves as a museum and historic park
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[farmersdaughter]

Friday, June 28, 1861

The news has just reached us that George P. Kane, Marshall of the Baltimore Police, was arrested yesterday morning on the order of General Banks. He is charged with treason against the United States. Banks has accused him of protecting U.S. residents who are stealthily providing hidden deposits of weaponry and contraband to secessionists. Kane is currently being held prisoner at Fort McHenry.

The United States government will soon have new bombshells. General James, of Rhode Island, has invented several new missiles that appear to surpass anything in the shape of an explosive shell yet invented. The new shell is conical, with an interior filled with combustible matter and a small cylinder. After discharge, the shell will not explode until the missile strikes an object.

Explosives are not the only way to ensure the destruction of one’s enemy: Making medical contraband has also been shown to have a similar effect. The North’s use of this method has met with severe criticism but not necessarily surprise in the South. One reporter writes:

We believe that never till the present highly humane and civilized war have medicines been made contraband. Yet even before the open rupture, Northern apothecaries refused to sell quinine and other articles in their trade, and since the war, none whatever are permitted to cross the border. The inhumanity which thus makes war upon the sick and afflicted, is, we believe, unparalleled in the history of civilized nations. There is, however, this consolation, that medicines in general kill more than they cure.

We recently mentioned that the people of Albany were in the process of creating an organization to memorialize Colonel Ellsworth. They have succeeded, and the Ellsworth Association has just released its second circular. Their plan to create a regiment composed of one member from each town of the state is now underway.

There are many rumors about generals on both sides of the war. General Lee is reportedly growing disgusted with secessionist leaders and wishes to return to the service of the United States government, but there has been no direct confirmation from Lee of the truth of this rumor. General McClellan, meanwhile, has expressly denied the rumor that he made any agreement with the Governor of Kentucky. Newspapers were reporting that an agreement had been struck after the two men met recently. McClellan states that “the only result of the meeting was a voluntary promise on the part of Magoffin that he would drive the Confederate troops from the soil of Kentucky.”

Drinking among the soldiers is continuing to cause problems. Late last night, several drunken soldiers from Camp Curtain were visiting a den in Meadow Lane when they got into a row. One was cut on the neck with a knife, while another had his head caved in. A man walking by barely escaped being struck by a large stone thrown by one of the men. No arrests were made, but this incident further illustrates the need for tighter controls on the consumption of alcohol

.—The steamer Pawnee arrived at the Navy Yard at Washington this morning, bringing the dead body of Capt. James H. Ward, of the steamer Freeborn, who was killed in an engagement yesterday, while attempting to cover a landing at Matthias Point, on the Potomac River.

The Freeborn was off the Point reconnoitring, when Capt. Ward discovered indications of a movement for the erection of a battery at that Point by the rebel soldiers encamped near there. On Wednesday night he sent up to the Pawnee at Acquia creek for Capt. Owens to send him a reinforcement of two boats’ crews to assist in effecting a landing. Two small cutters’ crews were sent down to the Freeborn, under Lieut. Chaplain, and with them a boat’s crew from the Freeborn, numbering from thirty to forty men in all. Lieut. Chaplain the next morning effected a landing, and succeeded in driving in the rebel pickets. Finding preparations for the erection of a rebel battery there, it was determined to throw up breastworks and mount guns thereon to give the enemy a warm reception should they attack the crews. Accordingly the men were set to work, under cover of the Freeborn’s guns, at throwing up a sandbag breastwork, and succeeded in working four hours and a half, and got their works completed about five in the evening. They then went to the boats to go on board for guns to mount on the work, when, just as they were embarking, they were surprised by the rebels, estimated at from one thousand to fifteen hundred strong, who poured in a heavy and continuous fire of musketry upon them from the bashes near by. Under cover of the guns of the Freeborn the crews precipitately made for the steamer, leaving a few of the men on shore, the guns of the Freeborn meanwhile opening with activity and precision apparently upon the enemy, who were concealed by the underbrush. Some ten shell were thrown among them, with what effect could not be seen, owing to their position.

Captain Ward behaved with great coolness, standing by the guns and directing the fire. When his gunner received a wound in the thigh, which disabled him, he immediately took his place, and was sighting the gun when he received a Minie musket ball, which killed him almost instantly.

The men left on the shore by the boats in their retreat swam out to the Freeborn—one of the men carrying on his back a wounded comrade named Bess, who had four musket balls shot into him. John Williams, coxswain of the third cutter, received a flesh wound in the leg while waving the Stars and Stripes, which he carried in his hand the whole time, behaving most gallantly under the hottest fire. The American ensign, which he never ceased to wave, was pierced with nineteen musket balls. Only three men of the boats were wounded, and the only life lost was that of the gallant Ward, who, the moment the enemy was discovered, blew the signal for the crews to come aboard, and instantly opened on the foe with his heavy guns.

While the crews were engaged on the breastworks, a slave, belonging to Dr. Hooe, approached the shore with a white flag on a pole, and getting aboard the Freeborn, informed Capt. Ward that the enemy were in the underbrush near by, one thousand strong. Still the work was continued, and made ready, as the event turned, for the rebels to occupy with guns.—(Doc. 55.)

—A Georgia Regiment arrived in Richmond, Va., without arms, the Governor of Georgia refusing to allow more arms to be taken from the State.—Richmond Examiner, June 29.

—Eight companies of rebel infantry and cavalry went from Knoxville, Tenn., to Cumberland and Wheeler’s Gap, to guard those places and prevent the federal troops from passing through Kentucky to the aid of the Union men in East Tennessee. They were encountered by the Union men in the mountains. —Louisville Journal, July 2.

—The Thirtieth Regiment N. Y. S. V. from Albany, under the command of Colonel Edward Frisbie; the Thirty-second N. Y. S. V., under the command of Colonel Matheson, and Colonel E. D. Baker’s California Regiment, left New York for the seat of war.—The latter for Fortress Monroe.—(Doc. 50.)

—The Charleston (S. C.) Courier, of to-day, prints the following from a private letter received from Manassas Junction:

“Our force is less than has been supposed. Two days ago it consisted of only about 7,000, and so also are all our forces at other points smaller than is supposed. Johnson, when he evacuated Harper’s Ferry, had not more than 7,000 effective men. Two thousand joined him about that time, and in one way and another, he has now a force of about 10,000 men. It was a military necessity, and he is the man to make the most of it. These facts account for the retreating and apparent indisposition to meet the foe. Their invasion of Virginia, and our inability to repel them, have been the result of the strange notion that we are engaged in a five years’ war, and of the consequent policy of rejecting, six weeks ago, at Montgomery, over 100,000 troops offered for twelve months. The scheme of requiring them for three years or the war, has produced great delay in the organization of the Southern army, and we are still very deficient, although now there is a willingness to accept on terms previously rejected. Our reliance, at present, is solely in the superior morale and desperate valor of our soldiers, and in the ability and judgment of our generals. Our cause has been greatly impeded and imperilled by this idea of a five years’ war, which nothing but the effect of this backwardness can produce.”

—Petitions for compromise, addressed to the President of the United States, which had been secretly circulated throughout the city of New York, were seized at the office of Frederick A. Guion. Mr. Guion issued an earnest remonstrance against the seizure.—(Doc. 51.)

—Colonels Magruder and Hardee were appointed Brigadier-Generals in the Confederate army.—The Nashville (Tenn.) City Council appropriated $750,000 for a residence for the President of the Southern Confederacy, as an inducement to remove the capital there.—The State Treasurer of Georgia gave notice that on account of the war with the Anti-Slavery States, the interest on the coupons and bonds of that State payable in New York, must be redeemed at Savannah.—An advertisement announces the reopening of the Confederate loan at several places in Georgia. It says that only $11,000,000 of the $15,000,000 have been subscribed for.—Nashville Union, June 28.

—General Banks at Fort McHenry issued a proclamation nullifying the protest and acts of the late police board of Baltimore.—(Doc. 52.)

—The Twenty-second Regiment N. Y. S. V., left Albany, N. Y., for the seat of war. The regiment is commanded by Colonel Walter Phelps, and is composed of men from the counties of Warren, Essex, Washington, and Saratoga. They belong to the class of hardy and industrious woodsmen, and intelligently understand the questions which underlie the present contest.—N. Y. Tribune, June 80.

—The First Regiment of New Jersey Volunteers left Trenton this morning for Washington in twenty-one cars, at 8 o’clock.—The Second and Third Regiments left this afternoon by way of the Camden and Amboy Railroad. The tents and other equipage —which Quartermaster-General Perine had, under the direction of Governor Olden, and at the request of the War Department, supplied them, went with each regiment.—N. Y. World,
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[farmersdaughter]

June 29, 1861

—Colonel Allen of the First Regiment N. Y. S. V., was arrested at Fortress Monroe for court martial, by order of General Butler.—The Eleventh Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers, under the command of Colonel George Clark, Jr., left Boston for the seat of war. The regiment, previous to their starting, were encamped at Camp Cameron. They were enlisted in April last, and sworn into the United States service about three weeks ago. They number 950 men, and are all armed with new smooth-bore Springfield muskets. In point of equipage, no regiment, perhaps, has exceeded the Eleventh. Their camping arrangements are complete, and they will enter upon their duties with no less than twenty-five baggage wagons, and eighty horses. So complete, indeed, are their arrangements that they will be dependent on the Government for nothing except food and ammunition.—N. Y. News, June 30.

—The steamer St. Nicholas was captured in the Potomac River, by a party of secessionists. The steamer left Baltimore, having on board about fifty passengers. Among those who went aboard previous to her departure, was a very respectable “French lady,” who was heavily veiled, and, pleading indisposition, she was immediately shown to her state-room, where she was kindly cared for by the females on board. There were also a party of about twenty-five men dressed in the garb of mechanics, carrying with them carpenters, tinners, blacksmiths’, and other tools. When near Point Lookout, the “French lady ” appeared on deck, not in crinoline, but in the person of a stalwart man, who was immediately surrounded by the party of mechanics above alluded to. Captain Kirwan of the steamer, demanded an explanation, when the “lady-man” informed him that he designed confiscating the steamer and going on a privateering expedition. Finding himself overpowered, Capt. Kirwan was compelled to submit, and the boat was handed over to the man and his crew, who took possession, and proceeded to run the steamer to a point known as “The Cone,” on the Virginia shore. Upon landing at that place, the steamer was boarded by a body of about 1,000 Virginia troops, when the passengers were all landed, and allowed to go on their way. About one hundred and fifty of the troops were then placed on board the steamer, Captain Kirwan and fourteen of the crew being retained as prisoners. Leaving the shore the steamer was run down as far as the mouth of the Rappahannock River, where the “new Captain” hailed three large brigs which were lying off a few miles from Fredericksburg. These vessels were immediately boarded, and not having a sufficient force on board to offer any resistance they were all then quietly delivered over to the party as prizes. The prizes, one of which was laden with coffee, a second with ice, and the third with coal, were run into Fredericksburg, Virginia, and delivered into the possession of the Virginians, the steamer being kept at that port, together with her captain and crew.—Baltimore American, July 2.

—An elaborate article respecting the constitutional power of the President of the United States to suspend the writ of habeas corpus, was published. It was prepared by Reverdy Johnson, of Maryland, in response to the opinion of Chief Justice Taney, of the Supreme Court of the United States.—(Doc. 58.)

—The Fifteenth Regiment N. Y. S. V., under the command of Colonel John McLcod Murphy, left Willet’s Point, N. Y., for Washington.

Two regiments, one of Alabamians and the other of Mississippians, reached Harper’s Ferry, Va., this morning, and destroyed the balance of the trestle work of the railroad bridge. They then went over to the Maryland shore, seizing all the boats they could lay their hands on, either breaking them up or taking them over the river. All the Union men of Harper’s Ferry were driven out by them.—N. Y. Herald, June 30.

—A skirmish took place at Bowners, twelve miles from Cheat River bridge, between portions of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Ohio, the First Virginia regiments, and a company of rebel cavalry. The former were sent to protect the polls, and the latter, mistaking their number, attacked them, and were routed with the loss of several men, among them the lieutenant of the company. Several horses were captured. The only loss on the Federal side is N. O. Smith, of the Fifteenth Regiment.—Louisville Journal, July 1.

—The Twenty-fifth Pennsylvania Regiment, stationed at Washington, left that place for Edward’s Ferry. Lieutenant Hamilton H. Dutton, of Mississippi, having tendered his resignation, was dismissed from the navy of the United States.

An imposing ceremony took place this afternoon at Washington, in the President’s grounds on the front of the White House toward Virginia. The New York 12th Regiment of Militia, with Company G United States Infantry, formed a hollow square, enclosing the fountain and a pavilion, under which were the President and Mrs. Lincoln, surrounded by the members of the Cabinet and other distinguished gentlemen. The Rev. Dr. Pyne offered a fervent prayer for the Union, law and good Government, the well-being of the nation and of its appointed rulers, and the peace which comes with the restoration of order.

While the Marine Band was playing, the President hauled up the flag, which was slightly torn in the process. Simultaneously, cannon roared and shouts went up from the throng of civilians and lines of soldiers.

The soldiers having gone through with a leaf of the manual, cheers for the flag and the President were given heartily. Gen. Scott, with his staff and other officers, were on a portico adjoining.—N. Y. Tribune, June 30.

—During last night there was a skirmish between the New Jersey Zouaves and the rebels outside of Fall’s Church, Va. Two of the rebels were killed, and one of the Zouaves was wounded. The dead bodies were brought to Washington this morning.—N. Y. Commercial Advertiser,
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[PandamoniumReigns]

You rock FarmersDaughter!

 

[nc vol fan]

On my way to Gettyburg to see the reenactment. REALLY excited.

 

[farmersdaughter]

You rock FarmersDaughter!

Thanks
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[farmersdaughter]

June 30, 1861

The Ninth Regiment of Massachusetts, numbering one thousand men, under the command of Colonel Cass, arrived at Washington.—National Intelligencer, July 1.

—This morning at daybreak fourteen rebel scouts attacked three pickets of the Fourth Pennsylvania Regiment, belonging to Company E, stationed on Shuter’s Hill, Va., four miles from Alexandria, wounding Lewellan Roemer, of Blue Bell, and killing Thomas Murray, of Norristown. The pickets returned the fire, killing two rebels and wounding a third. One of the slain was a sergeant of the Letcher Guard. The rebels beat a hasty retreat. The firing having been heard by the Union troops, a detachment of Zouave and another of the Fourth Pennsylvania Regiment reinforced the pickets, and followed in the trail of the rebels for some distance, finding four rifles and three revolvers, which the latter threw away in their hasty flight. One of the revolvers, very valuable, was marked with the name of John Johnson, a farmer living in that vicinity, who is a noted rebel. The Pennsylvanians behaved with great spirit and with the coolness of veterans, boldly holding their position, though wounded, in the hope of being reinforced.— N. Y. Herald, July 1.

—John Williams, who behaved so bravely in the skirmish at Matthias Point, carrying the American flag out of the fight in safety, though it was completely riddled with bullets as he went, was promoted to the post of Master’s Mate for his gallant conduct.—N. Y. Times, July 1.

—Yesterday the armed steamer Sumter, “of the Confederate States Navy,” ran the blockade of New Orleans, and got safely to sea. The New Orleans Picayune, in noting the fact, said:—”The first vessel of our little navy, the C. S. steamer-of-war Sumter, sailed on Saturday last, on a cruise, having ran the paper blockade of the Lincoln Abolition war steamers, off the mouth of the Mississippi. She has a picked crew, and her commander is known to be a most brave and chivalrous sailor, and he has under him a most gallant set of officers: Commander, Raphael Semmes; Lieutenants, John M. Kells, R. F. Chapman, W. E. Evans, J. M. Stribling; Paymaster, Henry Myers; Passed Assistant-Surgeon, Francis L. Gait; Lieutenant of Marines, Becket E. Howell; Midshipmen, Richard F. Armstrong, W. A. Hicks, A. G. Hudgins, J. D. Wilson; Gunner, Thomas C. Cuddy; Sail-maker, M. P. Beaufort; Engineers, First Assistant, acting as chief, Miles J. Freeman; Second Assistant, W. P. Brooks; Third Assistants, Matthew O’Brien and Simeon W. Cummings. She has a crew of sixty-five men and twenty marines.”

—The Charleston Mercury published the following on the Confederate Commissioners in Europe: It is now several months since our commissioners were sent to Europe. Thus far it seems they have got no further than England. Mr. Rost, one of them, has gone over to France; but as he can have no authority to act alone, we presume that he goes rather to ascertain the views of the Emperor of the French than to make a treaty. We infer from Mr. Rost’s departure from London to Paris that nothing has been accomplished in England.

Indeed, from the order in Council forbidding Confederate privateers bringing their prizes into British ports, we are only surprised that any of the Commissioners should have remained in London a day after this new order was issued. This is an act of quasi hostility, which, it appears to us, ought to have arrested a conference with the British authorities. It was well known that, whilst Great Britain has the greatest interest in the independence of the Confederate States, there is an element of antislavery fanaticism which would, in all likelihood, paralyze her counsels in our favor.

Why our commissioners have lingered so long in England, and have not gone directly to the greatest source of success, the government of France, we are at a loss to determine. By pretermitting the Emperor of the French, the British ministry have had the opportunity of obtaining, perhaps, his co-operation in the line of policy they design to pursue. By a direct communication with him, he would most probably have controlled instead of supporting the policy of England.

We, of course, do not know the means used by our government to conciliate the prompt acknowledgment of our independence by France and England, but it is clear, if we expected them to depart from that policy which the laws of nations strictly required, we must offer them inducements of industry. Our separation from the North, and our lower tariff, certainly gave them the prospect of great commercial advantages, from our independence; but the tariff might be changed—it might be made low from motives of present policy, and we might, after that policy is accomplished, in our independence have renewed higher duties. To present to these great States alluring assurances of present commercial advantages, it appears to us our commissioners ought to have proposed a low maximum of duties, to extend over many years yet to come.

It is absurd to suppose that either France or Great Britain will run the risk of disagreeable, if not hostile complications with the United States, without the security of clear advantages to be obtained. When we have fairly fought out our independence, of course all foreign nations will acknowledge us; but to take us by the hand when we are weak and want their aid, and when our position is surrounded with doubts—in their opinion, at least—as to our future success, we must offer such inducements, strongly appealing to their interests, as will indemnify them for all risk in taking us in their embraces by friendly commercial treaties.

Have our commissioners been empowered to offer to France and England a treaty guaranteeing for a number of years low duties on their manufactured commodities imported into the Confederate States? We fear not; for if they had been empowered to make such treaties, we are satisfied that they might have returned home with their mission completely successful, and the war on our frontier, on the part of the United States, reduced to a weak absurdity.

?—Leonidas Polk, better known as Bishop Polk, of Louisiana, having received the appointment of Major-General in the rebel service, assumed the command of his division. His headquarters were at Memphis, Term., in the neighborhood of which the troops comprising his command had their rendezvous. “This is the first instance,” says the Memphis Appeal “in the country ‘s history of the appointment of a high-church dignitary to a position of so much responsibility in the military service, and will, therefore, as a matter of course, evoke criticism among the old fogies of the red-tape school. But apart from the fact that the acceptance of this appointment was urged upon Gen. Polk with great earnestness by the President, the general-in-chief of the army, and other military officers of distinction who are well acquainted with his qualifications, there is much in the character and history of the appointee which inclines to the opinion that the selection is highly judicious, and one which will give great satisfaction. General Polk received a thorough military education at the West Point Academy, which he entered, from North Carolina, in 1828. He graduated with honor and entered the United States service, his first commission as second lieutenant of artillery bearing date July 1, 1827.

“He did not remain long in the army, however, but resigned in December of the same year, and embarked in another and different field of usefulness. General Polk will bring to the discharge of the duties of his position, a mature judgment, ripe scholarship, unusual activity of mind and body, great firmness and decision of character, a chivalric bearing, and the presence and mien of a thorough soldier. Though not a stickler for mere etiquette of the camp, he is a rigid disciplinarian, and, withal, the very man to win the confidence, and command the respect of his soldiers.”

—A correspondent of the Charlatan (S. C.) Courier, writing from Richmond, Va., says:— “There are few points of a war character which, just at this time, can appropriately form the subject of a letter. All eyes, however, are directed towards Manassas, and it is not improbable that by the time these lines reach your readers, the telegraph will have preceded me with the details of a great battle. The northern despatches all indicate the gradual approach of the two armies, the strengthening of outposts and various other movements which forerun hostilities. The southern press, on the contrary, are discreetly silent, and all we know is what we see ourselves, or hear from those who have seen for us; but the two sources of intelligence concur in the fact that unless the good Lord creates a modern Babel at Manassas and Alexandria, or drops down between the armies a veil of Cimmerian darkness, nature, personal gravitation, and animal magnetism will as certainly conspire to produce a collision as the multiplication table tells the truth.

“There are some yet, however, who affect to believe that we shall have a peace before we have a fight. The reaction so long predicted at the North having begun, the circulating petitions of merchants, bankers, clergymen, and other citizens of New York, which are pressing their peaceful influences upon Abraham Lincoln, are also operating here. The question is already being discussed in its various bearings, and the auspicious event has even been assigned a place this side of Christmas.

“We have no idea, however, of giving up the contest without, at least, one grand exhibition of the power, the prowess, and the resources of the people who have been stigmatized as the ‘ruffian rebels of the South.’ We went into the war on principle. Let us come out on principle, but not until we have left a mark upon our enemies that will secure for us for all time to come the respect of the world.

“Two hundred thousand men we have in the field will not be content to lay down their arms in peace until they have struck a blow that shall quiver through the North; and unless this be done, the millions they have left behind them will have their ‘welcome home’ alloyed by the thought that their husbands, sons, and brothers have returned without teaching that lesson of humiliation to an insolent foe, which, next to the Lord’s Prayer, has been the uppermost desire in every southern heart.

“In a civil point of view, as rapidly as circumstances will permit, the wheels of government are being geared and the machinery set in motion. The old adage that ‘large bodies move slowly,’ meets its falsification every hour. The operations of the various departments are in fall blast, and from the President down to the errand boy, every man moves as if he was a confederation of steel springs. Nor is this activity confined alone to the government. Artisans and merchants have all the work they can do in supplying the demands upon their several vocations incident to the presence of an army of needful soldiers.

“Blacksmiths are fabricating bowie knives; machinists are making arms and altering flint to percussion locks; millers are turning out floor; bakers are kneading bread by the ton, while butchers, grocers, and caterers generally are beleaguered day and night to supply the wants of the augmented population. Clothing, shoes, accoutrements, and camp equipage—all find ready sale. The frequent arrivals hereof poorly uniformed companies keep the ladies likewise up to their elbows in business.”
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[farmersdaughter]

Monday, July 1, 1861

Many of the Federal troops stationed in Washington are preparing to move into Virginia within the next week, with the aim of discovering and removing threats from secessionist enclaves and scouting parties. *Although northern Virginia has not been the scene of any new fights recently, skirmishes between Confederate scouts and Federal troops continue to occur. The most recent, near Alexandria, killed one Union soldier and two secessionists from the Confederate scouting party.

In surprising news out of Fort Monroe, General Butler arrested Colonel Allen for misconduct in the field, including violations of both military law and private rights. A reporter at Fort Monroe says that Colonel Allen allegedly destroyed private property and disobeyed positioning orders. Colonel Allen disputes the charges and said he is prepared to defend himself against them.

Another arrest making news across the country is that of Marshall George Kane, head of the Baltimore police force. Kane had professed “he would not do anything against the Government so long as Maryland remains in the Union,” but reporters claim his staunch support of the Maryland secessionists was common knowledge in the city. There is no further information on the charges against him, but we will bring you updates as we receive them.

A judge in New York has ruled that volunteers for the Union Army under the age of 21 must have the “written consent of his parents, or guardian, or master.” So far the city has seen nearly 32,000 men volunteer for the cause, with many more in a position to do so if needed.

The New York Times has elaborated on General Beauregard’s strategy for attacking Washington, DC. The paper writes that “his plan is to get as near the Arlington outposts as possible with his main force and to shell the city—pushing his column on, meantime, to engage our forces, until he sees an opportunity to march upon the Capital with his reserve.” They attribute his information to a woman who recently arrived in the capital after having “escaped from Richmond after various vicissitudes.”

According to the San Francisco Herald, 5,000 volunteers from California will soon travel to Texas by way of Mexico, where they hope to “recapture the forts which have been taken by the rebels, and also to strengthen any Union sentiment which may remain in Texas.
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[farmersdaughter]

July 2, 1861

—Between 3 and 7 o’clock this morning the troops which have been concentrating at Hagerstown and Williamsport, Md., for several days past, crossed the ford at the latter place. Gen. Patterson reviewed them as they filed past him.

The morning was bright and beautiful, and the soldiers were in excellent spirits; the advance took place before daylight, the post of honor being assigned to Captain McMullen’s Independent Rangers, and the First Wisconsin, and the Eleventh Pennsylvania regiments. The advancing column consisted of the brigades of Abercrombie, Thomas, and Negley. The Independent Rangers behaved remarkably well, getting close up to the rebels, within a distance of only 75 yards. Abercrombie’s brigade led the advance, and the casualties of the conflict were almost exclusively on the First Wisconsin and Eleventh Pennsylvania Regiments. Col. Jarrett and Lieut.-Col. Coulter led the skirmishers, opening upon them at 400 yards. The whole of the rebel forces at Martinsburg, consisting of four regiments of infantry and one regiment of horse, were engaged in the action.

They had with them four pieces of artillery, part rifled cannon, and were commanded by Gen. Jackson. The first city troops of Philadelphia were assigned a position near the United States cavalry, under Captain Perkins, and behaved remarkably well. The casualties on the Federal side are two killed and several wounded. Several of the dead and wounded of the secession troops were left on the field in their hasty retreat. In anticipation of a retreat by the Federal forces, the rebels had levelled the fences on both sides of the turnpike even with the ground, so as to cut them off in the event of their retiring to the Potomac.

The first stand was made at Porterfield Farm, on the turnpike, near Haynesville, where it was necessary to destroy a barn and carriage-house, to make a charge upon the enemy. Here the conflict was fierce, the rebels standing well up to their work, and finally slowly retreating. Knapsacks and canteens were hastily thrown aside as incumbrances to a backward march. The rebels left behind them a number of blankets, and other articles of value, indicating a heavy loss.

—The Thirty-fourth Regiment, N. Y. S. V., left Albany for the seat of war. It is commanded by Colonel William Ledeu.—The Twenty-fifth Regiment N. Y. S. V., under the command of Colonel James E. Kerrigan, left their quarters on Staten Island, New York, for Washington.—N. Y. Tribune, July 4.

—The steamer Cataline was burned at Fortress Monroe, this evening.—Philadelphia, Press, July 5.

—The Legislature of Western Virginia organized at Wheeling. Lieut.-Governor Parsley took the chair in the Senate, and Daniel Frost of Jackson was elected Speaker of the House.

Governor Pierpont’s message was sent to both Houses, together with, a document from Washington, effectually recognizing the new Government. The message is a very able document and gives universal satisfaction. It is a succinct review of secession in Virginia, and of the causes leading to the formation of the present Government, and recommends an energetic cooperation with the Federal Government. (Doc. 29.)

—Twenty-seven thousand dollars belonging to the State were seized and carried to Wheeling by order of the Governor, from the Exchange Bank of Weston, Virginia, where it had been placed to the credit of the Western Lunatic Asylum by the State authorities. Capt. List was commissioned by Gov. Pierpont to go and take charge of the money, the work on the Asylum having been stopped, and there being reasonable apprehensions that the gold might fall into the hands of Letcher’s government. The Captain proceeded to Grafton, and upon making known his object to Gen. McClellan, in less than twenty-four hours a regiment of men, under Col. Tyler, were on the march. The expedition left Clarksburg on Sunday evening, and marching all night, reached Weston the next morning, about five o’clock. The people were all asleep, but the fine band which accompanied the expedition aroused the drowsy population by playing the Star-Spangled Banner. Col. Tyler took possession of the place, and Captain List went down and demanded the money in the name of the State of Virginia. No resistance was made, and the money was soon given up. The troops captured some twenty prisoners, all of whom were released upon examination, except the following, who were carried to Grafton and placed under guard: James T. Jackson, George J. Butcher, W. E. Lively, John Kearns, Jr., and J. Shumat. — Wheeling Intelligencer,
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[farmersdaughter]

July 2 1861
Battle of Hokes Run or Battle of Falling Waters

The Battle of Hoke's Run, also known as the Battle of Falling Waters or Hainesville, took place on July 2, 1861, in Berkeley County, Virginia (now West Virginia) as part of the Manassas Campaign of the American Civil War.

On July 2, Maj. Gen. Robert Patterson's division crossed the Potomac River near Williamsport, Maryland and marched on the main road to Martinsburg. Near Hoke's Run, the Union brigades of Cols. John J. Abercrombie and George H. Thomas encountered regiments of Col. Thomas J. Jackson's Confederate brigade, driving them back slowly. Jackson's orders were to delay the Federal advance only, which he did, withdrawing before Patterson's larger force. On July 3, Patterson occupied Martinsburg, but made no further aggressive moves until July 15, when he marched to Bunker Hill. Instead of moving on Winchester, however, Patterson turned east to Charles Town and then withdrew to Harpers Ferry.

Patterson's retrograde movement took pressure off Confederate forces in the Shenandoah Valley and allowed Brig. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's Army of the Shenandoah to march to support Brig. Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard at Manassas Junction. Patterson's inactivity contributed to the Union defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21
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[farmersdaughter]

July 3 1861

—Gen. Lyon, with upwards of two thousand National troops, left Booneville, Missouri, for the Southwest.—N. Y. Times, July 7.

—The Military Board of Arkansas issued a proclamation, calling for 10,000 men to repel invasion by the National troops through Missouri. Each company is to arm itself with the usual weapons of the country, furnish its own tents and camp equipage, which will be paid for by the State. Regiments are ordered to organize for immediate service.—Memphis Appeal, July 4.

—A correspondent in Morgan county, Va., in a letter to the Baltimore American, gives the following account of affairs in that district: —We are now experiencing and witnessing the evils of secession in this county, where we have always enjoyed the blessings of liberty and the freedom of speech. We dare not open our mouths now. The Confederate troops, which came into our county on last Sunday (three hundred and fifty), have caused a great stampede among our Union men. One-third of the male population has gone to Maryland for fear of being impressed in the Confederate service. A perfect reign of terror prevails here; business is suspended, and our citizens are compelled to stand on guard without board or pay. Neither friend nor foe is allowed to cross the river at this place or Hancock, but fortunately the river is very low, and we can occasionally steal away and wade across at other places, to get our mails. Two gentlemen from Maryland were arrested here yesterday and taken to headquarters at Berkeley Springs, upon what charge I have not been able to learn. I presume they will be released to-day. It is impossible for us to learn the object of those troops, though it is reported to-day that they intend to march over to Hancock and take possession of a large quantity of flour and grain for the use of the army at Winchester.—Baltimore American, July 6.

—The Twenty-Fourth Regiment New York S. V. from Oswego, arrived at Washington.— N. Y. Tribune
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[farmersdaughter]

Thursday, July 4, 1861

?Today marks the eighty-fifth anniversary of the creation of the nation. It has been stated that this holiday is “about the only act of veneration for past memories that the North and South can perform in common.” The prevalent sense, however, is that we can not celebrate this holiday in the usual style. War has stripped us of the luxury of a great many of our traditions. The fight of the founding fathers does seem to be of particularly significance in light of the present situation. Both the North and the South lay claims that they are upholding the ideals of those long-ago men; The North through the preservation of the nation which they worked so laboriously to create, the South by asserting that the value of independence trumps all others.

As the focus in the North is on the preservation of the Union, it is understandable that many efforts are being made to facilitate the most traditional celebrations possible. A regimental size, silk national flag has been prepared by the citizens of Baltimore. It is meant to be presented to the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment today. Also, in observance of the holiday, there will be no issue of the New York Times tomorrow morning. The Press will not have its customary break in service for the holiday, due to the meeting of Congress, the movements of the army and other exciting events. This paper addresses the difficulties of celebration:

Our national anniversary occurs at a time when we are surrounded by difficulties of an unprecedented character, and when domestic foes of our institutions have dared to make a treasonable assault upon our liberal and beneficent Government, which was never anticipated by the Fathers of the Republic. Although the exigencies of the conflict may prevent many from celebrating the day in their usual manner, the outburst of practical patriotism which it has evoked in this period of trial and danger is the most acceptable and conclusive evidence that could be given of the perpetuation of the spirit of ’76.

In addition to condemning the assembly of the Federal Congress in Washington, the Richmond Daily Dispatch voices the opinions of many in the South when it says, “It is a sufficient tribute to it that we are engaged in the maintenance of the principles of human rights and the liberty it announced, and that we are ready to sacrifice our lives and all we have in the effort.” In this vein the day will be met with whatever merriment each individual deems fitting. We do, however, support the following caution: “Let no one indulge too freely in “bumpers,” even though they be drank to the memory of the Departed Union.” There have been too many accidents in recent weeks as a result of such activity.

Though we may speculate, we shall never know what those who came before us would say about our current predicament, any more than we can claim to predict how the future will remember us. For now, both sides can be content only in their belief that they are doing what is right for the present.

Lieutenant-Colonel J. W. Ripley, head of the Ordnance Department, received the brevet of Brigadier-General in the United States Army. A well-merited honor. He is one of the oldest and most valuable officers of the army. He was abroad on leave at the commencement of the rebellion, but hastened home to offer his services. On being asked by a friend if he had returned to engage in the war, he replied: ” Yes, and to give my last drop of blood to defend my Government.” He has disowned his nephew, Major Ripley, who took part in the attack on Fort Sumter.

Captain (now Major) Doubleday of the First Artillery, recently promoted to be a Major in the Seventeenth foot, received his new commission.—Baltimore American, July 5.

—The Mozart Regiment, N. Y. Volunteers, embarked this morning, at Yonkers, and left for Elizabethport, N. J., to take the cars for Washington. The regiment numbered 1,046, and were armed with Enfield muskets. They had two hundred common tents, forty officers’ tents, ten baggage wagons, each drawn by six horses, four hospital ambulances, twenty camp stoves, and two brass 12-pound howitzers.— N. Y. World, July 6.

—A Union meeting was held at the city of Louisiana, Missouri, at which Mr. Charles D. Drake delivered an elaborate speech in defence of the Union and the Constitution.—(Doc. 63.)

—Pursuant to the call of the President of the United States, Congress assembled at Washington this day in special session. Galusha A. Grow, of Penn., was elected speaker of the House, and took the oath of office, which was administered by Mr. Washburne of Illinois. The President’s message was received and read together with reports of the heads of the various departments. The message is brief, and the facts it states are well known; the important points of the document are those which embody the recommendations of the President in relation to the measures to be adopted for the prosecution of the war. Compromise by Congress ho regards as out of the question. The people only can compromise on a question which affects the existence of the nation. He therefore asks that Congress give to the Executive the “legal means to make the contest a short and decisive one, by placing at the control of Government for the work at least four hundred thousand men and four hundred millions of dollars.” That number of men, he says, are ready and willing to take arms for the support of the Government, whilst the amount asked for war purposes is quite within the ability of the country to supply.—(Doc. 65, 66, 67, 68.)

—A Small flag of the Southern Confederacy was raised over a house on an alley in the upper part of the city of Louisville, Ky., to-day. The perpetration of such a deed on such a day is almost sacrilegious. The miserable flag’s time was short. Some patriotic Germans took it down, and bore it away, and burned it. Its ashes are a part of the mud of the streets.— Louisville Journal, July 8.

—The passenger trains on the Louisville and Nashville railroad were seized this morning at Camp Ironsdale, near Mitchellsville, by order of Major-General Anderson, and carried to Nashville, Tenn. The managers had taken all the engines and running stock to Louisville. Ky., against which policy Tennessee had remonstrated, and this seizure was a necessity as a measure of protection. Major-General Anderson informed the agent of the road that no further seizures would be made, and that trains should pass uninterrupted.—Louisville Journal, July 5.

A skirmish took place at Harper’s Ferry, Va., this evening between companies of the New York Ninth Regiment and a detachment of Confederates, who had returned to Harper’s Ferry. A number of men belonging to one of the companies of the New York Ninth crossed over to the Ferry, for the purpose of seeing the work of destruction which had been perpetrated by the rebels, when they were fired upon by a party of men from Bolivar heights. They immediately crossed the river, returned to their encampment, and being reinforced, proceeded at once to the Potomac, opposite Harper’s Ferry, and opened fire upon them. The rebels, concealing themselves in the houses and behind the abutments of the burned bridge, had a decided advantage, and from their position poured a galling fire upon the Federal companies on this side, which were perfectly exposed: yet they stood their ground with almost reckless bravery, until the firing ceased from the opposite side, when they retired with a loss of two killed and three wounded. Several of the rebels were killed, one was killed by a citizen of Harper’s Ferry, who engaged in the fight, he being driven from the place by the rebels.—Baltimore American, July 8.

—The rebels erected a battery, and mounted two rifled cannon at Matthias Point, Va. —N. Y. Times, July C.

—The New Hampshire Legislature adjourned to-day, after a session of thirty days. Resolutions were reported, declaring the war now in progress a war solely for the maintenance of the Government and the suppression of rebellion; declaring against the right of secession; asserting that neither the President nor Congress can constitutionally entertain any proposition which has for its object the dismemberment of the Government or the dissolution of the Union; and finally declaring that the State of New Hampshire pledges her resources for the integrity of the Union, the support of the Constitution, and the enforcement of the laws of the General Government. When these resolutions were put to the vote the members all rose and gave a unanimous aye. Not a member voted in the negative. A militia bill was passed authorizing the Governor to raise three regiments, to each of which he may add a company of artillery, cavalry, and riflemen.—National Intelligencer, July 9.

—The Sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Militia, commanded by Colonel E. F. Jones, were presented with an elegant silk flag, by the loyal citizens of Baltimore, at the Relay House, where had assembled several thousand ladies and gentlemen for the purpose of witnessing the ceremonies. The regiment having been formed in a semicircle, S. J. K. Handy, Esq., advanced, and addressed the command in an eloquent and patriotic strain, presenting the flag in the name of the loyal citizens of Baltimore. Colonel Jones received the flag, and responded briefly to the address. He remarked, among other things, that ladies and gentlemen, representatives of the loyal citizens of Baltimore, had come to place the regiment under an additional obligation, in bestowing such a beautiful flag upon them. An acquaintance which opened in blood had been continued and cultivated with services of great kindness. The command appreciated the many acts which had been bestowed upon their wounded, as well as the kind expressions of the Union-loving citizens of Baltimore. The flag was accepted not only as a token of loyalty, but as an evidence of friendship, which he hoped would continue to grow and strengthen; and when it was unfurled at home, many eyes would be filled with tears in memory of those who had fallen. The presentation laid the old State of Massachusetts under an obligation to the city of Baltimore, and would ever be remembered by her best citizens. In concluding, he assured all present that the object of his regiment was not to oppress, or even to harass the South, but to protect the Capital and preserve the Government. He regretted that his language could but faintly express his feelings, but if his friends could look into his heart they would much better understand him. At the conclusion of his speech three cheers were given for Massachusetts, in response to which nine cheers were given by the regiment for teo loyal citizens of Baltimore. Baltimore American.

—A Correspondent of the Charleston Courier:—”There are some who affect to believe that we shall have a peace before we have a fight. The reaction so long predicted al the North having begun, the circulating petitions of merchants, bankers, clergymen, and other citizens of New York, which are pressing their peaceful influences upon Abraham Lincoln, are also operating here. The question is already being discussed in its various bearings, and the auspicious event has even been assigned a place this side of Christmas.

We have no idea, however, of giving up the contest without, at least, one grand exhibition of the power, the prowess, and the resources of the people who have been stigmatized as “the ruffian rebels of the South.” We went into the war on principle; let us come, out on principle, but not until we have left a mark upon our enemies that shall secure for us for all times to come the respect of the world. The hundred thousand men we have in the field will not be content to lay down their arms in peace, until they have struck a blow that shall quiver through the North; and unless this be done, the millions they have left behind them will have their “welcome home” alloyed by the thought that their husbands, sons, and brothers have returned without teaching that lesson of humiliation to an insolent foe, which, next to the Lord’s Prayer, has been the uppermost desire in every Southern heart.
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[farmersdaughter]

Friday, July 5, 1861

The Fourth of July has come and gone. While there were certainly celebrations in commemoration of the date eighty five years ago, it can not be said that the day was not changed by the current situation. The city of Richmond reflects on the nation’s anniversary with the following:

The day was observed in this city with all the wonted patriotic feeling which hailed it in former days, if anything, enlivened by the reflection that we are now engaged in a great struggle of a second Revolution for the maintenance of the principles of the Declaration of Independence of ’76. The morning and evening salutes were fired and the military paraded. There was not, however, the usual feasting. There is to time for that now.

There have been some interesting updates after the meeting of Congress yesterday. Asbury Dickens, the Secretary of the Senate, has resigned his office. It is unknown, at this point, whether this action was his choice or if Dickens was ousted. We suspect that it is the former, as he has been increasingly unable to attend to business in the office due to infirmities. Dickens has served as Secretary since 1836 and cultivated a reputation as being an able, faithful and upright public officer. There is no reason to believe that he would have been asked to resign his post, despite the seeming suddenness of the decision.

News is just reaching us regarding the destruction of the steamer Cataline. It has been a transport between Fortress Monroe and Newport News. General Butler and his family had just landed from a trip to Newport News, when the boat was set aflame. There is no hope of saving the vessel. It is a stroke of luck that the crew had time to escape.

The carrying of side arms in public is cause for alarm in the South. The dangerous privilege is extended to soldiers, but the public is requesting that authorities prohibit such carrying in, at least, the streets of the city. There have been too many accidental deaths and unfortunate brawls with fatal results. Less than two weeks ago, Mr. Joseph T. Hough, Clerk of the Court of Union County, N.C. died as a result of an allegedly accidental shooting by James Richards of the 24th. Saturday last, a man by the name of William O’Brien shot at John Reisback after becoming intoxicated. Missing Reisback with all three shots, O’Brien succeeded only in shooting a passing lady in the foot. Reisback responded by stabbing O’Brien twice, fatally wounding him.

Such tragedies must be prevented in the future. As one reporter states, “Let it never be said that a soldier of the Southern army has lost his life by an unhappy accident, or taken that of another in the heat of passions, provoked, possibly, by a hasty remark or undue excitement.

—This morning the rebel troops stationed at Fairfax Court-House, Va., were advancing upon the Federal lines, when a regiment of their infantry fired by mistake upon a company of their cavalry, killing seven or eight men. and wounding several others.—N. Y. Evening Post, July 6.

—This morning the Missouri rebel troops, under Gov. Jackson, broke camp near Rupes Point, in Jasper Co., Missouri, and marched south in the direction of Carthage, the County seat of Jasper County. At Brier Forks, seven miles north of Carthage, they were met by Col. Siegel, with 1,500 Union men, who immediately gave them battle.

The State troops were posted on a ridge in a prairie with five pieces of artillery, one twelve pounder in the centre, two six-pounders on the right and left, cavalry on each flank, and infantry in the rear.

The artillery of Colonel Siegel approached within eight hundred yards, with four cannon in the centre, a body of infantry and a six-pounder under Lieutenant-Colonel Hassendare on the left, Colonel Solomon’s command with a six-pounder on the right, and a body of infantry behind the centre artillery.

Colonel Siegel’s left opened fire with shrapnells, and soon the engagement became general. The rebels had no grape, and their artillerists being poor, their balls flew over the heads of the National forces. After two hours’ firing, the enemy’s artillery was entirely silenced, and their ranks broken.

The State troops were now driven back some distance, and the officers ordered a retreat. The centre gave way, but the order not being heard on the flanks, the advancing United States troops were in danger of being surrounded themselves, and fell back. They retreated slowly, keeping up the fight, the artillery making fearful havoc among the enemy’s ranks.

About 1,500 rebel cavalry then attempted to outflank Siegel, and cut off his baggage train, which was three miles back, when a retrograde movement was ordered. The train was reached in good order, surrounded by infantry and artillery, and the retreat of the National troops continued until a point was reached where the road passed through a high bluff on each side, where the enemy’s cavalry were posted in large numbers. By a feint, as if intending to pass around the bluff, Siegel drew the cavalry in a solid body into the road at a distance of 150 yards from his position, when by a rapid movement of his artillery, he poured a heavy crossfire of canister into their ranks; at the same time the infantry charged at a “double quick,” and in ten minutes the State troops scattered in every direction. Eighty-five riderless horses were captured and sixty-five shot-guns, and a number of revolvers and bowie-knives were picked up from the ground.

At the crossing of Dry Fork, the Federal lines were very near being broken, when by the timely arrival of 200 Union men from Shoals Creek, they crossed with but a loss of five killed, and two mortally wounded. The battle continued, the United States troops alternately fighting and retreating until dark, when they reached Carthage, having crossed Buck Branch and Spring River. On the way, the fighting was all done with the artillery, Col. Siegel retreating as soon as they got them in position, and playing on their ranks as they advanced.

The rebel loss was great; a resident of Carthage states that he passed over a part of the battle-field after the conflict, and saw wagons and hacks passing in every direction, gathering up the dead for interment.

The loss on the part of the State troops cannot be less than from 300 to 500. The ground in many places was strewn with dead horses.

The retreat of the National forces was conducted in a style worthy of veteran troops, and with as much coolness as if they were on a parade-ground, instead of the field of battle.— (Doc. 70.)

—About five o’clock this morning twenty-five of Hawkins’ Zouaves encountered a rebel force, supposed to number about one hundred and fifty, including twenty-five cavalry, and one field-piece, seven miles from Newport News, Va.; three of the rebels were shot, and also six of Hawkins’ Zouaves. The latter sent for reinforcements, and five companies were sent to sustain them.—N. Y. Evening Post,
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[farmersdaughter]

The Battle of Carthage
Or
The Battle of Dry Fork
July 5, 1861


The Battle of Carthage, also known as the Battle of Dry Fork, took place at the beginning of the American Civil War on July 5, 1861, in Jasper County, Missouri. The experienced Colonel Franz Sigel commanded 1,100 Federal soldiers intent on keeping Missouri within the Union. The Missouri State Guard was commanded by Governor Claiborne F. Jackson himself and numbered over 4,000 unorganized, inexperienced soldiers, along with 2,000 unarmed troops who did not participate in the battle. The battle was rather meaningless from a tactical or strategic view, though it was deemed a victory by the Missouri State Guard. Carthage played a part in determining Missouri's course during the war, as it helped spark recruitment for the Southern regiments[citation*needed].

Background

Political views in Missouri were divided before the Civil War. St. Louis and its surrounding counties generally sympathized with the Northern states because that region was connected economically with North. The area also had few slaves and contained a large German immigrant population, most of whom opposed slavery. Missouri Governor Claiborne F. Jackson was pro-Southern, and the rest of the state was very heavily divided. Publicly Jackson tried to stay neutral, but he was suspected by the Union men of secretly preparing the state militia to seize the Federal Arsenal in St. Louis.

In April 1861, after the firing on Fort Sumter, President Abraham Lincoln called for troops from all of the states to defeat the Confederacy. Missouri was asked to send four regiments. Governor Jackson refused the request. Instead, he called up the Missouri State Militia, possibly to seize the St. Louis Arsenal. If this was his intention, it was thwarted by the newly appointed commander of the arsenal, Captain Nathaniel Lyon of the 2nd U. S. Infantry.

Lyon was an abolitionist and had plans of his own for the arsenal. He used its weapons to arm a Radical Republican paramilitary organization called the Wide Awakes.[1] To prevent the secession favoring governor and his supporters from seizing the arms, Lyon secretly had most of the arsenal's weapons moved across the Mississippi River to Illinois. He then surrounded the state militia's camp, forced them to surrender, and unwisely started from there and marched them as prisoners through St. Louis, inadvertently inciting a deadly riot (the Camp Jackson Affair.) The action drew great protests from Missourians, and even representatives of the City of St. Louis petitioned Lincoln for Lyon's dismissal. Lyon, however, was politically connected to Postmaster General Montgomery Blair. Blair arranged for Lyon's promotion to brigadier general and saw that he was given command of the Army of the West in place of Gen. William S. Harney, a moderate.

On June 10, 1861, Lyon personally met with Governor Jackson in an attempt to resolve their differences in a "gentlemanly" manner. The conference proved futile, with Lyon storming out of the room and declaring that the war was on. Lyon moved his Army of the West up the Missouri River to capture the state capital at Jefferson City, leaving General Thomas Sweeny to take steps to move his troops out of St. Louis. Sweeny was delayed due to logistical problems, so Col. Franz Sigel took command of the Federal advance. On June 12 he started to move his First and Second Battalions, along with 5 infantry companies, 2 rifle companies, and an artillery battery towards Springfield.

The Missouri State Guard retreated to Boonville, where a pivotal skirmish took place on June 17. Lyon quickly took the town and chased the Missouri State Guard south. Again due to logistics, Lyon could not keep up with the retreating Guardsmen. Another group of State Guardsmen in Lexington also moved south under Sterling Price, after learning of the defeat in Boonsville. Sigel’s troops arrived in Springfield and quickly took the town. They prepared to march to Carthage, hoping to catch up with the retreating State Guardsmen. Jackson’s and Prices’s units met in Lamar on July 3 and started to organize. Jackson’s army grew to 6,000 men, a large number of whom joined along the march south. However, the force in Lamar was for the most part armed only with hunting rifles, shotguns, knives, or nothing at all. The next day, July 4, Sigel arrived at Carthage with his 1,100 men.

Learning that Sigel had encamped at Carthage, Governor Jackson took command and made plans to attack the smaller but better armed Union force. On the morning of July 5, Jackson marched his green soldiers south. The rival armies met 10 miles north of Carthage, and the State Guard raised two Confederate stars and bars flags on either side of their line, which stretched over half a mile. Sigel’s men provided an impressive display as they formed a line of battle and moved within 800 yards of the State Guard troops.

Battle

Opposing forces

Opening the action with his artillery, Sigel closed to the attack. Jackson replied his own artillery. Both sides then engaged in some skirmishing. However, spotting a large Confederate force—actually all unarmed recruits—moving into the woods on his left, he feared they would turn his flank. He ordered a retreat. The Confederates pursued, but Sigel conducted a successful rearguard action. By evening, Sigel was back in Carthage. Under the cover of darkness, he retreated further to Sarcoxie.

Significance

The Battle of Carthage had little strategic meaning, but pro-Southern elements in Missouri, anxious for any good news, celebrated their first victory.

The battle also marks the only time a sitting U.S. State governor has led troops in the field, and then, against the Union to which his state belonged.
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[farmersdaughter]

Saturday, July 6, 1861

?News is slow today after the Independence Day celebrations on Thursday. The festive atmosphere has spread to the troops as well: Most military actions with exception of those in western Virginia and Missouri have been suspended as the soldiers celebrate with salutes and singing. Spirits are high,* although the usual fanfare is diminished somewhat by the absence of troops for parades in most cities.

Discussion of the President’s speech has occupied the majority of the House’s time since it convened on Thursday, but a good deal of time has also been spent on routine House business. The new House devoted considerable time in its first meeting on Thursday and Friday to elections for leadership positions. A number of men, including Congressmen Colfax and Blair, have put their names in the hat for the speakership. Colfax and Blair, however, withdrew their nominations following the nomination of Republican Galusha A. Grow of Pennsylvania, who has represented his state in Congress for ten years. Grow easily won the election because the Republican leadership wished to avoid a protracted battle. Grow is well regarded by his fellow party members, and he carries a reputation for strong opposition to slavery and secession. He is most notable for his staunch opposition to the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, as well as an incident earlier that year when he was attacked on the House floor by Rep. Keitt of South Carolina—an incident that precipitated a large brawl reminiscent of the chamber’s earliest days. Emerson Etheridge of Tennessee was elected to the Clerkship of the House of Representatives. Etheridge remains a strong opponent of his state’s secession and a firm supporter of the Union.

Following their crossing of the Potomac earlier this week, General Patterson’s forces are now encamped at Martinsburgh in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. General McClellan’s forces remain further to the northwest, perhaps three days from Patterson. Following a few small skirmishes with the forces of Confederate General Jackson, Patterson’s troops pushed further south, while a weakened Jackson has encamped about ten miles south, along the road to Winchester, where a significantly larger Confederate force is gathered.

Cyrus McCormick, inventor and patent-holder of the McCormick Reaper, has applied today for a renewal of his patent. The renewal application has been extremely controversial, as critics accuse McCormick of attempting to extend an “oppressive monopoly” to the detriment of American farmers.

—At Washington orders were issued as follows:—”The State of Illinois and the States and territories West of the Mississippi and on this side of the Rocky Mountains, including New Mexico, will, in future, constitute a separate military command, to be known as the Western Department, under the command of Major-General Fremont, of the United States army, head-quarters at St. Louis.”

It having been ascertained to the satisfaction of the War Department, that First Lieutenant John Thomas Goode, of the Fourth Artillery, entertained, and had expressed treasonable designs against the Government of the United States, his name was stricken from the rolls of the army.

Captain John McNab of the Tenth Infantry, having, while in command of Fort Laramie, given satisfactory evidence of his disloyalty to the Government, the President directed that his name be stricken from the roll of the army.

The President also ordered the name of Assistant-Surgeon, Lafayette Gould, of the medical staff, to be stricken from the roll for refusing to renew his oath of allegiance.—N. Y. Commercial, July 6.

—The work of erasing names from the Guion compromise petition lists is in progress. On the fourth of July fifty-six names had been erased, and a large number yesterday and today. It is amusing to note the effectual manner in which the names are erased. In most cases it is impossible to decipher the name—it is out a crossing off, but a complete blotting out. Almost every person who has erased his name says that his signature was obtained under false pretences. One or two say that they were informed that it was a petition to the Common Council for an appropriation for the Central Park, and that it would afford an opportunity for the employment of laborers now out of work!

The story that “some one” (meaning Mr. Galon) had commenced a suit for the arrest of Superintendent Kennedy and Mr. J. B. Taylor, fur false imprisonment may be stated in brief: An application was made to Judge Leonard for an order to arrest these gentlemen, and the Judge promptly refused.—N. Y. Evening Post, July 6.

—Forty-five men of the Third Ohio regiment fell in with an ambuscade of several hundred rebels at Middle Fork Bridge, twelve miles east of Buckhannon, Va. Being surrounded they fought desperately for some time, then cut their way through the enemy and retired, losing only one man and having some wounded.
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[IPorange]

Third Ohio regiment whooped they ass. Stupid Rebs.

 

[farmersdaughter]

Sunday, July 7, 1861

?Thursday marked the first Independence Day to be celebrated by a divided nation. Not surprisingly, these celebrations have taken on sharply diverging characters on either side of the divide. If any were unsure of the enthusiasm with which the Union and Confederate men view their soldiers and the war effort, they could put their doubts to rest after seeing the outpouring of patriotic activity this past Thursday.

As though in recognition of the holiday, the war has progressed extremely slowly this week. Even the minor skirmishing that characterized the past few months appears to have slowed. The only conflict of any significance occurred when General Robert Patterson won an easy victory for the Union forces near Martinsburgh in western Virginia. Troops elsewhere were busy taking part in celebrations. Federal batteries fired numerous salutes, even those located next to Confederate territory, as a reminder of the history and heritage of our nation.

Given the thin war news this week, the national capital has once again claimed the lion’s share of attention with a special session of Congress held on the Fourth. This session marks the first such meeting of the body since the Fort Sumter incident and the outbreak of the war. Much of the chamber’s time was devoted to the routine business that characterizes the inauguration of any parliamentary body: the election of speakers, clerks, and party leaders. However, its members also focused on the substance of the President’s address: the ongoing crisis, the origins of the war, military strategy and Lincoln’s request for Congress to grant him the powers necessary to carry out the war to the fullest extent. Although his speech contained few surprises, his plans hint at the direction the conflict may take. Indeed, they appear to foreshadow a number of internal political conflicts, particularly between the Executive Branch and the Supreme Court. This can be most clearly seen in his remarks on the war powers of the Executive Branch; he noted that many of the actions his Administration took in the early days of the war are of questionable legality. “The Congress, and not the Executive, is vested with these [war] powers”, he said, but then he defended his actions as a necessary and constitutional response to a “dangerous emergency,” before imploring Congress to “give [him] the legal means for making this contest a short and decisive one.”

The heavily Republican Congress received the President’s speech extremely well, which would suggest that he will have little difficulty winning congressional approval for an expansion of war powers. Nor is he likely to face censure for any actions taken thus far. The recent surge in patriotism and support for a robust war effort reinforces this notion. Any attempts to punish the President for taking action against the secessionists would likely be broadly unpopular across the country, a fact the President’s political opponents have no doubt taken into account. The Supreme Court, however, is relatively insulated from this popular pressure and has shown itself, in the Merriman case, to be willing to challenge the President on matters of executive power. Although it is too soon to determine what action, if any, the Court will take, it is clearly the Federal branch to watch, as it poses the strongest internal threat to Lincoln’s war aims.

—An infernal machine, designed by the Rebels to blow up the Pawnee and the vessels of the Potomac flotilla, which was set adrift near Acquia Creek, was picked up floating toward the Pawnee. The following description of the article has been sent to the Navy Department: Two large eighty-gallon oil casks, perfectly water-tight, acting as buoys, connected by twenty-five fathoms of 3½-inch rope, buoyed with largo squares of cork, every two feet, secured to casks by iron handles. A heavy bomb of boiler iron, fitted with a brass tap, and filled with powder, is suspended to the casks six feet under water. On top of the cask is a wooden box, with fuze in a gutta-percha tube. In the centre of the cork is a platform with a great length of fuze coiled away occupying the middle of the cask. It was intended by the contrivers of this weapon of civilized warfare, that the shock of a collision should light the fuze. The machine was first discovered by the Pawnee while lying off Acquia Creek, in company with the Freeborn and two or three other vessels. The commander of the former, on seeing the object toward the fleet, sent out a small boat’s crew to make an investigation.—N. Y. Tribune, July 13.

—This morning, at an early hour, a considerable body of Secessionists made their appearance at the Great Falls, above Washington, opposite Major Gerhardt’s command, Eighth German Battalion, of about two hundred men, and commenced firing. Major Gerhardt’s battalion returned the fire, and after the exchange of a few volleys, “nobody hurt,” the rebels retired, but returned again this afternoon about five o’clock with reinforcements comprising a body of cavalry. The firing was kept up with spirit on both sides for several hours, and two men of Major Gerhardt’s command were mortally wounded and have since died—privates George Riggs and Martin Ohl. No other men were wounded on the Union side, but Major Gerhardt’s sharp-shooters emptied several saddles on the other side, and suppose they must have killed at least a dozen before the enemy retired. Gerhardt’s men are anxious to cross the river and meet their enemies hand to hand if they can be found. The firing from the other side was all along the shore from near Dickey’s tavern to above the Falls. Both Riggs and Ohl belonged to Company B, Turner Rifles. Both were married men, and the last words of Ohl was a message to his wife “not to grieve for him; that he died for liberty and his country.”—National Intelligencer, July 9.

—It having been ascertained to the satisfaction of the War Department that Captain Manry, Assistant Adjutant General; Captain Carter L. Stevenson, of the Fifth Infantry; and Second Lieutenant Dillon, of the Sixth Infantry, entertain and have expressed treasonable designs against the Government of the United States, their names, according to General Order No. 87, were stricken from the rolls of the army; and also Major Albert J. Smith, Paymaster, for having deserted his post at Key West, Florida.—Army Order No. 88.

—The Twenty-third Regiment N. Y. S. V., arrived at Washington. It is commanded by Colonel H. C. Hoffman.—National Intelligencer, July 9.

—Mb. Vallandigham, of Ohio, visited, this afternoon, the Ohio encampments in Virginia, and was greeted with the sight of a hanging effigy, bearing the inscription: “Vallandigham, the traitor.” When he approached the Second Ohio Regiment, he was saluted by a discharge of stones, and, on the interposition of the officers, they were also pelted, until it amounted almost to a riot. He was finally released from his unpleasant position.—N. Y. Tribune, July 8.

—Very impressive and interesting services took place in the Church of the Messiah in New York this evening. The exercises were chosen with special reference to their fitness for the first Sunday after National Independence. The services began with Collins’ Requiem of Heroes:

“How sleep the brave who sink to rest,

By all their country’s wishes blest!”

Then followed the xlviith Psalm, slightly modified, the minister rending a verse and the congregation responding with the alternate one. Dr. Osgood made the prayer, and afterward the choir sang the “March of Liberty.” The beginning of this sacred song is:

“No battle-brand shall harm the free,

Led on by Christ our Liberty!*

This was succeeded by Psalm csivii., read by the minister and people; lesson from the Old Testament—the Promised Land—Deut, viii.; chanted Psalm—Cantate Domino; lesson from the New Testament—Christ weeping over Jerusalem—Matt, xxiii.; and Gloria in Excelsis.

The subject of Dr. Osgood’s brief extempore discourse was “God with Nations,” in which he showed that the august feature of modern civilization was the consecration of nationality.

—The New Orleans Picayune published an elaborate article upon the celebration of the Fourth of July, in which it stated that the present rebellion is “based upon the same eternal principles which justified and glorified the patriots of 1776.”—
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[farmersdaughter]

Monday, July 8, 1861

Several sources are reporting unconfirmed rumors that former Virginia Governor Henry Wise was mortally wounded in a bloody battle that devastated Confederate forces in western Virginia yesterday. The Governor was reportedly traveling with a guard of fifty men, commanded by Captain Patten, when they encountered a company of Union soldiers. In addition to killing forty of the guards and fatally wounding Governor Wise, Captain Patten may have also sustained mortal wounds. While these reports remain unconfirmed, we have verified that a*skirmish did occur near Fort Monroe, killing three secessionist soldiers.*Another*attack took place as troops from New York disembarked from a train at Harper’s Ferry. One Union soldier was killed and several others injured.

Ten thousand Northern troops and heavy equipment crossed the Potomac into Virginia yesterday, with an additional 10,000*projected to make the trip today and tomorrow. Military campaigns to push further inwards into Virginia have largely ceased for the moment to allow for the buildup of men and arms.

Utah remains unable to retain a Governor after their elected official, Alfred Cumming, abruptly abandoned his post for Georgia. Only a few weeks into the job, Acting Governor and former State Secretary of Treasury Francis Wootton has resigned the position because “he could not consistently hold office under an Administration whose acts he could not approve.”

Despite the political and economic upheaval facing our country today, immigration from Europe continues at unusually high levels. *According to immigration records from the past six months, the number of Irish immigrants has fallen significantly, most likely due to misinformation about the state of affairs in the United States. One reporter attributed the drop to the widely held belief among much of the Irish peasantry “that the people all over America are slaughtering each other like savages, and that they were fighting furiously even in the streets of New York . . . [and] that the inhabitants of New York had all taken to their heels and were running for their lives.” The North won’t see an immigrant labor shortage anytime soon, however, as German emigrants are happily filling the void. Not only have their numbers increased by several thousand in the last six months; on arrival, many German emigrants “boldly declare they have come to America to fight for freedom.”


—General Banks, at Baltimore, acting under the direction of authorities at Washington, this morning seized the steamers Mary Washington and George W. Weems, both owned and commanded by the Weems Brothers. These steamers have been running for a number of years between Baltimore and the ports of the Patuxent River, and it is said carried down a number of passengers who joined the Confederate army. The seizure was to prevent their being taken in a similar manner to the St. Nicholas and run into Fredericksburg as prizes. —Baltimore American, July 9.

—To-day orders were received at the headquarters of the army, in New York, to send on to the seat of war at once the company of the First Artillery, part of the Fort Sumter garrison, which remained at Fort Hamilton. Instructions were immediately sent down to the brave fellows, who were under arms for the road in a few moments. The old ensign of Sumter went along with them, as they believe “there would be no luck in the company without it.”—N. Y. World, July 11.

—This day whilst Col. Porter, of the U. S. Army, with a small party of men, was reconnoitering near the lines of the secession army in Virginia, he was approached by a detachment of the Confederate forces, in command of Capt. Taylor, of Kentucky, bearing a flag of truce. Col. Porter, on bringing the detachment to a halt, was informed that Capt. Taylor was the bearer of a sealed letter from Gen. Davis to President Lincoln, which statement was verified by an endorsement to that effect on the back of the letter, written and signed by Gen. Beauregard at Manassas Junction, and requesting that safe conduct might be given to Capt. Taylor.

Col. Porter accordingly sent Capt. Taylor, accompanied by an officer and an orderly, to the head-quarters of Gen. McDowell, at Arlington, where they arrived at seven o’clock in the evening, and were detained there until the visit of Capt. Taylor was made known to Lieut.-General Scott, upon whose order he was conducted to the General’s head-quarters in Washington, where Gen. Scott received the letter of Gen. Davis, and sent it to the President, the bearer of the letter being in the mean time detained at head-quarters.

The President, having read the letter, informed Gen. Scott that he might send the messenger back, and Capt. Taylor immediately took his departure for Arlington, and thence proceeded on his way back to Richmond.

No answer to the letter was given by the President, and it is conjectured that the mission was merely a ruse to get a view of the main works of defence, and ascertain the means at the command of the Government for a forward movement. Certain it is the messenger was not enabled to carry back with him any very encouraging tidings. One object may have been to occupy the attention of our authorities and delay matters for a few days, so as to allow time for aid from Manassas to Johnston at Winchester.—(Doc. 73.)

—Tm following official order appeared today:

“Henceforward the telegraph will convey no despatches concerning the operations of the Army not permitted by the Commanding General.

Winfield Scott”

Department of War, July 8, 1861.

The above order is confirmed.

Simon Cameron, Secretary of War.

—The Second Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers, Col. George H. Gordon, left Boston for the seat of war at Martinsburg. The regiment consists of one thousand and fifty men. They wear the regulation black felt hat, turned up at teo side. Their coats are made of serviceable blue cloth and their pants of blue flannel. Since the men first went into camp at West Roxbury, they have been put through the most rigid discipline, and are therefore now prepared to meet the enemy under any circumstances. The camp equipage of the regiment, consisting of twenty-five wagons and one hundred horses, left in advance of the troops during the afternoon. Each company is supplied with three thousand ball cartridges and seven days’ rations. The officers seem to have been well chosen. Among those in command of companies are sons of the late Rufus Choate, Thomas G. Gary, and the Hon. Josiah Quincy, Jr. The staff are all well mounted.

—Capt. Thomas, or the “French lady” who a short time previously captured the steamer St. Nicholas on. the Patuxent River, was himself captured by the Baltimore police.—(Doc. 74.)

—The De Kalb Regiment N. Y. S. V., under the command of Colonel Leopold von Gilsa, left New York for the seat of war.—N. Y. Evening Pots,
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[farmersdaughter]

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[farmersdaughter]

Tuesday, July 9, 1861

Bearing a white flag of truce, Confederate Colonel Thomas Taylor entered Union Colonel Erastus*Tyler’s camp in Virginia yesterday and declared he had dispatches for President Lincoln. At this time we know that the president received the papers and subsequently convened his Cabinet, but we do not know what message was contained in them. One Washington correspondent claims that he is “reliably informed” that the dispatches were “a proposition for a cessation of hostilities and a settlement of difficulties,” but is confident that no proposal would even be discussed unless it involved “the unconditional surrender of the rebel force.”

Congress is busy working to pass several measures that would assist the Lincoln Administration in rapidly crushing the rebellion in the Southern states.* Bills regarding lifting tariffs on imported weapons used for combating secessionists and another giving military volunteers the jurisdiction to enforce laws are both*expected to easily pass.

North Carolina Governor John Ellis passed away over the weekend after an illness. We’ll have more details and information about Governor Ellis’s successor as it becomes available.

Confederate General Johnston recently increased his force of 16,000 at Bunker Hill by an additional 7,000 men, and some reporters predict that a confrontation will soon occur between these and Union General Patterson’s troops which remain camped near Martinsburg in western Virginia.

Famed entertainer P.T. Barnum suffered a serious injury last week after being thrown from his horse. Although he is expected to recover, “his nervous system is considerably affected by the severe injury.”

—To-day the ship Mary Goodall was boarded by the crew of the pirate brig Jeff. Dayis, off Nantucket South shoals; but, being British property, was released. Captains Fifield, of the brig John Walsh, of Philadelphia; Smith, of the schooner S. J. Waring, and Deverani, of the Schooner Enchantress, of Newburyport, were put on board the Mary Goodall, by the Jeff. Davis, which had captured their vessels during the week. The Jeff. Davis sails under the French flag. She is commanded by Captain Postell, formerly of the United States Navy.—N. Y. Commercial Advertiser, July 18.

—The First Regiment of Maryland Volunteers, raised by Capt. McConnell, and mustering exactly one thousand men, left Frederick at day-break this morning by the turnpike for Hagerstown, under the command of Lieut. Col. Dushane. The enlistment of men for the Second Regiment is progressing rapidly at the headquarters, on Green street, near Baltimore. Companies A, B, C, and D, each consisting of 100 men, have been mustered into service. It is the intention of several military men, residents of Baltimore, to raise the Third Regiment called for by the President of the United States, as soon as the second shall take the field.—Baltimore American,
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[farmersdaughter]

Wednesday, July 10, 1861

The “French Lady” has been captured. As many of you will remember, we reported the seizure of the steamer St. Nicholas by Secessionist forces on the 3rd. There was some dispute regarding which Southern officer dressed as a woman in order to hide himself away on the ship until the time to strike arrived. We appear now to have confirmation not only that the man in disguise was Captain Thomas of St. Mary’s County, but also that he has been captured. Lieutenant Thomas H. Carmichael and Mr. John Hornes apprehended him in Baltimore on the 9th. *

Mississippi is preparing itself for warfare. Governor Pettus of the State recently called both State and county officers to collect all the arms, rifles and shotguns, and send them to Jackson. They are still wanted if they are out of order as they will be repaired once they reach the capital of the State and, subsequently, held in readiness for the soldiers’ use. Pettus also advises citizens to arm themselves with double-barrel shot guns to be ready at an hour’s notice if needed.

While the possession of shot guns is being encouraged in the South, there are still issues with side arms. This is, as we have previously discussed, due in large part to the increasing number of deaths caused by accidental shootings or drunken brawls. In response to the public outcry, the following was adopted at a meeting of the Common Council in Richmond on Monday:

Resolved, That the Mayor be instructed to impress upon the commandants of the various posts on the suburbs of the city, the propriety of requiring men to divest themselves of side-arms on leaving camp.

The school for military instruction at the University of Virginia is starting under happy auspices. One hundred gentlemen have already entered and applications are received in large quantities daily. Major George Ross, graduate of the Virginia Military Institute, is performing the duties of chief instructor of the corps, with Captain Thomas U. Dudley, Jr. serving as assistant instructor. Four Cadet Officers have been appointed, among them General Lee’s son, Robert E. Lee, Jr.

The new government that has long been discussed in Western Virginia is beginning to take form. John S. Carlisle was unanimously elected United States Senator on the 9th. That same day there were also elections for other various State officers. Recognition of this new government is spreading over the Western part of the State, as well as the rest of Virginia. Many reactions from the latter have been negative.

Judge George Thompson, a resident of Wheeling, where all these deliberations have taken place, is particularly vocal regarding his distaste for the decisions made concerning Western Virginia. He is staunchly against this newly forming government, as well as the oath of loyalty that Lincoln and his men have recently created. Regarding the oath, Thompson goes so far as to state:

I refuse to touch the taint and grime of this oath, also, because the oligarchy at Wheeling is, in the main, composed of the drippings and leavings of the old party, to who very heart the offices of the Republic has become a corrupt, a degrading and a constant desire in their life pursuit of them through all forms of party and all changes of name, and all bargains and corruptions in the combinations of disappointed and greedy place-hunters to the last act of infamy and disloyalty to integrity and worth, the trade and sale of body and soul to abolitionism, and the instauration of negro equality on the soil of Virginia.

It is unlikely that Thompson is alone in these sentiments. We shall surely see more fall out from these events in the days to come.

—The Executive Government of the United States and correspondents arrived at a full understanding to-day, regarding the transmission of telegraphic despatches giving information as to movements of the army. So, hereafter, it will be necessary for the distant public to await the arrival of the mails before knowing what advances of troops have been made, as also what reinforcements have arrived. The Government alleges that it has been greatly embarrassed in its movements by the Washington correspondents of the New York press, and patriotically called upon them to co-operate in not publishing any movements prematurely. Should a battle occur, the Government will probably permit the official accounts to be transmitted.—N. Y. World, July 11.

—The Loan bill passed the House of Representatives to-day. It authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to borrow on the credit of the United States, within twelve months from the passage of the act, a sum not exceeding two hundred and fifty millions of dollars, for which he is authorized to issue certificates of coupon, or registered stock, or treasury notes, the stock to bear interest not exceeding seven per centum per annum, payable semi-annually, irredeemable for twenty years, and after that period redeemable at pleasure. The United States treasury notes are to be fixed by the Secretary at not less than fifty dollars, payable three years after date, with interest at the rate of seven and three-tenths per centum per annum, payable annually on the notes of fifty dollars, and semi-annually on notes of larger denominations. The faith of the United States is solemnly pledged for the payment of the interest and the redemption of the principal of the loan; and for the full and punctual payment of the interest, the United States specially pledge the duties of import on tea, coffee, sugar, spices, wines and liquors, and also such excise and other internal duties or taxes as may be received into the treasury. In the debate on the bill, Mr. Vallandigham, of Ohio, took occasion to charge the Executive with a usurpation of power, and declared himself for a speedy, immediate, and honorable peace.—(Doc. 75.)

—The entire postal service, embracing post-offices, post-routes, and route agencies in Middle and West Tennessee, were discontinued by order of the Postmaster-General.—National Intelligencer, July 12.

—A Resolution passed the Lower House of the Virginia Legislature, at Wheeling, to-day, instructing Senators and requesting Representatives in Congress to vote for the necessary appropriations of men and money for a vigorous prosecution of the war, and to oppose all compromises until the rebellion is crushed out. The following resolution was offered by Mr. Vance, of Harrison:

Whereas, One Owen Lovejoy, a member from Illinois, has offered a resolution in the House of Representatives, having for its object the repeal of the fugitive slave law; therefore be it

Resolved, That our Senators in Congress be instructed, and our Representatives requested to vote against said resolution, or any other of like object.— N. Y. World, July 11.

—In the Senate of the United States the bill authorizing the employment of 500,000 volunteers, and making an appropriation of 600,000,000 dollars, for the purpose of suppressing the existing rebellion, was passed. Mr. Saulsbury of Delaware desired to amend, by inserting, in the place of 500,000 men, 200,000; he desired peace, he said, and had faith in compromise measures. To him it was pertinently replied that 200,000 men were too many for peace and too few for war; and the amendment was rejected—33 voting against it, and 5 (Messrs. Johnson of Missouri, Kennedy, Polk, Powell, and Saulsbury) in favor of it.

—Gen. Banks issued a proclamation, appointing Geo. R. Dodge, Esq., of Baltimore, , Marshal of Police, vice Col. Kenly, Provost Marshal, relieved.

He also directed the military occupation of Baltimore to cease, and ordered the regiments to resume their old positions in the suburbs of the city. The regiments affected by this order are the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twenty, second Pennsylvania ; the Thirteenth and Twentieth New York, and Eighth Massachusetts, and the Massachusetts battery of light artillery. The soldiers will not be permitted to visit the city without permission, and then must leave their arms in camp.—Baltimore American, July 10.

—This afternoon, a gold medal, ordered by the citizens of New York, was presented by Mayor Wood to Brigadier-General Anderson, through his friend, John C. Murray, who was deputed to receive it on his behalf.—N. Y. Evening Post, July 10.

—The Thirty-third Regiment, New York Volunteers, commanded by Col. R. F. Taylor, numbering 859 men, passed through Baltimore to-day.—N. Y. Commercial Advertiser, July 11.

—Daniel S. Dickinson delivered an address at Amherst College, on the present state of affairs in the United States. It is replete with the customary vigor of its distinguished author, with that strong instinct of generous and genuine Democracy which belongs to his character, and is inspired by the largest patriotism and the wisest statesmanship. Mr. Dickinson declared himself for the maintenance of the Constitution and for the preservation of the integrity of the Republic at whatever cost. At the same time he exposed the folly of the secession theory and the wickedness of the secession practice; and, in all, he speaks like a man of the people and an American. Regarding the present crisis not without sorrow indeed, but without fear, he is for a zealous and speedy prosecution of the war, and for peace only on the basis of the entire submission of the rebels.—(Doc. 76.)

—The Twenty-seventh Regiment N. Y. S. V., commanded by Col. H. W. Slocum, 1,000 strong, left Elmira this afternoon for Washington.—N. Y. Evening Post, July 10.

—The House of Representatives passed the bill laid before Congress by Secretary Chase, empowering the President to close the ports of the seceding States. The vote on the passage of the bill wag 185 yeas to 10 nays.—N. Y. Evening Post, July 10.

—About two o’clock this morning the camp of the Federal troops, under Colonel Smith, of the Illinois Sixteenth, near Monroe station, thirty miles west of Hannibal, Mo., embracing 800 of the Iowa Third, 200 of the Illinois Sixteenth, and about 100 of the Hannibal Home Guards, was attacked by 1,600 secessionists, under Brigadier-General Harris.

Although the Federals were surprised, they repelled the attack, drove the rebels back, killed four, and wounded several, besides capturing five prisoners and seven horses. Harris retreated to Monroe, where another skirmish occurred, in which the rebels were again repulsed. Smith then took up a position and sent messengers for reenforcements from Quincy.—Baltimore American, July 12.—(Doc. 76½.)

—The Seventh Massachusetts Regiment, under command of Colonel D. N. Couch, left Taunton, Mass., this afternoon for the seat of war. —N. Y. Evening Post, July 10.

—The New Orleans True Delta of to-day has two characteristic articles, containing bold denunciations of the rebel leaders. One refers to the contemplated assembling of the Congress of the Confederate States in Richmond on the 20th inst., of the future of which no very sanguine anticipations are entertained. If the State of Louisiana, it says, is to be taken as a sample of the way things have been conducted, the result shows a treasury collapsed, a great city comparatively defenceless, a people full of chivalrous feeling discouraged, and an ardent and zealous local militia disappointed and disgusted. It suggests that the provisional government should immediately organize the local military strength, under the direction of capable and intelligent military officers, to which should be temporarily attached such scattering material as may be found unemployed in adjacent States, so as to familiarize it for any duty the future may require of it. The other article shows the absurdity of the donation reliance; states that the men who have managed to get the country into the war have proved themselves utterly incapable of carrying the rebel States safely and honorably through it, and asks why should not the people awake at once to the opportunity that will soon present, to find other men more fit to carry them with honor, glory, and success, to a triumphal termination of all their troubles? It is quite likely that the indignation of the people of the rebellious States will recoil upon the rebel leaders who have madly led them into this unfortunate war.

—Henry A. Wise of the rebel army issued a proclamation, calling upon the citizens of Western Virginia to rally to his standard, and holding out to them the promise of pardon for past oftbuces.—(Doc. 78.) ,

—A skirmish took place at Laurel Hill, Va., between the Federal troops under Gen. McClellan, and the rebels under Gen. Pegram. About 2 o’clock in the afternoon two large bodies were seen from a high hill in the neighborhood to leave the rebels’ camp. Instant preparations were made to resist. About 4 p. M., there was skirmishing in front by the Fourteenth Ohio and Ninth Indiana Regiments, which soon became very warm. The rebels advanced under cover of the woods when the Federals rushed forward, pouring in a sharp volley, killing several of the enemy. The rebel cavalry then advanced to take our skirmishers in flank. The Federal troops rapidly retreated, and the artillery dropped a couple of shells, one of which exploded among the cavalry when they instantly fell back. Again the Union troops rushed forward and pouring in another volley the rebels scattered in the woods, and the officers were seen attempting to rally them, but they could not be brought up again in a body. In the meantime the skirmishers picked off their officers, and several additional shells were thrown in. The Federal troops made a final rush, driving the rebels from their own rifle pits, and bringing back several of their blankets, canteens and guns. The rebel force engaged was a Georgia Regiment, 1,200 strong, and generally considered the crack regiment of this division of the rebel army.

The most astonishing bravery was displayed by the Federal skirmishers, and the only trouble was to keep the men from rushing into the midst of the enemy. The whole skirmish was a most spirited affair, and the Ohio and Indiana boys gave the Georgians some new idea of Yankee courage. A prisoner taken says that the Georgians refused to come into the woods again opposite to the Federal position, and they were all astonished and terrified. The rebel supply of provisions has been cut off, and they must soon come to extremities. The Union loss is one killed and three wounded. Indications have been seen of an attempt to open a new road by the rebels through which to escape or bring in provisions. Every outlet is watched, and they are trapped.

—The New Orleans Picayune of this day contains a particular account of a fight that occurred lately at the mouth of the Mississippi
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[farmersdaughter]

Thursday, July 11, 1861

Following yesterday’s update, Colonel Richard Thomas, the “French Lady,” has been indicted by the Grand Jury of the United States District Court on charges of piracy and treason. He is now in jail. We have received no report detailing the length of his sentence.

Up to this point, Kentucky has been firm in her neutrality. However, as such a decision will not necessarily be respected, the State may need to take up arms in this struggle. While the thought process has been that neutrality would keep the State free from controversy and spare the citizens of the area from the horrors of war, President Lincoln has recently stated that neutrality is not an option. He states that the choice to remain neutral would “tie the hands of Unionists and feed the insurrectionists.” As such, he can not support Kentucky’s current position.

Not surprisingly, in response to this, the South is urging Kentucky to raise arms against the Union. Some have chosen to make their stance known. The Reverend G. B. Overton, of the Asbury Methodist Episcopal Church, left Louisville a few days ago with volunteers for the Confederate army. He is not the only Kentuckian to be drawn to the fight of the South, while some stand staunchly behind the Union. Mr. Mallory, a representative of the Louisville District, spoke before the House of Representatives yesterday. In his speech he declared his support of the Federal government and that he planned to vote that all men and money needed to crush the rebellion be made available to the Union.

There is yet another group of Kentuckians who continue to strongly assert their neutrality. The Louisville Journal states, “We have, for the sake of peace amongst ourselves, and in a spirit of the highest and most enlightened loyalty, assumed a position of neutrality during the war, whether the war be offensive or defensive, long or short, disastrous or successful, and duty and policy alike require us to maintain the position in good faith.” With these differing opinions within Kentucky and the pressure being exerted by both the Union and Secessionist forces, the ultimate course of the State remains to be seen. We are likely to hear more as events unfold in the upcoming days.

Southerners have been subjected to an unfortunate rumor regarding Miers W. Fisher, the delegate from Northampton to the Virginia State Convention. It is being said that Fisher was captured by Abolitionists on his way home on the Eastern Shore and that he is now being held prisoner by General Butler at Fort Monroe. They have been unable to confirm this intelligence thus far. Any information anyone can provide would be appreciated.

There is a new incentive to fighting for the Union. Mr. Holman, of Indiana, has offered a bill which, if passed, will grant bounty lands to certain officers and soldiers in service of the United States. All those who have been serving since the 12th day of April this year and will receive an honorable discharge after no less than sixty days, shall be entitled to a warrant from the Department of the Interior for one hundred and sixty acres of land. Three hundred and sixty acres will be given to those who are in service before the 1st of next month and remain so until the military forces of the United States are disbanded or the individual is honorably discharged due to wounds or sickness incurred in service. The bill also contains provisions for the widows and children of those who perish in the fight.

Notice to all those residing in Richmond: “Those who wish to enjoy the luxury of ice water can do so by applying at King’s ice-house, south side of the Dock, where Mr. Hitchcock has in store a cargo of the best Northern ice.” Such a treat is not likely to last long. We encourage all those interested to make their way to the ice-house quickly

Alexander H. Stephens delivered an elaborate speech at Augusta, Georgia, defending the cause of secession and pointing out the way to the success of the southern rebellion.— (Doc. 83.)

—This morning a young man presented himself at the quarters of one of the Pennsylvania Regiments, near Shuter’s Hill, opposite Washington, dressed in a suit of blue navy flannel, surmounted with a lieutenant’s epaulettes, and introduced himself as “Lieut. Smith of Company A, 6th Massachusetts Regiment.” Not being suspected at the time, he was allowed to inspect the works at Fort Ellsworth, and to witness the departure of the Zouaves toward Fairfax. Not until he had safely returned to Washington and been carried by the cars some miles on the road to Baltimore, was it discovered that a secessionist had been in camp.—N. Y. Tribune, July 13.

—The companies sent to the relief of Col. Smith, at Monroe, Missouri, returned to Hannibal this evening, and report the road unobstructed between Hannibal and Monroe. On arriving at the latter place, they formed a junction with Col. Smith’s force, which was intrenched in the Academy buildings. The rebels, 1,200 strong, were grouped over the prairie, out of reach of Col. Smith’s rifles. They had two pieces of artillery, which were brought to bear, but the distance was so great that the balls were almost spent before reaching the lines. Col. Smith’s artillery was of longer range, and did considerable execution. The fight lasted until dusk, and the last shot from the Federal side dismounted one of the rebels’ guns. Just at that moment Governor Wood, of Illinois, fell on their rear with the cavalry sent from Quincy and completely routed them, taking seventy-five prisoners, one gun, and a large number of horses. About twenty or thirty rebels were killed. Not one of the Unionists was killed, although several were severely wounded. General Tom Harris, the rebel leader, escaped.—Chicago Tribune, July 12.

—The New-Orleans Delta, of this day, says that further persistence of the Confederate States in the endeavor to obtain the recognition of our nationality is useless. It also says that the British Ministry have not the courage nor the inclination to apply to the Confederate States the rules which they have uniformly applied to other nations. It adds: “Too much importance has been assigned to the idea that France and England would break the blockade to get Southern products.” The editor, therefore, proposes a recall of the Southern Commissioners, and to refuse the recognition of resident Consuls of all the Powers which will not recognize similar officers of the Confederate States abroad.

—The rebels at New Orleans, La., have taken a powerful tug-boat, covered her with railroad iron, and put her machinery below the waterline. They have also built a new boat completely of iron, very sharp, with a sharp point below the waterline, intended to run down the Federal vessels of war. The latter will be commanded by Capt. Seward Porter, formerly of Portland, Maine.—National Intelligencer, July 16.

—The Charleston Mercury of this day publishes the following:—The Sixteenth Regiment S. C. M., comprising eight beat companies, were on the Green yesterday for inspection (?). A more ridiculous farce could not possibly have been enacted than that gone through with yesterday—that is, if regarded in a military point of view. If six hundred citizens, drawn up in two ranks, without arms or equipments, ununiformed, and ignorant of the first principles of a soldier’s duty, can be called a regiment, this was a regiment.

We forego further comment, only remarking, that what is a farce now, to be enjoyed by idle juveniles, may be at no distant day a tragedy over which the State will mourn.

—At St. Louis, Mo., about 400 men belonging to Col. McNeil’s regiment, a reserve corps, visited the State Journal office early this morning, removing the type, paper, etc. They then read an order from Gen. Lyon prohibiting the further publication of that sheet.

Col. McNeil published a proclamation to the people of Missouri, stating that the suppression of the State Journal was in consequence of its giving aid and comfort to those in active rebellion against the authority of the United States Government, encouraging the people to take up arms against that authority, to commit acts of violence and oppression against loyal citizens, and by the fabrication of false reports respecting the United States troops, inciting disaffected citizens to the commission of overt acts of treason, with a view of entirely subverting the Federal authority in the State.—N. Y. World, July 16.

—A Battle was fought this afternoon at Rich Mountain,1 about two miles east of Roaring Run, Va. where the rebels, numbering about two thousand, under command of Col. Pegram, were strongly intrenched.

?About 3 o’clock this morning Gen. McClellan ordered four regiments—the Eighth, Tenth, Thirteenth Indiana, and Nineteenth Ohio Regiments, under the command of Gen. Rosecrans —to proceed along the line of the hills southeast of the enemy’s intrenched camp on the Beverly road, where it crosses Rich Mountain, two miles east of the enemy’s position, with orders to advance along the Beverly road and attack the east side of the work—Gen. McClellan being prepared to assault the west side as soon as the firing should announce the commencement of the attack. The capture of a courier, who mistook the road through the enemy’s camp for the route of the Federal troops, placed the enemy in possession of intelligence of the movement.

The rebels, about 2,500 strong, with heavy earthwork batteries, were intrenched on the western slopes of the Rich Mountain, about twenty-five miles east from Buckhannon, and two miles west from Beverly, which is on the east side of the mountain. They had selected the forks of the Roaring Creek, which empties after a northerly course into the Tygart’s Valley River, a branch of the Monongahela. The creek crosses the road in two places, about a mile apart.

The morning was cool and bracing, and the Federal troops were in capital spirits. Gen. Rosecrans ordered the brigade to cut a path through a thick growth of mountain pine trees and heavy undergrowth of brush for nearly nine miles, which occupied about ten hours, resting at noon.

Late in the afternoon Gen. Rosecrans came on the rear of the rebels, and, after a desperate fight of an hour and a half, completely routed them, driving them in the utmost disorder into the woods, and capturing all their guns, wagons, and camp equipage, or, as Gen. McClellan says, “all they had.” They also took several prisoners, many officers among them. Sixty of the rebels were killed and a large number wounded. Of the Union troops twenty were killed and forty wounded. Gen. McClellan had his guns mounted to command the rebels’ position, but he found that the gallantry of Rosecrans spared him the trouble of going into action. He is now moving on Beverly, and the advance command of Gen. Rosecrans are within three miles of that place.—(Doc. 84.)

_____

1 Rich Mountain is a gap in the Laurel Hill Range where the Staunton and Weston turnpike crosses it between Buckhannon and Beverly, and about four or miles out of the latter place. It is about as far from Laurel Hill proper, (that is, where the Beverly and Fairmount pike crosses it, and where the enemy is intrenched,) as Beverly is: some 15 or 16 miles. It is also about 25 miles* from Buckhannon.— Wheeling Intelligencer.
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[farmersdaughter]

Battle of Rich Mountain
July 11, 1861

(I had found 3 different dates for this, but I guess we will go with this one)

The Battle of Rich Mountain took place on July 11, 1861, in Randolph County, Virginia (now West Virginia) as part of the Operations in Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War.

Background

Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan assumed command of Union forces in western Virginia in June 1861. On June 27, he moved his divisions from Clarksburg south against Lt. Col. John Pegram's Confederates, reaching the vicinity of Rich Mountain on July 9. Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Morris's Union brigade marched from Philippi to confront Brig. Gen. Robert S. Garnett's command at Laurel Hill. On July 10-11, Brig. Gen. William S. Rosecrans led a reinforced brigade by a mountain path to seize the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike in Pegram's rear.

Battle

A sharp two-hour fight ensued in which the Confederates were split in two. Half escaped to Beverly and on over the Shawnee Trail, but Pegram and the others (including the "Sydney Boys", a regiment formed from the students of Hampden-Sydney College) surrendered on July 13.

Aftermath

Hearing of Pegram's defeat, Garnett abandoned Laurel Hill. The Federals pursued, and, during fighting at Corrick's Ford on July 13, Garnett was killed; he was the first general officer to be killed in the war.[1] On July 22, McClellan was ordered to Washington, and Rosecrans assumed command of Union forces in western Virginia. The Union victory at Rich Mountain was instrumental in propelling McClellan to command of the Army of the Potomac
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[farmersdaughter]

Friday, July 12, 1861

We have an update on the fate of Miers W. Fisher. The Norfolk Argus reports that the rumors of Fisher’s capture are incorrect. He apparently postmarked a letter at Eastville stating that he returned home safely. Southerners have been quite pleased with this news.

George Thompson, the Twentieth Judicial Circuit Judge who was unwilling to sign an oath of loyalty to the Federal government, has been stripped of his post . There will be an election to fill the vacancy on August 13.

Kentucky continues to symbolize the back and forth pull of this war on the country. Yesterday, in the case of Brady and Davis vs. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad, Judge Muir of the Kentucky Circuit Court ruled against the plaintiffs, recognizing the right of the national government to interdict freight to the South. While this decision will no doubt spur outrage among the seceded states, it is likely to also incur the disapproval of some of Muir’s statesmen.

In Missouri at about two o’clock p.m. yesterday, secessionist forces under the command of Brigadier-General Harris attacked a camp of Federal troops under Colonel Smith . There were 600 Union troops defending the camp and as many as 1,600 secessionists troops attacking. Despite their numerical advantage, the Southern men were repelled. Harris retreated to Monroe, where he and his men took part in another skirmish in which they were also unsuccessful. More troops have been sent to reinforce Colonel Smith’s position in case of additional attacks.

It is not uncommon in the North to read articles or hear speeches calling citizens to fight for the Star Spangled Banner. The flag has, not surprisingly, become a symbol of the Union the North seeks to preserve. However, Southerners are taking it upon themselves to point out that this national flag is not the banner under which the Founders fought for independence, nor is it the flag that was flown during the war of 1812. Instead, this iteration of the symbol was adopted in 1818 from a design of Captain Samuel Reid. Unionists contend that, despite the change in design, the current flag still represents what the country’s founders were fighting for. Secessionists have mocked this belief, stating, “There was nothing in its adoption to render it sacred in the eyes of anyone, and there has been nothing in its history since to make it so. This professed devotion to the flag of the Union is pure bunkum.”

—Last night, after the battle at Rich Mountain, Colonel Pegram, who was in command, withdrew from the fort near Beverly, leaving behind six guns, a largo number of horses,wagons, and camp equipage.—(Doc. 85.)

—J. P. Benjamin, Attorney-General of the Confederate States of America, issued a circular of instruction to Marshals in relation to prisoners of war, and persons captured at sea, as follows:—

1. All persons captured at sea and placed in custody of the Marshals, are at once to be confined in such manner as to prevent their obtaining any information which could be made useful to the enemy.

2. All persons captured on board of vessels (whether armed or unarmed) employed in the public service of the United States, are to be considered as prisoners of war. All persons employed in the service of the enemy, are to be considered as prisoners of war even when captured on unarmed vessels not employed in the public service of the enemy.

Persons captured on private unarmed vessels, and not employed in the public service of the enemy, are not prisoners of war.

3. As soon as the Marshal shall have received into custody persons captured at sea, he shall make out a list of their names, rank, and position, and submit one copy thereof to the judge of the court, and another to the captors or their proctor, for the purpose of designating such as are to be detained as witnesses.

4. After separating those who are to be detained in confinement as witnesses, the Marshal will at once deliver to the commander of the nearest military post all the prisoners of war; and will transport to the frontier and place beyond the limits of the Confederacy all such alien enemies as are not prisoners of war. —Baltimore American, July 22.

—This evening a detachment of three companies of Colonel Woodruffs Second Kentucky Regiment attacked six hundred rebels between Mad River and Barboursville, on the Kanawha River, Western Virginia, completely routing them. Ten or twelve rebels were killed and a number wounded. The Kentuckians had one killed.—(Doc. 85.)

—To-day the ladies of Martinsburg, Virginia, presented to the Second Wisconsin Regiment a beautiful National ensign. Coming as it does from the people of a State which has been declared out of the Union by her constituted authorities, the regiment received the donation with peculiar sensations of pleasure. The flag was presented with the following remarks :

Soldiers of the Wisconsin Regiment:—We have met this bright and beautiful morning to present to you this emblem of our national glory as a token of our high regard for you and our cause; we welcome you into our midst bearing the flag of our glorious country, trusting in God; this flag has protected the oppressed of all lands, who have sought its shelter, and so long as this flag shall wave the oppressed shall be free. Believing from what you have already accomplished, it will never be disgraced in your hands you will accept this token from the ladies of Martinsburg, Berkeley County, Virginia.—Baltimore American, July 23.

—The Senate of the United States passed the bill, which had previously passed the House, to provide for the collection of duties in such ports as are situated within States, or parts of a State refusing obedience to the ordinary revenue laws of the nation.

In such cases it is ordered by this new act that the Surveyors at the several ports shall be subject to all the obligations and provided with all the subordinate officers of Collectors, and that all the general provisions of law regulating trade and commerce shall apply to such ports in the same manner as they do to ports of entry established by the laws now in force.

The President is also authorized to direct that the custom-house for any district in which the collection of the customs in the ordinary way is obstructed, may be established in any secure place within such district, or on shipboard near the coast. Provision is also made for enforcing the regulations of Congress under this head. In cases where these extraordinary means maybe found unavailing for the purpose of protecting the public revenue, the President is authorized, by proclamation, to close such ports of entry; and any ship undertaking to disregard such proclamation is rendered liable to forfeiture.

Another section of the bill directs that all commercial intercourse between other portions of the Union and States, or parts of States, declared to be in insurrection, according to the terms of the act of 1795, shall cease and be unlawful so long as such condition of hostility exists.—National Intelligencer, July 13.

—The Thirty-sixth Regiment N. Y. S. V., commanded by Colonel Charles S. Innes, departed from Riker’s Island, direct for Washington.—N. Y. Times, July 13.

—In the House of Representatives at Washington, Mr. Vallandigham, of Ohio, offered a preamble and resolution, declaring vacant the seats of such members as have accepted commands in the militia of their several States, which occasioned a lively passage of words between various representatives, when the matter was tabled by ninety-two votes to fifty-one.

—Colonel Pegram, the commander of the rebel forces, near Beverly, Virginia, surrendered to General McClellan. This morning he sent a messenger to the Federal camp at Huttonsville, Va., stating that he, with six hundred men, would surrender as prisoners of war. They were nearly starved, and as Gen. Garnett was flying from Laurel Hill, to which point he was flying, he had no chance to escape. Gen. McClellan required an unconditional surrender. To this Col. Pegram was obliged to submit, and, with his whole force, was disarmed and marched into Beverly. Lieut.-Col. Cantwell, with a part of the Ohio Fourth Regiment, received their arms and took them in charge. His army was composed of the flower of Eastern Virginia, and contained among its curiosities a Professor in Hampden Sidney College, with a company of his students. Col. Pegram is a West Point graduate, a brave man, and has only left the United States array within a few months. Gen. Garnett, who is now flying with his whole force of six thousand men, is also a graduate of West Point, and was the commandant there a few years ago.—(Doc. 87.)

?

—The Galveston (Texas) Civilian, of to-day, contains the following:—”The San Antonio Ledger has late advices from New Mexico. Brigadier-General F. B. Stanton has arrived and organized two regiments for Lincoln’s service. The first regiment is commanded by Ceran St. Train, Colonel. The Second Regiment is commanded by Miguel Pino, Colonel, and Manuel Chara, Lieutenant-Colonel. The Fifth and Seventh Regular Infantry have orders to march to the States. So we may look for trouble in New Mexico.”
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[farmersdaughter]

July 13, 1861

—John B. Clark, member of the House of Representatives from Missouri, was expelled from that body, having been found in arms against the United States Government, and in active part with the rebels under Governor Jackson, in the late battle of Booneville, Missouri.

—Joseph Holt addressed the citizens of Louisville, Ky., this day. His speech was a triumph for the Government of the Union. He called forth in expressive outbursts the popular consciousness that the Government of the United States, which has so long protected and blessed all its citizens, is now itself in need of protection and blessing from them; and in this hour of its peril calls for, and has the right to call for, the earnest and absolute support of all who still profess allegiance to it. An eminently distinguished Kentuckian, an old and highly honored resident of Louisville, an illustrious patriot, faithful to his country and to his oath amidst untold embarrassments, Joseph Holt was listened to by the vast gathering of his Kentucky friends with the profoundest respect and the most rapturous approval; and the more emphatic and unqualified the orator’s declarations of devotion to the Union and the Government, and the stronger his appeals for Kentucky to do her whole duty and contribute her whole strength to the Administration in its heroic struggle to save the Government and restore the Union, the louder and longer was the universal applause.—National Intelligencer, July 20.—(Doc. 90.)

—General Polk issued a general order from his head-quarters, at Memphis, Tenn., to-day on the occasion of assuming the command of the Mississippi division of the rebel army. He says that “justice will triumph, and an earnest of this triumph is already beheld in the mighty uprising of the whole Southern heart.”— (Doc. 95.)
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