The New York Herald Newspaper, August 19, 1861, Page 4

4 NEW YORK HERALD. JAMES GORDON BENNETT, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR, OFPICE N. W. CORNER OF FULTON AND NASSAU STS. mail will beat the urrent in New York ‘ERMS cash in the sender. +TRE DAILY HER THE WEE: ot. Money sont tut Bank bills LD. treo cents per copy, $7 per annum. KLY HERALD, cvery Satunloy sal abs ents per Fetnentan, Briain, ages the hy a stat Volume XXVI.. AMUSEMENTS THIS EVENING, WINTER GARDEN, Brosdway.—Rovaw Diawonp— Toopies—Finst Niont. NEW ROWERY THEATRE! Der ees oF CHINE, BARNUM’S AMERICAN MUSEUM, Broad and EveningeStare Paisonen—Anrrut Dona. wamus, Sea Lion, Beans, any Orngn Curiosities, BRYANTS’ MINSTRELS, Mechanics’ Hall, 472 Broad. way.—Down ty Gip Ky-Ky, MELODEON CONCERT HALL, No. 039 Broadway.— Sonus, Daxces, Buntesaues, &c.—Cmiip ov tax Reginent . Bowery.—Bout Roux—Six ‘Day PO- CANTERBURY MUSIC HALL, 585 Broadway.~Socs, Dances, BunEsques, Ac, GATETIES CONCERT ROOM, 616 Broadway.— Room Enrerrauxaments Ba.vers, Partounaa Fancas, 8. AMERICAN MUSIC HALL, 444 Brondway.—Soxas, Bat- cers, Pantowimtes, &¢.—Porteait Painter, CRYSTAL PALACE CONCERT HALL. No. 45 Bowery.— Buaresques, Sones, Dances, &¢.—Mssque Batt, Cieary's Bracn Hort, STRUMENTAL CONCERT, jockaway.—VocaL anv In- New York, Monday, August 19, 1861. THE SITUATION. It would appear from the movements of the rebel forces around Fairfax Court House and Falls Church, that they are making cautious advances ‘upon the Union lines in the direction of the Poto- mac, not only towards Washington, but stil! farther west, in the direction of General Banks’ command, They have thrown up intrenchments at Springficld station, a few miles out of Alexau- dria, The opinion prevails ag Washington that an attack by the rebels is meditated, and that such a measure will become a necessity, That some fear of an attack on the capital is entertained at headquarters we think is manifest from the following important order, issued by the War Department:— War DararTMEnt, Wasmngrox, August 19, 1861. All commanders of regiments of volunteers accopted by this Department in the States of Penusylvania, New Jer- sey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, Chode Island, Now Hampshire, Maine and Michigan, will take notice of and conform promptly to the general order ‘his day directed to the Governors of the States above namod, which is as follows:— ‘Lo THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF —=:— By direction of the President of the United States, you are urgently requested to forward or cause to be for- warded immediately to the city of Washington all yolun- fvor regiments, or parts of regimenta, at the expense of ‘the United States government, that may be now enrolled hin your State, whether under immediate control or acceptances issued direct from the War Department, hether such volunteers are armed pp . formod or not. Npcartieeg be ful shal eave rearing heer ae tae ee ee dezvous and adopt such other measures as_may be neces- Bary to fill up their ranks at the earliest date possible. All officers of volunteer regiments on arrival will re- Port to the Commanding General, who will provide equip- Monts and other supplies necessary for their comfort. ‘To insure the movement of troops more rapidly than might otherwise be done, you will please confer with and id all officers of independent regiments in such manner as may be necessary to effect the object in view. All Clothing belonging to or contracted for the several regi- Monts shall be forwarded to Washington for their use detailed reports of which shall be tind to the Consmnnd. ing General, SIMON CAMERON, Seoretary of War. Strict regulations for the passage of all parties Bcrosa the Potomac have also been issued by the Provost Marshal (General Porter), and will be found in another column. Tt is said that the withdrawal of some Union troops from Fortress Monroe has induced the rebel feaders to strengthen their army in that vicinity by 8 considerable body of men and a quantity of ailitary stores from Richmond. Whatever may be done in the direction of Fortress Monroe, however, it scems a paramount military necessity that the rebel army under General Beauregard must ere Jong make an attack at some point on the Po- tomac. We give to-day an olaborate description by our 6pecial correspondent of the recent battle at Davis’ creek, Missouri, when the gallant General Cyon lost his life. The immense superiority in Bnzers of the rebel forces is officially confirmed by the teyort of the Colonel of the Firat Iowa Fogiment, who stateg Fs. the enemy had in thg Hold twenty-four thousan troops, ‘While General Lyon's only Bumbesed fom four thousand to five thoyse‘ad throughout the whole action. ~“"By the Bohemian at Father Point we have news from Earope to the 9th of August. The English press is bitterly sarcastic on the defeat of the Union army at Bull run. The London Times inti- mates thatthe federal government, in its opinion, cannot conquer the South, and that military under- takings, as “‘matters of business,” do not answer. ‘The same journal laughs at the idea of England's being prevented from going into the blockaded Ports, but thinks that that question will involve her fin some difficult complication, as a lit tle cloud which is now apparent may oome to “overshadow the whole sky.” Lord Palmerston stated to Parliament that a belligerent may seal up a port, but if he permits one vessel to enter by the payment of duties “his right is gone,” 8nd from “that moment the blockade is raised.’” Mr. Russell, in his letter to the Times describing the battle of Bull run, characterizes it as a cause. less and cowardly panic, disgraceful to men in uni- form. THE NEWS. The Bohemian, from Liverpool on the 8th and Londonderry on the 9th inst., reached Father Point, on her way to Quebec, yesterday. Her news is five days later than that brought by the Persia. The Liverpool cotton market opened with an adva: co of one-eighth of a penny on the pound on the 8th of August, but closed easier and with prices weak under a limited inquiry. The market omained steady on the 9th inst. The stock on hand amounted to 990,000 bales. Breadstuffs re- mained steady in price, with an easy demand. Consols closed in London on Friday, the 9th inst., at 9074 a 90%. American securities are reported ‘as flat. The King of Sweden was on a visit to Napoleon in Paris. The King of Prussia declined to go to ‘he camp at Chalons to meet Napoleon, unless he ‘was accompanied by the German Princes who met fn council last year at Baden. It was said that a Ronspiracy existed at St. Potersburg, having for ~ object to set aside the Czar Alexander and his mily, and give @ free constitution to Russia. The plot was discovered. The American horse Starke duad had another triamph on the Brighton Course. Me great yacht race between the English yacht Alar (the American yacht Camilla, was won prouet Te The} Gladiator, Capt. Hickley, from a cruise south- ‘ape Henry on the orien ar & Lith inst., and reports the United States ships-of- war Wabash, Minnesota, Savannah and Cumber. Jand in Hampton Roads, Misrepresentation and false inducements held out atthe time of enlistment are often the pri- mary causes of insubordination among the volun- teers. This should be avoided, and a plain state- ment of what each man must expect when he be- comes a soldier substituted. We notice that many of the placards and advertisements calling for vol” unteers in the various regiments announce that those who have already been in the service receive a bounty from the government of thirty dollars as a reward for re-enlisting. This is not the case, and the fact should be known by all discharged volun- teers, in order to avoid future trouble. Such a law was passed by Congress, but it was subsequently repealed, and in lieu thereof the pay of all non- commissioned officers and privates was increased two dollars a month, and all soldiers who receive an honorable discharge will be entitled to one hun- dred doilars as a reward for faithful services, or if killed in battle or die before their term expires their legal representatives receive that amount, On the 3d of the present month there were in the hospitals in Washington three hundred and thirty-eight sick and wounded soldiers belonging tothe New York regiments. The report made up to the 10th inst. shows the number reduced to one hundred and thirty-four. John C. Breckinridge, Charles 8. Morehead, James B. Clay and John Young Brown are an- nounced to speak at a “peace meeting,” or ra- ther a rebel gathering, near Harrodsburg, Ky., on the 22d inst. The leading seceshers in Ken- tucky are not yet convinced that the people of that State are opposed to rebellion. They seem determined to drag Kentucky out of the Union in spite of the people. The State of New York has furnished the govern- ment with a battery of ten ten pounder Parrot guns, and thirty more have been ordered. The volunteers will experience no more trouble in getting their uniforms, The State of New York has now onhand ten or fifteen thousand new uni- forms unappropriated. Who will take them? Duncan Campbell will assume the duties of John M. Read, Jr., Adjutant General of the State of New York, who has resigned in consequence of ill health, until his successor is appointed, A Boonsboro, Maryland, paper says that Alex- ander R, Boteler was arrested at his residence near Shephardstown by Union troops, and taken to jen. Banks at Sandy Hook, Boteler was a mem- ber of the last Congress from Virginia. A previous report concerning Boteler stated that he had dicd of wounds received at Bull run, It has been estimated that the State of Virginia has already lost, under the contraband rule of the government and by the slave stealers of the South, more than five thousand of her colored bondmen, Poor Virginia. The channel of the Ohio river at Wheeling on the 14th inst. hada depth of seven fect and the water still rising. ‘There was very little stirring in cotton on Saturday, which, however, was quoted firm on a basis of 18c. 8 183¢¢. for middling upland. Tho flour market was quiet, but steady, Wheat was held stifily, but was not active, in the absence of supplies. Corn was likowise in light stock, and was higher, but sales were not very heavy. There was rather more movement ip provisions; prices were unchanged. ‘Tho sales of Rio coffe were 2,000 bags; and of Cuba sugars, 2,000 bhds., at full rates, An active demand existed for crude turpentine, spirits turpentine and rosin, at improved prices, Whiskey was up to 1T%c- a17ke.. with gales of 960 barrels. There was less anima, tion in the freight market. Never Despair of the Republic, Nil desperandum ought to be the motto of the government, the army and the people in the war in which they have embarked to maintain the integrity of the republic. After the capture of Fort Sumter, when the spirit of the North was roused, there never was, perhaps, exhibited in any other country in the world so magnifi- cent a spectacle of patriotism. Had we thena government capable of appreciating the depth and the breadth and the length of the sentiment which animated the nation, half a million of men could have been easily obtained for the volunteer army; one thousand ships were at their service, and any amount of money needed could have been had for the asking. Over fifty taillions of dollars were given outright, in April and May, to fit out our soldiers, and the wealth of the people of the North was laid at the feet of the government. The blockade would have been rendered perfect at once, and no privateer could have escaped from the ports or inlets of the enemy to prey upon our commerce} while we would have been saved from the peril which is now so imminent of a rupture with England, France and other European Pow- ers, arising out of the inefficiency of the blockade. At the same time the raw forces of the rebels would have been whipped in every battie by overwhelming numbers. But the enemy was allowed time to organize, drill and prepare, and wet blankets were thrown upon the ardent enthusiasm which volunteered life and limb and all for the Union. Red tape, circumlocution and the Barnacles stood in the way, while the insurgents matured their plans and perfected their fortifications and masked batteries. While thousands upon thousands of troops were re- fused acceptance by the Secretary of War, the right wing of the army on the Upper Potomac, and the left wing at Fortress Monroe, were paralyzed by weak generals and for want of sufficient numbers to cope with the enemy. From the same cause Johnston’s force was enabled to form a junction with the army of Beauregard at Manassas. The disasters at Big Bethel, Bull ran and Davis’ creek are all at- tributable either to a deficiency of strength or to incompetent generalship, for which the gov- ernment have no excuse. Cavalry and artil- lery were sadly wanted at Fortress Monroe and at the battle in front of Manassas; yet the offer of cavalry regiments was declined, on the ground that that arm of the service was not needed. Such are our disasters and loss of prestige on the land. What has happened on the other cle- ment on which the people of the United States were accustomed to pride themselves for their supremacy? Some fifteen or twenty privateers have been permitted to issue from the ports of the enemy to seize, sink, burn, destroy and plunder our ships along the Atlantic coast from Maine to Texas—indeed, from Maine to the Straits of Ma- gellan. In the West Indies, in the Gulf, under the very guns of our forte and men-of-war, and in the waters of South America, they have car- ried on their depredations with impunity. Some fifty of our merchant ships have been captured. Our commerce is cutup; foreign and even Ame- rican merchants refuse to ship goods in Ame- rican bottoms. Our cargoes and vessels cannot be insured except at ruinous rates. The blockade is the laughing stock of all Europe, the standing joke of the enterprising skippers from the Bri- tish provinces, who are continually running it and selling their turpentine and cotton in Bos- ton, and the source of infinite merriment to the rebel chiefs and their organs throughout the world. To the shipowners and merchants of tc Joyal States it is no joke, and we fear the tine is not distant when it may prove a tragedy 1 to us all by tempting the intervention of foreign NEW YORK HERALD, MONDAY, AUGUST 19, 1861. nations, which. we must repel at any risk and any sacrifice of treasure and of blood. Thus, by the imbecility and incompetence of some of our rulers, the task of restoring the Union is rendered a hundred fold more difficult and costly than it was last April. But we do not despair of the republic. It is not too late to retrieve our lost ground and redeem the South from the thraldom of secession. Con- gress has voted half a million of men and five hundred millions of dollars. The patriotism of the merchants of New York, Boston and Phila- delphia has furnished the government with a loan of one hundred and fifty millions of dol- lars for immediate requirements. There is, therefore, no want of money. But there is a deep need of the right kind of men at the head of affairs to use the money aright. Mr, Lincoln is responsible to the people, and to him alone the country will look, and not to his Cabinct, which he has the power of changing at will. It will be necessary for him to call men to his councils who will see that the foe is met in the fleld at every point with overwhelm- ing numbers and superior skill, and that every battle bea victory. Then the blockade must be made thoroughly effective, covering every harbor and inlet, so as to utterly defeat the de- signs not only of therebels, but of the Baropean Powers who would take advantage of its inefti- ciency to provoke a war while we have on our hands a gigantic rebellion to crush, which is as much, with weak Cabinet officers and ignorant military leaders, as we seem able to manage just now. By prudence and skill, combined with energy and vigor, not only may the calamity of a foreign war be averted till we are better prepared for it, but the heart may be broken in the Southern rebellion by next May, and the Union restored and peace established from the Susquehanna to the Rio Grande. It remains to be seen whether republics have not within them the vital prin- ciple of self-preservation, and whether eight millions of white men, of our own race, wiih fouy millions of negro slaves to take care of, can forte thelr Independence from twenty mil- lions of Northern men, free from every such encumbrance and full of vitality and re- sources. Blunders have been committed and disasters have ensued, but we have seen nothing to cause us to doubt the final issue. In sucha population as ours there must be statesmen and generals to guide its manifest destiny; and this great occasion will now bring them out. Let us never despair of “ the republic, one and indi- visible.” Tue Consequences or ovr INEFFECTIVE Brockapg.—Instances of the inefficiency of the blockade are accumulating upon us rapidly. Tntelligence from Halifax, Nova Scotia, informs us that there are now in that port two vessels just arrived from North Carolina, freighted with naval stores. One of these came from Beaufort and the other from Wilmington, both of which ports are described as being perfectly easy of ingress and egress. We are further informed that a few weeks ago three vessels from the same ports, with similar cargoes, arrived at Hali- fax, and that, according to the latest advices, there were six vessels loading at Beaufort and four at Wilmington, to sail for Nassau, New Providence, and other British ports. It is im- possible to estimate the loss and harm which we are suffering in consequence of the Navy Department neglecting, through blindness or imbecility, to keep the Southern ports closed. Not only are we letting loose privateers to prey upon our commerce, but allowing supplies to be conveyed to the rebels. The boldness with which the latter have taken advantage of this inefficiency is remarkable. They have run in and out at all hazards, and it is evident they intend to establish an active trade with the British colonies by running the block- ade... They have even sent North Carolina cot- ton and turpentipe, bronght out by this means, into Boston, via Yarmouth, in Nova Scotia. Their privateers seem bound to cruise all over the world, for already we hear of them as far off as Pernambuco and Rio Janeiro. We trust, however, that, as the Dutch and Danish govern- ments have now issued proclamations of neutra- lity, they will find no harbors of refuge in the Atlantic. Of the Danish proclamation we heard only yesterday, so that our suggestion that the Secretary of State should communicate with the Danish Minister on the subject has been superseded. Cruisers ought to be despatched in search of the privateers at once, and no effort spared to increase the efficiency of the block- ade. We have urged this often enough bofore, but still we find none of that activity which the occasion demands. Rarip Communication Betwren WaAsutnaton anp Ricumonp.—There are plenty of active agents in Washington. It will be remembered that when President Lincoln made his first call for seventy-five thousand men, Jeff. Davis on the following day-issued a proclamation calling for a hundred and fifty thousand; and now that the President has issued a proclamation interdict- ing all commercial intercourse by sea or land with the States in rebellion, we find it as active- ly responded to by the rebel chief, who com- mands all Northerners to leave the Southern States within forty days from the date of his proclamation. These are public facts, it is true, but they show that before Washing- ton news is well promulgated at the North it is known in Richmond. The government ought to organize a detective corps to prevent these facilitigs of communication being enjoyed by the insurrectionists, and it would be desirable at the same time to look into the several de- partments and sweop the secessionists, some of whom are doubtless rebel agents, out of the ser- vice. That men are aiding and assisting the rebels under the very eye of the federal govern- ment at Washington is notorious, and their not having been frustrated in their designs before this shows that there is great neglect of duty somewhere. Ay Exampie to pe Imirarep.—If our army and navy have presented some lamentable in- stances of disaffection and desertions of duty, the heroism and patriotic devotion that are be- ing daily displayed by the loyal members of both professions more than compensate for the pain which such spectacles have afforded. We give the following extract from a letter from a distinguished naval officer, now in the block ading squadron, to his wife, as an example of the spirit which now animates both services :— I went you to live in the most fragal manner possible, and if you can fave any money from your income, by the strictest ment, if it be but , tO assist it in the smialiest tution of the United States and the eupremacy of the law. The present un- happy condition of our once glorious Union is enough to make “ the angels weep.” The feeling suggested by the above is one of pleasure that men like the writer are in the public service and not only willing to fight, but to economise for the Union, Neitxct or Commopore Vanpersir’s Or- rers—Tae Most Disoraceru, Cuarren IN THE History or tam Navy.—More than three months have passed since Commodore Vander- bilt tendered to the Hon. Gideon Welles, the Secretary of the Navy, the steamship Vander" bilt as a free present to the government, and a fleet of four other steamers—the Ocean Queen, the Ariel, the Champion and the Daniel Web- ster—to be taken at the appraisemont of disinte- rested men. The Vanderbilt is, by common consent, the best steamship ever launched. She can bear a heavier armament than any ship in our navy. The material of which she is built is all of the first quality—far superior to what the market affords at the present time. She is built of live oak, and is more strongly fastened than any other ship ever constructed for merchant ser- vice. The Commodore, after his long expe- rience, had this ship built with the idea of making her superior to anything else ever borne upon the waters. The most competent men were employed in every department. The labor was done by tried men, at day’s wages, so that nothing should be hurried or slighted, and a ship was thus completed which the Commodore was not ashamed to give his own name to. She can carry sufficient coal, without diminishing her speed, to keep at sea for along time. She can run at the same speed, with the same consump- tion of coal, as the revenue cutter Harriet Lane, while, by use of the requisite amount of fuel, she can outrstrip anything that walks the waters. She is like a bird, capable of living on the dim!- nutive quantity of food which sustains the swal- low, and at the same time with the capacity to swell to the power and proportions of the eagle. When the necessity of an imme- diate blockade of our ports became ap- parent, this splendid ship was offered to the government by her owner for nothing. At the same time Commodore Vanderbilt, as President of the Atlantic and Pacific Steamship Company, tendered to the government the Ocean Queen, the finest transport ship afloat, with superigr new engines, and cqloulated to be of exceeding value to the navy; the Ariel, of 1,300 burthen, in fine condition; the new iron steamship Champton, drawing a very light draft of water, and carrying coal sufficient to last her twenty-five days, and the steamer Daniel Webster—just what the government is now buying for gunboats—all at the appraise- ment of disinterested men. This was an offer unprecedented in liberality as to the first part, of transparent fairness as to the whole. Up to this day the Navy Depart- ment have taken no notice of it, except to play fast and loose with the attorney of Commodore Vanderbilt; and we say there is no instance in the whole history of that department, from its foundation, of more shameful neglect. Sup- pose this offer of Commodore Vanderbilt had been made to Jeff. Davis: the clock would not have told ten minutes after its reception before it would have been accepted. The rebel Con- gress the very next day would have adopted resolutions of compliments and thanks, and the rebel press would have teemed with praises of the merchant prince who should have supplied them with a ship which cost nine hundred thousand dollars, as a free gift, and with a fleet of ships at their own price; the rising sun of the next morning would have shone upon the government flag at the masthead of the Vander- bilt, and, speedily manned and equipped, she would have been despatched in pur- sult of prizes. Before this day the unwel- come thunder from her guns would have struck terror to the heart of many an American captain. If with such miserable craft as the rebels have had, they have already taken many prizes, some of them of large value, what would they not have done with ships like these? Tustead of accepting these ships—just what was wanted, as all competent, practical, nauti- cal men know—the Secretary of the Navy, sub- jected, undoubtedly without suspecting it him. self, to improper influences, has preferred to rely on vessels yet to be built, meanwhile leav- ing our commerce to be swept from the ocean, He wants one or more iron-clad ships, for which he has got an appropriation of a million and a half of dollars, and which can by no possibility be launched until after this war must, one way or another, have been terminated. What they will be good for when they are launched nobody knows, The most competent authorities are divided in opinion as to whether they will be of any use or not, while it is pretty well under- stood that the gunboats ordered by the govern- ment, if built according to the specifications, will be of very little value when done. Cannot the authorities at Washington realize that now is the time when this battle has got to be fought; that time is an all-important ele- ment in this disastrous war; and that ships which can be had at once are the only ones which it is worth while to talk about getting at all? One third of our merchant marine should have been purchased three months ago by the government. That would have secured immu- nity from privateers to the other two-thirds, and have given comparatively profitable employ- ment to the whole. As soon as the war is ended there can be no difficulty in selling at auction, for fair prices, all the vessels which the government has no further use for. We call the attention of President Lincoln, who is honest and patriotic, to this matter. Our merchants here and in all the other com- mercial cities should individually, as well as collectively, call his attention to the subject. If we sincerely desire te preserve the government there must be a speedy and utter rout of imbe- cility, treason and corruption from the Navy Department. A Pertopican =Sovraern Detvston.—In another column will be found a document of some interest at the present moment—the ad- dress of the Southern Commercial Convention recently held at Macon, This makes the fifth or sixth of these Southern cominercial con- gresses which have taken place since Mr- Calhoun started at one of them his theory ofthe commercial independence of the South, based on the idea that our rivers and lakes are inland seas, which should be made exclusively tribu- tary to its wealth. Their labors have never resulted in anything, for the single reason that they could not alter either the physical features of the country or the natural laws, which make the inhabitants of the Northern States a manu- facturing, while those of the South can never be anything but an agricultural people. If, ac- cording to their own admissions in this address, they have never, while furnishing the world with sugar and cotton, been able to establish a credit in foreign markets, how are they to do so when they will be staggering under the burthen of taxation imposed by this unnatural war? We can tell thew, further, that —$—$—$— were they to gain their independence to. | How Came We 70 Lose Gen. Lyon?—Ler morrow they would be no nearer advanced to their object. The European nations would place no faith in the stability of a government based upon slavery as a principle, and North” ern men would continue, as hitherto, to act as the factors of Southern products, wrowing rich on the profits ofa trade which neither force nor the schemes of Southern financiers can divert from them, Tue Comamxcement or 4 New Era my Turk- 1st Hisrory.—With the death of Abd-ul-Medjid @ new era in Turkish history has been inaugu- rated. His successor has already instituted re- forms of the most potent character, and under his government the prospect of restoring the fortunes of a bankrupt empire at last becomes visible. The Sultan, we are informed, has dis- missed his seraglio, and retains only one wife, and, as a further measure of economy, has or- dered the late Sultan’s jewels and ornaments to be sold to pay his liabilities, which it is expect ed they will fully liquidate. To those who know how much the doctrine of the plurality of wives was incorporated in the religion of Mahomet, this repudiation of all but one wife is an event of unprecedented importance, and as gratifying to the sense of Western nations as it promises to be beneficial to Turkey. That polygamy is barbarous is evident from its being common to all savage nations, and every where degrading. The Hebrews, in adopting it as an element of their religion, embarked upona false principle, and one repuznant to the high- est form of civilization. In this, therefore, they contrast disadvantagevusly with the Greeks and Romans, who discountenanced the practice. The Hebrews, from the time of Azor or Eber, the reputed father of E) Khalil-Allah, or Abraham, to the birth of Christ, a peried of nearly two centuries and a half, were polyga- mists. But from that time for six hundred years, when the establishment of Mahometan- ism tao place, Christianity, improving upon the past, allewed to one man only one wife. After that, however, the age degenerated, and fhonogamy was abolished, although a law linit- ing the number of wives allowed to one man pravehied polygamy from being carried to ex- cess. By the Koran no man was allowed more than four wives, but no check was imposed upon the keeping of concubines. This custom has, there- fore, lasted for more than twelve hundred years without interrupti‘n, previous to the present HT ewes, vas snr toeke chs Religion in the faast has always been te chief element of government. The natfeonsiity of the people lay in their dogmas, and even in their wars they fought with a book in one hand and a sword in the other, determined, if possi- ble, at once to conquer and to proselytize. Such, therefore, being the vital character of their faith, any change in the component ele- ments of that faith is significant. From the time of Mahomet polygamy has been one of the chief and most firmly engrafted features of Is- lamism, and the late Sultan was one of its most devoted slaves. But his successor, Aziz, Medjid, is evidently a man of very different calibre. He has likely studied long in the obscurity to which he has been hitherto consigned, and been preparing himself for his accession to power. His late brother was gentle to a fault, but devoid of ener- gy of character, and extravagant and sen- sual to a degree that reduced the empire to in- solvency, and consigned himself to an early death. He was not the man to hold the reins of empire in the midst of difficulties that were daily growing worse and more complicated. But alarmingly portentous as was the aspect of Turkish affairs pfior to the decease of Abd-ul-Me@jid, they are now rapidly assuming a more promising character. It is not alone in the harem and the houschold that the reforms of the new Sultan are visible. They extend to the departments, where the hand of retrench- ment has been busy onall sides. Among others we hear of the dismissal of Hassib Pacha, minis- ter of the civil list, and more than once impli- cated in jobbery. These sweeping measures cannot fail to so far increase the income and de- crease the expenditure of the Ottoman govern- ment as to enable it with careful management to recuperate its strength sufficiently to keep its own affairs in order, and thereby prevent the encroachments of France and Russia, whose designs on Turkey have long been obvious to the world. Above all, these reforms will give to the Sublime Porte a moral influence to which it was before a stranger; and, »' ‘hough sultanas may deplore the change, Christianity and civili- zation have cause to rejoice over such salutary innovations. Sovruern Gvummiry.—The extraordinary statements which arevput forth in Southern pa. pers in regard to our troops would lead to the conclusion that their conductors have become so crazed with the excitement of the war that all their faculties have become obscured by it. Take the following from the Savannah Republi- can as the latest and funniest example:-— Horniscn! Hornimx! Horaimus!—We learn upon good authority that a gentleman from Petersburg, now in this city, and who, previous to the present difficulties, was a resident of Alexandria, received a letter from a highly estecmed lady of the last named city, in which the state- mont is given that she was applied to for food by an offl- cer of the federal army, shortly after the skirmish at Vienna, who represented that he had had neither rest nor food for a number of days and nights past, having been very busily engaged during that time. In reply to an in- quiry from the lady as to what could haye engaged bim soearnestly, he stated that he had been burying the dead, “and,” he added, Tam distressed to state, ma- dam, that Ihave been burying the living, also.”” What a picture is here prosented to us! Only think of the gather- ing up of tbe unfortunate wounded and their consignment to the grave with their consciousuess sti! remaining! Horriblo fate! They in the way and must bo dis- posed of, and this manner of disposing of them is chosen by the flonds who dishonor the nineteenth century. It is evident that the editor is here the dupe, and not, as in too many instances, the dupe It is not astonishing that a population by whom such absurdities are credulously swallowed should have been so easily led by the nose by a few crafty and ambitions politicians, Tae Campaton in Missourt—The anxiety of the rebels to get possession of St. Louis and Jefferson City, in order to draw Missouri into their confederacy, is evi- dently just now very great. Moreover, in that State are the lead mines, npon the work~ ing of which the Southerners depend for their supplies of shot, and that metal we know to be very scarce in the dominions of Jeff. Davis. They attach great importance, and very justly so, to the campaign in both Southwestern and Southeastern Missouri, and will fight hard for the mastery in that section. General Fremont, however, is just as determined, and, we can easily perceive, intends, without delays to make a grand demonstration in Western Missouri, and about the same time a similar tvovement in Easiern Missouri, by which the rebel forces will be divided, and, in all probability, crushed ont irretrievably in the one campy’.gn. A decisive victory of this kind will have considerable fluence in bringing the w9c to a speedy termi- Ration. i Us Look tax Tavra a tux Face—Post mor- tem examinations are instructive rather tham pleasant. By the lurid light which they throw upon the nature of disease, keen-eyed science is sometimes enabled to deyise the appropriate remedy in similar subsequent cases. Let us listen to the voice of instruction, though it is- sues from the tomb; let us look truth in the face, although she wears a frown. How, then, did we happen to lose the daring, dashing, dauntless Lyon, with several hundred nien, merely for the achievement of a drawn battle, at best? The answer is clearly given im the first full account from the battle field. The writer says:—“ With two more regiments we should have driven the enemy entirely from the valley, and with a proper cavalry force could have followed such a victory with decisive results.” Why were there not two tmore regiments? Why was there not “a proper cavalry force” on our side at that bloody battle? Do any visions of men, slaughtered through their ineffi- cleney—do grim ghosts of men, doomed to a pro- fitless death—rise up from that gory battle field to haunt the visions of the military authorities at Washington? Regiments might have been had. They craved it as a privilege, a boon, to fight and die, if need be, for their country. Cav~ alry, hardy and brave, was offered to the govern~ ment. The accounts say that the “Iowa troopa. fought like tigers.” It was at the head of them that Lyon fell. “Give us a leader,” they shout- ed to him, “and we will follow to death.” Com- posed of just such men from that same State was the cavalry which was offered weeks ago, and discourteously declined. “Tell them ta raise corn,” was the stolid answer. It was in vain that the representations were made that while they were not used to working in corn, fields, they were accustomed to eat corn and bacon, to live in the saddle from daylight to dark, and sleep at night leaning against a tree. “We don’t want cavalry,” was the brief but de- cisive rejoinder, vi; It is thus that all the expense, all the iabor, all the blood put into this glorious cause are en- tirely thrown away. A little more, properly expended in season, would save all. We doall that it is possible to do and lose; we leave un. done the little essential additional, without which we cannot win. Brave and competent generals are scarce. No army is prolific in men like Lyon. No cause can afford many such exertion, Will they, can they, at Washington, profit by the terrible out Which we have just suffered? Kaa) ' Baxroosixe as 4 Minrrary Avxmary.—The efforts of one or two enterprising aeronauts have lately drawn the attention of the public to the value of balloons for army reconnois- sances, but their full utility yet remains to be demonstrated. Enough, however, has been shown by the experiments of Mr. La Mountains at Fortress Monroe, to convince the most credulous that they are destined for the future to play an important part in mili- tary operations; and this notwithstanding the impression which had gained ground from the trials made in Washington and ts vicinity that “ballooning for scouting pur- poses had failed.” That it should have failed under the circumstances would not have been surprising, considering the nature of the work required and of the appliances for its execution- To be made constantly available for army pur- poses, balloons should be used which are capa- ble of operating at all ordinary times. In the usual balloon ascensions—for which alone the balloons used thus far for army purposes were made—the machine is detached from the earth, and from that moment floats passively through the air, with the exact velocity of the ~ breeze, meeting with not the slightest strain until it comes in contact with the earth again. They are, consequently, of smalt capacity, and are built in the slightest manner possible. For military purposes a different construetion is re- quired. The balloon being kept attached to the earth by a rope, and only let up to such an altitude as will enable the parties seated in the car to observe the surrounding country, it has the resistance of more than one element to con” tend with—both air and earth together-—making it impossible for it to gain an altitude of any height, unless the day should be perfectly calm, To insure success at all ordinary times for military operations, balloons must be made of capacity sufficient to give them ascending power to overcome the breeze that may be blowing, and of such strength of netting, fabric and cordage as will render them in all respeeta safe and reliable. Recrvrmye Bountres.—By an order from the War Department the two dollars bounty per man, hitherto paid to persens obtaining re~ cruits, has been abolished. As this has caused some dissatisfaction, an explanation of the poli- cy that has dictated it becomes necessary. A bill was brought before Congress last ses- sion authorizing the War Department to give as bounties to the three months volunteers, om re-enlistment, the sums of thirty, forty and fifty dollars, under certain specified conditions. For this was wisely substi- tuted a law adding two dollars a month to the pay of the soldier. There was no object of economy in the change, for while under the first bill the recruit would get only $30, unless when enlisting with a company or regiment, under the second he obtains by the above addition to his pay for the three years $72. The difference as against the government will be seven millions of dollars—the aggregate amount of the additional pay for the volunteer force for the three years being twelve, while that of the $30 bounty would be only five millions. Of the moral advantage of this arrangement there cam be no doubt. When the soldier gets a bounty he is apt to dissipate it at once, his family de- riving no benefit from it; whereas, by the pre- sent system, he can easily be induced to allo~ cate his monthly pay, or a portion of ft, to the support of those dependant upon him. The bounty to persous obtaining recruits has beem abolished, froza the belief that the addition made to the soldiers’ pay will be sufficient in- ducement to compensate for its necessity, OUR WAR MAPS. We have issued another edition of the na merous maps, plans aud dingrams of the ope- rations of the Union and rebel troops in Vit~ ginia, Missouri, Illinois, Florida, and on the Missis- sippi and Missouri ri and it is mow ready for delivery, Agents desiring copies aye requested to send in their orders immediately, Single copies six cents. Wholesale price ue same as for the Wesgix Hgnatp.