The New York Herald Newspaper, March 18, 1862, Page 3

I } | : ' him. He was on board the Confederate gua- Jeigb, at the battle of Roanoke Island, where be ved most gallantly, and bid @ narrow éecape with that vessel through the canal to Norfolk ‘On Saturday last, in the same vesse!, be accompanied the Virgimia (Merrimac), with other steamers, io the attack Op the federal fleet near Ham) Roads, avd ‘which resulted in one of the most brilliant naval v ries on record, sustaining himself tbrovgb the action with that nuble bearing which maxes the hero After the surrender of the federal frigate Congress, while the white flag was st for’ mastbend, bie ‘vessel was ordered to that ship, doubtless for the relief of the wounded. In the performance of this bumane mis the Raleigh was fired into by ® regiment of the epemy on shore, and he was sbot by @ Minie ball, the deadly missile entering the left and passing out as the right shoulder. ‘He was seen to advance suddenly a few steps, and then backwards, to fal and expire without @ word or wotr His remains were brought up to the Naval and decently encoffined, and on Monday last for- warded to his friends by the Norfolk and Rail. i E { PETERSBURG UNDER MARTIAL LAW. [From the Petersburg Express.) ‘The city of Petersburg and the ining and surround- Sng country, to thedistance of ten mi been ander martial vie, rtial law, by prociamation of President and Captain William Panne! appointed Provoet y swith instructions to establish forthwith an eificient mili- “| Police, ig action was in accordance with the desire of the sitizens, as expressed in @ petition presented to the Pres! Volunteering was carried on quite briskly in this city yeates » and we understand a large number of names were 10 the army rolis. oe Our Baltimore Correspondence. Battinone, March 16, 1862. Plans of the Rebéls for the Spring Campaign—Their Navat Preparations—They Hope to Retrieve Their Recent Disase ters by Series of Victoria Additional Pacts Respecting the Topogre phy of the Country Now Occupied by the Late Rebel Army of the Potomac—The Fortifications on the Line of the Rappahannock and Rapidan Were Erccied Months Ago, de. | Thave been put in possession to-day of the following Additional facts in regard to, the present position and orobable movements of the late rebel army of the Poto- mac. Iftrue,as Ihave every reason to, believe, they , thow that that army, nearly 175,000 strong, has beon , qithdrawn t9 & jing that can be defended, for two weeks \b east, with half ite force, while the other half | ‘8 t© be used for active and immediate of- ; ‘ensive operations. It is stated hore, on good wathority, that a week before the evacuation proper bad sommenced, Gen. Jos. E. Johnston had detached twenty. ‘We thousand of his best troops by railroad to Saffolk ¥od Weldon, in order to co-operate with angynér rebel army, near the latter place, in an attacg on Gen. Buro- sice; and that after the evacwation, and after seeing hi® troops in the proper position on the new defensive line; Gen. Johnston went down to Weldon to take command 0 this movement, leaving the command of the army on the Rapidan to Gen, Gustayus Smith, J} jp also said hore that, while the MeZrimac is the largest, she is by 0 means the OplY vessel of the kind, or the most effec- tive one, that the Confederates have; that they have no tera Pan eight of these impenetrable sea monsters nO%r- 4; ready, and that in a few days they will sc} tail in tompany, and inflict a blow upon the North which will entirely change the present aspect of the war. It is as- verted positively that the Merrimac 4s not at all injured, but that she is being fitted with additional apparatus, ; wbich will enable her to carry off che Monitor as a | prize. In ppite of all that has been Bax to the contrary, the | Donfederates are amply abla to maintain their second ‘we of defence, along the Rapyahannock and Rapidan “Ywers, against the advamce of the Union army. They ‘dave 100000 troopa distributed along this line, as fol- ‘ows:—8,000 at the upper ford of the Rapidan, where the voad'from Front Royal'and Manassas Gap to the town ef ‘Orange (througt Mucieon) crosses that stream; 20,000 at she junction of the same stream with the and | Avexandria Railread, and.at the second ford, ty betow 55. at tows of ; 5,000 at 'Gersions- ‘oi goa ots pan Sonata peta fles.north- herend from Mabranton to Louies wooden mask ') Crossen the stream ons: where the road from ‘Bowl~ ‘Se. Src roman Rapidan; 5,000 at Kly’s ford, ‘four miles from’ihe mouth of the north branch of 5,000 at Falmouth; 20,000 at Fredericksburg; (0, ma tron # Newport, and 10,000 gt Port Royal. ‘these eompove part of the late army'of ‘the Potomac. ‘The principal fortifications along the pivers are ‘at the | poimtemamed #>ove. The most extensive are those a Sredericksburg. On these works the ktbor of a thousand bladksend “five thousand soldiers was expended from The middle of May sill the 25th of July last. They are sew mouited with part of the guns ‘brought from the Petomac river batteries, and it i ‘said shat the (aumers‘are sheltered by casemates. The ‘right bank ofthe river, between Fredericksburg and Port Royal Sonststs of high bluffs, averaging from fifteen to thirty eet high. “and for the most part with nearly precipitous || wittes. river is. five or six huméred feet wide and | ‘sixteen to twenty feet deep. It is, therefore, not to be | that the Union army ceuld between ‘hose' two points, particularly as the engineers crowned Morssses) that no army could move there. the river, between Germania and Fredericksbur a a reries of deop ravines, running at right ang! ‘the stream, the intervening ridges being covered with ‘wuated pins. Among or along these ravines artillery tamnot operate, and without artillery'the Un on army sannit move. From Germania to the head waters of (be ‘Repidan, and for a distance of fromthe to fi jos south of the stream, the country is an exact counterpurt of bee ag southwest of Washington, namely, ranges of i a , thickly wooded, with ravines or passes * between. ‘The natural defences of the ling above indicated have been improved to the utmost by rebel generals, who, ‘for months past, have contemplated the moment when ‘they would be compelled to abandon Manassas. News from the West Indies, MOVEMENTS OF THE BRITISH WLEET AT KERMUDA. {From the Bermuda Royal Gazette, March 11. | Her Majesty's steam frigate Orlando, 50, Captain Scott, C. B., arrived on Tuesday last from Halifax. The Or- tando is the largest frigate in her Majesty's service, * being 3,740 tons. Captain Francia Scott, C. B., of her Majesty's ship Orlando, gocs home in charge of ‘the Dia- = ‘Captain George Randolph takes command of the Her Majesty’s steam sloop Medea, Commander Preston, arrived on Sunday evening from New York. PR ‘ship Orjheus.sailed’on Thursday for Her Majesty's stoamer jul, whieh left here Naw Kerk on the Sttn eit.; Persea Ve pelt on Seidayy, baving met with terrific weather and sustaining much Halifax. a ra ‘Hamilton waters to- 4 Tie Pane t Fraud, in thirty-one days tand Islan “4 on Friday, with Picea regiment node atip Aaelaide, Captain Plymouth, arrived at Ire- the head quarters of the command of Colonel Cole, to St. Joba, N. B., and will leave in alvor having obtained a ‘The Adelaide experienced out, and bad her year, with Fifteenth regiment to put backto Plymoeth disabled, deen thoroughly overhauled, and pronouneed, after and 4rial,as being condition to te- ume her voyage. It was intended that she should ca!) at Bermuda. SEVERE STORM OF THE ISLAND. [Frem the Bermuda Royal Gasette, March 11.) About balf-past ¢hree o'clock on Fri «fienced an exceedingly severe tornado in this towf'and immediate ne: hood, The famed Bermuda white ‘squall, of wich thetornado | last Friday. wana very youd 18 well known ¢ mariners who <dhia part ohebe word. b elxoke amouné of Lae ofa w at Wa- "terloo; one of she atores of 8, Saltue -oscapied by Mesars, Bakery. the ree and Bes. H. Frith, and eev: “places on the narth side as far as the Flats, ave been slightly injured, and inwome places me biome 1 Pp @ few cedar trees vessels in the hartor wore knocked ffegr moments in such a way that we are aatoniohed they sid not come to grief. One parted her fastonin Poa Ey 4 weprit. ‘s set Berlanehors 0 short distance. "i a ‘A.and accident occurred im the loss of Lite of a very ‘worthy man named Ben. Wilhams; be was in a boat that Jett the wharf for Somerset just before the storm cam. menced;the boat was sunk ané be wont down with ber, from Or Bowery Turatee.—A complimentary benett will | be given this evening, at the Old owery theatre, to Mr, John Duryee, who has for a jong time past been aevorely indisposed. Manager Stickney has put forth a wory at ner abe rt the benefit wil doubtlers be a Dafhper. Batt at the St, Noosoras Horet.—A graod gatheriog o beauty and fashion will take place thir evening at the Nicholas Hotel. The proprietors will entartain their gueets and friends at the usual annual ball, and the whole resources of this magnificent hotel will be taxet! to give eclat to the occasion. Tae Gortscnatk MaTINER D'INerRUCTION.—Thie neve! Musical seance, for concert it can hardly be called, comet Of to-day at the Irving Hall. 1t is the only one that will be given here until Mr. Gottechaik’s return from the pro tracted jorr OM Which be IK about to start NEW YORK HERALD, TUESDAY, MARCH 18, 1862—TRIPLK SHEET. The Posi-ion of THE GAPTURE — ot ” ABATTIS LINE_OF REBEL OVERFLOWED BOTTOM LANDS WATEISESON, ee 6, 7 and 8—Rebel transports. 4—Bastion fort, mounting seven 10-inch columbiads» four of which command the river. B—New Madrid. C—Genoral Paine. GEN. POPES toMMAND LOW TIMBERED LAND WITH THE MOST OF THE\\ TIMBER CUTAWAY TO AFFORD W/EW OF RIVER HEAVY TIMBER F ISLAND NO. Island No. 10 and New Madrid Before Its Capture. \! %, REBEL BATTERIES” D—Gonerat Granger. B—General Palmer. F—Coleno} Groosback. G@—Four Ohio regiments, General Stanley, H H—Rebel encampments. Tana K—Union batteries. All the Transports and Ammunition of the Rebels in Our Hands. Opening the Mississippi to New Orleans. ACHIEVEMENTS OF OUR ARMY AND NAVY Sweeping the Rebels from Our Inland Seas. ANOTHER VICTORY IN ARKANSAS THREE REBEL COLONELS CAPTURED, &e., &c., &e. THE ADVANCE TO NEW MADRID. Our New Madrid Correspondence, New Mapnip, Mo., March 13, 1862. ‘The March to New Madrid—The Rebels Open Wre—The Mititary Positions of the Contending Forces—Diseatisfac- tion Existing Among the Rebel Troops, Almost Amounting to Demoralization, dc, ‘The column under General Pope left Commerce, Mo., onthe 27th of February, and, after six days of hard ‘marches through and over the interminable jungles of ‘the great Mingo or Nigger Wool swamp, sat down in our present position. We had scarcely been in our camps a day before the rebel battories opened upon us, forcing our right wing back afew hundred yards further from the river. Wefound the revel forces here much more formidable than we had supposed, numbering, at the least calculation, not far from twenty thousand men, as the retiring garrison from Columbus had come on here and to Island No. 10, which is about ten miles above. As goon as General Pope had ascertained the true state of af- fairs he sent to Cairo for reinforcements, which only ar- rived, however, three days ago, and have as yet rcarce- ly gotten over the wearisomeness of their march from Bird's Point. We have had considerable skirmishing with the ene- my, and onr pickets have been continually fired upon from the rebel battcries and infantry; but no general en- gagement has yet taken place, nor will there be, I think, until the gunboats from Cairo arrive to co-operate with us. The rebels here are very strongly posted, or at Kast I should judge so from what I can see from our camp. There is not another so peculiarly situated ® spot upon the whole line of the river. You will see by the diagram I send you the rebels’ and our own present positions. New Ma ‘drid stands upon tho right bank of the river, just at the extremity of a very short and abrupt bend, not unlike the lower swetl in the letter 8. Ten miles above is Isiand No. 10, which rumor says ia strongly fortified. A mile and a balf below the town the rebels have erected o strong four bastioned fort, in which they have lopated seven ten-inch columbiads. In the open fields around the fort, in the town and above town, extending to the Little Bayou, the rebels have their encampments (mostly log huts), and the whole is surrounded with a well erected earthwork and ditch, which wo will have to scale in ‘order to reac the town, The land is very low all around New Madrid, and In times of flood like the present there is IMtie else than water to be seen in any direction. On the opposite aide of the river for several miles the tim- ber has been cut away, which gives a fair range to the enemy's artillery for several miles up the river. But @ glance at the diagram will give @ better view than « column of description, ‘This morning an aecident oceurred at our heavy siege battery, whieb cost us four gallant soldiers killed and some eight Or ton more or less injured. Irefer to the bursting of a twenty-four pounder siege gun. The rebele have flye jron-clad ganboate in front of the town and three transports above. The gunboats are covered with railroad iron, and mount in afl some twenty. seven guns. Several deserters came into camp yeeterday, who re. port that great dissatiefaction and demoralization exist in the rebel army, and that an entire brigade of Irishmen de I will not say. Our troops are in excellent health and spirits, and eager for.a chance to emulate the example sot them at Donelson, Our Caire Correspondence. Carno, Dl., March 13, 1862. General Pope’s Mavements—Who the Rebel General Cum- manding at New Madrid Is—Gencrat Strong at Cairo, de. General Pope, with his army, has gone down to Point Ploagant, ten miles below New Madrid, where, at last accounte, he was placing his heavy batteries to command the river. ] learn from an officer just from General Pope’s com- mand that the rebel gunboat Grampus, and the rebel floating battery Manassas, cartying twelve guns, are op- posite New Madrid. If this is the case, and if Gen. Pope bas any efficient batteries at Point Pleasant, we have them hemmed in to a certainty. But I do not credit the report; for, certainly, the rebels in allowing themselves to be thus outflanked would show themselves to be greater fools tham they did in embarking in the heresy of rebel- Kon. Brigadier General J. P. McCown (not McCowan) of Ten Beesee, is in command of the rebel forces at New Madrid | and is represented as being # very able officer. He was ‘a student at West Point, and graduated in the same class with General U. S. Grant. He bas been at Columbus in command of the batteries during the summer. General Strong arrived here yesterday from St. Louis to relieve General Cullom in the command of this post, and to.day 1 found him ensconced in the official chair that has since my sojourn in Cairo been occupied and vacated by Gene- rale Prentiss, Grant, McClernand and Cullom. General Cullom left this morning for 8t. Louis, utterly exhausted and broken down with over exertion and trouble with the provincial reporters, OPERATIONS AT ISLAND No. 10. Camo, Il. , March 16, 1862. The reporter for the press, now on board the flagship, two miles above Island No, 10, sends the following i ‘The flotilla got underweigh at haif-past five o'clock this morning, and dropped down slowly until about seven o'clock, when the flagship, being about twenty miles abead and six miles above the island, discovered a stern wheel steamer run out from the shelter of a point on the Kentucky shore, and steam down the river. Four sbells were thrown after her, but the distance was too great for the shots to take effect. At nine o’ctock the fleet rounded to about three miles above the island. ‘The Commodore then ordered three of the mortar Doats into position. At this hour, two o’clock im the afternoon, we are within range, but as yet have beard nothing from the enemy. ‘There appears to be a large rebel force on the Ken- tucky shore, and we have eounted thirteen guns in po. sition on the bluffs. A large number of rebel transportscam also be seen acrces the low point near the Missouri shore, busily en- gaged around the island, wut what they are doing cannot be determined. The mortar boats are momentarily expected to open fire. ‘We discern the mudh talked of floating rebel battery at the istund. Caro, Iil., Mareb 16—4 P. M. ‘The rebels at Island No, 10 have.a-very strong position- Forty-six guns have'been counted. Eight mortars shelled the battery above the island to- day, The enemy left i several times, Dut returned. They only fired with ¢twogunr. Our sbelis reached the island easily. General Pope has sent despatches to Gommodore Foote, saying that Ais Acavy guns command the river, 80 that nei- ‘her steamboat nor gunboat of the enemy cam pass. Firing bas been beard in the direction of New Madrid al) day, It is supposed that she rebel gunbosts are try- ing to force & passage. Seven rebel transporte near Island No. 10 are hem- med in. ‘The encampment of the enemy is visible, and is sup, posed to be large enough for 15,000 40 20,000 men. Camo, March 17, 1862. ‘There is nothing later from Island No, 10 than a de- spatch to-day which says that the accuracy of tho firing by the mortars yesterday was fally equal to previous expectations. ‘The mortar fleet threw two hundred and forty shelis had poritively refused to fight, How true the story may | nd the Benton forty-one. It is expocted that one or « more of the enemy’s works will be reduced to-day, and the place closely invested. It ig thought by some that the rebels are march- ing across the neck of Jand from the island to Merriweather’s landing on the Missiseippi, only five miles, over a practicable road, and be- Jow Point Pleasant, the place where General Pope has bat- teries, and that when they are embarked on the boats (the smoke of which was plainly seen yesterday at or near Merriweather’s landing from the gunboat Benton) wo shall find the rebel nest empty, and the river clear of rebels to Randolph or Fort Pillow. CAPTURE OF ISLAND NO. 10. Sr. Lows, March 17, 1662. In response to a serenade to-night, General Halleck an- nounced from the balcony of the Planter’s House that Island. Number Ten is ours, with all the ammunition and transports the enemy had. there. He said also, that another victory had been gain in Arkansas, in which three rebels Colonels were captured. ‘The particulars have not transpired up to the hour of the closing of the telegraph office for the night. NEW MADRID AND ISLAND NO. 10. MAP OF THE VICINITY OF GENERAL POPE’S VIC- TORY—THE LOCATION OF ISLAND NO 10—SKETCH OF NEW MADRID, ETC. Our map shows the relative positions of General Pope's forces and the rebel fortifications at New Madrid and Island No, 10 previous to the evacuation of the former and the attack upon the latter. The line of the rebel intrenchments extended for some distance in front of the town and along the banks of the river below that point, and to further strengthen the position a fort had eed erected by the rebels commanding the river and the westerni mtrenched line. An abattis had also been thrown down to impede the progress of the troops, if they attompted to advance in front of the line upon whe fortifications, and in every important location batteries had been stationed. The low timbered land of the peninsula—which is cansed by the bend of the river—has been partially cleared to afford a view of the whole extent of the Mississippi from Islafd No. 10 o the fort Back from this clearing the land is covered with heavy timber, which is succeeded by a swamp. The land on the opposite shores—east and west—of the peninsula is low, swampy, and for the greater part of the year over- flowed by the backwater of the river. Thus it would appear that if the rebels are beaten at Island No. 10 they have no means of retreat on any side, for at those points where there are uo troops—and they nearly surround the position—swampy land would prevent the passage of an army. 8KETCH.OF NEW MADRID. Now Madrid is the capital of New Madrid county, in the State of Missouri. It is situated on the Mississippi river, two hundred and forty-seven miles below St. Louis, seventy-nine miles below Cairo, sixty-one miles from Columbus, forty-two miles from Hickman, and about ten miles from Island No. 10, all by the course of the river. It ig also one hundred and fifty-six miles above Memphis, gine hundred and forth-seven miles from New Orleans, and eighty.two miles southeast of Jefferson City. Previous to the rebellion the principal business of the place was in shipping corn, lumber and cattle for South- ern markets, and in this a large trade was transacted. ‘Tho houses are mostly built of wood, on account of the frequency of earthquakes, by which this town was great- ly injured in 1811. It was Qret settled in 1780, anda well-tode newspaper office once existed in the place. ‘The county bas an ares of eight hundred and eighty square miles, the Mississippi river flowing on the eastern border, and the Whitewater, an affluent of the St. Francis, on the western border. The surface of the land is an alluvial plain, without a rock of any description. Eartn- quakes in the vicinity have often ehanged the relative -landmsarke of the county,and the islands of the Mis- siseippi river have disappeared, and the course of the stream entirely changed from the same cause. ISLAND NO. 10, Thie island is situated in the corner of that bend of the Mississippi river which touches the border of Ton- nesevo, # few miles farther up tbe river than Now Ma- drid, although nearly southwest of that point. It is located about two hundred and fifty miles from St. Louis, and nine hundred and fifty from New Orleans, The elevation of the river at this point is about two hundred feet above the level of the delta,or its mouth. The average depth of water at this point is from ninety to one bundred feet; the breadth of the stream from main- land to mainiand i about nine hundred yards. The current runs by the island at a moderately fast rate, and with the power of the three rivors—Missiasipp!, Missouri and Ohio—combined, The island is near the southern, or what is termed the eastern, bank of the river; but at this point the stream varies from its southern course and turns abruptly to the northwest, leaving this island in the southern angle of the bend. It is about forty-five by the course of the river, south of Columbus and about twenty-six miles from Hickman. It is near Objonville. SKETCH OF THE REBEL GENERAL McCOWN. General Jobn Porter MeCown, in command st New Ma, drid, is a native of Tennessee, and entered the Military Academy at West Point as a cadet in September, 1835. He graduated in 1840, standing No. 1@ in his ‘class, in which were the following well known officers:—General Stewart Van Vliet, General Thomas, General W. T. Sherman, wnd others. On the 1st of July in that year he was appomted a Second Lieutenant of the Fourth artil- lery, and in September, 1843, was promoted to a First Lieutenancy. He held the position of Regimental Quar- termaster from March, 1847,to the end of 1848. He served in Mexico, and was breveted Captain for gallant and meritorious conduct at Cerro Gordo. He was made a full Captain in January, 185], and held the same rank at the breaking out of the rebellion, when, on the 17th of May, 1862, he resigned and joned the rebels. RAILROAD CONNECTION WITH NASHVILLE SUSPENDED, ETC. Lovisvitug, Ky., March 17, 1862. ‘The rains of Friday night cauecd Barren river to swell over ite banks, and a portion of the bridge over the river at Bowling Green was carried away. Rajlroad con- nettion with Nashville is consequently suspended for the present. The Ohio river is also rapidly rising. OUR ARMY AT MANASSAS. Arrival of a Union Man from Rebeldom. More Interesting Particulars of the Rebe} Retreat from Manassas. THEIR ARMY COMPLETELY DISPIRITED. Abandonment of the Black Flag in Richmond. Appearance of the Rebel Works at Centreville. nen Splendid Strategy of General MeClellan Com- pelling Their Abandonment, &e., &e. &e. GENERAL M‘CLELLAN’S DEPARTMENT. Factlitics of the Present Headquarters of General McClellan—Rapid Despatch of Business—Visit of Mrs. General McClellan to the Potomac Army, dic. ‘Wasnivetox, March 17, 1862. ‘The present headquarters of the Army of the Potomac aro sufficient for the ample accommodation of the General and staff, 80 that few are obliged to occupy tents at Fairfax Court House. The speedy adoption of means and rapidity of business despatch was never more fully illustrated in any campaign of any of the large armics of the Old World than in the movements of General McClellan. ‘The business operations connected with the manage- ment of the Army of the Petomac are of a magnitude surparsing belief. As if by @talismanic touch, comes ® change in the scene, and all the huge parapha- nalia of war change their locality with a celeri, ty suggestive of transformations in the legendary tales of the Orient. In the present case thero ig a system as well as despatch, showing jn the managing head that clearness of fOresight and comprehensivenoss of details essential to the deve. lopment of great plans. It was this business aptitude that formed a striking feature in the character of Napo- Jeon, and it is this that shows as much, if not more than anything else, that General McClollan is the ‘right man in the right place.” Since taking the field at the head of the Potomac army, he has been employed day and night in preparations to carry out his plans for the future. Everything has been arranged for the coming blow, and it will soon come down, with stunning and overwholming force, and when and where least expected. Mrs. General McClellan and some other ladies today visited the headquarters of the Army of the Potomac, on the Virginia side, They also took look through the | & mps adjoining A Unio some interesting facts respecting bis experiences within man who has escaped from Virgina gives —: the last few months. He is # native of ope of the North- ern States, and has resided South @ few years, where he was engaged in @ permanent business when the rebellion broke out. ‘The story of his escape, like that of many otbers, is fuil of exciting incident. He says that the rebels commenced removing their stores from Manassas severa) days before the final retrograde march of their army, siving as an excuse along the railroad that they had ac cumulated too large a quantity of stuff at Manassas. Their Siege guns were carried to Richmond ofterward, 80 the conductor of the railroad avers. Then the troeps began to come slong past the Rappahannock station. They came on Monday, in the care and by the roads. Thirty- mx trains came over the railroad past the Rappahannock and at each stopping place detachments would leave the train and scour the neighborhood for teams and all means of transportation. Part of the artillery went in the cars, and part over the roads, ‘They took various routs through the woods, and as the retreat progressed they hurried along in utter confusion. General Johnston took supper at Mr. Mowen’s, Rappa. ‘anncck Station, on Monday night, March 10. The army was completely dispirited. They were as much disap- pointed at the order to retreat from Manassas as some ot our bloodthirsty politicians were. They said that if they could not fight us at Manassas they could not anywhere. This informant says that enlistments for the rebod army have been very slow, and that bills have bee posted in all places, giving notice that all who would vol unteer before ten days would be allowed fifty dollars bounty; but otherwise they would be drafted into the militia, The time expired on the 10th instant. ‘The first families of Virginia are very bitter in thei hatred of the Yankees ; but the middle classes only wait the advance of our army to declare themselves for tha Union, ‘The rebels feel indignant that Beauregard was taken from the army of the Potomac. They were talking of burning all their property and foliowing the army to Richmond. Preacher Bennet, a rich Faptist clergyman of Farquhar county, @ great secessionist, left on Sunday week, going further South to secure his negroes Our in’ormant was in Richmond when the death of Zoliicoffer was received. They were talking then of rais- ing the black flag, and resolving to give nor take quar- ter. The news produced a great depression, and the black flag was dropped. . ‘The recent reconnoissance of General Stoneman on the heels of the rear guard of the rebels retreating from Manassas extended up the Orange and Alexandria Raft” road only to Cedar run,a mile this side of Warrenton Junction. General Stoneman’s force c.nsisted of bub fifteen hundred cavalry and eight hundred infantry. At that point they came close to the rebel pickets, whom they drove over the run, toa force of about two regi- ments of cavalry, infantry and a battery of artillory. No attempt was made to follow General Stoneman on his return towards Manassas. The rebels had burned the Cedar Run bridge and the bridge at Bristow, but not otherwise injured the railroad. The roads travelled over by the reconnoitering force were found strewn with hats, caps, blankets, muskets, ammunition, knapsacks, broken down and abandoned loaded wagons, &c., &c., showing that the retreat of the rear of the rebels, at least, was made under a real and ex- tensive panic. Many of tho regiments over the river suffered exceed- ing’y from the storm of Saturday, several being exposed to jt without any shelter whatever. A member of the New York Twenty-first regiment was drowned in fording a stream swollen by the rain, and a flue team attached to one of the baggage wagons was swept off. Several men belonging to other regiments are also reported drowned. A musician, named Joseph Shaler, in the band of the Twenty-first was accidentally shot im the leg by # com" rade, but without fracturing the bong The ball was ex. tracted by the surgeon, ana the woumfled man is in a fair way to recover speedily. J The condition of affairs at Centum upon. the en: trance of the federal forces last: y entirely oor. roborates the statement published ifthe Hematy in De- comber last, given by amegro thad been the body servant of a rebel artillery officer, His deseription of the works was accurately correct. ‘His estimate of the forces at that time at Manassas and Centreville was one hundred and twenty-five thousand men aii one hunared and four pieces of artillery. From the most reliable information recently obtained, this force was reduced only about fifteen thousand men by furloughs to men whose enlistments were expired. It has already been stated that these works were intended for the use of field artillery, with covered ways between the forts for the passage of artillery rapidly from one to the other. The natural strength of the position ie wneur- passed. Upon examining the place and its defences the Prince De Joinville remarked,that in Europe, to have compelled an enemy to evacuate such a stronghold without the les of a man, or even without firing a gun, would have been considered the most brilliant achievement of the whole campaign. . The story of the Quaker guns turns out to be entirely a joke of our own troope. Among the earliest in entering the works at Centerville and Manassas were Colonel F. H. Wright and Colene! J. J- Astor, of General McCiellan’s staff. These officers rode all through the werks soon after they had been en- tered by the adyapeed guard of the federal army, and they state most positively that there were neither Quake? guns nor painted logs, nor logs of any kind, in the em~ brasures at that time. NEWS FROM GE Slight Skirmishing Still Kept Up in the Neighborhood of Winchester—The Re- dels Still Lurking on the Outskirts of the Army, &c., dic. Wasmincton, March 17, 1862. Several picket rkirmishes have occurred in the vicinity of Winchester between our cavalry and the enemy, without any serious results. The rebels still lingor wist- fully in the vicinity of the town, and show little disposi- tion to leave before they aro driven away. To-day all is quiet among the pickets and clsewhere along our lines. ; Cedar Creek Bridge Destroyed by the Re. bels=The Retreat of General Jackson. ‘Wincur@ar, Va., March 17, 1862. Contrabands confirm the report of the destruction of the bridge over Cedar creek, and report that General Jackson bas retreated up the valley towards Harrisburg. All was quiet at the outposts. ‘The Lower Potomac. 70 CHSAR THE THINGS THAT ARE CESAR’ ‘TO THE EDITOR OF THE MERALD. saw in the Henan of the 13th an editorial which ap- pears togive thecredit (if any is due) of taking possession of the batteries on the Potomac to General Hooker. The facts are these:—The flotilla took possession of all the batteries, hoisting our fiag over them and shelling the rear guard of the enemy out of Shipping Point batteries, preventing their completing the destruction of the ammu- nition, &c., there; they held the batteries until next morn- ing, when they wore turned over to the army, ‘On the 14th the flotilla shelled Aquia in the forenoon. Although some of the guns bad certainly been removed, the enemy replied from guns in the lower hill battery. ‘Towards sunset the shelling was repeated, but there was no response, from which I infer that the enemy have left the point, Burning of the Pre: terian Charch Buxcnamtoy, N. Y., Maroh 17, 1862. ‘The new and splendid Presbyterian thurch, an ediflee just completed and unoccupied, together with the old chureh, was burned to the ground at one o'clock this morning. Loss $26,000. Insurance $18,000. To eye eee - riiLapELrata, March 17, 1862. ‘The weli known publisher of Dr. Kane’s worke has offered Parson Brownlow $10,000 for the copyright of h’ proposed book, giving an account of his sufferings. spremve Cour ike ate br relation A decision of the Su Court of U to the assessment of taxes, declares that all the State taxes'levied since 1856 are unconstitutional, by reason of the inequality of ye soe ‘The Legislature will take im~- mediate action in the matter. ‘The act for the relief of farm mortgages is also decided to be unconstitutional. initial Arrivals and Departares, ARRIVALS, 4—Steamehip Roanoke—Mr and Mrs A Hl Bhis and oe rANScrion Putiness, P Ward, Ide la Toyn, George M cee ose Lopes, Gaspar Sluro, R Martinez, Howard be 'Noba, Capt M Hagar, Chas enfud, R , Jno Norris, i Pedvo Meri- Proctor, Henry Wood, Lewis ink R Aiken, Robt Powel no McDonald, H Merchant, Jno Wm Finagen, Jno Beoteh, Wr ty, Molly, Jno Mantila, Geo Roch, P . Ancrew Lesia, Jno F Lera, Antonio Love'ah, Mit | Catherine Gardella, J Casastio, Salvador Balagar—Tvia\ 46. at Binghamton, N. Y. wr % te y