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of the name of a battle.
We started out at one o'clock, and at five o'clock we opened fire on the rear of the rebels, who were just then opening fire on General Judah's forces.
The battle, although it has been often described, is not altogether well understood, on account of most correspondents having written from the gunboats, and were of course unable to see much of the fight.
The river-road runs along nearly close to the bank of the river.
About two miles back of the river, on the north side, runs a long range of hills, down over which comes a road running to the river at the island.
About three hundred yards above this pike road was a small private roadway leading north into some corn-fields, while a large wheat-field separated the two roads from each other.
The rebels had encamped on Saturday night in the corn-fields at the end of the by-road or lane, and General Judah's men coming down on the pike road had come on them almost unawares, the density of the morning fog having obscured the rebels from their view.
The rebels fired on the advancing column, throwing them into temporary disorder, and were preparing to make a charge, when the gunboats opened on them from the river, and at the same time the Second and Seventh Ohio, of General Hobson's force, opened on them in their rear, having just come in a little way above the pike road, by which General Judah's forces had come up from Portsmouth.
This staggered them for the time, and Colonel Saunders coming up immediately afterward with two pieces of artillery, threw two shells in their midst.
Fired at from all sides, what could they do?
Separating in two columns, one part of — their force pushed forward to the right only to find themselves completely surrounded, and they quietly submitted themselves prisoners of war. Colonel Dick Morgan surrendered his command to General Shackleford, while Colonel Duke and Colonel Smith were cut off in a ravine, where they surrendered themselves to their captors.
At this time the prisoners numbered about eight hundred and fifty.
About forty-five men had succeeded in crossing over into Kentucky before the fight commenced.
A portion of the rebels who ran to the left, at the end of the fight, numbering two hundred, marched under Colonel Johnston to Reedsville, where they succeeded in crossing over, with the loss of about twenty-five men who were killed by the fire of the gunboats.
Another portion went up to Longgreen Bottom, stealing all that lay in their way, crossing over at Harrisonville, and turning right around, struck for the river again, about forty miles below Buffington, where Coleman of Colonel Cluke's command surrendered all his force to about fifty men. The balance of Morgan's band accompanied their leader to Columbiana County, where they were all captured by General Shackleford.
So ends the great Morgan raid.
It has proved one of the most remarkable events of the war, and God grant it may never be repeated. * * *
The battle of Buffington Island.
The uniform peace which sat brooding with dove-like wings over the State of the “Beautiful River” was broken for the first time during the threatened invasion under Bragg; but fate reserved for a rebel of far less military calibre and importance the remarkable event of bringing about and causing the first battle of the war in Ohio, and the first in her history as a State.
But the sensation of the State is over, and the great Morgan raid is over forever.
The long, tedious, and perplexing pursuit of Morgan has ended at last in a victory such as will not only add lustre to our land and naval forces engaged, but render famous the scene of his defeat, which is, without doubt, the deathblow to the brilliant career of the notorious and wonderfully successful guerrilla chief.
The local press of the State has chronicled from time to time the progress of the rebel force toward the point where it was met and defeated, and it only now remains to recount in a necessarily general manner.
Buffington Island lies in the Ohio River close to the Ohio shore, about thirty-five miles above Pomeroy, and was chosen by the rebels as a place of crossing into Virginia on account of the shoals between it and Blennerhasset's Island, twenty miles above.
They had doubtless been well advised of the movements of our forces sent from all points, to either head them off or keep them confined to the only route eastward for them, until they reached the mountainous region and the eastern frontier.
Without following, then, the progress of Morgan's march eastward, we will take a glance at his course previous to the morning of the battle.
Yesterday, Sunday, the nineteenth, Morgan's right kept the main or shore-road, from Pomeroy, having sent out skirmishers to feel the strength of that town and Middleport.
This was on Friday night, but if he had any intention to attempt to ford at Eight Mile Island, he abandoned it on account of a show of resistance made by a small body of home guards, with a piece of ordnance made of cast-iron, and used only to fire salutes.
A skirmish took place, in which the rebels lost two men killed and two or three wounded, and the home guards had one man slightly wounded and lost their gun, which, however, the rebels contemptuously left behind, after they found its utter uselessness.
The main body were advancing on the road from Vinton, and uniting with the right, the entire force took the old stage-ron;d to Pomeroy, and pushed for Buffington Island, or rather the shore opposite, which it reached, it is supposed, at two o'clock on Sunday morning.
When General Judah started from Portsmouth on Thursday evening, the sixteenth, it was expected that an engagement would take place; for reliable information had been received at the headquarters of Colonel P. Kinney, commander of the post, during the afternoon, that the rebels
