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He is in the mountains northeast of Beverly, and Gen. Morris is after him; and unless he throws away all his guns, and heavy incumbrances, and is nimble on foot,will surely take him. Glorious, isn't it!
With the exception of a small force near Charlestown, on the Kanawha River, Gen. McClellan has swept the rebels out of all that part of Virginia which belongs to his military district.
The rebellion can never organize itself again in this region.
Gov. Pierpont and his new Government will have free scope.
The course of our army has been most magnanimous in its treatment of the people.
In the neighborhood of the camps, at all houses, there is, on the arrival of the army, a guard stationed to protect the timid from their own fears.
On the march from Beverly to this place, many of the houses were vacated entirely by men, women, and children, all having been put in mortal fear by the terrible stories of our atrocities.
In many cases, the men (Secessionists) fled, leaving their families, and these locked up in their houses, and closed the curtains, except, alas!
when woman's irrepressible curiosity overcame them, and a slightly-drawn corner of the curtain revealed the gazing eye. A few who were Union people, stood in their front doors and yards and waved their handkerchiefs, in the highest joy. There was not the slightest difficulty in determining the character and sympathies of the people, by their appearance, as the United States army marched by. Around Huttonville, the slaves, who were told that we should cut off their hands to disable them from working for their masters, are delighted with the army pageant, and come about in great freedom, and tell with joy how they had been frightened and humbugged.
Several Secessionists who have fled to the hills have returned.
One man who had fled, driving away his cattle, came back, and was so well pleased with the Northerners that he brought back his cattle to sell them to feed our soldiers.
Where Gen. McClellan will go from this point is not known — perhaps to the Kanawha region, to pay his respects to Gov. Wise.
Foolish as the Governor is, he is too wise to be caught in the vicinity of Gen. McClellan.
We feel very proud of our wise and brave young Major-General.
There is a future before him, if his life be spared, which he will make illustrious.
He is the son-in-law of Major Marcy, of the United States army.
In conversation with Major Marcy about his Red River exploration some years ago, he pleasantly remarked that then McClellan was a lieutenant under him, but now he (Marcy) was under McClellan.
P. S.--The news reached the camp to-night that Gen. Garnett is killed.
He was followed into the mountains by Gen. Hill.
He lost one cannon, several men killed, and several men taken prisoners.
I am informed that the Seventh and Ninth Indiana Regiments, Cols. Dumont and Milroy, Fourteenth Ohio, Col. Steadman, and First Artillery, Ohio, Col. Barnett, were engaged in this work of routing the rebels in the mountains.
I go up to Beverly to-day and shall learn all the particulars.
--N. Y. Times, July 20th.
“Cinoinnati Gazette” narrative.
To understand the exact location of the battle field it should be remembered that the enemy, after leaving the Beverly pike, had taken a mountain road leading back again to the western side of Laurel Hill, and across the mountains to the Shafer Fork of Cheat River, intending to proceed down the river to St. George.
They had reached the Cheat River (near the Southern extremity of Tucker County) when they discovered our advance rapidly nearing.
From that time Garnett's manifest object was to select some advantageous ground upon which he could drive us back and then make good his retreat.
On reaching the third ford of Cheat River, his practiced military eye at once detected the advantages of the position.
On the left bank of the river was a low level bottom — cornfields and meadows.
On the right was a high bluff, commanding the fields below, and its brink fringed with an impenetrable thicket of laurel.
Fording the river and placing his men on this high bluff on the right, he had them completely concealed from our advance by the laurel, while the situation gave him every advantage with his artillery.
The wagon train was left standing in the river, manifestly for the purpose of deceiving us into the belief that the army had advanced and the horses were unable to draw the wagons over the rough rocks of the ford.
He supposed rightly enough that we would advance and take possession of the wagons, and that thus the bait so nicely arranged would draw us directly under the fire of his army, concealed on the opposite bluff.
His plan worked to a charm.
The only defect was that he counted on four thousand soldiers to carry it out when he seems to have had only four thousand cowards.
A properly directed fire, properly maintained, would have mown our three regiments to the ground long before the main body of the army (then two or three miles back) could have arrived and no power under Heaven could have prevented Garnett from making a successful retreat.
But the men were panic stricken.
This was business: those blue-blooded Yankees actually had the impertinence to stand fire, and to shoot too with uncomfortable accuracy.
The bullets came too near the persons of the chivalry.
The perfume of gunpowder was not near so fragrant as that of the cologne with which they had been so bountifully supplied at Laurel Hill, and in disgust they fled like a pack of frightened sheep.
The bad shooting of the rebels alone saved Steedman's Regiment (Fourteenth Ohio) from being decimated by the first volley.
They were in fair view, drawn up in marching order on the left bank, and with only the river between
