The Petersburg
Express,of yesterday, has the following account of the operations around the city the day before.
Yesterday morning early that same old 32 pounder
Blakeley of the enemy, which has now become so familiar to the ears of
Petersburg people, commenced its daily business, and at the usual intervals of five minutes its reverberating noise would break upon the ear, and elicit the remark from every one, "That
Blakeley is about again." This gun is stationed at or near
Pace's farm, on the
City Point road, and has thrown many shells into the lower part of the city, but so far has caused no destruction of life.
On Monday evening one of its missiles fell near the
Market House, entering one of the small brick buildings to the west of the market, occupied by
Mr. Frank Perkins, cutting a girder in two, and scattering the plastering in all directions.
Another scraped the tin roof of the
Southside.
Depot building. glanced over into the depot yard, ricocheted, and finally brought up at the bottom of the
Appomattox.
The enemy opened on from the Chesterfield.
De.
About ten o'clock a couple of our batteries, occupying an advantageous position on She
Chesterfield side of the
Appomattox, paid their respects to the enemy's guns in the vicinity of
Jordan's farm, stopping the thunders of the
Blakeley monster for a white, and causing the gunners to leave — at first in twos, and then, as the locally became hotter, in squads of five, eight, ten, and fifteen.
Our batteries were supposed to have disarranged matters in that locality considerably, as we did not hear from the
Blakeley for several hours.
About seven last evening she opened again, and continued her firing at the usual intervals.
The enemy Seeling our right.
About 11 o'clock yesterday a movement was made by a portion of
Grant's army on our lines near the
Jerusalem Plankroad, in the vicinity of the residence of
Mr. Wm A Gregory.
But his advance guard only drove in our pickets, for he discovered a body of troops which, had they continued their advance, would have administered to them a terrible castigation.
This same body, which shall here be nameless, has heady rendered not less than 20,000 of
Grant's army wholly unserviceable since the present campaign commenced.
A movement on the Weldon Railroad.
Nothing now occurred to disturb the equanimity of our brave boys occupying the trenches until two o'clock, when our mounted videttes discovered the enemy in much force moving around towards the Wellion railroad, on a road which crosses the reils at point about two miles from Butter worth's bridge, and in the immediate vicinity of Wm H
Davis's place, at the forks of the
Halifax and Vaughan roads. The
Yankees engaged in this movement were encountered by a body of North Carolina cavalry, who held them in check until reinforcements came up, both of cavalry and of infantry, when the enemy were speedily driven back, the cavalry alone becoming engaged.
The fortunes of war are conceded to be very freckle, but we predict for such of
Grant's forces as may attempt to sweep around in that direction the most severe drubbing of the campaign.
The Confederates who how have that portion of the approaches to
Petersburg in their keeping are fighting men in every sense or the term, and have never yet known defeat.
To subserve the cause, and comply with what we believe to be the wishes of the
Commanding General, we refrain from mentioning troops by name; but we hope at no distant day to give all the gallant regiments, brigades, and divisions now engaged in the defence of
Petersburg their due meed of deserved praise.
Baddy Smith crossing the Appomattox.
yesterday large bodies of troops, supposed to be attached to
Baldy Smith's Eighteenth army corps, were observed crossing the pontoons on the lower
Appomattox, and it is not improbable that
General Ulysses, chatting under the severe restraint imposed by our well massed lines around the city, will to day repeat his often tried process of hurting larger columns against our entrenchments.--They will be welcomed as they were at Spotsylvania Court House and Cold Harbor Let them come.
Our boys are impatient to receive them.
Grant's Fortifications in Prince George.
A gentleman who left Prince George a day or two since says that
Grant has apparently a very large force between the defences of
Petersburg and city Point.
He is heavily fortified, his line of earthworks extending from the
Appomattox, at a point a short distance below
Petersburg, to and beyond the farm of
Timothy Rives, in Prince George, in a southeasterly direction.
Here it unites with another line, which stretches off towards the
James river in a northeasterly direction the two forming an acute angle, or, in other words, a very broad letter V, The northeasterly line is of course intended to guard against any movement which may be made to strike the enemy in his flange from the eastern side.
Depredations of the enemy.
Our informant states that the people of Prince George, as everywhere else where the army of vandals has visited, are suffering greatly from their depredations.
crops of wheat, corn, and oats, have been destroyed, and every garden has been stripped.
As confirmation of this last mentioned fact, we would a ate that many of the prisoners brought in last week, upon being searched at the
Provost Marshal's office, were found well supplied with fresh onions, which some of the rasea's stated that they had taken from the gardens of the Prince George people to keep them from "spilcing."
We learned last night that our troops engaged the enemy yesterday afternoon near the
Weldon road, and after a short but sharp fight, repulsed them handsomely.
The enemy's movement was watched by a party of our scouts, who first discovered them about 12 o'clock, near
Mr. Richard Williams's farm, in
Dinwiddie, a half mile west of the
Jerusalem Plankroad, and some three miles from the
Weldon road.
They consisted of
Hancock's 2d corps and a brigade of cavalry.
We captured
Lieut Col Romer B Stonghton, of the 2d. U. S. Sharpshooters, a Captain, and some ten or twelve privates.
Col
Stonington was wounded in the Wilderances fights, but has recovered.
Arrival of the prisoners.
A batch of prisoners, taken near the Weldon railroad yesterday afternoon, were brought to
Major Ker's headquarters last night, and by him turned over to
Provost Marshal Hawes.
They state that they belong to the 2d army corps, (
Hancock's) and had been in the trenches around
Petersburg up to Monday, night.
They were then relieved by a new army corps, the number of which they did not learn.
It only arrived Monday night, and was four horse in passing.
An intelligent sergeant from
Philadelphia, attached to the 2d U S sharpshooters, states that it was reported in camp that a very heavy body of cavalry had gone down to the rear of
Petersburg, and intended to cut the railroad at some point between this city and
Weldon.
We give his statement for what it is worth.
The privates in this batch are all foreigners, and the most ordinary, literate ragged, dirty, cut throat looking creatures we have ever seen One, a raw Patlander, says he only landed in this country last February, when he was immediately well plied with whiskey, enlisted to fight under the stars and stripes, and then sent to the army.
Such is the material our gallant soldiers are now fighting.
The latest from Grant's army.
The latest from
Grant's army, now around
Petersburg, reached us last night at 11 o'clock, in the shape of a villainous shell.
This noisy missile fell on Bank street, striking the large mulberry tree in front of the old,
ented g ncer building, and cutting off a limb some eight inches in diameter.
Nobody hurt, but the compositors in the
Express office, and our friends at the
Provost's office, were greatly enlivened by the music.
