The special correspondent of the
London Herald and the
London Chronicle, in his letters from the seat of war in
Virginia, gives his impressions of the existing condition of affairs here in the latter part of June and the early part of July.
We append some extracts from the letters:
Appearance of the Confederate troops.
The constant arrival and transit of troops — cavalry, infantry and even artillery — to the seat of war, keeps up uninterrupted excitement in this capital.
Never, perhaps, were soldiers uniformed less pretentiously or with less regard to outward appearance.
Their object is not so much to look imposing as to fight well; and the latter, so far as I am capable of judging, they are determined to do when occasion offers.
Besides the twenty thousand men encamped around
Richmond, there cannot be less than fifteen or twenty thousand additional troops here, a portion of whom are drafted off daily, according as other troops arrive.
How the troops are Lodged and how they Enjoy themselves.
Owing to the insuperable difficulty of providing sleeping accommodations for so numerous an army, public lecture halls and similar places are made to do duty as barracks, while in the leading hotels guests are packed together in single apartments, without the least regard to comfort or decency.
the influx of such numbers from all parts of the
Confederate States does not, as a matter of course, improve the morality of the town, which in ordinary times, and considering its limited population, is not of the very highest order.
The fact is, that an undercurrent of vice flows freely here.
It cannot be perceived by a casual observer, but it does not require a very long study of men and manners to see beneath the surface of both.
Gambling-houses and other places of a demoralizing character, apparently reap a rich harvest.
The game of ‘"faro"’ seems to be much indulged in; and as the chances are thirty to one in favor of the dealer, those ‘"hells"’ derive immense returns.
The ‘ "respectable"’ resorts of this description are but three in number, but there are others of a ‘"disreputable"’ kind, which regularly send out scouts to hunt for prey, who seldom return unaccompanied by some unsuspecting victims.
In the leading gambling establishments dinners and suppers, with the best of wines, not omitting champagne, are daily served out
ad libitum and without charge This is a seduction which youth, nor even age, can withstand.
The municipal authorities, one would think, might easily do something, if not entirely to suppress, at least to mitigate the evil.
But as Southern gentlemen are probably fond of ease and pleasure, the task might prove a difficult one.
At all events, it is plain that the laws against gambling-houses are inoperative.
The recent singular appointment of
Bishop Polk to
a Major Generalship in the Provisional Army of the
Confederate States has been the subject of much comment, and even of some merriment for several days past
Possibly there are grave considerations which have justified
President Davis in urging the acceptance of such a post upon the distinguished divine, and in inducing his concurrence.
The circumstance, however, must sound somewhat strange in both hemispheres, as savoring too much of the chivalric spirit of the middle ages, when the cowl of the priest was combined with the armor of the warrior, and the hand that held the crozier did not disdain to wield the sword.
One day I said to
Gen. Henningsen, who was commander-in chief during the Nicaraguan war. ‘"Tell me, General, what post are you about to fill during the present war?"’ ‘"I am going, "’ replied the brave General, ‘"to apply for a chaplaincy."’ The moral was obvious, the irony rather keen.
Operations of the Imperial tobacco agent of Napoleon.
The course that
England and
France intend pursuing with reference to the Southern Confederacy is a question constantly on the tapis.
The fact that
M. Luel, the agent of
Messrs. Huffer & Co., French contractors, is in this city superintending the purchase of tobacco for the
French empire, has inspired confidence and given an impetus to this branch of trade.
Some planters are sanguine enough to imagine that it indicates a short continuance of the blockade.
At all events, tobacco ranged higher on Wednesday and Thursday last than at any time this year, and as high as at any period of the year preceding.
Amongst the troops thus sent forward is the brigade of
Gen. Floyd, late
Secretary of War.
This force is considered one of the crack corps of the service, and is principally made up of the athletic mountaineers belonging to
Southwestern Virginia, many of whom are admirably mounted.
Nearly all the leading officers of this brigade are descendants of the old English cavaliers, who settled in this State in the old colonial times.
Col. Reynolds, second in command, is the grandson of a brave officer who fell during the revolutionary war, at the
battle of Camden, and whose undaunted courage gained for him the sobriquet, more expressive than elegant, of ‘"
Dare-Devil Tom."’ The
Colonel apparently possesses some of the traits of his illustrious ancestor, with the important addition of an accomplished military education.
He graduated at the
United States Military School, and was a classmate of
Gen. Beauregard.
Strict Discipline of General Beauregard and how 17 is Enforced.
For some days past no one has been permitted to pass from
Manassas Junction to Camp Pickens without special authority from the
Secretary of War.
Owing to the number of visitors, and the interruptions which they necessarily occasioned,
General Beauregard had found it necessary to issue and enforce this regulation.
Many persons also who had obtained passports, came here en route for
Alexandria, and consequently had to get passes from the commander of the Potomac army before they could penetrate his lines.
‘"My decree,"’ observed
General Beauregard to me the other day, ‘"is as inviolable as death.
Now, I would not even pass myself."’
The capture of the St. Nicholas — the ‘"French Lady."’
I have conversed with the captain of the
St. Nicholas, the pilot of the brig, and others of the prisoners.
The captain observed to me that ‘"he did not like the appearance of the
French woman.
She sat,"’ he remarked, ‘"next to me at table, so close that our knees touched.
I fancied she looked mighty queer; but I'll be hanged if I. thought she was a man."’ The mate of the brig, who looked as stout and as jolly as a Dutchman, could scarcely retain his risibility, although it threatened to do him consummate damage about the region of the diaphragm.
‘"All I know is,"’ he jocularly observed, ‘"that I was piloting the brig when they overhauled me, and piloted me up here where you see me now. "’
I have been introduced to, and have had conversations with,
Colonel Zarvona and his adjutant,
George W. Alexander, a fierce looking but withal intelligent man, who, he informs me, was officer of the ship which first brought
Kossuth to
England.
Colonel Thomas is a tall, thin young man, twenty seven years of age, with sharp, irregular features, deep intentions in his cheeks, blue eyes, long, aquiline shaped nose, and is closely shaved on head and face.
He, is a native of
Maryland, and has served with
Garibaldi in the ranks during the
Italian campaign.
There is a deep-seated melancholy about the man, which might be taken for monomania.
He looked downcast and miserable in the extreme, and seemed to entertain no idea of enjoyment in this world.
He was exceedingly gentle, and speaks in a low, weak voice.
No one could imagine that a frame so feeble could contain such a brave, undaunted spirit.
I am informed that some years ago he had an attachment, but that the object of his devotion expired in his arms while endeavoring to rescue her from drowning — Ever since that unhappy occurrence he is said to be morose and gloomy, and incapable of enduring the slightest disappointment.
To me he appeared to be the most dejected of mortals, and would have made a study for
Lavater.
Alluding to the late partial failure of his plans and the (to him) valueless cargo which one contained, he remarked, ‘ "What is ice to me?
I want flannel."’
Col. Zarvona presents a highly picturesque appearance, attired in his blue
Zouave costume, white gaiters, red cap, with gold tassel, and light, elegant sword.
