Affairs at the South.
Our Southern summary will be found below.
It is necessarily short, but we hope will be none the less interesting:
The
Bowling Green (
Ky.) correspondent of the Memphis
Argus (Oct. 26th) has the following in regard to affairs in
Kentucky:
By the news just in from
Owensboro', Davies county, Ky., I learn that
Colonel J. S. Jackson is occupying that place with about 300 Yankees and
Dutch, some forty of them wounded.
He has made numerous arrests, and permitting unprovoked outrages and robberies of Southern-rights families, in which pursuit he has an able adjutant in Brigadier.
General T. L. Crittenden, who is similarly employed in the town and county of
Henderson, he having some 3,000 Lincolnites in that section, mainly brought from
Indiana and
Illinois.
Both these leaders have signally failed in obtaining recruits in
Kentucky.
Since my last another accident, the result of the careless handling of fire-arms, has occurred, the victim being a member of
Col. Helm's cavalry, whose name I did not learn.
The wound is dangerous, a ball passing entirely through his foot.
A portion of the
Federal force is now in the immediate vicinity of
Bacon creek, eight miles north of
Green river.
Right before last a scouting party from
Green River camp, a detachment from
Capt. Polk's Tennessee cavalry, numbering four, crossed the river, reconnoitering the country along the upper turnpike leading towards
Louisville, when they were intercepted by a strong picket from the
Federal encampment at New Haven, and though sharp firing ensued they returned safely to camp the next morning.
The loss of the enemy, if any, was not ascertained.
Yesterday's rumor to the effect that the
Mississippi brigade, now at
Hopkinsville, under command of General A corn, will very soon make a demonstration upon the enemy's forces occupying
Henderson and
Owensboro, is still rife.
You may look for startling news, provided be Federals remain long enough to test the mettle of the gallant
Mississippi as, who have won, in addition to their well known prowess in arms, great praise from the people of
Christian county, among whom they have been quartered for several weeks past.
The correspondent of the Nashville
Union and American.
writing from
Columbus.
Ky., under date of Oct. 23d, has a very interesting letter, from which we extract the following.
A few days since.
Gen. Polk sent an embassy to the commander at
Cairo in relation to an exchange of prisoners, but
Gen. Grant declined to act upon it without orders from higher authority.
A correspondence has since taken place between
Generals McClernand and
Polk, of which the following is a copy:
Brigade headquarters,
Camp Cairo, Oct. 23, 1861.
To the
Commanding Officer at
Columbus, Ky.,
Sir:
The chances of the present unhappy war having left in my hands a number of prisoners, who have been detained at this post, for sometime past.
I have, for special reasons as well as an obedience to the dictates of humanity, determined, unconditionally, to release them.
The prisoners alluded to are
A. A. Woodward, Lewis Young, and
Edward A. Penny, all taken by a party of United States troops in the affair at
Charleston, Mo., on the the 20th of August last.
Col. N. B. Buford, of the 27th regiment of Illinois volunteers, is charged by me with the delivery of said prisoners to such persons as you may authorize to receive them, and for that purpose visits your camp under the protection of a white flag.
You will please receive him in the special character with which he is clothed, and after the completion or his mission give him safe conduct from your camp.
Headq'rs 1st division Western Dep't.
I have received your note of this date, horne by
Col. N. H. Buford, of the 27th Illinois regiment, responding to the overture made by me to
General Grant, some days since, on the subject of an exchange of prisoners, and although your mode of accomplishing it waives the recognition of our claim as belligerents, I am not disposed to insist upon unimportant technicalities.
The interests of humanity are at stake.
I accept the release of the three prisoners you have tendered me; being, as your notes implies, all of the Confederate army in your possession.
In return, I have pleasure in offering you the sixteen of those of the
Federal army in my possession.
Hoping that, in the prosecution of the unhappy conflict in which we are engaged, we shall never lose sight of the claims of generosity, on those who direct the operations of the armies of our respective Governments.
I have the honor to be.
A strange history
--A free Negro captured from the enemy and brought South for sale.
The New Orleans
Delta, of the 25th, has the following particulars of a strange case which has come before the authorities of that city:
When the steamer
Lizzle Simmons arrived at our wharf yesterday from
Memphis, the captain called aboard a police officer, and told him he had better escort two men and a negro who were on board up to the
Mayor's office, as there appeared to be something suspicious about them.
On the boat they boasted of being spies of
General Pillow, and said they had been in
Illinois for him; that he had authorized them to capture the free negro Isaac, they had in custody, who was running slaves across the
Mississippi, at
Columbus, Ky., and bring him down
South to be sold for their own benefit.
This story seemed so improbable — particularly the pretended authorization of such an act by a Southerner, a lawyer, and a great leader like
Pillow, that the men incurred the suspicion of their fellow-passengers and the officers of the boat.
As one of them said, we did not want our faithful slave population corrupted by the introduction of any such worthless vagabonds as Northern free negroes, and any one who would bring such trash here were of doubtful character.
On being brought before the
Mayor, he had them locked up to await an examination at his leisure.
This morning they were brought before him and questioned separately.
One of them is J. W. and the other
Thomas C. Scales, brothers, of
Columbus, Ky., from which place, with their father, mother, and sister, they say they were driven by the Unionists, and took refuge in
Hickman.
The next thing they did was to scour the country for horses, and they say that sixty- seven horses were taken by them from the people, of
Missouri, for which they gave receipts that they were to be used for the
Confederate States, and turned them over to our forces under
Gen. Pillow.
Thomas then went to
Cairo, as a spy, according to this relation, and on this trip discovered that the free negro Isaac was engaged in ferrying across runaway slaves.
Thomas made a pretended arrangement with him to bring to that point for transportation a gang of twenty runaways.
Having made their arrangements, the two
Scales and a man named
Clarkston went to Isaac's house in the night time and kidnapped him. He made a desperate resistance, and they cut him several gashes over the head and tied him around the neck with a rope.
They put him on a horse and rode sixty-five miles that night to
Hickman.
Here they made out a fraudulent bill of sale of the boy from
Clarkston to
Scales, which they tore up on the boat coming down.--They had a list of the different slave traders in this city, to whom they were going.
They have two passes to enter the
Confederate lines, both signed by
Gen. Pillow; but what appears singular, they are both made out in the same name, and apparently written by a different hand.
They have been remanded to await advices from
Gen. Pillow as to who they are. The boy
Isaac gave the name of a merchant in this city, who he says knows him and his history.
Discharge of Ellis in New Orleans.
The trial of
Charles Ellis in New Orleans, for alleged disloyalty to the Confederate Government, which has been going on in New Orleans for several days, has been brought to a close.
The N. O.
Bulletin, of the 25th, says:
‘
This case, which, in one way or another, has occupied the attention of the
Mayor the best of the time for nearly two-weeks, was brought to a close by the discharge of everybody connected with it.
Ellis, from the accusation of being an abolitionist, and
Messrs. Adams and
Burnett, who were charged with having tarred and feathered
Ellis.
And thus is the great case ended.
Ellis is no traitor, neither as have keep and feathered.
His .....
’
