We have received, through the politeness of the officers of the
Exchange Bureau, Northern papers of Monday, the 13th instant.
Gold was quoted at 204 1 2.
Later from Savannah — the Starting of Sherman's army.
A letter from
Savannah, dated January 29th, gives the following about
Sherman's movements:
‘
In spite of bottomless roads, the left wing, the Fourteenth and Twentieth corps, of
Sherman's army, moved out of the city last week, and is now on their march.
The advance has already reached
Sisters's ferry, which is some sixty miles above this city.
Owing to the late heavy rains, the roads thus far have been almost impassable, and the march necessarily slow, but the worst is now over.
The next definite news you get from them will, no doubt, be through rebel sources.
’
The right wing, composed of the Fifteenth and Seventeenth corps, as you are aware, struck the Charleston and Savannah railroad near
Pocotaligo, several days ago.
General Sherman's headquarters are still at
Beaufort, from which point he will join the army as soon as it has fairly got out into the wilderness.
Thus far the army has met no opposition worth naming, and the probability is there will be none till we reach the
Roanoke river.
Hardee left this city with twelve thousand men, five thousand of whom were
Georgia militia, and have since been disbanded.
His entire force at
Charleston now cannot be over fifteen thousand, including a division of
Early's corps, which was sent down from the Shenandoah Valley.
With this force he will not be very likely to throw any serious obstructions in
Sherman's way. If
Charleston, being a strongly-fortified city, were the object of the present expedition, this army of
Hardee's would be worth considering, but, as it is, the rebel tactician will only be an elephant on the hands of the
Confederacy.
Would that half of
Lee's army were cooped up in
Charleston.
Rumored putting to sea of Confederate iron-clads from European Ports — the opinion in New York.
Ben. Wood's paper (the New York
News) has a letter from
London, saying that the two iron-clad vessels built a year or two ago in
France for the
Confederates, but stopped through the vigilance of
Mr. Dayton, have got to sea since his death, and are cruising under the rebel flag, under the names of Stonewall and
Rapidan.
He also declares that there is a secret treaty between the
Emperor of
France and the
Richmond authorities.
He intimates that the destination of the rebel iron-clads, which he pronounces invulnerable, is New York city, though they may first go to
Boston and destroy that city; or they may go to
Washington, or
Mobile, or
Beaufort, or up
James river, and attack
Grant's base.
A New York letter, commenting on this intelligence, says:
‘
The sensation story published in the
Daily News of this morning, in the shape of a London letter, about the departure of two iron-clads from
Bordeaux, in the interests of
Jeff. Davis, creates some remark, though the statements of that journal, ever acting in the rebel interest, are not entitled to much consideration.
Some of our shipmaster are of opinion that the
London writer has confounded the two steamers,
Union and
Ajax, which recently ran out of the
Clyde, with the
Sphinx and
Clops, at
Bordeaux.
How that is the next steamer from
Europe will doubtless apprise us. The supplementary assertion, in the same letter, that the Emperor Napoleon has made a secret treaty with the rebels, stipulating to recognize them about the first of March, may reasonably be set down as moonshine.
’
There is a strong suspicion that this
canard was concocted to influence Wall street. If so, it has failed of its object, so far as, gold, the real barometer of public feeling, is concerned.
The price has fallen several per cent., and is now at a lower figure than it has been in a fortnight.
Apropos of our relations with
France, I may say that
Le Courrier des Etats Unis of this morning announces, as if by authority, that
M. de Saulx is to be sent to
Washington as
Minister Plenipotentiary in place of M de Chateau
Renard, who had previously been selected for the position.
The latter gentlemen, it is hinted, had certain objections to going to
Washington, which the
Emperor could not overcome.
What could they be?
From Grant's army.
The correspondents from
Grant's army now acknowledge a loss of nine hundred, in
Crawford's division alone, at the fight at Burgess's mill, near
Petersburg.
A letter, dated the 8th, says:
‘
The troops are busy building works on the established line, which it will take some days to complete, when they will commence creating new quarters for themselves.
’
The will not be a difficult job, for there is plenty of timber in the neighborhood, and the men have got so used to work that the regular carpenters at the
North would be astonished to witness the rapidity with which whole rows of houses are run up, some of which are models of architectural beauty.
Lieutenant-Colonel Fremaine (wrongly reported as
Major Tremaine, of
General Gregg's staff), of the Tenth New York cavalry, who was badly wounded in the engagement of Monday, died last evening.
Colonel Forbes,
Commissary of Subsistence, of the cavalry division, who fell from his horse and was badly injured, a day or two since, died this morning.
The accident occurred by his horse's foot getting caught between the logs or corduroy, when he fell and was thrown violently against the logs.
His skull was badly fractured, and he remained insensible up to, and at the time of, his death.
The total number of casualties in the late engagements have not yet been officially obtained, but will prove somewhat larger than at first reported.
General Grant was in
Washington on Saturday, and was carried to Congress to be exhibited.
That body took a recess of five minutes; and a letter says:
‘
The members generally then thronged around him, and he then came to the area in front of the
Clerk's desk, escorted by
Representative Odell.
Here the members were formally introduced to him, the
Speaker of the
House performing the ceremony.
There were frequent outbursts of applause from the floor and from the galleries, the occupants of the latter anxiously leaning over to get a good look at the honored soldier.
Representative Schenck, in order that the
Lieutenant-General might be officially introduced to the representatives of the people, moved that he be invited and escorted to the
Speaker's stand.
This was unanimously acquiesced in.
’
General Grant was then invited by the
Speaker to the stand, when the latter said:
‘
Gentlemen: I have the honor to introduce to you our heroic defender in the field, the
Lieutenant-General of the Armies of the
United States--
U. S. Grant.
’
The introduction was succeeded by another outburst of applause from the floors and galleries.
General Grant bowed in honor of the compliment, and after a short pause retired from the stand, the audience applauding as he withdrew.
Lieutenant-General Grant will return to the Army of the Potomac this afternoon.
The Exchange of prisoners.
General Grant was before the
Committee of the Conduct of the
War this morning.
The following question was asked him:
‘
It is stated, upon what authority I do not know, that you are charged entirely with the exchange of prisoners.
’
Answer: That is correct; and, what is more, I have effected an arrangement for the exchange of prisoners, man for man, and officer for officer, or his equivalent, according to the old cartels, until one or the other party has exhausted the number they now hold.
I get a great many letters daily from friends of prisoners in the
South, every one of which I cause to be answered, telling them that this arrangement has been made, and that I suppose exchanges can be made at the rate of three thousand a week; and just as fast as they can deliver prisoners to us I will receive them and deliver their prisoners to them, and the Salisbury prisoners will be coming right on.
I myself saw
Colonel Hatch, the
assistant commissioner of exchange on the part of the
South, and he told me the Salisbury and
Danville prisoners would be coming right on at once.
He said that he could bring them on at the rate of five thousand or six thousand a week.
Question. There is no impediment in the way?
Answer. There is no impediment on our side.
I could deliver and receive every one of them in a very short time, if they will deliver those they hold.
We have lost some two weeks lately on account of the ice in the river.
A letter from New York, dated the 11th instant, says:
‘
One of the principal topics of conversation just now is the raid on bounty jumpers and brokers, which was commenced by
Colonel Baker, by order of the War Department.
The bogus men furnished by the brokers, who have been arrested, opens the question whether the towns in the interior of the
State, which have paid for them, will be required to refill their quotas.
It has been ascertained that Federal officers have been in league with the brokers — received a prorate amount of the bounty for each deserter.
The revelations made thus far render it impossible to decide that any part of this State is clear of the draft.
To-day
Colonel Baker made two arrests.
One was the partner of
Mooney, now in Fort Lafayette, and the other a broker who defrauded a recruit out of one hundred dollars of his bounty.
The latter disgorged the amount, and the former was sent to keep company with the other member of his firm.
I think I shall be able to send you some startling revelations in a few days.
’
Among the passengers for
Liverpool by the steamer
City of Cork, to-day, is
a Mr. Henry S. Foote.
The
quid nunes are conjecturing whether this is not the notorious ex-rebel
Congressman of that name, who left
Richmond awhile ago in search of "some sequestered spot where tyranny and taxation are unknown." The report was that he had been sent to
Fort Warren, but that may have been incorrect.
The St. Albans raiders — they are to be delivered to the State of Vermont.
In
Montreal, on the 10th instant, the case of the
St. Albans raiders was given up. The following telegram gives an account of the action taken in the matter:
‘
The prisoners' counsel asked for a further delay for reasons which were set forth in the affidavits, and which say that four messengers have been sent to
Richmond.
One of them,
Davis, had been arrested in
Ohio and sentenced to be hanged as a spy.
’
Another left on the 17th, and was in
Washington on the 23d; another was captured at
Wilmington, but escaped, and returned to
Canada; and a fourth,
Mr. Houghton, Advocate, went to
Washington, and endeavored, without success, to obtain a pass to
Richmond.
In reply to this letter,
Mr. Seward wrote him that the
Government could hold no communication or correspondence with him, and he expected to leave the country without entering the scene of insurrection or communicating with the insurgents.
He saw the
President and the
British Charge D'Affairs without success.
He wrote a second letter to
Mr. Seward, to which no attention was paid.
The court refused to grant the request for a delay.
This action is generally regarded as deciding the case against the prisoners.
The court adjourned until to-morrow.
Washington, February 11.--The statement which is circulated in the papers that the
St. Albans raiders are to be sent to New York for trial is without foundation and entirely untrue.
They are reclaimed upon complaints preferred against them in the courts of the
State of Vermont, and, if surrendered, they will be surrendered to the authorities of that State for trial, according to the laws thereof.
Marshal Murray has proceeded to
Vermont upon entirely different business from what the newspapers have alleged.
Montreal, February 11.--The St. Albans case has been adjourned till Monday on account of the detention of witnesses, caused by a collision on the Grand Trunk railroad at
Brockville.
