For some weeks past, a vessel (bark) has been quietly lying at anchor beyond the fortress, ostensibly for the purpose of communicating with her consignees in New-York, and in the mean time sending to shore daily for a number of contrabands to work in her holds, but, on no condition, were these men allowed to return to this point. This game was played on until, it is said, two hundred and seventy-two contrabands were ferried out to the ship. Deeming this about as far as he could safely go, the ‘ skipper’ ‘ skipped ’ out to sea last night, under the cover of darkness. ‘ Brother’ Wilder, superintendent of contrabands here, has thus been foiled in his charitable intentions of reforming the blacks, at least as regards this lot of ‘culled pussons,’ who are, by this time, far on their way to Cuba or the West-Indies. We learn that the fleet gunboat Wamsutta has been sent after the slaver, and it is hoped that she may be overtaken, and these poor contrabands returned. The cargo is made up of sprightly lads, worth, in Cuba, from one thousand two hundred dollars to one thousand five hundred dollars each. We are sorry to observe that, owing to the embargo recently placed upon naval officers, who say their mouths are sealed, we are not able to present the facts of the case well authenticated.
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A strange story.--The correspondent of the Philadelphia Press, writing from Fortress Monroe, under date of May twenty-first, tells this singular story:
Van Nostrand. New York, New York. 1862.
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