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Letter From Washington

Letter From Washington image
Parent Issue
Day
26
Month
July
Year
1861
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Washington, July 14, 18tfl. Editor of tiik ÁRGCfl : Thiá mor;niig therc were forty tliree i rcgimcnts üf U. S. iroops on the Virginia sido of tbe river near Washington, and severo 1 others, I do not know how mai!r, ave aatóvÍDg otr to-day. Aniong thcm is the Fourth Michigan, which gocs to Aloxandria, añil perhaps furtlicr. - The First Michigan is now stationcd four miles bcyond Áluxuudria, with orders to advanec Ihree miles more íi the direction of Fairfax to-day. TIio offieers of the regiment have nvitod us to visit them in Fairfax on Wednssday, and they are confident they wil] bu thero to reeeivo us. - I have no doubt they will be, if penuit ted to move ; for I dó not bolieve there i is anything in the world to prevent j itKHid boiog oceupied by our troops within ten days after Gen. Scott shall give the order But tho impression here is the order wilí not issue beforo fall, and that. until then we must content ourselvcs with the oceupation of Manassas Junction, and with driving the rebels from Western Virginia. The grumbling at the delay is very great here, especially among the members of Congress. We hear little here except of Union sentiment, thougli there is evidently very much of a contrary charaeter now repressed. Judge Beaman, with whom I was walking through Georgetown yesterday, got into conversation with an intelligent looking Irishman, of whom he inquired it' thcre was any disunion feeling there. " Yes," said he, " right smart feeling here ; more than you and I knowof" Day before yesterday a lady drovo into Col. Woodbury's camp to ask his protection against soldiers who were threatening her as a secessionift. She said her servant. who was her main proteetion, had run away, and prcbably had given out tbat sho was disloyal. Col. Woodbury askcd her if sho was so in fact, and she replied that it would be diffieult for her to say. Her busband was a Major in the BCccssion army, and her son a Lieutcnant to tbc national army, and both had gone against her wishes and remonstranec. Col. Woodbury told her he would sec that she was protectected, and would station a guard of soldiers at her house for tho purpose, at any time when she feit in dangcr. She seemed very gratcful and drove off. The little band of secessionists in Congress are making what trouble they can, but that is not much. Vallar.digham is their leader in the House and Powell in the Senatc, and their whole band does not number over about six in each body. With tho exception of Breckinridgo in the Senate and Burnett in the House, who are both fine lookiug, they are as unpromising a looking set of men as I have secn in a year. Polk, of Missouri, looks unintellectual and sneaking, in speaking he is a great boro. Johnson of the same State looks like a muhitto of about the neecssary capacily to black boots. RJ" ard, of Delaware, looks dull and heavy, and is so in rcality. The secessionists in the House, except Buructt, do not look auy more promising. The uiost interesting thing in Congress so far was the diseussion yestcrday on the admission of tho Virginia Senators, Johnson, of Tcuncssee, Hale, Trumbull, Ten Eyck, Latham, and Collamer made speeches in favor, aud Bayard, Powell, and Salisbury against thoir admission. - The discussion was exccedingly interes ting ; as all feit this was a turning point iu the proeecdings to crush tho rebellion, and would furnish a precedent to be followcd in Tenncsseo and North Carolina very spocdily. Poor Bayard whincd over it like a whipped spaniel, but it was of 110 use, and they were admitted. - Nothing annoys the secessionists here so mueh as to seo Virginia repreaented in Congress by men in sympathy with tbc North. Senator Carlisle is a man about fivc feet eight inches high, strongly and compactly built, with large and broad features, but. a very quiek, sprightly look, aud would bo picked out as a man of note anywhere. His collcague, Mr. Willey, is a very tall, spare man, with indicatioiis of much intellect, but evidently of a lcss activo charaeter than Carlisle, and uot at all calculated for a leader. They wcro reccived in tho Senate with great cordiality, and Senator Johnson, of Tcucessce, especially could not restrain the expressions of his delight. Ncither could the gallery when they ivcre admitted. Tho ladies of our company had an opportunity of a6ocial chat with the President for sonic timeyesterday. Of course lie told them sevoral of his characteristic anccdotes, and tüey were very much delightcd with thcm. But they have not scen Gen. Scott yet, which annoys them not a little. ANN ARBOR. Wasiiixgtox, July 21, 1861. Editor of the Argus : I started on Friday in a company of four to visit tho Michigan Regiments, and the battle field of Bull's Run. We went to Alexaudria, and then took the Orange aud Alexaudria Railroad to go out upon it as far as practicable. The rebels in rctiring had destroyed thia railroad, by burning down all the bridges, filüng up excavations, and in places burniug the ties and carrying off the ron. - The goverument is repairing it as fast as the army procceds, and wc vrcre able on Friday to go upon it as far as Burk's statiou, l'ourtcen miles from Alov;milria. - At this point we were fevcu miles from Fairfax Court House, which was the first point we desired to make. Wc immcdiatcly bcgau to look about for a team to convoy tir; fürthcr. We tV.r.i'l ncarly every man had left for Manassas Junctioni in some cases taking their families; and that among those left beliind couveyanee of any kind worc cxcecdingly senrec.- We got our eye upon a covcred family wagon at a place ïvbero wc saw a darker in the fields, and we made up our minds at once tliat that wagon and darkoy wefc ours pro tempore. Wo went into tha house and inquired if we could uro s team totake us to Fairfax Court House and the woman of the house told us that she did not know ; she was nlone ; her husband liad gone to the wars, and sho never expected to seo bim again ; sho wantod the team to use, but if we sakl we must have it, she supposed we must. It was evident that she aupposed it was ITobson's choice witfa her to let it go, and it was apparont, algo, that she had in her raind grave doubts about secing eithcr darkey or team again if it feil into ou hands. Under sueh circumstanees we probably shoulfl not have feit Hke taking the team at all, if the alternativo had not been a long and todious wilk. Acoordingly we took it, paying her in advanee for the use, and jugarad alonjj at the rate of three miles per hour tlirougli tbc most miserable country I ever set cycs upou. Wc rcached Fairfax Court House at about seven o'clock. Hero we fouud Col. Woodbury with five Companics ot the Fourth Itegimont - the other Cve being at Fairfax station, on the raiProad thrco miles off. The Regiment feels greatly chagrined at being thus left ia the rcar of the army. Fairfax Court House is a little villagopossibly of 800 people, looking old and! dingy, and of no importance except asthe plaec of holding the County Court, The little old Court House is so very plain that if now destroyed an exact jae simile ir.ight be crectod for $1500. From hcre we went to Centerviller seven miles. The road is a government highway, Macadamised at a grcat expense, but now vory rough and poor. - Wc reached the lines of the army two miles or so this sido of Centerville, but pushed on until we came to McDowell's head quarters, where wo encamped at about ten o'clock - all sleep ing in thewagon except the darkey, who reposed under it. I assure you that among us fcur therc was some tall snoring done that night, which was interrupted occasionally by the iiring of the piekets. In the morning we found the First Michigan Regiment, where we breakfasted with Muj. Bidwell. We fouud every man in fine spirits. From there we inquired the way to the Second and Third Regiments, wliich we found encamped about a mile and a half boyond Centerville, tvithin ka than a mile of the rebel halterics. The First Massachusetta and 12th N. Y. were with them, under the command of Col. Richardson. Theso were the Regiments which were iu tho fifht at Bull's Run, and we found them full of pluck, and anxious for another trial. Dr. Palmer was acting as Brigade Surgeon, and also as aid to Col. Richardson ; and with the wounded upon bis hands jou can well believe that he was the busiest man on the grouuds. Every man spoke ia the highest terms of Dr. Palmer, aud every man loves him. Lyster we also saw, and young Eastman, and the Michigan boys generally. Every man had some anecdote to relate of tho fight. Dr. Palmer, who saw tho whole of it, said ho nevcr saw men bchave with more perfect self possession anywhero than did our troops engagod iu this fight. They suffered less than any ono would have expected from so severe and close a contest. The mcu were enerally expecting a speedy and severe fight here, and for my part I shall bo disappointed if it does not prove a desperate one. The rebel position here is very favorable,- -very much better than tho ono at Manussas Junction, both because it is woll suppüed with water, and becauío there is great diversity in the eurface of gronnd ; vvhilo tho Junction is on a plain without' water. But I may ba entirely at fault about this. In the ncihborhood of FairfHx Court Houso were intrenchments half a milo in length, whero a vory effectivo de. fense raight have been made, but which were .ibandoned without a blow ; and something equally unoxpected may possibly ojeur at Bull's Run. But I shall look lor a great battlo thero within a ii week or ten days. Indeed the town is now full of rumora of a battle aetaally in progress, but 1 confess I saw no indications yosterday of so speedy a fight. The wagon and daikoy we returned safe last night, to the great delight of the woman of whotn we hired them, who mmediately bccame our enthusiastic friend and admirer. C.

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Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus