Bright and cool;
subsequently cloudy and warm.
Dispatches from Gen.
Hood (Sept 7th) state—1st dispatch: that Sherman still holds his works one and
a half miles from Jonesborough. 2d dispatch, same date: “Sherman continues his
retreat!” He says, in a 3d dispatch, that Sherman visited the hospitals, and
said he would rest awhile at Atlanta, and then march away to Andersonville,
where we keep the Federal prisoners. Although Hood attaches no importance to
declarations from such a source, yet he deems it a matter of first importance
to remove the prisoners, which suggestion Gen. Bragg refers to the Secretary of
War without remark. Gen. Hood also urges the reinforcing of his army from the
trans-Mississippi Department. He is sending a brigade to Opelika, to await a
raid.
Gen. Forrest has
been ordered, the President approving, to Middle Tennessee; but, contrary to
his desire, he is not allowed to proclaim amnesty to the thousands of deserters
expected to join him, so firmly do the President and Gen. Bragg adhere to Gen.
Lee's advice never to proclaim pardon in advance to deserters, even at this
critical epoch in our affairs.
All of us have been
made sick by eating red peas, or rather overeating
Our cause is in
danger of being lost for want of horses and mules, and yet I discovered to-day
that the government has been lending horses to men who have
but recently suffered some of the calamities of war! I discovered it in a
letter from the Hon. R. M. T. Hunter, of Essex
County, asking in behalf of himself and neighbors to be permitted to retain the
borrowed horses beyond the time specified—Oct. 1st. Mr. Hunter borrowed two
horses and four mules. He is worth millions, and only suffered (having a mill
burned) his first loss by the enemy a few weeks ago! Better, far better, would
it be for the Secretary to borrow or impress one hundred thousand horses, and
mount our infantry to cut the communications of the enemy, and hover on his
flanks like the Cossacks in Russia.
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