From Cairo

Special to the Chicago Times.

CAIRO, April 15.

No news of importance has reached us today from any quarter.

I am informed by a gentleman just from Pittsburg, that Gen. Halleck is actively engaged in organizing and equipping his army for such movements as may be deemed necessary to break up and scatter the opposing army. Now that Gen. Halleck has command in person, we feel easy, knowing that a master mind will direct the movements of our troops.

The steamer Blackhawk, with Gov. Yates and suite, and about 200 wounded, has just arrived from Pittsburg. She will proceed at once to Quincy with the wounded.

A large number of the wounded remained at Savannah. When my informant left, every house was full.

My informant, who accompanied Gov. Yates to Pittsburg , says that we only recaptured a portion of the guns taken by the enemy on Sunday, and that we only captured one of the enemy’s guns. Our loss in tents, baggage, mules, wagons, etc., is very great. Many of our officers and soldiers lost their clothing, except what they had on their backs. I have received nothing from our correspondents above or below.

Gen. Strong has just received the following dispatch, dated at Pittsburg:


Sick and wounded all off. Stop all sanitary commissions, nurses and citizens. We don’t want any more.

(Signed) H. W. HALLECK, Major General


Gen. Strong has telegraphed to Paducah that the hospitals at Mound City and St. Louis are full, and to have the hospital boats turned up to Louisville and Cincinnati.

An attempt has been made to poison some of our troops at Columbus. Four of these have died. Gen. Strong has ordered a portion of the meal which contains the poison to be sent to Chicago to be analyzed, and the party of the guilty of the outrage be arrested.

– Published in The Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Thursday Morning, April 17, 1862, p. 1

The Rebels Bombarding An Old House

– A correspondent of the Chicago Times sends the following from Island No. 10, written before its surrender: –

“The rebels had a magnificent scare yesterday. The rising water has inundated the banks of the river and the whole surrounding country, and in many cases has carried off fences and farming paraphernalia of all kinds. In the present instance, the ravenous waters seized upon a small farm house and carried it off body and boots, and at an early hour in the morning it came floating past here with the roof only visible above the surface. The five mile current soon carried it into the rebel lines, and they espying it, immediately concluded that it must be some devise of Yankee ingenuity for doing mischief. If it wasn’t a floating battery, it must be an infernal machine, and immense torpedo, or at least some cute invention for running the blockade. So they opened fire upon it, and sent shot and shell thick and heavy around it. The old house stood the bombardment bravely, and although pierced in a hundred places, it still floated calmly on, and fairly run the gauntlet of all the batteries, when fearing lest it should escape, a brave and venturesome body of secesh charged upon and boarded it. They climbed upon the ridge of the roof, sat astride and peeped through the cracks. They inserted their bayonets under the boards and ripped them up, and there, in the solitude of an imprisoned garret, with the turbulent waters bubling within a few inches of her feet they found and antiquated cat, whose serenity was undisturbed by the fearful race she had run, and whose anxiety seemed to be to get out of her uncomfortable position. The details as given by a refugee, were ludicrous. The rebels morned [sic] a large amount of powder and shot wasted, and nary Yankee circumvented.”

– Published in The Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Wednesday Morning, April 16, 1862, p. 2