The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-12 00:00:00

v~ C-

Herron took two batteries without caissons. The
artillery and baggage waggons were drawn across
the mountains by 12 horse teams. At daylight
yesterday the commands joined at Lee's Creek,
three miles south of the mountains, where the
cavalry and artillery, numbering 2,000, started for
Van Buren, leaving the infantry to follow as fast as
possible. Rebel regiments of cavalry were encoun-
tered at Dripping Springs. After a sharp skirmish
they were nut to flight, leaving seven killed and
many wounded on the field. Our -foes was none
killed, and but few wounded. Our forces immedi-
ately followed the flying rebels to Van Buren, where
a splendid charge was made, led by Generals Blunt
and Herron in pm son, resulting in a complete vic-
tory over the enemy. The rebel cavalry rushed
aboard some steamboats, and escaped to the other
side of the river, Two steamers and over 100 pri-
soners (among them several officers and Hindman's
express messenger) were captured. A third boat
was run ashore, which, with those that took the
rebels across the river, will be destroyed. A large
quantity of corn, camp equipage, transportation,
mules and horses was also seized. The full extent
of the captures is not yet known. When the mes-
senger left, the infantry
and artillery were about 8
miles in the rear, hastening forward as fast as the
nearly impassable roads would allow. The people
of that section were taken entirely by surprise, and
terribly frightened. Hindman is on the other side
of the river with his whole force, unable and un-
willing to engage us. The pathway to the Arkan-
sas River has now been opened, and if the gunboats
will open the lower end of it the winter's work of
the Army of the Frontier is clearly marked out."
The following official document sets forth the
reasons for the dismissal of Commander Preble from
the navy :

"Navy Department, Dec. 12, 1862.

" Sir,—The Board convened for the purpose of
considering the case of Mr. George H. Preble,
reported that in its opinion Commander Preble
did not perform his whole duty, and did not do his
utmost to prevent the Oreto from entering the har-
bour of Mobile, has requested permission to give
briefly some of the reasons which have guided it
to this decision.

,‘ 1. The failure to arrest the Oreto turns, in Com-
mander Preble's three reports submitted to the
Boat d, upon his ignorance of her character, and his
supposition that she was an English man-of-war.
The practice of the sea supplies a mode of ascer-
taining the character of a suspicious vessel, similar
to the challenge of a sentinel on post. if the chal-
lenging or signal gun had been fired in the usual
manner at the usual time, according to common
practice in such cases, the real character of the
Oreto would have been so far made apparent that
Commander Preble would have been aware of the
necessity of stopping her.

"2. 0 wing to this neglect, the advantages of time
and position were lost; and both these advantage
were still further thrown away, first by hailing,
which is not customary or proper in such circum-
stances ; and, secondly, by waiting to fire more than
one shot across the Oreto's bow.

"3. The Board does not, by the three reports
submitted to it, arrive at the conclusion that the
Oreto's conduct was such to justify her being mis-
taken for a British man•of-war.

" 4. The:Board is of opinion that when Comman-
der Preble arrived at the conclusion that the Oreto
was a British man-of-war, he had no just motive, ira
this conclusion, for not proceeding to resin with
force an attempted violation of the blockade.

" 5. The proceeding in those cases in blockading
service is the same with all nations. A signal gun,
fired by the stationary or cruising vessel, conveys
to the strange sail a determination to communicate,
a challenge to stop, and a desire to be informed of
character. It is generally answered by a gun, and
the strange sail places himself in a situation to be
easily approached.

" If, after this signal gun has been fired by the
blockading vessel to warn the strange sail, the for-
mer should fire a shotted gun, then the latter, if a
man-of-war of a foreign nation, would return the
fire.

"6. Finally, Commander Preble admits that if ho
had known the true character of the Oreto he could
have boarded her, or, in other words, that she was
in his power ; and his failure to perform his whole
duty consists, in the judgment of the board, in his
not having employed in season the ordinary means
of ascertaining her character, and in losing the ad-
vantages of time and position still further by stop-
ping to hail and afterwards to fire a second and third
shot across her bow.

" Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
" A. IL FOOTE,
Rear-Admiral and Senior Officer.
" The Hon. Gideon 'Welles, Secretary of
the Navy."

The Message of the Governor of Missouri has
been published. After congratulating the Legis-
lature and the State upon the fact that at last a
loyal General Assembly is convened, the Governor
reviews the condition of the State since the outbreak
of the rebellion, and says the number of volunteers
from Missouri, after the casualties of war and mus-
tering out irregularly enlisted troops, is 27,500,
which, with 10,500 State militia, gives a total force
of 38,000 in service for the war. The enrolled
militia, numbering 52,000, gives the State the grand
total of 90,000, the latter force furnishing a large
body of men, armed and equipped for any emer-
gency. The Governor treats of finance and the
condition of railroads at length, and earnestly re-
commends the Legislature to adopt measures to
restore the State credit and reduce the State debt,
consistent with good faith towards holders of the
State bonds ; complete the railroads yet unfinished,
and secure the interests of private stockholders.
' On the subject of emancipation, the Governor says
he has long been convinced that the material in-
terests of Missouri would be advanced by substi-
tuting free for slave labour, and recommends a plan
by which the children of slaves born after the pas-
sage of the Act shall be free, but remain under the
control of their owners until they arrive at a cer-
tain age; the owners to be compensated for the
diminished value of slave mothers after being thus
rendered incapable of bearing slave children. Dur-
ing the discussion of the emancipation question the
Governor says the Legislature cannot constitution-
ally adopt a scheme by which the owners of slaves,
can be divided into classes, and the slaves of ono
class be emancipated without compensation while
while
compensation be provided for the other
h
By way of Havannah weave dates from Vene,
zuela to November 22.
The insurgents of Mara-
caibo, having been
defeated Government in severaltr e
eps,
and
the
blockaded, small engage
ments with the
desireforefficiehaveport
of
aenali
antly
reconciliation, which
the Government was disposed to grant. It has been
Maracaibo being
decreed that 75 per cent. shall be paid on the bills
tmfleaysrernmeir
manifested ai
of the Venezuelan banks that were endorsed and 40
per cent. on
those thatißmaprionrtgs B were not. Fifty per cent.
of the after Feb.. 1, 1863, are to go to
Messrs.
Pierre Soule is still at Havannah. By the terms
of his release he is not to go to New Orleans until
the war is over, unless allowed by the Government.

CRYSTAL PALACE..—HALFCRONPN DAY .--.SatP.r.
day, Jan. 10.—Admissions on payment, 950; ditto bl,- sea-
son tickets, 2,404; total, 3,354.

A PRIZE FIGHTER'S OPINION OF THE AMERICAN
WAR.—Of al] the criticisms of the war, we like
best that of a prize-fighter, who was a fellow-traveller with
Mr. Russell on a railway journey, and of whom, as be was
very respectably dressed and looked affable, Mr.
.Russell.
thought proper, by way of opening the conversation, to
inquire " what he thought of the Federals in Missouri."
The prize-fighter replied in language too forcible, but gun,
expressing not inaptly the sentiments with which many bo.
wildered Englishmen have surveyed the parties in, this
gigantic contest—" Well, d—d if I know what to think of
them. They're ab— rum lot, and. ,t,hey're going on in a
are'asdOy Ointment mpeonutacaendu
pPoini 1 st.
d—d rum way ; that's what I think.
[AIivERTISED.rENT.I—
stami
anyofulceration,p art . This
abscess, ointment
and
08 t weakensetr
all casts
every other means had failed, an th
experienced from them were utterly unendurablr:
--
he
SBuoffonerinagrthe application of the ointment coolness, -and
i‘al\s‘ gi:meanddeyswtlaehpgs.eogsnt:esl 2:tafil'ttnlC:Crg:l curingd
comfort are obtained in the affected part, the patient 'Pd
himself. more at ease, and daily becomes more hopetal,inasg,
with departing. pains, a visible growth of granulation. comes
forth. It is well, while adopting this treatment, to regulate
the secretions of the body by moderate doses of nolloway's
Pills, which act in unison with his Ointment ad facility
recovery,