The Sun.
London, England, 1863-06-08 00:00:00

•
NEWS 1—).1,1) E R
•
d,
• , .
a spirits, and confident of more brilliant results.
supposedvicksr:ezeh art:rAli, fifteenu thousand rebel troop
. Q.-,TE •
\--t• , t 4,44644,::
. , z doubtless be made risen sWC .E9
t,
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. in the event of the capture of the town.
•
miuM--;411%► The despatch further says that the mortar and
750.4 "A":
gunboats were in front of Vicksburg, hard at work.
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PRICE..... -..4d.
STAMPED ....sd.

MURFREESBORO, TENN., May 25.
The rebels assert Gen. Grant has been beaten,
but give no particulars,

incompetent commanders. A great victory would
have proved, apparently, the sagacity of
the appointment which has brought us so
great troubles. A great defeat should silence
the clamour which cannot at all undo an
event of the past. The un wisdom of our rulers must
be borne as manfully as the evils inflicted by the
tnemy. The bitterness of our heart, which breeds
despondency and disaffection, wins no triumphs,
repairs no disasters, sustains no cause. Greatness
of soul accepts all the calamities of war in the spirit
of defiance, and rises superior to every misfortune.

lowingG eTnheTeraHl
from
Maryland
eet,CAPTUßEhGerDarMississippi
saGirs
Department
pfF:pn t ALEXANDRIA.has
receivedthe
h e f l -
(official,Dispatch Aidsimscisi.ur,aadl
rPoonr,teFri.:
WASHINGTON, May 23.
g-ship
May 12 :
Sir,—l have the honour to inform you, from
Alexandria, of the capture of that place, and the
forts defending the approaciaes to the city, by the
n.i.ve.l force under my command. Twenty-four hours
atter we arrived the advoncz.d guard of the United
States troops came into the city. General Banks
gtihne ni
largest.,
rgteo fall,v e
trriving soon after, I fumed the place over to his
;
vessels
deemtoedt the
p
mouth of the Red River. I dropped down to Fort
De Russy, in the Benton, and undertook to destroy
those works. I only succeeded, however, in effec-
tually destroying the three heavy casemates i;ePdeintlngt- to the.
returnw at
werit blie
com-
manding the channel, and a small water battery for
two guns. About 600 yards below it I also de-
stroyed, by bursting one heavy 32 pounder, and
some gua carriages left, in their hurry, by the
enemy. The main fort, on a hill, some 900 yards
from the water, I was unable to attend to. It is
quite an extensive work, quite new and incomplete,
but built with much labour and pains. It will take
two or three vessels to pull it to pieces; I have not
the powder to spare to blow it up. The vessels will
be ordered to work at it occasionally, and it will
be soon destroyed.
In this last mentioned fort was mounted the
11-inch gun, which, I am led to believe, lies in the
middle of the river, near the fort, the rebels throw-
ing it over-board in their panic at the approach of
our gunboats. The raft which closed the entrance
I have blown up, sawed in two, and presented to the
poor of the neighbourhood.
I sent Commander Woodworth, in the Price, with
the Switzerland, Pittsburg, and Arigona, up Black
River to make a reconnaissance, and he destroyed
a large amount of stores, valued at 300,000 dols.,
consisting of salt, sugar, rum, rrolasses, tobacco,
and bacon.

if we cannot bear defeat es well as the Yankee we
are unworthy to be free. Until some one of our
large armies has been beaten as often and as severely
as the Yankee army of the Potomac we cannot say
our courage has been fully tested, or our ability to
conquer peace and independence has been established.
Should Pemberton and his whole army be captured
there will still be left in the south-west materials
for a very large army under Johnston. Pemberton's
men will soon be returned to duty by exchange, the
balance being now greatly in our favour. Besides
Johnston's army there will be others as large, or
larger, under Lee, Beauregard, and Bragg. The
combined forces of Kirby
Smith, Magruder, and
Price make an army nearly equal to either of the
above. So long as even one of them remains un-
crushed, the cause is safe.

Serious disasters have heretofore heralded impor-
tant reforms, decided improvement in the organise-
taifo
ant
roefnogut rh
in all forces,
tah ree vmi vaat
el
roi fa eonfe
wr gay, r, afna
laccession
by
Da
osnuecicaeosns,i omn a
mo fp
hbi inadn tNew victor
ori
leesa. n
aThe fallof
preluded
a
summer of heroic achievements, in which the enemy
was nearly everywhere pushed beck to his own soil.
Scorning to imitate the Yankees by underrating
the consequences of the fall of Vicksburg, we may
yet with reason count upon compensation in the
approaching campaign. The loss of Vicksburg, if
it have no other good effect, will secure us in the
future against the appointment of entirely inex-
perienced generals. Of this we may be perfectly
sure. Moreover, it will add to the strength of our
armies. This is a necessity. The North, stimulated
by success, will hurl its myriads upon us, and we
must meet them with every available man. Within
two years we have withstood fourteen hundred
thousand of the Vandals. What shall hinder us
from withstanding as many more during the year
to come ? Nothing but a want of manhood, which
the South has never failed to show. We have
veterans commanded by great generals, the enemy
have recruits commanded by generals inferior to
our own. Let them come on ; we will see whose
heart is stoutest, let the war last as long as it may.

(Signed) DAVID D. PORTER,
Acting Rear-Admiral Commanding
Mississippi Squadron.
Hon. Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy.

CAIRO, May 25, 10 p.m.
No boats from below had arrived at Memphis up
to 9 o'clock to-night. All the boats at Milliken's
Bend have been sent up the Yazoo for the purpose,
doubtless, of meeting any possible contingency. It
may, therefore, be 24 hours before we have any-
thing definite.

The last positive despatches come to-day by the
Polar Star, which left the mouth of the Yazoo at

1 o'clock on Thursday. Tire battle was still raging
with the land forces in the rear; Porter's mortar
boats below and mortar boats above engaged.
It is believed that a large number of women and
children still remain in Vicksburg.

CHICAGO, May 25, 1863.

A special despatch from Cairo says :
Dates from below to the morning of the 22d are
received. The bombardment of the enemy's upper
works was continued by the mortar fleet. Persons
who saw the operations through a glass say they
are satisfied that Grant has captured a battery on
Walnut Hill. A furious cannonading is going on
all around.

THE LATEST NEWS VIA WASHINGTON.
WASHINGTON, May 25, 1863.
Although no positive and direct official informa-
tian has been received here of the final reduction of
the stronghold of Vicksburg, all the news received
from every source indicates its capture by General
Grant on Saturday last, and no doubt is enter-
tained that with Vicksburg all that was left of the
army of General Pemberton has been compelled to
surrender.

A despatch was received to-night from Gen. Dix,
stating that a deserter had arrived to-day at Suf-
folk from Franklin, who said that Vicksburg had
been taken. Gen. Dix adds that if this is so we
shall have the information authentically to-
morrow.

Another despatch received to-day from General
Hurlbut, at Memphis, states that by a steamer just
arrived from Chickasaw Bayou a letter was received
from an ordnance officer of General Grant, dated
9 p.m., Friday night, confirming the previous state-
ments of successes, and stating that 6,000 prisoners
and 74 cannon had been captured. At the hour
when the letter was dated General M'Phereon's
force, in the centre, was within one mile of the
court house at Vicksburg, while General Sherman
on the right, and. General M'Clernand on the left,
were each within a mile and a half of the town,
and the gunboats were shelling the city in front.
He concludes by saying that Vicksburg must cer-
tainly he taken by to-morrow (Saturday).
This is the latest intelligence the Government
has received ; but no doubt is entertained that the
capture of Vicksburg will be announced officially
by the next arrival from that point.
From the various despatches up to to-night, and
the most accurate information in the possession of
the Government, it is believed that Gen. Grant has
nothing to fear from the concentration of any con-
siderable rebel force in his rear. The only force
available to them for this purpose are the 6,000
under Gen. Johnston, the small number driven
away from Pemberton under Gen. Loring, and one
or at most two brigades from Port Hudson—in all
making, at the very outside, not more than 15,000
men.

The destruction of the bridges across the Big
Black river will prevent the speedy arrival of this
small force, and it would only add to the glory of
the triumph of Gen. Grant for such force to inter-
fere with him during the last hours of his attack
upon Vicksburg.
The very significant editorial of the Richmond
Whig of Saturday, upon Vicksburg, is evidently
intended to prepare the public mind for the int
end
lli-
gence, certainly expected there, of its capture
the surrender of the whole of General Pemberton's
army on Saturday.
ADDITIONAL PARTICULARS.
WASEINGTON, May 25, 1863.
General Dix telegraphed from Fortress Monroe
to-night that a flag of truce boat is expected to-
morrow, and that a deserter who came into Suffolk
to-day from Franklin said that Vicksburg had been
taken. "If so," the General added, "we shall know
to-morrow with certainty. It may be mere rumour."
The following, procured from ahih
doffiactieedl
source, is the very latest from Vicksburg
Memphis, 10.30 this morning, and which
re-
ceived here to-night : was

The telegram is from Gen, Hurlbut. He encloses
a statement from an ordnance, showing the condi-
tion of affairs at 9 o'clock on Friday night. The
city was not at that time taken. Great advantages,
however, had been gained, the enemy making a
firm resistance.

The impression prevailed that we would take
(icksburg the next time. We at that time com-
pletely commanded the town. Our men had their
colours planted on the enemy's works and were
lying on the extreme slope.
Our captures were about six thousand prisoners
and seventy-four pieces of artiilery,some of which
had been destroyed.
The position of our troops was, some within a
mile and others a mile and a half of the Court
House. General Grant is represented to be in good