Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1861-07-02
-rRomTmEs0RrH.
YANKEE ACCOUNTS OF CURRENT EVENTS

Nsps. IA on all othur occasions Of similar attempts,
the enemy were completely foed in their purpose and
handsomely punished Not hair Of the head OF one OF
oar men was touched:
FIGHT AT MATTHIAS PoINT-ATIENPr OF A RE
CONNOITERING PARTY TO PLANT A BATTERY
ON sHORE-ATTACK FROM A LARGE FORCE
OF CONFEDERATES IN AhBUSH-OAPr. WARD,
OF THE FREEBORN, KILLED.
The steamer Pawnee srrved at the Washington navy.
yard Fri6sy morning, bringing the body Of Captain
Ward of the United States steamer Freedom, who was
killed in an action at Matthias Point about dusk on
Thursay afternoon The Star Of Friday evening has the
following account Of the fight:
It appears that ths Freooorn of the Point recon.
noteripg aud discovered indications of movement for
the erection Of b,tery at that Point by the Confederate
soldiers encamped there and the night before
last Capt. Ward seat up to the Pawnee at Aqua Ore-k,
for Capt Owens send him reinforcement OF two boats
crews to assist in eectirg landing Two small cutters
crews we're sont down to the Freeborn, under Lieut.
Cha and With them aud boats from the Free
born, numbering from thirty to forty 10 all, Lieut.
Chaplain yesterday morning erected landing and sue
ceeded In driving in the Confederate pickets.
Finding preparations for the erection of rebel bat
terry there 1t was determined TO throw up breastworks
and mount the guns thereon, to give the enemy warm
reception should they attack the Accordingly,
che men we're set to work under OF the Feebons
guns ct mp sandbsg bresstwo and succeeded
in working four hours and half and got their works
completed about Eve in the evening They then went TO
the boats 10 60 board for guns mount the works.
wheu Just they embarking, they surprised
by the enemy estimated al from one thousand 10 fifteen
hundred strong, who poured ia heavy and continuous
Are Of muskery upon theH from the bushes near by.
Under cover of the guns Of the Freeborn the crews
precpitstey made for the steamer, leaving few men
on shore, the guns Of the Freedom mean while open.
ing with activity and precision apparently upon the
M, who we're concealed by tie underbFush. Soma ten
shells we're thrown among then viii what eject could
not be seem owing to tie position Of the enemy above
explained.
'0.pt Ward behaved Nth great GOODNESS, standing BY
the guns and directing the fire. When his gunner
eeiVcd wound in the .hiRh which disabled him, Capt
Ward inme diatsly took bis place, and was sighting
the gan whep So repeiyed Minnie mufket bal full IN
the breast, which killed hils si,ses. lnssanuy.
The men left on the shore,by the boats IN hsir re-
treat swan out to the Treebornone Of the carry
ing on his beck wounded comrsde, n.ned Bssh sho
had four masket bells sbot at9 ei and u tho aght to
be MORALLY wounded. Jack Williams, coIsWain oi the
third OUTER received flesh wound in the leg while
waving tho stars aud s,pes, WHICH be carried In bis
hand the whole time behaving most calamity under the
hotties. kind Of . ire
The American enssp, which he never ceased to wave,
was pierced with, nineteen musket balls Only three
men in The boats we're wounded and III. onl, life lost
that Of the gallant Captain Ward, who, the mo.
ment the enemy vas discovered blew the signal for the
crews 70 come aboard and instantly opened on the Toe
With hi, heavy guns
While the crews were engaged on the brssssworkH, q
slave, belonging to Or. Hooe approached the shore With
white shirt on q POLE and got aboard the Fre.born
and informed Captain Ward that the enemy in the
underorusn near by one thousand strong. Still the work
vas continued and made ready b. lhe eEent as turred
out for the enemy 10 occupy with gus which they have
probably mounted there ere tina time.
The body Of Captain Ward placed on board the
Reliance aud converted up 10 lqa Greek aud transfer.
be In afrivA he at,era at
navyyad several companies o! the thirty regiment
were ordered receive the remains and escorted
them to the yard engine house, (which draped with
the habinents Of moUIning,) where they sid out
in STATE wrapped in the American ensign. The body
vas followed the engine house by the oicers of the
Pawnee, the officers Of the yard, and the boats
which had participated in tie engagement the band Ct
the Seveny-irst piaying solemn urge The remains
wee conveyed TO New York this evening.
The Washington Republican In its aecount Of the af-
fair, states that, besides VIM j. Brss the gunner and
Jack Williams, the coxs~ain two other sailors
wounded Cantain Ward, il States lived hour af.er
he received his wound. IL further that when be
Conedeates made the attack the Federal party had
foshtd the battery, only hundred sand bag, had
beon Filed out Of two hundred aud fifty the number in
tended to be used
Captain Ward ii.y-hve years old or more He was
born in Connecticut where he has resided while on Shore
In 1928 he entered tie navy In rank be was near the
head OF the lst OF comm,nders
Ccpt Waru was DTdfe 10 a IauIt. lie knew rot TIE
sosd fear and hardly danger. Fond of his protes.
sion he had written several works which are textbooks
IN naval Matters His considerable work Is entitled
Naval Gunuery" lie has also written popular uea-
Else steam.
despatch IRON Washington says;
The object Of Capt Ward in throwing up the breast
worE at Matthias Point that his boats crew might
be able to hold the place. with the aid Of small howzer
battery and covered by the 80 FOUNDER guns Of the Free
born until his force could be reinforced by the New York
Seventy regiment, which he had for come TO
his support. /. was thought that the regiment once
there could fory themselves and hold the place against
any force short Of vastly superior numbtrs The seam.
PawRee however arrived az the hayward with Capt
Wards corpse before the dispatch reached the Seventy
6rst regiment
The remains Of Capt. Ward will 90 to New York un-
der q marine escort tomorrow morning.
The following is specimen of the TALES! lying the
has yet brought out hugo and overlapping as others
have been. The facts almost exactly the reverse of
the statements made. Il was our bull that gored
their OK:
OFFICIAL REPORT OF COL. wALLACE-A FED
ERAL PICKET Of THIRTEEN MEN DEFEAT And
KILL TWENTY-FIVE OF A SUPERIOR FORCE OF
TIE C0NFEDERAfES.
WAsHIsGros June 2S --Lieutenant General Scott to
day received tho following dispatch:
CUMBERLAND June 27ih.-To Gen. Mcclellan ! have
been omed to sending my mounted pckets Of hir
in oil the different parts along tho several Gp.
prosches TO Cumberland. Finding nort to impossible
to get any information Of the enemy, yesterday mount
ed ihe thirteen and directed them, il p9ssibl get
Frankfort, town midway between this place aud Rom
ney 70 SEQ If there rebel troops there Thoy went
within quarter Of mile Of the place, and found it full
Of cavalry.
Returning they overlook party Of forty one horse.
men, aud at once charged them, routing aud driving
them back more than mile, killing eight Of them and
securing seventeen horses Corporal Hayes in command
o. my was desperately wounded with sabre cuts and
bullets. Ia taking him back, my men halted about an
hour and then attacked by the enemy, who were
reinforced to about seveoty.fve men.
The attack was so sudden that they abandoned the
horses and crossed TO small Island the mouth Of Pal
terson creek. The charge Of the rebels bold and
confident yet twenty three fell under the FIRE Of my
pckets close about and the island. Ny fellows were
finally driver Off and scattering, each one for him
self Trey all in camp One of them, Corporal
Hayes, Il wounded, but recovering. Another of the
party, John O. HolGns, Is dead. He taken prisoner
aud trg;ally murdered.
Three companies went to The ground this morning and
recovered everything belonging to my picket, except
few Of their toscs The enemy engaged all night
in boxing up their dead Two Of their officers were Kill.
ed. aud they laid out twenty-tbrco the porch Of
n-ishboriug farmhouse viii bury my poor fellow to-
morrow.
have positive information, gained to day, that there
four regiments OF Contedeaes in and about Romney,
under COL HcDonad. What their particular object is,
cannot learn. Two Pennsylvania regiments are, en-.
camp4d at the State line nine miles from here waiting
further orders They have not yet reported They
hesitate about invading Maryland
The report Of the skrnsh sounds like icton but Il ia
not exaggerated. The fgh; really Of the most
desperate on record and abounds with instances Of
wonderful daring and cooIness
(SignedD LAWS WALLACE,
Col. llth Indiana Volunteers.
THE MILITARY DEsP0TISa IN BALTIAORE-PAa-
TIoULARS OF THE ARREST OF THE CHIEF OF
PoLICE-THE MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT; sU.