New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-06-18
excitement and confusion Of close encounter n clearly

An hour and a half after leaving Cairo, our boat
reached and slowly passed the town OF Columbus
Kentucky. Il is a struggling collection OF forty or MY
buildings including few large brick blocks, COCO
many wretchcd little frame houses and profusion oil
whisky saloons One Of the latter bears the omnous
sign Of Dixie" A few men and boys were sitting IN
front Of the groceries, a few women ana enno'eN
peeping from the windows, and several horseHeh
riding wildly TO and fro, apparently very muen 'U
prised a. seeing body Of Union troops In the enemy
country. At the depot locomotive, with s'ea" ~,
and attached, was putting impatlenlly' neAueN
toward Union City, Tenn. twenty-five miles oi''"D,
where several thousand Secession troops arc
The Columbus rebels are all ready 10 retreat NJ
tackled Upon tall staff, few yards nom inc fiVef
Secession flag fifteen feet long, with Its eight stars
| and three stripes, was flying triumphantly 1t wss
hard 10 ace the symbol of treason Haunting the stars
| within a stones throw Of them; but we steamed
s,owIv nv and continued the reconnaissance for two
miles below the town. without hearing from any OF the
masked batteries about which we have had 50 many
repors Probably they have lived only in the fertile
lamentations of Dixe's land. Two UnioDsts On the
Kentucky shore waved their handkercbiefs, and
cbeered Justify just rounded to and started on
our return.
was still flying insolently. Every on board set
bis teeth lie saw it. The soldiers were torU'ng for
an order TO take it; but it was understood that the
specific instructions of the commander would Lot per-
nit this unless al attack should be made Then every
one hoped for an attack but none came. The men,
bes Of the Press asked permission of Col. Osesoy
to 20 on shore and tear down; but he did not feel
al liberty to grant it, So Iasfed it again, with lips
more strongly compressed than before; aud uniyer-
sal feeling that orders orders that flag ought TO
be taken At last the pressure was too strong to he
| resisted. When we were a hundred yard; above the
town. tie order 10 "stop berl WAS given the wheels
ceased to reyoye and the boat dropped slowly down
| the stream.
When she reached point opposite the fag-ftaf, q
gangplank was put out and the master of the boat,
Capt. William Barnes, went on shore. lie was FOL-
lowed by bali dozen eager men. with axes and knives,
who all sprsng for the flagstaff. Come back, on
board come, every man OF you, shouted Col
Oglesby, peremptorily and the order reluctantly
obeyed, by all but Capt. Barnes who evidently
thought he had right to do lie pleased, with bis
own person and boat. He deliberately unangled
and cut the ropes while dozen civilians on the deck,
with cooked rifles and revolyer stood ready TO dispose
of any assassin who should endeavor TO shoot him,
from the adjacent windows. But such attempt was
made and the ColumbiaDs looked in sullen silence.
Not all however, for four Union ladies,
"Fathful among the f.ithle. only they"
from neighborng bluff seeing that the device Of trea-
son was coming down, waved their bandkerchies joy
fully and made other demonstrations OF intense salts
faction. The Rebel flag wsvered, foated slowly down
an aerial inclined plane and finally reached the ground
II was picked up and brought en- board by Capt.
Barnes and orr boat continued on her way, amid d
tremendous outbqt Of shouts from her deck guards,
and hurricane roof Three cheers were given respect
lively for the Stars and Stripes President Lincoln, Gen.
Scott, Gen. Prentiss, Col Oglesby, Col. Morgan the
four Union ladies Of Columbus, and John j. Crien-
den. Il never played Yankee Doodle easily be-
fore remarked the fifer, as when l saw that flag
coming down. and those ladies waving their handker
chiefs; why it seemed to play itself."
After every man on board had huzzahed himself
hoarse, the sharp crack of rife was heard and bull
let whizzed our heads Ms we stood upon the hur
ricane roof. A little cloud OF smoke rising from be-
hind q bank of earth, jast above town, showed that
come son of the Cavaliers, whose craftsmanship was
no, equal to his maligniiy, had attempted to commit
murder. As there was nobody hurt, the boat did
not stop but if that shot had killed any board,
there would have been vaage Of Columbus half an
hour after! An examination of the flag showed that
each OF the bore the name in pencil Of the young
LADY who sewed it on. The Maggies, aud julius, and
Sues and Hates and Sses who thus left their auto
graphs upon their handiwork did anticipate that it
would so soon be scrutinized by Yankee soldiers.
The JEFF. Davis flag up, with it's union re-
versed under the Stars and Stripes At Island No 2,
which is three miles long and has several farms upon
it, we stopped for haf an hour, to ascertain definitely
whether any troops ('' Secesh.") were posted there.
While the recOnnocring parties were out, the remain
der OF the troops went on shore under the magnificent
shade trees Of maple cottonwood blackberry and per
smmon which are iestooned with grape vines and par
asitic ivy, aud decorated their caps and bnon-Aoes
with sprigs Of the delcateeafed honey locust Several
Union settlers who gathered to talk with them, seemed
excessively pleased TO find that we hare Government.
They stated that the growing crops promising, and
that the most Of the wheat in the vicinity IL already II
pened andcut Notroops found. Afew miles above,
at the log house Of Kentucky squaer loyal flag was
flying II twice too long for Its width andhe stars
were of pink upon O white ground! In consideration,
however Of it's excellent Union intentions, the boys
huzzahed and gave three cheers first for II, and then
for the Union msron standing under it, with an infant
in her arms She responded to the compliment by
waving her handkerchief and joining in the cheers.
One of my companions insists that, in her demonstra.
tive delight abe seized the baby by the heels and
swung il enthusiastically around her head but feel
bound state that did no; this and that did
my friend investigating the contents Of q mysterious
flask few minutes before. Being an unmarried man,
be perhaps yielded 80 far 10 the excitement mental
and liquid as TO be unable TO discriminate between
handkerchief and baby.
We reached Cairo once more early in the afternoon
crowd of soldiers gathered to behold the Rebel flag