New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-12-11

woods soldiers e all of q heapm You eas iTuut
tell yeng friends that the Thirteenth is Fosed ore
OF tne most powerful and weIfeonditioned Fegi-
eas Il y Mea as ths very gayes that has yst
night. ~ "a r- S'-.sN =
This faarning the steamer Scotland landed here,
Iae shifd Mississippi regiment all the way frasn
the Calf eoast--a noble band Of men whose srri-
val created the greatest enthusiasm We,If have
so,aers l.; enough after awhile # they keep on pour
The great Missouri swamp fox the Marion ~
Ins 9 re- rrsevouaon7-you must know / mean Cen nc,
Jeh' tnompson-wasi In town to-day Leannak assy !
ne fs IN town. for, like the Hi5ernian fea, De
seems 70 20 neEe, there, and everywhere oil a.
on the landing, would not lave known fir, nut
for theinegtabe white. handled bowie Knife which
he carries as no other man carries q knife-stueix
perpendic1lary in bis belt on The middle of Ms
form, BETTING General His old sionefed white
hat and feather. bob-tailed coat, short pants ana
rough ooots. which made him look more like q
cassie- -drover than General, and in which he did
his earlier deeds of daring, hare been laid aside
and now he has really q military look. Let mo.
picture this man to yoa. Imagine tall, lean,
ianF wry-looking customer, At least six feet high
With very long nose what you would can !
hatchet face; thick yellow hair, corabed back
OF his ears and bobbed off shsrt displaying
sety iong and thin neck; face healthy and ruddy,
SWitaout M vestge or beard or moustache; some 30
or % years Of age; light bne eyes, with friendly
and benevolent expression a placid well -shat,ed
mouth, with halfsmile always playing about the
eorns5s corner little slightly handy
graeefui IN his movements, as well on footas in
the saddle; mild-voiced and unassumiup Ia
crowd fall Of rough soldier language III is talk TO
all his manner and tone Of voice he same 10 aII
from Major General down to a negro: imagine
such person as this, say, and you viii have
pretty correct idea Of the famous JEFF. Thompson.
he f. = about the last person you would take for
JeH. thompson, after forming your idea from what
you had heard Of him. He il perpesnally full Of
fun and never gets to talking without setting all
around him to laughing; it is believed indeed,
that be fights chiefly for the fun of ii. The camp
is full OF JEFF Thompson's jokes, or rather the odd
dialogues he has had with friends and enemies
WHAT he was in town for did not ascertain !; as
| did not button-hole him. sand tell him was the
Correspondent of the New Orleans Daily Crescent
It is said that the time OF most Of his men is up,
and that he will be assigned command in the
Confederate service-he having heretofore be-
longed exclusively to the Missouri State service.
have already said something about released
prisoners coming down from Cairo. To-day the
steamer latan came down under white flag; she
was stopped above the point, and our steamer, the
Yazoo, with the proper officers on board, went up
to meet her. Her errand was to deliver within
our lines Gen. Frost, Major Williams, and some 20
others Of the Camp Jackson prisoners, taken BY
the Hessans at the fret outbreak in st. Louis,
leased on parole, and now entirely released in ex
change for Col. Mullgan and his men, lately taken
by our forces at Lexington. This party OF prison
ers had expected their release in 81. Louis and
tended to 60 and join Price; but the authorities
sent them to this place. Col. Buford, of Cairo
came "a officer of the party. Mr.. Nadaud,
the hospital steward of this battalion, was
added to the party as a prisoner at tCairn-
mn af- Ma 41x,1 fTpra.
prisoners, and having not taken up arms against
Lincoln, though acting as hospital steward for
as salty band OF anti -Eincolnses az can be
found got the necessary pass here and left, intend
ing to visit his wife at St. Louis; but had the mis-
fortune to reach Gen. Grants quarters, In Cairo,
on Sunday afternoon, just as our gunboats COM
Amenced banging away at Fort Holt, only o few
miles from there Despite bis papers lie was Gala
sboosed with other seceshers, and added 10 the
downward bound Camp Jackson party when they
arrived. He describes the martial Law in Cairo as
terribly severe upon the citizens, who are nearly
all seeessionists. From Lieut.. Barclay one of the
released, obtained late st. Louis papers, #hfah
send with this ss i, s455z ~t.@5i& 3 a
As the Yazoo neared the Iatan o-day. one of the
prisoners on the latter exclaimed, Why look,
hang me il there amt jeff Thompson standing on
the guard u s Where, which, is him 20 quickly
asked Col. Buford. jeff was pointed out, and long
and intense was the scrutiny indulgsd in by the
Hessian Colonel. When the boats laaked and the
officers met, there was the usual shaking Of hands,
introductions, etc; and when jeff made the ae~
quaintance Of Buford, he smilingiy remarked, 81
believe you're the man that was after me q few
days ago?" !" Yes, an, Y was the polite response.
ii was one of the chats. 81 How is it, General"
asked the Colonel, that you in so many places
at the same time thought you were at New
ia did, = 5s 5e Fla aushns ns eams ba
you see Pm here now, don't you 20 y. Yes, i be-
lieve Ido.n The whole conversation need rot be
reported. will mention only, as they are told to
me, q few Of the sharp rallies that occurred DUR
ing half an hours conversation rendered the more
free and good humored by-well, Won't say what.
- You're not such a very strengthening man, ~
said the Colonel, taking in Jeffsgood humored face
the only person who ever called me good looking,,
he answered; ]; % I've never been troubled about
mems opinion of my looks. =, - = g General,
how do you manage to fly about so fast with your
find yon?' "Becanse I'm fast and you're slow,
that's all" But why don't you stop somewhere,
and give us an open fght?' .. Didn't do il at
Frsdericktown?" !. Yes, but didn't we run you2''
you there; eyou had ten to one against me, and
knew id well you could clean me ont; but for one
thing, you would never have got shot at US. Y
wagons loaded with lead and things to keep up the
fun with; the roads were bad and we had toatay be-
hind and fool with you till the wagons got on q
piece. needn't say how much lead we had, but
it was enough to last us about two years" Then
you don't intend to give up the 1fghtg' .Not
much, i don't" "Well, General what are yonH
fighting for, anyhow?H "Colonel, what are uoss
fighting for q "rm fighting for the Union.,
"And I'm fighting for the Union, too, and Pm now
q better Union man than ever you dare 10 be; +
always was Union man, and am fighting for the
Southern Union, the only real Union now in Amer
lea; the Yankees and the Dutch are leading your
Northern Union to the devil as fast as they know
how. 1 know, Colonel, that you and most Of your
officers are gentlemen and brave men, and,will
fight well whenever you have the chance /; but the
trouble is you hav'nt got the men to back you.
Pm ready to make contract with your Govern
ment to meet you in the open field, one to four,
| and clean you out every time.'' General, Pm
afraia you have the advantage of me in one re-
spect, and that's in bragging.n me, Colonel Pm
| not Dragging; Til engage with you or any Of your
| leaders to fight you square open fight with one
/ man to your four; I've never given you an open
| fight because you send ten or twenty or fifty men
to my one. # fyoud come at me with even NUM-
bers, wouldn't leave grease spot of you. $50,
then, you soM keep on fighting in your own wayl's'
Eyes, we'll fight you till h. freezes over, and
| then fight you on the ice ~ . General
can't imagine how you stand the fatigue Of your
many long and rapid rides; you must be tough
one" 'Its practice. I've been in the saddle as
much out of it for the last fifteen years, and ana
used to all sorts of camping out and roughng it in
| the woods, and most of my men are just as expe-
| renced." '.In the army all that time ?n "0h,
no you ought to know Pm a surveyor and civil
engineer. laid out the Hannibal and st. 10 Ral-