, 1861-06-11
WESTERN VIRGINIA.


WESTERN VIRGINIA.
Operations Of the eTEoops-.Interestlpx
----. &yz
lspesaA correspondence Of the Chicago Tribune.1
- = PHn1pR1, June 9Th, 1851,
-Four correspondent has been quite neelI.
gent OF his promise to write you, but Incessant
labor and fatigue have prevented. But. now
to the task. The army Of the United States
entered upon The "sacred soil Of Virginia. On
Thursday evening Inst, May 80 Tho 9th 1ndi.
ana Regiment 18th and 10th Ohio, Were the
first to enter tho State. The Wheeling (Va)
Regiment had passed On TO Fetterman, where
the rebels nere posted the Tuesday before,
The rebels Refreshed to Grafton, burning the
bridges. From Grafton they retreated across
the country; fourteen miles, to PhiuIppl.
The bridges were temporarily repaired; and
the three Regiments advanced On Grafton
Friday evening, May .31st. (. The rebels were
| posted at Phlllippi, somewhere 1,5oo strong
and we're guarding the pike leading from Graf
ton to PhilippL Consequently, part Of the Is,
Vi1ginis Reig;iment, (Col. Kelly, tho 18th Ohio
(Col 1rrane,) and the 9Th Indiana, {Col Mil
ray,) started On circultous route, 20 miles
at:u o'clock Sabbath morning, to attack them
In the rear; while the 9Th and 7th Indiana,
and the 14th Ohio, with two six Founders,
| which had inst arrived on the Parkersburgh
| route, J. attacked them In front by the pike.
| The march Of the rear division was made ;fouI
miles by rail, and the twenty five remaining
miles BY bridle path, over the monntains,
ssas made in seventeen hours, through a
drenching rain, and the worst roads ever seen.
Ths march was the most e1haustfng evcr ex.
pettenced by the oldest md most experienced
OF our soldiers; and hsd the enemy endur:
arce, tact and courage, they could have made
fearful havoc with Us In the thick. darkness Of
thst antu1 night, In the wild mountain go1ges
through which nc passed. About 1fty msn
from the three Regiments fell by tho way,
from exhaustion, and were picked up by
friendly wagonera, Or struggled: in the next
day, The attack was to have commenced ut
4 o'clock, on the W,est side, 1nd We were to
have headed them On the east side. The west.
ern division made their time and opened on
their pickets before 4 o'clock. Posting the
: artillery, they fred upon the rebels, and lind
they, stood gunpowder, we should have cut
them off In twenty minutes but we arrived
on the brow Of the hill overlooking the east
road towards Beverly and Stanton, just In time
Wheeling boys and the Ohio i6th lid gone
around the hill towards the battery, but the
9Th Indiana climbed hill overlooking them
on the east, to make their fire effectua1. The
whole troop were 80 exhausted that pursuit
Of fSglt1yets 81 was & impossible, so ne stopped to
How: many the enemy lost In killed and
wounded We cannot learn We fell In possea-
sicn Of but two wounded men, one Of whom
lost Leg, and the other only slightly wounded,
Of our troops, Col Kelly was wounded by
call passing through the chest near the right
should shoulder; bnt it is believed It escaped his
luugs, The 10th Ohio had private wounded
On the knee. The other regiments escaped
without 1oss. We learn from citizens coming
in that some twenty dead and wounded seees-
sionists were picked up on the side Of the
mountain on which: they had hidden in their
terror, and at which the 9th Indiana had fred
their I1fes, after the engagement, simply to /
have them clear for cleaning, and without be
ing aware Of the havoc they were making. We
captured the euemy's tents, some five hundred
stand Of arms, stolen from Harpet's Ferry,
barrel Of powder and ball, forty horses, and
recovered es many more which they had stolen
ION ION Union men. The prisoners We captured
"sWore In" as the boys call It, and let them
run In fac, the greatest fun among the boys,
Is going out In scouting parties, attacking Sc.
cessIoniats, and swearing them In. Since the
zout, the Union men have filled the town In:
crowds, thanking us for driving out the rebels,
and asking for arms that they may protect
themselves. This -p1ace was q miserable, Sc
cesston aole, but the county would have been
largely Union had the people bee1, ullo,si to ,ote
Rcw the troops did the voting the enclosed
document will show. It was captured With
maps, sharts, muster rolls, epau1eftes, swords,
a1o,. ana olhef 1rape. at the secession Colonel,s
quarters. The people are strangely divided in
sentiment some toWns, Ike Grafton, being
entirely. Union, and some, from pressure, be-
ing entirely secession; but wherever we 20,
ali become warmly Union. :, .-~::-
Erom the letters captured, We learn that the
Is that they will be finally beaten, which no
doubt helps them amazingly to run.
tearing that the rebels we're reinforced and
about to return, ne have laid on our arms In
the woods and On the mountains, through
drench1ng rains, for the Last two nights aud
hayang eaten up nearly everything the rebels
!eft, He are In no pleasant mood, or in very
beautiful condition. Yet We are ready and
anxious for another fight.
The to1n ts stripped Of paper, envelopes.
c1gars, and other 1uxuries, aud You must be
satisfied With: this hasty summing up Of events
1or tue present, as this closes the stock have
Oh hand. Yours,
49,. .... -, NORTHWEST.
THE above, By an Indiana volunteer, though
1t comes late to hand, will be acceptable to
our readers In its OWL why, It gives graphic
picture Of the march, the nature Of the
ground and the battle In explanation Of the