The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1862-05-22
FlOndish Operation Of The Rebcls.


We clip tho following extracts from 4
lengthy detailed account Of affairs al
Yorktown, written by correspondent
oftko New York Times, II such fcnd,
ish work is sanctioned by the commands
ing officers what loyal heart can sympa,
thizo with them? The correspondent
says;
cannot close this without mentioning
one incident which will brand forever in
history the character of the foo with
whom we have to deal, Gen Butter
feld,was Gcnaral OF tic Trenches on
Sunday, and in charge oi Yorktown Of.
ter its evacuation The troops found
scattered abopt--not at random, but car.
fully placed, so as to- be the most destruc.
tivc--great numbers of torpcloos, char,
ged with explosives, and SO arranged
with wires that on being handled or
stepped on they would explode, a largo
tree, around which horsemen would nat.
umlly congregate for shelter. was sur
rounded with them. They were placed
in narrow portions of the road-at or
near the wells. and wherever individuals
were most likely 10 90, They were
found in capet-bags, in -four barrels, in
corn and coffee sacks, in officers trunks,
&c. One was placed just where the
telegraph wire which had been cut, on
tered the ground-and exploded as the
new telegraph operator went to take pos
session, killing him instantly. Seven or
eight of our men have alleady lost their
lives already from this cause, Tho en-
frances to these magazines haze been so
arranged as to make it almost certain.
that an explosion will follow any attempt
to open them; they haYc, therefore. hoeu
placed under guard, and have not yal
been disturbed,
saw to-day statement made by q
man named Grover. from Western New
York,w has been in the rebel army
from the beginning Of the war, but who
was lately taken prisoner, or who sur.
rendered voluntarily, do uotfsmembor
which, He says, (under OATH ihnt the
construction and blanting Of these torpc.
does have been the special work Of Brig.
Gen. Rains, who goes among the rebel
soldiers by the soubtiquet of "Sister
Rains" on account Of his devotion to the
doctrine Of Free Lovo and Spiriualism,
He assures that Rniqs had given a grcot
deal of time and labor to the preparation
of these torpedoes, that ho superinten-
ded the planting Of them himself. and
that he had seen him going about in con.
nection with man named Gray, with .
wagon load Of them to be placed in par,
! tjcular spots -. ~. ~. s4-.,--.s--4,..i
Grover says that he knows where very
many Of them have been placed. an | to'
morrow Gen. Andrew Porter, the Pro.
vost- MOrshal, intends to send a squad of
rebel prisoners under Grover's guidance
to dig out all these Internal machines at
their own proper risk and peril, No
one can complain of retaliation such
rs this, which merely compels the rebels
TO take the chances of the assassinations
they had planned for our troops.
The rebels left quite large supply Of
articles in their camp. There were sew.
enty.fye or eighty sacks ofLiverpool salt,
a great quantity Of -four aud five bales Of
cotton. They throw over 1000 bushels
Of corn into the river They left over
eighty heavy guns in position upon their
works, but many OF them we're spiked,
and many are left loaded 10 such a man
ncr as to burst them when they are fired,
They will be handled. OF course, with all
propCr-.caution. Two of their heaviest
riflci guns were burst by themselves
it is now though Intentionally. A de-
sarter reports that our goo pound shells
from the Parrot gun in Battery No. I
caused the most Intense anlazemont and
CONSERVATION among them. 1t is Ger
tainly formidable looking instrument,
two feet long and about six inches in
diameter The deserier says that when
one Of the rebel officers came into
where the first one struck, he icok
good look at il and exclaimed "What
will those ID Yankees get next to
torment us with? One OF the shells was
sent to Richmond as specimen of the
projectilos current on tho Peninsula
A view of it may possibly moderate tho
impaticnco OF tho Richmond Examiner
lf2F 'gar to the ,deatb,,.-.,.,,.,.-. ..,....,,