, 1862-03-17
GbesTtibutte.
MONDAY. MARCH H., 1ta.
MANASsAs-THE DESERTED
REBEL, CAMPS.
THE OTHER SIDE or FOTOHAC
STRATEGY

THE DESERTED VILLAGE,
The camps Qog huts) west Of Centrer{l1c, On
the right OF the road, were burned up clean,
not an article worth any thing being left In
the village were large number Of huts, which
were moi disturbed. i few camps and tents,
however, near the church, were fred On Sun.
day night. The town and deserted camps, on
our entering, made the most perfect picture
OF deeolation we lave ever Witnessed-the
smoking ruins Of the burnt camps, the fences
gone, houses deserted, windows out, doors
wanting, filth and disorder upon all sides. 4
to find out who were coming.
The graveyard near the church Was full, and
its area had been extended indefinitely by the
removal OF the fence which surrounded 1t,
snd the newly made graves numbered over
sixty. In tent close by WAS the body OF z
which our men quietly inferred In one OF four
newly dug g1ayee-whom they had been dug
for is Of course unknown, and we can only
surmiee that they did not take time to bury
their dead, aud hastily loaded them into the
WaSonss The graveyard Is On q Lns t.;,,l msnesi @
directly in the rear Of the forts which defend
the turnpike rood to the town 4 more ro-
mautic place for soldiers grave could not
have been found The church, which has
been used FOR = hospital, is not materially In
jurcd; aud the only buildings OF which any
thing remain were those in which the officers
were quaEtercd or were in use by them.
Everybody who could get away around the
whole country hAs gone: 8 few coutrabands
remain, who seem 10 hare "char.5e Of the
things" but there is but little to care fot. All
the cattle and live stock, with q few exeep-
Of several mileE' around the camps. and not =
tence-1al or post is left 10 mark the lines Of
tormcr farms.
The heavy woods to the left and down to-
wards Manassas hare ill been cut down. thus
presenting Just such an appearance as nc have
upon The Virginia side Of tho Potomac, near
Washington. =,
The Notifications look, at distance. fornl:d-
ahle. extending from point halt a mile north
Of Cen1reyille away of to the South rs fa= as
The eye can reach. We rode up 10 them, aud
found them merely dirt trenches and sand
forts. They have been evidently laid cut by
ell enoineer who understood his business, but
have BEEN constructed by men who merely
wanted TO put in tho time There has ,Iccer
6*x:s si'gle heaty gaa mounted in them. En-
bras;s7es have been made and logs Of ttooa 7zia
ont il ill otthcn- All were SO arranged, how
ever, that field artillery could be used in them
The floors on which they could have stood
were 1emlock boards, one inch thick, and
would not lave listed through single dis
charge, but would have let the guns down into
the sand
Some Of those On the left have wickcr-work
around the enabrasures, which has apparently
been done by some old negro baskct-mnEer.
On two Of them were raw hides staked down
and eand bags around the embra5ureS, but
these were intended to rake stor1nlng party,
should we have marched up in front The
bitches around them are nicely arranged, so
that our troops could have marched down
and up the sides 7eadily to make a baJunet
charge. No timber has ercr been placed In
front to obstrUct PASSAGE, nor were the sides
d,,,rt nr,1; Sof1 ar, ny,rt1n
Five Of these forts command the road 70
CcntIcrille, by which Mcdowell came in July
They extend over line OF 4 mile and half,
and arc I'll connected by rife pits dug deep
enough to allow artillery to move along be.
hind them without being seen in front, under
twelve feet thick.
No Ircciution appears to hare been taken
to prevent flank movement in the rear o1
Centrcsille in anything like such Formidable
manner as the front The ground to the Norti
is covered With j dense woods and stuntet
pincs. 4 few dirt banks near CcntrevilIe, be
hind which artillery could have been shelter
ed, were the only guards On their left. -
A piece OF dense woods, about i milo ant
half from Centreylle, would have afforded
Us protection, from which, with siege guns
we could have shelied them out ina few hours
There werca few places where they had hat
masked batteries in this pirce OF woods, an.
they have had regiment in winter quarter
here; bul they were only oa picket, and conl'
haze been easily driven in to the Ccu.reyill
fufts.
TO MANASSAS.
About noon Gcner,ls Mcclellan aud Nc
Dowell, with their stafif, and two thousan,
cavalry for an escort, came up and took til
road 10 Manassas We fell in with them ant
followed On dorm to Manassas All along t.
the left Of the rond was one continuous E1Tin
Of butts. tents and fcrts. all empty now-not
human being or animal showed themselves
not Z sound saye the clatter Of the horse
hoof-, the shrM tones Of the buglcs, or til
loud orders Of The officers.
At Bl.ckburu75 Ford we saw tle old battl
held Of July 18Th The Butler house, wIlic
was between the two forces and had been Ri
died with shot and shell, lsd been rcpairet
It was here Beanresard was dining, and mad
such narrow escape at The time. The tn
tops bear the cFidEnce Of the way the shot an
shell few around. L:rss limbs were cut OF
as though struck BY lightning. The woods
which the New York Twelfth the First an
Second Michigan, and the Massachusetts Fir
went down has ali been cut away, and we ca
now sec where The Rebels had their aFtiller
upon the bank Of Bull Run, bthind brea
The Washington Artillery Of New Orlea1
and three South Carolina regiments have bet
cncamped near the Butler House for the wi
ter, but started away some time ago. The q
tillery lett quantity Of harness, etc Nor
Of their tents were destroyed. Further do =
are the tents Of whole division, all pitche
as though the occupants had gone home
recTuit and re-enlsst~ but had not yet returnc
The Plains Of Manassas are really what the
name implies. The time WIS when there we
objects which obstrncted the range Of visiol
but theF are al gone nov; for miles aroun
~e fa3e IN unbroken view. On the hi
around arc the camps stsA left, and colum
Of smoke away of to The right indicated III
Manassas was On fire. Our cavalry had go1
there during Monday % night, night, and found t
firing the remaining property. A captain,
whose side We rode, told us Of piles Of nc
fcccsh clothes, swords, flags, &c; gallopl
ahead Of the rest, VIC reached the junction.
TIE sight here cannot be portrayed; t
large machine shops, the station-houscs, :
wreck Of the locomotive, and rot far dop
the remains Of four freight cars which b
been burned, to, the, right Gyc hundr,
barae1s Of fou7 had been stove In, a
two hundred barrels Of VINEGAR and N
1asses had been allowed to try cxr
ria:crts in chemical combinations 6o1
fifty barrels Of pork and beef had been SC;
tered around in the mud, and few hundr
yards down the track dense cloud Of srno
was rising from the remains of a facto
which had been used for rendering up talk
ard boiling bones. About thoasa1d go
hides were stretched in field close by, IN
stnEe6, and remained uuinjured.
The wagon road to MANASSAS has been 7
in good condition by the plentiful use plat
and logs; through the 3rEt piece Of voc
after leaving Cc1treFille Is piece Of s'cort
roy road" which is in terrible coaditfo
tie bodies Of half a dozen horses who I
broken their legs were scattered alongthc 81
a testimony agasnst 1hcse xrctched inv
tions.
The road is now In as good condition as
it ELI be at my time for months: 1t has b
w!dened for leans to pass; or two to
ah1east- Tie turnpike read to Warreuto,
In as fine condition Is it ever was: the fle
are in good order Tor moving arttilIely, aud
Eide roads, or those Of bnt little use, arc y
good = The roads sre oil good after we 1e,
the old liccs around Washington, and hi
been 20 for some time,
Leaving the Junction, We I'LL rode uB to
Bull Run Battlefield. The different pt
t:oas occrried By the different forces were
planned by Gen Mcdowell. They are
same now as when We stood there on t
memorable Sabbath. All was quiet fhro1
that now peaceful dalc. The rosr of the n
derons artillery, the fash Of the mnsketry
Tie g1oans Of the wounded and dying seer
70 be still ringing in our ears; but the CHI
ing Oh Tie freeApgI, or solitary bird pcrc
upon sheltered bueh, was all that re
broke the stiffness. ;"
THE NAVAL FIGHT At HAM
TON ROADS.
The Surgeon of the L. s, Ftigate confy
& furnishes to the Philadelphia Rsss Of the