The Lancaster ledger. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1852-1905, 1862-01-29
From the Charleston Mercury 2lst inst.
The War on the Seacoast.

We get no news Of special interes,
from the Coast. The Savannah papers
OF yesterday mention that Federal boat
party approached our pickets on Skid
way on Saturday night and fred on them.
The pickets returned the fre-some TWEEN.
ty or thirty shots beng tired-when the
Federals retired. 1t was not known
whether they received any damage. |,
was rumored that considerable number
of Federal vessels had made their ap.
pearance in the neigbborLood of Skida
way.
The Savannah News doubts the re
port that the enemy's vessels have quilted
Port Royal. 1t quotes the following ex
tract from letter written since the al
legged departure Of the feet:
"ThiA evening our picke,s report abou,
forty or fifty vessels few miles from
Gregorie's house. What they design to
do is all conjecture. They may have
been dryen higher up than usual by the
r,cent bad weather. or the vessels may
be portion Of the Burnside fleet. If,o
they may land at two points, Gregorie's
house and Boy DIS, or at Bolan's Hall,
and thence advance to take the railroad
Bot do not believe that they will march
far from under cover OF their guns, unless
they have An overwhelming force. II
they do land in large numbers we will
have time enough to send force sufii.
cient to drive them back TO their vessels
with the bayonet, which will be freely
used"
Gregorie's house is situated on Broad
River some fifteen miles from Port Roya
entrance. Soyd's Landing is one Of th'
landings used by the steamers plying be
Tween Charleston and Savannah, and i
on creek leading from Broad river
little higher up the river than Gregorie''
Bolan's is on navigab,s branch O
Broad river, about nine miles dstan
from the Charleston and Savannah Rail
road, and is the nearest point accessibl
by water TO the rail road. All three O
the abovelandings are on the mainland
Tho Port Roya! correspondent Of tb
New York Commercial Adrertisr give
tho following account Of the Yankee op
e,alions in the Cotton business at Por
Royal
"The negroes every where in two die
tricts are at work collecting. bai'ing ano
rolling cotton. Thousands Of them hav
been set at their task, for which they ar,
paid at the rate Of dollar for every hun
dred pounds they deliver. They labou
with a.acrity under this unwon,ed stmu
lus; various assistants and clerks hav
been appointed to oversee their peIfor
mances, and though they need to 30 con
s,antly directed and shiIlfully managed
yet a good degree Of work is really 90,
ten out Of them. This is proven by lh
fact that, in less than three days, owe
$4,000 worth Of cotton was put aboar
the steamboat WHICH accompanied Co
MOBILES all this cotton had been BALE
by the negroes themselves, and the bag
made by them it was thep conveyed I,
the various landings, at no one Of which
there is a wharf. The supply Of bag
having been incomplete some thousand
sand bags were supplied them, and these
had to be first placed in fiat boats, .her
rowed out to the steamer, and again -e
moved 10 the decks, before the labors o.
the blacks were completed. The old dri.
ysrs were generally retained TO find out
the hands and bring them up to the
places where their labor was required.