The New York herald., 1862-01-13
GENERAL MAMsFIElD's DIVISION.
OUR NEWPORT NEWS CORRESPONDENCE

OUR NEWPORT NEWS CORRESPONDENCE.
CAMP BUTLER, NEWPORT News, Va, JAM 9, 1852.
Negroes Escdd from So-DissatiJactio Of Rbel SCI
diers-Sau Tcesty .fce Dollars per Bog-Srong Unio"
Ftein9 in Noyolk-Descrption of Batteries on Ndnse-
mend Creek-Flag Of Truce from YorhsOwn-Good Time
all Arosnd-Aore Negroes Arrived, de-, dc
The party Of negroes who escaped yesterday from the
other side Of the river and taken by the rgate
Congress- belonged TO Captain Nathaniel Pruden Of suf
folk On Monday evening" at nine O'Clock, they stole
boat and pulled down Nansemond creek for about mile,
when they had TO stop bail the boat with their hats,
a. was half full Of water The weather extremely
cold, the wind terribly piercing and the tide unusually
strong For twelve consecutive hours they had 10 pull
without rest food and they in continual state
Of fear Of being detected by tho rebel batteries At nine
yesterday morning they came TO the Congress, where
they were kindly received and fed and in the afternoon
sent ashore They state that the force at Suffolk consists
Of one North Carolina regiment, thousand strong
under command Of Colonel Greeks. Neither officers
men have any uniforms. The latter, except in few
instances are without stockings shoes II the same
old story and again Of dissatisfaction and in
temperance Tho high promises held out them when
they enlisted remain unfuled for the last four months
they have received pay, and furoghs are grant
because the authorities are afraid that the soldiers
Will prefer TO stay At home altogether Salt was selling
last week At twenty-five dollars per bag, and in conse
quence Of its scarcity the have waste all their
corn 10 Keep their alive; under pres
circumstances il does not pay to kill and salt the
pork. At Suffolk the secession feeling TO be pretty
unanimous but at Norfolk it commonly reported the
Union party begins to gather and the number Is
now SO great that the military authorities say that they
can't do any thing with them"
The negroes treated with severity, and the
most ridiculous stories told them TO prevent their
running away. The favore version is, that when they
come up among the Yankees the old and disabled negroes
are shot, tho young harnessod TO carriages
like oxen, and when the is they will be carried
"to place called Cnby to be sold in exchange for coffee
and sugar. Notwithstanding all newspaper protesatons
to the contrary every Suffolk believes that the
conagaton at Charleston was caused by colored mcen
diaries.
The batteries on Nansemond creek as follows-On
the east side Tom Point battery with five guns and one
hundred men, and Pig Point battery (where the creek
joins James rver) twelve guns and regiment Of eight
hundred the side, Cedar Point battery, with
four guns and forty two commanded by Captain Jas
per Phillips and Blenkhom battery, with six guns and
sixty At all the batteries the qartered In
log ha.s.
tenant Harding, Of the Seventh regiment New York Vol
uneers, about miles from outside rckets As he
very properly suspected that the main design TO
what we were doing he ordered them to halt and re-.
Assistant Adjutant General Captain Clarence II. Dyer,
to ask the enemy's peasurs the Captain went out in
company with Surgeon Howe, OF the First New York Vo-
uneers and Surgeon Mclean Of the Second They found
the rebel party to consist OF Major Yerbe OF the Eighth
Alabama regiment, and Lieutenant Taylor and pi-
vaes OF the Third Virginia regiment The Major said
hat he had come n for the purpose Of handing
ceip for some money sent south for soldier Of the
taken prisoner time ago Whether this the true
of the pays coming down or not, they did not
much, and will take good TO keep all such
parties at respectful distance Major Yerbe seemed TO
be OF refinement and intelligence, and the meeting
was in one sense quite agreeable one The MAJORS
saddle holsters well supplied not with revovers
but with some good sized jugs Of genuine old rye, and
during the half hour the meeting lasted ho would fro
quenty the old anecdote Of what the Governor
OF North Carolina sad the Governor OF South Carolina
II is proper 10 state that side the compliments
were paid in genuine hook and prime "Havanas"
We have just this moment Zone O'Clock p. N.Y. had
other arrival Of runaway negroes, this time from quito
different directon-Williamsburg These two men,
William Murray and John Tadd belonging 10 Baker Vim,
Of Williamsburg have both been jail for many months
William for striking white man who attempted to take
liberties with his wife, and John for trying 10 away
Tho poor fellows have been three days the way and
have suffered much from cold and wet In order 10 pass
by the pekets they had to keep in the woods and
sometimes obliged to wade through swanps, with the
water up 10 their Maista.