The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1862-12-20

lzeuo VAA 70 0oSlSuSU.
r ARMx COHMEsPoNDENCE.
CAAp OF TIE 25TH Iowa IxrAsrRY,)
near Helena, Arkansas,
Monday, December 8, 1852.
EDITOR HAwK.EYE,-Since my former com :
munica.ion, nothing worthy of notice has trans.
PRED in this vicinity except another almost
ffuitless expedition under Gen. Hovey; being
about the fifth of his unsuccessful exploits.
The Expedition from Helena, numbering nine
thousand effective men, artillery, infantry and
cavalry, including two hundred and fifty men
from our Regiment (25th), under command Of
It. Col. Brydolf and Major Taylor, started down
the river on transports Thursday evening, the
97th ult., and landed the same evening, ten miles
below, on the Mississippi side, at . place called
Delta. The following morning the force com
menced their march through the swsmps in the
direction Of Coldwaser River, giving our raw
Iowa boys an opportunity Of showing their
marching qualities, the superiority of which, I
am glad to cay, have not deprecated since the
GLORIOUS First" gained the sobriquet Of the
"Greyhouuds." 1t. Col. Brydolt had command
of the Second Division with the baggage train.
3 After march of twenty-five miles, through
swamps, which compelled the use Of manual
labor to extricate the wagons, the Expedition
bivouacked fos the night in the canebrakes On
the following day, an early start and forced
marching brought our forces to Hills Landing, on
the Coldwater River, not far from the junction
of Coldwater and Tallahatchie rivers, where an.
other halt was made for the night. A number
Of prisoners were taken during the march, from
whom the information was obtained that ter
rible battle had taken place between Sherman
and Grants and Prices forces; that Price was
routed; with great loss Oh both sides. A Rebel
bearer of dispatches from Price to Pemberton
was also taken, whose dispatches disclosed the
fact that Price was resreatng upon Coldwaser.
The cavalry were sent forward to the railroad,
about twenty.ssven miles distant, to DESTROY
bridges, etc., in order to cut of Prices retreat
but no infantry or ARTILLERY, except two Iowa
Regiments and the LIST Iowa Battery, were per.
mitted to advance any farther than Coldwater,
Here they remained until the cavalry returned.
having destroyed number of bridges on the
Railroad. The artillery took up position on
the banks Of the River, arranged however in An
entirely original manner, according to the or
ders Of the commanding General, in three lines,
one behiud the other, the ground being almos.
level Here the forces remained in inactivity
waiting, according to the general suppostion,
until Price had fully escaped, when the order
was given to commence backward movement
toward Helena, which place was duly reached
on Sunday the 7th inst; the men being general.
~ well but n..bad spirits, having made num-
Der of forced marches, fifty miles, over almost
every obstacle to be met with in Mississippi
fiat, only to march back again, without even a
skrmish with the Rebels.
1t is the general opinion among the officers
with whom have conversed, who were with
the expedition, that had an advance been made
on Saturday night, With the whole force and
the artillery (of which there was an album
dance been planted along the line of the Rail.
road, that the residue Of Prices forces would
have been utterly destroyed. He was effec.
tuaiiy surrounded but either through the in
competency Of the commanding officers or their
Discrimination to harm the "Southern consad-
eracy" any more than was absolutely nece.-
sary for the safety of their own precious posi-
tions, the movement was not made ard the
expedition proved emphatically q fzzle.
On the return march q portion of the twenty
fifth liberated twenty-six half starved ard
frozen negroes whose inhuman master had tied
them down, and in two instances chained them
to trees and logs in canebrake where the
water was more than eight inches deep, for
the purpose of concealing them until the Fed.
eral forces had departed. The poor negroes
were most pitiable objects, clothed in but one
garment, a long tow shirt, and had been in the
position from which they were rescued for two
days and nights. Their masters residence
was protected by. General Hovey's orders and
no soldier allowed either to touch or destroy,
an article about the plantation, even down Il
the fodder in the fields. which our worn-ou.
soldiers wished to use for beds to protect them
from the wet ground. We had though. il the
language Of the modern Ciceros, that this man.
ner Of waging war against Rebels was .splaved
out" but it seems few more removals ara
yet required to insure an energetic prosecution
of the war, at least in this direction. 81 j
New regiments Of troops are yet arriving
daily. The S4th Iowa came down on the Ed,
Walsh on Thursday last and have gone into
camp. iiG bsa4gitsqxs ESQ sagiy spo
The health Of the Twenty.ffeh has been toll.
erably good. -Four men have died since our
arrival here, one each from Companies A, D,