Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-03-13

WssHINGToS. &C
Especial Correspondence Of the Chicago Tines
WASHINGTON. March T.
The accounts that have been received here To.
day give a much more deplorable account of the
affair at Spring HILL in Tennessee. than those
that came yesterday and were teegraphed 10 you
last night. The force engaged on side, in
stead OF being only three regiments, was az least
1000 strong. and embraced ten or twelve regi
ments, under Acting Brigadier General COburn
The enemy we're commanded by Gen. Van Dorm
and had about 10 900 men engaged. Their re
serves, amounting to 5000 men more were not
brought into action at all. There was another
detachment of our troops. IL 600 strong, "A few
miles distant, and an express was sent 10 Gen.
Rosecrans in the early part Of the engagement.
begging him To send them to Gen. Coburns
sistance IL this mad been done, our troops would
not have been defeated. But Gen. Rosecrans
sent no such orders. His orders to Gen. Gilbert
we're positive, 10 remain at Franklin, and the
latter officer cannot be blamed. therefore, for not
marching 20 Gen. Coburns assistance. The re
suit was, however, that Gen Coburn's detach.
ment, after fighting like heroes, and maintaining
unequal combat for several hours, was de
feated at last and not only defeated, but virtually
annihilated. A single battery of artillery and a
company or two Of cavalry succeeded in cutting
their Way through and escaped. all the rest OF
our artillery, some 80 or 40 guns, in splendid or
der. with caissons and ammunition wagons com
plete; all the rest of our cavalry. and all our in
farxry, fell into the hands of the enemy. Our
loss ~ killed of course was very great, for the
troops fought with desperation. The regiments
captured were the 18th Michigan, Odd Wisconsin.
33d and 18th Indiana, and parts of four other
regiments. More than hundred commissioned
officers either killed or taken prisoners, and
a..
also fell into the hands of the enemy.
We can never suppress the rebellion by battles
like tins and we can never gain victories with
mismana cement like that which prevails in our
armies. IRON the War Department here to the
Generals commanding departments When |
look around the military horizon. and see how
the wretched imbecility and tnnatlcism which
prevail here have distributed armies and our
Generals, my heart sinks and cannot hope Tor
any good results from the spring campaign. III
we are not defeated, indeed. all points il will
be owing entirely To good luck and not To good
management. Look at the siege of Charleston,
for instance. General Foster, a General who has
made war. and fought battles. and won decisive
victories, man In every way competent TO
conduct the siege To a successful issue, is sent
away. and the whole matter lett in charge of
General Hunter. The latter, although brave
man and a good officer. is entirely inexperienced
in all such matters. With General Foster in
command. the siege might have been successful.
With Gen. Hunter in command, IL will certainly
fail. Why, then, does the Administration prefer
the inexperience and want of skill Of General
Hunter 10 the experience and skill OF General
Fosterg Because the men that rule Mr. Lincoln
have determined that negroes shall be employed
in the siege in order that the city, when captured
and the whole State of South Carolina, shall be
given mp to the pilage of negroes because Gen.
Foster and all his officers have refused to be made
the instruments in thus letting loose upon the
women of the South gangs of infatuated black
savages; aud because General Hunter has not
expressed any dissent from his orders. which are
To employ negroes In the siege.
The fact that Hooker's army has become de
pleted To on alarming extent has been known for
some time. but the cau'es that have led tO that
depletion have been kept involved in mystery
One OF them. however, has now come TO light.
Gen Halleck states that the evil OF desertion pre-
walls IN all our armies to an alarming extent, and
that there have been 1000 desertions from
Hooker's army alone during the last month.
Some of these deserters caught. but most OF
them, Of course, escape; $50 of them were
brought TO this city yesterday, on their way to
Fortress Monroe. where they TO be kept at
hard labor ill the end OF the war
The proceedings in the Senate yesterday, on
the subject of compelling Senators to take vex-
atious test oath. were very suggestive. The law
requiring members of Congress To take this new
OATH il clearly an unconstitutional act and there
fore null aud void This fact was eloquenty set
forth Yesterday by Mr. Bayard. Mr.. Davis. OF
Kentucky, aud Mr.. Salisbury. The discussion of
the matter was very spirited and u shows that the
time has come when the unconstitutional acts Of
the last Congress are To be- arraigned before an
outraged country The time for those acts To be
repealed il not yet come. but IL will come
Bolder and holder grow the Coniederates. and
nearer aud nearer they approaching this city.
A dsy or two ago they made swoop upon par
~ ol conlraband wood choppers at Falls Church.
only ten miles west OF Washington. and captured
300 OF them Thus the poor negroes are de
ceivei. who come into our lines In search of LID
erty. The only liberty they get is the liberty to
work hlrIer aud fare worse than the, did on
their comfortable plantations. Add their new
masters entirely unable 10 protect them, as
witness the 500 captured at Harper's Ferry, and
the 800 who have now fallen into the hands OF
their old masters.
The news of the Detroit negro riot Of yester
day creates intense excitement here. The radi.
cal masters of the President go about making
threats of determination against all the white
men engaged la it Conservative Statesmen.
however. look grave. and regard il rs the 6rst OF
n series of bloody riots which will inevitably take
place I'm all the cities of the North. aid which
will spring from attempts on the part OF Aholl.
uonists to force negroes To equality with white
people. No doubt the whole land will he GOV
cred with blood--the South from negro insurrec
tions and the North from riots like this one. only
on n more extensive scale-beiore the whole peo
pie will rise in the majesty OF their power. put "a
stop To this for the negro, and restore all
things rs they we're before the war,