American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1851-1863, 1863-04-03

scourre would ever be brought to its own
midst. We have seen, what have noticed
nowhere else ia the South, plantations teem-
ing with life end labor the planter, with his
familj, enjoying the quiet of his own domes-
tic hearth, with his colony of blacks indus
triously engaged planting and cultivating his
fields. None have fed, those in other re-
gions have fled, to leave their homes a prey
to pillaging soldiers. We have had fair
peep a. the South IS IL was. And must
say the view has been charming one. The
sun has shone out gloriously, revealing or
chards in full bloom vegetation in its most
splendid green apparel; fields in process of
tiilage for the early summers crop, peace
and happiness on every hand. with the con-
comitants of labor and apparent prosperity,
while war and its ravages were unknown
But have seen some hard sights, too.
saw a Jealous officer arrest one of the peace
full citizens, without cause or pretense, and
drag him away from his home prisoner
OF war. Three days dfterward this man was
released by the order of a superior officer,
and FASTENED back to what had been his
peaceful, happy home; but, alas how chang
ed A home no longer. During his short
absence his only child had died his wife
had fed in terror, no one knew whittier; and
uuprincipled soldiers had stripped his house
Of its contents, destroying wantoniy what
/ theycould not carry away as piunder- Such
/ is war. Let those who assume TO justify an
and at the same time raise their hands in
/ pous horror at the exaggerated accocnts Of
guerilla operations, contemplate this picture
Let them put themselves in this mans place,
and then tell me that they would not be fred
/ with a n implacable hatred of everything and
every body northern This is the way we
are augmeutiug the Southern army, and
swelling the lawless guerrilla b nds that an
noy US so much. That man, if be be a
natural Southerncr, will never allow an OPP
portunity to pass of shooting a any one who
wears the livery of those who killed his
child robbed him of his wife, and destroyed
/ his home. He would be more than man
+ should he quietly submit to such an outrage
i with no attempt at revenge.
/ l should say, in this connection, that the
commanders of this expedition do not recog-
/ nize such acts as these. On the contrary,
they are putting forth every exertion to re-
| strain their men. But the education of our
soldiers has been bad, and it will break ont
and manifest itself at times, despite the
! strongest efforts to suppress it.
Although, rs mentioned above, the ene-
my have been gathering cotton on the banks
of this river, for Notifications farther down,
they have by no means secured all there is.
The country is full of cotton. Much of il is
piled away in gin houses, as though a fear oi
cotton burners had never possessed the peo-
pie. Indeed, do not believe they have ever
, had any organized cotton burners throughout
this region, any more than they have had or
/, ganized guerrilas. The whole region seems
, to have been very little, if any. disturbed by
the war. They have not been invaded, have
feared no invasion, and have prepared for no
t invasion. Occasionally, however, we have
found timid one-usually himself loud
mouthed secessionist and advocate of a
general system of cotton burning-who bad
concealed his cotton. We find 1T stored
away in rough temporary shed, deep In the
r woods, or OF some high piece of ground in q
vast cane brake. certain parson Hatch
: whose neighbors say he was the first and
: most ultra secessionist in the country, had
about two hundred and fifty bales hid away
: in piece of thick woods near to the river
/ bank. We were wanting some cotton Just
then, and so we made free with this pile
The parson begged most piteously to be dealt
r with mildly. He assured us that, a few
: months ago, Gen. Hoyey, visited his place
/ while on his march to Grenada, and his sold
: iers destroyed about $50, 900 worth of prop
erty for him. 1t was too bad, he said, to pick
out one man to be so hard upon. If we
t would only go about six miles farther down
, the river, we would come to plantation
where there were about four hundred bale;
: to be had. The parson WAS very ready &c
: tell on bis neghbors, and very anxious to be
spared himself. We did spare him, after
taking about one hundred bales, which was
all we needed at that particular time. Othei
E boats of the feet finished his pile.
: Our light draught gunboats are now being
: fixed up with cotton in such way as TO bt
: almost as impregnable the regular iror
: clads. They viii be able to go up witt
quite formidable battery without any par
E ticular danger to their vulnerable parts
j Their boilers and machinery will be so sur
G rounded with cotton bales that il will bt
! almost impossible to penetrate them with {
: cannon ball. Yesterday and to-day havs
: been mainly occupied in this work and ii
5 coaling. We now lying about ten miles
e below the mouth of the Coldwater, but shall
/ be ready to start forward in the morning
e when having good river, aud being fully II
: readiness to meet the enemy, we shall NOV,
: more rapidly than we have been doing.
anticipate that two days, or three at most
: will bring US to Greenwood.