, 1863-04-04

Flower. all Of which arc fed By innumcrable
c'ltkS, trsyo": aud lakes, and empty into the
l:=ue, S;cclr's scv. u,ilts from the Alissis.
silNI, 1car the scene Of the battle IF Chicka-
r.,w Bayou, Deer Creek telow. and the Sun
].'wer above 11aincs' Bluff. Their course, as
ground, is very tortuoHs, very like the
streams in the Calumet marshes. In fact, if
those marshes were covered with a thick
growth Of huge trees, with Thick mass Of
cane On the ground, YOU would have a perfect
specimen Of tho country through which
the "a division and the Admiral's iron,
c!ads lavo passed. TE.n-forin the rice and
reeds ofthe Calumet into tile luxuriant growth
Of Southern swamp, and you lElye better
filel Of tile wet wilderness In which VIC We're,
tllan eau be written. The eastern part uf 1ssa-
guena county, on Deer Creek, has higher land
and some Of the most valuable cotton planta-
items in the State. The soil is exceedingly
prolific. We found in it immense numbers Of
slaves, and great quantities Of cotton and
grain. The Admiral called it one Of tile gran
aries Of the Confederacy.
1t was supposed to be so inaccessible, that
the plantations we're III the usual process Of
cultivation, the fields planted with corn, in
stead Of cotton, which was up. They be-
1ieyctl themselves beyoud the reach Of the de-
yastati0ns Of war-had their gardens we'll
stocked with vegetables. which were grow
ing most tcmptingly, and, flncying that = the
invader could not penetrate with gunboats
and armies, the lagoons md forests which
surrounded them, devoted their fancied Sc
curity to the raising Of crops to feed their
brother rebels in tile field. The plantation
upon which was the rendezvous of the laud
force, was one Of five, owned by wealthy
rebel, james r. Hill, Of New Orleans. It had
Spoq j c f. e oaaf u" Rcy i5cs = A..r ives ae he
called "0nward;" still another "Gond In.
tent" 4 largc part uf the cotton was marked
It. S. A." the appearance ol the l.ou-elads
at 'Rt;,iity'' WAS 1he first notiee that was h;sa
Of our approach The osersccr hastily lied,
giving no1jce of the prcscuce of the Yankees
in the garden. 4 cnutraband told us, his
master called the Deer Creek county, the
Confederate suutrbox, that the Yankees
could not open.
Another plantation, nine miles .boye them,
on Deer Greek, ls the celebrated "Slrlby
| Plantation Unc1c TOMS Cabin. So the in
t,abitants OF t1llt and neighboring plantations
| understand it. Tie tradition Of the place is
| it:t ntical with that of Mrs. Stowc's-how Top
| sy grew, was not born; Uncle Tom was the
| tycoon of con'rslbands, and the heir Of tile
estate bred multttocs, and went down to the
| Mississippi In dug-out to finish his educ:,.
| ton with professional river u,en, become q
LiEl-toncti member Of the chivalry and lose
lli= real estate and contr:ibands III faro. Mrs.
Stowe little thought when she wrote her
novel, TINT the ShcIby Plantation would one
dag echo with cas,non and musketry in war
growing out Of the institution she wrote to
abolish. ict 20 it happened, last week.
The expedition consisted of the LouiSvi}lc,
Mound City, CaFondclct, Cincinnati and
Fi'tsburg, iron clad "turfles." four mortar
bo:,ts, the ram "Price,'' and mosquito Lin.
den, and the infantry of the I'd division Of tic
18th army corps, Gen. David Stnart's, except
the 55th ILL.,, and section Of Woods battery
Lieut.. McEacg, the transports SilretWayr
Dil'gent. Eagle, Champion, Pocahoutas ant
Munongahcll.
Going up the Yazoo river seven miles
thence up Stecle's bayou twelve miles, the
fec: came to Muddy bayou, which runs across
trom the Mississippi into Stcele's. At thi:
point tile troops came over on f!oating bridge
and embarked. Hence they were transported
up Steele's and Black Bayou about twenty
miles to Hil's plantation, aud marched
thence twenty. ono miles on a levce nortl
along Deer Creek nearly to Rolling Fork. I
was proposed Ut that point to embark til,
troops again on Transports and proceed OF
| that creek Il distance Of seven miles, until vi
rcached the Sunhower. Once upon the Sun
flower, Il stream Of considerable width, vi
could reach the Tazoo, between Haines' Blu1
and 1azoo City, and would be in i position t
operate against the enemy at various point
with great effect. So much for the object o
the expedition and the route through wlicl
il Was to pass.
Gen Grant and Admiral Porter, with th
| Nusouito Rattlcr. and a trr. made \ recon
noissancc far enough to establish the fact thu
gunboats could pass from the Yazoo int
Seteles Bayou. Adm. Porter Immediately start
with his gun boats up the bayou. Gencra
Grant ordered Gen. Sherman, with q diTisio
Zen. Sherman started at onec With a rerirnen
Nthe StI, M;ssouT;S-an1 Tic 1,;onser ca2ns. +
clear The hayou Of obstruci;ons-thcre ~,
no dclay. Tie Reconnaissance was made o
the 18th, Gen, Grants tug returning the MOI
ming Of The lt;th. before nirht the ndyauc
of Ihe lar1 force and cun boafs were at Mni
!, 3r Rnynn T;smtrl,,.s we're rrcr;vrd hr G,.1
Grant that evening Of the nrorr,ss Of The G,
neiition and Cen Stuart WIS 9ri1rra1 10 fo
iow viii thc rest oil the division in the mor1
;u~ arriving NJ EaS1e Re,d On ii
1sih = 1crn5noiss,nc,S IN small hoat.
mede by General Stuart an
h;s rT;p,dc conmanti,rs and arnthcr mad
twenty miles above, at Tulla,lola, br Colon
Giles a. Smith, demonstrated that the troop
could moi hc marched across, a crcyasse has
inr swollen tho Muddy Bayou TO a r,pid dec
stream. The construction OF two loue dooc
cd hr;d,-es occupicd the lsth and the forenoo
of the fS,h. The division marchcd to Steele
Kayou at once. Arriving there We found onl
| ony transport. the Silver Wave, E,ubarli1l
thc Gth Missouri and lI6th ILLINOIS, Stua,
started M up at once. During III. three succeed
ays ne 9Ga,s snstc cisn so.h rs n wes use
'h w.t. hr 'ns tSoons 10 the Tenae2vous A Il
rn66uti, If R]ack BAYOU they were transpor
I'd from fhc steamers to a coal barge wbic
WA towed by . tuC up Black BAYOU. In Ii
, meantime tic cunboats had con: throug
| Black bayou into Deer Creek. II
vast nirht nnd strength of the ;ron.ciai
snah1rd thcm 10 rjdc over aluost hi
.. ondi,,ary growth of willow and cypress in II
a crsaE@i1s, .x.tcr was Geep aud thew moye
: sta~1v md snrelr nlnnr' tip Deer Creek SON
r ~ "..1 ,,,;1cs @ without fnuch laboran1 Witho1
,,n ehI 1.,ct;o,, fron, the enemy. On the20t
!. 1hys Iny pche1s co,mmrnced annoying them vii