The weekly pioneer and Democrat., 1863-07-31

the news in laeonic dispatch from Porter,
was far from convincing to any one. Bets
were made by the hundred all day Mon

were maUo Dy Ine nunureu Ill uay Null
day. You would hear Of nothing but the
Vicksburg news, go where you would.
One of the most amusing features of the
day was the effect to be observed Upon the
"secesh {" female population. Of q sud-
den everything bore the rebellious symbols
of the "red, white and red" White
dresses with red founces, bonnets trimmed
with red and white roses, white ribbons
around the neck with red bows, &C., &c,
were all the rage. " won't believe it, /"
said one, "until see an order from Gen.
Pemberton that says so! y But, I am
happy to say, the disbelief Of our fair
friend had no effect upon the facts of the
case; and she was sobliged to believe
it," even so much against her will
Friday night, when we left. the news
! being fully confirmed, Memphis 6lazed out
in all the glory of tallow-candle illumina-
| ton Feeling considerable sorrow at leav-
| ing so beautiful place, l took final look
at the familiar scenes. Met "secesh :"
friend who keeps bookstore on Main
street. I asked him how he liked the
news. He liked it, because it denoted a
speedy peace. Agreed with him at once.
eyes," he continued, "Mr. Lincoln told a
friend of Mr.. So-and-so, who told Mr..
Such-a-one, who told Mr.. Blank, who told
| friend of mine, that all he was waiting
for was just to whip the Confederates once,
and he would acknowledge the independ-
ence of the Southern Confederacy without
further delay!" |, of course, had no more
to say. i ..........
| The steamboat in which I took passage
was the 81. II. Dickey," doubtless very
fine boat before the war commenced; al
| though somewhat ''demoralized,' at pres
ent. On her upward trip she was fred
upon by guerrillas, and received seventeen
six-pound balls in various points OF her
hull. One grazed the tiller-rope, others
shattered beam just overithe steam-pipe !;
and her escape from capture was little less
| than miraculous.
/ have frequently seen hotter weather at
| the North Gin fact, our thermometer was
| at no time above 95;) but never saw so
! oppressive weather any place, as I expert
enced during those two days on the Dickey
! can stand the sunshine as have seen it
in the harvest-field, as it beats down upon
devoted hearts, in city streets; but, I am
free to own, that the steamy, boggy, StD-
ling heat of the river, was too much for
me. We had crowd of passengers; and,
between the heat of the day, the mosqui-
toes at night and the pucuiar character of
the victuals was never more pleased in
my life than to see the spires Of Vicksburg,
looking at me through the river mist on
Sunday morning.
Vicksburg has certainly, ike Old Jerusa-
lem, "receiyed doubly at the hand of the
Lord, for all her sins. - In time of peace
it must have been place of singular beau
| ty It's commanding views; its regular
streets; its fine buildings, and its luxu-
RANT shade trees, are features of beauty
which distinguish it Tar above the general
| ity of American cities. But now, al
| though it yet possesses these elements of
| beauty, in great part, the streets are va
cant, the stores are in ruins and tenant
less, and the city itself possesses the aw-
fnl stiffness of death. Go where you will,
the marks of our shells are everywhere
visible. Scarcely house has escaped,
and ma1y of the more prominent ones are
riddled with balls. Very few civilians
were killed, however. They dug immense
caves in the clay bluffs upon which the
| city is built, and in those retreats, far
from where shells ever penetrate, they
were safe | visited one of these subte,ra-
mean retreats, and the wine baskets, and
long necked bottles, labelled ''Old Bour-
bon, ,"Cognac,' Nc, showed that the
Vicksburgers We're not without sp ritual
consolation in their Affections
| The fortifications in and around Vicks-
| burg have been described; but no des-
cription would do them Justice The city
is batteries all over Guns were mounted
in the streets, on the levee, on the hills,
in the suburbs, in fact, as | said before all
over the place. My only wonder is that
we ever got the place; and am convin-
ced, that, after taking that, we need not
stand back at anything.
| The Fourth Minnesota, is in the imme-
diate neighborhood of the city The Fifth
is at Youngs Point at the mouth of the
Yazoo. Being rather pressed for time,
| had no. opportunity TO visit either Of
them. My own regiment-the Thirds
at Oak Ridge, a post, as its name would
imply: among the hills, distant about ten
miles from here, and as many more from
ioN 'oUi AA'S AoU' iAOhi AiSi OOb 10
full of picturesque scenery. For the first
four miles you journey along the. base OF
the series OF abrupt ridges known as 6 Sny-
der's Bluff The sides of the road are
lined with camps OF Divisions, which have
now gone ont to the Big Black - and
the hills are crowned with batteries, in
which ten thousand men could resist an
hundred thousand. At this point, the
road leaves tue direct route to the front,
climbs the ridge, and leads through the
magnificent groves of the upper land, to
the important cross roads, which it is the
duty of our regiment to guard.
The camp is beautifully located; and, if
they had tents, l know of nothing that would
be more pleasant. But, in spite of the
picturesque scenery; the cocl breeze, the
blackberries, figs, peaches and other deli
cacies of the season, the rail pens in
(which they are bivouacked, are an un-
houbted drawback upon this enjoyment
. The regiment is in the best of health
and the best of spirits. The place which
they hold is of the utmost Importance to
Grants line of communication, and the
boys are proportionably pleased at the
prospect of a brush with the guerillas