Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-01-05
Our Army Correspondence.-From
MississIppi.

Our Army CorresPondence.-Frem
mississippi.
HOLY SPRiSGs. Dec. "a, le62.
| 10 not insist upOn your publishing those let
tiers, which | wrote from this place last week. for.
to use a camp phrase. they were ineontinently
gobbled up by the secesh cavalry during the raid
upon this village last Saturday Not even the
sacred stamp OF NV Uncle samuel. nor The name
OF the Sentinel staring the wretch in the face, is
likely To have been sufficiently respected By the
man who captured the post-ofice. 10 sliow thsm
to proceed. Even had they passed tais ordeal.
there i supposed 10 be no communication with
the world at large from this point. hence, valua-
BILE a. they were, they must be regarded as wholly
lost Aud now IL D uncertain when this letter
will get out OF the lInes. for " j. the understand
Ing here that we are surrounded. Various ru-
mors reach Us from the North, A. To the commu-
nicati0n with the land OF bread and newspapers.
We only know that none OF the latter have
reached u for a week. and tnat the supply Of the
former i growing distressingly scarce. with no
very htttering prospects Of early replenishment
Perhaps in a ifsure letter | may say more on the
eating question. it indeed there ever occurs an
opportunity To get "A letter through.
Things are not now rs they were 4 week ago
at this point When | arrived here at ten at
night, last week, | at once met nv Young friend,
W. II. Smith. late Of the office of John : Dun
Top. of indianapolis. who-is in the Commissary
Department with Capt X f Bryant. OF Craw
louisville That saved me from realizing some
fearful lorebodings, for il is no fun for A stranger
to land AZ a depot. half mile from town. at that
hour-Do drays. no omnibuses, no place TO leave
"a trunk, AMI 10 WAY to carry u with YOU. except
the primitive way OF shOuldering Il. aud worse
than all, no place 20 90 TO, aud nothing 10 eat
and nothing To sleep upon when you get there.
unles, YOU carry il with YOU. The ghost of this
reality had haunted me for hours before Preached
Holly Springs. but il all vanished in d moment
when met Smith He gave me a very cordial
invitation 10 spread NY blaMketon the floor of the
house he was occupying with his mess. II grew
cold toward morning, Tor il was during the cold
est snap of the winter, but | thought hoH much
better off | was than il | had not met my friend
hence | slivered without a murmur and slept
considerably.
y military necessity kept me a day at Holly
Springs, which | improved in looking around the
town Ii was once one Ot the ~prettiest places in
all the South. Wealth had concentrated here
more than at any interior city of my acquaintance.
Planters, who own the country for many miles
around, had built splendid dwellings here. and
richly furnished them inside and t.steiully orna-
mentel them without The town covers nearly
rs much territory rs INDIANAPOLIS. vet probably
never contained , 900 white inhabitants. 1t il a
collection Of rich country seats. with from one TO
six acres attached Ii had been the headquart
es of various rebel armies at different times, and
had suffered even from its friends not 4 little
The passage OF our troops. stopping some 4 Jay
and others a week. hid not greatly improved
matters. yet up TIL last Saturday it retained most
of its beauty. and comparatively few had been
molested.
Though | found myself in good quarters here
with nothing very promising further down the
road, yet last Friday ! took my departure for the
advance lines. because business indicated that
course And IL is well that | did. else one more
would have bad his name enrolled on the list oI
paroled prisoners, and even my old shirts. aud
probably my new oveFc0at would have been com
forting some secesh, IL indeed any man can be-
comiortei after as mean n trick as capturing
thea stripping. then paroling so harmless ii mar
a. yonr correspondent
Going sonthward, / brought M ut Oxford
some 30 miles soutl, of tVs. where were Gen
Grants headquarters, and Mvoad which it was
needless to 20 at present, Tor tire pavmaster-
who should have been there three days before
had gone to Memphis, instead Of following then
original plan.
In my efforts to procure = stopping place.
had several adventures. and nearly catastrophe
There was no room at the iun, not even by fur
nishins my own BED. unless | would consent {,
be responsible for my own baggage. and lite also
III Il hitN FA''t "a hH0 WI - 4 "a INV
room. and eat. if anything coull be found eata
bic. Rather than submit to this. | choose to
seek quarters in a private house. had heard
You kuOw, of Southern hospitality. and con
cluied 10 look it up. My first adventure brought
me to a stately mansion, where heard a few of
fcers were boarding. On the veranda met Il
half "A dozen women. who, as ! learned after
ward. were discussing the small p0x question
Just then brought up by two new cases among
the Federal SpttlprS. selected the most mat
ronly one as probably the proprietress of the e.
Enlistment. aud very respectfully mIde known
my wants O, horrors. You ought to nave
seen outraged dignity put on airs. Me, sab
Do you know who YOU are talking to. sahT Ne
keep b%oarders. sab? You must be -" As
this lOokel like anything else than taking either
the woman or taking lodgings, | beat i retreat
rather precipitately. vet certainly scientifically
anil satisfactorily. for | brought Of all my forces,
without broken bones, Notwithstanding the vol
lev of fire in the rear which pursued me u the
gate had at least the satisfaction ut stirring
a hornets nest without being severely stung.
But it was no time to surrender. | faint heart
never won a fair - stopping place. and
rather than sleep out oil doors. or try TO sleep at
that tavern at s.. 30 per day. | concluded to per
severe. At the next place they had nothing "a
eat, and they looked very much as it they would
not know how to took it if they had; hence | did
not insist. After various repulses. from various
causes. | came upon a retired merch mt. who
had closed ont business in a hurry on the arrival
Of the jiyhawkers belonging TO our cavalry, vino
stripped his store OF it, contents and then ms
smoke house. He was entirely communicative
and quite willing To take in borders. provided
he hid ANYTHING to feed them on ! compro
missed BY proposing 20 purchase him some eata
bles from our comnissarv department, and thu,
wis comfortably quIrtered, As | supposed, for
week n least But that inevitable military
necessity >" What outrages are not perpetrated
under ia plea. Why. | moved. and which way
novel. must be saved for another letter.
t A G..
Holly SPRISes, Dec. p, 1862.
Writinu "Dec %" reminds me that this i