New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1863-01-03


and che il very we'll acquainted with the river here
about am advised that she would like to "wips
ouY Louisianas capital, not leaving "a grease
" OF TO mark the locality.
That would be pity, certainly. The city Is q
neat one not at all dingy and dilapdsted like most
Southern towns. Built entirely Of wood, its houses
painted white, with trim green blinds. it Is rather
New Englandish than otherwise, plus china trees,
and stray samples Of tropical vegetation
and minns an business. 1t never can have had
much of the latter aud now the exceptional store
keeper stands at the door of his empty shop and tells
you, either in French or in English whichever you
prefer, that he " has nothing" Perseverance may
perhaps discover little cheap tobacco, few pre-.
poaerOus straw hats, sweet potato pie, or jar OF
over-Iips persmmons, but litae else vendibie.
strolled into the market early one morning. long,
cool, covered building, in an airy street-but the
butchers blocks, the benches, the meat-hOoks were
all unused and pretenaturaly free from gore or
grease, and the only person who had anything TO
sell was solitary negro, who wanted ooilar ior
three small shes. In the foreground, with per-
spective OF empty stalls on either SIDE he looked
desoate; his solitude was that of Balcuthas. The
last surviving British busard upon Salisbury plain,
or q do-do in lone island begirt with Southern seas,
were what compared him to, IA thoughtfully en-
tered tho adjacent grounds OF the capitol.
The building is a handsome one, almost stately
Tudor in STYLE and constructed Of brick, with \
stone front and iaeings the latter little damaged
by cannon aud grspe-shot the abrasions from which
show markedly on the light-colored material. 1t
stands aloft in pleasant square, laid out IN excel
lent taste, presenting conspicuous landmark 10
passing voyagers. Its grounds were ornamenfed
with a statue of Washington by Powers, but that,
i am sorry to say, has been removed, and am tod,
sent North. Without being particularly sensitive,
and fully ndorsihg the propriety OF seizing ana cell
ing embryo Rebel cannon, 10 tue shape OF belimetal
may suggest that the stealing OF works OF art,
AS of public libraries, is despicable business per-
haps appropriate to the rapacious Gallo eagle OF the
first Napoleon, out shameful in ours.
At the door of the State House / find u sentinel
and handful Of soldiers, keeping guard in one Of
the rooms. And for the next hour ramble through.
out the building, pronouncng it to have been wor.
thy Of a proud, rich, magnificent State. Senate
Chamber, House Of Representatives, Governors
room, Auditors room, official apartments Of oil
degrees-all handsome and spacious but deserted
and Uttered with their contents. One goes stamping
III ones heavy boots, from room TO room, awaking
unaccustomed echoes, amid maps, surveys reports,
licenses, textbooks, registers poll-books, plans,
legal and official documents Of all sorts, in French
and English, discovering dusty safes of Northern
make crammed with heavy rolls OF paper, desks
empty and full, but invariably disorderod in all the
mute confusion consequent abrupt disuse and mil
itary occupation. In such place, generally the
perfection OF ORDER the is at once suggestive
and melancholy. Descend to the lower hail and
you shall trace the origin Of 1t. On kind Of marble
altar in the middle Of the central rotunda lies pom
Louisiana. The latter portion Of its contents has
been ruthlessy torn away, but IN the early half You
nav read the ordinance OF Secession, with special
preamble setting forth the particular importance and
position of the great sugar State, affected by the
impending struggle.
From tine summit OF tho two towers on the facade,
good view is obtained Of the surrounding country
Below lies Baton Rouge, IFS idle, sunny streets laid
out in squares, the foundation Of huge sbortive
bank on the outskirts, and boy level tract of
country dotted with deserted houses, ending in dis
tant woods. On the other side the western bank
of the river, lonely Shore fiat country and trees.
Altogether, but for the bright morning. the steam.
boats on the river the busy scenes Oh It's banks and
the adjacent camps, monotonous and depressing
Landscape The Father of Waters, by the way, oc-
cupies contracted bed at this Of the year; he
will extend it by thirty feet either side in
month or 90. Sometimes be ascends the sloping
activity on which B3ton Rouge is situated, aud
& Tamps Il square or two ofhouses.
leave the State House and stroll to Gen. Growers
headquarters branch bank of that Of the State OF
Louisiana. l find the General busy enouRh-not
even his nsmesake, Crstoval Colon, could have
found moro TO do upon his historical occupation Ut
San Salvador OF Cat Island; for all the incdentas
to his and our position crowding upon him. Let
me enumerste some Of them;
In the first place any amount Of contrabands keep
coming H. with or less Of obviously indefinite
information. Them in occasional instances their
owners come after them. Yesterday, Secesh
lady" $50 described to your correspondcnt drove
inward of II miles to claim at the hands OF our
Provost Marshal, two interesting twins, who de-
cidedly declined to return with her. being under
restraint TO do 90, which fact provoked viuperatve
language from said Gladly" as she departed, iudig
nant aud twinless, TO her bereaved habitation. In
another case, attempt At escape by negroes re-
suited more tragicnlly one lad was shot dead in an
open corn-fed, within three miles OF our camp his
comrade escaping TO the woods, with bullet III his
shoulder. He came IN, bleeding and faint, at day
break, to tell the story.
We have between three and four hundred contra
bands already. We welcome them, and give them
rations and put them to work. There 10 plenty for
them to do in unlading vesses porterage, and labor
ing on intrenchmcnts With white man superin.
tending, they work capitally.
In the mean time our pickets occasionally fire upon
one another give false alarms, and capture e2uivo.
cal stragglers. Gen. Grover has extemporised
small body of cavalry, by mounting infantry on ar.
tllery horses and captured beasts, for the purpose
OF securing the country. The men might ride bet
ter, of course, and they look rough enough, but do
all that ia required. Every fine morning you will
see dozen 30 OF them riding into Baton Rouge,
with perhaps couple Of sulen, evil-looking Secesh
farmers, caught prowling, rifle in hand, III the
bushes intent on little amateur murder. Often,
too, they are accompanied by gleefu negro, over
jealous TO tell more than he knows to his friends the
Yankees.
There are New-Yorkers who will be interested in
learning that Col. Billy Wilson's regiment arrived
at Baton Rouge yesterday morning, from Carrolton,
about eight miles above NewOrleans. Like their
Colonel, they look hale and sturdy, and he asserts
they can do anything in the athletic way serve al
tillery, swim, row, run, fight, or 90 without raons
They muster only about 600 Of the original corps
Unluckily, the achievements OF some members OF it
tend to justify its hard" reputation In coming up
the river, party Of nine rushed past the guards,
Jumped into canoe, upset 1t, swan ashore, stole a
barrel Of whisky from dlstiiery, and broke bur-
gariously into the house of planter. One Of
them, named Aiken, the riDgleader, resisted and
struck his officer, who in return, shot him dead on
the spot. They buried him where he fell, and the
steamboat continued It's journey. Col. Wilson's