, 1863-07-14
EFtom Our Special G Correspondent

| Y1cKsnURo, July 4, 1853. z
| 1t the hour Of two o'clock this morning,
whcn my last letter was finished, every thing
/ and every body were in suspense. We were
/ particularly anxious to know whether ne
should celebrate the elghty-seTenth annlyer-
ssry Of our National Independence in Vicka-
burg, or whether We must celebrate 1t By
dealing death to the rebel crew. No firing
WAS heard along the line until daylight, and
| then only blank cartridges, ns salute to tho
welcome anniversary. After few rounds all
was quiet again. Eight O'Clock was the hour
| to decide whether Pemberson would adopt or
reject the very courteous terms proposed BY
Gen. Grant. We walked out to the front and
made general inspection Of the molly
crowd gathered on the parapet OF the forts
and banks Of the rifle pits. They have made
gallant defense Of the city and we can but
respect them. As ne looked along the line
our sympathy for q fellow foe made us rejoice
that Gen. Grant was SO 1enient. The hour Of
eight arrived, and yet We saw no evidence Of
surrender, Both armies remained outside
their works, with the same indifference they
Ind manifested all the morning.
TIE WHITE FLAG,
By lnquiring 1t WIS ascertained that . new
shuttle had been made during the night, and
The time extended to ten o'clock. At that
time white flags we're to be raised on the forts
If the terms were to be accepted. We waited
two more long hours before any change was
Eoted. Asudden and ulld cheer along theuae Of
Ca7T's Divisioa indicated that the .aAite Fagwa,
10 b seen in front. There It w1s-simple in
itsel, but more eloquent than words. One
alter another the -1ags were planted
IN the forts, until each grim
waved the message If peace and submission.
None but those who have suffered and toiled
night and day for nearly fifty days aud nights,
can appreciate how bright this anniversary
promised to be. None but those present can
estimate the enthusiasm manifested by our
something more than spread eagle ceremo.
nles. Here WRs practical re-atnrmatfou Of
national yitality-national. Independence and |
power. This day so long revered and loved |
~ us as nation, has been ogain consecrated |
- by thls, the greatest victory Of modern times.
double cause to heartily celebrate the day |
That gave us national existencey How we
1nourned the need of the telegraph line to
1nsh the Intelligence home to those who were
celebrating In the Usual way. !
COULDN'T KEEP OUT TIE PATRIOTS.
After the acceptance Of terms, guard was
placed in front Of the rebel lines; fol two pur-
poaes-to keep rebels Inside md patriots out |
side. The first was successful. but the guard |
could not prevent thousands Of our men from
getting inside the lines for peey at the town.
The display of fireworks this evening Is |
fnllyequal to any seen at home, And It is |
strongly suspected some T1ckBburg pyTo- |
technic institution was robbed One OF the |
frat questions asked when our men met the |
rebels, and 1t was very generally asked all |
along the line Hare you had d gght with |
sohnston pr This is conclusive evidence that |
our Investment has been perfect, and they |
have not been able to communicate with |
Johnston for some time. They seemed to
take the thing quite philosophlcally- |
were glad, perhaps the minority, while others |
appeared chagrined and dissatisfied. =
MARCHING INTO TIE CITY.
At twelve o'clock the cannon ware put In |
position, and what Is left of Pemberton's |
grand army marched outside their works,
stacked their arms, and then retired in the |
direction Of the city. Our line Of sentinels |
WAS then placed on the rebel works, and Cen