, 1863-09-17
FROM MEMPHIS.
tFrom Our Special coreBpondent.l
xE-.-~-~. CnrA 1r Nr08

which the rebel army In the Southwest has
drawn 1areer proportion Of its supplies than
f,o,, three times the came extent Of territory
anywhere else in the South. The district re-
fsrred 10 Is a+strip of country oYer fifty miles
wfde. and over hundred miles long, running
near1v- northwest and southeast from the
neiehboihood Of CoriBth. Mis-, past Selma,
IL This district, comprising abont six Thousand
SQUIRE lies In all, haa supplied the rebel
with more sntce az o1
Missfesipp1 pnt together No wonder that
RrarT 11as held stubbornly On to Chattanooga,
the lev and cntrepot OF. this territory. No
wonder that the rebel journals groaned at
thoughts Of loaiDg it, and, as is always the
they se5peh5is;nee hn;n ss1o1s lo5s
blamed somebody H1th oeins y tsaatof 10
II The greater portion Of this district has been
he1efofnre eteltered from our cavalry raids,
hy Bragr's position at Chattanooga, and the
rTnwfnT crop In that section at the present
lime exceeds all the rest Of the tFo States In
which 1t Is located.
TEE DEsoLAT1oS OF NORTHERN Af1sslssIrP1.
I baye mentioned in a former letter the
dcso1ation Of Mississippi; every account that
Of shout fifty plantations on the road from
Lagrange, Tenn to Holly Springs, Miss,
oniy i've are occupied; the rest are sbandoa-
ed, and in I. majority Of instances the build-
ipes hnye been burned. The only exception
70 the general desolation IN that region Is the
tofore sheltered by Bragg's position at Chat
tanoga. Yet, from what learn Of citizens
of Mississippi who hare been through the
whole Etate within the last four months, the
inhabitants of the lower portion Of the State
have suffered even more psiyations than
L.. Ia, %fn r%f hale
Grants army marched into Mississippi Est
winter, as Fur gouth as oxford aud the Yal,a.
busha, the inhabitants had an opportunity to
purchase few Of the most indispensable ar
itc1es OF clothip2 and household economy,
hut in the southern part Of the State, be-
tween Jackson and Grenada, there ltas not
been even tho most meagre stock Of goods
taken into the country By any merchant for
nearly three years. According to the des-
cription Of ageptlemeu with whom talked
few days ago, who had been there and
seen It; the destitution Of families In that
rars If the State beggara description; but
let me give one or TWO instances.
PROFESSOR 1NaRAuAM's DAUGHTERS.
One of the first that occurs to me is that OF
the two daughters Of the Rev. J. Fl. 1ngra-
bam, Of Holly Springs, who will be remem-
pe1ed as IN author Of some reputation, ten
or twelve years ago, as writer Of sensation
novels, and later Of religions novels, such as
the "Throne Of Dayid,'' "The Prilce-of the
| House Of David" etc, and who was nn-
doubtedly killedb1 accidental shot at Holly
| Springs, notwithstanding that some $'army
correspondent" professed to have resurrec-
| ted him somewhere near jackson last spring.
These two young ladies, both well educated,
| the family having always moved In the best
| circles Of socleIy, and always lived In good
style, went, after their f2ther's death, to live
| With relative at jackson, Miss. Some time
| ~ 41.A4 3vnS aH a
nearly alone In the house at Jackson The
| price of proTisiops continued to advance, SO
| that their ready money was soon dlBs1patsd
in the purchase Of the common necessities OF
/ life. The price ofproVisions became higher
and higher. One by one they sold pieces Of
aud when ut last the Federal army came Into
Jackson, IN June, these TWO young women,
| who had perhaps never understood the real
meaning Of the word "poverty" before, had
been living On nothing but corn bread and mo.
1asses for nearly three weeks, tAcse being the
! Their stock Of clothing had been exhausted,
and their dress was snch Us servant girl II
the Moth Nould scarcely deign to wear, ever
when about her dirty work Their les1itu
| tion vas not owing to any Want Of friends.
There were plenty q persons who knew thel
they could, but the most necessary article:
were not to be had. At one time while John
tton's army occupied the torn, there were
| ouly three barrels Of flour In the whole place
counting army stores and al1. The nomina
price OF flour was from q hundred and ninety
10 tWo hundred dollars p er barrel.
| SAD CASH.
Another instance was that Of q music teach
er's fami]y at jackson, two Of whose chll
the position Of Instructor to the regimeuta
band Of one Of the Mississippi regiments
and went Oft to Virginia with them, leaving
bis family sufficient money, as he supposed
TO last them Fix or eight months. He sen
them all Of his pay, but It was In the worth
ways towards buying the necessaries Of life
The wlfs sold jewelry, furniture, clothing
! every thing, to buy what would barely sustall
the lives oi herself aud children. Her lus
bands remlttanccs ceased her OWL resource
became exhausted, and few. weeks aftel
who came to nee her one night, as much on
, pf sympathy aa from any idea Of helping hal
| found her without a-1norse1 Of any kindeS
provision, and without even . candle to s1os
| her the faces Of her two children, Who the
lay dead in the house.
hundreds Of Thousands thnt are occur
tipg every day In the Southern par
Of the State, and that, too, amor
class Of people Who, until two yeas
aga, lived In abundance. As for tho tanlilie
Of the poor, those who were poor before th
that borders on BARI ari8m. The pay Of th
private rebel soldier, uomlnaliy fifteen dolla,
rer month, but in reality (with gold wor;
fifteen hundred per cent. premlum) only or
dot1arper month, amounts to nothing In keel
Ing up the amenities Of civilized life.
} ARE TnEsE sufFER1yGs VOLUNTARY?
No doubt aecessiouists in the North, whe
they lear Of these great privations that th
ptople Of the South are experiencing, Al
who endure 60 greatly for the sake OF prime
pie alone,'' aud indeed there would be grant
cur 1n It If this suffering Was voluntarily e1
,. dured In the following out of their c0nv1'
1ions Of what iB right But that this is nc
the case, there are fully two-thirds Of II
lence to their own condolences in fighting th
battles Of JET Davis. They believe him to I
. q selfish Il Jrant, who has, by secret orgnniz
tioua, By vigilance committees, BY the pm
. chase OF the press, and by the estab1ishme1
+ + Of such system Of espionage, that denounet
: denounced ia equivalent to being condemned
: Irepeat that they are fully aware that t
theza various means, JEFF. Davis and fe
colleagues have succeeded in estab}ishir
oyer them q deepotism' under which there
: It. That these are the latent sentiments
I not only the citizens of Mississippi but al
.. Of two thirds Of the rebel army Who recent
| occupied it, it Is easy for any one to ba co
yinctd by talking, as I have, to men vi
! ! hare been oyer the whole State within t
Docs any one ask, "Why they don't shal
; of this yoke Of tyranny if there Is such
= la,ge proportion who ueYer would have co
. Eented to 60 out Of the Union II they had
9 chance to cast their yotes In the matter
. Because the despotlsm which rnlea them no
renders dcspotism more secure than angthi'
:. else, it has succeeded in destroying the co
l tidence Of the people In eech other. Men q
g afiaid TO whisper their Unloniam to tht
r ueighbore. But, one by one, each Of tho
I re]ghbo1s, alter glancing suspieiously oY
5 bchind him, whispers to the stranger that
C ID ia Union man ut heart,n but TINT " they
l a,e. watching him and In order to esea
e secret announcement, he must act as reb
le = FORCED TO IE-EN1IsT.
.. One of the most striking instances Of Il
u want cf faith in each other, that occurs to /
sf now, out Of the many that I have heard late
Is is that Of Tennessee regiment which was
"a Corinth under Besuregard, over 3 year ag
=, fist call for rebel troops for one year. VIII
10 their term Of enlistment had nearly expire
is tbs men we're applied to separately and in'
re vfdually. BY rebel officers from the East, to
enlist "far three years or the Wur.n N
Llr .only waa their refusal unanimous, but th
ii collected In little squads to talk the matt
Il, Foyer and persist In the determination to
I'll home. Shortly after this the regiment y
q paraded without arms. Beaurega1d hlms
le icing present on the field, and they were 81
10 rounded on three sides by two other re-
Isl ments md u battery Of artillery. The Il
1egimenta Zone On each side) having tn
rifles 1cadcd, bayonets fixed, and pieces
s'reaoy.n On the third siCe WAS the bate
# artillery, opposite to that, nothing /
. space and eternity, into which they we're
J.. be blown, wholesale, In case Of any simul