The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1863-11-20
MATTERS 1t cHaRLEsTox.

Courier, OF Tuesday, some interesting account.
connected with the progress Of the bombardmen.:
As0fnEa MONITOR ATTACK on suMFxR-p,sA ST Rors
nEsrLr-NO MORE LAos OF TRUCE.
The heavy mortar sheiiing kept up during sun
day night on Gregg aud Cummings Point froa,
our mortar batteries on Suliivan's Island appears
To have alarmed and rendered the enemy on Nor
Tis's Island somewhat desperate. The monitors.
fs'nr In number, which have been of late compare
lively quiet, moved up between six and seven
o'clock Monday morning. and opened fire ON Sui
livdn's Island batteries and Fort M0ultrIe O0e
monitor took position between Sumter and sui
livan's Island. The other three were drawn up
close together about Elk hundred yards from Sum
ter, In iine OF battle. The leading monitor got
aground.
The enemy's fire was returned by a heavy can
, nonading from Fort Moatrie and Batteries Marion
Rec, and Rutledge, on Suilivan's island, and Fort
Johnson and Battery Simkins, on Jamess Island
About half past eleven the Monitor which was
aground got aaoat and moved off, not, however,
without being severely injured. observations
made with good glasses showed that her sInoke-
stack had been perforated in two places, and her
inrret In three, two af which were above her port
holes, and one shot In her pilot box. Another
monitor had her smoke-stack perforated and the
tmrret struck In two different places. By twelve
"clock they had all gone back, two Of them nj
least In disabled condition. The others returned
IN the sAtesnoon, and fired few shcts at Sumter,
after which left for her anchorage, while the
other remained off Cummings Point on usual
pieketduty.
The heavy and unusual firing 10 e.siysfn the
morning brought ont large numbers of our people:
some under the impression that the enemy had
commenced general attack. No report Of any
casualties reached US up TO late hour Monday
night.
A flag Of truce from the enemy towards
Snllivah's Island about three O'Clock Monday al
tenoon, and was met b. one of our boats. The
of II did not learn, but 1t IL reported the
enemy's communication was refused, In accord
ance with orders firm headquarters to receive no
more flags of truce.
The Smelling of Fort MOultrie on Friday and Sat
urday was very heavy from battery Gregg and for
a few hours on Saturday was terrific. But few
shells tell in the fort. The monitors, though occu-
pyinc their usual position, had been inactive, ex
cepting whenever fired upon fr0n.the fort they i'm
mediateIy returned the fire, but always took good
care move further off. The casualties were one
man kiiFed. Maj. JAS. McCauiey, In preparing TO
go from the fort another battery, had his carriage
struck and one of his horses killed. Un Sunday
neither the monitors the Morris Island batteries
opened OIL the fort.
The mortar shelling of Fort Sumter continues
severe, and without any intermission, from Cum
Mngs's Point batteries. During Saturday night
the number Of rified sh ITS fired was ninety eight,
nineteen mortar shells, ot which ninety missed
On Sunday sixteen Tif1ed shots were fred, of
which six missed, and three hundred and twenty
mortar shells, of which fifteen missed
A STORY TWO CAPTURED MASSACHUSETTS, NE
GR0Es.
Two Yankee negroes, captured by Major Jen-
kins pickets on North Edisto, while out Oystering
last Thursday, were brought TO Charleston Monday
morning and turned over to the Provost Marshal
They are miserable looking specimens of the
Northern negro, and claim to belong to the 55th
Massach chusciis regiment, now stationed on Folly
Island.
They give a dolcful account of their treatment
Oh the Island and represc nj that four hundred
of hpfr h1V q ned cp
their arrival in June last The negro tp0ops
subjected To .hc severest discipline, and strict
watch kept over all their movements They are
compc He'd to do all the fAigue duty on the Island,
such ns cutting down trees, digging the trenches,
thr0Win up mud and sand embahkments, dragging
the guns, cleaning for both the white officers and
pfivates. sc.
Their pay was TO be, on leaving Massachusetts,
thirteen dollars per menth, with clothing and IA
tions. They state they have never received one
cent since their enlistment, and but one suit of
clothes. Al one time nearly five hundred of the
regiment were down sick with marsh fevers, con
,raa;f! by exposure while building batteries in the
marsh. The prisoners appeared very humble and
penitent, and were rather pleased than otherwise
at being captured, after that they
not ediateIy hung as the negroes are told they
will be in case of falling into the hands Of the
soyiheNers.
rxpIaIExcE or A SLAVE IN THE YANKEE LINH-THE
WAY THE NEGRO SOLDIERS ARE rsEArED--SRsRI,
CoNsCRIPTION.
I,,st week James, a very intelligent aud Obser-
yant negro, who fap away about year ago from
Mr.. Wpl. r. Habersham's plantation, On the Ogee-
chee river, Georgia, and who has SINCE been lily
ing amongst the Yankees in and near Beaufort,
made bis escape through the enemy's lines aud r--
,ur.ed TO seek tbs master. His account of ,Ae
CO. dition of affairs In Beaufort is interesting, ard
In some respects important.
of hIS anS LAM
has been used a servant on the plantation OF Mr.
Edward Walker, six miles from Beaufort, by
Yankee, named Thompson, the "SupefinteBdent''
of Negroes. Thompson has his NV" sisters hvins
with him, and acting as schoo-inarms He says
that a regiment Of Whae troops Is stationed at Mr.
Tom Baynard's, and another white regiment at
Barnwell's brick huuse. These regiments are ie
ieyed every week; ard from these two points, "a
centres, the enemy throw ouhsheir pickeIs. From
July 3 TO the middle of October there were but
3O0U troops on Beaufort AMI Paris Islands and In
that neighborhood. But, during the LIST three
weeks heavy ieinfUTcements had arrived-soine
fr0m Morris Island, but the bulk Of them from the
North Of these last, many came handcuffed. A
new General and severn: CDl9nels were amongst
the fresh arrivals.
The Yankees say that they canno, take Charles
ton from the front, but hope 10 reduce 1t from the
rear. From the statements that he heard, James
gathered that they intend to open heavy fire from
the front on Charleston, on Savannah, and on
some point near Ashepoo-this last to be the main
attack. They 90 pot expect 10 take the Charleston
and savannah Railroad at once; but while the de-
mOnstratiOns at Charleston and Savannah occupy
our a,tehtinn, they hope TO be able 70 lay waste
Askspoa, cut the Charleston and Savannah Kali
ro~l aud f0rtify their f0oihold on the maih: They
have the guns for this attack on Asbepn0 now
ready at Hilton Head, having received Nv" snip
loads Of artillery from the North. James believes
that this movement against Ashep00 Is certainly
resolved upon, and will soon take place.
The Yankees have ordered conscriptiHn OF all
negro men. between the ages OF ~ and 20. TINS
haV al knh ".
(MOnday,) and it was to avoid this compulsory
display OF martial ardor that James forsook the
enemy lie says that the negroes who led the as
saut on battery Wagner were drunk at the time,
and ,he remnant not killed cannot be made 10
fight again. The Yankees are very brutal In tieii
treatment Ot the negroes. The negro men OF
COl0nsl Hayward, as soon as they arrived at Beau
fort, were put into the army. The small poA pre-
vailed extensively on Paris Island. The houses
of Mr.. Nat. Hayward and Mr.. JOhn BarnWell, In
Beaufort, are Occupisd as hospitals. white ssh
perintendent' Is placed upon every pantation, eA-
cent such Dis have been sssDld' 10 Yankee settlers.
They are quartering up the iani into 20 acre lots,
and persnading the negroes TO put up cabins and
rent these lots. There Is q telegraph from bea'i.
fort Island TO Hilton Head via Paris lsiana, anu
from Beaufort towards Pou Royal Ferry. Cap
tain Paine (whom we took prisoner on scout be-
tween Morris and James lsiands) and a ml!lwriSht
named Salisbury, are the two greatest YANKEE
scouts, and have frequently been over 10 ne laI'
General Gilmore has sent North for 10000 men,
and some Of them {all drafted mcn) have come
On Lands End two negro men have been snot
dead for swearing that they would not fight. one
of them belonged to Mr.. Richard Fuller, and the
other To Hrigadier-General Fimegan.
Whatever portions Of the above facts are based
upon hearsay were obtained by James from his
Yankee. .taskmaster, Thompson, and from the white
soldiers whom he happened to meet.
GAN IMPORTANT s0uTHERn l1EM."--Under this
heading the Washington Republican chronicles the
discovery that the rebels are constructing rail-