Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1864-05-20

A refugee write. =. follows in regard TO the de

A refugee write. - follows in regard 10 the de
lenses Of Richmond.
Ba, Il Lee does fan back on the defant CITY.
VOC NV deoesd or IL Grant ell have plenty Of
work before him. The oeen-es arouUc the tosn
are no oggoear a. some persons have guessed and
published. They are perfect and formidable
AZ military skill and engineering can possibly
mske them Several weeks ago the works then
around the city we're carefully inspected by
President DAVIS and Gems. Lee and Bragg. and
we're pronounced by them quite satisfactory; but
notwithstanding lbis, the President. about week
later. called Gen. Beauregard. the Totleoen Of
the Conieceracy, 70 the capital, 10 examine the
works and devise Improvements. IL IN bis judg-
ment any could be made. BeauFegsrd spent
several DAYS around the city with Lee and Bragg.
and the result vas the INN mediate commencement
of another line of defensive works. Several of
the most prominent engineers 10 the rebel SER
vice have been detailed superintend the con
stfuction OF the nee hne agreesbly 10 the plan OF
the great engineer Thousands Of negroes have
been employed more that three weeks in digging
nav bitches. and throwing 10 new ramparis, par
apets. &c, in advance ct the old ones By this
time the new line is. beyond doubt completed.
These Notifications were to consist. as | was
informed BY of the officers engaged in their
construction. OF seventeen detached forts, form.
ing several independent defensive positions after
the stye of the Qualifications constituting the
second line Of defense around the city Of Paris
The barracks and auxiliary works are so
ranged for hsnking fires from artillery that mu-
tual protection will exist between the forts. The
interval between the works are closed BY long
curtains protected by bitches twenty four feet
wide and sixteen feet deep. in most of which are
constructed transforms ard tenalles. Many of
the bitches are supplied with water from the ad
jacent riyulets These forts are all 10 be con.
nected BY a military road and telegraph afording
SPECIFY communication between them.
These works will be mounted with guns of
large cnbre. and there will be no lack of how
itzers and mortar batteries, protected nv bomb
proof classmates. out OF reach of the Union ar.
tillery.
The question may be pertinently asked
Where have the rebels obtained such a supply
of ordnance OF this character?" answer. that
they have manufactured some. but have received
more from Europe. The Northern people would
be astoni-hed TO learn the great amount of war
material aud other necessares, that. in spite Of
the blockade. the rebels are weekly receiving
from the other side of the Atlantic On the 22i
ult | counted around the depot of the Richmond
and Petersburg railroad thirty two mortars Of
rench..msnufacture. which were received at Will
mingtou only few DAYS before.
Before leaving the defenseS Of Richmond
tain Holden OF the rebel army IL is nothing
more nor less than stink ball. designed to be
fired into the works of besiegers stink them
out AbOut the middle of Aprl | was one of
several civilians who. upon invitation, accompa-
MED party Of officers 10 Atlee's, station on
the Central Railroad ten miles from Richmond
To witness some experiments with this ball The
ball il an iron shell containing combustble and
destructive rs well as odoriferous matter and H.
similar in appearance to the stink ball in use
many wears ago. 1t i designed to be thrown by
mortars, but in the tests on the occasion referred
to. the fuse was lighted and the shell allowed to
illuminate where it was The stencil which fol
lowed the explosion was the most fetid and viii
famous that ever outraged the olfactories of
man Coleridge said that he counted in Cologne
seventy sever
swell defined and several stinks."
But IL he had been at Atlee'S on the day Of the
experiments alluded to he would have recognized
them all and seventy seven thousand more The
concentrated stink OF all the skuhks. pole-cats,
niggers. pitch sui phur. rasped horses aud horses
hoOfs. burnt in ire assafRtida, and bug-weeds
in the world could not equal the smell emitted
by these balls. But not only il the smell in
itself ntolerabe. bus il provokes sneezing and
coughing, and produces nausea. rendering it i'm
possible for men to do duty within reach of it
A single ball will impreguate the atmosphere
Tor fifty Yards round, and the fed compound
entering everv thing it touches. emits the stencil
for long time. The opinion of all who wit
messed the experiments was that these balls were
fair Offset to Greek FIRE. and Gen. Winder. and
several other officers OF rank who we're present.
expressed the belief that it would prove more
effective for driving off besiegers than ANYTHING
ever invented. Be this as it may. if Richmond
Is ever threatened by siege. the .'sneezers" as
the inventor facetously calls his halls will form
aprominen, feature in the defensive operations