The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1864-12-24
Southern News.
Extracts from Late Rebel Papers.


The late files Of Richmond papers arc rernArta-
lly rciicont upon military matters and sive very
little news OF pending operations. They Afford
however, strong evidences OF the gloom which
overspreads the rebel leaders in reference - the
war.
Tho Rockingham Vsy RrGrsTEn gives tho f'l-
lowing account of the damage injected by General
Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley, as described
by An eyewitness;
Ihave been over nearly tho whole u my district,
comprising all the upper end ~ tho county, from
Narrow Passage Greek to the Rockingham county
line, and I And there have heen burned by Shcri.
dams army two hundred and h'tcen barns eighteen
dwellings, eleven Rrist nils nine water sawmiNs
two stnam sawmill-, one furnace two torgeS one
fulng mill one carding machine, besides q mum.
ber Of smaller buildings, such as stables &c. Tho
quantity Of grain destroyed u immense. ! cannot
give you any idea of tho smount of grain, hay,
fodder, &'., destroyed, but the quantity 10 very
large.
Tho Lynchburg vrr0ISrAS gives tho following
details Of the recent Federal raid in Western vIr-
giniN
This raid turns out TO be an extensive and dam
aging one. Our account of II yesterday morning
lott the enemy reported to be advancing on Abing-
don. The report unfortunately proved TO be cor
rect. They reached that place at halpast O'Clock
on "Wednesday night Decc,nbcr IL. We have
heard nothing a their operations there. Ihey
could not have tarried long however as they push
ed on and reached GLADE Spr NJ depot by O'Clock
yesterday morning, December Il. AT this point We
learn they capturci and destroyed two more
trains Of the Virginia and Tennessee Ralroad.
The losses in rolling stock on the Virginia md
Tennessee road sum up, ns far as We have ascer.
taincd locomotives, passenger coaches and IA
fats One Of the engines the A. V. Brown-wss
probably the finest the road. and will be great
ly missed. On the East Tennessee aud virginia
road two engines aud o number Of cars dcs-
Glade 70 Ii Al the junction of tho
Ralt Works branch aud the maiu road aud is
distant only eight miles rom the salt Works
The loss of the works should that misfortune
occur, would certainly be severe blow, but not
| . ruinous ole. Phnnix Ike, they could 10 re-
Euscitated from their asLeI in time, and set "
work ayain. The last heard from the raiders
they were moving in the direcuon OF Mar,on,
| smyth County, and were within one mile OF 1hat
| place, instead ol advancing ON the salt Works ~
| we lad supposed they would. Marion 10 s!Xteen
| mile, this side Of Glade Spring
In the Senate on "Wednesday ar. POOLS peace re.
solutions we're laid the table by vote Of TWEEN.
T. -four to twenty, aud kept there, despite a vgor
| GUS effort " resurrect ,hcm.
The Richmond VINO has an item that speaks
volumes respecting the condition of affairs in the
Confederacy and the beauties Of their conscriptiou
| law. Two printers are under trial by court ma
nnl for desertou, although Trey we're never in th,
| relel amy. The VINO takcs this as matter o.
| course, and explains Though eTetnpt by act o
| Congress IRON military service, and not heongng
! " nny REGULAR military organization, they are be
ing tried for dsssTtion and If convicted VIII b
snot--by the Printers Guard. There iAs popull
fHllacy, which ~ in fair way to he exploded by
this tTisl that dessvtion is oelcc that onll
be committed by persons belonging N the land d
naval forces"
They have q machine In Richmond, the VIM
states, capable Of turning out three hundred an
forty thousand percussion gun caps in eight hours
hiling and pressing them. The fastest machine Il
the United States is Wrights patent, which turn
out thirty thousand in ton hours The champlo
Confederate machine, or mach!nes-as there ar
two Of thcm-are capable Of turning out an amour
Of work by thros hands that formerly required on
hundred and twenty operatives. The inventor
Captain Wesley y. Smith, commanding the Labor
! atOry. The graduated fuse cutter, now In generI
use, is another Of Captain Smiths inventions, all
has demonstrated its ennre efficiency on numerou
occasions.
on Affairs in Tennessee the SENTINEL says;
Citizens direct from Knoxville sAy hat heav
tIams rur daily iroU ChsttanleS " yvil-