, 1865-04-21

General Ord Announces the Fc8 rful
Story At3 O'Clock on Saturday Night
Pears OF tic IL bcia IN the C1ty-Nr.
HurIcr Leaves ane Togyn-Flaga nj
Half-Mast Along the stveFs
[Ricbmoud Correspondence Of the N. +. Herald


[Ricbmopd Correspondence Of the N. r. Herald.
R1cHnoSn, Saturday night, ApE[i 15-13 pm.
The terrible news from Washington has
been received only by o few leading officers
OF the army, and Government. 1t has just
hrgan to circulate In the city, but Tomorrow
will be known far and near, by the trembling
and alarmed Virginlans, by tue victorious SOL
dcrs, By The sailors In the riyes, By folks On
lonely farms. who wig ask, With forebodlnsy,
had 1t confirmed By a double telegram giving
SO many details that 1t must be tine, the hor-
ror of the intelligence has struck profound
dismaJ and grief. There could be no cauard
upon such story. Mf. Lireoln Is dead. Sad
be that sentence In the stirred North, but
ten times eadder for the crushed South,
whose best f,iend In the Administration lies
in lis collin with the kindly measures he pro-
posed.
HOW THE NEWS CAME TO RICHMOND.
This evening, Ut nine o'clock, General Ord,
commanding this Department, aud Generals
0nld and Mumford, rebel and Federal COM
missioners of exchange, ware sitting In the
room Of Colonel John ". ForneJ, in the
Spottswood Hotel, when telegfaphfc mes
sage WAS handed in conveying the intelt1.
gence Of the Presidents death. The tulee
Northern gentlemen were iemonstrative in
alternate bursts Of in:redulity, anguish md
indignation; but Ould said:
stThat is the w7stt blow the Confedcracy
has get had; Lcc't surrender Is nothing to
It,"
soon afternar,l the company departed, but
ut this writing the news Is d1hused through
ont the city. 4 rag7e sense Of coming calan1-
ties opprasses the people like cloud. Some
say that the loss Of the President sets back
the war to Sumter. Tho people here are al
ready anxious to express their disapprobation
of the assassination, while the more radical
officers are over Jealous to saddle upon the
Slate, In advance OF miller cozrobo.ation, the
whole responsibility Of the deed. Mr.. Hun
ter, ex-senator, has, hear, left the town
post. haste, aud Judge Campbell also express
es desire to be out Of the lowering atmos-
phere. II is not the best ncne in the world
~ General Lee, who gallopcd into Rchm md
to-dGy with full htafi, and has spent the
n:rht in close rtticencc. 4 thousand vague
and conflicting rntnors. sentiments and DE-
ductions are alt0a:, bat We are waiting, hop.
Ing, dcspond4ng. Would 1ha: the mornin;,
were come!
OLp Po1E1. Sunday afternoon.
This whole day hhs been like one spent in
Morgno, Only rE1nors and testi, :onlaIs Of
blood have marked uur whole route down the
river. Egc.y flag is at half1nas: except thai
OF French mau-ofwa OFT Fortress Monroe,
which may not have known that the head OF
the count = !s departed. At City Point the
news was pretty generally known this morn
ing, and has just begun to agitato tho camp.
icnr sorne violence, aud that In the frat
flush Of Indignation the innocent will be in
yolycd with The guilty.
Coming down the river to-day we passed
steamer filled with recruits, who exposed
uptn the upper deck great placatd, which
could be read from either shore, saying;