The National tribune., 1896-10-22


-G%@ Alexandria. This
information by tele-
graph, which had come through Southern
sources, was confirmed by the return and
report-ef one of Gen. Steele's,spies, who
had been sent out to communicate with
Gen. Banks. A day or SO later an officer
on the staff of Gen. Banks arrived with
dispatches confirming the reports of his
defeat, and that he was falling back to
Alexandria.
When it was definitely known that
Banks had been defeated and was fall
ing back Gen. Steele saw it was useless
for him to advance farther in the direc-
tion of Red River. His column was
cooperating one, and the point upon
which the several columns were con-
verging was now point from which
the other columns were retreating.
At that time there were "a feet of
water in the channel of Ouachita River
at Camden, and Gen. Steele thought
that he might make that place his base
of operations if he could get gunboat
to convoy steamers up the river with
supplies for his army. But crisis was
rapidly approaching when he must
either get supplies up the Ouachita or
fall back to Little Rock or Pine Bluff,
on the Arkansas.
Already there were rumors that Kirby
Smith had promised to send Price 5000
infantry from the troops which had been
operating against Banks. In the march
from Little Rock to Camden, Gen.
Steele found that the country had been
nearly exhausted of supplies by the
Confederate troops during the past
Winter and Spring, and that they had
destroyed all the forage on the Federal
line of march which they could not use
or take away, as far as practicable.
His troops had been on half rations
of bread since he started out upon the
expedition, and less than that proper
ton of the meat ration had been issued
to them. His cavalry, artillery, and
transportation animals, numbering as
many as 10000, required large
amount of forage, and, on account of
the short ration and the hard service
imposed upon them, many of them were
becoming unserviceable. Indeed, the
bread ration was so nearly exhausted
that part of the corn ration for the
animals was turned over to the Com
missary Department to be ground into
meal for the troops. As the Confed-
crates were driven back they destroyed
nearly all the best mills in that section
to prevent the Federal troops from using
them, SO that most of the meal made
had to be ground by the soldiers with
hand mills.
The large steamer Homer, with cargo
Of 1000 bushels of corn, was captured
by Gen. Steele's cavalry ON the Ouachita,
80 miles below Camden, on the night of
the 18th, and brought back up the river
to the city and unloaded, and the corn
issued to the army, relieving the present
situation. There were
FEW UNION PEoLE
in Camden, and they reported to Capt.
C. A. Henry, Chief Quartermaster of the
expedition, how much corn they could
spare, and he purchased it and paid them
for it.
He also ascertained that there were
considerable quantities of corn at num-
Der of plantations in the vicinity Of
Camden, and made arrangements to
secure it. In that section very few of
the slaves had left their masters on the
arrival of the Federal troops, and the
last year the planters and small farmers
had raised an increased acreage Of corn
and decreased acreage Of cotton; for
the demand for corn to supply the
Southern army and for home consump-
ton had increased, while the market for
cotton had become more uncertain.
The Confederate officers had made it
point to use up and destroy the forage
in the disputed territory occupied by the
outposts of the two armies between Ar
j kadelphia and Little Rock up to the
, time Gen. Steele's expedition started out,
and had drawn as ssparingly as possible
on the supplies of the citizens in the
vicinity of Camden. When the people
, found that the Confederates were burn
ing the forage likely to fall into the
hands of the Federal troops, good
, many citizens endeavored to secrete their
corn.
j In the advance on Camden, Capt.
e Henry had ascertained that there was a
large amount of corn, estimated at 1000
to 5000 bushels. at several plantations
near the road on which the Federal
troops had passed out, about 1S miles,