Year: 1859

THE SHARP-SuooTER AT New ORLEANs.-A
British officer who fought in the battle of New
Orleans, said


alt was strange sight, that long range Of
cotton bales--a new material for breasworks-
with the crowd of human beings behind, their
heads only visible above the line of defense We
could distinctly see their long rifles lying over
the bales, and the battery of Gen. Coffee directly
in front, with its great mouth gaping towards us
and the position of Gen. Jackson with his staff
around him. But what attracted our attention
most, was the figure Of a tall man standing on
the breastworks, dressed in linsey-woolscy. with
huckskin leggings, and a broad brimmed felt hat,
that fell around his face, almost concealing his
features lie was standing in one of those pic
turesque and graceful attitudes peculiar to those
natural man jewellers in the forest. The body
rested on the left LEG, and swayed with curved
line upwards; the right arm was extended, the
hand grasping the rife near the muzzle, the butt
of which rested near the toe Of his right foot,
while with his hand be raised the rim of his hat
from bis eyes, and seemed gazing from beneath
intensely upon our advancing column. The can
non of Coffee had opened upon US, and tore
through our ranks with dreadful slaughter; but
we continued TO advance, unwaveriDg and cool,
as if nothing threatened our progress.


"Ihe roar Of cannon seemed to have no effect
upon the figure standing on the cotton bales AT
last he moved, threw back the hat-rim over the
crown with his left hand, raised the rifle to his
shoulder, and took aim at our group. Our eyes
were riveted on him. At whom had he leveled
his piece? But the distance was 50 great that
we looked at each other and smiled. We saw
the rife fash, and my right hand companion as
noble a looking fellow as ever rode at the head
of regiment, fell from his saddle. The hunter
paused for few moments, without moving his
gun from his shoulder, then reloaded and resumed
his former attitude. Throwing the hat-rim over
bis eyes, and again holding up with his left hand,
he fixed his piercing gaze upon us, as if bunting
out another victim. Once more the hatrim was
thrown back, and the gun raised to his shoulder.
This time we did not smile, but cast short glances
at each other, to see which of us must die; aud
when The rifle again flashed, another of us drop
ped to the earth. There was something awful in
thus marching on to certain death.


'Gen. Cofee's battery and thousands of mus
ket balls played upon our ranks; we cared not
for them-tbere was a chance of escaping un-
scathed. Most OF us had walked upon batteries
hundred times more destructive, without quail
ing; but to know that every time that rifle was
leveled towards US, and its bullet sprang from
the barrel, one Of us must as surely fall To
see the cleaning sun flash, as the deadly iron
came down, and see it rest motionless, if poised
upon a rock and know, when the hammer struck
and the sparks flew to the full-primed pan, that
the messenger of death drove unerringly to its
goal to know this, and still march on was
awful.


al could see nothing but the tall figure stand
ing on the breastwork. He seemed to grow,
phantom-like, taller and taller, assuming through
the smoke the supernatural appearance Of some
great spirit. Again did he reload and discharge
his rife, with the same uufailing aim; and it was
with indescribable pleasure that | beheld, as We
neared the American lines, the sulphurous smoke
gather around us and shut that spectral hunter
from my gaze. We lost the battle; and to my
mind the Kentucky riaeman contributed more tC
our defeat than anything else; for while he re-
mained to our sight our attention was drawn from
our dnties and when at last we became enshrou
ded in the smoke the work was complete we
were in utter confusion and unable in the extrem-
ity 10 restore order sufficient TO make any
successful attack.


$50 long thousands aud thousands of rifles
remain in the hands OF the people, so long a.
men come up from their childhood, able, ere the
down is on their chin, to bit the center Of "A mark
or strike the deer at one hundred and fifty yards
in the most vital part; so long there is grea
proportion Of the Republic who live as free a
the wild Indian, knowing no leader but their owl
choosing, knowing no law but that of right, anC
the honorable observance of friendly intercourse
America is unconquerable; and all the armies 0
the combined world, though they might drive
them from the sea coast and across the Allegheny
mountains, would not be able to subdue the free
souled hunter among the mountains and grea
UfaiFieS. and MIGHTY rivers of ha Most -