November 18.—The New Orleans Crescent very strongly urged planters to destroy their “cotton or other property,” rather than let it fall into the hands of the Yankees.—(Doc. 171.)
—The rebel Congress to-day met in Richmond, Va. Howell Cobb took the chair. Rev. Mr. Flynn, of Georgia, chaplain of Col. Cobb’s regiment, opened the session with prayer. The Secretary called the roll, when it was found there was a quorum present, six States being represented.—Present—Messrs. Barry, of Mississippi; Tenable, of North Carolina; House, Jones, Atkins, and De Witt, of Tennessee; Curry and Chilton, of Alabama; Cobb, of Georgia; William Ballard Preston, Tyler, Macfarland, and Rives, of Virginia.
The Chair announced the presence of a quorum of the House.—Mr. Venable, member from North Carolina, moved that a committee be appointed to wait upon the President and inform him that there was a quorum present in the House, and Congress was ready to receive any communication from him.—The Chair appointed the following members: Messrs. Venable, of North Carolina, Scott, of Virginia, and Barry, of Mississippi.—Richmond Enquirer, Nov. 19.
—Judge Thomas S. Richards was shot through a window of the court house in Memphis, Scotland Co., Mo., while confined as a prisoner in the hands of Colonel Moore, of the Home Guard. Colonel Moore subsequently offered a reward of one thousand dollars for the apprehension of the assassin.
—The steamers Georgia and Georgiana arrived at Baltimore this morning from Newtown, Worcester Co., Maryland. Four thousand Federal troops were preparing to go into Virginia. On the way up the Pocomoke River a boat was sent ashore with General Dix’s proclamation, which was read to a large number of Virginians in a farm-house, who declared it entirely satisfactory, and claimed the protection of the Government from the secessionists, who were forcing them into the ranks against their will. The gunboat Resolute had given them protection through the day, but at night they had to seek shelter in the woods.—(Doc. 159.)
—General Drayton, at Hardeeville, South Carolina, assured the Governor of that State that he had “neither seen nor heard of any act of pillage or incendiarism in any direction” on the part of the slaves.—(Doc. 172.)
—Colonel Wofford’s Eighteenth regiment of Georgia Volunteers left Richmond, Va., for Manassas, via Fredericksburg.—National Intelligencer.
—Captain A. H. Foots was appointed Flag-officer of the fleet in the Western Military Department. He thus ranks with the Major-General. This arrangement will obviate any possible conflict of authority between the commanders respectively of the land and water forces.
—The following military appointments were made to-day, viz.: Assistant Adjutant-Generals of Volunteers—Captain Leonard Scott, for General Paine’s brigade; Captain George A. Hicks, for General Burn’s brigade; Captain John Pound, for General Pace’s brigade; Captain Andrew C. Kemper, for General Wade’s brigade; Captain William Von Dohn, for General Duryea’s brigade; Captain Charles A. Reynolds, to be an assistant quartermaster in the regular service; William Sheffler, to be an aide-de-camp to Major-General Banks.
—North Carolina, by a Convention of Delegates representing forty-five counties, declared a Provisional Government, and entirely repudiated the secession act of the State, reaffirming her loyalty and devotion to the Constitution of the United States. The Convention met at Hatteras. The act passed contained several sections, the substance of which is as follows: The first declares vacant all the offices of the State; the second names Marble Nash Taylor Provisional Governor; the third adopts the Constitution of the State, with the statutes and laws contained in the revised code of 1856; the fourth repudiates the ordinance of secession pawed at Raleigh on the 20th of May, together with all other acts then adopted; the fifth directs the Provisional Governor to order a special election for Members of Congress; the sixth gives to the Governor authority to make temporary appointments to official vacancies. The Convention adjourned, subject to the call of the President Governor Taylor issued his proclamation for an election in the Second Congressional District, which will be held on Wednesday, the 27th inst.—(Doc. 173.)
—A portion of the Fourteenth regiment N. Y. S. M., from Brooklyn, while on picket duty about a mile and a half west of Fall’s Church, Va., were attacked by rebel cavalry and forced to fall back, with one man wounded. They were subsequently reinforced by a considerable body of troops, when the rebels retired, with a loss of several killed and wounded.—N. Y. Times, November 19.
—Gov. Buckingham, of Connecticut, in a general order, congratulated the soldiers from that State who went with the Port Royal naval expedition, for having been the first to land upon the traitorous soil of South Carolina.—N. Y. Times, November 19.
—The Massachusetts Twenty-sixth regiment, under command of Col. Jones, and the Connecticut Ninth, commanded by Col. Cahill, embarked from Boston this afternoon on board the steamship Constitution. Both regiments were enthusiastically cheered on their march through the city. They were reviewed on the common by Gen. Butler previous to embarking. They were splendidly armed and equipped.—National Intelligencer, November 21.
—Letters from Upper Arkansas relate the imposition practiced by Albert Pike upon the Comanche Indians, and the conclusion of a treaty between these Indians and the Confederate States.—(Doc. 174.)
—The Sixty-ninth New York State Volunteers, a new regiment recruited mainly from the old Sixty-ninth New York State Militia, left New York for the seat of war. Previous to its departure, the regiment was presented with a stand of colors at the residence of Archbishop Hughes. Speeches were made by Father Starrs, V. G., Judge Daly, and Col. Meagher. —(Doc. 175.)
—One hundred and fifty rebels were captured by a company of Union cavalry near Warrenburgh, Mo.
—Jeff. Thompson with two hundred men boarded the steamer Platte City at Price’s Landing in Missouri, ransacked her in search of papers, and took off two men whom he hung as spies.—(Doc. 176.)
