The American Civil War

January 19.—A battle took place to-day at Mill Springs, near Somerset, Ky., between the National forces under command of General Geo. H. Thomas, and the rebel forces, commanded by General F. K. Zollicoffer, resulting in the utter rout and defeat of the rebels. The Confederates commenced the attack at half-past five in the morning. The fight lasted till late in the afternoon,

when the rebels were driven off the field in great confusion, their leader, General Zollicoffer, being among the slain. On reaching their entrenchments, a few miles distant from the scene of action, they were cannonaded until dark, by the National batteries, and during the night succeeded in making good their escape across the Cumberland River. About one hundred and fifty rebel prisoners were taken, and ton guns, about one hundred wagons, upwards of twelve hundred horses and mules, large quantities of small arms, with subsistence and hospital stores captured. Besides these a large number of flags were taken on the field of battle, and in the deserted entrenchments.—(Doc. 16.)

— This evening the United States gunboat Itasca captured the schooner Lizzie Weston, of Apalachicola, Fla., loaded with two hundred and ninety-three bales of cotton, one hundred and fifty-two thousand five hundred pounds, bound for Jamaica or a market. She was sent in charge of a prize crew to Philadelphia.

—Colonel Williams’ regiment of Pennsylvania cavalry passed through Louisville, Ky., on their way to Munfordville, where they will take a position a few miles beyond Green River. They are well supplied with arms, though their horses are not generally up to the requirements of active service.—Louisville Journal, January 20.

January 18.—John Tyler died at Richmond, Va., in his seventy-second year, having been born in 1790. He was a native of Charles City County, Va. On reaching his majority, he was elected to the Legislature of that State, and five years subsequently to the House of Representatives. In 1836, he was chosen Governor; but served only a year and a half, having been sent to the United States Senate to fill a vacancy. This spring-tide of promotion continued until 18-10, when he received the nomination for Vice-President from the Whig party. The death of General Harrison opened the White House to Mr. Tyler, soon after which, by turning his back upon the party which had placed him in power, he added a new term to the political vocabulary.

The great events of his administration were the vetoing of the United States Bank Bill, and the making of preparations for admitting Texas—a measure which was brought about shortly after his retirement, in 1845. Since that date Mr. Tyler lived on his plantation, near the village of Hampton, Va. The commotions of last winter brought him out of obscurity, when he acted the part of a peace-maker for some time, previous to his allying himself with the rebel faction.—N. Y. Commercial, January 21.

—Captain- Phelps, with the gunboat Conestoga, made a reconnoissance, from Cairo, Ill., up the Tennessee River to-day, and shelled a point just below Fort Henry, where a masked battery was supposed to be, but did not succeed in drawing its fire.

—Captains Murdock and Webster returned to Cairo last night, from an expedition to Bloomfield, Mo. It was a complete success. They captured forty of the rebels, among them one lieutenant-colonel, two surgeons, one adjutant and three captains.

January 17.—One hundred and fifty prisoners, released from the rebel government at Richmond, Va., arrived at Fortress Monroe. All of them were convalescents from the hospital. About twenty had crutches, and a dozen had to be carried on board, some on cots. All of them had been wounded. Dr. Higginbotham accompanied them, and the men were loud in commendation of his uniform kindness to them, and after cordially grasping his hand in taking leave of him, they gave him three enthusiastic cheers. They then saluted the old Stars and Stripes with a burst of enthusiasm that brought tears to the eyes, many waving their crutches above their heads. On the way back the wharves and embankments at Newport News were thronged with soldiers who greeted the released prisoners with tremendous cheers. The Cumberland and Congress, lying in the Roads, were also manned and gave a most enthusiastic greeting to the prisoners.

—This night, at Lynchburgh, Va., the Confederate flag, which had been flying from the yard of John O. L. Goggin, was forcibly torn down by some traitorous scoundrel, the flagstaff broken in two, and the cord by which the flag was hoisted cut up into small fragments. The flag itself was torn into tatters, and from its appearance, when found, would seem to indicate that the guilty party desired particularly to strip the stars from it, as not a vestige of any of them was left The act was a mean and despicable one, and proves conclusively that there is at least one Lincolnite in our midst, for no one, we feel sure, with one speck of Southern spirit could have been guilty of such an act—Lynchburgh Republican, January 18.

—The Burnside Expedition, which left Fortress Monroe on the 11th and 12th, arrived at Hatteras, N. C, having met with a severe storm and adverse winds.

—This day about four o’clock the steamer Connecticut spoke a small steamer off Juniper Inlet, on the Florida coast She promptly displayed a suspiciously new British ensign, which told the whole story—she had no name on her stern. She proved to be the Emma, (or, as some of the crew call her, the Onward, that being the name they shipped under,) that ran the blockade at Apalachicola in November last. She had been to Havana and taken a cargo of cotton and other stores, in value, according to the invoice found on board, twelve thousand dollars. The captain denied all knowledge of the intentions of the owners. He and the crew, he said, were shipped for St. John’s, N. B. Some correspondence was found, sufficient to condemn her; one paper was a telegraphic despatch stating the “blockade was open and the coast clear” at Apalachicola. This was at the time she slipped out. The Connecticut took possession of her as a prize.

—The Fortification Bill passed the United States House of Representatives to-day, appropriating an aggregate of five millions nine hundred and sixty thousand dollars. Among the appropriations were one hundred thousand dollars for Fort Knox, on Penobscot River; one hundred thousand dollars for fort on Hog Island, Port; land harbor; seventy-five thousand dollars for Fort Warren, and fifty thousand dollars for Fort Winthrop, Boston harbor; one hundred thousand dollars for the fort in New-Bedford harbor. The appropriation also included the following for the year 1862: fifty thousand dollars for Fort Knox; fifty thousand dollars for Hog Island Fort; fifty thousand dollars for Fort Winthrop and exterior batteries; fifty thousand dollars for fort at New-Bedford; fifty thousand dollars for Fort Adams, Newport.

—The Seventy – sixth Regiment New – York State Volunteers, under the command of Colonel Green, and two artillery companies, commanded by Captains von Puttakamer and Ellis, left Albany for the seat of war. They were reviewed in the Park by Governor Morgan, and addressed by Governor Pierce, of Ulstor, before their departure. They are a fine body of men, and number one thousand and three hundred strong.

—Navigation of the Mississippi River was entirely suspended at St. Louis in consequence of the gorging of the ice twenty miles below the city, extending to a point some distance from there, the ferry-boats not being able to run, and the ice not being sufficiently strong to bear heavy weights.

—A Flag of truce from Fortress Monroe to the rebels took to-day the following released prisoners: Colonel Pegram, Captain Sutton, Lieutenant A. C. Bell, Captain Tansill, Lieutenant John W. Pool, Lieutenant J. C. Lassell, Dr. R. W. Jeffreys and Captain L. J. Johnson.