The Rebellion Record—A Diary of American Events; by Frank Moore

April 19.—Yesterday, three regiments of infantry and one of cavalry left Memphis, Tenn., on a reconnoitring expedition, and when near Nonconnah, the cavalry came up on a detachment of Blythe’s rebel cavalry; a fight ensued, resulting in the repulse of the rebels. This morning the cavalry again attacked the rebels, and succeeded in driving them across the Coldwater River in great confusion, killing twenty, wounding forty, and capturing a large number. After crossing the river the rebels received reinforcements, and the Nationals fell back to Hernando. Being reenforced there by infantry and artillery, under Colonel Bryant, the Unionists again moved on the Coldwater, and attacked the rebels on the opposite side of the river, continuing the contest until sundown, and losing five killed and fifteen wounded.

—Major-general Dix, in a despatch to the War Department, said: “I deem it due to the forces at Suffolk to notice briefly their gallant conduct during the last six days. On Tuesday General Peck’s right was attacked, and the enemy’s advance was gallantly met by Colonel Foster’s light troops, driving him back to the line of his pickets. Anderson’s division was engaged at the same time on the water-front with our gunboats and batteries, and suffered materially. On Wednesday a rebel battery of twenty-pounder rifled guns was effectually silenced, and an attack on the Smith Briggs, an armed quartermaster’s boat, was repulsed. Repeated attempts have been made on our lines, but have all been foiled. The storming of the enemy’s battery near the west branch of the Nansemond by General Getty and the gunboats, under Lieutenant Lamson, of the navy, and the capture of six guns and two hundred prisoners, closes the operations of the six days against the enemy’s large force very satisfactorily.” The Eighty-ninth New-York and the Eighth Connecticut were the storming party. —See Supplement.

April 18.—The rebel side-wheel steamer St John was captured while endeavoring to run the blockade into Cape Romaine Inlet, by the National steamer Stettin.—A reconnoissance of Sabine Pass, Texas, was made by a party from the National gunboats Cayuga and New-London. On landing near the light-house they were fired on by concealed rebels, Captain McDermott of the Cayuga being killed, and his crew of five men captured. Captain Reed of the New-London was wounded, together with four of his men.— Fayetteville, Ark., garrisoned by a force of National troops under the command of Colonel Harrison, was this morning attacked by a strong body of rebels, but after a desperate contest of six hours’ duration, they were repulsed with considerable loss.—(Doc. 172.)

April 17.—Brigadier-General Daniel A. Donelson, commanding the rebel department of East Tennessee, died near Knoxville. He was the nephew of General Andrew Jackson.—The rebel schooner Alabama, was captured off Mobile, while endeavoring to evade the blockade, by the National steamer Susquehanna. — Com. Hitchcock’s Despatch.

—A large detachment of the Ninety-ninth and One Hundred and Thirtieth New-York regiments had a successful skirmish with the rebels at the South-Quay road, near Suffolk, Va., and succeeded in killing and wounding a considerable number of them. In the encounter the Nationals had two killed and three wounded.

—Colonel H. B. Grierson, in command of a strong force of Union cavalry, left La Grange, Tenn., on a raid through the State of Mississippi. (Doc. 170.)

—A skirmish took place at Bear Creek, Tenn., between a party of Nationals under the command of General Dodge, and the rebels, resulting in the retreat of the latter. Captain Cameron of the Ninth Illinois cavalry was killed.—A detachment of National troops under General Grover, encountered a large force of rebels at Bayou Vermilion, La., and opening upon them with artillery, drove them from their position.—(Doc. 171.)

April 16.—A fleet of eight National gunboats and several transports, under the command of Admiral Porter, passed the rebel batteries at Vicksburgh, to-night, without any material damage, except the loss by fire of one of the transports, laden with commissary stores and forage.— (Doc. 169)

—A party of Indians attacked a detachment of eighteen soldiers at Medalia, thirty miles from Mankato, Minnesota, killing one and wounding two, besides killing a boy and two men belonging to the settlement.—The British steamer Gertrude was captured off Harbor Island, W. I., by the National gunboat Vanderbilt.

April 15.—Franklin, St. Mary’s Parish, La., was occupied by the National forces, under General Banks. — The siege of Washington, N. C, was raised. The rebel force, which for nearly three weeks had invested that place, left suddenly this evening. General Foster, who arrived at Newbern yesterday, was preparing an expedition to march for the relief of the town, when the account of the departure of the rebels reached him.—See Supplement.

—At a point seventy miles south of Salt Lake City, Utah, Colonel Evans, with a party of National troops, attacked and put to flight two hundred Indians, thirty of whom were killed. The Union forces followed them fourteen miles, scattering them in every direction. Lieutenant Peck was killed and two sergeants were wounded on the National side.—A battalion of cavalry from California arrived at New-York from San Francisco, under the command of Major De Witt C. Thompson.—Fighting was continued on the Nansemond River, Va., and its vicinity.

—A detachment of two hundred of the Thirty-ninth Kentucky mounted infantry, under the command of Colonel J. Dills, made a forced march on Pikeville, Ky., and after a sharp fight, captured seventeen rebel officers and sixty-one privates, with their horses, arms, and equipments. At the same time, eight scouts from the command of General Julius White, belonging to the Fourteenth Kentucky infantry, captured in Breathitt Co., Ky., a rebel captain and twelve privates.

April 14.—Yesterday the rebel works on the Bayou Teche, La., were attacked by the National forces under Generals Banks and Emory, and today, after a desperate conflict of several hours’ duration, the works were carried and the rebels driven out.—The rebel gunboats Diana, Hart, and Queen of the West, were also destroyed. The two former were burned by the rebels, to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Unionists, and the iron-clad ram Queen of the West, was attacked by the United States gunboats Estrella, Calhoun, and Arizona, set on fire and destroyed.— (Doc. 167.)

-—The United States gunboat West End, lying in the Nansemond River, four miles below Suffolk, Va., was this day attacked by a rebel battery, and considerably damaged. During the engagement, seven of her crew were killed or wounded.

—General Foster escaped from Washington, N. C, in the steamer Escort, which ran the rebel blockade on the Pamlico River to-day.

—To-day a fight took place on the Nansemond River, Va., between the United States gunboats Commodore Barney, Mount Washington, and Stepping Stones, and a powerful rebel shore battery, in which, after a four hours’ bombardment, the latter was silenced.—(Doc. 168.)

April 13.—The National transport steamer Escort, with reinforcements, ammunition and supplies for General Foster, who was surrounded at Washington, N. C, ran the rebel batteries on the Pamlico River, and succeeded in reaching her destination.

—This morning a detachment of National troops, under the command of Colonel Spear, Eleventh Pennsylvania cavalry, attacked a body of rebel troops in the vicinity of Suffolk, Va., but after a sharp skirmish, the Unionists were compelled to retire behind their fortified works. In the afternoon, however, the same party, reenforced by cavalry, sallied forth, encountered the enemy, and drove him back with considerable loss.

April 12.—Information having been received by General King, commanding at Yorktown, Va., of the presence of a large body of cavalry in Gloucester County, Colonel A. H. Grimshaw, Fourth Delaware volunteers, in command of the post at Gloucester Point,, was ordered to send out a detachment of infantry for the purpose of reconnoitring the enemy’s position, and, if possible, driving him from some mills which he was reported to occupy, about ten miles beyond the Union lines. Lieutenant-Colonel Tevis, Fourth Delaware, started out at two P.M., with one hundred and fifty volunteers from his own regiment, and having ascertained the force of the rebels to be about two hundred cavalry, under the command of Colonel Goodwin, pushed forward to attack them. The enemy fell back, leaving, however, two of their pickets in the hands of the Nationals. They were ridden down and captured by Colonel Tevis, Lieutenant Tower and Dr. Hopkins, surgeon of the regiment. The detachment returned to camp about nine o’clock P.M., having burned a saw-mill and two large gristmills, filled with grain and flour, for the use of the rebels in Richmond. The prisoners belonged to Fitz-Hugh Lee’s regiment, the Fifth Virginia cavalry. They were well armed, and carried printed orders, signed by J. E. B. Stuart, to seize a number of horses for the use of their regiment, “to replace those killed or disabled during the last campaign.”—Philadelphia Inquirer.

—Lieutenant-Colonel Edgar A. Kimball, of Hawkins’s Zouaves, Ninth regiment of New York volunteers, was killed by General Michael Corcoran, at a point near Suffolk, Va.

April 11.—The rebel steamer Stonewall Jackson, formerly the Leopard, while attempting to run into the harbor of Charleston, S. C, was “hotly chased by half a dozen blockaders, which fired at her, and she received several shots through her hull. Captain Black finding it impossible to escape, ran the steamer on the beach and burned her. The crew and passengers took to the boats and arrived at Charleston. The steamer was burned to the water’s edge in sight of the Yankees. Her cargo consisted of several pieces of field artillery, two hundred barrels of salt-petre, forty thousand army shoes, and a large assortment of merchandise.”—Charleston Mercury.

—A strong Union force under the command of Colonel A. D. Streight, left Nashville, Tenn., on a raid into Alabama and Georgia.—(Doc. 173.)

—Yesterday, the Fifty-ninth Virginia rebel regiment, Colonel Tabb, was sent to the rear of Fort Magruder, at Williamsburgh, Va. At the break of day this morning he made a descent upon the National cavalry camp at Whitaker’s Mill, and destroyed the whole camp, commissary and hospital stores, and an immense amount of ammunition, besides killing a large number of horses. Five of the Nationals were killed, several wounded, nineteen taken prisoners, and some twenty or so of the sick paroled. After this feat Colonel Tabb made good his retreat without the loss of a man — only one officer and private wounded.—Richmond Examiner.

—A brief skirmish occurred in the vicinity of the Blackwater, Va., between the Union pickets and a party of rebels, in which the former were forced back with the loss of several of their number taken prisoners.—Baltimore American.

—At Sheffield, England, an engraver was arrested and committed on charge of forging the Treasury Notes of the United States.