Franklin Repository

Col. Grierson, who made the most daring raid through rebeldom on record, having penetrated some six hundred miles of its territory, declared it was an "empty shell" and ready to break at time [illegible] the success of the Union arms. [Note: A piece of tape blocks out some text in the next two paragraphs.] Since [illegible] the Old Flag has been triumphant at [illegible], at Port Hudson, in Tennessee, at [illegible], at Helena, and it is confidently hoped that it will soon float over Charleston.

Since then we have [illegible] with no common degree of interest [illegible] comments of the journals in the [illegible]of the traitors upon the progress [illegible] the Union cause. We now have them [illegible] us, and they are confused in the [illegible] suggestions, and naturally enough [illegible] despondent in tone. Some seem to think a falsehood well adhered to answers the purpose of truth, and accordingly the Richmond Dispatch, insists "Lee gained a tremendous victory at Gettysburg," and that "he fell back purely of his own will and from no compulsion of the enemy." The Richmond Examiner is crying for blood, and denounces the weakness of Jeff. Davis in not promptly hanging Union persons by way of retaliation. It says:

"Mr. President Davis' proclamations and pronunciamientos, [sic] his horrible threatenings and gloomy appeals, have been so often repeated that they are the sneer of the world. But never have they resulted in one solitary performance. He is very obstinate, very bitter; when he gets into a quarrel with some Southern officer over whom the law gives him temporary control. He is very firm indeed in maintaining a minion or a measure against the smothered indignation of a people who are compelled by their present unfortunate situation to support silently a great deal from their officials. But when his duty brings him into contact with the enemy he is gentle as the sucking dove.

* * * "Mr. Stephens was sent to Washington with a letter of credence to Lincoln, and another of instructions to himself from President Davis: A good deal was said in this last letter about titles, &c., which looks pitiful enough; and the rest relating to the business on hand, amounts to this: that if the Federal Government will only vouchsafe a civil word or so, will say, for instance, that it would like to mitigate the horrors of war, the Confederate Government would be happy to indulge in boundless compassion for the two Yankees aforesaid. As to the two murdered Confederate officers in Kentucky, who feels compassion for them?

* * *"Now, who will deny that the Confederacy makes a sorrowful figure in this matter?"

The retreat of Lee across the Potomac into Virginia again was as unexpected as crushing to the rebels. It at once blighted all their hopes of transferring the war to Northern soil, and cost them half of their best army. The Richmond Dispatch says that "opinions are various with regard to the motives which induced Gen. Lee to withdraw his army to the Virginia side." Again it says:

"That it has had the immediate effect of stimulating the war passions of the North, and enabling Lincoln with the more ease to recruit his shatter ranks, can hardly be denied. But it must be recollected that this was the consequence, not of the expedition itself, but of the withdrawal of the troops, and has not therefore the slightest bearing upon the wisdom of the measure. Had Gen. Lee destroyed the army of Meade, as there was every reason to hope, we should then have seen how fatal was the blow he had struck.

"He failed to accomplish his object; but failure in execution implies no want of judgment in the conception, unless the means should be ridiculously small. They were not so in this case. Gen. Lee believed them to be ample."

The Richmond Examiner says:

"Gen. Lee has re-crossed the Potomac. With this announcement, it is supposed, the second invasion of the United States is at an end. The Government and its chief General undertook this campaign on their own responsibility, and at their own time. Public opinion did not impel their action. But public opinion did most certainly justify, approve, and adopt it. Although it has been abruptly terminated by an unsuccessful battle, we are far from thinking that the design was injudicious.

"This war can be terminated only by such a measure. It might have been gloriously terminated in a month had Gettysburg witnessed the annihilation of the Union army of the Potomac. But that battle was fought in a position which rendered success impossible. Why it was fought is yet unknown."

The Montgomery Advertiser gives a doleful account of rebel prospects in Tennessee. It says Bragg's retreat from Tullahoma is "much to be regretted," and that it "will have a very injurious effect, not merely on the people, but on the troops, particularly those from Tennessee," a number of whose troops, it says "have already deserted." It thus pictures the results of Braggs retreat:

"The retreat from Tennessee opens the northern counties of Georgia and Alabama to the incursions of the enemy. In our own State the Tennessee valley will be desolated, and raiding parties will penetrate the counties lying between the Tennessee and the Alabama, and east of the Bigbee rivers. This will bring the enemy to our own doors, and open the way to the rich counties of South Alabama.

"But there is another view of this question which is important. Vicksburg having fallen, Grant has an army of eighty thousand men at his disposal. It will be impossible for Gen. Johnston to oppose this army with any hope of success, and as he retires toward the Bigbee, which we suppose he will do, Grant will close on him, and unite his army with that of Rosecrans. Here, then, will be an army of one hundred and sixty of seventy thousand men encamped on the soil of Alabama."

The Chattanooga Rebel, Vallandigham's organ in rebeldom, thus discourses upon the advantages gained by the retreat of Bragg:

"Among the object of repining to which the mind very naturally reverts in contemplating the loss of Middle Tennessee, none forces itself more persistently upon us than the rich crops of grain which our retreat threw into the hands of the enemy.

"The crops of Tennessee, like the soil and all else therein, were fair to see. Many a time during the last three months have we cast a hopeful eye upon the teeming acres and their fruitful promise. But luxury, rather than absolute want, was the main figure in the prospect. We saw with gratification the energetic industry which was converting a thousand cotton fields to patches of corn and wheat in the fat South, and at no time did we fear starvation or even need. Hence we have not regarded the Middle Tennessee crops--whilst to be greatly desired--as absolutely essential to our existence, nor do we at this time.

"It would be wanton affectation were we to deny an extreme regret at the loss of so much produce; but we can continue to do without it;' and, in any event, there is no use crying over spilled milk."

The attack upon Charleston seems to have thrown the rebel papers into consternation. They see the hand-writing upon the wall, and confess that the home of treason is probably doomed. The Charleston Courier hoped to save the city, but says its "hope may prove a delusion," that "the capture of our city, may, perchance, delight his (our) base and corrupt hear." It has dim perceptions of the "last ditch," but is philosophical withal. It says:

"On the supposition of the foe's success, it is our duty to avoid incurring his fiendish malignity. All who can be of no service in the work of defence should betake themselves to places of shelter. And it were well not to defer removal to a late day. We may be compelled to remain, or, if we make good our escape, circumstances may oblige us to leave all our personal effects behind."

The Mercury, commenting on the attack upon Morris Island, says:

"It appears to us to be useless to attempt to disguise from ourselves our situation. By whose fault we got into it, it is vain now to inquire. The Yankees having gotten possession of the southern half of Morris Island there is but one way to save the city Charleston, and that is by the speedy and unflinching use of the bayonet. If the fight on Morris Island is to be now a fight by engineering contrivances and cannon merely, the advantage is now with the enemy. With their iron-clads in the water and their men in occupation of the land, it is likely to be a mere question of time. The fall of Fort Wagner ends in the fall of Charleston--Fort Sumter, like Fort Wagner, will then be assailed by land and sea, and the fate of Fort Pulaski will be that of Sumter. Gen. Gilmore, commander of the Department, was the man who reduced Fort Pulaski. Charleston must be saved as Richmond was."

The Mobile Advertiser has been holding a post-mortem examination on the rebel carcass, but, after careful inspection, thinks that there is life in it yet. But some of the subjects of Jeff "seem to be weak in the knees. It says that "there are those who are ready to submit, and anxious for peace and the security of their property on the basis of submission." It adds, that "there have been some signs of this white feather." Will Vallandigham please "make note on't!"

The Richmond Enquirer, of the 16th, contains a proclamation by Jeff. Davis, calling out, under the Confederate Conscription act, all white men between the ages of 18 and 45, to serve for three years, under penalty of being punished for desertion in case of disobeying the call. They are offered the privilege of joining Volunteer organizations before the enrollment.

The Enquirer, in an article headed "Military Necessary," urges that the only salvation of the Southern Confederacy is in making a levy en masse, such as is called for in this proclamation. The application of martial law to a country in a state of siege, the absolute control of all trading, especially of drink, within military lines, the abolition of substiue [sic] exemptions and foreign protections, the material enlargement of the President's power to revise elections of officers, to make appointments, and to get rid of incompetent officers. We believe that Jeff. is not expected to wait for a decision of the courts to ascertain whether such despotic powers are constitutional or not!

The New York riots furnish the only faint gleam of hope for the despairing traitors. They grasp it as sinking men reach for straws. The Enquirer says the news is "cheering to us, indeed, because it portends the breaking down of the whole structure of Yankee society." It had evidently judged the result by the cowardly conduct of Gov. Seymour, forgetting that there is a national government, at once determined and able to enforce its laws.

The movement of Gen. Grant in the Southwest have stricken terror into the very heart of rebeldom. The fall of Vicksburg, Port Hudson, Jackson, and the defeat of Price at Helena, are described by the Richmond Whig as "the most serious disasters that have attended our arms since the commencement of the war." The same paper deplores the loss of Jackson, the capital of Mississippi. It says:

"The evacuation of Jackson, Miss., left in the hands of the enemy the rolling stock of the New Orleans, Jackson and great Northern, the Mississippi Central and Mississippi and Tennessee railroad. The motive power alone consists of over forty engines. The loss is of incalculable importance and is wholly irreparable. Nothing goes well in the Southwest."

The markets in Richmond are eminently interesting:

Gold sells at $9 premium; bacon at $1.50 per lb.; butter $1.50; candles $5; coffee $4; sole leather $3.75; upper $5.50; salt 45c.; sugar $1.50; whiskey $85 per gallon; wheat $7.50 per bushel; rye $7; peas $15; corn $20; flour $35 per barrel; Hay $400 per ton; molasses $10 per gallon; potatoes $15 per bushel; oats $6 per bushel; lime $10 per bbl; dried apples $11 per bushel; dried peaches $16 per bushel. Such are some of the fruits of this causeless, unholy rebellion!

On Tuesday evening after the fight, we found ourselves among the crowd of visitors to the battle field of Gettysburg. There were many whose sad faces and anxious inquiries proclaimed their errand. Others, again, were busily attending to the necessities of the wounded; but perhaps in every breast there was felt something of that strange feeling which instinctively draws us to a battle field. It is not a morbid curiosity as some would claim. It is with a feeling more akin to reverence that we draw nigh to the broad and bloody altar, on which thousands of our fellow beings have so freely laid down their lives for our redemption. Such spots are shrines to which true patriots will ever make their pilgrimages; and we may rest assured that the nation is nigh destruction when it can forget or walk thoughtlessly over its battle grounds. It was with much feeling that we stood on the now historic heights of Gettysburg. The sun was just setting as we began our walk, and the silence of coming night seemed best calculated to impress the scene. A fried who had witnessed the fight walked along, and through his vivid descriptions the whole battle seemed to rage before us. The rising fogs of evening were not unlike the smoke of battle as we had seen it before; and as they hung over the hills on the rebel lines, fancy could easily picture on this misty background, marshaled lines and charging columns. It is exceedingly difficult, as every one is aware who has made like visits, to arrive at the truth concerning the details of the fight. Each soldier claims for the point where he stood, special importance. Never was there so fierce an assault as the one repelled by his brigade. But there are certain points that tell their own story. The deep ruts made by the artillery wheels, the broken fragments of shell, the shrubbery cut down as with the scythe of the mower, the trampled caps and haversacks that no soldier comes to claim, and the graves, thick as if sown broad-cast on the hillside, need no interpreter. There are many such places at Gettysburg, but there is one which will ever claim special interest. It is Cemetery Hill, occupied by our centre. It was, as Gen. Lee said in his address to his soldiers, "the key to the whole position, and the Confederacy expected them to take it." Standing on it one could realize as never before the magnitude of the issues at stake in this one battle. That little hill alone stood between the hosts of the rebels and victory. It was all that seemed to interfere between us and disaster and humiliation to the whole North. But it was peopled that day with heroes; it fairly bristled with cannons and bayonets. The tide of battle swept up to its foot, then back, then forward and partly up its sides, leaving them in its fearful ebb, covered with mangled and bleeding bodies; but still like some bold headland mocking the waves the hill held out.

On the top you can still see the field works marked with the wheels of the cannon. Just on the brow of the hill, was a square field, enclosed by a stone wall. This made two parallel walls to stretch between the patriots on the hill and the rebels; and behind [illegible] long lines of eager soldiers waiting for the coming of the foe. The tops of these walls are now ragged; in some places broken quite to the ground. There is good reason for it, for first the artillery, from those woods opposite, played on them, and then a column, the forlorn hope of the charge, stormed over them. They passed the first with a yell; broken, but not dispirited, they reached the second and clambered over it. They sweep to the brow of the hill, and over it, and at last lay their hands on those cannon behind the field works. But there were men with those guns who scorned to fly. Bravery was met with equal bravery, and they flew to embrace each other in the fearful struggle of death. A rebel laid hold of an artillery man, and in the struggle threw him to the ground, and then seized a limestone to beat out his brains. A patriot lieutenant sprang to aid his comrade; then a rebel officer joined in the fray. It was a brief struggle--a shot, a snapping stab with a bayonet, and two more traitors passed to their doom. This was the way they fought around these guns. For a few brief minutes the enemy held the batteries, then broke and fled in disastrous rout down the hill. Few reached the meadow below. They lay upon the hillside crushed by the pitiless storm that overtook their flying feet. Behind the second wall lay a company of Texians, [sic] unable to move forward or backward. They could not lift their heads, so fierce and incessant was the fire that swept over them. They were afterwards taken prisoners. Next morning after the assault a man might have walked from the muddy stream below, up to the very muzzles of the cannon above, on dead and bleeding bodies. All this occurred just outside the gates of the Cemetery. It seems as if war in cruel mockery of death, had flung a thousand victims at his door. We walked back through the Cemetery, and on all sides were traces of this most sanguinary conflict. Artillery horses had trampled the flower which the hand of affection had planted over the dead; monuments were overturned, and the green sod of graves torn by bursting shells. We noticed one monument shattered by a cannon ball. It was one marking the grave of a young soldier who fell at the battle of Fair Oaks. His last words: "Tell my father I died for my country," were chiseled on the marble, and it seemed, as if for these words, the bitterness of rebellion would disturb his last resting place. But he sleeps on a field of victory after all. To give an account of a walk along the whole line of battle, without entering into a detailed history of the conflict, would be to repeat what has been written. Each hill top has its story of desperate assault and gallant defence; and alike are baptized with patriot blood.

But in order to obtain a correct conception of the sanguinary character of this battle, one must visit the hospitals. The dead are soon covered from the sight; the scarred earth, washed by pitying rains and nursed by the sunshine, quickly recovers from its wound, but men must bleed and groan and die for long days after the shock of battle is over, and the shattered columns have swept away to other scenes. The multitude of such sufferers at Gettysburg is appalling. There are literally acres covered with them, while in the town every available building is turned into a crowded hospital. As we were there early in the week, it was to soon to find much done to relieve their wants. The citizens of the place were doing all in their power, and so far as our personal knowledge goes, we can assert most positively that the charges of extortion and indifference preferred against them are altogether unfounded. The Christian Commission were already present and actively at work. Too much praise cannot be awarded them for their labor of love. Dressing wounds, administering cordials, sponging a parched face, writing letters, or administering a few words of comfort to the dying, thousand of grateful soldiers will bless their names and the charity that sent them. The sufferings of the rebel wounded, for the first five days after the battle, were indescribable. They had been left by their friends lying under trees and sheds, without any adequate medical attendance, or indeed supplies of any kind. The gnawing of hunger soon added to the pains of their neglected wounds, while the drenching rains that followed the battle increased the discomfort of their condition. Every effort was made as soon as possible to relieve their wretched state. They were gathered up and conveyed to a convenient locality on the Chambersburg pike, where tents and supplies were furnished them.

At this point the fields look as if an army were still encamped there; but a closer look is enough to move the hardest heart. Pity turns away to weep, while indignation bursts out afresh against the wicked leaders who betrayed these misguided men to such horrible sufferings. Maimed, wounded, covered with gore and writhing in agony they lie there to mark the pathway the monster secession has trodden. There is a most remarkable contrast between the wounded of the opposing armies. We need not allude to the outward appearance, for the filth and squalid attire of the rebels are proverbial. It is also to be expected from the result of the battle, that one party would be dogged and sullen while the other would be cheerful. But the contrast may be traced in the cheerfulness and patience with which the men bear their wounds. I have yet to hear a regret from our brave soldiers that they entered the army, or that they had sacrificed too much for their country, while among the rebels one could hear without inquiry, most hearty wishes that they were out of the army and safe at home. Frequently did we hear the desire expressed that the "war might soon be over and the Union restored as before." A dying rebel from Georgia, the son of a wealthy planter, sent for a minister in the town to beg of him that he would see him decently buried and write to his friends of his death. He stated that he had been driven into the army by the bayonet, and that his father had offered fifteen hundred dollars for a substitute but none were to be had at any price. Others expressed their sorrow that they had taken up arms against the Union, but who can point out a soldier in our army, sorry for the part he has taken in subduing this rebellion.

The debt the North owes to the Army of the Potomac is one we can never repay. But for it, we would to-day, be lying helplessly in the power of the insurgents. Surely then no appeal need be made to our generosity, to send all necessary supplies to the suffering soldiers at Gettysburg. The number is so great that it will require continuance in well-doing on our part to supply their need. It will be months before this vast army of suffers can be discharged. We might add indefinitely, to what has been written, but every one is busy repeating the story of how they fought at Gettysburg. Nor will it now grow old. History shall record it on her pages, and generations yet unborn, shall read it with throbbing pulses, and with glowing words bring their tribute to the memory of those who have bled and died for their country's redemption.

Gen. S. Wiley Crawford and the Pennsylvania Reserves--His Address to his Troops--The Heroism of the Reserves at Gettysburg.

Correspondence of the Franklin Repository

Gettysburg, July 15, 1863.

Gen. S. Wylie Crawford being identified with our county, his father, Rev. Dr. Crawford, residing but a few miles from Chambersburg, I think it will be interesting to your readers to have a sketch of his connection with the celebrated "Pennsylvania Reserves" in their recent action at Gettysburg. It has been the fortune of this Division to be commanded by some of the ablest generals in the Army of the Potomac. Reynolds, Meade, Ord, and Seymour, disciplined it for the field, and led it in engagements in which it won the proud name it bears, and so often saved the general army from ruin. Accustomed to such leaders, the Reserves' ideas of commanders were very high; and when Gen. Crawford, a young man, came from another quarter to take command, he was scrutinized zealously. You can readily see how delicate the position in which he was placed; that the utmost that he dared hope was to keep upon an equality with his able predecessors. At Upton's Hill, Va., near Washington, and among its defences, he took command of two of the three brigades composing McCall's Division P.R.V.C.,--the 1st Brigade under Col. McCandless, of the 2d Regiment consisting of the "Bucktails," 1st, 2d and [illegible] Regiments, and the 3d Brigade under Col. Fisher, of the 5th comprising the [illegible], 10th, 11th and 12th Regiments. Quickly and unostentatiously he assumed his charge, and proceeded at once to the more efficient organization of the Division, and to the strengthening of our position. Just as we had ourselves nicely fixed, the order came for us to join the Fifth Corps of the Army of the Potomac, then commanded by Maj. Gen. Meade. Our marches were eminently forced; day and night, in almost constant rains, footsore, weary, faint and hungry, we hurried along from the 25th June until the 2d July, when we closed our long march on the battle-field. The General conducted this fatiguing march with great judgment, and evinced much sympathy with the men, sharing the exposure and cheering them on their way.

Immediately before we crossed the "State Line," the historic, "Mason & Dixon," while the Division rested, Gen. Crawford issued the following animating address to his troops:

Soldiers of the Pennsylvania Reserves:

You have once more been called to the field, by an order from the Commanding General, and a rapid and fatiguing march has placed us again by the side of our comrades, endeared to us by sufferings on many hard fought fields. If you would hail the prospect of active service, at any time, with delight, how much more now! Our native State is invaded by the ruthless hordes of plunderers, who, forgetting South Mountain and Antietam, and allured by the spoils of our rich valleys, have polluted the soil of Pennsylvania. Our homes are desolated, our fields laid waste, our property destroyed! To-day, within a few hours, we shall tread the soil of the Keystone. The eyes of all will be upon us. To us, they will look with anxious hearts for relief. Let the sight of our mountains and our native plains free your hearts and nerve your arms in the hour of battle. We strike for all that is dear to man. Remember, you are Pennsylvanians. Let no breach of discipline mar the glory of the past, but let us pledge to each other to-day never to cease until we drive the enemy of our country, our constitution, and our peace, forever from our soil.

S. W. Crawford,
Brig. Gen.

The address was received with enthusiasm, and the men crossed over to Pennsylvania, whose loyal hills and forests resounded with the cheers of her gallant sons, who were about to repeat upon her own soil the deeds of valor which made famous the battle-fields of Virginia and Maryland.

A gentleman, who witnessed all he writes, gives me, at my request, the following sketch of the part the General and his Division displayed at the battle of Gettysburg:

The 1st and 3d Brigades of the Penn'a Res. Vol. Corps, commanded by Brig. Gen. Crawford, had been hurrying by forced marches to the defence of the Keystone State. Through rain and mud, from daylight until dark, and often through the dark hours of the night, they trudged along the Leesburg pike, down the green slopes of the upper Potomac, through the gardens and wonderful farms of the Maryland valleys, until, with colors flying, drums beating, and the air resounding with their cheers, they crossed the border line. At the first halting place on Pennsylvania soil, a soul- stirring address was made to them by Gen. Crawford, reminding them that their position was no common one; that they, the chosen sons of Pennsylvania, were now called upon to save their homes and firesides from pollution, and exhorting them to conduct themselves as no soldiers ever did before, now that the eyes of their own people were upon them.

At 11 o'clock in the morning of Thursday, July 2d, the Reserves arrived on the battleground at Gettysburg, and were ordered to lie with the 5th corps in reserve. The booming of the guns increased, until about 3 o'clock, P.M. The battle on the left raged with the greatest fury, the 5th Corps were ordered to the front; first, was Griffin's Division, commanded by General Barnes, then the regulars commanded by General Ayres, and, finally the Reserves. Griffin's Division took the centre, on the slope of a rocky and precipitous hill side; in front was Ayres, his men lying behind a stone-wall, separated by a swamp from the rest of the corps; they were actively engaged, sheets of fire flamed from the wall, and long quick, rattling replied from the woods in front. High up on "Hazlitt's rock" flashed the guns, lower down right and left, batteries were vomiting forth shot and shell. The Reserves were first placed in position on the hill-side between Griffin's Division and one of Hancock's Division. Then Fisher's Brigade, 3d Brigade P. R. V. C., was ordered to the extreme left, the enemy then threatening our flank.

At half past six o'clock the fate of the day was undecided--suddenly a murderous fire was opened on Ayers' flank,--unexpected, and enough to daunt the staunchest heart as was this attack, his men for a time stood firm, but their rapidly diminishing ranks, the hopeless position they held was soon manifest, and General Ayers gave the order to fall back. In good order, with closed ranks, they rose up and commenced to retreat; but the swamps and broken ground soon threw them into confusion. The rebels, seeing their position, rushed down upon them with savage yells, pouring volley after volley among them, and finally occupied the stone wall. General Crawford rode to the front,--Col. McCandless and General Crawford's staff officers called to their men to stand steady, as the human tide came down upon them. Through their (Ayers') ranks they rushed. Quicker and quicker came the boom of the guns as the advantage the rebels had gained became so fearfully apparent. Gen. Crawford gave the word to advance. Down the hill; and in a steady line, the Brigade went; paused at its foot, and delivered a single volley; before the smoke had cleared, General Crawford gave the order to charge across the swamp. The "Bucktails" leading with a wild hurrah, they passed. General Crawford seized the colors of the leading regiment and raised them aloft. Suddenly the fire from behind the wall ceased. Cheer after cheer rang from the hills, now crowded on every rock and tree with spectators, and towards the woods a crowd of "greybacks" could be seen running. A few steps further the lost position was gained, and the left of the line was saved, many a gallant man however marked the track behind. The "Bucktails" had suffered most, and Colonel Taylor, their leader, lay dead on the ground. A murderous fire was kept up on both sides until night terminated the contest.

The 3d Brigade had not been idle during this time, just in front of them rose a wooded pyramidal hill, occupied by a considerable force of rebel sharpshooters, who inflicted a serious loss [illegible] troops. This hill, towards dark Col. Fisher with the 5th and 12th Regiments, and the 20th Maine, of Griffin's Division ascended and held, securing a strong position on which the left of the army [illegible].

After dark, General Crawford, Colonel McCandless and Capt. Auchmuty, the newly appointed Assistant Adjutant General of the Division, made a personal inspection of the line of skirmishers thrown out on the edge of the wood beyond the wall. The fierce nature of the conflict was there fully realized in the dead and wounded that lay around. The wheat was trodden down, arms lay scattered about. The bright full moon looked calmly down, the quiet broken now and then by a rifle's crack or the whiz of some sharpshooter's bullet.

Crouched behind the wall, ready at any moment for an attack, the Brigade passed the night, while the troops on the left piled rocks and logs into formidable breastworks.

Day-break of Friday was ushered in by the customary volleys of musketry, the skirmishers shifting during the night, are at day-break compelled to take a regular positton [sic]. At ten o'clock, the battle re-commenced by tremendous attacks on the right of the line. From the left a scene was presented which has had no parallel in the war. The high rocky hill, previously described, commanded a view of the entire field. The 146th New York was disposed among the rocks as sharpshooters, their red figures brightening up the rocks. On the summit still stood Hazlitt's battery. There Major General Sykes, commander of Fifth Corps, General Crawford, and General Ayers estab- [sic] their headquarters, and later in the day, General Meade himself. For two miles or more extended an open country, dotted with farm houses, with here and there a clump of wood. On this plain, as it appeared from the height, the two magnificent armies were in full view, and every movement could be traced with the naked eye. The never to be forgotten scene was rendered more exciting by the enemy sharpshooters, who, occupying the opposite trees, dealt death with an unsparing hand. General Weed was here killed, and Dr. Hazlitt, while listening to his dying words, fell dead upon his body. Still no danger could counteract the attraction of that sternly grand army, and crowds of officers gathered constantly upon the rocks. At 5 o'clock, General Sykes directed General Crawford to send McCandles' Brigade in the woods in front from which the firing had nearly ceased. Bartlett's brigade was ordered to support it in case of necessity.

The woods in front were about a mile long and some eight hundred yards wide, with a narrow wheat field running partly thro the centre. A rebel battery, posted on a ridge of land overlooking the woods, opened a hot fire of canister and round shot, as the men rose up from behind the wall. Into the woods on the right, the brigade swept, driving the enemy's skirmishers before them. Loud cheers rang from the hillsides as the advance was made, and the battery, evidently supposing a general advance was to be made, hastily limbered up and retired. Having cleared the woods on the right, the Brigade changed front and moved down parallel to the front, receiving and returning a severe fire of musketry from the enemy, who now appeared in considerable force. The Brigade moved rapidly on, obeying the injunction of Gen. Crawford, that speed was safety in such a movement. Suddenly the left flank of the line was discovered to be in the rear of the 15th Georgia, drawn up in line of battle. In a moment, Col. McCandless swept his right flank around, and charged them in the rear. Completely panic-stricken, down went their arms, and a general skedaddle ensued; their colors, their Liet. Colonel, 120 of their men, and most of their arms, were captured. This brilliaut [sic] manoeuvre finished the operations of the day. A line of pickets was posted, and an examination was made of the field. It was found to be thickly covered with dead and wounded. Groans issued from almost every bush and sheltered spot, where some poor wretch had crawled for safety from the shot and shell poured from either line. The wounded, many of whom had been uncared for during twenty-four hours, were removed, and a collection of the abandoned arms was made. These amounted to 4,687 stand; one brass Napoleon gun was also taken, and three caissons. Many of these arms, however, had been left by our own men in the fiercely contested battle which had raged on this ground the previous morning. This ended the fighting at Gettysburg, and the service at that battle of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps. Their loss was 230 in killed and wounded, including 21 reported as missing.

Gen. Crawford displayed the utmost concern for the care of the wounded, and as he had gained ground last in front, he sent at once for the litter bearers and ambulances, and had the wounded borne to the rear; thus our hospitals were filled with the wounded from several other corps, and with rebels.

The following gentlemen constitute Gen. Crawford's staff; Capt. R.T. Auchmuty, Asset Adj. General; Major Spear, A. I. G.: Capt. Livingston, A. D. C; Capt. Fox, Division Qr. M.; Lieut. Henderson, A.D.C.; Lieut Thos. Oakwell, 5th Ky., A.D.C.; Surgeon L. W. Reade, Med. Director of Division.

I have written this in great haste, having crawled into a vacant ambulance to find shelter from the dashing rain. I close with the hope that God may give a great victory in the coming battle to the cause of the Union and humanity.

When the impartial historian shall come to record the victories, defeats and embarrassments of our Government in its sacred effort to preserve our free institutions, the most appalling chapter in his chequered pages will be that devoted to the covert treason, the cowardly misrepresentation, the base appeals to partizan prejudices, and the thin guise of hypocrisy that presents cold professions of loyalty to a loyal people, while beneath rankles the deadliest hatred to the preservation of our nationality, save upon the altar of dishonor.

The Democratic State Convention held its sessions at Harrisburg, while armed traitors reveled in the Cumberland Valley, plundering our people, holding possession and exhausting the wealth of our towns and distracts; insolently defying alike National and State authorities, and inflecting upon the fair fame of our Commonwealth the dishonor of rebel occupation of our soil. Some of the delegates in attendance were fugitives from their homes, and their families and property at the mercy of the minion of murderous treason. The people of the State were flying to arms in obedience to the call of the proper authorities, and the measured tread of recruits unceasing around the halls wherein were congregated the magnates of Democracy struggling to obtain the power and spoils of office.

The main duty of that Convention was to nominate a candidate for Governor, who, if chosen, would be charged with the maintenance of peace, order and security of the citizens and the honor of the State, and to declare the principles and policy upon which the Government shall be preserved and administered. How that duty was discharged, let the record answer. A man was presented for Governor who has yet to utter the first earnest word of encouragement to the Government in preserving the life of the Republic against unholy treason; and whose every declarations upon the subject deny the power of the Nation to meet armed traitors with arms, and thus assert its inherent right to live. A platform was presented by Hon. F. W. Hughes, who signalized his devotion to the Government, when the war commenced by tendering Pennsylvania as a free offering to those who have by wanton, wicked war, made millions mourn. Avowedly a friend of the deadly foes of the republic, he could do no less, in a loyal State, than guise treason in every resolution, and attempt to poison the whole fountain of honest devotion to the cause of a common country.

That he succeeded well, is a painful, palpable truth. Of the eleven resolutions adopted, not one--not so much as a single sentence or line, breathes the spirit of an earnest, honest friend of the preservation of our Nationality. In reckless misrepresentation; in the recital of imaginary errors of the administration; in the denunciation of every measure adopted to give success to our arms in the errors of the administration; in the denunciation of every measure adopted to give success to our arms in the field and to our honored flag; in defending the cause of open, insolent traitors upon whom the hand of the government had but too leniently fallen--in all this they are matchless in vigor and elaborate in terms. But they are wanting--sadly, wholly wanting in every expression of devotion to our Country's cause; in every impulse of patriotism that looks to the subordination of all things to the preservation of our government; in every expression that would cheer a soldier's heart, or solace the thousands of bereaved whose loved ones died that Freedom might live; in the reprobation of the relentless murderers of our gallant sons in the cause of mad ambition and deadly treachery--in all these they are silent as the grave!

The People of Pennsylvania are loyal. They may be defrauded into the embrace of treason, but they cannot be marshaled under a traitor's flag or on a traitor's platform, if not deceived by subtle, insidious foes. We ask every man, of whatever political attachment, to peruse carefully and ponder well the platform from which Judge Woodward hopes to climb into the Executive chair. Had Seymour's speeches and platform last fall been half so frank in espousing the cause of our country's foes, he would not have been clothed with the power of the Empire State to prostrate it at the feet of a murderous, plundering mob; and if Woodward can be successful, the bitter foretaste of Democratic rule given to New York will be the ruling power of the land. Anarchy will hold undisputed sway in the great States of the North, and treason will compass the entire government in its triumphant embrace. Loyal men of Pennsylvania!--think well of the entertainment to which you are invited!

Mr. Stahle, Editor of the Gettysburg Compiler, has been discharged from Fort McHenry. He took the oath of allegiance to the government, and gave his parole of honor to appear at any time to answer charges, should any be preferred against him sufficiently grave to demand the cognizance of a court. For his own sake, as well as for the sake of his kindred who shall survive him, we hope that his record is clear, and that he has been wronged. The man who could play the part of a spy for an enemy at his own home, is the foe of order, of humanity, of every virtue, and is unfit to live. Of such a crime we should not judge a man guilty in haste or prejudice; but when dispassionate proof fixes guilt, it would be an act of inhumanity to every loyal house-hold, and the veriest fraud upon Justice, to permit him to live. Mr. Stahle has suffered some for his country, and may boast his martyrdom like scores of fools before him; but he should not be unmindful that an hundred thousand patriotic hearts have sealed their devotion to a common country with their life blood, that he might enjoy for himself and posterity the Free Institutions of our fathers. If he will not imitate them by rallying to the Old Flag in the field, let him at least disarm suspicion by giving heart and hope to the Nation's cause.

Messrs. Hoover, Anderson, Mong, King and A.B. Hamilton, of this county, who had been captured in Hagerstown, by the rebels, were taken across the Potomac to Falling Waters, and there discharged on Wednesday last. They had a sorry time of it with the rebels, particularly in procuring rations. They fully confirm the previous reports of the destitution of the rebel army and the dispirited condition of their soldiers. They were discharged without even being paroled. The other party of our citizens, viz.: Dr. James Hamilton, John P. Culbertson, D.M. Eiker, Geo. R. Caufman, C.W. Kinsler, Geo. S. Heck, A.C. McGrath, Thos. McDowell, and J. Porter Brown, were last heard from near Winchester, and have doubtless been taken to Richmond. Efforts have been made to have their wants supplied and to procure their early discharge.

Since writing the above we learn from a colored woman who left Winchester on Thursday evening last, that our citizen prisoners were all there at that time, in good health, and were being subsisted by the Union people of Winchester. As Lee's army has since moved south, they have doubtless been taken along.