The new South. (Port Royal, S.C.) 1862-1867, March 15, 1862, Image 2
^b u j II.
l^^^MKu^^MEj, MARCH, 15, 1802.
^thbotRm^outh.
Issued weekly from ? TflpFsv Soutii " printing
jf* office?Union Square, Porf Royal, S..C. Price five
cents per "copy ^ *
Advertisements one <^lar a liue, each insertion.
Terms, invariably cash. >>*
ADAM BADEAU .'- ;..Ei>itob.
JOS. II. SEAKS :. Pubusuer.
INAUGURATE.
Not often lias a uewsT>ai>eafrrcui ied so singular a
position as that filled to-day ujf^The New South."?
Issued in a military command, addressed mostly to
soldiers at the scat of war, ifs audience is yet not j
purely military, but iii part nftval, in part civil; it is
possible that some portion maybe found at the North,!
it is not impossible that we may occassional!}- reach
the ear of Southerners, debarred now for a twelve- j
month from learning what the. sentiments and intentions
and power of the nation really are.
In acting as spokesman both to and for this varied
population we shall have several aims in viaw: first
of all to support, so far as we are able the national
government. In order to do this more effectually we
shall abstain from the discussion of exciting political
topics, believing that the business of our most imme
diate readers is now military, nipt political, and that
it is the province of the true patriot at this juncture, j
to do nothing to divide the nMfrnml forces, or to dis-'
tract their energies from the one great object of us all,
the suppression of the Rebellion. Here is a common j
ground where ail can meet, ami on that we mean to ;
plant ourselves. It shall be our endeavor to strengthen j
the hands of the government anji those who represent.
it, to incite tjw courage and fortify the endurance of i
its defenders, sot to sow the seeds of discord among '
those who are themselves battling against the results
of discord. Next we desire to Ornish news of interand
ha-.
Information concerning public matters at the North, j
the movements of the national armies and affairs
abroad, will be presented in a condensed form, it is
true, but still we trust a correct view of all important
affairs will be afforded. The doings within this mili-:
tary command will of course receive a due share of;
attention; Port Royal, Beaufort, Tybee and Otter:
Islands, and other places occupied by our forces will
not be neglected,and proceedings of every nature fit for
publication will be chronicled; but none of our loyal
readers will complain if we with hold any thing that
ecum oy any cnance prove or service to tne enemy.
The news of the fleet, however, the daily lite in camp,;
the health of the command, and a thousand other details
will at once suggest themselves as proper subjects ;
for report. These matters it is hoped, will prove of
* ' sufficient interest to the conntry at large for us to rely
on a support from other quarters not altogether insignificant.
And if an occasional copy of a Union paper should j
find its way to the deluded and unfortunate people with
whom we are contending, s. .mo idea of the hopelessness
of their effort may be afforded them. When
they discover that the Unionists are so lirnily estab-'
lished hero as to issue and support newspapers, they
will admit that we have ho idea of returning; they
will conclude that our occupation is not purely a military
one; they will perhaps see how desperate is their
own condition, and submit more readily to the govern- >
* inent which has never wished to do more than bring
them back to their allegiance, but which is determined
to do that at every cost and at every hazard, and if
need arises by the employment of every means.
?? - - . i
Newspapers receiving the present number of
K " The Stw Smithy" and wishing to exchange, will
please commence forwarding their issues at once.
Ir f
^^)ur next number will contain a complete list o j
the deaths in this command, since the sailing of the
Expeditionary Corps, in October last.
V I. ' j
1
* i
Thq Situation.
Our contemporaries at the North are in the habit of
uuiiuuiicing iu iueir uauy issues me suuauon 01 unitary
affairs, sure that nothing else can hare so great
an interest for their readers. We can not promise to
I be equally explicit in our developments, though perhaps
we might be equally accurate without occasi#n1
ing much harm ; but instead of attempting to tell all'
that we know and a great deal more that we guess in 1
regard to operations iu_jhis vicinity, it has occurred to
j us that a synopsis of jvhat has already been accom-,
; plislied here since the 7$h of last November, nay well
supply the place of an article on the " Situation."
j Since the ca]?ture of^'ort Koyal and the landing of
the Expeditionary Corj?,events have not been laggard,
i A great harbor, previously almost unknown to the
| world, has been opened,; light ships and buoys estab- ,
lished ; the results'of tfce coast survey verified ; piers
have been built for the guiding of stores, and as many '
as seventy or eighty vessels may be constantly seen
in the hay?inen-of-waf, transports, merchant ships,
steam tugs, schooners, loops, &c. Since the battle '
| of Hilton Head the Navy has reconnoitered the entire i
coast between Fcrnau<yna on the South and Stono
Inlet on the North; ha$ penetrated into other bays'
and inlets often as far ten or twenty miles; taken
the first possession of Tybee Island and North Edisto;
driven the encmv.out of" the town of Rockville ; assisted
in the dash mad* upon Port Royal Ferry on
the 1st of January; sung the stone fleet in Charleston
Harbor; supervised tbf colony of Negroes at North
Edisto, and played its part in the movements at Fernandina.
Since the 7th of Nov unber, a town has sprung up
on Hilton Head, where it least a thousand civilians
must be now employed, n one capacity or another,?
teamsters, carpenters, mi chinisis, laborers, newsj?aper
reporters, sutlers, post 1 lasters and editors ; and, of
late even women and ch dren have been seen within
the limits of the comma! i. Long lines of hospitals,
6tables and store houses' or quartermasters and commissaries'
use, bakeriei ; negro quarters and other
buildings have been en fted, ^quite transforming the
appearance -of II |i|jM I"11 II'I I have been set to
1TWB-!rmtloub tasks amTbecome entirely accustomed
to their new condition, cotton to tho value of hundreds
of thousands of dollars has been obtained from
the Sea Islands, the blacks laboring vigorously and
willingly, collecting, ginning and baling.
Since the 7th of November, long lines of fortifications
have been thrown up on this island, and lined
with armament which defies any attack; Beaufort ?
the " Newport " of South Caroliua, has been occupied
by federal troops, Tybeo Island has been held
and put into a position of defence ; Otter Point has
been seized; Bay Point occupied aud strongly fortified
; troops have been thrown upon nearly every one
of these famous " Sea Islands " and tho entire coast
definitely abandoned by Rebel forces.
Since the date of our arrival here, there has occurred
one brisk little engagement with the enemy at
Port Royal Ferry, in which the National forces, both
Army and Navy manifested pluck and coolness
?tne most (lesiraoie qualities in soiuicrs or sauors. |
The nerve of officers was equally apparent. The result
proposed was completely accomplished and
the enemy driven back from an annoying position,
his battery destroyed and his impertinence chastised.
More important however than any purely military
movement made here since the 7 th of November, has '
been the blockadiug of the Savannah Kiver; effected ]
by the erection of two forts on Jones and Bird islands,
within eight miles of the city of Savannah; works j
erected under infinite difficulties and amid great danger
on spots hitherto supposed to be absolutely untenable
if not inaccessible; and which have already '
proved their efficiency by driving off the Kebel fleet i
and forciug Tatnall to acknowledge that " ho could j t
not have remained ten minutes longer within their <
range without being smashed to pieces."
The Situation then is one upon which those who, i
have contributed to accomplish it, may honestly con- !
gratulate themselves and-that may well prove an auspi- j
eious augury for the events which are to follow. ,
i
I
?The
Western Victories.
The successes which have attended our arms at the
West, continue, and the results are even greater than
*1 i t 4. ti.,
me successes iiieuwen es. run ueurjr, r uri isuueison,
Mill Spring have demonstrated beyond a shadow
of doubt, two things which the rebels proclaimed wero
not demonstrable-the bravery of Northerners and
the existence of a Union spirit- in the slave slides.
The question of relative manhood is s^t at rest forever,
after the gallant bayonet charge of the Ohio
regiment at Somerset, and the desperate valor with
which the troops from Southern Illinois held their
own, through the weary hours of Saturday, the loth
of February. In neither of these instauces was it
preponderance of force which decided the result at ,
that particular spot; and iu neither of these instances
did the Rebels hesitate when once they discovered
they were fairly whipped -to yield. Let us hear no
more then of Jthc superior bravery of the Southerner.
Indeed tlie Rielimond papers have already learnt the
lesson of the day, and acknowledge that they " have
relied too much upon the cowardice of the enemy."
The other result accomplished by the battles in
Kentucky and Tennessee, is that the population of
these states is really waiting to come back to its alio"
giance. And not only of those states; the revulsion
extends over iuto Alabama?and by the very latest
dates wo learn?to Mississippi. If a reaction begins
in Jeff Davis's own state, it is fair to presume that it
is destined to be universal. The patriotic spirit that
would not be smothered in Eastern Tennessee when
things looked darker, now breaks out clearly in the
light of our successes; and volunteers are received
by the government; while a second gunboat expedition
up the Tennessee River was as brilliant in its discoveries
as its predecessor, that so stirred the country.
Nashville and Columbus are now in our hands.
The Tennessee aud Cumberland rivers are oj?en to
free and unrestricted commerce, trade has begun
again between Nashville and New York, and every
proof of loyalty is given by the people who we have
so long heard were unanimous in favor of the rebellion.
The beginning of the end is surely evident; for the
alacrity with which our generals advanced and followed
up these victories atfords the best possible presage _
i nil ii ii ? ill wfcdb m '
happy re-unions.The
Reviews.
The Review of troops at Hilton Ilcad on Monday,
March 3, was unanimously pronounced by old army
officers, one of the finest they had seen. More than
nnc roffimnnt vnllintl>PrM <>vtnrt??rt frnni *lin rnm.L.
x.. . ?%?v ?vgmai
officers, this praise.
The inspection at Beaufort on the Gth was equally
satisfactory; the three arms of the service seemed
to vie with each other; artillery, cavalry and infantry
manifesting the most gratifying improvement in drill
and discipline. It has always been said that volunteers
were the best material in the world for soldiers;
it has already been proven that the material required
working up; what results can be attained when it is
worked up have been shown the world within the last
month at the "West. The fact that the process of
working goes on here,was evidenced by these reviews.
"When the time comes for the army hero to act on a
scale and in events commensurate with those that
have attracted the attentien of the country elsewhere,
the army here will be ready.
A Contrast. Brig. Generals Grant and Buell have
both been made Major Generals since the result of
thoir brilliant movements at the West has reached
the government; and have besides made their names
AA.int?o
laminar 111 iikj niuuuis nuu nvans ui mcu tuuuu;men,
as household words. The latest news from
North Carolina is that Brig. Gen. Huger has been
placed under arrest. While the llaleigh Rtftorler thinks
"this news too good too good to be true," the Memphis
journals announce Floyd as a traitor and scoundrel
; he is even twitted with the thefts which he perpetrated
on the National Government in order to
recommend himself to the rebels.
Otter Island. An unfortunate circumstance occurred
yesterday morning at Otter Island. Two
small parties of the 45th Pennsylvania regiment
went out to surround a number of Rebels, supposed
to be lurking in the vicinity. They were led along
different routes by negro guides, but the guides were
stupid, and in the grey of morning, the two detachments
came upon each other, when one party fired ;
two were killed on the spot, Captain E. Y. Rambo,
and a corporal, whose name we have not yet been
ible to learn ; two were severely wounded in the
luijgs, and are unlikely to recover, and several others
w ere slightly wounded.