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VOL. II. ft THE FREE SOUTH BEAUFORT, S. C., APRIL 1>, 1884. ur TukFujc Sol'tii nuj be obtained at lliltou llead . f FRED. J. ST1MSON, at tbc store adjoining the Ad- | am* Express Office. raws BY THE FULTON. By the arrival of the Fulton we have New ' York tiates to'the 4th inst. We are under ; obligations to Purser McManus, for files of papers. The rebel General Forrest, with 2000 men, attacked Union City, Tennessee, on i the 25th ulk, and captured the small body j of Union troops, only 400 in number, gar- | risoning the town. The garrison made a ; vigorous defense,repulsing their assailants j three times before surrendering to superior numbers. The enemy destroyed the j fortifications, and immediately marched j their prisoners southward. On the 25th, j Forrest, with a force of over 5000 men, attacked and destroyed Paducah, Ky., the ! citizens flying across the Ohio River. A large amount of plunder was secured. Col. Hicks, commanding the post, occupied the fort below the city, with about 800 men. The rebels made four assaults j on the fort and were repulsed each time. Three of our gunboats opened upon the ?ity daring its occupation by the enemy. Onr loss was 14 killed and 45 wounded. From 150 to 300 rebels were killed, among them General Thompson. Twenty-five houses around the fort were destroyed by our troops, as they were used by the rebel sharp-shooters as a ecreen. The headquarters and Government store-houses were burned by the enemy. Toward the end of the battle it was discovered that our axnunition was nearly exhausted. ** 1 -1 fchon gave out the fort would be defended with the bayonet as long as a man remained alive, which determination was received with hearty cheers by all the troops. The negroes in the front, 220 in all, fought with great gallantry. The military situation in East Tennessee remains unchanged. A dispatch from Chattanooga says that the rebels present a very strong front at Dalton, that Johnston is receiving reinforcements from General Polk, and that a portion of Longstreet's cavalry had arrived at Marietta, Ga. A dispatch from Fort Smith brings the important intelligence that the Army of the Frontier, nnder command of General J. M. Thayer, was set in motion on the 25th of March, its destination being Northern Texas. WRECK OF THE KINGFISHER. This noble bark has gone to destruction in a deplorable manner. It had become necessary to change her locality from one channel of the St. Helena Sound to another. On the 28th of Mcrch, the removal was attempted; but the accretion of b&rnacles and sea weed to her bottom had rendered her incapable of obeying the helm, after a detention in one spot of sixteen months, upon blockading service. A gale was blowing, and this, with the set of the tide, drove her ashore fci St. ITolana SLrknn/1 ?hpi>A t.hft scanrls nnif'klv drifted around her, grasping the vessel as in a vice. Aid was solicited from Fleet Captain Reynolds, of the Vermont; but although every effort was made to rescue her, all proved to be of no avaiL A storm quickly followed, and the great waves that beat in upon her aides opened her seams, and tore her to pieces. Early efforts to save her armament were made, with entire success. One 30 pounder Parrot gun, two Dahlgren 12 pounders, and four eight inch guns, as well as her masts, spars, sails, and much else of value, were taken out of her. The accident was unattended with loss of life. Every one THE FREE SOUTH?BEAUP of the ship's company from the commanding officer to the youngest boy behaved admirably; and to their good conduct, in a great measure, is due the redemption of the ship's armament, etc., from loss. During the long period that Acting Master Dutch has given to his country in the Kingfisher, he has become identified with the safety of the neighboring military posts and the efficiency of the blockade. With so many rivers and inlets to watch and guard with his boats, his may be said to have been in reality picket duty. Without a consort, and deprived of all opportunities of becoming enriched by the taking of prizes, the officers and crew of 1 the Kingfisher have by their tenacity, fidelity, and zeal, enobled themselves and | made their mark in the naval history of the Slaveholders' Great Rebellion. In the hundreds of boat expeditions by day and night, in which they have participated, it is probable that they have gained an unparalled knowledge of the intricate system of inlets, islands, creeks, etc,, which it was their duty to blockade. In their frequent visits to the land, they have deprived the enemy of many cattle, horsi es and slaves. Indeed, the friendly lamps | of the Kingfisher were the beacons of lib1 erty by night to many a negro ambitious | of manhood, to be achieved by perilling life for freedom. The " dug-outs " of the natives were paddled across the broad waters of St Helena Sound, and a hearty welcome given to all refugees who could reach the vessel Among the freedmen, the name of Acting-Master Dutch is synonymous with deliverance. His true t sailor's hospitality and sympathy with the oppressed has endeared him to all who have experienced or witnessed his kindness. Although the loss of his vessel is ;nnAkM o nalamitv xl-pi trust that itl 1/lilO jiutv?uv w v. ^ , from the present evil will spring a future good?the appointment of Mr. Dutch to | a larger, and more fuseful vessel, and his i promotion to a rank commensurate with the increased responsibilities, and with : his deserts and abilities. I The Fire Department~Our Chief Engineer. On Monday evening last, at the regular 1 meeting of the. Company, the following ; gentlemen were elected officers of New ' York Hose Co. No. 1: Mr. Samuel S. 1 Room, Foreman, vice W. H. Hyatt, elected Chief Engineer of the Beaufort Fire Dei partment; Mr. G. W. Pond, Asst. Foreman ; Mr. M. J. French, Treasurer. After the meeting, the company proceeded to the residence of Mr. Hyatt to congratulate liim on his new office. A ! large number of choice spirits were on hand. Mr. Hyatt was presented during | the evening with a beautiful silver horn by Mr. G. W. Pond. The recipient of this appropriate present assured his friends that though unable to make a > ii i 1 t i r i,;, Ispeecn, ixiey suouia near ixum mm, w occasion, through the horn. An elegant collation was partaken of by the guests, who separated at a late hour fully persuaded that we have a well organized Fire Department in Beaufort. . _ t . Important to Military Officers.?All officers are warned not to put their claims for service from date of commission to date of muster in the hands of attorneys or other agents for collection at a discount, as it has been decided under military regulations that all claims foi services so rendered are good as againsl the general government. The process oi collection is to collect from the State ir whose service such officer enlisted ? the -? - * < % ji State being reimbursed Dy tne govern ment. 9G&* More particularly is hereafter tc be observed in granting leaves of absence or permission for any officer to visit Wash ington. They ar? now required to address for this purpose Major Gen. flalleck, ant must state the business for which thej desire the permission. 'ORT, S. C., APRIL 0, 18C4. " Full Particulars of lhe Destruction of the Klaple Leaf. The Maple Ijeof\ steam transport, Capt. H. W. Dale, left Palatka Florida, on the night of the 31st of March, at about 11 o'clock,., and had gone to within 12 miles of Jacksonville, when at about ^ o'clock the following morning, she I struck a torpedo, floating in the St John's River, and was sunk by the effects of the explosion which immediately followed. Her hnll and engines now lie in 24 feet or more of water. The hurricane deck alone was above the surface of the river, two minutes after the torpedo had , burst under her port bow. The fore-mast was hurled out of the ship by the force of the blow, Four negroes asleep in the forward part of the boat, below, near the Point of contact with the torpedo were killed. They were Eli Foster, and Simon 1 Field, deck hands, and Chas. Simons and Benj. Wiggan, fireman. No other casualities attended the disaster. Immediately upon awaking after the shock, the Captain assembled his ship's company, and the passengers upon the hurricane deck, launched the three row boats provided for emergencies, detailed the passengers and boat's crew for each boat, and saw all the survivors safely afloat before he would leave his ship. Among the passengers were the wife and child of Capt. Chadwick, of Gen. Hatch's staff. The lady escaped in her night dress. She exhibited heroic coolness and intepidity, offering to steer or row in case of skilled boatmen proving to few for the occasion. Her husband and Capt. Langdon, also of the commanding General's 1 "* ?-at- AL. 1_ SIKH Were WltU uic pmtj. r utj -n^ui. souls in all escaped destruction, and arrived at Jacksonville, three or four hours after ihe accident. Near Buckles Bluff, in the neighborhood, some rebel pickets witnessed the explosion. Deeming the party in the boats too numerous to capture, they did not attempt to harrass their retreat. For want of room in his boats, CaptDale left four rebel prisoners on the hurricane deck of the Maple Leaf, These remained unttl the evening of the 1st April, when the gunboat Norwich brought them i off. In the interim boats from the shore j had plundered the ship of all the trunks, l and other portable property within reach. Whether from unwillingness to escape or refusal of the river-pirates to release them, i the rebel prisoners remained on the vesi sel and are now in Jacksonville. The above particulars were furnished for the Free South by Capt. Dale, late in charge of the Ala/de Leaf. ? ? , Garrett Davis' resolution of inquiry into the part taken by Col. T. W. Higginson in the rescue of Anthony Burns was tabled on the 17th ult. by a vote of 29 to 10. Davis, of course, first made a long speech, in which the " unpardonable | sin " of resisting the Fugitive Slave law was illustrated after the Kentucky fashion. ' In tbe Name of the Prophet, Fig*. We learn from a frantic Q. M. clerk that the department has ordered the issue [ I of red imt to be stopped. Enquiries have , also been instituted as to what becomes , of the sealing wax, and all hands are put , on short {allowance. The government . means to retrench. We shall hear next . that red tape is dispensed with. m 9 m News from Charleston. ^ Two rebel rams building in Charleston t i harbor are within the range of our guns k | on Morris Island. Shot and shell have disturbed the labors of the workmen employed on these ships, and the result has been a mutiny among these mechanics and > laborers, who do not care to expose themi selves to almost certain death in return . for payment in Confederate money. i Torpedo boats are observed by our I blockading vessels, moving about in the j harbor of Charleston. They are closely watched and guarded against. NO. 14. > v' The J-iuid Diffieuitic*. i The Government lias sent, we are informed, n special agent, Hon. Austin Smith, to this department to investigate the relative merits of the pre-emption claims, and the land sales, and to harmonise, as far as possible the action of the government with the true intents and rights of the people, esjiecially the freed111 pn. We understand lie is a man of great candor. He should look into the questions at issue from different stand-points ; obtain facts from friends and opponents of the different policies, and not allow himself to be appropriated to the prejudice of himself and influence, as is too often the case by sharing exclusively the kind attention of either party. The Southern papers announce that Gen. D. H. Hill assumes command at Charleston, and that Beauregard has gone to the Southwest. Gen. Seymour reports him in command in Florida. A Camp of -fOO Rebel Dewerlcrw in Florida* A letter dated Lake City, Florida, Feb. 15tli, to the Charleston Courier, contain* the following: "Some thirty miles from Tallahassee we have a large swamp, and I am oorrectly mfonned that there are about 400 deserter* nicely located in it. They have been com mitting some nuisances and depredation* on the neighboring farms. Brig.-Gem. Gardener dispatched two companies of infantry to arrest the parties, but on going into the swamp, to their place of abode, where our troops demanded a surrender, they were astonished to find tlieiji wel supplied with arms and amunition, and a brisk fight took place. Our troops were driven back with heavy loss, and sonn* taken prisoners. The deserters had tlio impudence to parole our men. From this affair we obtained the following fact: That they received about two Thousand pound* - 11 . of amumtion irom me enemy uiuL-wmmg. together with most of their bread and clothing, and that they have been all supplied with Enfield Bifles from the saip? sonrce, and were in daily communication with the enemy. These facts having been ? placed before the Commanding Genera! I of this District, a detachment of Cavalry, I Ecoll's Artillery, and some Infantry, was on Sunday dispatched as a reinforcement, with orders to capture every man in the swamp, and my opinion is that when captured, if their beautiful forms do not dangle in the air on nothing, then I am mistaken. " The wounded at Olustee are recovering. Capt J. Hamilton, of the 3d U. 8. Artillery, will soon return to duty. JfcST* Sergt. Clias. Dutcher, Co. B, N. Y. Engineers, was last week injured about the head and shoulders, while blasting a tree. near beabroon. Col. Serrell, of the N.Y. Engikeers, has returned to the Department with recruits from the North. He was in Beaufort on Thursday, April 7tli. The President of the United States has issued a proclamation explanatory of his amnesty proclamation, it will be found in another column. A New Hotel. The house so long occupied by Mr. H. G. Judd, General Superintendent of Port Koyai, having been purchased at the late sale by private parties is to be opened as a hotel on the 15th inst. The location is excellent for the purpose, and we have the promise of Capt. Lilly that the house i* to be a first rate one. See card in another column. Promotions in the Third B. I. .Artillery.?This fine regiment of light and heavy artillery is now commanded by Col. Bray ton. His former rank of Lieut. Col. has been conferred upon tlie late Major Ames. All who enjoy the acquaintance of these gentlemen will appreciate the fitness of the new appointments. Col. Brnytoii has received from Gen, Gilmore a mark of estimation in which his commanding general holds him by the appointment to the rank of Chief of Artillery upon the General's staff, during the temporary absence of Gea. John W. Turner at the Korth. ... ? , A