became overheated, her ammunition almost exhausted, and she was compelled to cease firing.

Forrest now demanded the unconditional surrender of the fort. Major Bradford asked to be allowed an hour to consult with his officers and those of the gunboat. Forrest, perceiving two Union gunboats approach. ing, the foremost apparently crowded with troops, refused to grant more than twenty minutes for the deliberation. There was some equivocal parleying in the interim, and the rebels are accused of unfairly gaining some approaches to the fort during the brief truce. The twenty minutes expired, and it was understood that Major Bradford refused to surrender. Forrest, after exciting the rivalry and emulation of the rebel Missourians, Mississippians and Tennesseeans who surrounded the fort, ordered the bugle to sound the charge, which was made with a fierce yell, and the works were carried without a halt in the Confederate line. The rebels declare that the colored troops retreated toward the river, with their arms in their hands, firing back, and their colors flying. This assertion is stoutly denied by the few survivors of the massacre which followed. The latter affirm that the Federal troops, black and white, threw down their arms and sought to escape by running down the steep bank to the river. Some hid themselves behind trees and bushes, and others leaped into the river leaving only their heads above water, and were fired upon and slain by the victors as soon as discovered.

The Committee of Congress who made this slaughter the subject of special investigation, report many acts of barbarity on the part of the rebels, including the shooting in cold blood of Major Bradford, of entire groups and lines of prisoners, of the sick and wounded in the hospital, and even of women and children; the burning of the sick and the wounded in huts and tents from which escape had been rendered impossible-in a word, that "no cruelty which the most fiendish malignity could devise was omitted by them." General Forrest himself, Lieutenant-General S. D. Lee, and other rebel officers who were implicated, denied these horrible charges.

General Forrest admits a loss in the engagement of twenty killed and sixty wounded. He captured two ten-pound Parrott guns, two howitzers, two brass cannon, three hundred and fifty stand of small arms, one hundred and sixty white and seventy-three negro troops and forty negro women and children. The rest of the garrison was slaughtered, and how many refugee citizens and negroes besides will perhaps never be known.

OPERATIONS IN FLORIDA IN 1864.

On the fifth of February, in accordance with general instructions from the War Department, and in pursuance of a plan previously submitted by him, General Gilmore, commander of the Department of the South, set on foot an expedition designed to penetrate to the interior of Florida, for the purpose of procuring an outlet for large quantities of cotton, lumber and timber, which were stored in that region, and to cut off one of the most fertile sources of the enemy's supplies. A further object which the Federal commander had in view was to obtain recruits for his colored regiments from the increased negro population then congregated in that part of the State.

The Confederate force in the State of Florida at that time was much larger in proportion to the population, than in other Southern States, as in addition to eight or ten thousand regular troops, the Governor had enrolled most of the arms-bearing population in a home organization for self-defence, and thus evaded the sweeping conscription of the Davis administration which had been so unsparing in other quarters.

On the eighth of February, Brigadier-General Truman Seymour, under instructions of General Gilmore, landed at Jacksonville, and occupied the town. His force consisted of seven thousand men, and was conveyed from the Department headquarters in twenty steamers and eight schooners.

On the afternoon of the eighth he commenced his march for the interior of the State, his army moving in three columns, which were commanded by Colonels Barton, Hawley, and Henry. Colonel Barton moved on the main road, while the commands of Colonels Hawley and Henry marched on parallel roads to the right of Colonel Barton, which united, at a distance of only three miles, where the infantry camps were spread for the night; while a battalion of cavalry, Elder's horse Battery B, First artil lery, and the Fourth Massachusetts infantry, under Colonel Guy V. Henry, pushed forward on a reconnoissance toward Lake City, through a dense pine forest, and over a low, marshy soil. After riding a distance of eight miles, they surprised and captured an artillery camp of the rebels, containing four guns, with the camp equipage and officers' bag. gage. Only three prisoners were taken, the rest of the force effecting their escape. The advance of the army reached Baldwin the next morn ing, capturing some army stores, and Generals Gilmore and Seymour arrived at that place in the evening.

Colonel Henry's command still continued in advance, and on the tenth captured one thousand barrels of turpentine and a quantity of bacon.

reconnoitering party was then advanced to ascertain whether the enemy purposed to defend the south fork of the St. Mary's river, while the main body followed with due caution. A skirmish ensued at the fork, in which four of the Federals were killed and thirteen wounded, when the enemy retired, losing five of their men. Colonel Henry reached Sanderson, forty miles from Jacksonville, at six P. M. The place had been abandoned by the enemy, and a large amount of stores committed to the flames. On the eleventh the command encamped five miles from Lake City, which was held by the enemy but evacuated during the night. This was unknown to Colonel Henry, and, as he was without infantry, he retraced his steps to Sanderson. The most important property captured was as follows: Two twelve-pounder rifled guns, two six-pounder guns, one threeinch gun, two other guns, five caissons, a large quantity of ammunition, an immense supply of camp and garrison equipage, four railroad cars, one hundred and thirteen bales of cotton, four army wagons, one hundred and five horses and mules, a large stock of saddlery, tanning machinery, three thousand and eighty-three barrels turpentine, and six thousand bushels corn. Three large warehouses were destroyed.

On the eleventh telegraphic communication was established between Jacksonville and Baldwin, and on that day General Gilmore sent instructions to General Seymour not to risk a repulse in advancing upon Lake City, and also in case his advance met with serious opposition to concentrate at Sanderson and the south fork of the St. Mary's. On the thirteenth General Seymour was further instructed to concentrate at Baldwin without delay. This was done at once. Meantime, Colonel Henry was sent toward the left to capture some railroad trains on the Fernandina and Cedar Keys railroad, which resulted in a skirmish with a battalion of cavalry from East Florida, who were repulsed. A reconnoissance was made at that time by Colonel Scammon along the Georgia State line, and several small works of the enemy were destroyed.

General Gilmore now departed for Hilton Head, after admonishing General Seymour to avoid a general engagement with the enemy until he should receive further instructions, and until the defences at Jacksonville, Baldwin, and the south fork of the St. Mary's should be further advanced.

On the eighteenth of February, however, General Seymour again took the field, and marched from Jacksonville with a force of five thousand men, with ten days' rations, and advanced sixteen miles on the line of the railroad the first day. On the second day he moved seventeen miles, and reached Barber's Station, his men much exhausted by marching over bad roads. The twentieth proved to be a beautiful day, and the army started at an early hour, with the cavalry in advance. The line of march was now across the south fork of the St. Mary's and towards Sanderson, nine miles distant, which place they reached without halting. The sky

was clear, and the savannahs, stretching on either side of the sandy road winding through the pine woods were warm with the sunshine. The infantry now made a short halt, but the cavalry kept its position about two miles in advance. The march was resumed at midday toward Lake City. General Seymour's force moved in three columns, Colonel Hawley's brigade on the left, Colonel Barton's in the centre, and Colonel Scammon's regiment on the extreme right. The cavalry in advance were led by Colonel Henry with Elder's battery. In the rear was the colored brigade led by Colonel Montgomery.

BATTLE OF OLUSTEE.

FEBRUARY 20, 1864.

About six miles from Sanderson the enemy's mounted pickets, thirty or forty in number, were met and driven in after exchanging shots. The main body hurried forward a distance of two miles, when three or four cannon shot of the enemy fell among the head of the column. Skirmishing commenced immediately. The artillery dashed into position on the gallop, the infantry on the double-quick step, and in a brief period of time a severe battle was progressing. Elder's battery unlimbered at the head of the road, Hamilton's to the left, and Langdon's on the extreme left, opening at short range with canister shot. The artillery of the enemy consisted of four or five guns, and was badly served at first, being fired too high to do injury. General Seymour's line of infantry was well formed for the position. With the exception of a small field of a few acres, it was in the woods, amid a heavy growth of pine timber, and with swampy ground intervening between it and the enemy, of whose position nothing was known. The battle lasted for three hours. Two of the Federal batteries were disabled early in the action. The Seventh New Hampshire broke, but was rallied again. The Eighth United States colored fought well until the loss of their leader, when they fled. The contest closed at dusk, when General Seymour, finding his force repulsed. with some loss, and the colored reserve unequal to the emergency, retired from the field, leaving his dead and wounded. The retreat, for a short distance, was conducted in successive lines of battle, but finding the enemy were not disposed to follow, the line was changed, and the force retired in column, Barton's brigade bringing up the rear, covered by the cavalry and Elder's battery. A halt was made at Sanderson, where coffee was cooked, and some attention given to the wounded. From Sanderson to Barber's Station, says a writer, "ten miles, we wended or crawled along, the wounded filling the night air with lamentations, the crippled horses neighing in pain, and a full moon kissing the

cold, clammy lips of the dying." On the next morning the retreat was continued to Baldwin, where the cavalry of the enemy made their appearance. Many of the wounded were here sent on cars drawn by mules to Jacksonville, and General Seymour, knowing that the enemy was following in force, ordered the commissary stores, worth about sixty thousand dollars, to be destroyed, and resumed his march to Jackson. ville. His loss in killed, wounded, and missing, in this disastrous and ill-advised expedition, was about twelve hundred.

The following dispatch from the Governor of Florida presents the enemy's account of the battle:

"TALLAHASSEE, FLA., February 21. "To PRESIDENT DAVIS: I have just received the following dispatch from General Finegan, dated yesterday:

"I met the enemy in full force to-day, under General Seymour, and defeated him with great loss. I captured five pieces of artillery, hold possession of the battle-field, and the killed and wounded of the enemy. My cavalry are in pursuit. I don't know precisely the number of prisoners, as they are being brought in constantly. My whole loss, I think, will not exceed two hundred and fifty killed and wounded. Among them I mourn the loss of many brave officers and men.'

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I understand that General Finegan also captured many small arms.
(Signed)
JOHN MILTON, Governor."

General Seymour was allowed to occupy Jacksonville unmolested, and that place remained in undisputed possession of the Federals for the remainder of the year, while the rebel commander went into winter quarters at Camp Finegan, eight miles distant towards Baldwin.

General Seymour was relieved from command of the Federal forces in the State, and shortly after, Major-General Foster was assigned to command the Department of the South, in place of General Gilmore, who was appointed to the command of the Tenth army corps, in Virginia.

On the 20th of July General Birney was dispatched from Jacksonville with a small force to the mouth of the Trent creck, where he destroyed two bridges, and then advancing to Callohan station on the Fernandina railroad, he destroyed a telegraph office, some cars, and other property. Returning to Jacksonville, a few days thereafter, he embarked on transports to Whitesville, on the north fork of the Black Creek, where a slight skirmish ensued. Baldwin and Camp Milton were afterwards occupied by Federal troops, but no military movements of importance occurred in Florida during the remainder of the year.