which they were sent. The rebels permitted the sick people to remain where they were, and the medical officers made prisoners, with the ambulances. This will probably be magnified into something of importance as well as heroic. The deserters and stragglers are constantly coming in. The number of these will probably exceed the number of our men lost at the various points.

The following regiments are represented among the deserters and prisoners, the great mass of them being deserters, who appear to be too well satisfied to get in here: Virginia regiments; Twenty-fourth, Fourteenth, Thirty-eighth, Fifty-third, Ninth, Fifteenth, Twenty-ninth, Eleventh, Fifty-first, Twenty-first, Twenty-fifth, Forty-ninth, Fifty-fourth, Nineteenth, Sixty-eight, Fifty-ninth, Forty-fourth, Fourth, Sixty-first; total, 13; Georgia-Twenty-first and Second; Stribbling's battery, Fithler's* battery, Third North Carolina Battery. * Five sailors of the C. S. Navy were captured at the time of the burning of the Underwriter.

The boat expedition that came down the Neuse was made up of parties from Charleston, Richmond, and Wilmington. It was commanded by John Taylor Wood, formerly a lieutenant in the U. S. Navy. There were several C. S. Navy officers with him. The night before the Underwriter was captured and burned the expedition came into the river and searched it thoroughly for some naval vessels to destroy. It was so foggy that they returned to wait for a better opportunity. This shows a lamentable lack of vigilance, I conceive, on the part of the gun-boats, and I hope the lesson will be a profitable one. I will remark, however, that at the time of the capture of the Underwriter there were but two or three small gun-boats here, Commander Davenport having gone up the sounds with his own vessel, and I have no idea of the locality of the others. I have requested Commander Davenport to attend to the picketing of the river, and he cheerfully attends to my requests.

One of the prisoners informs me that he had been detailed to work on the rebel iron-clad ram, now building at Kinston. He says they are finishing the work on her as fast as possible; that the engine is not yet in her, but it was though that a few weeks would guns, and is plated with 4-inch iron and built after the model of the Merrrimac. This is a matter for serious consideration. A vessel like the one described, could she get into the harbor, would do incalculable damage. I think there is no doubt of the truth of this statement. Dispatches from Colonel McChesney, from Washington, report everything; quiet there, and I hear nothing to cause me to think that the enemy is at Plymouth.

I should feel that Morehead was more secure if we had more lightdraught gun-boats there now. The Nansemond is doing good service there, but if we had some gun-boats that could run up the Newport River we could prevent easily the assembling of the enemy on the peninsula north and east of Morehead. I shall direct Colonel Jourdan to direct the Spaulding to proceed to Fort Monroe, on his arrival at Morehead, unless there is some good reason for her delay.

I am, major, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

I. M. PALMER,

Brigadier-General.

Major R. S. DAVIS, Assistant Adjutant-General.

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* Probably reference is to Ellis' battery, Third North Carolina Battalion.

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