and county bridges toward Newport village. The fort at the village was garrisoned by a detachment of the Second Massachusetts Heavy Artillery, under Lieutenant Foley, who, without firing a single shot, spiked his guns and had his company drawn up outside of the fort, before the arrival of Lieutenant-Colonel Barney with the balance of his command. Finding it impossible to hold this position in the presence of such an overwhelming force, Colonel Barney retired under cover of the darkness in the direction of Beaufort.

One of the guns in the fort at the barracks was brought away, another stuck in the mud and was abandoned, and the balance were rendered unserviceable.

As soon as I learned of the approach of the enemy in my front, I went to Newport Barracks per train, to give directions in reference to the defense of that place. I immediately withdrew the detachment at Kennedy's Mill to prevent their capture, and directed that the guns in the two forts should be used as long as possible, and if the abandonment of the fort was compelled, that the guns should be brought out and thrown into Newport River; or if this were impossible they should be spiked and the wheels and carriages broken.

They were to be saved, it at all possible, even should cavalry horses be used to drag them.

I ordered Lieutenant-Colonel Barney, commanding officer of the post, to fight as long as possible, and if driven back to do so slowly, falling back on Morehead City, but if cut off in that direction, to fall back upon Newport village and there make a stand upon opposite bank of the river, destroying the bridges in his front. If driven from there he would retreat to Beaufort.

I took all the sick and part of the quartermaster's stores on board the train to Morehead City, leaving directions that at the last extremity, to prevent falling the enemy's hands, all public stores then remaining should be burnt.

As soon as the rebels had appeared in front of my lines I advanced all of the troops from Morehead City, consisting of about 200 recruits, under command of Lieutenant Ilsley and Connelly, of my staff, all the line officers being absent with their regiment at New Berne; a detachment of the Second North Carolina Volunteers, under command of Captain C. H. Foster (they having been withdrawn from Beaufort), and a 12-pounder Wiard and a 24-pounder howitzer, under command of Captain C. B. Newton, Second Massachusetts Heavy Artillery, to a position about 3 miles above Carolina City, throwing out my pickets in the direction of Bogue Sound block-house and the barracks. I threw up rifle -pits in rear of the large swamp, and blockaded all the different avenues of approach. Finding it would take every man to form a picket-line, and being so vastly outnumbered by the enemy, my only recourse was to fall back on my intrenched position, which I did about midnight of the 2nd instant.

During the night of the 2nd instant I was busily engaged in strengthening my position at Morehead City, and by the morning had it so strongly intrenched as to be secure against attack. All the roads leading to Morehead were well blockaded. A barricade was formed across the railroad track, rifle-pits were thrown up, and with the gun-boat Nansemond, which Commander Dove had kindly furnished, upon our left flank and a boat howitzer on our right, we felt secure. The garrison of Newport arrived at Beaufort on the morning of the 3rd instant, and I immediately ordered them to Morehead to man the intrenched line, placing Lieutenant-Colonel Barney in com-