at a very early hour, a scene occurred which goes to make up the desolation of war, and shows the bitter earnestness of the Confederates. The splendid railroad bridge of the Baltimore and Ohio road, across the Potomac one of the most superb structures of its kind on the continent - was set on fire by the rebels at its northern end, while about four hundred feet at its southern extremity was blown up; most of the government buildings were also destroyed, many of them were not only large, but very high. More than a dozen of these immense edifices were blazing at once, which, together with the burning bridge and the retreating troops, must have presented a scene awfully sublime. All the machinery of the armory had been removed to Richmond several days previous, and now only two of the twenty armory buildings escaped the fire. The loss to government in buildings alone, is estimated at five hundred thousand dollars.

June 15. The First Regiment Massachusetts volunteers, Colonel Cowdin, who were the first for three years' service, left Boston for Washington.

June 17. Western Virginia convention unanimously voted its independence of the rebel section of the State.

A skirmish took place at Vienna (about fifteen miles from Alexandria), in which a detachment of Federal troops under Brigadier-General Schenck were defeated.

In pursuance of General McDowell's orders, a train was sent out from Alexandria to Vienna on a reconnoitering expedition, taking the First Regiment Ohio volunteers, Colonel McCook, and accompanied by General Schenck.

They left camp with 668 rank and file, and twenty-nine field and company officers. They proceeded slowly toward Vienna, leaving companies I and K, with an aggregate of 135 men, at the crossing of the road, and sent

Lieutenant-Colonel Parrott with two companies of 117 men to Falls Church, to patrol the roads in that direction. Stationed Companies D and F, 135 men, to guard the railroad and bridge between the crossing and Vienna, and arrived at Vienna with four companies, namely Company E, Captain Paddock; Company C, Lieutenant Woodward; Company G, Captain Bailey; Company H, Captain Haslett, all numbering 275 men.

On turning the curve slowly, within one quarter of a mile of Vienna, they were fired upon by raking masked batteries of three guns, with shells, round shot and grape, killing and wounding the men on the platforms, and in the cars before the train could be stopped. When the train stopped, the engine could not, on account of damage to some part of the machinery, draw the train out of the fire, the engine being in the rear. The troops

left the cars, and retired to the right and left of the town through the woods.

The engineer, when the cars were vacated, detached his engine with one passenger car from the rest of the disabled train, and run to Alexandria, thus depriving the troops of a rallying point, and of all means of conveying the wounded, who had to be carried on litters and in blankets.

Finding the enemy's batteries were sustained by a large force of infantry and cavalry, they fell back along the railroad, throwing out skirmishers on both flanks. Thus they retired slowly, bearing off their wounded for a distance of five miles, arriving at the telegraphic camp about ten o'clock. Eight Union soldiers were killed, and seven wounded.

The killed were buried near the camp of the First Regiment, with the usual military honors. "Stand up for the Union, boys," and "stand firm for the old flag!" were the expressions uttered in their last moments by several heroic fellows who were mortally wounded.

The rebels lost in killed six.

June 17. Battle of Booneville, Mo. The rebel troops under Governor Jackson and General Price was routed by General Lyon. Missouri having been the scene of so many riots and much bloodshed, and the people becoming so disaffected, the State authorities through General Price and General Harney, at that time in command of the United States forces in Missouri, on the twenty-first of May, agreed upon a plan to maintain the public peace; but in open violation of this agreement, the State authorities had organized upon a large scale the means of warfare, and, having virtually declared war, abandoned the capital, issued orders for the destruction of the railroad and telegraph, and proceeded to put into execution their hostile purpose. Thus devolved on General Lyon, who succeeded General Harney, the necessity of meeting the issue as best he could; accordingly, he proceeded up the river with a portion of his force to Booneville, and discovering a battery on the river bank he turned. back, and dropped down the river eight miles below Booneville, and landed a force of 1,700 men and four field pieces, leaving one hundred men to guard the boats.

When within six miles of Booneville, he was attacked. by the State troops, 3,000 strong, under Colonel Little, who were concentrated in a thick undergrowth, and in wheat fields. After a short fight, the State troops were driven back, and their camp, with equipage, provisions, horses, etc., taken possession of by the Federal troops. They retreated through Booneville in disorder, with no one to rally them to a second charge. General Price being absent, and Governor Jackson, as soon as the battle commenced, surrounded himself with Captain Kelly's company as a body-guard and retreated, leaving the command to devolve upon Colonel Little; although the troops fled in all directions, yet many were taken prison

ers, and paroled. The loss of the Federal troops was four killed, and nine wounded. The loss of the State troops was fifteen killed, and twenty wounded.

General Lyon then issued a proclamation to the people of Missouri, defining his position, and declaring that he should scrupulously avoid all interference with the business, rights, and property of every description, recognized by the laws of the State, and belonging to lawabiding citizens, but that he should hold it equally his duty to maintain the paramount authority of the United States with the force at his command, which would be retained only so long as opposition should make it necessary, and invited all persons who had taken up arms, or were preparing to do so, to return to their homes, and relinquish their hostilities toward the Federal government, assuring them they could do so without being molested for past occurrences.

On the day following the battle of Booneville, about sunrise, the Home Guards (Union), eight hundred strong, under Captain Cook, in camp near the town of Cole, Mo., were attacked by a large party of secessionists; fifteen of the Guards were killed, and twenty wounded, many of them severely, and thirty taken prisoners; the rest made their escape; the secessionists then left, and, joining Governor Jackson at Warsaw, proceeded south.

June 20. Major-General McClellan took command of the Department of Ohio, which comprises all of the States of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, and that part of Virginia lying north of the Great Kanawha River, and west of Greenbrier River and the Maryland line.

June 26. Colonel Wallace, after the battle of Romney, fell back to Cumberland, where he encamped, and sent out mounted pickets to different posts along the several approaches to Cumberland. Finding it next to impossible to get reliable information of the enemy, on the 26th of June

he-united his pickets, thirteen in all, and directed them, if possible, to go to Frankfort, a town midway between Cumberland and Romney, to see if there were rebel troops there.

They went within a quarter of a mile of the place, and found it full of cavalry. Returning, they overtook forty horses, and at once charged on them, routing and driving them back more than a mile, killing eight of them, and securing seventeen horses. Corporal Hays, in command of the Federal pickets, was desperately wounded with sabre cuts and bullets. Taking him back, they halted about an hour, and were then attacked by the enemy, who were reinforced to about seventy-five men.

The attack was so sudden, that they abandoned the horses, and crossed to a small island at the mouth of Patterson Creek. The charge of the rebels was bold and confident, yet twenty-three fell under the fire of the pickets, close about and on the island; they (the pickets) were finally driven off and scattered, each man for himself, but succeeded after a while in reaching the camp at Cumberland. Thirty rebels were killed; and one Union soldier, who was taken prisoner and brutally murdered.

While these scenes were being enacted in northern Virginia, we have to record some minor operations of the navy.

About seventy miles below Washington, the Potomac River makes almost a right angle in its course to the ocean. Here, opposite the deep estuary which makes up into Maryland, is Matthias Point, a high shore covered with a thick growth of pines. At this place, the Confederates have often received aid and comfort from their Maryland friends, who have crossed the Potomac at night, conveying munitions of war and various articles contraband. Toward the latter end of June, Captain James H. Ward, of the steamer Freeborn, and com