"Early the next morning, at daybreak, Captain Allen, of Company D, Thirtyfirst Massachusetts, entered the extreme left of the enemy's works, and at the same time Colonel Kimball, with the advance of the Fifty-eighth Massachusetts, entered the centre of their works. They were evacuated. The works were found to be stronger than we had anticipated. The left had been turned by the One Hundred and Fifty-sixth New York, and hence were, in fact, untenable. Another hour would have put us in possession of the whole works. We immediately pressed in, and the One Hundred and Fifty-sixth New York appeared on our right as cavalry, so many horses had their skirmishers picked up. Our fire had been very effective here. The dead were lying all about the woods. Their wounded were generally carried off. Where the artillery had been, we found a heap of dead horses. Our howitzers had given them a good dose of grape, and it is supposed that their guns must have been quite

"On the opposite side of the bayou General Banks discovered that they had retreated in the night, and entered the works, finding that they had left their thirty-two-pounder without spiking it. They had heard that Grover was in their rear, and had retreated, intending to cut through Grover. It seems that Grover, with his division in gun-boats, had gone up the Atchafalaya and landed near Franklin, and attempted to come down on the enemy's rear. When coming down they hit upon a party of skirmishers of the enemy. They led one of his brigades into an open field, where they had a wood on either flank, and one in front. They drew the brigade toward the corner of the two woods, when suddenly they had a terrific fire opened on them in the front and flank, both of musketry and cannon. that the loss was between two and three hundred before they could form and fall back. A section of one of our batteries came very near being taken, the enemy getting within sixty yards of it before it could be withdrawn. The remainder of the division came up, and a cannonading was kept up for four hours. The enemy sent off his infantry by a cross road

So hot was it,

through them, used his artillery until the last, then sent the mass of it by the same cross road, and the cavalry kept up the fight until their army was safe, and then galloped off. In the afternoon General Banks joined General Grover, and in the evening, after building his bridge and recrossing the river, Colonel Gooding rejoined General Emory, and all encamped at Franklin."

While the land force had thus marched to Franklin, driving the enemy before them, the gun-boats which had moved up the Bayou Teche and the Atchafalaya River were co-operating with effect. The Queen of the West, whose capture by the enemy has been already recorded, was overtaken in the Atchafalaya by the ram Arizona, and after a broadside set on fire. Burning to her magazine, she finally exploded. An attempt to recapture the Diana was foiled by the enemy, who blew her up; they also burned a powerful iron-clad ram known as the Hart, to prevent her being taken. A large number of other vessels were destroyed by the fleet, in its course up Bayou Teche. The capture of Fort Butte La Rose, on the Grand, a branch of the Atchafalaya, which yielded after a slight resistance, was a naval success of no little importance. General Banks speaking of this capture said:

"This was handsomely done, without serious loss, on the morning of the 26th of April, by Lieutenant-Commander Cooke, U. S. Navy, with his gun-boat and four companies of infantry. We captured here the garrison of sixty men and its commander, two heavy guns in

position and in good order, a large quantity of ammunition, and the key of the Atchafalaya."

The enemy being evidently unable to make a serious resistance, General Banks determined to press on with vigor. General Grover, after forcing the enemy to evacuate their position at Irish Bend, on the 14th of April, had now succeeded in forming a junction with Banks. General Grover had been dispatched with a force of troops and gun-boats from Brashear City up the Atchafalaya River, with the view of getting into the rear of the enemy and cutting off their retreat. Though not succeeding fully in his purpose, his co-operation was not ineffective, and he was enabled to aid in the general pursuit of the retreating enemy.

Banks running forward rapidly, reached New Iberia on the 16th of April. The enemy had evacuated the place so precipitately that they had found no time to provide for the safety of their transports, which they had destroyed in their haste, with all their stores and ammunition. A foundry used for the casting of shot and shell, and the saltworks, about seven miles from New Iberia, were taken possession of, and thus two sources of most important supplies were wrested from the enemy.

General Banks, continuing his onward progress, was able, on reaching St. Martinsville, April 17th, thus to sum up the results of his campaign: a march of over three hundred miles, three victories over the enemy, two on land and one on Grand Lake, destruction of their

navy, dispersion of their army, capture of their foundries at Franklin and New Iberia, and of the salt-works near the latter place-capture of the enemy's camp equipage, a number of cannon, a number of cannon, ⚫and between 1,000 and 2,000 prisoners. His own loss was only about 700 men.

With his way thus successfully opened, General Banks moved rapidly on, easily overcoming the feeble opposition of a retreating and demoralized enemy.

General Banks thus briefly reports his progress to Opelousas:

"On the evening of the 17th of April, General Grover, who had marched from New Iberia by a shorter road, and thus gained the advance, met the enemy at Bayou Vermilion. The enemy's force consisted of a considerable number of cavalry, 1,000 infantry, and six pieces of artillery, masked in a strong position on the opposite bank, with which we were unacquainted. The enemy was driven from his position, but not until he had succeeded in destroying the bridge over the bayou by fire. Everything had been previously arranged for this purpose.

"The command rested on the 21st. On the 22d, I sent out Brigadier-General Dwight with his brigade of Grover's division, and detachments of artillery and cavalry, to push forward through Washington toward Alexandria. He found the bridges over bayous Cocodue and Bocuff destroyed, and occupied the evening and night in replacing them by a single bridge at the junction of the two bayous. The people say that the enemy threw large quantities of ammunition and some small-arms into Bayou Cocodue, and that the Texans declared they were going to Texas. Here the steamer Wave was burnt by the enemy, and the principal portion of her cargo, which had been transferred to a flat, captured by us. A dispatch was found by General Dwight, in which Governor Moore tells General Taylor to retreat slowly to Alexandria, and, if pressed, to retire to Texas. General Dwight will push well forward to-day, and probably halt to-morrow, to continue his march, or return, according to circumstances.