General McDowell to push forward without delay to Centreville in pursuit of the retreating rebels, and the men, who were disappointed at having come so far to thrash their enemies without finding any, were eager to go on, but they were really exhausted by a long hot march over a dusty road, under a broiling sun, and prudence dictated that they should be allowed to rest, at least until evening. It is probable that they will go on either to-night or early in the morning, and continue this foot race towards Richmond a day's march further. Among the articles found and taken possession of at Fairfax was an unopened letter bag, well filled. It is not yet known whether it contained letters and correspondence to or from Fairfax. Its contents, when examined, will probably open a fresh mine of treasonable correspondence. There were also found a large number of army orders, company and regimental rolls and reports, showing the strength of the force stationed at that point. There are some curiosities among these prizes, and their being left behind is a strong evidence of the hurry in which the rebels abandoned the place. Your correspondent returned to the city this evening, bringing with him the brief official report of General McDowell to General Scott. No detailed report has been received from the left wing of the advancing column, but General McDowell's report includes all the casualties that have occurred in his whole command, and a general report has been received that nothing occurred in that branch of the column beyond the usual incidents of an advance upon a retreating enemy. It was stated at Fairfax Court House that the Alabamians, in considerable numbers, were intrenched upon the route of the divisions of Colonels Mills and Heintzelman. | manders were instructed to hold their commands ready to move at 2 P. M., provided with cooked rations for three days. Accordingly the greatest activity prevailed this morning throughout the encampments, from the northernmost post, near the Chain Bridge, to the southernmost, near Alexandria. Tents were taken down and tied up, wagons loaded, arms put in order, ammunition dealt out, rations cooked, &c., &c. At noon every thing was in readiness, and precisely at two o'clock the fifty thousand men, composing the grand army about entering upon the great work of sweeping secession out of the Old Dominion, were moving from their different positions towards their respective destinations. In accordance with my instructions, to follow the movements of the First division, under the command of Brigadier-General Tyler, of the Connecticut Brigade, I left General McDowell's head-quarters, at Arlington House, at the hour of march, for Fall's Church, for the last three weeks the head-quarters of General Tyler. Striking the road from Georgetown to Fairfax Court House near Fort Corcoran, I found it literally covered for a distance of over three miles with moving masses of infantry, cavalry and artillery, composing the four brigades of the First division. Passing Fall's Church, I soon came up with General Tyler and his staff, directly behind the advance guard. The three first brigades followed the Alexandria and Leesburg turnpike to a point two miles this side of Fall's Church, and then turned off to the left for this pointthe fourth, under the command of Colonel Richardson, took a more direct route from their position near the Chain Bridge. The march was necessarily slow, the road being narrow and extremely broken, and the nearness of the enemy making it incumbent upon the advance Early this morning the livery stables were besieged with applications for saddle horses and teams, by parties who desired to go into Vir-guard to feel their way slowly and cautiously. ginia and witness the movement of the grand army, and if possible see a battle. Very few were gratified, as almost every thing in the shape of horse flesh worth having was previously engaged. A large number of civilians found their way along the almost blockaded road to the head of the centre advancing column, and kept with it until it halted within the breast works vacated only an hour or two before by the rebels. OPERATIONS OF THE RIGHT WING. VIENNA, Va., July 16, 1861. The long-expected order to move forward was telegraphed from Gen. McDowell's headquarters, at Arlington Heights, to all the division and brigade commanders of the grand army at two o'clock yesterday afternoon, and was communicated to the different corps during the brigade parades held in the course of the evening. The order was received by all the troops with the most enthusiastic demonstrations of satisfaction, The regimental com As the twelve thousand men composing the three first brigades moved solidly and measuredly on, they presented a most magnificent spectacle, when gazed upon from one of the many elevations overlooking the road. The seemingly endless forest of glittering bayonets, undulating with the ascents and descents of the road; the dark mass of humanity rolling on slowly but irresistibly, like a black stream forcing its way through a narrow channel; the waving banners, the inspiring strains of the numerous bands, the shouts and songs of the men, formed a most inspiring and animated scene, which was contemplated with both amazement and terror by the unprepared country people along the road. Some of these rustics manifested signs of gratification as the troops passed their several habitations. Others looked upon them with hostile sullenness, while again some made off for the woods as soon as they caught sight of the head of the army. When Colonel Keyes, riding at the head of the First brigade, came up to a point at the foot of a steep hill, some two and a half miles this side of Fall's Church, one of his aids, who had been reconnoitring in advance, dashed up to him and reported having seen two hundred of the enemy's cavalry a short distance ahead, to the right of the road. A halt was at once made, and six companies of the First and an equal number of the Second Connecticut Regiments deployed as skirmishers to the right and left of the road. Thus protected against surprise, the army again moved on, and after a march of two hours reached this point just before sunset, without coming in sight of the enemy. Arrived here, the different regiments of the two first brigades were at once marched into the adjoining fields, stacked their arms, partook of their cold supper, and then prepared for their night's rest. At about eight o'clock Col. Sherman's and Col. Richardson's brigades came in, and at this hour of writing-nine P. M.-the whole division is encamped about the town, and strong pickets are stationed on all the roads leading towards the enemy, and the batteries accompanying the division are stationed so as to command all the approaches. The nearest picket of the enemy, one hundred strong, is only a mile from town, on the road to Fairfax Court House. -N. Y. Herald, July 18. GERMANTOWN, July 17-1 P. M. The second day's movements of the First division of the grand army, under General Tyler, from Vienna to this point, although more obstructed than yesterday's, have been entirely successful up to the time of writing. column commenced moving at half-past five o'clock this morning, in the order observed yesterday, with a variation in the Third bri The Lieut. Tompkins, of the cavalry company, went out reconnoitring this evening, and discovered obstructions on the road a short dis-gade, which was to-day headed by the gallant tance from town. The half demolished train of platform cars that carried the Ohio troops on their unfortunate reconnoissance of this point, some weeks since, is still standing where it was fired upon from the masked battery. Leonard B. Perkins, a well-known Union man of Fairfax County, acts as guide to the division. General Tyler's staff will spend the night at the house of Mr. J. B. Bowman, another enthusiastic Union man, who made himself so obnoxious to the rebels by transporting the dead and wounded Ohio men into Alexandria free of charge. New York Sixty-ninth. The road, immediately after emerging from Vienna, enters heavy timber. About a mile from the village a heavy obstruction, consisting of about fifty large trees, was discovered in the road. Captain Alexander, of the Engineer corps, immediately put his pioneers to work with their axes, and in less than twenty minutes the whole of the barricade was cleared away and the column moved onward. Having reached the edge of the timber, two companies of each of the Connecticut regiments were again deployed as skirmishers on the right and left of the column, under comThe wife of Colonel Richardson, command-mand of Colonel Spiedel. Captain Hawley's ing the Fourth brigade, is the only lady with the expedition. Great relief is felt by all the Union men in this vicinity in consequence of the appearance of the Union troops, as rebel squads had for the last two days scoured the country for the purpose of forcibly impressing all male inhabi tants into service. The division is ordered to resume its march at five o'clock to-morrow morning. Its destination is Germantown, a village one mile west of Fairfax Court House. Gen. Tyler's orders are to take such a position as to cut off all communication between Fairfax Court House and Manassas Junction. I am now permitted to state, what has been known to me for several days, namely, that General Tyler's First, and Colonel Hunter's Second, Colonel Heintzelman's Third, and Col company of the First Regiment had been in motion but a few minutes when it came up with three mounted rebels, who allowed themselves to be captured without resistance. At about the same time some stragglers of the Sixty-ninth, while upon an excursion to an adjoining farm-house, during a halt, surprised a fourth mounted rebel. The prisoners were brought before General Tyler, to whom they gave free information as to the position of the enemy. According to their statements, a strong force was intrenched about two miles ahead of the column, in front of Fairfax Court House. The division marched a short distance further on, when a reconnoissance by Colonel Keyes, commanding the First brigade, resulted in the discovery of two evidently mounted earthworks, protected by bodies of infantry and cavalry, to the left of the road, at the distance stated by the prisoners. Colonel Keyes immediately pushed on the advance brigade along the road, with a view to getting in the rear of the enemy, while General Tyler ordered General Schenck's brigade to form in battle array in the fields, to the left of the road. The Third and Fourth brigades, under Colonel Sherman and Colonel Richardson, formed on the road. But the rebels abandoned their position as soon as General Schenck's column cominenced moving on through the fields and the other brigades up the road. ment, had occupied the breast works, and retreated only about fifteen minutes before the Union skirmishers appeared in sight of the town. A short halt is now being made for dinner by the First division, in the woods adjoining Germantown. The division will move on this afternoon to the vicinity of Centreville, where the enemy is said to be in strong force. HALF-PAST ONE, P. M. General McDowell and staff have just arrived, at the head of four companies of cavalry. He With a spyglass the roads leading to Fairfax reports Fairfax Court House evacuated, and ocCourt House could be seen covered with re-cupied by Colonel Hunter's division; Colonels treating rebels. The head of the First brigade Heintzelman and Miles's divisions are a short came within a few hundred yards of a body of distance south of the Court House. All four them, and Colonel Keyes ordered a section of divisions will move on towards the Junction toCaptain Varian's battery to throw a few shells among them, which was done with remarkable promptness. The enemy ran as soon as the first shot was fired. Hent's Hill, some two and a half miles west of Vienna, being reached, and the enemy being evidently still retreating, General Schenck's brigade again fell into line and the column continued its march in the order of the morning. A thick piece of woods was entered, in an opening of which tangible evidence of the hurry in which the rebels had retreated was found, in the shape of a large number of blankets, pistols, guns, canteens, &c., &c., that had been indiscriminately thrown away, and were immediately appropriated by our soldiers. A short distance from the abandoned rebel camp two more abatis were discovered in the road, and removed by the pioneers in a few minutes. The column was about pushing on, when scouts came rushing in and reported a battery of several pieces less than half a mile ahead. Colonel Keyes immediately started an aid to General Tyler, requesting him to send some rifled pieces to his assistance. About half an hour elapsed, when Captain Ayres' battery of eight pieces came thundering along the road. Meantime other scouts had come in and reported that the rebels had precipitately abandoned the battery, and were retreating in hot haste with their pieces. So it turned out. But Colonel Keyes, nevertheless, ordered the skirmishers to push slowly on, and Captain Ayres' rifled pieces to throw some shells in the enemy's work. Three shells were in a few minutes afterwards lodged in the breast work. But the enemy had disappeared, and the intrenchments were quietly entered and taken possession of by the skirmishers. The position was a very strong one, and could have been easily defended. A large quantity of shovels, picks, bags of oats, buckets, &c., was found in the work, and camp fires were still burning in the rear of it. Half a mile further on, Germantown, a hamlet of half a dozen houses, was reached and found almost deserted. The only white person left stated that twenty-five hundred rebels, including Colonel Cash's South Carolina Regi morrow. The skulking of the enemy greatly disappointed our men. If he stands at all, Manassas Junction will, doubtlessly, be the scene of a decisive battle.' -N. Y. Herald, July 18. NEW YORK "TIMES" NARRATIVE. The General decided not to move forward any further to-night, mainly because the troops had been so fatigued by their day's march as to render any further movement unadvisable. They are encamped accordingly in this vicinity, a large portion of the central column being in the village and its immediate neighborhood, though Col. Tyler's Division holds position about half way between Germantown and Centreville. Col. Heintzelman had not been heard from at three o'clock, and Gen. McDowell took an escort and proceeded to the point designated for him to occupy. I have not seen him since his return, but believe he found all right. Every thing we see here shows that the rebels left the place in the greatest imaginable haste. Judging from the camps in the vicinity, as well as from the statements of the inhabitants, there must have been from 5,000 to 8,000 rebel troops here this morning. It is said that Gen. Beauregard was here in person last night, and left word for the troops, who were commanded by Col. Bonham, to retire if attacked by a superior force. They are said to have commenced the retreat at about nine o'clock, when our troops were about five miles off. Why they should have gone in such extreme haste, it is not easy to sec. The intrenchments thrown up a mile in advance of the town were so hastily abandoned, that provisions of every kind, rice, bacon, flour, etc., with blankets and clothing of the officers, were left behind. It was not very apparent that any guns had ever been mounted here, though the engineers thought that some eight guns had been placed in position. I saw no evidence of this, except the marks of what might have been artillery wheels, though they seemed to me quite as likely to have been the wheels of wagons used to bring the sand bags with which the embrasures were lined. If any were there, they were moved off with great | prospect. These depredations were far too rapidity. numerous for the credit of our troops, and I was glad to see, as I passed the General's headquarters, half a dozen of the offenders under arrest and in a fair way of receiving the punishment which they deserve. This matter of plunder, however, it is humiliating to confess, is more or less inseparable from war. It is not possible when 30,000 or 40,000 men are marching through an enemy's country, to prevent them from supplying their necessities and gratifying their lawless propensities by depredations upon the foe. The Eng But the strongest evidence of haste was found in the abandoned camps. In that of the Palmetto Guards, lying nearest the side of the village at which our troops entered, almost every thing remained untouched. The uniforms of the officers, plates, cans, dishes, and camp equipage of every kind, an immense quantity of excellent bacon, blankets, overcoats, etc., etc., were left behind, and the tables of the officers, spread for breakfast, remained untouched. In the vest pocket of one of the officers was found a gold watch; in an-lish understand this, and, as a matter of necesother was a roll of ten cent pieces, amounting to ten dollars; letters, papers, books and every thing collected in a camp which had been occupied for some days, were abandoned without the slightest attempt to take them away. In another camp in a field at the extremity of the town, occupied by another South Carolina regiment, the same evidences of extreme haste were visible. Unopened bales of blankets were found; scarcely any of the utensils of the camp had been removed, and bags of flour and flitches of bacon were scattered over the ground. One discovery was made of some significance. Gen. McDowell has had the Topographical Engineers under his charge employed for some weeks in preparing a very minute and accurate map of this portion of the State. It had been brought to a very high state of perfection, and was particularly valuable from the fact that no good maps of this county have ever before been made. A few photographic copies of this map were made a few days since for the use of the War Department, and of the officers engaged in the movement. One of these maps was found in the camp of the Palmetto Guards. Of course it could only have come there by the treachery of some person holding responsible position in our Government. sity, permit it. A good deal of this, in the case of our troops, is due to the spirit of frolic, which characterizes their progress thus far in this war. They act as if the whole expedition were a gigantic picnic excursion. After we were fairly in town to-day, two of the troops dressed themselves in women's clothes and promenaded the town amid the shouts and not over-delicate attentions of the surrounding troops. Others paraded the streets under the shade of the tattered umbrellas which they had found in camp; and one, donning a gown and broad bands, marched solemnly down the principal street, with an open book before him, reading the funeral-service of "that secession scoundrel, Jeff. Davis." All these humors of the camp help to pass the time, and are pursued with just as much reckless abandon now that they are on the eve of a battle which may send half of them into eternity, as if they were simply on a holiday excursion. Perhaps it is well that they do not take the matter any more seriously to heart, for it is one which will scarcely bear very serious reflection. The men are in capital spirits, and are quite ready for the approaching crisis. The best attainable information leads us to believe that the enemy is quite as strong as we are at Manassas, and that they have the advantage of intrenchments, constructed carefully and at leisure, under the immediate supervision of Gen. Beauregard, and the additional advantage of rapid railroad communication with Richmond and their base of operations. It is said here that Gen. B. informed the troops here last night that, whether they contested the possession of this place or not, the question of an independent Southern Confederacy would be decided at Manassas, and that he made each man of them take an oath to fight to the last man. had not heard a good deal of this before, and seen these oaths followed by swift retreats, we might attach more importance to them. According to present appearances, however, I am inclined to think that the rebels will dispute Manassas with whatever of force and vigor they possess; and it is not impossible that Gen. McDowell may deem it advisable to await reën If we The discovery of these abandoned camps afforded a splendid opportunity for our troops to replenish their slender stock of camp furniture. They rushed to the plunder with a degree of enthusiasm which I only hope will be equalled when they come to fight. Men were seen crossing the fields in every direction loaded with booty of every description-some with tents, some with blankets, overcoats, tin pans, gridirons every thing which the most fastidious soldier could desire. I am sorry to say that they did not limit their predatory exploits to these camps, which might, perhaps, be considered fair objects of plunder. The appetite once excited became ungovernable, and from camps they proceeded to houses, and from plunder to wanton destruction. Five or six houses were set on fire, others were completely sacked-the furniture stolen, the windows smashed, and books and papers scattered to the winds. Presently in came soldiers bringing chickens, tur-forcements, if, after reconnoitring it, he finds keys, pigs, etc., swung upon their bayonets, proud of their exploits, and exultant over the luxurious and unwonted feast in immediate the place as formidable as he anticipates. The troops are bivouacked to-night in the fields and under the open sky. The General and staff, like the men, sleep on the ground, | apportioned among the several States which Capt. Rawlings, of the New Hampshire Regiment, with that versatility which enables a New Englander to turn from commanding armies to keeping a hotel with marvellous facility, has succeeded in infusing into the mind of the invalid widow who keeps one of them that the national troops have not come to sweep her and hers from the face of the earth. She has accordingly provided me with a bed, which, if not luxurious, is, to my untutored mind, decidedly preferable to one on the ground, even under the brilliant sky and softly superb moon of this July night. H. J. R. -N. Y. Times, July 20. Doc. 97. THE CONSTITUTION OF THE CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA." WE, the people of the Confederate States, each State acting in its sovereign and independent character, in order to form a permanent federal government, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterityinvoking the favor and guidance of Almighty God-do ordain and establish this Constitution for the Confederate States of America. ARTICLE I. SEC. 1.-All legislative powers herein delegated shall be vested in a Congress of the Confederate States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. SEC. 2.-The House of Representatives shall be chosen every second year by the people of the several States; and the electors in each State shall be citizens of the Confederate States, and have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State Legislature; but no person of foreign birth, not a citizen of the Confederate States, shall be allowed to vote for any officer, civil or political, State or Federal. 4. When vacancies happen in the representation of any State, the Executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. 5. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other officers; and shall have the sole power of impeachment; except that any judicial or other federal officer resident and acting solely within the limits of any State, may be impeached by a vote of two-thirds of both branches of the Legislature thereof. SEC. 3.-The Senate of the Confederate States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen for six years by the Legislature thereof, at the regular session next immediately preceding the commencement of the term of service; and each Senator shall have one vote. 2. Immediately after they shall be assembled, in consequence of the first election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three classes. The seats of the Senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the second year; of the second class at the expiration of the fourth year; and of the third class at the expiration of the sixth year; so that one-third may be chosen every second year; and if vacancies happen by resignation or otherwise during the recess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary appointments until the next meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such vacancies. 3. No person shall be a Senator, who shall not have attained the age of thirty years, and be a citizen of the Confederate States; and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of the State for which he shall be chosen. 4. The Vice-President of the Confederate States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided. 2. No person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five years, and be a citizen of the Confederate States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall be 5. The Senate shall choose their other offichosen. cers, and also a President pro tempore, in the 3. Representatives and direct taxes shall be absence of the Vice-President, or when he 1 4 |