other troops, will be under your command. This letter is written to prevent any conflict of jurisdiction until General Heckman is relieved, which will be in a few days, or as soon as he completes the new lines of defense. I have the honor to remain, very respectfully, your obedient servant, H. T. SCHROEDER, Lieutenant and Acting Assistant Adjutant-General. HDQRS. DEPT. OF VIRGINIA AND NORTH CAROLINA, Brig. Gen. C. A. HECKMAN, Getty's Station: GENERAL: The commanding general directs me to say that Brig. Gen. A. V. Kautz, chief of cavalry for this department, has been ordered to you for the purpose of taking command of all the cavalry in your department. You will please render him all the information and assistance you can to enable him to make the cavalry force as efficient as possible. General Graham has been ordered to relieve General Wild and assume command of all the forces in Norfolk and Portsmouth. This will give him the command of the troops intended for defense within your inner line. He is, however, instructed not to interfere with any arrangements you have made nor with any troops that may be within his district that heretofore belonged to your command, the intention being to have you command all your own district and as much of Norfolk and Portsmouth as will enable you to complete the inner line of defenses. As soon as this is done you will be relieved with your infantry force and ordered to another field, leaving General Graham in command of his district, together with all the defenses, and General Kautz in command of the entire cavalry force. I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. SHAFFER, Colonel and Chief of Staff. HEADQUARTERS SUB-DISTRICT OF NEW BERNE, Capt. J. A. JUDSON, Assistant Adjutant-General: CAPTAIN: I have the honor to inclose the available force now in and around this place. It will be seen by an examination of this paper that the only troops left for the defense of this place, exclusive of the troops on the outposts and the garrisoning of the different forts, are five companies of the One hundred and fifty-eighth New York Volunteers, five companies of the First U. S. Colored Troops, and 250 men of Colonel Scroggs' regiment of colored troops, and the aggregate is only 3,860, or about one-third the number actually necessary to man the works and the line of intrenchments. If Plymouth has already fallen into the hands of the enemy, the troops recently sent from here to re-enforce that place will doubtless be stopped, and they will make a respectable re-enforcement for Roanoke Island. At any rate, these re-enforcements will not probably be able to get into Plymouth. This place is considered the most important of any place on the sounds of North Carolina, and a moderately respectable force should remain here to protect it. The force now here can hardly be called sufficient, and I certainly could not advise any further depletion here. Until the rebel ram at Plymouth is put hors de service all the troops that we might place on steamers for the relief of that place will be, in my opinion, useless. Present for duty. 17th Massachusetts Volunteers, provost guard, aggregate. 19th Wisconsin Volunteers, aggregate . ..... 5th Rhode Island Artillery, aggregate.. 2d Massachusetts Heavy Artillery, aggregate. 1st U. S. Colored Troops (five companies), aggregate. 158th New York Volunteers (five companies), aggregate 25th U. S. Colored Troops (Colonel Scroggs). 99th New York Volunteers 132d New York Volunteers, outposts. 158th New York Volunteers (five companies) 12th New York Cavalry, outposts. 99th New York Volunteers, outposts. 92d New York Volunteers, at Forts Anderson and Chase. 3d New York Light Artillery. Of the Nineteenth Wisconsin Volunteers, there is one company at Evans' Mills, one company at Brice's Creek, one company at Fort Gaston, one company at Fort Spinola, balance in camp. Of the Fifth Rhode Island Artillery, one company at Fort Stevenson, one company at Fort Rowan, two companies at Fort Totten, one company at Fort Gaston, one company at Fort Amory, one company at Fort Spinola. Of the Second Massachusetts Volunteer Artillery, two companies at Fort Totten. Of the Ninety-second New York Volunteers, nine companies at Fort Anderson, one company at Battery Chase. Of the Ninety-ninth New York Volunteers, at Fort Union, 30 men; at Fort Stevenson, one company. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, I. N. PALMER, HDQRS. ARMY AND DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA, Colonel RIPLEY, Commanding Sub-district, &c., Morehead: We are threatened by the enemy and my forces are inadequate to guard the State of North Carolina. Plymouth is besieged and General Wessells needs help. Under such circumstances it is my duty to take any that comes to hand, until the crisis is passed. My order is his protection against all parties for any delay. In all probability one, two, or three days' detention will suffice. I had supposed that Colonel Scroggs would gladly come to the rescue of the cause of the country. If he declines you will place him in arrest and send the next officer in rank with the command to New Berne for temporary duty. JOHN J. PECK, HEADQUARTERS OUTPOSTS, April 20, 1864-9.25 a. m. I have two deserters from the Twenty-ninth Virginia; they confirm what the others said. Little Washington and Plymouth are to be taken, after which New Berne; but I am satisfied that six days' subsistence is all they have. General Corse has gone back to Kinston. I am surmising that he will move on me as the work at other points progresses. I am seeking all the information I can, and will transmit. General PALMER, P. J. CLAASSEN, Colonel, Commanding Outposts. HEADQUARTERS OUTPOSTS, April 20, 1864. Commanding: I have the honor to acknowledge your telegram. I differ as to main attack, from certain dispositions of the rebel pickets on my front. I am now making arrangements to ascertain their movements, of which I will advise you. Major-General HALLECK, Chief of Staff: P. J. CLAASSEN, Colonel, Commanding Outposts. NEW YORK, April 21, 1864. About 2,800 troops can be sent on at once, and this does not include recruits, the number of which I will ascertain this evening. The number of old troops to be sent can be increased if authority be given to call one or two selected regiments of State militia into the service for duty as guards, escorts, &c. I think that this should be done. The troops leaving will be advised that an officer will meet them at Washington depot to give them their immediate destination. General Stannard will telegraph to you of each detachment. ED. R. S. CANBY, Brigadier-General. HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, COMMANDING OFFICER ENGINEER BRIGADE: I wrote you by mail on the 19th in reply to your dispatch of that date, and at the same time requested that you would use the cipher when replying by telegraph to confidential communications. Land transportation will not be needed. The Fifteenth Regiment will go with the bridging. A. A. HUMPHREYS, Major-General and Chief of Staff. ARTILLERY HEADQUARTERS, ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, Brig. Gen. GEORGE D. RAMSAY, Chief of Ordnance, Washington, D. C.: April 21, 1864. GENERAL: I have at your request examined the proposition of Capt. A. Schwartz, aide-de-camp, for the introduction into our service of short howitzers for vertical fire. As to the necessity, there are but few occasions in which the light 12-pounder gun will not, by reducing the charge and giving high elevations, perform the service required of the short howitzers. The caliber being smaller, a greater number of guns must be brought into requisition and a greater number of shells used, but these field batteries can supply. In the few cases in which the 12-pounder field gun cannot accomplish the work of the proposed howitzers, from the enemy occupying hollows or low grounds which cannot be seen, or where he is behind works or cover at short ranges which the shells of the gun cannot reach, a few Coehorn mortars would answer the purpose required. These mortars form a part of our system of artillery. Four of them, with their bed, can readily be carried in a common wagon; they have ranges from 500 to 1,000 yards, and eight or a dozen of them, with 50 or 60 rounds each of ammunition, would, with the 12pounders of an army corps or of an army, answer all the purposes likely to be required. I do not undervalue the howitzer for its special service, but I think the evil of adding to the number and variety of our kinds of guns and ammunition would outweigh the advantage. Respectfully, your obedient servant, HENRY J. HUNT, Brigadier-General, Chief of Artillery, Army of the Potomac. General HUMPHREYS: HEADQUARTERS FIFTH ARMY CORPS, April 21, 1864. GENERAL: I would respectfully recommend that the signal station on Cedar Mountain be given up as a permanent station, and that the advanced brigade which I have be withdrawn to this vicinity. I can then strengthen my present main infantry picket-line so as to be able to resist the approach of any advanced body, and all the cavalry except about one regiment for watching the principal approaches can be withdrawn behind Culpeper. I feel sure that I can then hold my position against any force until re-enforced. If this disposition should tempt the enemy across the Rapidan it could but result to our advantage. From personal observation I believe the station at Cedar Mountain cannot observe anything of importance to us better than the one at Pony Mountain. Very respectfully, yours, G. K. WARREN, HEADQUARTERS CAVALRY CORPS, April 21, 1864. Brigadier-General TORBERT, Comdg. First Cavalry Division: Change your picket-line in accordance with verbal instructions of to-day, and with this addition: Extend your left as far as to guard Morton's Ford, relieving the pickets of the Third Division to include that ford. This becomes necessary in order to equalize the picketing of the two divisions. P. H. SHERIDAN, Major-General, Commanding. CUMBERLAND, MD., April 21, 1864-6 p. m. Lieut. Gen. U. S. GRANT: The troops are mostly on their way west and east, and the necessary arrangements are made at Parkersburg to ship the infantry. The cavalry and trains will go from Parkersburg by land to Charleston, where General Crook wishes that all troops from here should be sent. I sent him five infantry regiments and two regiments of cavalry under General Averell, which will make him about 10,000 effective men. As soon as the troops at Martinsburg are assembled for the greater part I will go there. No information has been received in regard to important changes in the position of the enemy. Latest reports say that Early, with 4,000 to 5,000 men, is in the vicinity and north and south of Staunton. The forces of Breckinridge are reported at La Fayette Station, 10 miles west of New River bridge; are estimated at from 6,000 to 8,000 men. They are stationed from Lynchburg to Saltville, and in front of this line to Greenbrier River. Deserters from Staunton say that General Early would take command in the valley. They also report that they were left behind by Longstreet in June, 1863, at Staunton, and that they received orders at the commencement of this month to return to Tennessee to join Hood's division. They say that Longstreet in person was at Richmond, but do not know whether his corps has gone East. It may be that Hood's division has been left at or near Cumberland Gap, as reported by General Crook, and that the other divisions have gone to join Lee's army. General Crook, to whom I sent the report of Breckinridge, says that this report is very correct as far as the country in his front is concerned. Colonel Babcock knows about this report, of which I have sent a copy to the Adjutant-General at Washington. Major-General STAHEL: F. SIGEL, CLARKSBURG, April 21, 1864. Will it not be possible to furnish transports for my command at Parkersburg? It would save two days' time and a hard march. I leave here at 7.30. The balance of the First Virginia go in the morning. WM. W. AVERELL, |