officers were to be appointed by the War Department; hence, in nominating the field officers for these commands, I was governed by the claims of the parties instrumental in raising the troops, also by their ability and merits as officers. Your Excellency is aware of the condition of affairs as I found them in WEST Tennessee and North Mississippi, and the circumstances of my entering this department, and the limited means placed at my command for the accomplishment of my mission here. With great labor, and under out of confusion, and organized and placed in the service a majority of the troops now constituting my command. the enemy in heavy force is in my front, and any attempt, by election will surely result in the loss of best field officers I have, who by strict discipline have kept the men together and are not popular with the men. Many of them have distinguished themselves by gallantry in the recent engagements of Tishomingo Creek and Harrisburg, and quite a number are now absent, wounded. I have no desire to see the right of any one disregarded. I believe the appointing of field officers upon proper recommendations the legal method of supplying field officers of regiments composed of parts of so many different unattached commands, and now that it has been done and has proved satisfactory to all parties, I do hope the appointments will be made as per roster forward to the Department. I should not trouble Your Excellency with this matter, but and justice to the officers, who have served so faithfully, require that I should lay this matter before you. I shall, as soon as practicable, forward a detailed statement of facts and recommendations relative to all parties referred to by the Department in its instructions, and do hope that no changes will be made in the new commands raised under your authority. At this particular time it would be disastrous to change the field officer of the WEST Tennessee regiments, and it is my firm conviction that to do so at any time will be highly ind assumption of any power or authority to make these appointments, but selected the very best men in the commands for the positions, and in doing so believed I was acting properly and legally and that the officers nominated and placed in command would be appointed to the positions to which they were assigned. Having done all as I conceived for the best, and having organized a fine command, which since its organization has performed more and better duty than perhaps any other new cavalry command ever did in the same length of time, I do hope that nothing will now be done to destroy its effectiveness or weaken my influence and control over them. I regarded them as detached commands, raised under various authorities, at different times, and by different parties, and that field officers could only be made by appointment from the War Department.

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

N. B. FORREST,

Major-General.

[First indorsement.]

SEPTEMBER 12, 1864.

Adjutant-General, for remarks.

J. D.