Today in History:

214 Series I Volume XXXI-I Serial 54 - Knoxville and Lookout Mountain Part I

Page 214 KY.,SW.VA.,Tennessee,MISS.,N.ALA., AND N.GA. Chapter XLIII.


HEADQUARTERS ELEVENTH AND TWELFTH CORPS, Lookout Valley, Tennessee, January 15, 1864.

Respectfully forwarded, approved.

JOSEPH HOOKER,
Major-General, Commanding.


HEADQUARTERS ELEVENTH AND TWELFTH CORPS, January 29, 1864.

Brig. Gen. WILLIAM D. WHIPPLE,

A. A. G., and Chief of Staff, Dept. of the Cumberland:

GENERAL: I have the honor herewith to transmit the original of the remonstrance shown you last evening, having in my possession an authenticated copy. I also send original copy, Paragraph XI, Special Field Orders, No. 23, current series.

I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

WILLIAM H. LAMBERT,

Captain Thirty-third New Jersey, Recorder.

[Inclosure.]

C SCHURZ'S REMONSTRANCE TO CERTAIN INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN TO COURT OF INQUIRY.

HEADQUARTERS ELEVENTH CORPS, January 28, 1864.

The undersigned begs leave to enter a respectful remonstrance against the instructions to the Court, contained in Special Field Orders, No. 23, Department of the Cumberland.

I would respectfully call the attention of the Court to the Ninety-second Article of War, the spirit of which undoubtedly is, that as no court of inquiry can be ordered by any commander, except the President of the United States, unless demanded by the accused, so it can be ordered by a military commander upon such demand for no other purpose or for the investigation of no other matter than that specified by the accused in his application. The Ninety-second Article of War can be understood in no other way.

From my application, a copy of which is hereto annexed, it appears that I asked for a court of inquiry, "for the purpose of investigating the circumstances connected with the case [as specified in my application], so as to determine whether the above strictures in General Hooker's report and letter were deserved by the conduct of myself and my command on that occasion."

In Special Field Orders, No. 23, the object of the Court of Inquiry is defined as follows:

To investigate the circumstances attending all movements of troops ordered to the support of Brig. Gen. John W. Geary, commanding Second Division, Twelfth Corps, during the night action of Wauhatchie between the 28th and 29th of October, 1863, and give an opinion as to whether blame should attach to Major-General Schurz or Colonel Hecker.

It will be observed that there is a discrepancy between the object specified in my application and the object specified in Special Field Orders, No. 23. While I applied for an investigation of the circum-


Page 214 KY.,SW.VA.,Tennessee,MISS.,N.ALA., AND N.GA. Chapter XLIII.