Today in History:

626 Series I Volume XLI-IV Serial 86 - Price's Missouri Expedition Part IV

Page 626 LOUISIANA AND THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI. Chapter LIII.

BATON ROUGE, November 20, 1864.

(Received 7 p. m.)

COMMANDING OFFICER,

Port Hudson:

A lady from Bayou Sara reports that there are 700 rebels between Liberty and this place intending to attack Brigadier-General Lee on his return. Notify him if you can without hazarding too much.

W. P. BENTON,

Brigadier-General, Commanding.

SPECIAL FIELD ORDERS,
HDQRS. NINETEENTH ARMY CORPS, Numbers 23.
Mouth of White River, Ark., November 20, 1864.

* * *

2. The Sixty-seventh Indiana Volunteers will proceed to Morganza, La., without delay, and be reported to the commanding officer at that place. The quartermaster's department will furnish transportation.

3. The One hundred and thirtieth Illinois Volunteers will proceed to New Orleans, La.,and be reported to the commanding general Department of the Gulf. The quartermaster's department will furnish transportation.

* * *

By command of Major General J. J. Reynolds:

S. C. FARRINGTON,

Major and Acting Assistant Adjutant-General.


HDQRS. SECOND DIVISION, SEVENTH ARMY CORPS,
Devall's Bluff, Ark., November 20, 1864.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN,

President of the United States:

MY DEAR SIR: Letters in a rebel mail lately captured by my scouts expressed great apprehensions for the rebel cause in the event of your election. I rejoice that you are re-elected by so heavy a vote. This moral victory at the polls will confirm and strengthen the armies in the field. Whether we succeed or not; whether liberty, law, humanity, knowledge are beat down by a malignant and aristocratic enemy and our efforts are fruitless, which I do not apprehend, we still owe it to our race, our age, our ancestors, to do the thing we have undertaken as well as we can. Let the Macaulay or Hume, whose story of these days will go down to the ages that are to come, be able to record that we had sense as well as courage, and that we made vigorous use of our means. Our name in history and the respect that will be felt for us among other nations depend on the vigor and skill of our present blows. I know you realize this. I trust you will think of us down here in Arkansas. About a year now we have been on he defensive. I wait patiently, however, hoping we may be able before long to do something. The enemy south of the Arkansas does not appear to be demonstrating now. We have considered it safe to send some boats back to go up the Arkansas to Little Rock. The streams have lately risen, owing to late copious rains. A great number of the rebels who were conscripted last summer in Arkansas have deserted since Price's


Page 626 LOUISIANA AND THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI. Chapter LIII.