Today in History:

198 Series I Volume XXIV-III Serial 38 - Vicksburg Part III

Page 198 Mississippi, WEST TENNESSEE, ETC. Chapter XXXVI.

MILLIKEN'S BEND, La., April 16, 1863.

Major General John A. McClernand, Comdg. Thirteenth Army Corps:

I leaving here, you left 1,000 men, sick and straggling, without any provision either of tents or medical attendance. Great difficulty has been experienced in providing for them.

U. S. GRANT.

JACKSON, April 16, 1863.

Lieutenant-Colonel BINMORE, Assistant Adjutant-General, Memphis:

Colonel Rice, Bethel, Tenn., telegraphs scouts report a large part of Bragg's forces had left Tennessee River, above Florence, and gone back to Bragg, on account of Rosecrans making an attack on Tullahoma. Colonel Fuller, Corinth, says scouts report squads of them in our front; been ordered to Chesterville for organization. Seventh Kansas not yet arrived at Corinth.

R. J. OGLESBY.

JACKSON, April 16, 1863.

Lieutenant-Colonel BINMORE, Memphis:

Dispatch was sent to General Dodge this afternoon. Have heard nothing from him to-day.

R. J. OGLESBY.

U. S. GUNBOAT LEXINGTON, April 16, 1863.

Brigadier General Greenville M. DODGE,

Commanding United States Forces, Corinth, MISS.:

SIR: I have received your dispatches of the 1st and 3rd instant. There will be two or four boats on the river all the time, as long as there is water. Our coal depot is below; therefore the boats will have to make trips down for fuel, but will return as soon as coaled, unless urgent necessity compels me to send them off on short temporary trips elsewhere. I would have been back here before this, had it not been that my presence was required up the Cumberland. I regret to say the river is too low just now, and has been for some time, for my boats to get over Calvert Shoals, but I am anxiously awaiting a rise.

The river is now rising slowly, but whether there will be water enough for a week yet to let over or not, I cannot yet say. I trust, though, there will. I will be ready to take advantage of it. I have on this river at the present time four of my best boats. This, I trust, will be sufficient, as the remainder of the fleet is required to convoy transports on the Cumberland. Should necessity require it, I can for a short period have more boats here. With these four boats I can carry about 2,000 infantry. If the water will rise sufficiently to let us over the shoals, I will guarantee to cut off their re-enforcements from the Florence side. We can soon drive them off or capture their entire force on the Tuscumbia side. I do not think, from what I can learn, that there is a very heavy force now at Tuscumbia Landing. I am expecting some transports up with troops from Nashville, and left two of the gunboats at Fort Henry to give them convoy.

I will let you know as soon as I can get over the shoals; and if the troops do not arrive from General Rosecrans, I would suggest that, if


Page 198 Mississippi, WEST TENNESSEE, ETC. Chapter XXXVI.