Cavalry Corps arrived in the afternoon, and the men were placed directly on board the hospital transports Connecticut and State of Maine, which were waiting to receive them. The large train under charge of Assistant Surgeon Asch, U. S. Army, which had moved down the north bank of the river, arrived at the railroad bridge in the evening, but were unable to cross for twenty-four hours, the bridge being unsafe. The wounded remaining in the wagons were fed, and as far as possible dressed in that position. When the train crossed the wounded were loaded directly upon the hospital transports, which held all but about 200, these last being put into hospital.

The transports carried 1,291 wounded to Washington on the evening of the 2nd. The usual assortment of slightly wounded, sick, and malingerers began to straggle in on the 3rd, and were immediately set to work to arrange the hospital. On the 4th, wounded were arriving all day - 1,254 were sent directly to Washington on quartermaster's transports; the remainder, 1,460, were placed in hospital. It was very difficult to obtain a sufficient number of nurses and attendants to care properly for the wounded on these transports, a requisition was therefore made upon the Sanitary Commission; a number of good nurses were obtained.

The original plan of the hospital had been to have each corps hospital pitched by itself, and removed to some distance from the others, and they had thus been widely scattered for the sake of securing ground free from marsh or ditches. On the 4th of June, however, an order was issued by General Abercrombie that all the hospitals should be brought within the line of fortification; this rendered them somewhat crowded, and caused much confusion and extra labor. The tents were pitched by twos en echelon, forming a series of rhumbs. The following will give an idea of the plan pursued.*

The wharves from which the wounded were placed on transports were distant only about 150 yards, which rendered their shipment very easy. On the 5th and 6th, wounded continued to arrive in large numbers, and the resources of the hospital were taxed to their utmost to provide accommodation and shelter for them. Many of the slightly wounded were sent directly off upon transports furnished by the quartermaster's department. Medical officers and nurses were detailed to accompany them, three days' rations and medical stores supplied, and one or two large caldrons placed on board of each vessel for culinary purposes. Each transport was well policed and bedded with straw before the wounded were placed on board.

On the evening of June 6 a telegram was received from the Surgeon-General directing that wounded should henceforth be sent only on the regular hospital transports, but this was revoked the following day, upon the representation of Dr. Dalton that this would delay the removal of wounded at least two weeks, and seriously embarrass the movements of the army. The regular hospital transports were used for the serious cases, and very few were sent by other means who were unable to walk from the hospital to the boats. The removal of the wounded went on steadily and rapidly, as is shown by the consolidated daily report of the White House hospitals, which is here given, and by the 14th of June the hospitals were empty, the tents and stores packed on barges, and everything in readiness for a movement to the new base - City Point.

The condition of the wounded at White House was very good, far

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* Diagram omitted.

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