the State men of the ages between eighteen and forty-five years (an official copy of which I had the honor to forward for your information), General Clark offered to turn over the State troops to the Confederate Government with their organization, officers, and men. Having no authority to accept these troops in their organized state I so advised the Governor, and stated to him when they were discharged or mustered out of the State service they would be liable to conscription, and such as were of the military age would be conscripted and assigned to the Army of Northern Virginia. The Governor insisted, and these troops had been in C. S. service for several months, and were entitled to pay, they should be mustered for payment before being mustered out. I brought this matter to the notice of the generals commanding the department and district, and represented to them that, as the reserves were assigned to active service and not under my control, I had no means of enforcing the conscription. It was then agreed by General Forrest, commanding the district, that the State troops should be assembled at Macon to be mustered, &c. At an interview with Lieutenant-General Taylor, he suggested the expediency of organizing the men of these forces between the ages of eighteen and forty-five into a battalion or regiment temporarily and subject to your approval. I replied that the orders against new organization were very stringent and peremptory, and I did not believe it would be approved; but, as these men could not at present be forwarded to the Army of Northern Virginia, they might be temporarily formed into companies and officers assigned to command them for the present emergency. I knew it was the practice when recruits or men returning to their commands could not do so, be reason of the interruption of the communication by the presence of the enemy, the general commanding at the point of interruption organized them into companies and temporarily assigned them to duty with his own troops; after the emergency was over they went forward to their respective commands. I thought the same course might be pursued with these troops, but that they should be enrolled at once. I instructed the enrolling officer to apply to Lieutenant-General Forrest for authority to make the enrollment. I am not advised what course has been taken.

Lieutenant-General Taylor has recently desired me to approve this organization, should it be made. This I most respectfully decline as I am satisfied it would not be for the good of the service, for the reason that the men would compose this organization are from the volunteer State forces (who have been avoiding the service from the beginning of the war), and if they are placed in a separate command, or regiment, and permitted to do duty in this state, they will all the time [be] absent from their command without leave and never present and fit for duty when required. On the contrary, if they are assigned to an old organization, and removed from the State, they will do good service, for they do not skulk the service from any fear of the enemy families and property. Therefore, when the enemy make an advance into the State they leave their colors for home-to take care of the one and secure the other. For these reasons I ask instructions to be given to the generals commanding the department and district to turn over these troops to me, to be conscripted and assigned to the Army of Northern Virginia. It is also urged, as a reason for organizing these men into regiments to serve in this State, that if an attempt be made to conscript they may desert. Some doubtless would desert, but this