CAIRO, ILL., February 7, 1862.

Brigadier General U. S. GRANT,

Commanding U. S. Forces on Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers:

By direction of Major-General Halleck I am here with his authority to give any necessary orders in his same to facilitate your very important operations. Do you want any more cavalry? If so, General Halleck can send you a regiment from Saint Louis. I have directed General Paine to send you, as soon as transportation can be provided, the Thirty-second and Forty-ninth Illinois and Twenty-fifth Indiana. The Fifty-seventh Illinois will be here on Wednesday, en route to join you. Several regiments are about moving from Saint Louise to add to your forces. Please ask Lieutenant-Colonel McPherson whether he wants entrenching tools or anything else I can supply.

G. W. CULLUM,

Brigadier General Vols., U. S. Army, Chief of Staff.

LOUISVILLE, February 8, 1862-9 a.m.

Major General GEORGE B. McCLELLAN:

I am concentrating and preparing, but will not decide definitely yet.

D. C. BUELL,

Brigadier-General.

HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI,
Saint Louis, February 8, 1862.

To the SECRETARY OF WAR, Washington:

Brigadier-Generals Sherman, Pope, Grant, Curtis, Hurlbut, Sigel, Prentiss, and McClernand, all in this department, are of same date, and each unwilling to serve under the other. If Brigadier General E. A. Hitchcock could be made major-general of volunteers and assigned to this department it would safisty all and reconcile all differences. If it can be done there could be no delay, as an experienced officer of high rank is wanted immediately on the Tennessee line.

H. W. HALLECK,

Major-General.

HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI,
Saint Louis, February 8, 1862-12 m.

Major-General McCLELLAN, Washington:

Yours of the 7th, 8 p.m., is received. I am decidedly of opinion that if General Buell cannot move on Bowling Green, all his available forces not required to guard Green River should be transferred to the Cumberland, to move by water on Nashville. With the enemy in force at Columbus and Bowling Green on my flanks I cannot advance on Nashville without more troops. The enemy would be certain to cut me off from my base. I shall go to Fort Henry on Monday or Tuesday. The disabled gunboats cannot be repaired for some days, giving time for the transfer of what forces can be spared from Kentucky.

H. W. HALLECK,

Major-General.