but until those supplies are in hand I can do nothing; after they are I shall be ready to move with great rapidity. I have heard of the affhir at Cape Fear; it has turned out as you will remember I expected. I have furnished General Easton a copy of the dispatch from the Secre- tary of War. He will retain possession of all cotton here and ship it, as hist as vessels can be had, to New York. I shall immediately send the Seventeenth Corps over to Port Royal by boats to be furnished by Admiral Dahlgren and General Foster, without interfeting with Gen- eral Eastons vessels, to make a lodgment on the railroad at Pocotaligo. General Barnard will remain with me a few days, and I shall send this by a staff officer, who can return on one of the vessels of the supply fleet. I suppose that now that General Butler has got through you can spare them to us. My report of recent operations is nearly ready and will be sent on in a day or two, as soon as some further subordinate reports come in. I am, with great respect, very truly, your friend, W. T. SHERMAN, Major- General. [Inclosure.] Projet for January.Extremely confidential. Right Wing move men and artillery by transports to head of Broad River and Beaufort; get Port Royal Ferry and mass the wing at or in the neighborhood of Pocotaligo. Left Wing and cavalry work slowly across the causeway toward Hardeevihle to open a road by which wagons can reach their corps about Broad River; also by a rapid movement of the Left secure Sisters Ferry and out as far as the Augusta roadRobertsville. In the meantime all guns, shot, shells, cotton, & c., to be got to a safe place, easy to guard, and provisions and wagons got ready for another swath, aiming to have our army in hand about the head of Broad River, say Pocotahigo, Robertsville, and Coosawhatchie by the 15th of January. Seond. Move with loaded wagons by the roads leading in the direction of Columbia, which afford the best chance of forage a:id pro. visions. Howard to be at Pocotaligo 15th of January, and Slocum to be at Robertsville and Kilpatrick at or near Coosawhatchie about same date. General Fost~rs troops to ocenpy Savannah, and gun-boats to pro. tect the rivers as soon as Howard gets Pocotaligo. SAVANNAH, January 2, 1865. Lieut. Gen. U. S. GRANT: IDEAR GENERAL: I found the California, which had brought Major Gray, at Fort Monroe, and sailed in her a few hours after my arrival (Tuesday evening, December 27). I had a tedious voyage, with a gale of wind dead ahead the whole way. Reached Lliltou Head at 9p. m. yester- day, and arrived here last evening at 4 p. m. General Sherman sends dispatches to day, and a liberal execution of your orders would require, or at least justify, me to return by the same steamer; but General Sherman prefers that I should stay long enongh to see things for myself and for us to have some talk, and I believe it would meet