such a position as would enable it to perform that duty until 3 p.m. At that hour the brigade was ordered up to take part in the attack on Post Arkansas, and the head of the column arrived and was just forming for the attack when the enemy hoisted the white flag in the fort and surrendered.

I have no casualties to report.

Your obedient servant,

JOHN F. DE COURCY,

Colonel, Commanding Third Brigade.

Captain GORDON,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

Number 26. Report of Major General William T. Sherman, U. S. Army, commanding Fifteenth Army Corps, with itinerary of the corps December 20, 1862-January 11, 1863.

HEADQUARTERS FIFTEENTH ARMY CORPS, Post Arkansas, Ark., January 13, 1863.

SIR: I have the honor to report the operations of this corps during the recent events which resulted in the capture of the Arkansas Post with its entire garrison and its materiel of war:

The fleet of gunboats under Admiral Porter and transports carrying the two corps composing this army, having rendezvoused in the Mississippi River at the mouth of White River, on the morning of the 9th instant entered White River, gunboats leading, followed by General McClernand in person, my corps, and then General Morgan's. Our route was up White River to the cut-off, through it to the Arkansas, and up that river to the Arkansas Post; whole distance estimated at 50 miles.

It was about dark when the advance of the fleet reached the place of debarkation, about 3 miles below the point of attack, and darkness set in, so that it was impracticable to place the boats at suitable points for landing. During the night it rained hard, but cleared away at 4 a.m. when I proceeded to arrange the boats of my corps and begin the work of disembarkation. This was not advanced far enough to put the troops in motion till 11 a.m., when General Steele's division led off, followed by General Stuart's.

My orders were to make a circuit to the right so as to approach the Post from the north and west, reaching the Arkansas River if possible at a point above the Post. Acting on the best information we could obtain, and guided by negroes, the head of General Steele's column entered the woods back of Notrib's farm, which soon became a deep, ugly swamp, but wading through it for about 2 miles in an easterly direction the head of the column reached a field and cabin on hard ground. There, upon questioning closely the occupants of the cabin and some prisoners who gave themselves up, we ascertained that in crossing the swamp we were on the south side of a bayou which in a northeasterly direction extended to Bayou La Cruz, a tributary of the White River, and that to reach the Little Prairie, behind the Arkansas Post, we would have to march a circuit of 7 miles, although in an air-line the distance did not exceed 2.

Satisfied that this route would not fulfill the conditions of General McClernand's plan of attack I sent my chief of staff, Major Hammond,