SPECIAL ORDERS,
HDQRS. TWENTY-THIRD ARMY CORPS,

No. 12. Strawberry Plains, Tenn., January 14, 1864.

I. Chapin's brigade, Second Division, will move at once to Dandridge, where it will go into camp in such position as may be selected by Lieutenant-Colonel Sterling, acting assistant inspector-general of the corps.

II. Mott's brigade, Second Division, will remain at Mossy Creek till further orders. It will occupy the strongest available position, keep close watch of all movements of the enemy, and if attacked by very superior forces of the enemy will retire slowly toward New Market and Strawberry Plains, giving full and timely notice of such movement.

III. The batteries now belonging to the brigades respectively will move with them under the above orders.

IV. Brigadier-General Manson, commanding Second Division, will establish his headquarters at such point as may be most convenient for transacting the business of the division.

V. The portions of the Third Division not already ordered elsewhere will also immediately move to Dandridge, where Brigadier-General Hascall will establish his headquarters, putting his men in camp in positions indicated by Lieutenant-Colonel Sterling, acting assistant inspector-general of the corps.

VI. On and after to-morrow, 15th instant, corps headquarters will be established at Dandridge.

VII. Lieutenant M. S. Root, One hundred and third regiment Ohio Volunteers Infantry, having reported at these headquarters as assistant commissary of musters of the corps, and his appointment not having been recognized by the War Department, he is hereby relieved and ordered to report to his regiment for duty.

VIII. The division quartermasters will at once turn over to the post quartermaster all the surplus clothing in their possession for which they have no transportation.

By command of Brigadier General J. D. Cox:

ED. D. SAUNDERS,

Captain and Assistant Adjutant-General.

HEADQUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF THE MISSISSIPPI,
Nashville, Tenn., January 15, 1864.

Major General H. W. HALLECK,

General-in-Chief, Washington, D. C.:

GENERAL: I reached here the evening of the 12th on my return from East Tennessee. I felt a particular anxiety to have Longstreet driven from East Tennessee, and went there with the intention of taking such steps as would secure this end. I found, however, a large part of Foster's command suffering for want of clothing, especially shoes, so that in any advance not to exceed two-thirds of his men could be taken. The difficulties of supplying these are such that to send re-enforcements at present would be to put the whole on insufficient rations for their support. Under these circumstances I only made such changes of position of troops as would place Foster nearer the enemy when he did get in a condition to move, and would open to us new foraging grounds and diminish those held by the enemy. Having done this, and seen the move