feet up to Eastport . I have had a regiment there for three days, but it came in this evening. But I will send another down and keep it there till I hear something positive about a boat. I must have one to cross, for there are no boats in the Tennessee, and to build flats to cross an army would be a big job. But I feel that I am already fulfilling General Halleck's plan in occupying the attention of a material part of Bragg's men-all his cavalry. The break in the railroad at Bear Creek is very bad-the bridge itself and a great many small trestles for 3 miles out to Buzzard Roost- but Colonel Flad is very active and promises me the road across Bear Creek by Sunday. I was down, but mistrust his ability. Still, Fuller's brigade cannot be up by that time, and I cannot well leave till he is here to cover this point.

I will go to Tuscumbia to attack this cavalry, and may cross at Eastport, according to whether I can get my boats up to Florence or not. Osterhaus, in the advance, has had some hard skirmishing, as he says, with Stephen D. Lee,s cavalry, but he drove the enemy in every instance, only at some cost. I will send all my reports through you, and will be obliged if you will forward them to General Grant's headquarters and telegraph such parts to Haleck as you may deem proper.

Yours, truly,

W. T. SHERMAN,

Major-General, Commanding.

HEADQUARTERS FIFTEENTH ARMY CORPS,
Iuka, Miss., October 22, 1863.

Brigadier General GRENVILLE M. DODGE,

Corint:

DEAR GENERAL: I thank you for the budget of news, which is most serviceable, as we can approximate the truth. Of course, here I am balked by Bear Creek, which is a worse break than was represented to me. I have my three leading division across Bear Creek, an all hands are busy at the bridge and trestles. The enemy skirmished briskly the day before yesterday and yesterday. We have lost 8 killed and about 35 wounded in all. Among the dead is Colonel Torrence, Thirtieth Iowa.

I think it well established that both Lee, who came from Jackson, Clinton, and Canton, with about 4,000 good cavalry, is to my front with Roddey's brigade, and I think also that Wheeler's cavalry has been driven out of Tennessee, and is now resting between here and Decatur. If all this cavalry turns on me I will have a nice time, but can't help it, and if Porter gets me up some boats to Eastport I will checkmate them. The Tennessee is in very fine boating order for 4 feet, and I expect daily a boat up from Cairo; also a ferry boat.

I have had the river examined well, and am more than satisfied we cannot ford even on the shoals. Of course, I don't believe the report you sent of the capture of Banks and fifteen regiments. Dick Taylor was somewhere west of the river, between Alexandria and Shreveport. That is ground familiar to me, and I know Dick Taylor cannot get to the east side of the Mississippi with anything like an army. After the capture of Vicksburg we relaxed our efforts and subsided. The secesh, on the contrary, increased theirs amazingly.