of ground around the woods, &c. To reconnoiter a forest thoroughly it is necessary to make its circuit, to examine the roads, streams, and ravines which leave it, and learn where they come from and where they go.

6. Towns.-The principal ones in the vicinity, and on the roads crossed or passed; their distances, character, resources, &c. Especially must be noticed all military positions favorable for protecting an advance or covering a retreat. The division engineer should call attention to the brigade, and if possible of the division, commander to these and obtain his views of the advantages offered by them. Whenever names of localities can be obtained, such as houses, mills, cross-roads, &c., they should be given always on the map. When the ordinary pronunciation is different from the spelling, the familiar pronunciation should be given in the remarks. All prominent landmarks should be given with such description as will identify them, as cotton-gin house, with red door; steam saw-mill, with tall smoke pipe; white frame house, &c.

II. Under all circumstances these notes must be platted at the end of the march and the same day by the assistant on a scale of two inches to a mile, of four squares of cross-section paper to a mile when that is used. All the above information possible will be given by topographical signs. Levels will be given in feet and inclosed in brackets, as [15]. Levels below zero will be preceded by the minus sign, as [-5]. Other information so far as possible will be written concisely at the locality it belongs to. All other information that can be will be written in one corner of the map, with numbers of references between it and the localities it refers to. The rest of the information required will be forwarded in a clear, concise memoir, written on letter paper in a definite, exact, condensed style. Three copies of map and memoir will be made, all of which must be signed by division engineer. One of each will be retained by him and two sent that day to the corps engineer, one of them to be forwarded by him to the chief engineer of the army, or his chief topographer, and the other retained. Immediately on getting into camp the division engineer will accompany the commander of his division in his examination of his front, if he makes one immediately; if not, the brigade officer posting pickets, and give all necessary instructions for strengthening and entrenching the front of his division, as required by General Field Orders, Numbers 1, headquarters Army and Division of West Mississippi. After this he will examine the communications between different parts of his division, and between his division and the one which preceded it on the march, and make the necessary arrangements for perfecting these. He will make a concise report in writing to the corps engineer of what he has done, with such rough sketch as may be necessary to explain this. When absent from division headquarters he will leave such information of the duty and locality he is attending to as will enable him to be readily found. When the same camp is occupied two days, the disposition of troops by regiments and batteries will be located by the division engineer and duplicate maps sent as promptly as possible to the corps engineer. When on the march the pioneer company needs attention apart from the head of the column, either the division engineer or his assistant will remain with it, but not both. The other will go on and keep the notes as above. When necessary, mounted orderlies and escorts will be assigned to division engineers to assist them in obtaining the information herein specified, or to carry out these provisions. Commissioned officers may also be ordered to report to them for temporary duty as assistants.