Yes, sir; I suppose no officer educated at West Point is ignorant of the appointing power in this Government.

By General TYLER:

Question. You were a corps commander at the battles of Perryville and Stone River, were you not?

No, sir; I was a corps commander at the battle of Perryville, and at Stone River I commanded what was known as the left wing.

Question. What number of men did your command consist of respectively in these two battles?

At Perryville I suppose my command was somewhere near 23,000 men, and I believe, though my memory is had about such things, that I commanded at the battle of Stone River somewhere about 13,000 men on the field.

Question. Did you, as corps or wing commander, receive in advance, from the commanders-in-chief respectively, plans of the battles of Perryville and Stone River, and was the part your command was to take in these battles pointed out to you by special instructions?

My testimony has shown that I had little to do with the battle of Perryville. The only instructions I received in advance of the battle are contained in an order which I believe has been submitted by General Buell to the Commission during my examination. I received no other instructions or orders in advance of the battle at Perryville. At Stone River I received no instructions except to advance upon Murfreesborough by the Murfreesborough and Nashville road. At one time the general supposed that the enemy were evacuating Murfreesborough, and I received a dispatch by the signal corps to occupy Murfreesborough with one division on the night of the 29th.

Question. Excuse me, general, you are getting away from the object of this question. The question is whether you received any specific orders as to what your corps was to perform in the battles of Perryville and Stone River?

I never did.

Question. In answer to a question yesterday you ran a parallel between the movements of the two armies of Perryville and Stone River respectively, and contrasted the conduct of the troops engaged in those battles. Please continue the parallel, and inform the Commission what you saw and heard as to the conduct of the two commanders of those armies on the battle field in directing the movements and leading the troops.

The JUDGE-ADVOCATE. I must object to the question, Mr. President. The subject was introduced yesterday, but it is going entirely out of the proper course of our investigation, and if it is allowed it is impossible to say where it will end. What has a parallel between those two battles to do with the operations of the army in the campaign of Tennessee and Kentucky? We might as well attempt to run a parallel between the battle of Bunker Hill and Bull Run defeat. It may be my ignorance, but I cannot see the pertinency of the question to the investigation we have on hand.

General BUELL. I request that the witness may be permitted to answer the question.

General TYLER. I foresaw the difficulty in introducing the course of testimony by General Ord and voted against it.

General DANA. I call the general to order. He has no right to expose the votes of this court.

General TYLER. The general is correct.

The court was cleared; when, after discussion, it was decided that the question should be put.

37 R R-VOL XVI