seen that they are absolutely necessary to the preservation of the public interests in the District of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, and if all for whom I have asked are appointed and ordered to report to me, they will not be sufficient to transact the public business of this district in the best manner. I therefor venture respectfully to express the hope that those whom I have recommended for assignment and promotion may receive from His Excellency the President and the honorable Secretary of War the favorable consideration which their own merits and the public interests alike justify. The list is herewith inclosed, with slight alterations from that furnished in January last.

I will state that my aide-de-camp, First Lieutenant George A. Magruder, jr., of the Provisional Artillery, is now acting chief of artillery for this whole district; that he has organized the artillery as assistant to Colonel Bankhead admirably; that his knowledge of his profession is conspicuous to all, and that he has been distinguished on four occasions under my command, and at Sharpsburg, under General Lee, who has written in high terms of him to the War Department. I ask that he be made major of artillery and ordered to report to me. He will either be assigned to the command of a battalion of artillery or to duty as chief of artillery in case Colonel Bankhead is promoted. I had recommended Major E. F. Gray to be transferred also to the artillery, but since then he has been made lieutenant-colonel in his regiment, with the certainty of promotion if his colonel, Luckett, is promoted, and therefore I withdraw my recommendation, in justice to Lieutenant-Colonel Gray, who is an excellent officer in any position.

There are ten light batteries to this district and six armed gunboats requiring artillery officers, and a field officers of artillery to supervise all. There cannot be less if these batteries, detachments, and boats are kept in order and ready for service at all times. There are ten light batteries in this district besides those on board of gunboats; two more batteries are ordered and will soon be here; to each two batteries there ought to be a major; this is in accordance with the tactics; there should be 5 majors alone, then, for the ten batteries, and 1 major is absolutely essential to attend to the wants of the marine artillery, that is, the guns on board the boats; this would be 6 majors of artillery for artillery service. I have only recommended 4, viz: Major Magruder, Major Fontaine, Major Hill, for service with the light batteries, and Major Mason for service with the marine artillery. Major [T. T.] Teel, who was ordered here, belongs to Sibley's brigade, and has gone to Louisiana. The other officers recommended for the artillery are intended especially for the engineer service, viz:

Colonel V. Sulakowski, who is an officer of the highest grade of merit. He was colonel of a regiment; his services are indispensable to our interests. If Galveston is saved from the enemy, as I now think it will be, the credit will be due to the services of Colonel Sulakowski. I could not offer him less than the pay and emoluments of a colonel and the recommendation to the rank of colonel; and I proposed artillery because I believe the President had the power to apoint him colonel of artillery, Provisional Army, and could not appoint him colonel of engineers.

Major Kellersber is also an engineer of great merit, who was appointed major of artillery by Brigadier-General Hebert, and has rendered the greatest service. I recommend him to be lieutenant-colonel of artillery on engineer service.

Captain Wilson is also an engineer of ability, and I recommend him to the grade of major. He organized a battery of light artillery, was captain