KANSAS CITY, March 20, 1865.

General McNEIL:

Postmaster informs me the mail has been ordered by way of Saint Louis. This makes it needless to escort stage from Pleasant Hill to Independence. Bushwhackers are gathering in large bodies. Yesterday a scouting party from Hickman Mills down the Little Blue had a brush with a few. To-day an escort from Hickman Mills was fired upon. As high as twenty-one have been met on the Pleasant Hill road by infantry. They kept out of range. Can I expect any cavalry to assist me? Company E, First Missouri State Militia, should leave Hickman Mills to-morrow, but I shall retain them a day or two.

CHESTER HARDING, JR.,

Colonel, &c.

HEADQUARTERS DISTRICT OF SOUTHWEST MISSOURI,
Springfield, Mo., March 20, 1865.

General G. M. DODGE:

DEAR GENERAL: Your favor of the 14th came duly to hand last evening and I hasten to reply. My last scot from Price's camp left there about the 10th of last month. The information brought was to the effect, so far as relates to Missouri and bushwhacking, that all the old bands were designing and preparing to return with increased numbers. The army under Price was at that time scattered along the Red River for sixty or seventy miles, and the plans of the leaders, as near as could be ascertained, were to resist any advance up Red River or into Texas with their main force, and send all the bands of bushwhackers into Missouri to occupy the troops here. The rebel army west of the river is large and in good condition generally, although it has not been paid for more than a year, and would be able to do good service if their cause was not failing so fast in the East. My command and that of Colonel Harrison at Fayetteville have killed fully 100 bushwhackers in Northern Arkansas during the last six weeks; many of them were from Missouri and waiting for grass to grow before going farther north. After they have got fairly into the State this year, say about the 1st of June, the whole military force of the State should be called out, and they should be at once hunted and driven and killed until all leave the State, and not be allowed to remain until leaves fall, as has been the case heretofore. As long as they can come in when the leaves put forth and remain until the leaves fall, they will continue to come. I shall resist their movements north as much as I can and drive back all possible, and hope you will be able to kill the balance. Shelby has had some four or five spies up here lately. Two of them were killed, one captured, and I expect two have gone back or are concealed here now. One of the men man near here that Shelby designed to come up this spring, but I do not attach much importance to this information, and think that a large force cannot move north until another crop matures. I think we may all look for the bushwhackers to make as great an effort as they have ever made; but if the people will stand up to us we can soon put them down and clear the State.

Thanking you for your kind congratulations and expressions of good will, I remain, yours, truly,

JOHN B. SANBORN,

Brigadier-General.