General R. turned quickly toward me and said:

But you know nothing about it.

One of the officers, I think Colonel Du Bois, said General Curtis was a "regular old muddle-head." Captain Hoelcke made the remark that-

The old general was not what he used to be when he knew him; he was getting old and childish.

There appeared to be a general feeling between all the staff officers of General Rosecrans against General Curtis. During the interview, General Rosecrans turned to me and said:

My dear sir, I have had the greatest difficulty in getting General Curtis to believe that Price was in Missouri at all. I have sent him dispatch after dispatch, telegram after telegram, to the effect that Price, with his whole army, was in Missouri, and that he must be on the lookout for him, as it was Price's intention to go to Kansas. In answer, I received from General Curtis a dispatch that the idea of Price, with 3,000 men being in the State of Missouri, was monstrous.

General Rosecrans then turned to Colonel Du Bois and said:

And now, colonel, I guess the old man finds that Price is no fiction; that he is a reality, eh?

The colonel replied:

I should think he did.

Again General Rosecrans said to me:

I have been overpersuaded by that man (having reference to Major-General Curtis) against my own military judgment to send all my troops via Kansas City. It was my wish to send them farther south, but the constant cry of Kansas city, Kansas City, induced me to order my troops there, with the beautiful result of losing the whole thing. Hereafter when I listen to another man and take his advance I shall be a bigger fool than he is.

Again:

I understand, sir, that Jim Lane is running this border ruffian institution, and actually in command of the whole machine.

I told General Rosecrans that General Lane was certainly at the front and doing his duty as a common soldier as were many other Kansas men, but as to his having command of any portion of the troops it was not so. General R. said:

On, yes, I understand the whole thing, sir, much better than you possibly can do; I understand and know Jim Lane thoroughly.

A moment after he said to me:

Lieutenant, you are not as much of a Fremont man as when you were on his staff.

I told him I was not. Shortly afterward I went to my own quarters. The column took up the line of march next morning at 7 o'clock, marched until 12 m., making about twenty miles, when a halt was ordered for an hour. I then asked the general what time he intended to camp. His reply was, "Very soon." I ventured to reply that such marching would not catch General Curtis. His reply was:

My dear sir, when you get to be a general remember to start early and camp early, and when you do find your enemy you will be able to fight him with fresh men and fresh horses. You will see that I will have to finish this thing up yet with my infantry - slow but sure. I have the finest body of infantry int he world, and I shall catch

Price with them after all the cavalry are used up. Such racing cannot last over forty-eight hours longer, and then comes my turn.