WASHINGTON, October 27, 1864-12 noon.

Lieutenant-General GRANT,

City Point, Va.:

Your orders have been transmitted to General Rosecrans. I have no staff officer of sufficient rank to send with discretionary instructions as to the particular troops to be withdrawn. Moreover, to withdraw until the pursuit is well under way, may cause General Rosecrans to stop it. General Canby's orders to him are to pursue with all his available force to the Arkansas River, or at least till Price encounters Steele and Reynolds. Neither Thomas nor Washburn consider Memphis in danger. Thomas says Forrest, with about 10,000 men, is attempting to cross the Tennessee above Decatur. He thinks that with the forces he now has he will soon be able to clean out West Tennessee and North Alabama. Intercepted dispatches from Jeff. Davis, dated at Montgomery, September 30, renew the orders to Kirby Smith to cross the Mississippi and re-enforce Forrest and Hood. Dispatches of the 9th and 11th report that the rebel force in front of Steele is falling back to Camden and Monroe, probably with a view of crossing the Mississippi. Canby is fully impressed with the importance of preventing this and is now probably on the Mississippi, at Vicksburg, or the mouth of White River. I will probably meet you at City Point on Saturday morning on official business.

H. W. HALLECK,

Major-General and Chief of Staff.

CITY POINT, VA., October 27, 1864-9 p. m.

Major General H. W. HALLECK,

Chief of Staff:

Now that Price is on the retreat without a probability of his bringing up again, Rosecrans should forward all the troops he can to General Thomas. This ought to be done without delay. He has 6,000 or 8,000 troops around Saint Louis, and within a few hours travel of it, that can start at once.

U. S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

HDQRS. MILITARY DIVISION OF WEST MISSISSIPPI,
OFFICE OF THE CHIEF SIGNAL OFFICER,

New Orleans, La., October 27, 1864.

Major General E. R. S. CANBY,

Commanding Mil. Div. of West Mississippi, New Orleans, La.:

GENERAL: I have the honor to submit to your consideration a statement of the information received at this office this 27th day of October, 1864, from the following sources: A report from Captain T. J. Whiteman, Thibodeaux, La., October 24; report from Lieutenant Colonel G. G. Curtiss, Baton Rouge, La., October 24; a report from Lieutenant Thomas A. Baker, Columbus, Ky., October 12.

A refugee from Alexandria the 5th instant reports that Twenty-sixth and Twenty-eighth Louisiana and Miles Legion at that place. there was no general officer there except General Buckner and no artillery. There were not troops at Opelousas except home guards. A small body