ence explains itself. Please forward instructions to the commanding officers in Mobile Bay to notify General Maury when he will be ready to receive the cotton specified; also to require an officer to receipt for is, giving bills of landing consigning it to one or either of the rebel officers named by Judge Ould, the officer receipting for the cotton accompanying it until it is turned over to the party to whom it is consigned.

You will see by the correspondence with General Lee on this subject that the officer paroled to attend to this business is to be accompanied by a Federal officer whilst he is at large.

Please make a detail of an officer for this duty. You can arrange the wording of the parole given as you wish to carry out the arrangement.

I have tried to be very liberal with the rebel authorities in this matter, because, as we get the same privileges, I thought it would better secure the main object-supplying the wants of our suffering soldiers in the South.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

U. S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

HEADQUARTERS ARMIES OF THE UNITED STATES,
November 12, 1864.

Judge ROBERT OULD, Agent for Exchange:

SIR: Your communication of yesterday is received. All that you ask will be complied with. I will send instructions immediately to the Federal commander in Mobile Bay to notify General Maury of his readiness to receive and ship to New York City 1,000 bales of cotton to be assigned to one of the parties you name, who shall have every facility asked by you. My instructions in this matter will have to go by way of Washington and New York cities, and may be ten days in reaching their destination.

All shipments of clothing, provisions, &c., for distribution among prisoners of war will be sent from the place of purchase to the point of delivery free of charge, as you suggest.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

U. S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE SOUTH,
Hilton Head, S. C., November 12, 1864.

Major General H. W. HALLECK,

Chief of Staff of Armies of the United States, Washington, D. C.:

GENERAL: I have the honor to inclose two Savannah papers of yesterday, brought me by the flag-of-truce boat.

The article upon the "Yankee prisoners who took the oath" contains, without doubt, some facts. Two deserters from the Forty-seventh Georgia Infantry, formerly in our army, and while prisoners in Charleston induced to take the oath to the Confederate States of America and enlist, came to Folly Island last week. They represent that their necessities forced them to enlist in the rebel regiment which they did in order to obtain an opportunity to get over to our troops on Morris Island; that there are 150 of our men in the same regiment, recently enlisted, and that another Georgia regiment, also on James Island, has about 200 more.

Reports from Savannah represent that many of our prisoners now in that city have also taken service in the rebel army.