[Indorsement.]

JANUARY 23, 1865.

Brigadier-General WESSELLS:

The Secretary of War directs that General Vance be paroled, as herein requested.

H. W. HALLECK,

Major-General and Chief of Staff.

CITY POINT, January 15, 1865.

Major-General HALLECK, Chief of Staff:

Under the agreement for the release and exchange of prisoners of war, set forth in the letter of which the following is a copy,* Judge Ould has notified Colonel Mulford, assistant agent of exchange, that orders have gone out for the release of all prisoners coming within said agreement held by their side. You will therefore direct all prisoners that come within said agreement held by us to be released and sent to Fort Monroe, there to be detained subject to the orders of Colonel Mulford.

U. S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

WASHINGTON, D. C., January 15, 1865.

Lieutenant-General GRANT, City Point:

Does your order to send prisoners to Fort Monroe include the 500 officers sent to Morris Island, to be exposed to enemy's fire, the same as our officers confined in the city of Charleston?

H. W. HALLECK,

Major-General and Chief of Staff.

CITY POINT, VA., January 15, 1865--12 m.

Major General H. W. HALLECK, Chief of Staff:

I have just received a communication from Judge R. Ould, Confederate agent of exchange, under date of 14th instant, in which he says:

I have already acquainted you with the substance of the telegram from Mobile of the date of the 25th of December last. I have now before me a letter from the agent of the Confederate States having charge of the matter, dated Mobile, December 23, 1864, from which I extract the following paragraph, to wit: "The cotton has been furnished and is already on board the lighter, awaiting reply from the Federal commander to a communication from General Maury notifying him that it is ready to be delivered."

Please communicate the above to General Canby, with directions to inquire into the matter and take immediate steps to have the vessels that are to transport the cotton report at once in Mobile Harbor to receive it, and the proper parties in Mobile notified of the fact. I much fear, unless something is done in this matter soon, we will be denied permission to send through supplies for our prisoners, for whose benefit especially the arrangement for serving prisoners was entered into by us.

U. S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

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*See Grant to Mulford, January 13, p. 63.

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