where I have with me Marmaduke's division (of Marmaduke's and Shelby's brigades), Fagan's division (of Cabell's, Dockery's, and Crawford's brigades), Gano's command, and Wood's battalion. Shelby is about 5 miles to the front. The Federals have advanced but little since yesterday, when Marmaduke engaged them at Elkin's Ferry, and are now about 10 mile distant to the northeast. Their cavalry is very inferior, and on all occasions, skirmishing as we do almost daily, the superior fighting qualities of our troops are manifested. In our various affairs with the enemy their loss in killed, wounded, and missing cannot be less than 500, while our own is not one-fourth of that number.

My troops are in full spirits. I am expecting General Maxey with his command to-morrow. If he arrives, as anticipated, I feel confident that I shall not only be able to prevent Steele from advancing in any direction, but eventually destroy his army. Their cavalry and teams, already in a miserable condition, cannot without difficulty be subsisted, and I have consumed or destroyed everything around and near it. It is impossible for them to obtain further supplies of forage. From all I can learn the enemy are not advancing from Pine Bluff, nor do I believe he can re-enforce, as all his troops except those now in the field are necessary to garrison and hold the points in his rear. I have scouts on the other side of the Ouachita to watch closely and give information of all movements of the enemy.

I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

STERLING PRICE,

Major-General, Commanding.

HOUSTON, TEX., April 8, 1864.

Honorable J. R. BAYLOR, M. C.,

Independence:

You were kind enough to say that you would do anything you could for me in Richmond. Having recently sent public dispatches, I will not trouble you with anything of that sort. I beg that you will see Mr. Wigfall, and ask him to inform the President that Senator Oldham sustained my course in Texas in a public speech in my presence; that a commission appointed by General Smith, of which Judge Devine and Judge Terrell were members, to investigate the cotton transactions of this district, commended my course, and stated in their official report that mine was the true and only policy that could have been adopted on that subject. This policy was overruled by Senator Oldham's representations at the Treasury Department. I heard of the decision of the Secretary of War, based upon these representations, whilst on my way to Brownsville, in April, 1863, and as soon as I arrived there published my orders in conformity with the views of the Secretary of War.

The order which Senator Oldham showed to the President, in which I made it obligatory on blockade-runners to bring in arms as a portion of their cargoes and iron as ballast, was an application of the impressment act to the necessities of our condition, the penalty prescribed being an impressment of cotton on board of the outward-bound vessels which had failed to comply with the order. The exemption from impressment of 30 bales cotton for every 100 slaves