directing him to proceed to New York, from which point he will report by letter to the Adjutant-General U. S. Army.

No act of my official life has cost me more serious reflection than this nor does if often fall to the lot of an officer to perform a clear duty which coast him so much pain. Personally prepossessed in favor of General Naglee I had resort to every effort of conciliation, but without avail, in order to ward off the necessity for this step. Concessions and overlooking of minor irregularities were merely regarded as licenses for further and yet graver breaches of discipline, until finally I was forced to the belief in which I remain and believe I have substantial reasons for remaining, that General Naglee had made up his mind not to serve under my command and took the extraordinary course he has take with a direct view to forcing my action as indicated.

Before General Naglee had been n hour in the department he committed a grave of courtesy, to say the least, in visiting Admiral DuPont before reporting to me, and consulting the admiral as to the condition of matters in the department and our future operations without the least reference to my authority. This was a day previous to General Foster's arrival; and I only became aware of the fact by meeting General Naghlee in the cabin of the Wabash, while paying on official visit General Naglee in the cabin of the Wash, while paying an official visit to the admiral, who by his conduct on the occasion only too clearly failed to conceal that he appreciated the irregularity of which General Naglee had been guilty.

In the extraordinary correspondence which grew out of General Foster's claim to separate and independent command you are already advised of the objectionable style of General Naglee's protest so objectionable as to incur against him your disapproval and on other that he be relieved from duty in this department.

Your order was subsequently modified, doubles on my representation that I did not wish toehold General Naglee responsible for acts done in defense of what he professed to consider General Foster's rights, the modification leaving it optional with me whether to avoid all further trouble in the matter that I gave ready credence to General Naglee's verbal protestation that all difficulties were now at an end, and frankly and in full good faith accepted his asseverations that he was no party to the course calling in question my authority, but that he had acted throughout the affair exclusively with a view to preserve a record which could not be used to his disadvantage in case he should at any time be returned under General Foster's command. In this view of General Naglee's conduct I was strengthened by evidence which appeared to me, and appears, satisfactory, that first protest against my authority, signed by General Naglee, had been written by Brigadier General E. E. Potter, chief of staff to Major-General Foster.

No sooner, however, acting under this view, had I exercised my option in favor of retaining General Naglee's service, conveying the announcement of my intention in language calculated to remove all previous aspirates, bury formes differences, and clear a smooth part for future harmony, than General Naglee instantly commenced to set up on his own behalf substantially of the pretensions which had been disallowed and disapproved in the case of Major-General Foster, demanding in effect to have a staff a corps organization for the troops brought down from North Carolina wholly separate from and independent of the department staff, this claim being apparently based on his refusal to regard my staff organization as that of the general commanding the department, but insisting that it was merely a staff for the Tenth Army