ker's division, under General Blenker, and send them by the shortest route to Strasburg. Upon this force reaching you at Manassas, if matters be entirely quiet in front, you may at once proceed to Fort Monroe, leaving General Abercrombie in command, and assume command of the two divisions of your corps. Let General Blenker, upon reaching Strasburg, report to General Banks for instructions.

GEO. B. McCLELLAN,

Major-General, Commanding.

SPECIAL ORDERS,
HDQRS. ARMY OF THE POTOMAC,

Numbers 99.
Steamer Commodore, Potomac River, April 1, 1862.

By direction of the President Brigadier General Louis Blenker and the division under his command, at the earliest practicable moment, will be relieved from duty with Army of the Potomac and transferred to the Mountain Department. In the mean while General Blanker will receive special instructions for his guidance from General Sumner, who will immediately send two brigades of his division, under General Blenker, to Strasburg to report to General Banks for temporary service, and upon being relieved by him to proceed to Winchester and report for instructions to the Adjutant-General of the Army. The remaining brigade, as soon as the troops drawn from the Railway Brigade, Colonel Miles, reach Manassas, will proceed by the shortest practicable route to rejoin General Blenker.

By command of Major-General McClellan:

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,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

CHARLESTON, April 1, 1862.

Major General JOHN C. FREMONT, Wheeling:

Some refugees, escaping from the militia draft in Greenbrier County, came in last evening, and confirm my report of yesterday in regard to rebel troops at Lewisburg. They report further that the militia of six adjacent counties were ordered to rendezvous at Lewisburg on Thursday last, and to escape this levy they ran away. They did not know of any arms for this levy, and reported the general belief to be that they would be marched east. Colonel Scammon reports the roads from present head of navigation (Loup Creek) to Raleigh as still very bad. No further news from that direction.

J. D. COX,

Brigadier-General, Commanding District of the Kanawha.

HEADQUARTERS MOUNTAIN DEPARTMENT,
April 1, 1862.

Brigadier General R. H. MILROY, Huttonsville:

Received yesterday's dispatch. There is a possibility that the rebel forces under General Johnson, now operating on the line of Staunton, Harrisonburg, and Edenburg, may either voluntarily throw themselves into Pendleton and Highland Counties or be forced into the same emergency. You will therefore use the utmost caution in your operations,