WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington City, January 18, 1864.

Major General JOHN A. DIX,

Commanding Department of the East, New York:

GENERAL: The Governor of Maine is solicitous to have some force in the fortifications thrown up in that State to guard against invasions from the British Possessions. The subject was at one time called to your attention, and the last information we had from you was that you did not seem to think the emergency required it. It is well,however, to take every necessary precaution to guard against any raid, and I beg to direct your attention again to this subject.

The State of Maine proposes to raise a local force for that purpose, if needed. It is, of course, not desirable to increase the expenses of the Government by raising a force, unless there be reasonable ground of apprehension, of which you, as commander of the department, are the proper judge.

What is desired by the Department is, that you should again give the subject your attention and report what you deem necessary and whether you will require any additional authority. If you should conclude that it is best to have such force raised, you are authorized to designate the amount of it and to call upon the Governor to have it raised. It will be, perhaps, well for you to have a conference or correspondence with the Governor upon the subject, so as to ascertain his views in regard to it and any facts may be in his possession showing the necessity for the measure.

Your obedient servant,

EDWIN M. STANTON,

Secretary of War.

WAR DEPT., PROVOST-MARSHAL-GENERAL'S OFFICE, Washington, D. C., January 18, 1864.

His Excellency RICHARD YATES,

Governor of Illinois, Springfield, Ill.:

SIR: Your dispatch of the 16th instant is received. The War Department does not propose to attempt the ascertainment of the number of volunteers furnished by each county in Illinois prior to the last call. No account prior to the last call was kept by the War Department with counties, the record being kept only with the State at large.

At the time of making up quotas for the late draft the account of the State of Illinois was made up,and she was found to have a surplus greater than her quota, and was therefore exempt from that draft. See my letter of October 21, 1863.

If you can show exactly what proportion of all the men furnished by the State prior to the last call properly belongs to each county, I presume the War Department would adopt your report on this subject; but I would remark that the manner in which volunteers rushed to arms in the early stages of the rebellion will, it seems tome, render it very difficult for you to accomplish this task satisfactory. The enrollment act does not require it. It says in assigning the quotas to Congressional district we shall take into consideration the number of men furnished by the States, &c. It was the desire of all towns and counties to be credited on the late draft with what each had furnished, but after most earnest efforts I found it impossible to get from any State such information as would have justified an attempt to give