[16] a few days. The work will become more difficult every day. Please let me hear from you at once. Very truly yours,D. C. Buell, Brigadier-General commanding.
Four days later General Buell telegraphed as follows:
I am telegraphed by the President. Can you fix a day for concerted action?D. C. Buell, Brigadier-General.
To which Halleck replied:
Designate a day for a demonstration. I can do nothing more. See my letter of yesterday.H. W. Halleck, Major-General.
The letter thus referred to was as follows:
headquarters Department of the Missouri, St. Louis, January 6, 1862.General: I have delayed writing to you for several days in hopes of getting some favorable news from the South-west. The news received to-day, however, is unfavorable, it being stated that Price is making a stand near Springfield, and that all our available forces will be required to dislodge and drive him out.
Brigadier-General D. C. Buell, Louisville, Ky.My last advices from Columbus represent that the enemy has about twenty-two thousand men there. I have only about fifteen thousand at Cairo, Fort Holt, and Paducah, and after leaving guards at these places I could not send into the field over ten or eleven thousand. Moreover, many of these are very imperfectly armed.
Under these circumstances, it would be madness for me to attempt any serious operation against Camp Beauregard or Columbus. Probably, in the course of a few weeks, I will be able to send additional troops to Cairo and Paducah to cooperate with you, but at present it is impossible; and it seems to me that, if you deem such cooperation necessary to your success, your movement on Bowling Green should be delayed. I know nothing of the plan of campaign, never having received any information on the subject; but it strikes me that to operate from Louisville and Paducah, or Cairo, against an enemy at Bowling Green, is a plain case of exterior lines, like that of McDowell and Patterson, which, unless each of the exterior columns is superior to the enemy, leads to disaster ninety-nine times in a hundred.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
H. W. Halleck, Major-General.
