[186]With your citizen employes armed you can move out of Nashville with all your army and force the enemy to retire or fight upon ground of your own choosing. After the repulse of Hood at Franklin it looks to me that instead of falling back to Nashville we should have taken the offensive against the enemy, but at this distance may err as to the method of dealing with the enemy. You will suffer incalculable injury upon your railroads if Hood is not speedily disposed of. Put forth, therefore, every possible exertion to attain this end. Should you get him to retreating give him no peace.U. S. Grant, Lieutenant-General.
headquarters Department of the Cumberland, Nashville, Tenn., December 2, 1864, 10 P. M.Your two telegrams of 11 A. M. and 1:30 P. M. to-day are received. At the time Hood was whipped at Franklin I had at this place but about five thousand (5,000) men of General Smith's command, which, added to the force under General Schofield, would not have given me more than twenty-five thousand (25,000) men. Besides, General Schofield felt convinced that he could not hold the enemy at Franklin until the five thousand could reach him. As General Wilson's cavalry force also numbered only about one-fourth that of Forrest, I thought it best to draw the troops back to Nashville and await the arrival of the remainder of General Smith's force, and also a force of about five thousand (5,000), commanded by General Steedman, which I had ordered up from Chattanooga. The division of General Smith arrived yesterday morning, and General Steedman's troops arrived last night. I now have infantry enough to assume the offensive if I had more cavalry, and will take the field anyhow as soon as the remainder of General McCook's division of cavalry reaches here, which I hope it will in two or three days. We can neither get reenforcements nor equipments at this great distance from the North very easily, and it must be remembered that my command was made up of the two weakest corps of General Sherman's army, and all the dismounted cavalry except one brigade, and the task of reorganizing and equipping has met with many delays which have enabled Hood to take advantage of my crippled condition. I earnestly hope, however in a few more days I shall be able to give him a fight.
General U. S. Grant, City Point, Va.Geo. H. Thomas, Major-General U. S. Volunteers commanding.
Is there not danger of Forrest's moving down the Tennessee River where he can cross it? It seems to me, while you should be getting up your cavalry
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Cincinnati: Wilstach, Baldwin & Co. 1875.
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