The Daily Dispatch: May 15, 1863., [Electronic resource]

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Strength of Hooker's army.

--In the New York Commercial Advertiser, of Saturday, we find an official statement of the strength of the army of the Potomac. Only a few days ago a newspaper publisher at Alexandria and a petty army officer were sentenced to imprisonment and hard labor for giving the numbers of a division or corps of the army.--The revelation comes in the shape of a letter from the Medical Director of the army to Gen. Hooken in which he says:

‘ "The whole number of sick were, on the 28th of March ult., ten thousand seven hundred and seventy seven. The corps exhibiting the greatest ratio of sick are those in which there is the greatest number of new regiments. Thus, the 1st corps, having a ratio of 90.02 per 1,000, has, according to the data in this office 18 new and 21 old regiments.--The 6th corps, with a ratio of 46.16 per 1,000, has only four new regiments and thirty old regiments. The ratio of sick for the whole army is 67.64 per 1,000."

’ It is an easy arithmetical feat to deduce from the above data that the whole strength of the army on the day named was 159,238. It can scarcely be supposed that it was intended to give the enemy the roster of his army; but on any other hypothesis the publication is a blunder of the grossest kind--one which, committed by a subaltern, would justly be punishable by death itself.