ear. My
advance held Morristown; all the troops were ordered forward to
that place, and preparations were made for an attack, when, on the
15th, orders came from General Grant to send the Ninth Corps to
the Army of the Potomac.

Such a reduction of my command, instead of the expected reinforcement,
left me wholly unable to do more than observe Longstreet as he
leisurely withdrew from Tennessee and joined Lee in Virginia, and
prepare for the campaign of the coming summer, the nature of which
I could then only conjecture.

EFFECT OF THE PROMOTION OF GRANT AND SHERMAN

This entire change of program doubtless resulted from the promotion
of General Grant to lieutenant-general and commander-in-chief, and
General Sherman to his place in command of the Military Division
of the Mississippi, which occurred at that time. The change of
plans was undoubtedly wise. The Confederate government could not
afford to leave Longstreet's force in East Tennessee during the
summer. He must join Lee or Johnston before the opening of the
summer campaign. It was not worth while for us to expend time and
strength in driving him out, which ought to be devoted to preparations
for vastly more important work. I felt disappointed at the time
in not having an opportunity of doing something that would silence
my enemies in Washington, who were not slow to avail themselves of
any pretext for hostile action against me. It was not difficult
to manufacture one out of the public reports of what had been done,
or not done, in East Tennessee, and the Military Committee of the
Senate reported against the confirmation of my appointment as major-
general. Of this I was informed by my friend Senator J. B. Henderson,
in a letter urging me to "whip somebody anyhow." This information
and advice elicited a long reply, from which the following are
extracts, which expressed pretty fully my views and feelings on
the subject, and which, with events that soon followed, ended all
trouble I ever had with that august body, the United States Senate.

I recollect in this connection a very pertinent remark made by
General Grant soon after he became President. My nomination as
major-general in the regular army, with those of Sherman and Sheridan
as general and lieutenant-general, had been sent to the Senate and
returned approved so promptly as to occasion comment. I remarked
that it had on one occasion taken me a year and a half to ge