William T. Sherman to Henry W. Halleck, July 7, 1862
General HALLECK, Corinth, Miss. : I did not got your order of the ist till yesterday; the messenger fell into the enemy’s hands. A second was lost, and the third reached me yesterday. I am at Moscow and Hurlbut at La Grange. As long as I was at Coldwater the cavalry kept below Holly Springs, but they will be again at mischief with our trains. Cannot I have a locomotive? I have never had an hour’s use of one even for supplies, except in our trip to Corinth; although my division saved five and have built almost a dozen bridges, a train has never been at my disposal and we have to haul everything from Memphis. Send me a locomotive and I will put her through to Memphis with a gun-car and a strong guard. To defend the road from Grand Junction to Memphis we should occupy the line of Coldwater, with sufficient infantry and cavalry to pursue the enemy’s detachments. To defend it on the line of road McClernand should hold the Junction and La Grange; Hurlbut, Moscow and La Fayette, and my division should be in front of Colliersville and Germantown. It is there all the roads toward Memphis debouch on this line of road. This is terrible weather for marching; dust and heat insufferable.
W. T. SHERMAN,