12
THE MARCH TO THE SEA.
vember 15th he was joined by Forrest with his cavalry corps,numbering 9,209 present, and increasing the aggregate to53,938 officers and men present. 1
After his conference with Beauregard, Hood had gone butone day’s march from Gadsden toward Guntersville w'hen hesuddenly turned his columns to the west, making first forDecatur. He learned that Forrest had started upon a raidnorthward into West Tennessee , and that it was uncertainliow long it might be before that cavalry could join him.On October 7th, and before seeing Beauregard, he hadasked General Taylor to send Forrest a second time intoTennessee to break the Nashville and Chattanooga Railway,if he could, or at least to occupy Thomas’s forces so as tocreate a diversion in his favor. Forrest was at CherokeeStation, where he had been refitting and resting his com-mand, and both Taylor and he misapprehended Hood’s wishto have a strong cavalry force with his moving column as
1 These figures are taken from the official returns in the Adjutant-Genera)^office at Washington, and are distributed as follows;
S. D. Lee’s corps. 11,784
A. P. Stewart ’s corps.. . 11,524
B. F. Cheatham’s corps. 14,825
Engineers. 484
Artillery.
Cavalry.
Lee’s. 009
Stewart’s... 058Cheatham’s. 880Jackson’s... 321
Jackson’s divisionBuford’s “Chalmers's “Roddey’s “Escorts.
3,152
3,857
2,841
2,511
302
Totals. 38,117
3,068
12,753
This is exclusive of Forrest’s artillery, and of about one thousand men made upof the Fifth Missis.ippi Cavalry and several battalions of State reserves whichjoined Forrest. Roddey’s division was left in Alabama to hold the line of theTennessee River. The “present sick ” were reported at 2,000, and the present on“ extra duty ” at 8,267, but these last were, when necessary, put into action by theConfederates .. Beauregard’s estimate of the “effective” force (deductingofficers,etc.) was 27,285 infantry and artillery, and 7,700 cavalry, or an aggregate of 35,000.This is less than two-thirds of the number shown to be present by the official re-turns. See also Appendix A, 2.