into the wagon.  All else of their worldly goods were abandoned and appropriated by their former neighbors; for the Union man in Missouri who staid at home during the rebellion, if he was not immediately under the protection of the National troops, was at perpetual war with his neighbors.  I stopped the recruiting service, and disposed the troops about the outskirts of the city so as to guard all approaches.  Order was soon restored.

I had been at Jefferson City but a few days when I was directed from department headquarters to fit out an expedition to Lexington, Booneville and Chillicothe, in order to take from the banks in those cities all the funds they had and send them to St. Louis.  The western army had not yet been supplied with transportation.  It became necessary therefore to press into the service teams belonging to sympathizers with the rebellion or to hire those of Union men.  This afforded an opportunity of giving employment to such of the refugees within our lines as had teams suitable for our purposes.  They accepted the service with alacrity.  As fast as troops could be got off they were moved west some twenty miles or more.  In seven or eight days from my assuming command at Jefferson City, I had all the troops, except a small garrison, at an advanced position and expected to join them myself the next day.

But my campaigns had not yet begun, for while seated at my office door, with nothing further to do until it was time to start for the front, I saw an officer of rank approaching, who proved to be Colonel Jefferson C. Davis.  I had never met him before, but he introduced himself by handing me an order for him to proceed to Jefferson City and relieve me of the command.  The orders directed that I should report at department headquarters at St. Louis without delay, to receive important special instructions.  It was about an hour before the only regular train of the day would start.  I therefore turned over to Colonel Davis my orders, and hurriedly stated to him the progress that had been made to carry out the department instructions already described.  I had at that time but one staff officer, doing myself all the detail work usually performed by an adjutant-general.  In an hour after being relieved from the command I was on my way to St. Louis, leaving my single staff officer(6) to follow the next day with our horses and baggage.

The “important special instructions” which I received the next day, assigned me to the command of the district of south-east Missouri, embracing all the territory south of St. Louis, in Missouri, as well as all southern Illinois.  At first I was to take personal command of a combined expedition that had been ordered for the capture of Colonel Jeff.  Thompson, a sort of independent or partisan commander who was disputing with us the possession of south-east Missouri.  Troops had been ordered to move from Ironton to Cape Girardeau, sixty or seventy miles