Summary:
Robert E. Lee writes to General John D. Imboden regarding the July, 1863,
situation in the Shenandoah Valley. Lee makes reference to prisoners, and
Imboden's attempts to dispose of them in Staunton, VA.
Brig. Gen. J. D. Imboden,
Comdg. Northwestern
Brigade, Woodstock, Va.:
Near Culpeper Court-House,
July 26, 1863.
Gen.:
Your letters of the 23d and 25th instant have been received.
I regret to learn that you have had so much difficulty in disposing of the prisoners after reaching Staunton, and am glad to hear that you lost so few. From the accounts I receive, I fear several hundred must have escaped after crossing the Potomac. I would like to have from you an exact report of the numbers turned over to the authorities at Richmond.
I hope you will get all your cavalry shod and ready for service, and get your command in full force in the field. I desire you to see what force of the enemy is in the Valley, for, from the reports of Gen. Ewell, I doubt whether any crossed at Front Royal, nor do I anticipate that any permanent force will be sent into the Valley from east of the mountains.
If you find that Gen.'s Kelley and Mulligan are still in the neighborhood of Hedgesville, a rapid movement upon Piedmont, or some point higher up the railroad, will be the best means of drawing them west. Col. Wharton, with his infantry at some point above Strasburg, could prevent any advance up the Valley during your absence.
I am, most respectfully, your obedient servant,
R. E. LEE,
Gen.
Bibliographic Information : Letter Reproduced from The War of The Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series 1, Volume 27, Serial No. 45, Pages 1039-1040, Broadfoot Publishing Company, Wilmington, NC, 1997.
