WAR DEPARTMENT, QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL'S OFFICE, To the Committee on Invitations Army of the Tennessee: DEAR SIRS: I regret to find that I am not able to attend the meeting at Springfield. Wishing you a pleasant and profitable meeting to revive and renew the memories of battles, sieges and marches, I am, very respectfully and truly, your obedient servant, M. C. MEIGS. WASHINGTON, D. C., September 23, 1874. GENERAL E. B. HARLAN, Secretary: I have the honor to acknowledge your kind invitation to attend the annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee, and regret sincerely that an imperative engagement in New York on the 14th will deprive me of the pleasure of acceptance. Be pleased to convey my appreciation of this compliment to the gentlemen of your committee, and believe me, GENERAL E. B. HARLAN, Very truly yours, J. K. BARNES, Major-General U. S. A. ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, WASHINGTON, D. C., October 3, 1874. Secretary Army of the Tennessee, Springfield, Ill.: Dear General:-I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of an invitation to the eighth annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee, and deeply regret that circumstances beyond my control will prevent my being present. Please accept, for the committee, my thanks for the kind consideration with which I have been honored. Very truly yours, THOMAS M. VINCENT, Brig.-Gen. Brevet and Assistant Adjutant-General U. S. A. COLONEL E. R. ROE, Chairman, etc.: WASHINGTON, D. C., October 9, 1874. DEAR SIR:-Thanking you, and the other gentlemen of your committee, for an invitation to be present and join in the business and festivities of the eighth annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee on the 14th and 15th instant, I am compelled to say that I shall not be able to accept it. I trust the anticipated reunion, and all such occasions, will tend to keep alive the patriotism that caused a million young men promptly to respond to the call of the great and good Lincoln for the defense of the Union. I have the honor to be, Very respectfully, your obedient servant, AMOS B. EATON, Brevet Major-General U. S. A. NEW YORK, October 7, 1874. DEAR COLONEL:-I regret that I am unable to accept the kind invitation to attend the eighth annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee, at Springfield, Illinois, on the 14th and 15th inst. I have just returned from St. Louis, where I have been for a month past, and am obliged to go there again early in November, and on this and other accounts it would be quite inconvenient for me to go to Springfield at the time of the reunion. I especially regret this, for I have long been desirous of attending one of your meetings and making the acquaintance of your members. Thanking you for your courteous invitation, Chairman of Committee Society Army Tennessee: COLONEL: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the invitation to join the eighth annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee on the 14th and 15th instant, and regret very much that my official duties here will prevent my attendance. With high regard, I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant. Late Major-General of Volunteers, Commanding 19th Army Corps. WASHINGTON, October 9, 1874. COLONEL E. R. ROE, Chairman, etc., Society Army Tennessee, Springfield, Ill.: COLONEL: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the invitation of the committee, of which you are chairman, to be present and to join with you in the business and festivities on the occasion of the reunion of the Army of the Tennessee, on the 14th and 15th instant, at Springfield, Illinois, and for which flattering attention I beg to offer my sincere thanks. It would give me much pleasure, were it in my power to be present on an occasion of so much interest, and to be associated with the gallant men whose achievements on the battle-field have given renown to the Army of the Tennessee. But as I can not be with you, please have me excused. Receiving my thanks, I am, Colonel, your most obedient servant, GEO. D. RAMSAY, Brevet Major-General, U. S. A. COLONEL E. R. ROE AND OTHERS, CHICAGO, October 11, 1874. Committee, etc.: DEAR SIRS: I am more than sorry to be deprived of the pleasure of meeting my comrades of the Army of the Tennessee on the 14th and 15th instant. I came West with the intention of accepting your kind invitation, but find myself called back by illness in my family. With thanks for your kind attention, with warmest regards to my comrades of your Society, and with the hope that you will have a most joyous reunion, I remain, Yours faithfully, A. E. BURNSIDE. WASHINGTON, October 7, 1874. E. R. ROE, Esq., Chairman, etc., Springfield, Ill.: DEAR SIR:-I have had the honor to receive your polite invitation of September 1st to attend the meeting of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee on the 14th and 15th instant. I regret very much that official engagements will prevent my accepting. E. D. TOWNSEND, DETROIT, MICH., October 1, 1874. COLONEL E. R. ROE, Chairman Committee on Invitations, Springfield, Ill.: SIR: I am honored by the invitation to the annual reunion of the Army of Tennessee this month. I greatly regret that circumstances should deprive me of the pleasure of attending. With high respect, your obedient servant, COLONEL E. R. ROE, P. S. GEORGE Cooke, Brigadier-General, U. S. A., retired. WASHINGTON CITY, D. C., September 29, 1874. Chairman Local Committee on Invitations S. A. T., Springfield, Ill.: DEAR SIR:-I have had the pleasure of receiving the cordial invitation of the committee to the eighth annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee on the 14th and 15th October next. I should enjoy vastly meeting the members of that Society, but I find, to my sincere regret, that I shall be unable to do so. Thanking you for your hospitable invitation, I am, very truly yours, A. A. HUMPHREYS, GENERAL E. B. HARLAN, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF ENGINEERS, Secretary Committee, etc., Society Army Tennessee: DEAR SIR:-I beg to tender to your committee my sincere thanks for your cordial invitation to be present at the approaching reunion of your Society. It has long been my desire to meet and mingle with the men who knew and loved McPherson, and I have been indulging in the hope that I should be able to gratify that desire at this meeting, but I find that official duties and obligations here compel me to deny myself that pleasure. Being sincerely your obedient servant, JOHN G. PARKE, Major-General Volunteers. RINGGOLD BARRACKS, TEXAS, October 14, 1874. GENERAL A. HICKENLOOPER, Corresponding Secretary Society Army Tennessee: GENERAL: I have the honor to acknowledge your cordial invitation to be present at the eighth annual reunion of Society of the Army of the Tennessee, and to express my sincere regrets that it is impossible to be with you on this happy occasion at Springfield. Nothing can be dearer than a soldier's welcome, and no remembrance so delightful as the last reunion, in which it was my good fortune to share. It is a pleasant feeling that I was an active soldier of the Army of the Tennessee. As time brings with it reflection, the wonderful qualities of this army and its commanders stand out in the record of our armies in great prominence, our age will see none superior, none more capable of greater bodily exertion; in attack fierce and obstinate; in defense firm, cool and enduring! Its commanders early learned to rely on their own valor and sagacity; a discipline admirable, that found a quick response in the temperament of the Western men composing it, appealing to their feelings of hope and honor, taught them patience under hardships, and endurance under fire. Truly nothing can be wiser than the annual meeting of its survivors to keep alive the glory of its arms, if only to impress upon posterity that the brave men who won for it a name, did so in the exercise of honor, fortitude, courage, obedience, modesty and temperance. Wishing you great pleasure on this occasion, and many returns of the same, I remain, very respectfully, Your obedient servant, EDWARD HATCH, Brevet Major-General, U. S. A. WASHINGTON CITY, D. C., October 10, 1874. GENERAL A. HICKENLOOper, Cincinnati, Ohio: MY DEAR GENERAL:-I really feel greatly disappointed, and not a little chagrined, at not being able to meet with our Society this year. I will be under many obligations to you, if you will, in a quiet way, apologize for my absence, as it is doubtful whether I can now reach General Sherman with a letter in time. Yours very truly, M. D. LEGGETT. TREASURER'S OFFICE, CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO, GENERAL A. HICKENLOOper, Cincinnati, Ohio: DEAR GENERAL:-Enclosed find N. Y. Draft for fifty dollars, as my donation towards the erection of our worthy General McPherson's monument. It was my lot to be terribly wounded close by where he fell, just ten years ago to-day, but a kind providence has spared me so that I can contribute my mite. This may be out of order, but I feel as if others would do the same should it enter their minds. There are enough of us left to assist, so that the monument could be erected in a very short time. I am, General, very respectfully, FRANK LYNCH, Late Lieutenant-Colonel 27th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. COLONEL E. R. ROE, NEW YORK, September 29, 1874. Chairman Local Committee on Invitations, Springfield, Ill.: GENTLEMEN:-I regret exceedingly my business engagements are such as to prevent my acceptance of your very cordial invitation to the eighth annual reunion of the Army of the Tennessee. Very truly yours, SCHUYLER HAMILTON. NORTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY, PACIFIC DIVISION, OFFICE OF GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT, DEAR COLONEL:-Your kind invitation, dated September 1st, has just reached me. I should be most happy to attend the reunion of the Army of the Tennessee, at your beautiful city of Springfield, Illinois, but the great distance from here and pressing daily duties forbid. I will be with you in spirit and will sympathize in every joy that blesses the reunion. May our Society live and prosper, until the last member shall have gone to join the honored and |