Major-General Henry W. Halleck to Brigadier-General Don Carlos Buell, February 13, 1862

HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI,         

Saint Louis, February 13, 1862.

Brigadier-General BUELL, Louisville:

The attack will be made on Fort Donelson to-day by the joint land and naval forces, or if not to-day certainly to-morrow. Would it not be possible to make a cavalry demonstration on Bowling Green? A mere feint might help. I have no maps other than the general ones in book-stores. Why not come down and take the immediate command of the Cumberland column yourself? If so, I will transfer Sherman and Grant to the Tennessee column.

H. W. HALLECK,

Major-General.

SOURCE: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume 7 (Serial No. 7), p. 609