I have yours of the 4th from Robertss and am very sorry you had such a hard time on the road. I am afraid it will have made you quite ill and am anxious to hear from you. I hope you took care to sleep warm and to get blankets from Roberts to go through to B.V. with.

I went to Oakland last night spending the night as before at Maj Kirkham who gave me some interesting recollections of Grant & others. Brayton was not present at the meeting being ill—and there was little business done except listening to me. They yielded to all my suggestions.

Some years ago—Kirkham was with Hancock at Jefferson Barracks Missouri—when a letter was recvd from Buckner [(at present a Secesh general)] telling them that he had found Grant in New York. G. had resigned, arrived at New York, got drunk, got into a row, and been locked up by the police. Buckner relieved him and supplied him with means to go to his father in Missouri. “He will be coming to see us—what shall we do?” asked Kirkham. “He has no right to call on us and if he does I won’t recognize him,” said Hancock. He did call soon afterwards to sell a load of hay to K—as Quartermaster—and afterwards several times coming on a load of wood or hay which he sold to K. Once he came in when a number of West Pointers were sitting round a table drinking—and K had to ask him to join them which he did but declined toddy saying “I don’t drink now,” but Hancock held off and maintained a reserved manner with him—thinking he ought not to be allowed to associate with gentlemen.

When McDowell was organizing the Bull Run army, he wanted Sherman to take command of a brigade. Sherman was greatly astonished at the proposition & said—“I’m not fit to command a regiment—I could [347]do nothing with a brigade”—but McDowell insisted & Sherman obeyed his order but with great reluctance and modesty.

It is raining here.

Nothing from New York.