Buell immediately gave his attention to the preparation of his
command to carry out these orders. He directed O. M. Mitchel to
march south, strike, and hold the Memphis and Charleston Railroad.
Organizing the seventh division of his army, Buell assigned General
George W. Morgan to this command. This division was formed of four
brigades, out of a number of regiments gathered up from different
points in Kentucky. General Morgan concentrated his entire
command at Cumberland Ford, being directed to take Cumberland Gap
if possible and to occupy East Tennessee if able to enter. If not,
then to resist any advance of the rebels.

General E. Dumont was placed in command of Nashville. The Twenty-third
Brigade under Colonel Duffield, composed of four regiments, was
ordered from Kentucky to garrison Murfreesboro, and protect the
road from Shelbyville to Lavergne.

Buell designated the First Division under Thomas, the Second under
McCook, the Fourth under Nelson, the Fifth under Crittenden, and
the Sixth under Wood, to constitute the army under his personal
command, which was to join Halleck in the operations against the
enemy's position at Corinth. These divisions, with cavalry and
artillery attached made a force of 37,000 effective troops. In
addition to these, Buell had under his command 36,000 effective men
to defend his communications, maintain his line of supply, enforce
order within his lines, and to perform any special duty assigned
to them. The muster-rolls of his army showed that he had at this
time 92 regiments of infantry--not including those sent to Halleck
under Cruft. These regiments aggregated 79,334 men. He had 11
regiments, 1 battalion, and 7 detached companies of cavalry, making
a total of 11,496 men, and 28 field, and 2 siege batteries, with