CAMP, Between Livingston and Brownsville, May 17, 1863.
[Received, May 18, in Vicksburg.]
Lieutenant-General PEMBERTON:
Your dispatch of to-day, by Captain [Thomas] Henderson, was received. If Haynes’ Bluff is untenable, Vicksburg is of no value, and cannot be held. If, therefore, you are invested in Vicksburg, you must ultimately surrender. Under such circumstances, instead of losing both troops and place, we must, if possible, save the troops. If it is not too late, evacuate Vicksburg and its dependencies, and march to the northeast.
Most respectfully, your obedient servant,
J. E. Johnston.
[P. S.]-Please acknowledge receipt by the bearer.
Unlike many of the independent or partisan Confederate groups, Henderson’s Cavalry Scouts routinely interfaced and worked with regular Confederate forces and some documentation of their activities was preserved in the Official Records. Captain Thomas Henderson and his brother, Samuel, also interacted with Confederate spies and agents such as Belle Edmondson.