Annotation
[1] ALS, in custody of Conrad G. Goddard, Roslyn, Long Island, New York. Bryant wrote on May 11, 1863, ``You will . . . pardon the liberty which I take in representing to you the universal desire of our German fellow citizens that General Sigel should be again placed in command of that part of the army of the Rappahannock which is composed of German soldiery and which has suffered some loss of credit in the recent battles. The enthusiasm in his favor among our German population is unanimous. . . . It is impossible, Sir, for you, where you are, to concieve of the strength and fervor of this wish of our German population. . . . The other day when it was said that General Sigel had been called to join the army under General Hooker it was the common exclamation that that single step `was equal to the addition of ten thousand men to the army.' '' (DLC-RTL).
On July 6, 1863, Sigel was assigned to command of militia and volunteer forces at Reading, Pennsylvania (OR, I, XXVII, III, 563).