Actually Van Dorn before he abandoned Arkansas called for new enlistments to fill his army. Hindman, and actual Gen John S. Roane before Hindman arrived on the scene in late May '62, was left with no options but to enforce the New Conscription laws or abandon Arkansas, to make a defensive stand at the Red River. The fact that Hindman was even able to remain in Arkansas and recruit that new army even by conscriptions, is an amazing feat.

Lets also remember that many of those 85,000 numbers were men who were not a part of any conscription act as they were too old, to young, as with the boy courier line, or otherwise disabled or medically discharged from the conscript law, especially when you are talking about 90% + of a population up to age 70.