The Arkansas in the Civil War Message Board

Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6

"8/1/62 Hindman to Col Carroll-send to Ft McCulloch for the 2 bronze guns and equipment left there by Pike and move them to Fort Smith [...] The 2 guns above and the 6 of West’s btry will be sufficient for Gen Rains, Col Cooper and yourself making a 4 gun btry for each"

8/8/62 Hindman to Rains, Cooper, Carroll via Fort Smith [...] Col Cooper will take either West’s or Howell’s Company, as he prefers, with 3 of the 6 bronze guns moved from Ft McCulloch [left there by Pike] Col Carroll will take the company not selected by Cooper and the remaining 4 bronze guns"

The second message is puzzling.

If 4 pieces remain with Carroll, then Cooper should have either 2 pieces (if we calculate just the artillery present at or near Fort Smith, i.e. 6 pieces with West's & Howell's commands) or 4 pieces (if we add 2 pieces left at Fort McCulloch for want of transportation & ammunition & personnel).

OTOH if Cooper takes 3 pieces, then Carroll should have either 3 or 5 (as per above).

Otherwise, a seventh pieces came from... where?

Is it possible that in the second message a sentence is lacking?
Something like:
"...3 of the 6 bronze guns moved from Ft McCulloch, and 1 of the 2 left there..."

Possibly (logical) meaning: "take 3+3 pieces available now, plus expect 1+1 arriving in the future, someday".

BTW I believe part of one sentence is lacking in the OR about these same pieces:

FORT WASHITA, July 31, 1862.
Maj. Gen. T. C. HINDMAN, Commanding Trans. Mississippi District:
[and, both nearly verbatim copies]
FORT WASHITA, August 3, 1862.
Maj. R. C. NEWTON, Assistant Adjutant-General:
The remaining guns--a bronze 6-pounder and howitzer and twelve Parrott guns--are at Fort McCulloch, in charge of a few recruits [...]
I am, very respectfully, yours, ALBERT PIKE, Brigadier-General, Provisional Army, C. S. A.

[ar19_974] & [ar19_975]

IMHO the text should have been (or at least it should mean):

"... a bronze 6-pounder and a bronze 12-pounder howitzer and twelve Parrott guns..."

BTW I wonder if the few recruits Pike speaks about were his son Capt. Hamilton Pike and his 25 men, who arrived at Fort McCulloch about July 22 ("some twelve days ago" from the date of the post scriptum, August 4). Pike to Jefferson Davis, July 31, 1862 [ar19_869].

PS Any OR corrispondence from Pike is extraordinarily verbose. The first typical (well, mine, at least) reaction is to quickly jump forward. However, if you have the patience to read all his letters, you will discover a vast amount of detail hidden here and there.

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West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 63.
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
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Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery in the summer of 6
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West's 4th Arkansas Battery
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Re: West's 4th Arkansas Battery