| Hdqrs. Dept. of S. Carolina, Georgia, and Florida |
| Charleston, S. C.
|
| April 25, 1864 |
| |
| General S. Cooper |
| Adjutant and Inspector General |
| |
| General, |
| ***** |
| As the Government had prohibited the
running of passenger trains on some of the roads going South, and as
I desired to send my horses to the department to which I had been
ordered, I consulted the Quartermaster-General as to the route it
would be most convenient to his department I should travel. He
designated the route by Danville, Va., and through North Carolina. I accordingly started by that route on the 9th, and stopped that
night to procure my personal baggage at the place where I had left
it. It rained heavily on the 9th and 10th instant, producing a flood
such as had not been known in that section of country within this
century. |
| The president of the Richmond &
Danville Railroad informed me that his road had been much damaged by
the flood, and that I would find difficulty and delay if I attempted
to continue by that route. |
| The superintendent of the road informed
me that trains could not pass over his road without interruption in
less than two weeks. All the information I could obtain convinced me
that I could reach Charleston
sooner by way of Weldon than by the route on which I had started. I
accordingly telegraphed to Richmond
to ascertain if I could go by that route on which, as I had been
informed, the Government had prohibited the running of passenger
trains. On being informed that I could go by Weldon I started by
that route, and traveled as rapidly as the cars would carry me. I
was detained twenty-one hours at one point by the failure of the
trains to connect, and arrived at this place without other stoppage
on the 19th instant, and immediately on my arrival reported to
General Beauregard. |
| ***** |
| Very respectfully, your obedient servant, |
| Sam. Jones |
| Major-General |
|