| Milledgeville |
| April 19, 1864 |
| |
| His Excellency Jefferson Davis |
| Richmond, Va. |
| |
| We have a terrible state of things,
growing out of scarcity of corn in upper Georgia. Soldiers' families must starve unless relief can soon be afforded.
The supply in Southwestern Georgia
is being rapidly exhausted. The quartermaster-general of this State
has purchased about 50,000 bushels in Central Alabama for indigent
soldiers' families in Georgia. Confederate officers refuse to allow it to be shipped to
Georgia. I ask that you will order them not to interfere. The Governor of
Alabama consents to the shipment.
|
| Jos. E. Brown
|
| |
| [First Indorsement] |
| General Bragg, |
| To what prohibition does this refer? |
| J. D. |
| |
| [Second Indorsement] |
| April 20, 1864 |
| No "prohibition" exists
against shipping corn from Alabama
to Georgia. An inquiry was made by telegraph from the quartermaster at
Montgomery
whether he could give Government transportation to corn invoiced to
the quartermaster-general of
Georgia
at Atlanta. He was answered that he could not, as it was not Government
freight and nothing was known here of such shipments. Since that I
have received a letter from the quartermaster-general of Georgia
to which I have replied, inclosing copies of my letters to the
quartermaster at Montgomery
and at Selma. These officers have been requested to furnish every facility
consistent with the duty of this department to feed the Army. I hope
Governor Brown will see those letters. |
| A. R. Lawton |
| Quartermaster General |
|
|
| [Third Indorsement] |
| April 20, 1864 |
| The above will show how far Governor
Brown's complaint is sustained by any action known here. If any
other prohibition exists it is unauthorized. |
| Braxton Bragg |
| General |
|