| Macon & Brunswick Rail Road Office |
| Macon Feb 21st 1865 |
| |
| Genl. G T Beauregard |
| |
| The President & Directors
of this Road memoralizing, represents that they have this morning
received a notice from Lt. Col. Minor Meriwether, that he is
authorized by yourself to take up and remove fifteen miles of the
Iron, Chairs and Spikes of our Road and to remove the same to the
Georgia Road for repairing that Road near Atlanta, and feeling
assured, as we do, that such order has proceeded from a
misapprehension of the facts and circumstances surrounding this road
and of its public importance at this time, as it stands, they beg
respectfully to present these facts as reasons for the prayer they
make for such order to be countermanded, and also to submit herewith
the statements of the public officer & contractors here as to the
importance of the continued running of the Road. |
| First, our Rails are laid upon
a stringer, our iron weighing only forty pounds to the yard, therefore
totally unfit to lay down on a "tie track," which requires a
50 to 70 lb Rail, it can be used on this road only, because of a
continuous bearing and light engines. |
| Next, the destruction by the
enemy of the Central Road, and the injury to the Macon & Western,
and almost entire occupation of the South Western, in transportation
of provisions for the army, render this Road almost if not absolutely
necessity to supply the Government workshops with coal lumber &
other materials as well as contractors. The city and the citizens are
dependent as well as the Quarter Masters department here for their
supplies of fuel from this road. |
| In addition to this, larger Q.
M. and Commissary supplies indicate the entire products of the Valley
of the Acmulgen from here to its mouth are now supplied over this line
and we venture to assert that no road of its length in the country has
transported over it more Government Stores & stock than this. The
city of Macon & its poor, and its whole people must suffer
terribly if they are deprived of this source of supply. Besides, if
the Rails were today taken up they could not be transferred to the
Georgia Road without being wagoned over thirty miles. And we beg to
suggest that the Florida connection with the Georgia Roads, and there
is a large quantity of the right size of Iron there lying between
Fernandina and Cedar Keys which has been for two years or more &
must be until the end of the war, totally useless to the owners &
the country unless used by the Government, which could easily be
removed by rail & water to this place. We have several saw mills
erected on our line within four miles of the southern terminus, so
that the removal of fifteen miles would be tantamount to the
dismantling the whole as all the lumber freights and 3/4 of the other
frts come from below that point. |
| It is known that all times
this Company have ??? believed just & right -- given up their Road
to the Service of the Country in preference to all private interests
& the sacrifice of their own and now only ask that for the good of
their country as well as their own, that their Road may not be
dismantled and to that end pray that the aforementioned order may be
countermanded. All of which is respectfully submitted. |
| A. E. Cochran |
| President |
| |
| {on the back of the
letter} |
| Head Quarters |
| Ga. Re. & Mil. Dis of Ga |
| Having for several months
had my attention called to the facts set forth in the memorial I
respectfully submit that it is of vital importance that this road ???
be kept rep. x the removal of the iron will in my ??ment, be attended
with serous and irreparable injury to the poublic service as well as
to the commercial. Nothing but an imperative necessity would justify
it. |
| ??? Cobb |
| Maj. Genl. &c |
| |
| I concur in the above indorsement of Genl
Cobb |
| Joseph E Brown |
|