| A Bill |
| for establishing a Rail Road Bureau |
| |
| 1st The Congress of the Confederate States of America does enact
that a Rail Road Bureau is hereby established under the control of one
chief, with the Rank Pay & allowances of a Colonel of Cavalry, with the
assistance of one Inspector in each State of the Confederacy. with the
Rank pay & emoluments of a Major of Cavalry. |
| 2d It shall be the Duty of the said Chief
to superintend the transportation of all government supplies and troops
in order to facilitate their more rapid concentration, to regulate the
schedules and distribute the Rolling Stock of the various Rail Roads to
meet the needs of the Government, allowing a just compensation for such
necessary transportation, and controlling such Rail Roads, repairing
and, if necessary selling or exchanging all Government machinery,
engines or cars upon the said Rail Road and purchasing such machinery &
material as may be necessary. |
| |
| {on back of document} |
| Draft of a Bill to establish Rail Rd Bureau |
| (Col. Sims Letter enclosed) |
| 344 (Letter to Cong) |
| Jan 5th 1864 |
| {The proposed bill
was hastily drafted and is full of hurried corrections and changes, with
no certainty of the date of drafting or whether the copy is the complete
bill. No additional letter from Sims has been found. The bill does,
however, show how Sims wanted to control the railroad resources of the
Confederacy.} |