| Office Richmond & Petersburg Railroad Co. |
| Richmond, Va., Mar 7, 1864 |
| |
| Col. F. W. Sims |
| Railroad Bureau |
| |
| Sir, |
| In reply to your communication of the 5th
inst. inquiring into the condition of our rolling stock I respectfully
report, |
| That we have 6 locomotive engines in good
running order (one of which is rented from the M. G. R. R. Co. {Manassas
Gap RR} for a
few weeks.) 3-4 in running order, 3 that are seriously our of order and
of but little value, and 1 that is being rebuilt. |
| We have 13 passenger cars, and 2 Mail
& baggage cars in running order and one baggage car in bad order;
30 freight cars in good order and 11 in bad order; and 90 coal cars in
good order, and 28 in bad order. |
| We run two passenger trains two freight
trains and two coal trains in each direction daily, except Sundays,
when we run but one passenger train and in order to run those trains
and perform the yard or shifting service, and keep up a supply of wood
eight locomotive engines are constantly at work. |
| The passenger trains require two engines,
the freight trains two, the coal trains two, the transportation of
wood for the road one, and the shifting in the yard one; we have no
rented cars. |
| We have at present a full supply of
machinists and other mechanics to work our stock to advantage, four of
the machinists are detailed from the army in the field, we desire that
they should be continued till the first of May next, after that one of
them (Mr. Chancy) should be detailed permanently. |
| We can procure the necessary lumber for
the repairs of engines and cars, but are unable to procure flues sheet
copper iron & lead, steel, block tin and babbit metal, perhaps
that Government might aid us in obtaining those supplies. |
| Respectfully Yours |
| E. H. Gill |
| Supt. |