|
Hillsboro, Nr. Carolina |
| August 24th 1863 |
| |
| {Major F. W. Sims,
Chief RR Bureau} |
| |
| Major, |
| In reply to your letter of the
11th inst. and enclosures I have to say that Major Morfit appears to
have written under a misapprehension of the facts connected with the
joint ownership of the "Six gun flats" The North Carolina Road is
equally interested with the Roads he mentions & consequently the cars
should be permitted to run on that Road when required for guns or other
heavy freight. |
| It is certainly very unfair,
as Maj. Morfit states, to all if Mr Gill of the R. P R Road
{Superintendent, Richmond & Petersburg RR}
to run the cars of other Roads on his, without compensating the roads to
which they belong for their use. This compensation commenced with the
war &, in my opinion, is the principal cause of the detention of heavy
freight at Weldon & Petersburg & in this state. Our Roads object to
taking such freight for the reason above stated. If you could remedy
this evil you would hereafter hear less complaint in reference to the
matter. The fact is some freight ought not to be transferred & cannot be
without serious loss to the Government, ??? the cars, & when necessary
for the public defence, which is sometimes the case, in the opinion of
our Military Commanders, trains of other Roads should be run over Mr
Gills Road to Richmond & return, upon the same terms they are on the
Petersburg, Wilmington & Weldon Raleigh & Gaston North Carolina and
Atlantic & North Carolina Rail Roads. Of course when they run on Mr
Gills Road they would be under his entire control. When I was last in
your city the Atlantic Road had a train that reached Petersburg, from
Goldsboro, with troops The entire train of cars was sent over to
Richmond & on its return to Petersburg was sent immediately back again
by order of Gen Hill with troops. For this service that Road will
probably never receive a cent. Now Major Morfit informs us that that
Road has again been subjected to similar imposition. Several thousand
dollars would not more than justly compensate the Atlantic Road for the
use of cars on the Richmond Road & other Roads have suffered in like
manner, since the beginning of the war. Mr Gill I understand contends
that he can with his own rolling stock do his own work. I know to the
contrary& so do you. For in times of emergency no Road in Virginia or
North Carolina owns rolling stock sufficient to move troops as rapidly
as the interest of the country requires. The Atlantic Road now owns more
rolling stock in proportion to the length of Road run than any Road,
perhaps in the South and not withstanding we frequently have to obtain
aid from other Roads to prevent delay & thereby injury to the
Government. But we pay for it. Any Road no doubt can do its own work at
its own convenience but I am decidedly opposed to allowing it under
existing ??? continually. I approve of Gen Hills action in relation to
our cars at Petersburg. Richmond was threatened & it was
{end of page and last page of the letter found in
the archives} |
| {This letter is
clearly in the hand of Major John D. Whitford and was found in his
papers in the archive. It was also clearly addressed to Maj. Sims} |
|