| From the Charleston Mercury |
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| December 19, 1864 |
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| Atlanta as Left by the Enemy |
| Atlanta, Ga., December 7 |
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| To His Excellency, Joseph E. Brown,
Governor of Georgia |
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| In obedience to orders of
November 25, to inspect the State property in Atlanta, and the city
itself, and protect the same, I have the honor to make the following
report. *** The property of the State was destroyed by fire, yet
a vast deal of valuable material remains in the ruins. Three-fourths
of the bricks are good, and will be suitable for rebuilding if placed
under shelter before freezing weather. There is a quantity of brass in
the journals of the burned cars; and in the ruins of the various
machinery of the extensive railroad shops' also, a valuable amount of
copper from the guttering of the State depot, the fine pipes of
destroyed engines, stop clocks of machinery, &c., &c. The car
wheels that were uninjured by fire were rendered useless by breaking
the flanges. In short, every species of machinery that was not
destroyed by fire, was most ingeniously broken and made worthless in
its original form -- the large steam boilers, the switches, the frogs,
&c. Nothing escaped. *** The car shed, the depots, machine shops,
foundries, rolling mills, merchant mills, arsenals, laboratory,
armory, etc., were all burned. ***** |
| I have the honor to be, respectfully, |
| Your obedient servant, |
| W. P. Howard |
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