| From the Wilmington Journal |
| |
| April 2, 1863 |
| |
| We have from Hill & Co.,
Griffin, Geo., what purports to be a "Confederate States Railroad
and Steamboat Guide," dated April, 1863. |
| It is neatly printed, but if
it comes no nearer to mark in reference to other railroads than it
does in the cases of the Wilmington & Weldon and the Wilmington
& Manchester Railroads, it is no guide at all, no part of its time
tables being at present correct. Its historical accuracy may be judged
of by the following extract: |
| "Goldsboro', N. C., two
miles from Neuse River, which is navigable to light draft vessels to
this point, was at one time taken possession of by the enemy, but it
was soon reclaimed! At another time a force, ten thousand strong,
approached the town, both by land and water, and succeeded in getting
near enough to the railroad bridge with their gunboats to burn it. A
fierce battle ensued and the enemy were routed. |
| The last sentence is the only
one that contains any semblance of truth. Goldsboro' as never been
taken possession of by the enemy. The gunboats never got above
Kinston, over thirty miles by the river from the railroad bridge, and
it is hardly likely that they burned the bridge with their gunboats. |
| Better luck next time, Messrs.
Hill & Co., but until you do better, we cannot recommend your
"Guide." Mr. Ashe, who has been dead over six months, is
announced as President of the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad
Company, and Mr. Wallace, who has been President pro tem, and
subsequently regularly elected for about the same time, is not
mentioned at all. Rather show you are, Messrs. Hill & Co. |
| By the way, per contra,
etc., we quote the following "good thing" from the 3d page
of the "Guide being the 1st page of its "Hotel
Directory." It reads thus: |
| Chattanooga, Tenn. |
| There is no house in
Chattanooga that we would care to dignify with the appellation of
Hotel, they all having been pressed into the service as hospitals. The
city is nothing more nor less than a vast military hospital. A soldier
coming down from there on the train the other night gave a very fair
idea of the attractiveness of the place in the following manner.
Several were speaking of the lack of accommodation there when he
remarked: |
| "Well, if I were to be
sent to h__l, and had five days furlough to stop in Chattanooga, I
should say drive on boys!" |
|