| Office Mississippi Central Railroad Company |
| Grenada, February 16, 1863 |
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| Hon. James A. Seddon, Secretary of War, Richmond |
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| Dear Sir, |
| I herewith inclose a copy of a letter
addressed to Lieut. Gen. J. C. Pemberton, in answer to charges made
against this road for delays in the transportation of troops from Grenada
to Jackson, Miss. I have only to add to my reply to General
Pemberton that there is just enough of truth in the charges made by
General Bowen to give the semblance of truth to the whole, yet in
almost all particulars they are untrue. |
| Yours, &c.,
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| W. Goodman, President
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| [Inclosure]
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| Office Mississippi Central Railroad Company
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| Grenada, February 14, 1863
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| Lieut. Gen. J. C. Pemberton, C. S. A., Comdg. Army of
Miss.
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| Dear Sir,
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| I have received the communication of
your assistant adjutant-general, R. W. Memminger, of the 5th
instant, inclosing a copy of a letter of Brigadier-General [J. S.]
Bowen, of the 31st of January, addressed to Lieut. Col. J. R. Waddy,
assistant adjutant-general, in reference to the delay in the
transportation of troops from Grenada
to Jackson. In reply to the letter and charges made by Brigadier-General
Bowen, I have to remark that this road is not chargeable with any
delays occurring after the arrival of trains at Canton, the southern terminus of our road. So far as this road is
concerned, I pronounce the charges made in the letter of General
Bowen as untrue, except in a few cases of accidental detention
occasioned by trains running off the track, accidents that do and
will occur on the best managed roads. I ask, and think I have a
right to claim, the most rigid examination into the truth or falsity
of the charges made.
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| During the movement of troops from Grenada, some three, perhaps four, trains were delayed at different times
by up, and in one case a down, train running off the track. The
longest detention was six hours, others for a shorter period of
time. In one or two cases trains were delayed from one to three
hours for want of fuel, our wood at our principal station, Vaiden,
having been consumed by troops stationed there, although we had used
every means at our command to protect it for the use of our engines.
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| It is true there was an undue proportion
of flat-cars in the trains, but that was no fault of ours. On the
first intimation from Major Banks, chief quartermaster at Grenada,
that a large amount of transportation for troops would probably be
soon required, I stated to him that out of 500 cars belonging to the
road not more than 50 or 60 were on the road in running order; that
most of the residue had been taken from our road by military
authority and in use on the New Orleans and Jackson {New
Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern RR}, the Southern {of
Mississippi}, and Mobile & Ohio roads, for the purpose of
transporting sugar and others freights for military or private
speculation; that many of the cars had been absent for six months,
notwithstanding my frequent application to the officers of the roads
and military authorities to have them returned, and I could not
supply the number of cars he required unless ours were returned or
cars belonging to other roads were ordered on to ours. Major Banks
promised to order our cars home. They did not come, and we were
dependent upon other roads for cars, and were required to take such
as they sent, many of them being in an unsafe condition.
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| Nearly all the trains were detained at Grenada
from six to thirty-six hours for loading, and I am quite sure the
troops must have suffered quite as much by their detention at Grenada, exposed to snow, sleet, and rain, as they did during the transit.
As to overloading and crowding, the trains, when ready to receive
their freights, were placed at the command of the quartermaster who
superintended the movement of troops, and, if overloaded, it was
done by military authority, and often in opposition to our
protestations. Many of the box-cars, perhaps most of them, were used
for the transportation of horses belonging to commanders, and the
men were placed on platform cars, and this by direction of those
claiming the right of directing how the cars should be loaded, and
not by direction of railroad officials.
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| If the cars are or were in bad
condition, it is no fault of the railroad officials; it has been
occasioned often by malicious destruction by troops in transit, without
interference of their commanders, and the wanton destruction of
material prepared for their repairs for fuel, simply because it
happened to be well seasoned. As to worthlessness of engines, I have
only to remark the charge made by General Bowen may be true, but
this I know, that no road in the Confederate States ever had better
equipments than the Central had one year ago, and, if his charge is
true, it is because the Government has become the purchaser of all
the materials that are required to repair engines, and refuse to
permit railroads to obtain them when they may be found, and for the
additional reason that Government officials are permitted to enter
our workshops and entice away our mechanics by offering them
increased wages.
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| I have neglected to state that in one,
perhaps two, cases trains with troops were detained at stations
between Grenada
and Canton
twelve or more hours, by direction of the officers in command of the
troops thereon, in consequence, as I am informed, of the inclemency
of the weather. Now, I state, and can prove, that our trains were
run from Grenada
to Canton
in from nine to eleven hours, with the exceptions herein referred
to, and that there was no unnecessary detention except from
accidental causes. I also state, and can prove, that trains were
detained at Grenada
from six to thirty-six hours after their arrival by military
officials, when by due diligence they could have been loaded in
three hours. I deny that there were box-cars at way Stations on the
line of road in safe running order, except such as were sent to such
stations by military requisition, for the purpose of transporting
provisions to the army, it being stated that the troops were without
bread and the cars must be provided without fail. I think I can
convince any man possessing practical business information that the
charges made in the communication of General Bowen are in the main
untrue, and that all are based on slight foundation. I feel quite
confident that "these railroad officials" referred to are
quite as competent to manage the affairs intrusted to them as the
military officials are to manage theirs, and that they have at all
times and on all occasions exhibited as much zeal, made as great
sacrifices for the public good, and are actuated by as patriotic
motives in the discharge of their respective duties as any general
or other military officer. That they will continue to do so, I do
not doubt, until those military officers who make such groundless
charges have been brought to "their senses," if a thing so
devoutly desired can be effected.
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| With respect, I am your obedient servant,
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| W. Goodman
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| President
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