| Bureau of Subsistence |
| Richmond, Va. |
| March 10, 1865 |
| |
| General I. M. St. John |
| Commissary General |
| |
| General, |
| The following memorandum is based upon
the lines of communication in Virginia
being at once restored and protected, and independent of voluntary
contributions; also upon the ability of the Treasury to meet the
requisitions of this Department, and the Quartermaster General to
provide the necessary transportation for the stores when purchased
and collected. With gold or United States currency to operate with
(in sections of the country where Confederate money is not current
or acceptable), I am satisfied the estimate made could be doubled --
in other words, the subsistence necessary for the troops operating
in Virginia and North Carolina is only limited by the amount of
specie and Confederate money available for its purchase. |
| The crops south of North Carolina, in Georgia,
Alabama, and Mississippi, were never so large, and with the railroad communications restored
could at once be made available, although not included in the
estimate. |
| Very respectfully, your obedient servant, |
| S. B. French |
| Major and Commissary of Subsistence |
| From North Carolina: Rations bread, 7,500,000; rations meat, 6,000,000. From
Virginia: Rations bread, 5,000,000; rations meat, 5,500,000. Total --
rations bread, 12,500,000; rations meat, 11,500,000 {in
other words, in the best case, there could be rations for 75,000
(army and Richmond/Petersburg population) for less than 175 days}. With the loss
of the {Virginia} Central railroad and the
James River
Canal, we must deduct 2,000,000 rations meat and 3,000,000 rations bread. |
| N. B. -- With East Tennessee in our
possession and protected as far as Morristown, and local
transportation to haul the supplies, 15,000,000 rations of bread and
5,000,000 rations of meat may be added to the above. |
|