| Headquarters Military Division of the West |
| Charleston, S. C., December 21, 1864 |
| |
| His Excellency Joseph E. Brown |
| Governor of Georgia, Macon, Georgia |
| |
| Sir, |
| In the existing
emergency I have deemed it best for the interest of the service to
direct my chief quartermaster, Maj. E. Willis, to call upon the
presidents of the Georgia and Central {of
Georgia} Railroads to urge them to use the iron from their
branch roads to repair their main lines as soon as possible. In case
of a failure of the presidents of these two roads to comply with the
request, the emergency demands that impressment should be resorted
to, and Major Willis has been instructed to act accordingly, that
disaster which now threatens may be averted. I have the honor to
respectfully solicit you to aid Major Willis all in your power to
open communication as soon as possible, via West Point and Atlanta,
to Augusta. Major Willis will be informed that the iron on the Camak
branch is more substantial and suitable than that of any other
branch of the Georgia road and to proceed to remove it so as to
repair the road from Augusta to Atlanta. Major Meriwether, engineer,
has promised iron for the road between West Point and Atlanta. It is
represented that at least ten miles of iron will be required both
east and west of the latter place. My quartermaster will be further
instructed to impress the necessary labor and to make ample
preparations to ration and clothe the negroes and forage the
animals. I would also request your aid in concentrating the labor
now on the two roads, the Georgia and the Central, on the route
between West Point and Augusta, via Atlanta, that provisions now so
necessary may be pushed through. |
| I have the honor to be, sir, very
respectfully and truly, yours, |
| P. G. T. Beauregard |
| General |
|