NATCHEZ, MISS., July 20, 1864.
Maj. C. T. CHRISTENSEN,
Asst. Adjt. Gen., Military Division of West Mississippi :
Arriving here on the evening of the 11th instant, I immediately proceeded to the
performance of the duty assigned me, and commenced by examining the lines of
fortifications by which the place is guarded, and which were constructed under
the orders of the engineer officer attached to headquarters, superior to the
commander of this post.
It is my opinion that it was an error to waste the large force of troops which
have heretofore been kept for the occupation of this place. The garrison is
smaller now than it has been previously, but were it not that such large works
had been constructed here it ought to be still further decreased and the surplus
troops sent into the field. I do not appreciate the necessity of our holding
Natchez by military occupation further than by overawing it with gun-boats. If
it is not necessary, then the whole garrison of 5,000 is wasted. If it is
necessary, such a small fort should have been constructed as would have
commanded the town from directions where gun-boats could not reach, and at the
same time preserved its communication with the water, and should have been built
compactly and strongly, and been calculated for a garrison not to exceed 1,500
men. The works which have been constructed cover a great deal of ground; have
destroyed large amounts of valuable improved property, and cannot be securely
and properly manned by less than 10,000 men. It is not at all probable a
sufficient force of the enemy could assault this place so as to make it
necessary to hold the works with a full garrison. If it were, the only
alternative would be to increase the garrison or to demolish the works so that
an enemy could not occupy them, and then construct such as are suitable for a
small garrison. There is an interior work which of itself is large enough for
1,500 men, if assailed, and which might be sufficient for the holding of the
place if the outer and very exterior works, on which great labor and expense
have been lavished, were leveled. With the force I propose leaving here I
believe the bastions of the outer works can be held against such force as would
probably be brought against them, and if forced the garrison could withstand a
siege and make successful sorties from the inner work. The effective force now
here is about 5,000, of which about 1,850 are white. The latter are the
Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth Illinois Infantry, the Fourth Illinois Cavalry,
and Battery K, Second Illinois Artillery. The colored troops are the Sixth U.S.
Heavy Artillery (Colored), the Fifty-eighth U.S. Infantry (Colored), nine
companies of the Sixty-third and Sixty-fourth U.S. Infantry (Colored), two
companies of the Seventieth U.S. Infantry (Colored), and seven companies of the
Seventy-first U.S. Infantry (Colored). I inspected all these troops in marching
order, and found many of them, especially the white infantry troops and the
Sixty-third and Sixty-fourth U.S. Infantry (Colored), in indifferent condition
as to arms, accouterments, discipline, instruction, competency of officers, &c.
In the former many were deficient in bayonets, some without cartridge-boxes,
many with unserviceable ones, some were entirely unarmed, and this latter was
also especially the case in the cavalry, who, with an aggregate present at the
post of about 900, report only 220 serviceable horses, 460 serviceable carbines,
422 serviceable revolvers, and 490 serviceable sabers.
The artillery, although under good instruction and discipline, is entirely
deficient in horses, having a four-gun battery, and only horses enough to move
the pieces without caissons, battery wagon, or forge. I found eleven four-horse
teams in the cavalry command, and as the horses were reported unserviceable for
cavalry, and I judged them fit for artillery, I ordered them to be turned over
to it. Many horses are also in possession of the depot quartermaster, some in
possession of officers and of temporarily mounted troops of the Sixth U. S.
Heavy Artillery (Colored). I have ordered these to be turned over to the
cavalry, and the commanding officer has also seized all serviceable horses in
this city and vicinity. There are also at the post cavalry arms and equipments
to outfit about 100 men. It is supposed that by these means the greater part of
the cavalry regiment will be made serviceable. There are enough arms and
equipments in depot here to furnish all the infantry who are at present
unequipped; the fact of their being in their present condition is attributable
only to neglect of duty on the part of the officers. It is not to be concealed
that the frequent change of commanders, and the neglect of one of them at least
(Brigadier-General Tuttle, lately resigned), whose attention is represented to
have been engrossed by efforts for personal gain, has operated to effect a
destruction of discipline and order in the command which has resulted in all the
evils and abuses consequent on relaxation, and on men following the example of
unworthy officers. It is expected that Brigadier-General Brayman, who has now
assumed command of the post, will be undisturbed in his command, and that his
efforts to reduce things to system, order, regularity, and wholesome restraint,
both with regard to troops and disloyal persons, will be seconded and sustained
by all his superiors; and that appeals against his authority, decisions, and
orders, coming as they will from the loose and dissolute, and from the crowd of
sharpers who, swelling with professed patriotism, whilst managing to fill their
own pockets by dishonest means, will not be listened to or entertained. From my
observations of the characteristics of the new commander, I feel sure that if
left permanently here and made somewhat independent he will succeed in reforming
very many abuses and corruptions, and prevent the occurrence of new ones. I have
mentioned Brigadier-General Tuttle--he has resigned--and as his administration
here occurred prior to the Military Division of West Mississippi I have not
thought proper to take testimony as to his conduct; but it has been offered to
me here, and the whole community is filled with open talk of his having enriched
himself by collusion with an agent of the Treasury Department and by constant
malfeasance in office. I am informed by General Brayman's assistant
adjutant-general that Capt. Lorenzo Thomas, jr., First U.S. Artillery, can
produce at least ten witnesses residing here, who will make affidavit to having
paid Tuttle many thousands of dollars; and, if it was thought desirable still to
pursue the investigation, evidence can undoubtedly be had here in
abundance, if not of the payment of large sums of money directly to him
personally, at least of much malfeasance in his administration and the payment
of large sums to persons in his confidence for the release, at different times,
of persons and property held under arrest by him under frivolous pretenses or by
an arbitrary exercise of will. In my investigations of the affairs of the
provost-marshal I discover that between the 5th of April and the 20th of. May
Brigadier-General Tuttle, by his orders and receipts, drew from Lieut. J. H.
Parker, his local provost-marshal, about all the funds he had, $6,300, and said
that he owed it for secret service. Colonel Farrar, his successor, used in a
like period only $125. The latter understood from General Tuttle that $900 was
to be paid by him to a man for carrying dispatches from here to Major-General
Banks at Alexandria; but it was subsequently discovered that the money was not
paid, for the man demanded it (after Tuttle left here), in accordance with his
promise. It is believed that Tuttle carried this money with him and has not
rendered any account of it to the proper authority. I mention these matters in
order that if it is thought advisable to pursue the investigation of Tuttle's
affairs now that he has left the service, proper measures may be taken secretly
to send a suitable person here and elsewhere to collect evidence for the case. I
confess my want of experience and aptitude for that kind of work. The case
should be prepared with care by an experienced practitioner. The Treasury agent,
Hart, with whom he is said to have been in collusion, has been arrested by
military authority; and he confessed and confided to Judge Barnet, his
successor, and to others, his connection with Tuttle and the extent of the
swindling operations in which he reports they were jointly engaged; but
notwithstanding that, he (Hart) has been released at Vicksburg, and his bonds
here canceled by an order from a lieutenant on the staff of Major-General
Slocum, commanding the district, who is acting judge-advocate. I do not know
whether General Slocum, who at the time was absent in the field, was cognizant
of the fact at the time of the issuing of this order. I am informed that Hart
paid over to Lieutenant Sabin, the judge-advocate, about $6,000 for the purpose
of compromising with certain parties who had been swindled by Hart's operations,
wherein he claimed to have divided the plunder with Tuttle, and on doing that he
was allowed to go; but the amounts fraudulently obtained by these parties are
supposed to be thirty times the amount of the ransom money exacted.
I now proceed to specify in as few words as possible the condition of the
different organizations as they appeared at inspection. I have given orders for
the correction of the various irregularities and deficiencies as I discovered
them.
Inspected at 5 p.m. July 14 the Twenty-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
Aggregate effective strength at this place, 490. Had returned from veteran
furlough only four days. Inspected unexpectedly and were in bad order. Some men
were entirely unequipped. General Orders, Nos. 4, 5 1/2, 6, and 7, had never
been seen or heard of by them, and therefore they had not complied with them.
Arms in bad order; many bayonets lost; clothing pretty good. Officers generally
very indifferent as to tone, instruction, and bearing. Discipline lax; drill
indifferent; knapsacks heavily packed. They had eight six-mule wagons, seven of
which were filled with baggage, and one with hospital stores, and one two-mule
team.
Inspected at 6.30 p.m. July 14 Battery K, Second Illinois Artillery. Two
officers and ninety-two effective men at the post; four ordnance guns; no horses
for the caissons; only twelve serviceable horses, <ar78_188> the remainder
unserviceable. They had three six-mule teams; harness very old and rotten, and
should be replaced by new. Instruction good.
Inspected at 6 a.m. July 15 the Twenty-ninth Illinois Veteran Infantry. All the
re-enlisted veterans (aggregate 345) are home on furlough and will not return
for about five weeks, Aggregate effective men at the post, 381. They knew
nothing about Orders 4, 5 1/2, 6, and 7, except one officer in the regiment who
had seen No. 4 somewhere, therefore there were no preparations under it. Arms of
one company in very fine order, remainder in good firing order; many bayonets
gone; clothing ordinary; some cartridge-boxes. Knapsacks, canteens, and
haversacks wanting. Discipline tolerable, considering the absence of so many
officers; manual good. They had eight six-mule wagons, which were old and much
worn, but all the animals at the post are in fine condition.
Inspected at 8 a.m. July 15 the Fourth Illinois Cavalry. Aggregate effective
force here, 806. Only 220 serviceable horses; 290 unserviceable. Many men
unequipped and unarmed; clothing tolerably good; discipline and general
condition good. There is no suitable drill ground here and therefore the
regiment is not well drilled. Many recruits were never yet mounted. They had
eleven four-horse teams, one two-horse team, eight four-mule teams and one
six-mule team. There were 8 public horses in possession of officers, viz,
Captain Wallace, 2; Captain Smith, 2; Captain Wardlaw, 2; Lieutenant Allshouse,
1; Captain Hitt, 1.
Inspected at 5 p.m. July 15 the Fifty-eighth U.S. Infantry (Colored). Aggregate
effective strength at the post, 674. They were armed with new Springfield
muskets, and they were in fine condition. A few cartridge-boxes and bayonet
scabbards were wanting, but otherwise the equipment was good. Many haversacks
and canteens wanting, owing to articles having been destroyed in the post
hospital. Sanitary condition good; discipline good; instruction fair; officers
good. As soon as it can be relieved from its constant fatigue and working
parties on fortifications, &c., and can have time for instruction and drill, it
promises to make a fine regiment. It had three six-mule teams and two four-mule
teams.
Inspected at 6 a.m. July 16 the Sixth U.S. Heavy Artillery (Colored). Aggregate,
effective strength at this place, 1,107. In about the same condition as the
Fifty-eighth. They had two 12-pounder howitzers with horses and equipment, in
addition to their infantry arms. Five six-mule teams.
Inspected at 9 a.m. July 16 the Seventy-first U.S. Infantry (Colored). Aggregate
effective strength at the post, 283. There are seven companies, one of which is
yet new and not armed. This is an incomplete regiment and promises to be a good
one. It was in good condition and discipline and performed the manual well.
Sanitary condition good and quarters in good order. The fatigue and working
parties called for from the regiment are so large and frequent that it has but
little opportunity to drill.
Inspected at 5 p.m. July 16 the Seventieth U.S. Infantry (Colored). Aggregate
effective strength at the post, 139. This is a new regiment and has only two
companies as yet. They are good ones and may be remarked as the same as the
Seventy-first.
Inspected on the 14th and 16th of July the Sixty-third and Sixty-fourth U.S.
Infantry (Colored). This is an inefficient detachment of nine companies from two
regiments. Aggregate strength at the post, 630. Many useless soldiers, old,
crippled, sick, and unserviceable. In poor condition, and they ought to be
broken up and the good material put into some other regiments, whilst the
worthless is discharged as a burden to the service. On the next page is a copy
of the order (*) which calls one of them into existence, and it has been stated
to me that the good material is to be transferred by General Thomas, and the
unserviceable is to be formed into the "invalid corps." I will remark that it
has been unofficially stated to me, but whether with foundation in fact or not I
am unable to say, that it is expected that Capt. Lorenzo Thomas, jr., First U.S.
Artillery, is to be colonel of it. Who is to be entitled to the credit of
originating the idea of collecting broken-down and unserviceable negroes into a
body and calling it an "invalid corps" I do not know; but it appears to me that
the Secretary of War could not have understood the character of the intended
organization. Captain Thomas stated to me that the original intention had been
partly frustrated by the officers of the regiment fraudulently inducing many of
their worthless privates to desert and filling their places by able-bodied men
under the same name, and that it is the intention of General Thomas to transfer
these able-bodied men to other regiments and recruit again from "invalids." The
officers report that they have now many men who are unfit for service. If the
above idea is carried out no real service need be expected from the
organization. They have been used as plantation guards, five companies at a
point eight miles from here, and four companies at another point three miles
from here. The detachments are in bad condition and indifferently officered. I
have ordered them both to be withdrawn, as will be seen by the accompanying copy
of a letter(+) of instructions to Brigadier-General Brayman.
When I visited the plantation at which the detachment of four companies was
stationed, eight miles from here, I was informed by Captain Howell, then
temporarily in command, that it was leased and occupied by a Mr. Barnet, and
that the mules which worked it belonged to the United States and were taken from
the "Home Plantation," so called; also that he has seen farming implements,
harness, &c., marked "Home Plantation" in use there, and that the rations fed to
the hands are the same, including hard bread, as are furnished by the Government
to the hands of the "Home Plantation," which was also under the superintendence
of a Mr. Barnet. I do not know that this is a matter of interest in military
circles, but as the farms are not distant from each other I think proper to
mention it as one of the items of public information involving the action of
officials, which are stirred to the surface by constant talk in the community
here in regard to the general habit of sharp practice carried on in this valley
at the expense of our bleeding and exhausted Government and to the defamation of
the characters of such civil and military officers as have a right to claim
exemption from the general suspicion of corruption. At the risk of being
considered meddlesome in a matter over which I have not an exclusive charge, by
special instruction, and of differing in opinion with a soldier much older and
more experienced than I am, I repeat my opinion that the Sixty-third and
Sixty-fourth U.S. Infantry (Colored), commonly known here as the "Invalids,"
should be broken up by the discharge of all officers who are unsuitable and all
men not able-bodied, and that the remainder be transferred to fill up other good
regiments. As I have mentioned a plantation above, which is leased to the son of
a civil officer here, I deem it my duty also to refer to another, one of the
best in the country, which, being occupied by a son <ar78_190> of the
Adjutant-General of the Amy, has caused much talk and many rumors and reports
here. It is unfortunate that an officer of the army should have the most distant
appearance of being indirectly interested in affairs of profit and gain,
especially when his duties connect him so closely with the source of profit and
the control of its increase or diminution as to enable suspicious persons to
circulate rumors of his having aided, in any way, by favor or official
countenance, the success of the venture. Whilst it is my delicate duty to allude
to this, and still more in the sequel to report some particulars, I refrain from
repeating all that I have heard in the shape of common rumor. This much I must
say, however, as it can be easily ascertained whether or not it is a fact, the
Adjutant-General has had for months at his sole disposal a steamboat called the
Rocket. It is not my duty to question the propriety of such an expenditure, for
it certainly must be warranted by competent authority, but there are reports of
the boat having been run and used when public necessity did not demand it, and
that she, at least on one occasion, has brought supplies, farming tools, &c., to
the plantation alluded to.
I beg to ask particular attention to my letter of instructions to
Briga-dier-General Brayman. The important general orders and circulars alluded
to had never been acted on previous to General Brayman's arrival here. Most of
the officers had never heard of them. I have selected the Twenty-ninth Illinois
Infantry and the Fifty-eighth U.S. Infantry (Colored) as the disposable reserve
force here. This gives now an aggregate effective force of 1,055, and when the
Twenty-ninth returns from furlough it will be increased to 1,400 men. As the
Seventieth and Seventy-first Regiments become filled up, and the Fourth Illinois
Cavalry becomes complete in its arms and equipments and mount, a still further
draft could be taken from here. After the cavalry regiment is fit for the field
I advise the sending of a regiment of cavalry about 400 strong, and that this
one, 900 strong, be put in the field. The steam-boat Brazil, a chartered boat,
was here. She is capable of carrying only about half the reserve, but the
Altamont, a Government boat, has arrived to-day to relieve her by the order of
Col. Lewis B. Parsons. I have directed that both boats shall be kept till other
arrangements shall be made. In regard to the fourth paragraph of your
instructions, whatever great abuses have existed heretofore, there are no rumors
or accusations, so far as I am able to discover, against either of the present
incumbents or against Colonel Farrar, the last commander, but prior to that it
is not to be doubted that the corruption was appalling. Swindling to a great
extent is reported to have been practiced, oppression and blackmailing was said
to be common, and whether by the greedy desire of gain or the base yielding to
weakness before the influence of female charms and beauty, or both, it is
certain supplies in large amounts were carried into the enemy's country beyond
our lines. They still continue to go, but in much more limited quantities. Yet
the present amount is almost incredible to persons whose senses have not become
blunted by the habit of witnessing the post trade. At this position alone during
the past eight weeks $118,000 have been carried out. I have not been able to
discover that any other authority is held by the provost-marshal or commanding
officer than paragraph II of General. Orders, No. 4, of Major-General Slocum,
hereto annexed.(*)
You will see by my letter of instructions to Brigadier-General Bray-man that I
have communicated the orders of the major-general commanding <ar78_191> the
division forbidding further operations of this kind. In regard to persons being
passed through the lines without taking the oath of allegiance, I discover five
passes or special permits to have been given to ladies continuously from the 5th
of May till now, by Major McKee, Eleventh Illinois Infantry, provost-marshal of
the district of Vicksburg. One of these papers also includes a special
permission to take out all supplies which she needs for the family to which she
belongs without having an approval at the headquarters of the post. The ladies
are Miss Mary Buckner, Miss Alice Jenkins, Mrs. Dunbar, Miss Mary Ker, Miss
Ophelia Meyers; also Frank Surget, who refused to take the oath of allegiance,
was given an unlimited pass, signed by Brig. Gen. L. Thomas, Adjutant-General,
by order of the Secretary of War. Lieutenant Parker, assistant provost-marshal,
reports also that Adjutant-General Thomas, in April, gave to one Elijah Smith, a
citizen who had not taken the oath of allegiance, the countersign for the day. A
lady of high position and great accomplishment, Mrs. Hampton Elliott, after
having been repeatedly refused permit to leave the district by the commanding
officer and provost-marshal, because she refused to take the oath, was granted a
permit by Capt. Lorenzo Thomas, jr., First Artillery, aide-de-camp to Brig. Gen.
Lorenzo Thomas, Adjutant-General, and left the post without the knowledge of the
proper authorities. The pass read as follows:
NATCHEZ, MISS., July 8, 1864.
Mrs. Elliott has permission to go to any place in the United States with her two
sons. Her trunk and baggage will not be subject to inspection or search.
By order of the Secretary of War:
L. THOMAS,
Adjutant-General.
L. THOMAS, JR.,
Captain First Artillery, Aide-de-Camp.
The commanding officer on discovering the fact arrested Captain Thomas and sent
him to report to Major-General Slocum, at Vicksburg, and at the same time wrote
a dispatch to the adjutant-general of the District of Vicksburg explaining the
case. Captain Thomas arrived at Vicksburg in the absence of General Slocum, and
was released by his adjutant-general and sent back here. The communication of
the commanding officer has not been replied to. A copy is hereto annexed,(*) and
I ask special attention to it. General Thomas at the time was not within a
thousand miles of this place. As I mentioned before, a brother of Captain Thomas
occupies as lessee one of the finest plantations in this vicinity, and the
commissary of subsistence, Captain Whitney, reports that Captain Thomas has at
different times procured from the subsistence stores here for the use of the
army, four barrels of whisky and one box of candles for plantation use. On
drawing the supplies he has signed the following certificate:
I certify that I require the following named subsistence stores for the use of
myself and mess, and none others.
He states that his father, General Thomas, told him to get the whisky for that
purpose. Captain Whitney reports also that on one occasion he gave an order on
the commissary for a barrel of whisky and signed it "By order of the Secretary
of War," with the same authentication that Mrs. Elliott's pass had.
General Thomas is still in the North. Captain Thomas says that his father
particularly directed him to sign passes in that way in his absence. I do not
doubt that the Secretary of War has authorized General Thomas to use his name in
giving orders in the specific duty in which he is engaged, in the organization
of negro troops, but I must be permitted to doubt the fact of the authority
having been granted to use such a liberty in granting special privileges and
liberties and taking special jurisdiction whenever his judgment may dictate, in
matters within the commands of regularly assigned commanders, thus overriding
their authority, and in fact assuming a superior command not proper for a staff
officer to attempt to exercise.. I doubt the propriety of yielding to such a
claim of the general to give special orders and permits, which he has done in
many and peculiar instances, in particular cases, when it is obvious and certain
that he never consulted the Secretary on the point or received any authority
from him. Still more must I doubt that the Secretary entertains the idea that
General Thomas delegates to a young officer on his staff when he is a thousand
miles away the privilege and power of placing his name at the bottom of an order
to override the authority of a commanding officer, and grant privileges to
persons of undoubted disloyalty, who impertinently and defiantly refuse to
acknowledge allegiance to the Government which protects, favors, and supports
them. At all events, it is not to be imagined that the astonishment of the
Secretary of War would not be great at the discovery of his name at the bottom
of a pass to procure a barrel of whisky from the commissary store for use on a
private plantation. I have mentioned these matters plainly because I believe
these abuses contain the seeds of dangerous growth. The annoyances of commanders
are great at such interferences, if they are not warranted by proper authority,
and if they are, then it is proper they should be relieved of their perplexities
when cases arise, the propriety of which they honestly doubt, by the publication
of the authority which General Thomas exercises whilst he is absent from the
seat of Government, and is not in reality performing the duties, though he may
fill the place of Adjutant-General.
The quartermaster's department of the post was examined into by me, but the
incumbent has just entered on his duties. His predecessor was sent away suddenly
in arrest, and Captain Peree has arrived here in his absence, and entered into
possession and commenced labor by inventory, &c. The number of persons and
articles hired was verified and is considered large for the post, but it is
being reduced by Captain Perce. He has now in all 107. Since I have been here a
boat load of hay has arrived in disgraceful condition, showing negligence at
some point above here.
The arrangements and accounts of the commissary department are neat and
complete, and the duty very efficiently administered. Having heard very much to
arouse my suspicions I have looked very scrutinizingly into his affairs,
especially of fresh beef, by repeated examinations without discovering abuses
which were supposed to exist. For one matter I have given him reproof and
admonition. A man by the name of Paul has been permitted to go outside the lines
and collect cattle by theft, and has brought them in and received pay for them
in large amounts, when it was known that the cattle could not be his own
property. Whisky, from the subsistence department, is more plentifully used here
than it ought to be, upward of 500 gallons having been sold to officers during
the month of June, and about the same amount issued to the troops. The ordnance
department here is well supplied and in excellent order; it does credit to the
officer in charge.
I submit this report with the consciousness that there is much evil to unmask,
which I cannot discover to view. An aptitude, an experience, and great length of
time are necessary; these necessary requisites are not mine. I have every desire
to "hold the mirror up," but think that several officers of proper
qualifications should pursue laboriously and slowly the investigations of the
matters indicated if it is thought best. By a sufficient process Judge Hart, who
has been compelled to make some disclosures to save himself, and has been
allowed apparently to go free, can be followed to Saint Louis, where it is
understood he has invested his money, and can be so placed again in jeopardy as
to compel him to disclose all he knows, not only with regard to General Tuttle,
but others whose peculations have been concerned in trade stores, &c. A long
course of evil practices by cunning men makes it necessary that smaller fields
of work should be assigned to a greater number of officers, who could patiently
pursue their purpose without feeling that they were remaining away from duties
which are awaiting their attention elsewhere. As for myself, it is not my
purpose to originate charges or to attempt to prove and substantiate reports
which are public talk and common as the daily news, but I have merely in a
general way endeavored to point out the way, in obeying the instructions I have
received, to "unmask much of the evil that has so long existed under official
sanction on the river." I intend to proceed to Vicksburg by the first boat, and
if the course I have pursued does not meet the entire approbation of the
major-general commanding I trust I may receive full particulars at that point by
return of mail.
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
N. J. T. DANA,
Major-General.
-----
[Inclosure No. 1.]
SPECIAL ORDERS No. 99.
GOODRICH LANDING, LA.,
November 5, 1863.
I. Col. John Eaton, jr., of Ninth Regiment Louisiana Volunteers of African
Descent, is hereby authorized to raise a second regiment of colored troops in
the Department of Tennessee, to be designated the Seventh Regiment Louisiana
Volunteers of African Descent. The regiment will be composed of such men as may
be incapacitated for active service in the field, but who are otherwise fitted
for ordinary garrison duty. Colonel Eaton is authorized to recruit for this
regiment in any of the camps for colored people within the department, including
Arkansas. Commanding officers are directed to facilitate him in his endeavors to
fill up this regiment with as little delay as possible.
By order of Secretary of War:
L. THOMAS,
Adjutant-General.
[Inclosure No. 2. ]
HEADQUARTERS U.S. FORCES,
Natchez, Miss., July 9, 1864.
Lieut. Col. H. C. RODGERS,
Assistant Adjutant-General:
COLONEL: I have the honor to call your attention to the fact that Mrs. Elliott,
a lady of prominence in this community, and her two sons, residents of this
city, after failing to obtain a pass from these headquarters«13 R R--VOL XXXIX,
PT II» to leave the district by reason of not taking the oath of allegiance as
prescribed by existing orders, was permitted to go North upon a pass issued by
Captain Thomas, First Artillery, aide-de-camp to Brig. Gen. L. Thomas,
Adjutant-General, which pass was written in the following language:
NATCHEZ, MISS. July 8, 1864.
Mrs. Elliott has permission to go to any place in the United States with her two
sons. Her trunk and baggage will not be subject to inspection or search.
By order of the Secretary of War.
L. THOMAS,
Adjutant-General.
L. THOMAS, JR.,
Captain First Artillery, Aide-de-Camp.
I feel satisfied that Captain Thomas was cognizant of the fact that this pass
had been repeatedly requested at these headquarters and as often positively
refused upon the ground stated above, and that his action in giving it without
the sanction of this office was a direct violation of orders governing this
command. I further question his authority to sign by order of the Secretary of
War, and, believing that his course is prejudicial to the interests of the
command and subversive of every rule prescribed by the general commanding for
its governance, I have ordered him to report to you in arrest, for such action
as the commanding general may think proper.
I am, colonel, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
B. G. FARRAR,
Colonel, Commanding.
[Inclosure No. 3.]
SPECIAL ORDERS No. 47.
HEADQUARTERS U.S. FORCES,
Natchez, Miss., July 9, 1864.
* * * * * * * * * *
III. Capt. L. Thomas, First Artillery, U.S. Army, aide-de-camp, is hereby
directed to proceed forthwith to Vicksburg, Miss., to report in arrest to
Major-General Slocum, commanding that district. Quartermaster's department will
furnish necessary transportation.
By command of B. G. Farrar, colonel commanding:
JAS. E. MONTGOMERY,
Assistant Adjutant-General.
[Inclosure No. 4.]
NATCHEZ, MISS., July 19, 1864.
Brig. Gen. MASON BRAYMAN,
Commanding Sub-District of Natchez:
Having, under special instructions from the major-general commanding the
Military Division of West Mississippi, completed an inspection of the troops,
&c., under your immediate command, I have now to communicate to you the
following views and instructions from him. The command, over which you have
within a very few days assumed control, has not been found in good order and
condition, and exhibits a lack of system, which can but be the result of
negligence and carelessness under some former commander. It is not doubted that
the evident zeal and ability you bring to your work will speedily repair all
defects and reform all abuses. Whilist the quartermaster's department appears
to hold in depot a sufficient supply of haversacks, canteens, and all other
equipments, and the ordnance department a sufficiency of arms and accouterments,
there are many men in the ranks without canteens, haversacks, bayonets, even
muskets, cartridge-boxes, &c. More particularly were the Twenty-eighth and
Twenty-ninth Illinois Infantry Regiments, and the Fourth Illinois Cavalry,
deficient, whilst at the same time extra supplies of the same articles were,
with the exception of saber-belts, to be found at the quartermaster's and
ordnance depots. Large fatigue parties have been required from the regiments by
the quartermasters department at the time when the quartermaster had a force of
forty or fifty laborers for that purpose. Even the streets and gutters of the
city have been habitually cleaned by U.S. soldiers, whereas this work should
have been done by civil or military prisoners, or by hired labor paid for by the
city. Soldiers have also been supplied as clerks to the Treasury and Post-Office
Departments, and some are even now so employed. It is only necessary to invite
your attention to such abuses to be sure of reform. The very important General
Orders, numbered 4, 5 1/2, 6, and 7, and the circular of June 27, from
headquarters Military Division of West Mississippi, and Circular No. 1 from the
inspector-general of the same, so far from having been acted on or complied with
here, appear, prior to your arrival, not even to have been distributed. Your
immediate and close attention is called to all of these papers, and you are
instructed to see that the requirements of them are, in every respect, carefully
and efficiently carried out. The reserve force at this post, under General
Orders, No. 4, will for the present be composed of the Twenty-ninth Illinois
Infantry and the Fifty-eighth U.S. Infantry (colored). All details from these
regiments for extra or special service at depots, hospitals, &c., will at once
be relieved and the men sent to their regiments and companies. You will cause
these troops, in addition to their usual reports, immediately to report direct
to division headquarters, as required by General Orders, No. 7, and you will
provide and keep in reserve for this prompt movement the boats ordered in
General Orders, No. 6, and these troops will be constantly held in readiness to
move by land or water at an hour's notice. The garrison for the defense of this
place will then consist of the Twenty-eighth Illinois Infantry, the Fourth
Illinois Cavalry, Battery K, Second Illinois Artillery; the Sixth U.S. Colored
Artillery (heavy), nine companies of the Sixty-third and Sixty-fourth U.S.
Infantry (colored), and the incomplete regiments of colored troops organizing
here, viz, the Seventieth and Seventy-first U.S. Infantry (colored). You will
immediately proceed to organize and add to the garrison for defense in case of
attack, all detached officers and men on duty at the place; all convalescents
and all other persons who are subject to the Rules and Articles of War. The
requirements of circular of May 27, from headquarters Military Division of West
Mississippi, have not been met here. The detachment of four small companies of
inefficient colored troops at Marengo, eight miles from here, and of five
companies of the same at Lake Concordia, three miles from here, have been
exposed to sudden attack, and beyond the reach of immediate support. These
troops will be withdrawn, and a force, not to exceed 300, will be retained at
the fort at Vidalia for the protection of the district of leased plantations in
its vicinity. The remainder of the force now on the west bank of the Mississippi
River, opposite here, will remove to this side to strengthen your garrison,
weakened by the troops above designated for field service. This whole garrison,
together with the reserve force, whenever it is here, will of course be subject
to be called on, by active movement, to afford all the protection in its power
to all leased plantations within the limits of your command, whenever it can be
done without unreasonable risk of disaster. A co-operation of the gun-boats with
the troops of this garrison will secure the safety of leased plantations within
the above limits, as fully as it is believed it can be done, without
disregarding the requirements of paragraphs 1 and 3 of the circular of June 27.
The trade regulations provided by the President of the United States, which
prohibit any supplies whatever, however limited, from leaving your lines, have
been habitually and to a great extent disregarded here' Although the local
provost-marshal reports that within a few weeks the quantity of supplies passed
beyond the line is very greatly less than it was previously, still his records
show that within the last eight weeks upward of $118,000 worth of supplies have
been passed through. That the enemy have been freely supplied through our lines
on the Mississippi River is notorious, and thereby great opportunities have been
afforded to treacherous persons for fraud or corruption. Natchez has played her
part in this iniquity. You will see that the lines of your command are
hermetically sealed, so that no supplies of any kind shall in future escape
beyond them, and in event of your being overruled by superior authority by the
granting of a special permit or a special order passing goods beyond your lines,
you will immediately report all the circumstances of the case, with the fullest
explanations and comments, direct to the headquarters of the Military Division
of West Mississippi. Whilst it is not discovered that special permits have been
granted by the local authorities within the limits of your command for persons
to go in and out of the lines who have not taken the oath of allegiance, it is
known that permits of that description, some of which are now in force, and have
been renewed from time to time, are in possession of females residing here.
These permits, so far as ascertained, emanate from Major McKee, Eleventh
Illinois Infantry, provost-marshal of the District of Vicksburg, and are given
for thirty days at a time. Among others are the following: Miss Mary Buckner,
Miss Alice Jenkins, Mrs. Dunbar, Miss Mary Ker, Miss Ophelia Meyers. One of them
at least contains authority also to carry supplies without reference to the
headquarters of the command. It is directed that all permits such as are above
described, emanating from whatever source, be immediately revoked and annulled,
and that no more, under any circumstances, be issued.
As I am without a staff or clerks here, you will very much oblige me by
furnishing me immediately two fair copies of this paper, in order that I may
send one to Major-General Canby, and hand the other to Major-General Slocum.
I have the honor to remain, very respectfully,
N.J. T. DANA,
Major-General and Special Inspector.
RETURN TO FREEDOM
FIGHTERS