War Department, C. S. A.
| Richmond,
Va., April 8, 1864 |
| |
|
Maj.
Gen. George E. Pickett |
| Commanding, Petersburg, Va. |
| |
| General, |
| It has become a matter of strict military
necessity that six miles of iron should be at once taken and removed
from the Charlotte and Statesville Railroad
{Atlantic, Tennessee & Ohio RR}, in North Carolina, for
the completion of the Piedmont Railroad, which will be ready for its
track as soon as the iron can arrive. I have sent from here a
detachment of engineer troops to remove the iron, and have ordered
the officer in charge to report by letter to you. I must ask you to
sustain this action with your authority, as commander of the
department, on the ground of positive necessity, and it might be
well for you to send a discreet officer to the point to direct
operations and meet any contingency of possible opposition. I rely
upon your prompt attention to this.
|
| Respectfully, |
| James A. Seddon |
|