HEADQUARTERS ARMY
NORTHERN VIRGINIA,
5th January, 1864.
COL. L. B. NORTHROP,
Commissary-General, Richmond, Va.
GENERAL: Your letter of the 7th ult. reached here during my
absence in Richmond.
I regret very much to learn that the supply of beef for the
army is so nearly exhausted. . . . No
beef has been issued to the cavalry corps by the chief commissary, that I am
aware of, for eighteen months. During that time it has supplied itself, and has
now, I understand, sufficient to last until the middle of February.
I cannot adopt your suggestion to employ the organization of
your bureau to impress provisions. Neither the law nor regulations of the War
Department, in my opinion, give me that power. I have the honor to be, with
great respect, your obedient servant,
R. E. LEE,
General.
SOURCE: John William Jones, Life and Letters of
Robert Edward Lee: Soldier and Man, p. 320
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