Yesterday Mr. Moffitt, Lieut.-Col. Ruffin's agent
(commissary), was in the market buying beef for Gen. Lee's army! And this same
Moffitt was in September selling beef to the same butchers (as they say) at
from 40 to 50 cts. gross, the impressing price in the country being 20 cts.
On the 2d inst. Gen. Lee wrote the President that he had
just heard of two droves of cattle from the West, destined for his army, being
ordered to Richmond. [He does not say by whom, or for what purpose. He knew
not.] He says he has but one day's meat rations, and he fears he will not be
able to retain the army in the field. The President sent a copy of this to the
Commissary-General, with a few mild remarks, suggesting that he shall get such
orders from the Secretary of War as are necessary in such an emergency. In
response to this the Commissary-General makes a chronological list of his
letters to Gen. Lee and others, pretending that if certain things were not
done, the army, some day, would come to want, and taking great credit for his
foresight, etc. This table of contents he ran first to the department with, but
not finding the Secretary, he carried it to the President, who returned it
without comment to Col. N. yesterday, and to-day the Secretary got it, not
having seen it before. Well, if Col. N. had contracted with Capt. Montgomery
for the 1,000,000 pounds of salt beef, it would have been delivered ere this.
But the Secretary never saw Capt. M.'s offer at all!
SOURCE: John Beauchamp Jones, A Rebel War Clerk's
Diary at the Confederate States Capital, Volume 2, p.
124-5
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