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N. Stork Official Records of the War of the Rebellion Confederate Correspondence, Orders, And Returns Relating To Operation's In West Florida, Southern Alabama, Southern Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, And New Mexico, From May 14 To December 31, 1863 HDQRS. DIST. OF TEXAS, NEW MEXICO,
AND ARIZONA, Brig. Gen. H. P. BEE, GENERAL: It is of so much importance that I should see you, that I beg you will proceed to Victoria to meet me as soon as this reaches you, if you are not already there. I will leave here on the 2d or 3d proximo, and will proceed to Gonzales, leaving a courier at Cuero to communicate your presence at Victoria to me, when I will go over. If you should be at Lavaca or Indianola, I will go there to confer with you. Dashiell's battery is en route to Victoria now; also, Pyron's and Woods' regiments are sent by steamer to Lavaca. Terrell's regiment is marching toward Matagorda, and will have orders to march to Lavaca, via Texana. No more troops should be exposed to capture if we should fail in holding Saluria, but a strict watch must be kept on Lamar, and our troops, other than the garrison of Saluria, be held in hand to prevent any attempt in that direction. I send you twelve wagon-loads of breadstuffs and one wagon-load of ammunition, assorted, escorted by Capt. C. B. Sutton. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. BANKHEAD MAGRUDER, ----- HOUSTON, TEX., Maj. Gen. RICHARD TAYLOR, GENERAL: The enemy has landed some 3,000 men on Mustang Island, capturing a garrison there of 100 men and three guns; since then has been re-enforced by some 1,500 men from Banks or New Orleans, and, I presume, will continue to draw re-enforcements from Berwick. I am informed by a deserter, a Texan, who has been a clerk in the quartermaster's department in New Orleans, in Holabird's office, that the enemy cannot obtain sea-going transports enough to send Franklin's command by sea. Is this so, in your opinion? At present he is trying to take Saluria (Pass Cavallo), and may succeed; if so, he reaches a rich part of Texas. Please let me know if any expedition is being gotten up at Berwick Bay or New Orleans, as far as you may know or have learned. I wrote you some time since that General Smith had stated to me that if I required the services of Colonel McNeill as inspector-general, he could be detailed, and I ask you, as a personal favor, to make or agree to the detail. He is popular here, and inspects well, and his friends are among the most patriotic and influential in the State. Can it be done? I sent for the cargo of Wolf, Carlos & Co., among other things, 3,000 pounds of powder, because it was represented to me it was in danger of falling into the hands of the enemy as it was. I have ordered the payment in cotton, which, I suppose, has been made. I need the cannon powder, some 1,500 pounds. If you need it also, I will send it to any point you may name that may be in my power. I have no transportation, however, in Louisiana, except some half dozen wagons at Niblett's Bluff, and if you can shorten the distance considerably, say, by sending for it to the Calcasieu, I will send it with pleasure. Almost all the cargo, except the powder and a few articles of public necessity, I think, passed into the hands here of private parties. I will divide with you everything I have, if transportation can be furnished by you from Niblett's Bluff. I send this by special messenger from Niblett's Bluff to Vermillionville. I am, general, &c., J. BANKHEAD MAGRUDER, ----- ALLEYTON, TEX., Capt. EDMUND P. TURNER, DEAR SIR: I inclose you Brigadier-General Webb's letter, that you may lay it before General Magruder. It is really necessary at this time that the persons who are delinquents should be hunted up, and, where the men could not be found, take all the arms, and press all the subsistence that can be spared without leaving the women and children destitute. Many of the persons on General Webb's list of delinquents are known to be disloyal, and it is certainly bad and dangerous policy at this time to leave hundreds of able, strong, disaffected men at home, to join the enemy whenever he should have a little success. Were 1 yet an officer with a command, I should at once attend to having them all arrested, but as I am not, I can only refer the matter to you. I think if President Davis knew as much as he should, he would be proud to approve the appointments made by General Magruder, who certainly knows better than any man what he and the country need to defend it. I really have no aspirations for office or command. I only wish to help the cause of my country all I can, and I will at all times render to General Magruder all the services I can. I am, very truly and respectfully, your obedient servant. HENRY L. WEBB. [Inclosure. ] HDQRS. TWENTY-SECOND BRIGADE, TEXAS STATE TROOPS, Col. H. L. WEBB, COLONEL: Upon a more careful examination of my draft-rolls, I find that I omitted several names, and herewith send them to you. This, with the roll already sent you, accounts for all the delinquents and absentees of this brigade. I have endeavored to give you such data as will enable you to understand the locality of every man, and in this connection allow me to suggest to you the propriety of your obtaining the use of Capt. J. H. Kirby's company of State troops to do the work of hunting up the delinquents. This company was the last turned over, and will rendezvous at Columbus next Monday. It is composed of men from every part of the brigade, and having been engaged in the work, and knowing the houses of the delinquents, they are best able to do the work successfully. A company of strangers will be troubled to find the houses; indeed, my squads often could not get neighbors to direct them to the houses, and were put to trouble to find them. If you can get power to send squads to the houses, and press meat and provisions for themselves and their horses, and to announce that it will cease whenever the men come in, and that pay will be made when they do come in, it will be a very effectual way to secure the game. I also most respectfully suggest the propriety of leaving the squads to take all the arms from the houses of the deserters proper, and ammunition also. If they will not use them for us, they should not have them. My squads were anxious to be allowed to use dogs to trail them up, but this I forbade on account of its impolicy. The list sent you also includes the delinquents from the draft of December, 1862, who should be punished by making them at least serve their three months now. That you will let the deserters proper have no rest till you have caught them, I feel well assured. To allow them to escape, would be to say that our laws are powerless. Some of them are ready to join our enemies, and will do so whenever they have an opportunity, and may become robbers and bushwhackers. It is likely that some of the delinquents will be found to have been detailed by cotton agents, but they had no control over militiamen whatever, and details could not be made till after the men reported and were mustered into service. One N. Storkpresented himself to me to-day, with a paper from you suggesting his being detailed to take care of soldiers' families. He sent in July to the Governor a petition of the same kind he presented to you, and the Governor rejected it, and I then gave him personal notice to go to camp. He not only never came, but I sent a squad of men several times after him, and they could never find him at his house. He was drafted in July, and has been a long time reporting, and if the date of your note had not shown that he presented himself to you during the Governor's amnesty, I should have arrested him. I swore him in, and gave him an order to report in seven days to Captain Martin-dale's company at Houston, and also to report to you as he goes down. No time to correct before mailing. Yours, very truly, WILLIAM G. WEBB, |
