Today in History:

987 Series IV Volume III- Serial 129 - Correspondence, Orders, Reports and Returns of the Confederate Authorities from January 1, 1864, to the End

Page 987 CONFEDERATE AUTHORITIES.

MANUFACTURED.

The number of arms manufactured and made up of parts derived from capture and other sources for the year ending November 30, 1864, were:

Rifles, caliber . 58. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,778

Carbines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,354

Pistols. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,353

There is machinery enough under the control of this Bureau to manufacture 55,000 rifles and carbines per annum, provided a sufficient mechanical force be employed as follows:

Armory. Number of rifles. Number of workmen.

Richmond. . . . 25,000 450

Fayetteville. . . 10,000 250

Columbia, S. C. . . 4,000 125

.

Athens, Ga. . . . . 10,000 250

Tallanssee, Ala. . . a6,000 150

.

Total. . . . 55,000 1,225

a Carbines.

The provision is the workmen, and these must be permanently attached to those establishment and excused from the performance of all military duties, except perhaps local guard duty. Them number actually employed is about 425, about 300 less than were employed, say twelve months since. Defection from service in the local forces and losses on the battle-field have thus greatly reduced our force of workmen.

By General Orders, No. 82, over 700 men were placed in the ranks; of these perhaps one-half were competent mechanics, many of them valuable for the service of the armories. The product could not at once be raised to the maximum figures above indicated, but could, with the 800 additional workmen, be so raised, allowing for the time it would to teach and organize them.

For our cavalry arms we have chiefly to rely on importations, although pistols are being made at several points with success. Want of workmen alone prevents additional results. Sabers can be produced in sufficient numbers, and of pretty good quality, by the detailed of a very few workmen form the field.

POWDER.

The manufacturing capacity at the disposal of the Bureau is ample for all purposes, viz:

Pounds.

Augusta, mills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Per day. . . . 5,000

Selma mills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Do. . . 500

Raleigh mills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Do. . . 600

Richmond mills (in a few weeks). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Do. . . 1,600

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Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,600

There is, besides, a private mill at Charlotte, N. C., and an excellent mill belonging to the Navy Department at Columbia, S. C. The products could be nearly doubled by running the mills day and night. The quantity of small-arm ammunition in the hands of troops in the


Page 987 CONFEDERATE AUTHORITIES.