Today in History:

82 Series I Volume XXV-II Serial 40 - Chancellorsville Part II

Page 82 N. VA., W. VA., MD., AND PA. Chapter XXXVII.

The letter of L. Th's Prince to you of the 6th instant, referred by indorsements to me, is received. The reports there referred to are reiterated by Mrs. Wilson. I have heard in several different ways that I am to be surrounded and captured . They may come in sufficient numbers to surround me, but they will never capture me. What Mr. Prince [said of] traitors being employed on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad I have good reason to [believe] to be true, as I have heard it from many sources and from reliable Union men. That railroad is at this time costing our Government at least $50,000 per day, and yet it is gutting the Government and the soldiers engaged in its defense in every way and occasion that offers. They take advantage of the necessity of sending a dead soldier's body home to extort four or five prices for fare. A short time ago the body of a soldier of the One hundred and twenty-second Ohio was taken from this place to Martinsburg, to be shipped to Ohio. The brother of the deceased who went with it had but $25 to pay charges on the body, contained in a tight, box but when he applied to know and pay charges in advance, as is always required, he was told that he must pay $50 to the Ohio River. Not having the funds, he was obliged to bring the body back to this place for interment. That is the way that the traitor employes of this railroad treat its Union defenders. I understand that many of them are open-mounted traitors, and that the larger portion of them are secretly sympathizers with the traitors. This Augean stable needs cleaning out badly. I reported a lot of these traitor employes to General Kelley several weeks ago, but the general is one of those good-natured, kind-hearted gentlemen who would much rather at any time meet a traitor with a stick of candy than the sword, and excused them.

Great God! why can we not have paymasters sent here? They have been everywhere else weeks ago. The tales of anguish and misery that come to me from my poor soldiers, whose helpless families are dependent upon their scanty pay, which has been withheld six and eight months, is truly heart-rending. It is very damaging to the morale of the army, as it is very much impairing confidence in the Government among the soldiers, and is creating deep discontent and hatred of the service, and a strong desire to get out of it on any terms, to go home to their suffering families. This evil should be promptly remedied. Our quartermasters and commissaries, too, are and have for a long time been out of funds. There is a large amount of wheat amount of wheat in this Valley yet, and the farmers are anxious to sell it if they can get the money for it. They have saved by not trashing it. Flour of the best quality can be had here from $6.25 to $6.75, while the Government contractors in Baltimore are paying from $8.50 to $8.75. This should be looked after, as it would cost the Government nothing to deliver flour on the railroad by return trains, and we would be exhausting the enemy's country of supplies.

Respectfully yours, &c.,

R. H. MILROY,

[Brigadier-General.]

GENERAL ORDERS, HDQRS. THIRD CAVALRY DIVISION,


No. 13.
February 16, 1863.

The regiments of this division will constitute two brigades, as follows:

First Brigade, Colonel J. Kilpatrick, Second New York Cavalry, commanding.-Second New York Cavalry; Tenth New York Cavalry; First Maine Cavalry.


Page 82 N. VA., W. VA., MD., AND PA. Chapter XXXVII.