Letter from A. V. Ellis to Mississippi Governor John J. Pettus; March 21, 1862
Title
Letter from A. V. Ellis to Mississippi Governor John J. Pettus; March 21, 1862
Subject
Draft.; Mississippi. Governor; Pettus, John Jones, 1813-1867.
Description
From the Mississippi Department of Archives and History Governor Pettus Collection. Letter from A. V. Ellis and the citizens of Sardis, Mississippi, to Mississippi Governor John J. Pettus asking if he will institute a draft for additional soldiers to serve in the military.
Creator
Ellis, A. V.
Publisher
Mississippi Department of Archives and History. (electronic version); Mississippi Digital Library. (electronic version)
Date
1862-03-21
Contributor
Funding for this project provided by The Dale Center for Study of War and Society-USM, the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, the Mississippi Digital Library, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the University of Southern Mississippi, and the Watson-Brown Foundation
Rights
NO COPYRIGHT - UNITED STATES; http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/
Language
English
Identifier
mdah_757-941-6-18
Coverage
1862
Text
Page 1:
Sardis Mi Mar 21st 1862
Dear Sir
The undersigned citizens of Panola County in order that our county may be ready to respond to any demand that may be made upon her & lose none of the laurels she has gained in furnishing troops, respectfully request that you will at your earliest convenience inform us, what plan you will adopt in making the next call that may be necessary for troops? Whether you will order a draft or call for volunteers? Also if—in the event of a draft—Panola County
will receive credit for all the men she has put in the field or only for those who have been first mustered into the State & afterwards into the Confederate Service. The object of this latter enquiry may be seen at a glance when we inform you that one or two of the eleven Companies now in the field new mustered into the service of Tenn or joined Tenn Regts without even having moved under the order of our State Authorities at all. We do not wish nor intend that our County shall be backward & as we stated in the outset, we desire to be ready in time, There are now four Companies being formed in the Army & three of them ready to organize & Besides some 125 or more recruits have joined old companies already in the field & yet with all this our voting population is only 1400. We desire you should distinctly understand that we are not making these enquires with any view to evade the law but on the Contrary, to carry it
Page 2:
out promptly. Panola claims to be the "banner County" in this war & she intends to make her claim good & all she wants is to be informed how many Troops you wish her To furnish & Then she will furnish them if it be to the very last man without the shadow of a doubt
His Exy Gov Pettus
Vy Respy
A, V, Ellis
J F Habgood?
W D Heflin?
J, Ned,? Simmons
Wm Edwards
W. B, Dickens
F, B, Irby?
D. C, Dunlap
J, F, Lancaster?
E, L, McCracken
11 Companies in the field 12 of Calvary & 1of Artilly 4/15 being [formed?]—one of artillery. 1 now started 125 new recruits to old companies equal to 1/2 companies [more?].
PS, 100 have just learned that you will [call?] next [week?] for one fourth of the—We wish to know If you will receive its quota of powder in the event above mentioned [strikethrough] will be recieved [strikethrough] as volunteers as we are determined that our county shall not be drafted the privilege is allowed to furnish our share as volunteers—[In?] [this?] [was?] of second Independence, we think it would be a [burning?] shame to act [its?] [laggard?] and submit to conscription—We can raise the required number in this county in a few days—all we want is ^to^ know what number is needed, and notwithstanding we have a large slow population to look after, we can furnish every man in the county capable of bearing Arms, if it is thought safe to do so,
An early reply is respectfully desired—
Resp &, A. V. Ellis
& others
Sardis Mi Mar 21st 1862
Dear Sir
The undersigned citizens of Panola County in order that our county may be ready to respond to any demand that may be made upon her & lose none of the laurels she has gained in furnishing troops, respectfully request that you will at your earliest convenience inform us, what plan you will adopt in making the next call that may be necessary for troops? Whether you will order a draft or call for volunteers? Also if—in the event of a draft—Panola County
will receive credit for all the men she has put in the field or only for those who have been first mustered into the State & afterwards into the Confederate Service. The object of this latter enquiry may be seen at a glance when we inform you that one or two of the eleven Companies now in the field new mustered into the service of Tenn or joined Tenn Regts without even having moved under the order of our State Authorities at all. We do not wish nor intend that our County shall be backward & as we stated in the outset, we desire to be ready in time, There are now four Companies being formed in the Army & three of them ready to organize & Besides some 125 or more recruits have joined old companies already in the field & yet with all this our voting population is only 1400. We desire you should distinctly understand that we are not making these enquires with any view to evade the law but on the Contrary, to carry it
Page 2:
out promptly. Panola claims to be the "banner County" in this war & she intends to make her claim good & all she wants is to be informed how many Troops you wish her To furnish & Then she will furnish them if it be to the very last man without the shadow of a doubt
His Exy Gov Pettus
Vy Respy
A, V, Ellis
J F Habgood?
W D Heflin?
J, Ned,? Simmons
Wm Edwards
W. B, Dickens
F, B, Irby?
D. C, Dunlap
J, F, Lancaster?
E, L, McCracken
11 Companies in the field 12 of Calvary & 1of Artilly 4/15 being [formed?]—one of artillery. 1 now started 125 new recruits to old companies equal to 1/2 companies [more?].
PS, 100 have just learned that you will [call?] next [week?] for one fourth of the—We wish to know If you will receive its quota of powder in the event above mentioned [strikethrough] will be recieved [strikethrough] as volunteers as we are determined that our county shall not be drafted the privilege is allowed to furnish our share as volunteers—[In?] [this?] [was?] of second Independence, we think it would be a [burning?] shame to act [its?] [laggard?] and submit to conscription—We can raise the required number in this county in a few days—all we want is ^to^ know what number is needed, and notwithstanding we have a large slow population to look after, we can furnish every man in the county capable of bearing Arms, if it is thought safe to do so,
An early reply is respectfully desired—
Resp &, A. V. Ellis
& others