Letter from William Scott to Mississippi Governor John J. Pettus; February 27, 1863
Title
Letter from William Scott to Mississippi Governor John J. Pettus; February 27, 1863
Subject
Confederate States of America. Army.; Mississippi. Governor; Mississippi. Militia; Pettus, John Jones, 1813-1867.
Description
From the Mississippi Department of Archives and History Governor Pettus Collection. Letter from William Scott to Mississippi Governor John J. Pettus asking the Governor to provide Mississippi soldiers with better quality food to eat.
Creator
Scott, William
Publisher
Mississippi Department of Archives and History. (electronic version); Mississippi Digital Library. (electronic version)
Date
1863-02-27
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_757-944-3-24
Coverage
1863
Text
Page 1:
gallatin Copiah Cty
Feb the 27 1863
Honrable govenor pettus
William Scott
Galatin
Miss
dear sir I want to sollissit your aide in providing bacon for our sol^gers^ they ar starving on poor winter beef and sickening and dying with bowel complaint from starvation they get nothing but poor beef and bread and a little malases the can[strikethrough]n[strikethrough]not live on that as ther stomach wont take that as they have bin fed on it so long and at this season of the year it is full of worms and a well fed dog would not eat it people want ther country protected and yet they are not willing to fead the solgers I will tell you how it can be done if you will order every slaveholder in the state. and if the power dose not lay in you I wish if you pleas that you would lay it be fore them that can make it a law for every Slave holder to [strikethrough] give [strikethrough] put in good sound baco^n^ in proportion to his slave taxes and make them deliver it at ther nearest
Page 2:
shipping points through out the state and that I have it maid and well detaild to go with it and deliver it to every camp if not it wont go pleas do this amediatly without fail as I no There is a plenty of good bacon through out the state to fead our poor Starving protecters and can be spared if people ar unable to spar it we that are at home have plenty of milk and butter and poltry and vegatables and so [strikethrough] on [strikethrough] forth that we can live on and let our protecters have the bacon let me cite you to one instance that came under my observation a few days a go I carred some provisions to a friend of mine in a camp at Brookhaven there I staid all night in a camp whare thare was a man that had bin ^in^ camps six months a Mr. Hickenbottom he was a larg fraimd man but was redust to a mer skellatin from ^sickness [strikethrough] and [strikethrough] caused^ starvation he eat a little that eavening and nex morning he drank some soupe made out of the ribs of the poart that I carred and at nine oclock he said he was able to attend the role call and I no if it is looked into that the lives of our braves would be saved in a great measure if something is not done s[strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough]adly the sick^ness^
and deaths caused by Starvation will give the country to the invaders hands the solgers is confined in the army the cant go home to get a change of diet and my dear friend if think that we that can better ther poor starv ing conditions [art?] by [every?] means to do it and do it stedily thare is plenty of meat in the country and the sitazans ar saving it for speckalation if they could get a dollar per pound they would open ther smoke houses and let a few ^hundred^ lbs go and I think this speckelation art to be put [down?] at once there is some that would rather halde it back for speckelation untill The harry worms would eat it up rather than fead the solgers that gard them while they sleep. I dont want harry worms fed I want my countrys protectors fed and the fat of our land men art to be detaild to go continuly over the country and to be provisions to every camp and let govern ment set a price an the same some persons that have relatives in the army some times send them some nurishments from home but thare is hundr[strikethrough]e[strikethrough]eds that have no one that is able to send them a mouthfull and they set are by and look wistfull at it
Page 3:
as they see ther comreds eat it and are not able to procure one mouthfull there is a great meny who have no home but [strikethrough] thare [strikethrough] the army this distressing to me I have seen a great meny and they all tell ^me^ that the most of the deaths in camps is caused by the sort of diet they get any man or set of men that would refis to came up to this proposial is not worthe of the protection that the [shem?] from our brave solgers and do for it god sake attend to it without fail as soon as pasable your most obediant friend
William Scott E
Ps let it be said [strikethrough] sicks [strikethrough] sholders and hams as they have no vegetables
gallatin Copiah Cty
Feb the 27 1863
Honrable govenor pettus
William Scott
Galatin
Miss
dear sir I want to sollissit your aide in providing bacon for our sol^gers^ they ar starving on poor winter beef and sickening and dying with bowel complaint from starvation they get nothing but poor beef and bread and a little malases the can[strikethrough]n[strikethrough]not live on that as ther stomach wont take that as they have bin fed on it so long and at this season of the year it is full of worms and a well fed dog would not eat it people want ther country protected and yet they are not willing to fead the solgers I will tell you how it can be done if you will order every slaveholder in the state. and if the power dose not lay in you I wish if you pleas that you would lay it be fore them that can make it a law for every Slave holder to [strikethrough] give [strikethrough] put in good sound baco^n^ in proportion to his slave taxes and make them deliver it at ther nearest
Page 2:
shipping points through out the state and that I have it maid and well detaild to go with it and deliver it to every camp if not it wont go pleas do this amediatly without fail as I no There is a plenty of good bacon through out the state to fead our poor Starving protecters and can be spared if people ar unable to spar it we that are at home have plenty of milk and butter and poltry and vegatables and so [strikethrough] on [strikethrough] forth that we can live on and let our protecters have the bacon let me cite you to one instance that came under my observation a few days a go I carred some provisions to a friend of mine in a camp at Brookhaven there I staid all night in a camp whare thare was a man that had bin ^in^ camps six months a Mr. Hickenbottom he was a larg fraimd man but was redust to a mer skellatin from ^sickness [strikethrough] and [strikethrough] caused^ starvation he eat a little that eavening and nex morning he drank some soupe made out of the ribs of the poart that I carred and at nine oclock he said he was able to attend the role call and I no if it is looked into that the lives of our braves would be saved in a great measure if something is not done s[strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough]adly the sick^ness^
and deaths caused by Starvation will give the country to the invaders hands the solgers is confined in the army the cant go home to get a change of diet and my dear friend if think that we that can better ther poor starv ing conditions [art?] by [every?] means to do it and do it stedily thare is plenty of meat in the country and the sitazans ar saving it for speckalation if they could get a dollar per pound they would open ther smoke houses and let a few ^hundred^ lbs go and I think this speckelation art to be put [down?] at once there is some that would rather halde it back for speckelation untill The harry worms would eat it up rather than fead the solgers that gard them while they sleep. I dont want harry worms fed I want my countrys protectors fed and the fat of our land men art to be detaild to go continuly over the country and to be provisions to every camp and let govern ment set a price an the same some persons that have relatives in the army some times send them some nurishments from home but thare is hundr[strikethrough]e[strikethrough]eds that have no one that is able to send them a mouthfull and they set are by and look wistfull at it
Page 3:
as they see ther comreds eat it and are not able to procure one mouthfull there is a great meny who have no home but [strikethrough] thare [strikethrough] the army this distressing to me I have seen a great meny and they all tell ^me^ that the most of the deaths in camps is caused by the sort of diet they get any man or set of men that would refis to came up to this proposial is not worthe of the protection that the [shem?] from our brave solgers and do for it god sake attend to it without fail as soon as pasable your most obediant friend
William Scott E
Ps let it be said [strikethrough] sicks [strikethrough] sholders and hams as they have no vegetables