Lot 333
Meigs, Montgomery C (1816-1892) Quartermaster General of the Union Army. His services were so valuable that Secretary of State William H. Seward said of him, "…without the services of this eminent soldier the national cause must have been lost or deeply imperiled." Autograph letter signed ("M.C. Meigs / Q.M. Gen.") on Quarter Master General's Office stationery, 3 pages, 10 x 7¾ in., Washington, July 28, 1862. Slight soiling to first page. To Major General Halleck. Using published notices in Richmond and Wilmington, Meigs analyzes the size of Lee's forces after the Peninsular Campaign, estimating them to be some 105,000. "I find: four Divisions. 12 Brigades & 9 Batteries named as in the battles North of the Chickahominy." He breaks down what he thinks are the sizes of the four divisions under Stonewall Jackson, D.H. Hill, A.P. Hill, and James Longstreet. "These notes may be of use in dealing with this army. Gives the distribution of some 60 Regiments which must be nearly one half the whole Richmond army. An intelligent writer of Branch's Division…says that Carolina & Ga contributed full one half the Regts engaged in the Richmond battles from 36 to 40 Regts each. This would make the whole army in his opinion 162 Regts which at 700 men average would give a total force of 105000….a careful comparison of the notices which appear in the newspapers, lists of prisoners of war & deserters…would soon give us a tolerable correct idea of the forces opposing us. If this has ever been done in this part of the country there is I fear reason to believe that it has been done by incompetent or unfaithful hands…." Lee's force was actually about 88,000. Meigs obviously should have left the exaggerations to McClellan and stuck to provisioning the Union Army, at which he was superb.
Estimated Value $900 - 1,200.
Christie's New York, June 4, 2004, lot 307.
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| Realized $528 |
