ARMY OPERATIONS. 



during the transfer of these families. A white flag 

 will be displayed during the truce, and a guard will 

 cause all wagons to leave at 4 p. M. of Wednesday, the 

 21st instant, and the guard to withdraw at dark, the 

 truce to terminate the next morning. 



By order of Maj.-Gen. W. T. SHERMAN. 

 L. M. DAYTON, Aide-de-Camp. 



The civic authorities made a final appeal to 

 Gen. Sherman to revoke or modify his order, 

 which, with his reply, is here appended : 



ATLANTA, GA., September 11, InU. 

 Major-General W. T. Sherman : 



SIR: The undersigned, Mayor, and two members 

 of Council for the City of Atlanta, for the time being 

 the only legal organ of the people of the said city to 

 express their wants and wishes, ask leave most 

 earnestly but respectfully to petition you to recon- 

 sider the order requiring them to leave Atlanta. At 

 first view it struck us that the measure would involve 

 extraordinary hardship and loss, but since we have 

 seen the practical execution of it, so far as it has 

 progressed, and the individual condition of many of 

 the people, and heard the statements as to the incon- 

 venience, loss, and suffering attending it, we are 

 satisfied that the amount of vt will involve in the ag- 

 gregate consequences appalling and heart-rending. 



Many poor women are in an advanced state of preg- 

 nancy ; others having young children, whose hus- 

 bands, for the greater part, are either in the army, 

 prisoners, or dead. Some say: "I have such a one 

 sick at my house ; who will wait on them when I am 

 gone?" Others say: "What are we to do; we have 

 no houses to go to, and no means to buy, build, or 

 rent any; no parents, relatives, or friends to go to." 

 Another says: "I will try and take this or that arti- 

 cle of property ; but such and such things I must 

 leave behind, though I need them much." We reply 

 to them: "Gen. Sherman will carry your property 

 to Rough and Ready, and then Gen. llood will take 

 ii thence on;" and they will reply to that: "But I 

 uiut to leave the railroad at such a place, and can- 

 not get conveyance from thence on." 



We only refer to a few facts to illustrate, in part, 

 how this measure will operate in practice. As you 

 advanced, the people north of us fell back, and be- 

 fore your arrival here a large portion of the people 

 here had retired south ; so that the country south of 

 this is already crowded, and without sufficient houses 

 to accomniod'ate the people, and we are informed that 

 many_ are now staying in churches and other out- 

 buildings. This being so, how is it possible for the 

 people still here (mostly women and children) to find 

 shelter, and how can they live through the winter in 

 the woods? no shelter or subsistence ; in the midst 

 of strangers who know them not, and without the 

 power to assist them much if they were willing to 

 do so. 



This is but a feeble picture of the consequences of 

 this measure. You know the woe, the horror, and 

 the suffering cannot be described by words. Im- 

 agination can only conceive of it, and we ask you to 

 take these things into consideration. We know your 

 mind and time are continually occupied with the 

 duties of your command, which almost defers us 

 from asking your attention to the matter, but thought 

 it might be that you had not considered the subject 

 in all of its awful consequences, and that, on reflec- 

 tion, you, we hope, would not make this people an 

 exception to mankind, for we know of no such in- 

 stance ever having occurred surely not in the Uni- 

 ted States. And what has this helpless people done, 

 that they should be driven from their homes, to 

 wander as strangers, outcasts, and exiles, and to 

 subsist on charity? 



We do not know as yet the number of people still 

 here. Of those who are here, a respectable number, 

 if allowed to remain at home, could subsist for sev- 

 eral months without assistance; and a respectable 



,1 



number for a much longer time, and who might cot 

 need assistance at any time. 



In conclusion, we most earnestly and solemnly 

 petition you to reconsider this order, or modify it, 

 and suffer this unfortunate people to remain at homo 

 and enjoy what little means they have. 



Respectfully submitted, 



JAMES M. CALHOUN, Mayor. 



E. E. RAWSON, ) ~ ., 



S. C. WELLS, f Councilmen. 



GEN. SHERMAN'S KEPLY. 



HEADQUARTERS MILJTAEY DIVISION OF THE 

 MISSISSIPPI, IN THE FIELD, 



ATLANTA, GA., September 12, 1S&4. 



James M. Callwun, Mayor, E. E. Rawson, and S. C. 

 Wells, representing City Council of Atlanta : 



GENTLEMEN : I have your letter of the llth, in the 

 nature of a petition, to revoke my orders removing 

 all the inhabitants from Atlanta. 1 have read it care- 

 fully, and give full credit to your statements of the 

 distress that will be occasioned by it, and yet shall 

 not revoke my order, simply because my orders are 

 not designed to meet the humanities of the case, but 

 to prepare for the future struggles in which millions, 

 yea, hundreds of millions of good people outside of 

 Atlanta have a deep interest. We must have Peace, 

 not only at Atlanta, but in all America. To secure 

 this we must ston the war that now desolates our 

 once happy and lavored country. To stop war we 

 must defeat the rebel armies that are arrayed against 

 the laws and Constitution, which all must respect 

 and obey. To defeat these armies we must prepare 

 the way to reach them in their recesses provided with 

 the arms and instruments which enable us to accom- 

 plish our purpose. 



Now, I Know the vindictive nature of our enemy, 

 and that we may have many years of military opera- 

 tions from this quarter, and therefore deem it wise 

 and prudent to prepare in time. The use of Atlanta 

 for warlike purposes is inconsistent with its character 

 as a home for families. There will be no manufac- 

 tures, commerce, or agriculture here for the main- 

 tenance of families, and sooner or later want will 

 compel the inhabitants to go. Why not go now, 

 when all the arrangements are completed for the 

 transfer, instead of waiting till the plunging shot of 

 contending armies will renew the scene of the past 

 month? Of course I do not apprehend any such 

 thing at this moment, but you do not suppose that 

 this army will be here till the war is over. I cannot 

 discuss this subject with you fairly, because I cannot 

 impart to you what I propose to do, but I assert ihat 

 my military plans make it necessary for the inhabit- 

 ants to go away, and I can only renew my offer of 

 services to make their exodus in any direction as easy 

 and comfortable as possible. You cannot qualify war 

 in harsher terms than I will. 



War is cruelty, and you cannot refine it ; and those 

 who brought war on our country deserve all the 

 curses and maledictions a people can pour out. 1 

 know I had no hand in making this war, and I know 

 I will make more sacrifices to-day than any of you to 

 secure peace. But you cannot have peace and a di- 

 vision of our country. If the United States submits 

 to a division now, it will not stop, but will go on till 

 we reap the fate of Mexico, which is eternal war. 

 The United States does and must assert its authority 

 wherever it has power ; if it relaxes one bit to pres- 

 sure it is gone, and I know that such is not the na- 

 tional feeling. This feeling assumes various shapes, 

 but alwavs comes back to that of Union. Once ad- 

 mit the Union, once more acknowledge the authority 

 of the National Government, and instead of devoting 

 your houses, and streets, and roads, to the dread 

 uses of war, I, and this army, become at once your 

 protectors and supporters, shielding you from danger, 

 let it come from what quarter it may. I know that a 

 few individuals cannot resist a torrent of error and 

 passion such as has swept the South into rebellion ; 

 but you can point out, b< that we may know thosa 



