Confederate Requisition for Forage for 3 Private Horses – Captain James L. Power

Description

Confederate Requisition for Forage for 3 Private Horses –
Captain James L. Power
Offered for your consideration is a quartermaster form for the requisition of forage for the private horses of a Confederate officer for the period of one month in early 1863. This is noted as form “
No. 33
” and states in the opening that it is a “
REQUISITION for Forage for
Three
Private Horses in the service of
Capt J L
Powers AQM
at
Camp Gregg
for
30
days, commencing the
1
st
of
April
and ending the
30
of
April
186
3
.
”. This is followed by numerous columns, including the “
DATE
,
PERIOD
,
Number of horses
,
Daily allowance for each
,
TOTAL
ALLOWANCE
” and “
REMARKS
”, with some of these having multiple divisions below. Several of these vertical columns are filled in, all on the same horizontal line. At the conclusion is a partly-printed guarantee for the validity of the expenditure, as well as for the receipt of the material. The first part states that “
I certify, on honor, that the above Requisition is correct and just, and that I have not drawn forage for
any part of the time above charged.
”, followed by the signature of “
J L Powers
” in his capacity as “
Cap & AQM
”. An additional statement indicates that the requisitioned material was “
RECEIVED at
Camp Gregg
, the
1
st
of
April
, 186
3
, of
Capt J L Powers
Assistant Quartermaster,
19 36/56
bushels corn, --- bushels oats,
900
pounds hay, ---- pounds fodder, in full of the above Requisition.
”, again followed by the signature of “
J L Powers Capt & AQM
”. The back of the document features a short recapitulation of the contents, useful when the piece is folded for filing and storage (this recap has been filled in on the offered document). This form should serve as a reminder that many Confederate officers supplied their own horses when they entered the service, as opposed to Union officers who were supplied by the Federal government (this point was brought to the attention of Union General Grant by Confederate General Lee during the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia). This would make a wonderful addition to any Civil War document collection, or framed with a period photograph of an officer with his mount. The seller has encountered very few of this particular type of form, though how rare it actually is remains unknown.
James L. Powers
is listed as an assistant quartermaster in the 22
nd
Battalion Virginia Infantry with the rank of captain as of March 1, 1862. He retained the rank and position while serving in Henry H. Walker’s old brigade by September 15, 1864. He was listed on the staff of Seth Barton in March, 1865, though he had apparently been absent for several months at Goldsboro, North Carolina.
The presently offered document exhibits signs of expected period use, followed by many years of less than ideal storage. The principal concern is the extensive toning noted across the entire surface, imparting to the paper a medium to dark brown hue. It is difficult to determine how much of this color is due to toning and how much is a result of the poor quality of paper used in the production of the document (Confederate paper is of notoriously poor quality). The toning is somewhat darker at the edges and along the filing folds, a common occurrence on pieces of this era. The filing folds have somewhat affected the integrity of the paper, though at this time only minor separations are present (the folds could be strengthened with archival tape if desired). The paper seems to be of the consistency of a lunch bag or construction paper, with some minor loss at the edges (while not technically brittle, any additional folding could cause the document to separate). The left edge is ragged, as if torn from a larger sheet (the remaining edges appear straight). The contrast is average for the period, with all printed and manuscript material present and legible. While not of the highest quality (it wasn’t when originally issued), this document, which measures approximately 8⅛ x 10¾ inches, would make an interesting research project.
A .95 charge will be added to the winning bid for postage and insurance.
A .00 charge will be added to any item picked up in person at our physical location.
If you have any questions regarding this item, please ask before bidding.
Buy or Bid with Confidence – American Coins & Collectibles President Richie Self has worked 6 years as a paper money grader/authenticator. He has contributed to numerous reference books within the industry, as well as being a co-author of “The Comprehensive Catalog and History of Confederate Bonds, 2
nd
Edition” with Douglas B. Ball, Ph.D., Henry F. Simmons, M.D., Ph.D. and James R. Desabaye. Mr. Self is a life member of the American Numismatic Association, the Society of Paper Money Collectors, as well as numerous regional numismatic associations. He is an authorized submitter to NGC, PCGS, and PMG, a diamond founding member of Coin Dealers Helping Coin Dealers and a supporter of the Industry Council for Tangible Assets. American Coins and Collectibles can be found at many of the state and local coin shows.
American Coins and Collectibles
Shreveport, LA