460 NortH Carotina Troops, 1861-’65.

LETTER OF GOVERNOR VANCE TO JOHN WHITE, COMMISSIONER.

Srate or Nortru Carorina,

Executive DEPARTMENT,
Ratzieu, N. C., 10 July, 1863.

John White, Esq., Commissioner for North Carolina, Care
of Frazer, Trenholm & Co., Liverpool:

Dear Sir:—Colonel Crossan has arrived safely with
steamer and cargo. I am much pleased with the results of
your negotiations and approve most cordially of your whole
conduct. You will see by the enclosed papers that the Legis-
lature has also done all that was desired.

I have received full authority from the same source to run
the vessel when and howI may think best, and I shall therefore
keep her going until we get in the balance of the purchases.
Since you left this country many important changes have
taken place and the war is evidently nearing its close. The
resources of our State and the Confederacy have developed
in such a degree that we have every assurance of being able
to clothe our troops with our own goods, and our vast amount
of captures have given us an abundance of arms. On this
account I regret Colonel McRae’s purchase, and will only con-
tinue your purchases of clothing by reason of economy. I
therefore send you out the balance of the bonds amounting
to one million, but desire you to deposit them only as you
need money, and to buy only as I may order as an accident
might happen to Crossan at any time. I presume from your
letter that you are not bound to take the whole loan at once,
but may take it up from time to time, depositing bonds as you
go. On the whole I will say that much being left to your dis-
eretion, my desire is that you should not keep far ahead of
your shipments, either in money or supplies; that you should
deal cautiously and wait for advices. I wrote you before
this, requesting you to purchase a lot of cotton and wool cards
and a machine for making them witha good supply of wire.
If you have not already acted upon this, please buy at once
fifty thousand pairs each of woolen and cotton cards and a
machine and wire, and ship at once to Bermuda. I presume
that by buying the teeth set in leather without the wood fur-

 

N. C. Financial OPERATIONS IN ENGLAND. 461

nishing, this number will not be a very large bulk. I hope
Jolonel McRae will ship his principal cargo no further
than Bermuda, as it is not needed at present and the risk
need not be incurred. Some little bills for State and private
account accompany this which I hope you will attend to. As
Crossan’s cargo was quite a well assorted one, you may dupli-
cate it once more without further orders. I wrote Colonel
McRae also, but lest he should not receive it, I beg you to
see him and tell him not to sell the turpentine scrip or bonds.
It would be bad policy to, put ourselves further on the market
as borrowers,.and his orders are not now needed any how.
In fact I did not intend for him to go to Europe to compete
with you. My idea was to procure his supplies in Halifax,
as people would certainly be struck with the folly of sending
two agents to the same market in part for the same object.
Your family, I believe, continues well and Mr. Arrington is
still at home with them. The fall of Vicksburg, though
creating some despondency, has not discouraged us, and Gen-
eral Lee is compensating us by his invasion of northern terri-
tory. On the whole our prospects are better than they were
this time last year. Our people are adapting themselves to a
state of war, and our resources are developing wonderfully.
Our army is becoming veteran and invincible, and our crop
prospects with the harvest already in, almost exceed belief.
You may assure, I think, the generous merchants who be-
friended a people in their death struggle for liberty and in-
dependence, that their investment is a safe one. Neglect no
means of communicating with me.
Very truly youts,
Z. B. Vance.

P. 8.—I am told on reading over my letter that the pro-
portion of the cotton to the wool cards should be about four
of the former to one of the latter. You will know how this
should be. Z. B. V.

Nore —The Report of W. H. Oliver, Esq., of New Bern, showing pur-
chases of the eotton on this side has been printed in this work, Vol. 1,
pp. 32, 33.—Epb.