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obtained. I have not made out any estimate of how much transportation by rail and river I will need, in sending Officers to different parts of the State, or in moving rations up and down the river, to the Freedmen camps; it is impossible. The order of the Quartermaster General certainly does not refer to this kind of transportation, but to the means of transportation, such as mules, wagons, boats, et cetera. It is impossible to do anything without the assistance of the Quartermaster's Department, or money to pay all expenses. All the money we have would not pay the expenses of the Bureau for ten days. Until the estimate I forward is approved, and some kind of order issued by which my Office can go to their work, the Bureau is this State will be in a crippled condition. I attach to this letter, for your information, an application for rations to a camp of Freedmen located at Davis Bend, Miss. (Marked "A") . The endorsement of the Chief Quartermaster of the Department, with Circular No 6, (also attached, marked "B") will give you a clear idea of the position taken by that Office. The endorsement of Lieut. Eldridge, Act. Asst. Adjt. General, was intended to secure