Confed'te States of America,
Quar's master Gen's Department,
Richmond. November, 1861.
Circular.--The following additional instructions, in reference to impressments of private property for military purposes, are issued for the information and guidance of officers and agents of this Department:
- 1. An officer appointing agents to make impressments will, in all cases, furnish to such agents written evidence of their authority to act; and agents, whenever required by parties interested, will exhitit the orders or authority under which they are acting.
- 2. Agents who make impressments will, in all cases, give to be owner of the property impressed, or his agent, a certifieste the obaracter and value thereof; and they will, moreover, return to the officer of this Department, from whom they derive their authority, a statement of all property impressed by them, with the value of the owners. An of these statements will be forwarded to this office by the officer to whom they are returned.
- 3. Impressments must not be resorted to except when absolutely demanded by the public necessities, and their must be apportioned among the community, so far as amy be possible, equally and impartiaby, having due regard to the means and ability of owners of property.
- 4. When teams and owner property, including slave teamster are impressed into the service of the Confederate State since owners thereof may be by officers of the Quartermaster a Department, at the rates of hers.
- 5. When the owners of any property impressed into the public service, slaves accepted, are willing to relloguish the same to the Government, the officer of the Quartermaster's Deapartment may pay the fair appraised value thereof, and take up the property in their returned, to be accounted for as other public property.
- 6. When private property has been duty impressed by order of the commanding officer and it shall appear by satisfactory evidence to have been expended in the public service, officers of the Quartermaster's Department may pay the fair appraised value thereof although the property may not have been regularly received and issued by any Quartermaster.
A. C. Myeen.
de 2--eofit Acting Quartermaster General.
Whig, Enquirer, and Examiner copy six times.
