Culpeper Co.
President
Davis
I have assumed
a privilege which in no doubt will seem strange to you but I have deliberately
premeditated over the matter & the true love I have for the Confederacy
have dared to address our, President, allow a Lady who deeply wishes our
Confederacy success to say if General Stuart is allowed to remain our
Commanding General of Calvay we are lost people, I have been eye witness to the
manuevering of General Stuart since he is been in Culpeper & do know the
whole of our unsuccess is his fault, General S loves the admiration of his
class of Lady friends, too much to be a Commanding General he loves to have his
repeated reviews immediately under the Yankees eye too much for the benefit
& pleasure of his Lady friends for the interest of the Confederacy &
Citizens who deeply suffer for his pleasure, I have also been eye witness to
General Hampton during his winter campaign in Culpeper & plainly say he is
the General he knows his place as a Gentleman & Officer does not devote his
Military life seeking the admiration of Ladys as General S does but for General
H yesterdy in the fight we know would have been surrounded by hords of those
miserable creatures Yankees, Oh, what a life to endure then to see our
Commanding General in fault, disgrace.
President allow a true Southern Lady to say General S conduct since in
Culpeper has been perfectly ridiculous having repeated reviews for the the
benefit of his lady friends he riding up & down the line thronged with
those ladys, he decorated with flowers apparently a monkey show on hand &
he the monkey in fact General S is nothing more or less than one of those fixed
up fops devoting his whole time in his Lady friends company, President, I shall
send a copy of this to our Chief Commander General Lee as I feel confident you
or him are not posted with with General S conduct hopeing a change may take
place & more success may attend our army is my sincere pray to God
Southern Lady
PS
President
Davis allow a true friend to the Confederacy to make a few more remarks upon
the great destroyer of the Confederacy “Ardent Spirits” if something is not
done to stop the distillers in Culpeper Madison Green & Rappahanoc God only
knows the consequence it is not only destroyeing the army but starving the
citizens you can scarsely go to a farm house beyond Culpeper Ct House but they
have a distill making Ardent Spirits bringing to Culpeper Ct Hou & you can
scarsely find a house in the Town but they are selling it out to the Army Ladys
actuly keeping jug under their beds selling out to the soldiers this thing must
be stoped ever to have success in our army Officers & privates more than
half their time drunk & when the enemy comes they are unprepared. I am a citizen of Culpeper Co have made it
my business to watch the manuevering of our army & do plainly see the fault
rest in our Officers for want of disciplian in their selfs & army.
Respectfully
[On the back, in Custis Lee's handwriting:]
Respectfully
referred to Genl. J.E.B. Stuart with the Compliments of the President’s Staff
& their suggestion that he cease his attentions to the ladies or make them
more general.
G.W.C.Lee
Col Va
June 23
1863