Southern Historical Society Papers, Volume 37.
Reverend J. William Jones, Ed.

Beside the immediate work of the Ordnance Bureau, it had to undertake a great number of most onerous outside tasks rendered necessary by the disorganized condition of society. While indispensable help was obtained from the railroads, they had in turn to be helped, and largely, in making repairs to their rolling stock and tracks. In fact, a silent partnership grew up, and materials and labor had to be used almost in common for a common end. It is easy to see how vitally necessary it was that the railroads should be kept going; but few people now seem to be aware how nearly exhausted at the close of the war the railroad system of the South had become. Almost every yard of siding that could be spared had been taken up to patch the main lines, less important roads had been despoiled to help out the greater ones, fractional parts of wrecked locomotives