Unknown to M. O. Meigs, February 5, 1862

Port Royal, 8. ©., February 5, 1862. General M. O. MEIGS, Washington, D. 0.:

DEAR GENERAL: The light-draught steamers, which we understand left New York for this place a long time ago, have not arrived, neither the boats, wagons, &c., which Saxton has been so long expecting.

I fear now, as the season has so far advanced, we shall do little but simply garrison the coast. Iam not my own master. My master thus far have been the exigencies created by want of means and facilities for operating in a way desirable to both ourselves and the country at large. Savannah should. have been in our possession by this time, not in the way expected by the anxious publie on our arrival here; for of all the visionary and impracticable ideas that could have been invented, noth. ing could have equaled that of marching on Savannah on landing here; but by a distinct process, in combination with the Navy, either in besieging it by Montgomery, or taking it by the horns by boldly ascending the Savannah River under cover of the gunboats. For the former mode our siege material has never arrived. For the latter mode the opportunity has now unfortunately passed, and if we can, after such delay (which is no fault of the Army), succeed in cutting off Pulaski’s communications, we’ll do well. My firm conviction is that if the gunboats could have been induced to enter the river as early as the 17th or 18th of last month, when Wall’s Cut was then opened, and the enemy had no guns mounted at Savannah but those on Fort Jackson, Savannah would have fallen without a resistance of five hours duration, but it could not have been taken by the land forze alone in that way.

AS Savannah seems out of our grasp for the present, we shall go down to Fernandina as soon as the Navy is ready.

Very truly, yours, TU Waste