Grove, May 25._ We received the Philadelphia bacon and salt
herring about a week ago and divided it among the cotton-workers. I
have also distributed a part of the salt you sent. This allowance of
bacon was given once a fortnight and _weekly_ at this season by the
different masters, and the quart of salt monthly. Several plantations
near Beaufort which had been stripped of their corn by the army have
been referred to me for supplies. I have loaded three flat-boats from
the corn-barns here and at Coffin's, where there was a surplus,
sending off 285 bushels shelled corn in all. The removal of this corn
from my barns gave occasion for some loud and boisterous talking on
the part of some of the women, and made the driver of this plantation
feel very sober, but I pacified them by telling them the Government
showed its determination to provide for them by this very act, for
here were several plantations on Ladies Island, destitute of corn,
which might have been fed with much less trouble from the pile of
bacon and herring recently received, but that the Government did not
consider _that_ a just division of good things, so they sent me a part
of the bacon and fish, and took my corn to feed the destitute.
Thereby, said I, you are all gainers, for you have corn enough left to
last till potatoes come, and you get the bacon besides, for which you
ought to be thankful. The noisy ones stopped their clamor and the
sensible ones thanked me and hoped I would stay and take care of them,
saying they had about given up hopes of seeing any more meat in their
lives, and were very thankful for even this bit to grease their hominy
with.

The people are taking hold of the cotton-fields with much more heart
than I had feared, after the levy of recruits two weeks ago. The
cotton has been mostly hoed once and is growing well under the
favorable weather. Some of the corn is five feet high and it is all
hoed and ploughed except the latest portion, which was planted this
month. A small portion of the cornfields has been neglected, being the
portions assigned to some of the men who are absent. There were ten
young men belonging at Coffin's Point who escaped notice on the day of
the levy, but who, on learning that I had called for them, came and
delivered themselves up next morning. I sent them on towards Beaufort
and they met Mr. Pierce on the road. He told them that General Hunter
did not want their service against their will, and as they preferred