The State of Alabama, Coffee County, of the Confederate States of America
To His Excellency Jefferson Davis, President

The petition of James L. Brown, a citizen of said county, Respectfully
showeth unto your Excellency that he is a conscript between the ages of 18
and 45 years, that he has a wife and five children, all girls, the oldest
about twelve years old, all dependent upon him for support. That he has
twelve negroes, and out of that number only four hands, that there is no
person to attend to his business but himself, and that he has tried to get
some person to do so, but has failed entirely.
He further states that he is in the habit of making a surplus of provisions
every year and that he will use all due diligence to do so in future, and
that he pledges himself, and is willing to bind himself to dispose of the
same to the Government or to the families of soldiers at the prices fixed by
the Commissioners of the State under the Impressment Act.
He further states that he has charge of the family and farm of GRIFFIN
CRUMPLER, who is in the military service of the Confederate States, that
said Crumpler also has a Son in said service, that he also has a wife and
seven children, the oldest of said children about 12 or 13 years of age, and
also five negroes, two of them hands, all in the care of petitioner, and no
other male person to take care of them.
He further represents unto your Excellency that if he has to leave his home
and go into the active service of his country, his own family together with
Mr. Crumpler's will be bound to suffer, as there are but very few men left
in the County, and none to the care of those families, besides the soldiers'
families generally who live near him would be deprived of the surplus which
he is in the habit of making, and which he expects to make in future.
He further represents that he does not make this appeal to evade the service
of his Country but believes that Equity, Justice and Necessity require that
he should be detailed and exempted under a recent act of Congress, entitled
"An Act to Exempt Certain Persons Therein Named, Wherein Necessity Requires
and Equity & Justice Demand It."
He further represents that he is now and has always been since the present
struggle for Independence, loyal to the Confederate Government, the laws and
Constitution thereof, and as a loyal citizen he will ever pray to be.

James L. Brown, 4 day of May AD 1864