LIFE AISTD CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT, THE LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS LIEUT.-GEI. U. S. GRANT, FROM HIS BOYHOOD TO THE SURRENDER OF LEE. INCLUDING^ AN ACCURATE ACCOUNT OF SHERMAN S GREAT MARCH FROM CHATTANOOGA TO WASHINGTON, AND THE FINAL OFFICIAL REPORTS OP SHERIDAN, MEADE, SHERMAN, AND GRANT. .ify portraits on JStcel oi STANTON, GRANT, AND HIS GENERALS, AND OTHEU ILLUSTRATIONS. BY REV. P. C. HEADLEY, ADTHOB or "LIFE OF NAPOLEON," "LIFE OF JOSEPHINE," "LIFE OF LAKAYBTTTB/ "LIFE OF THE HEEO BOY," ETC., ETC. NEW YORK: THE DERBY AND MILLER PUBLISHING CO., No. 5 SPHT7CE STl .EET. 1866. . Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, by THE DEKBY & MILLER PUBLISHING CO., In the Clerk s Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of New York. GIFT n PREFACE. THE personal history of a Nation s benefactor will always interest the people whom he has signally served. Lieuteuant-General Grant rose from humble life to the highest position of military power, with no effort to attain it beyond unassuming and unwearied devotion to the Republic, during the period of its greatest peril and trial. Of such a man, the humblest citizen desires to know every detail of his career, from his boyhood to his later and more eventful years. In this volume it has been the endeavor of the au thor to gratify that natural curiosity, by giving well- authenticated incidents of his life. For much information the author is indebted to family friends of General Grant ; for others, to the writings of Larke, Carleton, Richardson, Nichols, and other historians of the war. It is believed, that what is written is historically correct ; indeed, there is no better test than the able and succinct reports of the great captains, Grant, Sher man, Meade, and Sheridan, which are included in this volume. 6 PREFACE. The largest portion of the work is devoted to the early history of General Grant, and his Western Cam paign, because they cover by far the longest period ; although the decisive events of his grand military career were compressed into less than one year. The reader will not undervalue the possession of all the important orders and reports of General Grant, whose pen is wielded with no less effect, in its field of service for the army and country, than his sword. The sketches of subordinate commanders are from reliable sources ; and no effort has been spared to pre sent a faithful account of the grand armies and their chieftains, whose skill and heroism rescued the Eepub- lie from the hands of those who sought to destroy it. If the biography shall add to the popular acquaint ance with the great and good man whom we all delight to honor, and deepen the love of any of the citizens of the glorious land, on whose bloody battle-fields the beams of peace have just begun to shine, to him who, under the Divine guidance, gave us that peace, and to the country of his birth, the author s labor will not have been in vain. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. THE FAMILY AND BOYHOOD OF GENERAL GRANT. The Grants Emigrate from Scotland. Their Home in America. The Removal to the Far West. Residence in Ohio. The Orphan Boy. The Widow takes her Family to Maysville, Kentucky. Jesse Marries. The New Home. Birth of Ulysses. The Origin of his Name. Anecdotes of the Boy. Struggles to Se cure an Education. The Appointment to a Cadetship in the United States Military Academy at West Point * - 17 CHAPTER II. YOUNG GRANT S LIFE AND EXPERIENCE AT WEST POINT ACADEMY. The Young Cadet leaves Home for the banks of tho Hudson. Passes the Exami nation. The Situation of the Military Academy. Course of Instruction. Ex aminations. Crimes and Penalties. Restraints. Order of Duties. The Drill and Parade. Encampment. U. S. Grant s Experience in the Academy 24 CHAPTER III. GRANTS CLASSMATES. HIS SERVICE IN THE MEXICAN WAR. Cadet Grant s Classmates and Companions. He is created Lieutenant. Goes to St. Louis to Guard the Frontier. The Indian Depredations and their Wrongs. The comparative Monotony of the Regular Service in time of Peace broken. The War with Mexico. The Lieutenant s First Engagement. Marches. Palo Alto. Resaca do la Palrna, Yera Cruz. Molino del Rey. Chapultepec. Testimony to Grant s Bravery. Close of the War. Leaves the Army for Business in St. Louis 32 CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. GRANT ON THE FARM IN THE STORE AND IN THE REBELLION. Captain Grant turns his Attention to Agriculture. Tries the Office of Collector. The Business unsuited to his Taste. Removes to Illinois to Engage in the Leather Trade. The Rebellion Arouses his Patriotic and Martial Spirit. Ten ders his Services to the State. First "Work. Is created Colonel. Successful Command. Is commissioned Brigadier-General. Ordered to Missouri. Amus ing Incident. In Command of the Port at Cairo. Action at Fredericktown. Belmont. Touching Scenes after Battle. General Hunter succeeds General Fremont 47 CHAPTER Y. A NEW ORDER OF THINGS. A new Order of Things. Advance upon the Enemy. Naval Attack. Picket- Shooting. Discipline of Marching Troops. Protection of Private Property. Reconnoissance. Hard Marches. Plans of Campaign. Commodore Foote and his Fleet. Sails for Fort Henry to act in concert with General Grant. Reaches the Fortress. After waiting for Land-Forccs, Bombards the Works. The Surrender. General Grant s Report. General Tilghman s Testimony to his Conqueror s high qualities of Character 68 CHAPTER VI. THE ATTACK UPON FORT DONELSON, AND ITS RESULTS. General Grant turns his Attention to Fort Donelson. The Plan of Advance. The March. Bivouac. The Morning of Battle. The Conflict opens. The Struggle of Thursday. The Rebels Victorious. The Heroism of "Wallace s Troops. The Tide of Battle turns. The Council of War. The Victory. -The Second Conclave of Rebel Generals. The Surrender. The General Joy. General Grant s Report. Incidents. Fine Commemorative Lines SO CHAPTER VII. HABITS OF MAJOR- GENERAL GRANT. Rumors about the Habits of Mojor-Genoral Grant. Amusing Incident. Enlarged Field of Action. Congratulations to his Army. Movements of the Fleet. CONTENTS. 9 General Grant s Discipline, Sword Presentation. Enlarged Command. Prep arations for Conflict at Corinth. The advance to Pittsburg Landing. The Plans of the Enemy. He Surprises the Union Army. The Battle of Sunday. The arrival of General Buell. General Grant Victorious. Congratulations. A Christian Hero. * 4 < . t . 99 CHAPTER VIII. RECONNOISSANCE TOWARD COEINTH. Reconnoissance toward Corinth. Movements on the Mississippi River. Capture of New Orleans. Beauregard alarmed. Calls upon the Planters to burn their Cotton. Cavalry Skirmish near Corinth. Reconnoissance toward Jackson, Ten nessee. Troops concentrate at Pittsburg Landing. General Grant s Command further Enlarged. Enemies again assail his Reputation. Hon. Mr. Wash- burne s Defense. General Halleck s Confidence in Grant. Siege and Evacua tion of Corinth. . ..133 CHAPTER IX. THE PURSUIT. GENERAL GRANTS WESTERN COMMAND. The Pursuit. Colonel Elliott s Cavalry. Sheridan. Sherman takes Holly Springs. General Halleck called to Washington. General Grant succeeds him in the Western Command. He takes care of disloyal Citizens, Editors, and the Guerrillas. Guards the rights of loyal People. The Contrabands. Refugees, A Rebel Letter to General Grant. West Point Generals in the War. The Position of the Armies. Their Advance. luka. A bloody Battle. Victory. Pursuit of the Enemy. Congratulations. Effort to restore the former condition of things in the State. General Bragg gets near the Capital 159 CHAPTER X. GENERAL GRANT S NEW COMMAND. HIS INTEGRITY. General Grant s New Command. Its Limits and Sub-divisions. Preparation for a Grand Campaign. Reconnoitering. Protects Citizens. A new Staff. Lig ht- Marching. The Contrabands. Robbery in Camp. Regulation of Trade. The Jews Expelled from the Department. Anecdote Illustrating General Grant s Integrity. On to Vicksburg. Plans for Assaulting or Investing the City. The Army in Motion. Holly Springs Taken by the Rebels. General Grant s Campaign Interrupted. General Sherman s Advance 188 10 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XI. DEFENSE OF MILITARY POSTS. GENERAL GRANT S CONGRATU LATIONS. Heroic Defense of Military Posts. The Commanding General s Congratulations. General Sherman Reaches and Attacks Vicksburg. The Expedition Fails. The Reason. President s Proclamation. McClernand at Vicksburg. Suspect ed Disloyalty of Illinois Troops. The Regiment Relieved of the Charge. Army Movements. Attempts to find a Passage through Bayous and Canals to Vicks burg. The Water-courses Abandoned 209 CHAPTER XII. NAVAL MOVEMENTS TOWARD VICKSBURG. A new Plan for Seizing the Prize. Admiral Farragut passes Port Hudson. Description of the Terrific Scene. The Rams Lancaster and Switzerland make a fruitless Attempt to run the Batteries. The Army Advance. The Exhausting Marches. Admiral Porter s Ships confront Vicksburg in a night-passage of the Works.The Peril. The Success and Exultation. . . . . 236 CHAPTER XIII. * CA VALRT MOVEMENTS. THE ADVANCE. The Cavalry Enter the Lists in Daring Adventures. Colonel Grierson s Groat Raid. Strange and Amusing Scenes. The Cavalry Generals. The Army Ad vance. Porter s Fleet Co-operates. The March. A Battle. Occupation of Port Gibson. Telegrams of General Grant and Governor Yates. Feints to de ceive the Enemy. General Sherman s Movements. General Grant s care of his Army 252 CHAPTER XIV. THE ARMY APPROACH VICKSBURG. General Grant s Head-Quarters moved forward to Hawkinsou s Ferry. The Rebel Governor Alarmed. General Grant s Congratulatory Order. He Telegraphs to Washington. Fall of Jackson. The Army at Bolton. Clinton. Champion s Hill. Crossing the River. The Investment of the City 272 CONTENTS. 11 CHAPTER XV. THE SIEGE AND SURRENDER OF VICKSBURG. General Grant xfalls Back. The slower work of a Siege. The Troops Ready for it. Anecdotes of General Grant. Amusing Scenes. Various Movements, The Sapping and Mining. Mine Exploded. An Exciting Struggle. The Siege goes on. The Rebels begin to feel the Death-grasp of General Grant. General Pemberton opens Correspondence. The Surrender of the City 294 CHAPTER XVI. THE OCCUPATION OF VICKSBURG. ORDER OF MARCH. The Occupation of the City. The Value of the Possession. Incidents. The Ap pearance of the Conquered. The Dead. Rebel Bill of Fare. Grant and his Cigar. Port Hudson hears the Tidings of Victory. Correspondence between the hostile Commanders. The Surrender of the Fortress. General Grant s Report of the great Achievement. The President s Congratulations. One -of hie Anecdotes.. . 312 CHAPTER XVII. SIEGE OF JACKSON. GENERAL GRANTS TOUR. General Johnston Alarmed. Retires to his Defenses at Jackson. Addresses his Troops. Investment of the City by Sherman. Raids. Incidents of the Siege. General Grant Relaxes the Sternness of Military Rule. His Care of the Negroes. He makes a Tour of Observation. Festival at Memphis. Visits General Banks at New Orleans. Grand Review. Meets with an Accident Resumes Active Command . . 346 CHAPTER XVIII. A NEW CAMPAIGN. CHATTANOOGA. Chickamauga. Rosecrans Defeated there. Preparations for a New Campaign. General Grant moves up the Mississippi. Again at Vicksburg, Caring for hia Command. A Board and Medal of Honor. General Sherman on the March for Chattanooga. General Grant meets the Secretary of War. Enlarged Com mand. The Enemy Alarmed. Affected Mirth. Chattanooga Relieved. Prep arations for Decisive Battle. The Bloody Contest. -General O Meara 366 12 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIX. TEE ENEMY RETREATING. GENERAL GRANT RECEIVES THE RANK AND COMMAND OF LIEUTENANT- GENERAL. The Pursuit of the Enemy. Reprisals and Skirmishes. Battle at Ringgold. Longstreet at Knoxville. His Retreat. Congratulations by the President.^- Thanksgiving. General Hardee succeeds Bragg. General Grant s Health. General Scott s Opinion of him. Expressions of Popular Regard. The Pro position and Discussion in Congress of the Rank of Lieutenant-General. Mr. Washburne s Speech. The Bill Passed. General Grant Appointed to the -Com mand 400 CHAPTER XX. A NEW CAMPAIGN. NEW HONORS. A new Campaign. Congressional Action. Deserters from the Enemy. Loyal Citi zens protected. Army Supplies received. General Grant inspects his Depart ment at St. Louis. Popular Demonstrations of Admiration. Characteristics. General Grant is notified of his appointment to the Rank of Lieutenant-General. Interesting Correspondence with Sherman on the subject. His Tour of Inspec tion. Enters upon his new Duties . .414 CHAPTER XXI. GP:NERAL GRANT AND THE ARMY OF THE POTOMA C.ITS LEADING GENERALS. A Ball-room on the Battle-field. General Grant s idea of such "Warlike Prepara tions. A Fancy Officer. The Pause and Crisis. The Opening Campaign and its Field. Incidents. Sketch of Major-General George Gordon Meade. Major- General Philip Henry Sheridan. 434 CHAPTER XXII. THE LEADING GENERALS IN THE CAMPAIGN. Sketches of Major-General William Tcoumsch Sherman. Major-General George H. Thomas. Major-General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick. Major-General Olirer 0. Howard. Major-General James Birdscye McPlierson 457 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXIH. THE ARMY IN THE WILDERNESS. Tho Order to March. The Grand Advance. The "Wilderness. The Meeting in Battle of the Hostile Armies. The Fighting of Thursday, Friday, and Satur day. The Midnight March. The Enthusiastic Welcome of the Lieutenant-Gen- eral by the troops. Sabbath, May 7th. The Death of Generals Sedgwick and Hays. A Splendid Charge by Hancock s Troops. Coolness of General Grant A Pause in the Race for Richmond. Telegrams from the Seat of War. The Struggle Renewed. Severe Battle. The Field. The Fortunes of the Day. .484 CHAPTER XXIV. THE DEEPENING CONFLICT. The Struggle renewed. General Grant s skillful Movements of his Army. Cold Harbor. The grand March to the James River. Assault on Petersburg. Incidents. Burnside s Mines. Naval Victories. General Grant and the Grand mother of General McPherson. General Sherman and Affairs in the South west.. . . . .499 CHAPTER XXV. THE CLOSING SCENES OF THE WAR. The vast Combinations of the Lieutenant-General unfolding. The Hollowness of the Confederacy. General Sheridan s Successes. General Thomas. General Sherman s startling Campaign. The Beginning of the New Year. General Lee. Fort Steadman. The closing Battles and Scenes of the Rebellion. General Lee s Flight. The Pursuit. The Surrender. Sherman and Johnston. Johnston surrenders. The remaining Rebel Forces follow 521 CHAPTER XXVI. GENERAL GRANT S MOVEMENTS AFTER THE SURRENDER. General Grant visits Burlington and Philadelphia. A munificent Gift. General Grant s Acceptance of it. Returns to Washington. Capture of Jeff. Davis. The Grand Review. General Grant makes a Tour to New York and New England. Goes to the British Provinces. Incidents at Quebec. Journey to tho West. Scenes along the Route. At President Lincoln s Tomb. Among his Old Friends. General Grant s Character. . . 556 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXVII. REPORTS OF GENERALS MEADE, SHERIDAN, SHERMAN, AND GRANT. General Meade s Keport of the Potomac Army. General Sheridan s Account of his Splendid Achievements. The Story of the Unrivaled Sherman s Great March. General Grant s Final and Great Report of the closing Campaign of the War... 573 (ON STEEL.) LIEUTENANT-GENEBAL ULYSSES S. GRANT. HON. EDWIN M. STANTON, SECEETAEY OF WAB. MAJOB-GENEEAL "W. T. SHEEMAN. MAJOE-GENEEAL P. H. SIIEEIDAN. MAJOE-GENEEAL GEO. H. THOMAS. MAJOE-GENEEAL GEO. G. MEADE. MAJOE-GENEEAL J. B. MoPnEBSON. MAJOE-GENEEAL 0. O. HOWAED. GENERAL JUDSON KlLPATEICK. (ON WOOD.) BIETH-PLACE OF GEANT, AT POINT PLEASANT, Omo. SUEEENDEE OF FOET DONELSON. BATTLE OF PITTSBUEG LANDING. SUEEENDER OF YlOKSBTJEG. BATTLE AT CHATTANOOGA. BATTLE OF THE WILDEBNESS. SHEEMAN S MAECH FEOM ATLANTA. SHEEIDAN S CAVALEY CHAEGE. SUEEENDEE OF LEE TO GEANT. THE GEANT AND SHEEMAN TESTIMONIALS. THE GRANT AND SHERMAN TESTIMONIALS. i f f V? 5. / . A j/f f ; a i- -^ y & ? /7 f ;> i? ^ { X) I It. </ LIFE AKD CAMPAIGNS LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER I. THE FAMILY AND BOYHOOD OF GENERAL GRANT. The Grants Emigrate from Scotland. Their Home in America. The Removal to the Far West. Residence in Ohio. The Orphan Boy. The Widow takes her Family to Maysville, Kentucky. Jesse Marries. The New Home. Birth of Ulysses. The Origin of his Name. Anecdotes of the Boy. Struggles to Se cure an Education. The Appointment to a Cadetship in the United States Military Academy at West Point. LIEUTENANT- GENERAL GRANT is of Scotch descent. More than a century ago, his ancestor came to the shores of America, then comparatively a wilderness, and settled in Pennsylvania ; while a "brother who emigrated with him went on to Canada. By honest industry, our hardy pioneer supported his growing family upon his forest-girdled clearing, until the Eevolutionary War called him to its field of strife. After "bravely following the flag of the rising Bepublic, he re turned with the dawn of peace to his home in Westmore land County, Pennsylvania, Here Jesse K. Grant was born in January, 1794. Five years later, his father started for the more attractive lands in the far-off valley of the West. With few roads of any kind, it was an enterprise both diffi cult and perilous, to reach the savage wilds of the vast re gion watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries. Much of the journey was made in a rude boat down the river- tides strange, wild sailing, between forest-bordered banks, in whose gloom, startled by the humble " craft," the graceful 2 18 LIFE AKD CAMPAIGN S OF GEKEKAL GBAOT. deer and the noble bird broke the still-life of primeval nature. Not a State had been formed out of the immense territory which was called the Northwestern, whose bound aries on the one hand were the Alleghany, and on the other the Rocky Mountains. The French had claimed it under the name of Louisiana. A large portion of this rich coun try was the wide hunting-ground of the Indians. In 1804, when the Reserve became partially settled, Mr. Grant removed to Deerfield. Here he died, leaving Jesse fatherless. To use his own words : I was left a poor orphan boy at eleven years of age, with none to guide my way through the world. I saw that I was destined to get my living by the sweat of my brow, and that it was necessary to select some calling that promised to pay the best ; so I learned the tanning busi ness. I followed that until I was sixty, and then retired." Thus did Jesse, from the earliest childhood inured to- pioneer life, with God s blessing, carve his way alone, to an honorable position in society, and to wealth. When the last war with England threw the country into excitement, and unsettled to some extent its business, the family removed to Maysville, Kentucky. In 1815, with the termination of hostilities, Jesse, returning to Por tage County, Ohio, commenced the business of tanning in Ravenna. Fever and ague, once the scourge of the West, compelled young Grant to go South again in 1820. A few months later he returned to Ohio. This charming region had already attracted enterprising people from the colonies East. An interesting peculiarity in the climate is alluded to by early residents in their accounts of the coun try ; and that is, the cool evenings. So much of the land was shaded by forests, that the ground did not get warm during the day ; and soon as the sun dropped behind the green ocean of verdure, the air was quite as cold at mid summer there, as in our autumn here. This made the shining bosom of the wide rivers especially cheering to those whose humble dwellings stood on the banks. Among these, was the house of an immigrant from Pennsylvania, who came two years before. His daughter, Hannah Simp- eon, who was born only twenty-live miles from Philadel- HIS BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD. 19 phia, in Montgomery County, a woman of character nncl prudent economy, won the heart of Jesse. In June, 1821, they were married. Their first home was. at Point Pleas ant, on the Ohio Eiver, in Clermont County, Ohio. It is a "beautiful spot, "below the mouth of Indian Creek. Little Miami River separates Clermont County from Hamilton, whose principal town is Cincinnati, justly called the " Queen City " of the West. In this new home by the Ohio, a son was born, April 27th, 1822. The humble dwelling is still standing. Writes the original owner: " It is a small one-story frame cot tage. It was not worth more than two or three hundred dollars before the war. But every victory gained by the General, or a promotion, adds, in the owner s estimate, an other hundred dollars to the price of the cottage." Stran gers not unfrequently stop, on their way down the river, to see the recently unknown and unnoticed home. We give the origin of our Western boy s name, in another extract from a letter received from his father : " The maternal grandmother was quite a reader of his tory, and had taken a great fancy to Utysses, the great Grecian general, who defeated the Trojans by his strategy of the wooden horse. She wished the child named Ulys ses. His grandfather wanted to have him named Hiram. So both were gratified by naming him Hiram Ulysses. When I wrote to Mr. Hamer, then a member of Congress from our district, to procure the appointment of cadet, he wrote to the War Department, and gave his name Ulys ses S. Grant. And we could not get it altered. Simpson was his mother s maiden name. We had a son named Simpson, and Mr. Hamer confounded the two names. We regarded it a matter of but little consequence, and so let it stand." The absence of fear was always a characteristic of Ulysses. When two years of age, while Mr. Grant was carrying Ulysses in his arms on a public occasion through the village, a young man wished to try the effect of a pis tol-report on the child. Mr. Grant consented, saying, u The child has never seen a pistol or gun in his life." The baby hand was put on the lock and pressed quietly 20 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. there till it snapped, and off went the charge with a loud report. Ulysses scarcely stirred ; but in a moment pushed away the pistol, saying, " FicJc it again ! ficlt it again!" A by-stander remarked : "That boy will make a general ; for he neither winked nor dodged." It is true, such acts in childhood, which attracted no particular attention at the time, are related of distinguished men, as very remark able, after they have become famous. Still, children usu ally show talent or genius, if they possess it, for any high achievement in after-life. At the village school, Ulysses was faithful and diligent. He made excellent progress ; and, if not as brilliant as many others of his age, what is better, he was * slow and sure. Though he gave no striking evidences of genius neither did Washington in early life there was a beauti ful resemblance to the Revolutionary leader s boyhood, in a peculiarity well expressed by one who ought to know : There was certainly a manly, dignified modesty in his deportment, which made him at least an uncommon lad." He patiently committed to memory the dry, hard les sons, unwilling to give up when he came to a difficult question or problem. This was evidently the leading characteristic of the boy. It is related of him, that once he seemed to be fairly bewildered with his task ; and a schoolmate, who saw his perplexity, said to him, c You can t master that." Ulysses replied : Can t ! What does it mean T "Why, it means that that you can t. Tliere /" This answer was not satisfactory. The young student thought he would find out the exact definition. He took the dictionary and began the search. He readily got to can, bat there was no " can t : ." As usual, when beyond his own knowledge, he went to his teacher, and inquired : " What is the meaning of can t ? The word is not in the dictionary." The explanation of the abbreviation was soon given. But this was not all, nor the best of it. The affair afforded an opportunity to impress the great truth upon the minds of the school, that perseverance in well doing is the secret of success. Added the instructor : "If HIS PATIENT INGENUITY AS A TEAMSTER. 21 in the struggles of life any person should assert that i you can t do a thing you had determined to accomplish, let your answer "be, The word can t is not in the diction ary. ; His father has given another amusing little incident : " I will relate another circumstance, which I have never mentioned "before, which you may use as you think proper. He was always regarded as extremely apt in figures. When he was about ten years old, a distin guished phrenologist came along, and stayed several days in the place. He was frequently asked to examine heads, blindfolded. Among others, Ulysses was placed in the chair. The phrenologist felt his head for several minutes, without saying any thing ; at length a distinguished doc tor asked him if the boy had a capacity for mathematics. The phrenologist, after some further examinations, said : t You need not be surprised if you see this boy fill the Presidential chair some time. Ulysses early showed his Scotch blood the substantial, strong qualities of character for which the well-trained fam ilies of Scotland are remarkable. No people are calmer in action and more reverent in religious feeling, or surpass them in intelligence and integrity. When twelve years of age, he gave a fine illustration of self-reliance and manli ness, along with the ability to manage difficult undertak ings, which have marked his whole career. His father wanted several sticks of hewn timber brought from the forest. The boy had learned already to drive " the team," and liked nothing better than to take the reins. Mr. Grant told Ulysses that he might harness and go for the timber ; men would be there with handspikes to assist in " loading up." Soon Ulysses was on the way, whip and "lines" in hand. When he reached the forest, no men were there : for some reason they had failed to appear. The natural, and, indeed, proper course would have been to return, if, after waiting a reasonable time, the ex pected help did not come. But, accustomed to all sorts of labor, and inclined to take responsibility from which others of his age would expect to be excused, he resolved not to go without the timber. How to get the heavy logs on the wagon was the serious question. Just then his eye rested on a tree fallen over, and leaning against another. This made the trunk an inclined plane, rising gradually upward from the ground. Ulysses saw at a glance how to make the horses do the -work intended for the workmen with their handspikes. He hitched the team to each of the logs, and drew one at a time near the tree, and lying parallel with it ; i. e., in the same direction, lengthwise. The next thing was to swing the end round upon the in clined plane, and slide it along, till the timbers were at right angles with it, and projecting over it far enough to admit the wagon under them. Then fastening the horses to these ends hanging over the back of the wagon, he dragged them in turn along into it ; just as with your hand you could pull the " see- saw" board, with one ex tremity resting on the ground, over the fence or fulcrum supporting it, into a vehicle of any kind which stood be neath the end raised from the earth. Having secured his load, the young teamster mounted it and drove homeward in triumph ; again proving clearly that can t was not in Ms dictionary. When he reined up his team before the door of Mr. Grant, we can imagine the pleasing surprise with which he heard the story of Ulysses. But the young woodman s prospects were not encour aging. His father s means were limited, and, excepting three months each winter in the common school, he had to assist in the work of the tannery and the home. Besides, books and newspapers for reading were very scarce. At seventeen, Ulysses began to feel, as did his father, that decisive steps must be taken toward an education. It was often talked over at the fireside, and various plans suggested. The young man s. taste for military life, the thorough instruction and economy of the Academy at West Point, suggested the possibility of getting an appointment there. The Congressmen usually controlled the selection of the candidates for admission in the several districts. Political influence and position necessarily have much to EEOEIVES AN APPOINTMENT AT WEST POINT. 23 do with, the choice among the applicants. But Mr. Grant was hopeful. He wrote a letter to the Hon. Thomas Mor ris, member of the United States Senate from Ohio, re questing his influence in securing the coveted means of culture. But Mr. Morris was already pledged to another applicant, and informed Mr. Grant of the fact, with the further and cheering intelligence, that the Hon. Thomas L. Hamer, from his own district, had a similar gift at his dis posal, the young man selected having failed to accept it. A correspondence was immediately opened "between him and the anxious father, resulting in the appointment of Ulysses. 24: LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER II. YOUNG GRANT S LIFE AND EXPERIENCE AT WEST POINT ACADEMY. The Young Cadet leaves Home for the banks of the Hudson. Passes the Exam ination. The Situation of the Military Academy. Course of Instruction. Examinations. Crimes and Penalties. Restraints. Order of Duties. The Drill and Parade. Encampment. U. S. Grant s Experience in the Academy. WITH the advent of the summer of 1839,the candidate for academic discipline and honors left his humble abode on the banks of the Ohio for the Highlands of the Hudson. Reaching West Point, he addressed himself at once to the preparation for the severe and dreaded examination, scarcely taking leisure to look out upon the landscape, in impressive contrast with that along the rivers of the West. A description of the remarkably attractive scenery, and some account of the Academy, where the military character of Grant, Sherman, Sheridan, Thomas, and other less distinguished, but gallant and successful officers of the Union army was formed, cannot fail to interest the reader. West Point is in the town of Cornwall, Orange County, New York, fifty-two miles from the great metropolis. Fort Putnam is more than four hundred feet higher, and looks down upon it. One beautiful plat of land is known as Kosciusko s Garden, in which stands the fine monu ment of this Polish refugee and patriot, who commanded the post at one time during the Revolution. Here a massive chain was stretched across the river, to keep the enemy s boats from passing. The Academy was established by act of Congress, in 1780. There is, perhaps, no better general view of the re gion than that given by the Rev. Dr. Dwight, in 1778, afterward President of Yale College, and then CJiaplain in the Revolutionary War, and stationed at West Point. This fact gives to the pen-picture additional value. The WEST POINT AND ITS VICINITY IN 1778. 25 "house deserted by its inhabitants" he refers to, was the " Beverly House," taken by the Government from Colo nel Beverly Eobinson, a Scotchman, because he joined the loyalists against the rising republic. Wrote the excellent and distinguished Dwight : " Yesterday afternoon, in company with Major Hum phreys, I went up to the summit of Sugar Loafa moun tain near Colonel Robinson s house. We ascended it with some difficulty, from the steepness of the acclivity, and from the loose stones, which, frequently sliding from un der our feet, exposed us to imminent hazard of falling. From the summit we were presented with an extensive and interesting prospect, comprising the objects which I have heretofore mentioned, and many others which I had never seen. The point of view was remarkably happy, the mountain being so situated as to bring within our reach the greatest number of objects in the surrounding region, and to exhibit them to the highest advantage. What is almost a singularity, there was not a cheerful object within our horizon. Every thing which we beheld was majestic, solemn, wild, and melancholy. "Tfye northern division of our prospect was almost en tirely bounded by two great mountains, named Butter Hill and Breakneck ; the former on the west, the latter on the east side of the Hudson. Both abut so directly upon the river, that their rude, lofty cliffs form a part of its banks. These mountains ascend at the distance of perhaps six miles from the spot where we surveyed them, and extend northward to the valley of Fishkill. "From Breakneck stretches a range of inferior magni tude, at the distance of half a mile, one, and two miles from the Eastern shore of the Hudson, the ground between them and the river being generally level, and capable of cultivation. It contains a small number of other houses besides that of Colonel Robinson. Of this range Sugar- Loaf is the termination, its southern limit being the river. " Still eastward of this range ascend others, termina ting also on the Hudson. The southernmost which is in sight on the eastern side, and indeed the southernmost of the whole cluster, is Anthony s Nose, a noble bluff, whose 26 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. cliffs rise almost perpendicularly from the water s edge, to the height of perhaps fifteen hundred feet, with a sublim ity which I believe is not often rivaled. "On the western side runs a rude range of mountains, commencing at Butter Hill, and terminating, to the eye, at a point opposite to Anthony s Nose. The three loftiest summits in the range are the Crow s Nest a fine, sharp cone, Bear Hill and the Donderbarrak, or Thunder Hill. At the foot of these commences a plain, of no great breadth ; if I may be permitted to call that a plain which, while it approaches generally toward a level surface, is undulating, rocky, and wild, throughout a great part of its extent. This tract reaches northward to West Point, and south ward near to Anthony s Nose. Directly north, the Hud son, here a mile in breadth, and twice as wide higher up, is seen descending from a great distance, and making its way between the magnificent cliffs of the two great moun tains, Butter Hill and Breakneck. The grandeur of this scene defies description. Through the opening here, called the Wey-Gat, or Wind-Gate, because the wind often blows through it with great violence, is visible the cultivated country at New Windsor, throughout a considerable ex tent. Beyond this, at the distance of about forty miles, rise the Catskill Mountains, whose blue summits were at this time lost in the clouds. In this reach of the river lies an island, to the eye a mere bird s nest ; and near it were two boats, resembling in size those which children make of paper. 4 i South of these two mountains the river bends between West Point and Fort Constitution, and for a short space is invisible. Thence it becomes visible again, and continues in sight till the prospect is terminated by Anthony s Nose on the eastern, and Bear Hill on the western side. " Directly opposite to us was a mill-stream, which, swollen at this time by the dissolving snows, poured a large sheet of foam, white as snow, over a high ledge of rocks into the Hudson. In other circumstances this object would have been beautiful ; now it only enhanced the general solemnity and grandeur, by filling the neighboring region with a loud sound, resembling the distant roar of WEST POINT AND ITS VICINITY IN 1778. 27 the ocean. This sound was apparently echoed b}^ the numerous torrents which were everywhere rushing down the mountains. "Beneath us was a house, deserted by its inhabitants- a family possessed, a little while since, of all the enjoy ments which this life can furnish ; intelligent, refined, and amiable. It is deserted, not improbably to be seen by them no more. Whether the father acted wisely or un wisely, defensibly or indefensibly, I am not interested to inquire. Against the mother and the children, even pre judice can bring no allegation. " Southward, at the distance of perhaps four miles, were the ruins of Fort Montgomery. Here more than one hun dred of our countrymen became victims, a few months since, to the unprincipled claims of avarice and ambition. * * * Northward, at about the same distance, was West Point, where the same scenes of slaughter may not im probably be soon acted over again. " It is a remarkable fact, that the Hudson should have found so line and safe a bed in a country so rough, and between banks so often formed of mountains or high hills, and to so great an extent abutting upon it in precipices of a stupendous hight. Yet even through the Highlands its navigation is perfectly uninterrupted. ** * * There is a grandeur in the passage of this river through the High lands, unrivaled by any thing of the same nature within my knowledge. At its entrance particularly, and its exit, the mountains ascend with stupendous precipices immedi ately from the margin of its waters, appearing as if the chasm "between them had been produced by the irresisti ble force of this mighty current, and the intervening bar rier, at each place, had been broken down, and finally carried away into the ocean. These cliffs hang over the river, especially at its exit from the mountains, with a wild and awful sublimity, suited to the grandeur of the river itself ; which, speedily after it escapes from these barriers, expands its current to the breadth of three miles, and soon after to that of four, and pours a vast stream two miles wide, and sufficiently deep to waft a seventy-four gun ship, until it is lost in the Bay of New York." 28 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. A good common-school education is required for admis sion to the Academy, with physical soundness, the age to be not less than sixteen years nor over twenty-one, and the proper TiigJit is five feet or more. Each cadet signs an agreement to serve eight years in the army of the United States, and obey all the rules of the institution. The course of instruction, which occupies four years, embraces military tactics, natural sciences, mathematics, French, history and other English studies, and drawing ; to the latter of which great attention is paid. The oldest class is called tlie first, the next tTie second, and so on. The commencement is on the 1st of July. During this and the following month the cadets have the encampment, of which 3^011 will have a glimpse from one of their num ber. The daity allowance of time for study is not less than nine, nor more than ten hours. The annual examination of classes commences on the first Monday in June, before an Academic Board, which consists of the Superintendent and professors, with a Board of Visitors appointed by the Secretary of War. A careful record of every recitation is kept, and in the Annual Register is published a conduct-roll a complete statement of the violations of rules. There are seven grades of crime, whose mark of de merit is from 1 to 10. To give an illustration : Absence from reveille roll-call is 3 ; bringing ardent spirits into barracks, 8. When the number of demerits in a year exceeds two hundred, the cadet is recommended to the War Department for expulsion from the Academy. The cadets are allowed but one absence during the four years course, usually at the end of the second year, and during July and August. But only a quarter of the whole number can go at any one time, and none whose demerit is over one hundred and fifty for the preceding twelve months. The dress, which is gray, is a coatee, white drilling pants, white gloves, and black dress cap. The punishments for misconduct are of three kinds : Privation of recreation, extra tours of guard duty, repri mands, or confinement to room or tent ; confinement in REGULATIONS OF WEST POINT ACADEMY. 29 light or dark prison ; and dismission with the privilege of resigning, or public dismission. The superintendent can inflict the first variety of pun ishment, and a court-martial the second. Disobedience and disrespect toward officers and instructors expose the offender to expulsion. - Card-playing and the use of intoxicating drinks are forbidden. The cadets are not allowed to pass over the road surrounding the plain of West Point (including the sidewalk), without special permission. On Saturday af ternoons, and during the encampment on other days, leave can be obtained to walk upon certain parts of the public lands, including Mount Independence and Crow s Neat. No cadet can visit any family, except on Saturday afternoon, without a written invitation and the special per mission of the superintendent, or go to the hotel without a written permit, specifying the time of the visit, and the name of the person on whom he may wish to ,call. No cadet can enter any room or hall of the hotel except the hall and drawing-rooms of the first story, or, when there, take dinner or any other meal. The cadets are allowed twenty-eight dollars a month each ; of which sum about one-half is required for board, and the remainder is credited to him, or may be expended for clothing, books, and furniture ; two dollars of the amount are reserved for a fund to defray the expenses of uniform, when the graduated cadet is promoted. In four years there accumulates a purse of one hundred dollars- sufficient to give the young officer a handsome " fitting out for the field. In the summer-time there is daily drill, excepting Sat urdays, after 4 p. M., and a dress parade at sunset, and parade and inspection every Sunday morning before church. The cadets are firemen also, drilled to the use of engines, and called out when the alarm of fire is sounded. The following is the order of business : Reveille at 5 A. M. in summer and 6 in winter. Roll- call immediately after. Then cleaning arms and accouter- 30 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. ments. Inspection of rooms thirty minutes after roll-call. This is followed by study of the lessons to be recited dur ing the morning. At 7 A. M. the signal for breakfast is given. " Troop" and guard-mounting at half-past 7. Morning parade at 8 (in camp). From 8 A. M. to 1 p. M., recitation and study. Dinner at 1. Recreation until 2. From 2 to 4 p. M., recitation, or study, or drawing. After 4, military exercises for an hour or longer, and recreation. At sunset, evening parade. Supper imme diately after. Call to quarters thirty minutes after supper. From that time till half-past 9, study. "Tattoo" a pre paratory signal, at half-past 9. Lights extinguished and inspection of rooms at the signal " Taps" at 10 p. M. As the studies are not pursued during the encamp ment, the hours allotted to recitations and study are then devoted to recreation or military drill, and the evenings to merry-making in the dancing parties and in other amusements. The arrangements are such that, besides numerous inspections by the army u officer in charge," and the cadet "officer of the day," there are at least four roll- calls daily. The same systematic order prevails throughout every thing that is done. The different sections march in silence to and from their recitations, under the charge of the best of their number as squad marcher. The companies also march to the mess-hall, "with slow and solemn tread," and there take their seats in regular order, preserving a constant silence. The morning parade, at 8 A. M., during the encamp ment only, is followed by the ceremony of guard-mount ing, and is like the evening parade, except the firing of the cannon. With a diploma in hand, the cadet is ready for pro motion, beginning second lieutenant ; or, if there be no vacancy, brevet second lieutenant a complimentary po sition till a regular appointment can be made. In reply to an inquiry respecting the story which had HIS HABITS IN EARLY LIFE. 31 "been current in the periodical press, that he had a per sonal encounter with an officer of the cadets, Mr. Jesse E. Grant wrote the following : " The story about his flogging the captain is untrue. He is said to have never had a personal controversy in his life. The nearest approach to it was with General II , at the siege of Corinth. He says he desired moving on the enemy s works ten days before General H - was ready, and saw that, by delay, they would lose the chance of bagging the rebel army, then completely in their power. He is sure he used stronger language to General H than he had ever used before to any person, and expected to be arrested and tried. But the General said to him : If I had let you take your own course, you would have taken the rebel army. Hereafter I will not dictate to you about the management of an army. It was a common re mark among the boys, when Ulysses got his appointment, that Lis would make a good cadet in every respect but one ; that was, if he ever was engaged in war, he was too good-natured to be kicked into a right. In addition to freedom from personal controversy, it is believed he never used a profane word, nor told a deliberate falsehood at least, under the parental roof. He was brought up in a Methodist family. In liis habits he was simply a quiet, reserved, and studious youth, marked with that decision which has given harmony and power to all the other high qualities of character. He was not conspicuous for intense applica tion to study, nor was he an idler ; and his medium rank in the graduating class indicated that unrecognized great ness, by himself and others, not a rare fact in the history of distinguished men. Indeed, it is well known that bril liant promise in academic experience, oftener than other wise, fades in the life of manhood, as if nature exhausted her resources by the premature activity of the brain. Our Washington and Lincoln are examples of a growth in intellectual and moral stature so gradual, that no prophet of their pre-eminence announced the future destiny in early history. 32 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER III. GRANT S CLASSMATES. HIS SERVICE IN THE MEXICAN WAR. Cadet Grant s Classmates and Companions. He is created Lieutenant. Goes to St. Louis to Guard the Frontier. The Indian Depredations and their Wrongs. The comparative Monotony of the Regular Service in time of Peace broken. The War with Mexico. The Lieutenant s First Engagement. Marches. Palo Alto. Resaca de la Palma. Vera Cruz. Molino del Rey. Chapultepec. Testimony to Grant s Bravery. Close of the War. Leaves the Army for Business in St. Louis. THE school companions of great men are very often mixed up with their after-life, and this statement is the more applicable to the West Point cadets who graduate in the same class. And it may be a matter of interest to the reader to know who were General Grant s fellow-gradu ates, and what their relative positions were subsequently, in the civil war. The cadet who graduated first in the class was William Benjamin Franklin, who entered the Topographical Engi neer Corps ; and, having passed through a series of adven tures under various commanders, was, at the beginning of 1864, the general commanding the Nineteenth Army Corps, in the Department of the Gulf, under General Banks. The names of the next three graduates do not now ap pear in the Army List of the United States. William F. Haynolds graduated fifth in his class, entered the infantry service, and was appointed an aid on the staff of General Fremont, commanding the Mountain Department, with the rank of colonel, from the 31st day of March, 1862. The next graduate was Isaac F. Quinby. He had en tered the artillery service, and had been professor at West Point, but had retired to civil life. The Rebellion, how ever, brought him from his retirement, and he went to the field at the head of a regiment of New York volunteers. THE CLASSMATES OF GRANT. v 33 He afterward became a brigadier-general in the Army of the Potomac. Eoswell S. Ripley, the author of "The War with Mex ico," graduated seventh ; but Ms name does not now ap pear in the official Army Register of the United States, as he had attached himself to the rebel cause. The next graduate was John James Peck, who entered the artillery service, and was, on January 1, 1864, the commander of the district of and army in North Carolina, which then formed a portion of General Butler s Depart ment. John P. Johnstone, the daring artillery lieutenant who fell gallantly at Contreras, Mexico, was the next graduate. General Joseph Jones Reynolds was the next in grade. This officer had gained great credit while in the army, as a professor of sciences ; but had resigned some time when the Rebellion broke out. He was, however, in 1861, again brought forward as a general of three months volun teers, under General McClellan, in Western Virginia ; was afterward commissioned by the President ; and latterly became attached to the Army of the Cumberland. He served on the staff of the general commanding that army, with the rank of major-general, until General Grant assumed command of the military division embracing the Depart ments of Ohio, Tennessee, and Cumberland, when he was transferred to New Orleans. The eleventh graduate was James Allen Hardie, who, during the war of the Rebellion, became an assistant ad jutant-general of the Army of the Potomac, with the rank of colonel. Henry F. Clarke graduated twelfth, entered the artillery service, gained brevets in Mexico, and became chief com missary of the Army of the Potomac, during the war of the Rebellion, with the rank of colonel. Lieutenant Booker, the next m grade, died while in service at San Antonio, Texas, on June 26, 1849. The fourteenth graduate might have been a prominent officer of the U. S. army, had he not deserted the cause of his country, and attached himself to the rebels. He had 3 34 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. not even the excuse of " going with his State," for he was a native of New Jersey, and was appointed to the army from that State. His name is Samuel G. French, major- general of the rebel army. The next graduate was Lieutenant Tneodore L. Chad- Tbourne, who was killed in the Ibattle of Eesaca de la Palma, on May 9, 1846, after distinguishing himself for his "bravery at the head of his command. Christopher Colon Augur, one of the commanders of the Department of Washington, and major-general of volunteers, was the next in grade. We now come to another renegade. Franklin Gardner, a native of New York, and an appointee from the State of Iowa, graduated seventeenth in General Grant s class. At the time of the Rebellion he deserted the cause of the United States and joined the rebels. He was disgracefully dropped from the rolls of the U. S. army, on May 7, 1861, became a major-general in the rebel service, and had to surrender his garrison at Port Hudson, July 9, 1863, through the reduction of Vicksburg by his junior gradu ate, U. S. Grant. Lieutenant George Stevens, who was drowned in the passage of the Rio Grande, May 18, 1846, was the next graduate. The nineteenth graduate was Edward B. Holloway, of Kentucky, who obtained a brevet at Contreras, and was a captain of infantry in the U. S. regular army at the com mencement of the Rebellion. Although his State remained in the Union, lie threw up his commission on May 14, 1861, and joined the rebels. The graduate that immediately preceded General Grant was Lieutenant Lewis Neill, who died on January 13, 1850, while in service at Fort Croghan, Texas. Joseph H. Potter, of New Hampshire, graduated next after the hero of Vicksburg. During the war of the Re bellion he became a colonel of volunteers, retaining his rank as captain in the regular army. Lieutenant Robert Hazlitt, who was killed in the storming of Monterey, September 21, 1846, and Lieu tenant Edwin Howe, who died while in service at Fort THE CLASSMATES OF GKANT. 35 Leavenworth, March 31, 1850, were the next two gradu ates. Lafayette Boyer Wood, of Virginia, was the twenty- fifth graduate. He is no longer connected with the service, having resigned several years before the Rebellion. The next graduate was Charles S. Hamilton, who for some time commanded, as major-general of volunteers, a district under General Grant, who at that time was chief of the Department of the Tennessee. Captain Wm. K. Van Bokkelen, of New York, who was cashiered for rebel proclivities, on May 8, 1861, was the next graduate, and was followed by Alfred St. Amand Crozet, of New York, who had resigned the service several years before the breaking out of the civil war, and Lieu tenant Charles E. James, who died at Sonoma, California, on June 8, 1849. The thirtieth graduate was the gallant General Frederick Steele, who participated in the Vicksburg and Mississippi campaigns, as division and corps commander under Gen eral Grant, and afterward commanded the Army of Ar kansas. The next graduate was Captain Henry R. Seldon, of Vermont, and of the Fifth U. S. Infantry. General Rufus Ingalls, quartermaster-general of the Army of the Potomac, graduated No. 32, and entered the mounted rifle regiment, but was found more valuable in the Quartermaster s Department, in which he held the rank of major from January 12, 1862, with a local rank of brigadier-general of volunteers, from May 23, 1863. Major Frederick T. Dent, of the Fourth U. S. Infantry, and Major J. C. McFerran, of the Quartermaster s Depart ment, were the next two graduates. The thirty-fifth graduate was General Henry Moses Judah, who commanded a division of the Twenty -third Army Corps during its operations after the rebel cavalry general, John H. Morgan, and in East Tennessee, during the fall of 1863. The remaining four graduates were Norman Elting, who resigned the service October 29, 1846 ; Cave J. Couts, who was a member of the State Constitutional Convention 36 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. of California during the year 1839 ; Charles G. Merchant, of New York; and George C. McClelland, of Pennsyl vania, no one of whom is now connected with the United States service. It is very interesting to look over the above list, and see how the twenty-first graduate has outstripped all his seniors in grade, showing plainly that true talent will ulti mately make its way, no matter how modest the possessor may be, and notwithstanding all the opposition that may be placed in its way by others. -It will be seen that Gen eral Grant now commands a larger force and a greater extent of country than all his thirty-eight classmates put together, and. has risen higher in the military scale than any in his class, notwithstanding the fact that he did not seem to possess the same amount of apparent dashing ability. His pertinacity of character his stubborn perseverance, even in the midst of disappointments, which overcame adverse circumstances has characterized the whole of his life, both civil and military. Four long years of study and drill had passed, and the educated young man looked out upon a life of service and honor. The army of the United States was scattered through the land, doing little besides occupying forts as garrisons, guarding the frontier wherever threatened by troublesome Indians, and superintending the opening of military roads through the wilderness. "Vacancies in com mand did not often occur, and the new graduates must be content with the honorary titles of command. Grant was, therefore, breveted second-lieutenant of the Fourth Regu lar Infantry, July 1, 1843, the day succeeding his gradua tion, performing the duties of a private soldier. He joined his regiment, stationed at Jefferson Barracks, near St. Louis, and with it went on the occasional expeditions into the wild country lying^back of the settlements scattered along the great rivers, Tto protect the defenseless inhabit ants from the incursions of their savage neighbors. The succeeding spring he was removed with his regiment up the Red River, in Louisiana. While in this part of the West, Lieutenant Grant INDIAN WARFARE AND WRONGS. 37 assisted liis military companions in superintending the opening up of the country, as well as in maintaining the peace and safety of those who load settled and were settling in that region. How much of blood and treasure has Ibeen lavished on our Indian "borders ! Nor is the hatred of the aborigines toward the white man strange to one who knows the history of robbery, treaty-breaking, and manifold abuses to which they have been subjected. And here we must add a part of an eloquent address from Bishop Whipple, of the West, in the hall of the University of Philadelphia, when a delegation of Sioux sat by his side on the platform. All hearts were thrilled by the strong, Christian, yet indignant appeal of the bishop. He said : "There were periods in every man s history, when events operating upon his mind would give him a deeper sense of God s providence. The wrongs of the red men are forming a bitter portion of the cup of anguish that God is holding to the lips of this nation. Day by day, these men redeemed by the blood of Christ are sinking into graves dug by the white men. To hold out words of cheer, and to extend acts of comfort to these hapless, un fortunate people, constitute a mission of divinest mercy. To teach these men religion, with its blessings and its glories, has been, and is now, the task of the ministry of Christ. There are strange facts connected with the Indian country. The North American Indian is the only heathen on the face of the earth who is not an idolater. They always recognize with reverence the name and power of the Great Spirit. "The testimony of every man who ever knew the nature of the Indians before they were brought into rela tion with the Government, is that the red men never dealt in double-dealing. General Sibley, who for a long time was the frontier agent, says he never locked his house at night, and that at times when he had twenty thousand dollars in silver in his house, he had often come down stairs and found twelve or fifteen Indians grouped in the lower rooms. Yet never was his house violated, and never was a theft committed. The Maiden Feast, a festival 38 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. among the Indians, is held yearly, and no girl can escape the condemnation of her tribe unless her life has "been one of unsullied virtue. And every maiden in the Indian tribes of the northwest, away from the border where the white men teach the red men vice and crime, is required to attend this feast, and if her character is stained or impure, the condemnation of the whole tribe is visited upon her. "The English Government has never expended a dollar in Indian wars ; has never lost a man Iby Indian massacres. No better men submit to English rule than the red men of the Hudson Bay region and along the St. Lawrence. Our own dealings with the Indians have been a mixture of robberies and mistakes. American slavery never held to the lips of the black men the wrongs and "bitterness that the treatment of the red men has held to their lips. The utmost wrong has been done the Indians b}^ the treaties made with them. In the interpretation which is carried on, the misrepresentations and misstatements which are made deprive the tribes of all their rights. If this false inter pretation fails, the greatest bribery is resorted to ; and if an Indian is killed, if he is openly murdered in the streets of a western city, there is no redress to the Indians. "While they are non-citizens of the country, no more notice is taken of the dead man than there would be if one swine had killed another. i Our Government recognizes all the bad claims which are made against the Indians. The Winnebagoes were lately removed from Minnesota. The reason urged was that the people were in terror. The fact is that the Sioux sent a delegation to the Winnebagoes, inviting them to join in the massacre, and so firm was their friendship for the whites -that the messengers were murdered on the spot. But the Winnebagoes occupied the most beautiful part of Minnesota, and they were removed. Out of the twenty- two hundred who were taken away, six hundred have al ready died, and the rest must inevitably perish. They have no rights and no redress, unless they resort to the requital of the savage, and avenge the insult by the blood of the injured race. A woman of unquestioned chastity OPPBE&diQN OF THE ABORIGINES. 39 was killed within a rod of the speaker s mission-house, and when the agent was appealed to, he shrugged his shoulders and said he had nothing to do with it. She died, the victim of violence ; "but she was an Indian, and no notice was taken of it. "The Indians, whenever appealed to, gladly receive the religion of Jesus ; and the converted red men, at the risk of their lives, protected the whites in the recent war. The chief of one of the civilized tribes delivered two hun dred white captives to Governor Sibley. The Sioux treat}?- was framed in fraud and deception. The chiefs were deceived in reference to its provisions, and when they re fused to sign it, immense sums of money were expended to bribe the chieftains to sign it ; and after they received the money, they were intoxicated, and the money stolen from their blankets. The treaty stipulated for the payment of large sums of money to the Sioux, reserving only seventy thousand dollars to pay the honest debts of the Indians. These honest debts were the claims of dishonest and rapacious traders ; and yet, four years after the treaty, no money liad been paid to the Indians. The with holding of this annuity -money led to the fearful massacre on the border that followed. And after the massacre, the incidents are on record, and can be proved, that Indians who never saw a white man during the massacre were hung, and Indians who were acquitted were hung before their release could be effected. There is no justice for the red man, from the time he meets the white man until he sinks into the grave. "The Christian Indians had, at the time of the mas sacre, land producing crops valued at one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. Now they not only have had these all destroyed, but they have been removed to the Upper Missouri and surrounded by hostile Indians, and where the soil is too poor for cultivation, and where the habits of their civilized life have unfitted them for the hunting of the buffalo and subsistence by the fruits of the chase." And we have heard the white, refined, and devout chief of the Cherokees, John Ross, relate by the hour the cruel 40 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. outrages of those who have compelled his tribe to leave the lands which had been ceded them, and the graves of their fathers. See how Georgia, whose soil was not only wet with the sweat and bk>od of slave-toil, but which was pre-eminent in the abuse of the red race, has been swept by the fires of war, and her fairest gardens laid waste by its iron hoofs and wheels. Months wore away, with little to lend excitement or interest to frontier-life. During their slow and monotonous flight, a cloud of war had risen upon the Southern sky. The United States and Mexico had engaged in angry dispute respecting the boundary-line of Texas, which had recently become a State, s.he claiming more territory than Mexico would allow her to take. It was apparent that the Govern ment of the United States was not deeply anxious to have the quarrel settled on righteous principles. Southern interests and feeling, which at length culminated in the civil war, led ambitious politicians to urge the claims of Texas. Mexico refused to yield to the demands of the United States. At this crisis of affairs, Lieutenant Grant was ordered, with his regiment, into 1 Texas, to join the army of General Taylor, who had been appointed to the command of the United States troops then concentrating in that republic. This army occupation was made during the year 1845. The Mexicans and Americans had for some time held an imaginary line of boundary within what is now known as the State of Texas. As all imagin ary lines become more or less subjects of dispute, it was quite natural that two armies of distinct races, and with great personal animosities daily arising, should at last find, or imagine they had found, the other overstepping its proper limits, and, as a natural sequel, quarrels would take place, supposed wrongs would have to be revenged, and bloodshed would be the ultimate result. Such was certainly the origin of the actual hostilities which ripened into the American war with Mexico. Corpus Christi, an important port on the Texan shore, in Neuces County, was soon taken possession of by the Americans as a base of operations, and Grant was sta tioned at this place when he received his commission as LIEUTENANT GRANT IN THE MEXICAN WAR. 4^ full second-lieutenant of infantry. This commission was dated from the 30th day of September, 1845, arid was made out for a vacancy in the Seventh Regiment of United States Regular Infantry. He had, however, become so attached to the members of the Fourth Regiment, that a request was sent to Washington to allow him to be re tained with that force ; and in the following November a commission was handed to him, appointing him a full sec ond-lieutenant in the Fourth Regiment of United States Regular Infantry. Some time before the declaration by Congress of a war with Mexico, the struggle commenced in Texas. The primary cause of the actual commencement of hostilities was a trifle ; but the spark was no sooner applied than the conflagration began to make its rapid way, drawing the whole within its fearful grasp. Several petty strug gles ensued, until at last General Taylor learned that an immense force of Mexicans was marching with the inten tion of crossing the Rio Grande into Texas, to drive the Americans from that region of territory. Promptly Gen eral Taylor moved ; but, in the meantime, Fort Brown, on the Texas shore of the Rio Grande, was besieged. The gallant American garrison defended the position with great bravery ; but, unless relief could have been sent them, it must have fallen. To relieve the besieged was General Taylor s duty; and, under his command, Lieutenant Grant marched to his first battle-ground. The youthful officer came out of this fight with a growing reputation for heroic valor. When the forces left the head-quarters opposite Mata- moras, whose guns were pointed toward our earthworks, the bells rang merrily the people supposing the Ameri can troops were evacuating their position. The case was far otherwise, to the joy of Lieutenant Grant. The bloom ing, glorious spring of the South was inspiring ; the grand old mountains in the distance were sublimely suggestive ; but he felt, with a quiet enthusiasm peculiar to his nature, more deeply still the stirring prospect of his first battle on the plains of national conflict. It is painful to recol lect that Generals Lee and Beauregard, of the rebel army, 42 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. were among the most patriotic and able officers in the opening Avar. A glance at the map will show that Point Isabel, Palo Alto, and Resaca de la Palma, lie on the Rio Grande, which separates Texas from Mexico, between the Gulf and Fort Brown. The army were marching on this line of towns toward the fort, when they met the Mexicans at Palo Alto, on the 8th of May, 1846. The engagement was sharp and bloody. Lieutenant Grant fought gallant ly, winning the admiring notice of superior officers. With his characteristic modesty, the young lieutenant kept him self in the background, while his seniors gained the re ward. The next day the battle opened again at Resaca de la Palma, with fatal fury. The Mexican ranks were thinned, and reeled before our fire, leaving the field strewn with the slain, but under the " Stars and Stripes." The vic torious battalions advanced up the Rio Grande, clearing the Texan frontier of the Mexicans the lieutenant sharing the hardships and perils with the delight of a warrior who became one from taste and deliberate choice. The army then swept down the river into the enemy s country, to ward Monterey, a strongly fortified position. A terribly severe but successful engagement resulted in the surrender of the place. Lieutenant Grant, in the desperate contest, was fearless and courageous in the cheerful, faithful dis charge of duty. Fort Brown was relieved, and the Mexicans felt the weight of its metal as they, in disorder, rushed across the Rio Grande in full retreat from the battle so bravely fought and won by General Taylor, on May 9th, 1846. The American army then advanced to and up the Rio Grande, and Texas was relieved from the jurisdiction of the Mexicans. Lieutenant Grant also participated in the subsequent brilliant operations of General Taylor along the banks of that historic stream, and advanced into the Mexican territory, at a point over a hundred miles above the mouth of the river, in the Republic of New Leon. On the 23d of September, 1846, Lieutenant Grant took part in the splendid operation of General Taylor against Monterey, which place the Mexicans had strongly forti- LIEUTENANT GRANT IN THE MEXICAN WAR. 43 fied. In these works were posted a far superior force of Mexicans ; but General Taylor was determined to drive them out of their intrenchments, and succeeded. The American campaign in Mexico was now about to assume a different phase of character. War had "been regularly declared, and a systematized plan of attack was made out. The advance by the northern route was to be made secondary to the grand movement by way of Yera Cruz ; and the army and navy, as in the present war, were both to be brought into active use. The time had come for a great and decisive struggle for victory, and peace. The magnificent Mexican capital was to be the goal of the augmented forces under the command of General Scott, who was at the head of the United States army. His fleet came up the bay, March 9, 1847, bringing twelve thousand troops, with stream ers flying and bands playing. It was a splendid sight. He landed the men safely at Sacrificios, three miles from Yera Cruz, rolling high with crested breakers on the beach. It was observed by his commanding officers, that Lieu tenant Grant possessed talents more than ordinary, and during the early part of April, when the army was pre paring to advance into the interior of the Mexican coun try, Lieutenant Grant was appointed the quartermaster of his regiment, a post both honorable and of vital im portance to an army in a strange country the home of an enemy. With this position he participated in the whole of the remainder of the Mexican campaign, to the occupation, by the United States forces, of the cap ital. His position in the army did not, of necessity, call upon him to enter into the actual strife ; but, at the same time, his nature would not allow of his keeping out of it, when he found that his services were needed in the field. At the battle of Molino del Key, on the 8th of September, 1847, he behaved with such distinguished gallantry and merit, that he was appointed on the field a first-lieutenant, to date from the day of that battle. Congress afterward wished to confirm the appointment 44 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GPvANT. as a mere brevet, but Grant declined to accept it under such circumstances. Five days later, Chapultepec, a frowning, formidable stronghold, was stormed. Up to the battlements, rain ing destruction upon the assailants, the ranks of brave men sternly moved. None among them all was more daring and gallant than Grant. We will furnish the inter esting proof of his splendid conduct, from the official reports of the officers of the day. Captain Brooks, of the Second Artillery, writes : "I succeeded in reaching the fort with a few men. Here Lieutenant U. S. Grant, and a few more men of the Fourth Infantry, found me, and, by a joint move ment, after an obstinate resistance, a strong field-work was carried, and the enemy s right was completely turned." Major Lee, in his report, says of the young soldier s conduct at Chapultepec : "At the first barrier the enemy was in strong force, which rendered it necessary to advance with caution. This was done ; and when the head of the battalion was within short musket-range of the barrier, Lieutenant Grant, Fourth Infantry, and Captain Brooks, Second Artillery, with a few men of their respective regiments, by a handsome movement to the left, turned the right flank of the enemy, and the barrier was carried. Lieu tenant Grant behaved with distinguished gallantry on the 13th and 14th." The rising commander thus early learned the art of outflanking the enemy displaying a cool, unyielding valor, rather than a dashing and ambitious warfare. Colonel Garland, of the First Brigade, speaks very highly of Grant in the same action : "The rear of the enemy had made a stand behind a breastwoi k, from which they were driven by detachments of the Second Artillery, under Captain Brooks, and the Fourth Infantry, under Lieutenant Grant, supported by other regiments of the division, after a short, sharp con- ilict, I recognized the command as it came up, mounted a howitzer on the top of a convent, which, under the CLOSE OF THE WAR MARRIAGE OF LIEUT. GRANT. 45 direction of Lieutenant Grant, quartermaster of the Fourth Infantry, and Lieutenant Lendrum, Third Artillery, an noyed the enemy considerably. I must not omit to call attention to Lieutenant Grant, who acquitted himself most nobly upon several occasions under my observation." There was an additional evidence of the hero s steady progress in the career of fame. He was bre vetted cap tain in the United States army, his rank to date from the great battle of Chapultepec, September 13th, J 847. When, not long after, the victorious army entered Mexico, the splendid capital, Grant participated in the magnificent parade, and enjoyed the glory of the final achievement, to which all previous battles had been open ing the way. Lieutenant Grant was in fourteen battles. The treaty of peace was signed in February, 1848, on the 22d of which, the noble and venerable J. Q. Adams was struck down in death on the floor of the Capitol, exclaiming, at the close of a long and blameless life of usefulness. " This is the last of earth!" On July 4th, President Polk issued the formal proclamation of peace between the United States and Mexico. A large extent of territory was ceded to us, and we paid, on our part, several millions of dollars to the Mexican government. The war cost us twenty-five thousand men, and seventy- five millions of dollars. The disbanded army was again distributed among the forts in the States, and along the frontier. The hero of Chapultepec now made a new conquest. He won the hand of a Miss Dent, a sensible and excellent young lady, near St. Louis, Missouri, and was married in August of that year. His military home was first at Detroit, Michi gan, arid then at Sackett s Harbor, a post on Lake Onta rio, in Northern New York. There was little to do in time of peace in these quiet barracks near a small and pleasant village. He is remembered by the people in Watertown, a handsome place several miles distant, as having a passion for playing chess, and played with great skill, but found among his opponents one who was his superior, and who used to win the first games of a sitting with ease. But Grant was never content to remain 46 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. beaten, and would insist on his opponent playing until he got the better of him in the end by " tiring him out," and winning at chess, as at war, by his superior en durance. At this time, many of the settlers on the plains of California were without law and order. It becoming necessary to send a military force to restrain their pas sions, and prevent Indian depredations and massacres, the Fourth Infantry were selected to visit the Pacific coast. Lieutenant Grant went with a portion of it to Oregon. This wild and romantic life was very similar to that in the South, soon after he left West Point. The solitary marches in the grand old woods, the ancient rocks and rivers, with perils from the savages, had attractions for the young and adventurous spirit. While here, his regu lar commission as captain in the infantry came another step in the career of honor. ? ; After two years service in the far and almost unin habited West, Captain Grant saw so little prospect of activity and promotion, that he resigned his place in the army, and returned to his family near the city of St. Louis, to try his fortune in civil life. It,was a new and trying crisis in his history. With out fortune, and accustomed to military activity only, it was no ordinary struggle to make a fresh beginning in the struggle for an honorable livelihood, to a nature like his own, above the low rates of speculation and the legal ized frauds of trade. GRANT ON THE FARM. 47 CHAPTER IV. GRANT ON THE FARM IN THE STORE AND IN THE REBELLION. Captain Grant turns his Attention to Agriculture. Tries the Office of Collector. The Business unsuitecl to his Taste. Removes to Illinois to Engage in the Leather Trade. The Rebellion Arouses his Patriotic and Martial Spirit. Ten ders his Services to the State. First Work. Is created Colonel. Successful Command. Is commissioned Brigadier-General. Ordered to Missouri. Amus ing Incident. In Command of the Port at Cairo. Action at Fredericktown. Belmont. Touching Scenes after Battle. General Hunter succeeds General Fremont. CAPTAIN GRANT occupied a little farm to the south west of St. Louis, whence he Avas in the habit of cutting the wood, drawing it to Carondelet, and selling it in the market there. Many of his wood-purchasers are now call ing to mind that they had a cord of wood delivered in per son by the great General Grant. When he came into the wood-market he was usually dressed in an old felt hat, with a blouse coat, and his pants tucked in the tops of. his boots. In truth, he bore the appearance of a sturdy, honest woodman. This was his winter s work. In the summer he turned a collector of debts; but for this he was not qualified. He had a noble and truthful soul ; so when he was told that the debtor had no money, he be lieved him, and would not trouble the debtor again. He was honest, truthful, indefatigable always at work at something ; but did not possess the knack of making money. Honorable in all public and private relations, he commanded the respect of the people with whom he associated ; while personally his habits were plain, inex pensive, and simple. It soon became clear to the Captain that he was not made for a tax-gatherer, nor likely to have great success on the farm. In August, 1859, he applied to the Commissioners of 48 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. St. Louis County, Missouri, for the office of engineer. The paper was signed by General Joseph J. Reynolds and sev eral other prominent citizens, who have since figured in the war, both North and South. The Commissioners failed to see material in the taciturn ex-captain for civil engineer of the county, or were pledged to some political favorite, and rejected the application. Providentially, a better opening for business now presented itself to his per severing spirit. During 1859, Grant entered into partnership with his father, in the leather trade, and opened business in the city of Galena, Jo Daviess County, Illinois. This city is lo cated on the Fevre River, about six miles above the point where it falls into the Mississippi, of which it is properly an arm. The city is built upon a bluff, with the streets rising one above the other, and communicating by means of flights of steps. Large portions of the States of Wis consin, Iowa, and Minnesota are tributary to this town, and consequently it is a place of considerable trade. The house of Grant & Son soon became a very pros perous concern, and, at the time of the outbreak of the rebellion, presented one of the best business prospects of any house in Galena. The younger Grant devoted himself to his business, and, after a short time, the recommenda tion of a piece of leather by the firm of Grant & Son was a sure guarantee of its good quality. It seemed that the retired Captain had at last settled down to a profitable and permanent business, promising him the rich reward of commercial industry and integrity. In the autumn of 1860, a lawyer of the same State, equally upright and patriotic, was called to the highest position of honor and responsibility in the nation s gift. The election* of Abraham Lincoln fired the long cher ished hate of the South to the working North, and ripened into action the sleepless purpose of politicians, to defend and extend American slavery at the cost of the Union. Then came the thunder of hostile cannon pointed at the Star of the West, bearing supplies for the garrison of Fort Sumter, quickly followed by the storm of shot and shell upon the fortress <itself. GRANT OFFERS HIS SERVICES TO THE STATE. 49 This declaration of war by the seceding States, at whose head was fiery South Carolina, went over the land with mournful and awakening effect. The pleasant dream of security, amid the aggressions and threats of the slave holders, vanished suddenly and forever. The call of the President for seventy -five thousand men, to meet the uprising rebellion, reached Galena. Cap tain Grant entered his store one morning, to read the tele gram of Sumter s fall. Walking round the counter on which lay his coat, he drew it on, remarking: "Uncle Sam educated me for the army, and, although I have served faithfully through one war, I feel that I am still a little in debt for my education, and I am ready and will ing to discharge the obligation." He then said: "lam for the war, to put down this wicked rebellion." With this spirit of self-sacrifice and high resolve, the merchant abandoned his store, and went into the street, consulted with some of his fellow-citizens, and soon raised a company of volunteers. With these he marched to Springfield, and tendered their services to Governor Yates. The patriotic Executive of Illinois has since given a very interesting account of the Captain s entrance upon the arena of national conflict, in his message to the Legislature of 1863: "In April, 1861, he tendered his personal services to me, saying, that he i had been the recipient of a military education at West Point, and that now, when the coun try was involved in a war for its preservation and safety, he thought it his duty to offer his services in defense of the Union, and that he would esteem it a privilege to be assigned to any position where he could be useful. The plain, straightforward demeanor of the man, and the mod; esty and earnestness which characterized his offer of assistance, at once awakened a lively interest in him, and impressed me with a desire to secure his counsel for the benefit of volunteer organizations then forming for Gov ernment service. At first I assigned him a desk in the Executive office ; and his familiarity with military organi zation and regulations made him an invaluable assistant in my own and the office of the Adjutant-General. Soon his. 4 50 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. admirable qualities as a military commander became appa rent, and I assigned him to command of the camps of organization at Camp Yates, Springfield, Camp Grant, Mattoon, and Camp Douglas, at Anna, Union County, at which the Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twenty -first Regi ments of Illinois volunteers, raised under the call of the President of the 15th of April, and under the Ten Regi ment Bill, of the extraordinary session of the Legislature convened April 23, 1861, were rendezvoused. His em ployment had special reference to the organization and muster of these forces the first six into the United States, and the last three into the State, service. This was ac complished about the 10th of May, 1861, at which time he left the State for a brief period, on a visit to his fa ther, at Covington, Kentucky. "The Twenty-first Regiment of Illinois volunteers, raised in Macon, Cumberland, Piatt, Douglas, Moultrie, Ed gar, Clay, Clark, Crawford, and Jasper Counties, for thirty days State service, organized at the camp at Mattoon. preparatory to three years service for the Government, had become very much demoralized under the thirty days experiment, and doubts arose in relation to their accept ance for a longer period. I was much perplexed to find an efficient and experienced officer to take command of the regiment, and take it into the three years service. I ordered the regiment to Camp Yates, and after consulting Hon. Jesse K. Dubois, who had many friends in the regi ment, and Colonel John S. Loomis, Assistant Adjutant- General, who was at the time in charge of the Adjutant- General s office and on terms of personal intimacy with Grant, I decided to offer the command to him, and accord ingly telegraphed Captain Grant, at Covington, Kentucky, tendering him the colonelcy. He immediately reported, accepting the commission, taking rank as colonel of that regiment -from the 15th of June, 1861. Thirty days pre vious to that time, the regiment numbered over one thou sand men ; but in consequence of laxity in discipline of the first commanding officer, and other discouraging obstacles connected with the acceptance of troops at that time, but COLONEL GRANT AND HIS REGIMENT. 51 six hundred and three men were found willing to enter the three years service. In less than ten days Colonel Grant filled the regiment to the maximum standard, and "brought it to a state of discipline seldom attained in the volunteer service in so short a time. His was the only regiment that left the camp of organization on foot. He marched from Springfield to the Illinois River ; but, in an emergency requiring troops to operate against Missouri rebels, the regiment was transported by rail to Quincy, and Colonel Grant was assigned to command for the pro tection of the Quincy and Palmyra, and Hannibal and St. Josephs Eailroads. He soon distinguished himself as a regimental commander in the field, and his claims for in creased rank were recognized by his friends in Springfield, and his promotion insisted upon, before his merits and ser vices were fairly understood at Washington. His promo tion was made upon the ground of his military education, fifteen years services as a lieutenant and captain in the regular army (during which time he was distinguished in the Mexican war), his great success in organizing and dis ciplining his regiment, and for his energetic and vigorous prosecution of the campaign in North Missouri, and the earnestness with which he entered into the great work of waging war against the traitorous enemies of his country." The spirit of this loyal governor, who had the honor of introducing the retiring Grant to his field of national service and renown, is finely shown in an extract from a letter written by him to a citizen of Oskaloosa, whose Union flag a copperhead had cut down, and who inquired what he should do with the insult : You say that the pole which floated the Stars and Stripes on the Fourth of July was cut down by seces sionists, and that, at a pic-nic which you are to have, it is threatened that the flag shall be taken down ; and you ask me whether you would be justified in defend ing the flag with fire-arms. I am astonished at this ques tion, as much as if you were to ask me whether you would have a right to defend your property against rob bers, or your life against murderers ! You ask me what you shall do ? I reply, Do not raise the American flag 52 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. merely to provoke your secession neighbors ; do not be on the aggressive ; but whenever you raise it on your own soil, or on the public property of the State or county, or at any public celebration, from honest love to the flag and patriotic devotion to the country which it symbolizes, and any traitor dares to lay his unhallowed hand upon it to tear it down, shoot him as you would a dog, and I will pardon you for the offense." Meanwhile, the President had sent to Governor Yates the order for two new names to be placed on the roll of brigadier-generals. The adjutant, with characteristic modesty, declined the oifer of the Executive to nominate him, because he was comparatively unknown, and the honor should be given to another, who had already won distinction. Several regiments were soon lying along the railway connecting the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, within the District of North Missouri and the Department of General Pope. But there was no general to command these troops, and it became necessary to select a man for the command. Although the youngest colonel on the ground, Grant was chosen, and became acting brigadier- general of the forces, at a place called Mexico, on the North Missouri Railroad, July 31st, 1861. Eight days later, he was commissioned to fill the com mand which the unanimous vote of his associates in arms had conferred upon him, dating back to May 17th of the same year. It is interesting to glance at the list of gen erals appointed when he was, and then write opposite their names their history in 1864. Samuel P. Heintzelman.Not in active field service. Erasmus D. Keyes Do. do. Andrew Porter Do. do. Fitz-John Porter Cashiered. William B. Franklin Commanding Nineteenth Army Corps. William T. Sherman. . . . Commanding a Department under General Grant. Charles P. Stone Chief of Staff to General Banks. Don Carlos Buell Not in active field service. Thomas "VV. Sherman. . .Temporarily invalided. James Oakes Not in service. John Pope Commanding Department of the Northwest. GENERALS APPOINTED WITH GRANT, 53 George A. McCall Resigned. Win. R. Montgomery. . .Not in active field service. Philip Kearny Dead. Joseph Hooker Commanding Grand Division under General Grant. John W. Phelps Resigned. ULYSSES S. GEANT Lieutenarit-General. Joseph J. Reynolds Commanding troops at New Orleans. Samuel R. Curtis Not in active field service. Charles S. Hamilton Do. do. Darius N. Couch Commanding Department of the Susquehanna. Rnfus King Foreign Minister. J. D. Cox Commanding Corps under General Grant. Stephen A. Hurlbut .... Do. do. do. Franz Sigel Not in active field service. Robert 0. Schenck In Congress. B. M. Prentiss Resigned. Frederick W. Lander. . .Dead. Benjamin F. Kelly Commanding Department of Western Virginia. John A. McClernand. . ..Not in active field service. A. S. Williams Commanding a Division. I. B. Richardson Dead. William Sprague Declined. James Cooper .Dead. General Grant was half- way down the list, and less than three years afterward commanded as much territory, and as many troops in active service, as the other thirty- three generals combined. Immediately following his promotion was an order to proceed to Southern Missouri, where General Jeff. Thomp son was prepared to advance upon the Union lines. The first point of military rendezvous was Ironton, from which, with brief delay, he moved forward to Marble Creek, building fortifications there, and leaving a garrison for their defense. Thence he rapidly advanced to Jeffer son City, threatened by the enemy. For ten days these troops protected the town. During these Missouri campaigns, there occurred an amusing scene to enliven the inarches, and fling its cheer ful light over many a subsequent encampment of the actors in the practical comedy. It is related by a staff- officer : "The hero and veteran, who was citizen, captain, colonel, brigadier and major-general, within a space of nine months, though a rigid disciplinarian, and a perfect 54 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Ironsides in the discharge of his official duties, could enjoy a good joke, and is always ready to perpetrate one when an opportunity presents. Indeed, among his ac quaintances he is as much renowned for his eccentric humor as he is for his skill and bravery as a commander. "When Grant was a brigadier in Missouri, he com manded an expedition against the rebels under Jeff. Thompson, in Northeast Arkansas. The distance from the starting-point of the expedition to the supposed ren dezvous of the rebels was about one hundred and ten miles, and the greater portion of the route lay through a howling wilderness. The imaginary suffering that our soldiers endured during the first two days of their march was enormous. It was impossible to steal or confiscate uncultivated real estate, and not a hog, or a chicken, or an ear of corn was anywhere to be seen. On the third day, however, affairs looked more hopeful, for a few small specks of ground, in a state of partial cultivation, were here and there visible. On that day, Lieutenant Wick- field, of an Indiana cavalry regiment, commanded the advance-guard, consisting of eight mounted men. About noon he came up to a small farm-house, from the outward appearance of which he judged that there might be some thing fit to eat inside. He halted his company, dismount ed, and with two second-lieutenants entered the dwelling. He knew that Grant s incipient fame had already gone out through all that country, and it occurred to him that by representing himself to be the general he might obtain the best the house afforded. So, assuming a very im perative demeanor, he accosted the inmates of the house, and told them he must have something for himself and staff to eat. They desired to know who he was, and he told them that he was Brigadier- General Grant. At the sound of that name they flew around with alarming alac rity, and served up about all they had in the house, taking great pains all the while to make loud professions of loyalty. The lieutenants ate as much as they could of the not over-sumptuous meal, but which was, never theless, good for that country, and demanded what was to pay. Nothing. And they went on their way rejoicing. AMUSING INCIDENT IN THE MISSOURI CAMPAIGN. 55 6 c In the meantime, General Grant, who had halted his army a few miles further back for a brief re sting- spell, came in sight of, and was rather favorably impressed with the appearance of this same house. Hiding up to the fence in front of the door, he desired to know if they would cook him a meal. " No, said a female, in a gruff voice; General Grant and his staff have just been here, and eaten every thing in the house except one pumpkin-pie. " Humph, murmured Grant ; what is your name " Selvidge, replied the woman. c Casting a half-dollar in at the door, he asked if she would keep that pie till he sent an officer for it ; to which she replied that she would. "That evening, after the camping-ground had been selected, the various regiments were notified that there would be a grand parade at half-past six, for orders. Officers would see that their men all turned out, &c. "In five minutes the camp was in a perfect uproar, and filled with all sorts of rumors. Some thought the enemy were upon them, it being so unusual to have parades when on a march. "At half-past six the parade was formed, ten columns deep, and nearly a quarter of a mile in length. "After the usual routine of ceremonies, the acting assist ant adjutant-general read the following order : ["SPECIAL OEDEE, No. .]. " HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY IN THE FIILD. "Lieutenant Wickfield, of the Indiana cavalry, having on this day eaten every thing in Mrs. Selvidge s house, at the crossing of the Ironton and Pocahontas and Black River and Cape Girardeau Roads, ex cept one pumpkin-pie, Lieutenant Wickfield is hereby ordered to return with an escort of one hundred cavalry, and eat that pie also. U TJ. S. GEANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. " Grant s orders were law, and no soldier ever attempt ed to evade them. At seven o clock the lieutenant filed out of camp with his hundred men, amid the cheers of the entire army. The escort concurred in stating that he devoured the whole of the pie, and seemed to relish it." 06 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. With the advent of autumn, General Grant was ordered to yet greater duties. The important post of Cairo was placed under his command. The town is situated on low land upon the banks of the Mississippi, in that part of Illi nois called "Egypt." The forces here were increased by the addition of another brigade, which had been organized for, and was under the command of, Brigadier- General John A. McClernand. The post at Cairo included within its jurisdiction the Missouri shore of the Mississippi Blyer, from Cape Girar- deau to New Madrid, and the opposite Illinois shore, to the point of land on which Cairo stood. It commanded the mouth of the Ohio Eiver, and was the key to the Upper Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. Its impor tance as a defensive military position, and also as a base of operations, at the early stages of the war, was without estimate ; and, as a permanent base of supplies, its loss would be severely felt by the Union army. At this time, the State of Kentucky was in that incom prehensible condition designated as neutral ; but as the line that separated Tennessee, which had seceded, from Kentucky, which had not, was merely an imaginary one ; and, as the rebel forces of the seceding States were sta tioned so closely on these borders, it is not strange that they often crossed the line into the neutral State, espe cially when it was to their advantage. General Grant no sooner found out that this course of policy was being adopted by the rebels, and that they liad actually encroached upon the State of Kentucky, and were fortifying Columbus and Hickman, on the Mississippi River, and Bowling Green on the Big Barren River, than he ordered the seizure of Paducah, a valuable post at the mouth of the Tennessee River. This village was occupied on September 6, 1861, and within nineteen days he also held possession of Smithland, at the mouth of the Cumber land River. By these movements he not only blockaded the rivers leading up into the rebel States, against the run ning of supplies and contraband articles for the use of those who were up in arms against the Government, but lie also secured two fine bases for further operations, and GENERAL GKANT AT PACCCAII, KENTUCKY. 57 cleared out the guerrillas, who were trying to blockade the Ohio River below those points. He also garrisoned each of these places with a force sufficient to hold them, but still retained his head-quarters at Cairo, which had then become the head-quarters of the sub- department or District of Southeast Missouri. At the time when General Grant took possession of Pa- ducah, he found secession flags flying in different parts of the city, in expectation of greeting the arrival of the rebel forces, which were reported to be nearly four thousand strong, and not many miles distant. The landing of the Union troops was a signal for a general uprising of the loyal citizens of the place, who, being properly supported, in effect, if not in fact, at once tore down from the houses of the rebel sympathizers the secession flags which they had raised. General Grant immediately took possession of the tele graph-office, railroad depot, hospitals, and other points of importance, after which he issued the following proclama tion to the citizens : PADUCAH, KENTUCKY, September 6, 1861. To THE CITIZENS OF PADTTCAH : I am corne among you, not as an enemy, but as your fellow-citizen ; not to maltreat you nor annoy you, but to respect and enforce the rights of all loyal citizens. An enemy, in rebellion against our common Govern ment, has taken possession of, and planted its guns on the soil of Ken tucky, and fired upon you. Columbus and Hickman are in his hands. He is moving upon your city. I am here to defend you against this ene my, to assist the authority and sovereignty of your Government. I have nothing to do with opinions, and shall deal only with armed rebellion, and its aiders and abettors. You can pursue your usual avocations without fear. The strong arm of the Government is here to protect its friends, and punish its enemies. Whenever it is manifest that you are able to defend yourselves, and maintain the authority of the Government, and protect the rights of loyal citizens, I shall withdraw the forces under my command. U. S. GRANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. The tone of the proclamation speaks well for the tem per of the soldier, who, although in the midst of enemies, and with the power in his hands, yet refused to use that power further than he, of actual necessity, was called upon to do by the exigencies of his position. 58 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Grant, when in camp at Cairo, presented little, in fact nothing, of the gewgaws and trappings which are generally attached to the attire of a general ; and, in this respect, he showed a marked contrast between himself and some of his sub -lieutenants, whose bright buttons and glit tering shoulder-straps were perfectly resplendent. The General, instead, would move about the camp with his attire carelessly thrown on, and left to fall as it pleased. In fact, he seemed to care nothing at all about his personal appearance, and in the place of the usual military hat and gold cord, he wore an old battered black hat, generally designated as a " stove-pipe," an article that neither of his subordinates would have stooped to pick up, even if un- observed. In his mouth he carried a black-looking cigar, and he seemed to be perpetually smoking. In connection with these facts, a detractor of General Grant was, on one occasion, speaking rather sarcastically of the stove-pipe General and his passion for cigars, when he was taken up by one of Grant s friends, who said : " Such a bright stove-pipe as Grant should be excused for smoking." Several reconnoissances were made down the Missis sippi Eiver, and inland from the Ohio Elver, and occa sionally skirmishes would also take place. At these con tests prisoners would sometimes be taken on both sides, and the following correspondence was the result of these captures : HEAD-QL-ARTEES FIRST Division, ) WEBTEBN DEPARTMENT, October, 1861. ) To THE COMMANDING OFFICER AT CAIEO AND BIHD S POINT : I have in my cainp a number of prisoners of the Federal army, and am informed there are prisoners belonging to the Missouri State troops in yours. I propose an exchange of these prisoners, and for that purpose send Captain Polk of the artillery, and Lieutenant Smith of the infantry, both of the Confederate States Army, with a flag of truce, to deliver to you this communication, and to know your pleasure in regard to my proposition. The principles recognized in the exchange of prisoners effected on the 3d of September, between Brigadier- General Pillow, of the Confederate Army, and Colonel Wallace, of the United States Army, are those I propose as the basis of that now contemplated. Respectfully, your obedient servant, L. POLK, Major-General Commanding. GEN. GRANT GEN. POLK AND COL. PLUMMEPw. 59 To which communication General Grant dispatched the following reply : DISTKICT OP SOUTHEAST MISSOURI, ) HEAD-QUARTERS, CAIRO, October 14, 1861. > GENEEAL: Yours of this date is just received. In regard to an ex change of prisoners, as proposed, I can, of my own accordance, make none. I recognize no " Southern Confederacy " myself, but will commu nicate with higher authorities for their views. Should I not be sustained, I will find means of communicating with you. Respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GEANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. To Major- General POLK, Columbus, Kentucky. October 16th, General Grant ordered a part of his troops, under Colonel Plummer, then stationed at Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to march toward Fredericktown, "by way of Jackson and Dallas, and, joining Colonel Carlin, who was moving in another direction, check the progress of General Jeff. Thompson, advancing northward, and, if possible, defeat the rebel columns. The mild, soft morning of October 21st brought the hostile forces together. Thompson had three thousand five hundred men, while our forces numbered a few hun dred more. For more than two hours the battle raged, when the rebels were forced to yield, and retreated, fol lowed the next day by a fruitless pursuit, when the vic tors returned to their former position. The correspondence between the gallant Plummer and his superior officer reveals the magnanimous, sympathetic nature of the latter, which could drop a tear over the slain on the country s altar : COLONEL PLUMMER TO GENERAL GRANT. HEAD-QUARTERS, CAMP FREMONT, ) CAPE GIKAKDEAU, Mo., October 26, 1861. > GENEEAL: Pursuant to your order of the 10th, I left this post on the 18th instant, with about fifteen hundred men, and marched upon Fred ericktown, via Jackson and Dallas, where I arrived at twelve o clock on Monday, the 21st instant, finding there Colonel Oarlin, with about three thousand men, who had arrived at nine o clock that morning. He gave me a portion of his command, which I united with my own, and imme diately started in pursuit of Thompson, who was reported to have evacu ated the town the day before and retreated toward Greenville. I found him, however, occupying a position about one mile out of town, on the 60 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Greenville Road, which he has held since about nine o clock A M., and immediately attacked him. The battle lasted about two hours and a half, and resulted in the total defeat of Thompson, and rout of all his forces, consisting of about three thousand five hundred men. Their loss was severe, ours very light. Among their killed was Lowe. On the following day I pursued Thompson twenty- two miles on the Greenville Road, for the purpose of capturing his train, but finding further pursuit useless, and believing Pilot Knob secure and the object of the expedition accomplished, I returned to this post, where I arrived last evening, having been absent seven days and a half. I brought with me forty-two prisoners, one iron twelve-pounder field- piece, a number of small-arms and horses taken upon the field. I will forward a detailed report of the battle as soon as reports from colonels of regiments and commanders of corps are received. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. B. PLUMMEE, Colonel Eleventh Missouri Volunteers Commanding. To ASSISTANT ADJUTANT-GENEEAL, Head-Quarters District Southeast Missouri, Cairo, Illinois. GENERAL GRANT TO COLONEL PLUMMER. HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT SOUTHEAST MISSOURI, ) CAIRO, October 27, 1SG1. f Colonel J. B. PLUMMEE, commanding United States Forces, Cape Girar- deau, Missouri : COLOXEL: Your report of the expedition under your command is received. I congratulate you, and the officers and soldiers of the expedi tion, upon the result. But little doubt can be entertained of the success of our arms, when not opposed by superior numbers; and in the action of Fredericktown they have given proof of courage and determination which shows that they would undergo any fatigue or hardship to meet our rebellious breth ren, even at great odds. Our loss, small as it was, is to be regretted ; but the friends and rela tives of those who fell can congratulate themselves in the midst of their affliction, that they fell in maintaining the cause of constitutional freedom and the integrity of a flag erected in the first instance at a sacrifice of many of the noblest lives that ever graced a nation. In conclusion, say to your troops they have done nobly. It goes to prove that much more may be expected of them when the country and our great- cause calls upon them. Yours, &c., TJ. S. GEANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. Having thus secured the information he required rela tive to the position of Jeff. Thompson s forces, and also haying learned that others were concentrating at the rebel GEN. GRANT AND THE AFFAIR AT BELMONT. 61 camp at Belmont, Missouri, General Grant, at the head of two "brigades, commanded respectively by General McClemand and himself, left Cairo on November 6th, 1861, for that point. On the opposite Kentucky shore the rebels had fortified a position at Columbus, which was to command the camp at Belmont, as well as to blockade the Mississippi River. The two United States brigades landed at Belmont at eight o clock of the morning of November 7th, were at once formed into line of battle, and immediately attacked the rebel works, where they found the enemy in force under General Cheatham. The rebel forces were driven to and through their camp, and their battery of twelve guns was captured. The camp was then burned, and the enemy s baggage and horses taken. Several prisoners also fell into the hands of the Union troops, and the attack was a complete triumph. But at the very moment when victory was deemed certain, several large bodies of rebel troops from Columbus and Hickman crossed the Mississippi River and re-en forced those at Belmont. This re-enforcement made the enemy numerically stronger than the forces under General Grant, and after another severe fight, the Union troops had to withdraw to their transports, their retreat being well covered by the ordnance of the gunboats. The following is from a private letter from General Grant to his father, written on the night of the 8th : u Day before yesterday I left Cairo with about three thousand men, in five steamers, convoyed by two gun boats, and proceeded down the river to within about twelve miles of Columbus. The next morning the boats were dropped just out of range of the enemy s batteries, and the troops debarked. During this operation our gun boats exercised the rebels by throwing shells into their camps and batteries. When all ready, we proceeded about one mile toward Belmont, opposite Columbus, when I formed the troops into line, and ordered two com panies from each regiment to deploy as skirmishers, and push on through the woods and discover the position- of the enemy. They had gone but a little way when they 62 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. were fired upon, and the "ball may be said to have fairly opened. "The whole command, with the exception of a small reserve, was then deployed in like manner and ordered forward. The order was obeyed with great alacrity, the men all showing great courage. I can say with great gratification that every colonel, without a single excep tion, set an example to their commands that inspired a confidence that will always insure victory when there is the slightest possibility of gaining one. I feel truly proud to command such men. "From here we fought our way from tree to tree through the woods to Belmont, about two and a half miles, the enemy contesting every foot of ground. Here the enemy had strengthened their position by felling the trees for two or three hundred yards, and sharpening their limbs, making a sort of abatis. Our men charged through, making the victory complete, giving us posses sion of their camp and garrison equipage, artillery, and every thing else. " We got a great many prisoners. The majority, how ever, succeeded in getting aboard their steamers and push ing across the river. We burned every thing possible, and started back, having accomplished all that we went for, and even more. Belmont is entirely covered by the batteries from Columbus, and is worth nothing as a mili tary position cannot be held without Columbus. "The object of the expedition was to prevent the enemy from sending a force into Missouri to cut off troops I had sent there for a special purpose, and to prevent re-enforcing Price. "Besides being well fortified at Columbus, their num ber far exceeded ours, and it would have been folly to have attacked them. We found the Confederates well armed and brave. On our return, stragglers, that had been left in our rear (now front), fired into us, and more recrossed the river and gave us battle for a full mile, and afterward at the boats when we were embarking. "There was no hasty retreating or running away. Taking into account the object of the expedition, the BATTLE OF BELMONT. (53 victory was complete. It has given us confidence in the officers and men of this command, that will enable us to lead them in any future engagement without fear of the result. General McClernand (who, Iby the way, acted with great coolness and courage throughout, and proved that he is a soldier as well as a statesman) and myself, each had our horses shot under us. Most of the field officers met with the same loss, besides nearly one- third of them being themselves killed or wounded. As near as I can ascertain, our loss was about two hundred and fifty killed, wounded, and missing." General McClernand, in his official report of this bat tle, after speaking of the hotness of the engagement, and narrow escapes of some of his officers, makes use of the following words : u Here the projectiles from the enemy s heavy guns at Columbus, and their artillery at Belmont, crashed through the woods over and among us. * * * And here, too, many of our officers were killed or wounded ; nor shall I omit to add, that this gallant conduct was stimulated by your (Grant s) presence, and inspired by your example. Here your horse was killed under you." After the United States troops had returned to their base of operations at Cairo, General Grant issued the following order : HE AD -QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI, I CAIRO, November 8, 1861. The General commanding this military district, returns his thanks to the troops tinder his command at the battle of Belmont on yesterday. It has been his fortune to have been in all the battles fought in Mexico by Generals Scott and Taylor, save Buena Vista, and he never saw one more hotly contested, or where troops behaved with, more gallantry. Such courage will insure victory wherever our flag may be borne and protected by such a class of men. To the brave men who fell, the sympathy of the country is due, and will be manifested in a manner unmistakable. U. S. GKANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. But, while General Grant was engaged in congratu lating those who had returned safe, he was not unmind ful of the sufferers who had fallen wounded into the hands of the enemy. Knowing the incomplete state of 64 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the Medical and Surgical Departments of the rebel army opposed to him, he addressed the following dispatch to the rebel general, under a flag of truce : HEAD- QUARTERS, DISTRICT OP SOUTHEAST MISSOURI, \ CAIRO, November 8, 1S61. ) General commanding forces, Columbus, Ky. : SIR : In the skirmish of yesterday, in which both parties behaved with so much gallantry, many unfortunate men were left upon the field of battle, whom it was impossible to provide for. I now send, in the interest of humanity, to have these unfortunates collected, and medical attendance secured them. Major Webster, Chief of Engineers, District Southeast Mis souri, goes bearer of this, and will express to you my views upon the course that should be pursued under the circumstances, such as those of yesterday. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GEANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. To this communication, the commander of the rebel post returned the following answer : HEAD-QUARTERS, FIRST DIVISION, WESTERN DEPARTMENT | COLUMBUS, KENTUCKY, November 8, 1861. I Brigadier-General GEANT, U. S. A. : I have received your note in regard to your wounded and killed on tho battle-field, after yesterday s engagement. The lateness of the hour at which my troops returned to the principal scene of action prevented my bestowing the care upon the wounded which I desired. Such attentions as were practicable were shown them, and measures were taken at an early hourthis morning to have them all brought into my hospitals. Provision was also made for taking care of your dead. The permission you desire, under your flag of truce, to aid in attention to your wounded, is granted with pleasure, under such restrictions as the exigen cies of our service may require. In your note you say nothing of an ex change of prisoners, though you send me a private message as to your willingness to release certain wounded men, and some invalids taken from our list of sick in camps, and expect, in return, a corresponding number of your wounded prisoners. My own feelings would prompt me to waive again the unimportant affectation of declining to recognize these States as belligerents, in the interests of humanity; but my government requires all prisoners to be placed at the disposal of the Secretary of War. I have dispatched him to know if the case of the seventy wounded held by me will form an exception. I have the honor to be, your obedient servant, L. POLK, Major-General C. S. A. Five days after the engagement, General Grant wrote his official report of the whole affair :-- - GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 65 CAIRO, November 12, 1S61. On the evening of the 6th instant, I left this place with two thousand eight hundred and fifty men of all arms, to make a reconnoissance toward Columbus. The object of the expedition was to prevent the enemy from sending out re-enforcements to Price s army in Missouri, and also from cut ting off columns that I had been directed to send out from this place and Cape Girardeau, in pursuit of -Jeff. Thompson. Knowing that Columbus was strongly garrisoned, I asked General Smith, commanding at Paducah, Kentucky, to make demonstrations in the same direction. He did so, by- ordering a small force to Mayfield and another in the direction of Columbus, not to approach nearer than Ellicott s Mills, some twelve miles from Colum bus. The expedition under my immediate command was stopped about nine miles below here on the Kentucky shore, and remained until morning. All this served to distract the enemy, and led him to think he was to be attacked in his strongly fortified position. At daylight we proceeded down the river to a point just out of range of the rebel guns, and debarked on the Missouri shore. From here the troops were marched by flank for about one mile toward Belmont, and then drawn up in line of battle, a battalion also having been left as a reserve near the transports. Two companies from each regiment, five skeletons in number, were then thrown out as skirmishers to ascertain the position of the enemy. It was but a few mo ments before we met him, and a general engagement ensued. The balance of my forces, with the exception of the reserve, was then thrown forward all as skirmishers and the enemy driven, foot by foot, and from tree to tree, back to their encampment on the river bank, a dis tance of two miles. Here they had strengthened their position by felling the timber for several hundred yards around their camp, and making a sort of abatis. Our men charged through this, driving the enemy over the bank into their transports in quick time, leaving us in possession of every thing not exceedingly portable. Belmont is on low ground, and every foot of it is commanded by the guns on the opposite shore, and, of course, could not be held for a single hour after the enemy became aware of the withdrawal of their troops. Having no wagons, I could not move any of the captured property; consequently, I gave orders for its destruction. Their tents, blankets, &c., were set on fire, and we retired, taking their artillery with us, two pieces being drawn by hand ; and one other, drawn by an ineffi cient team, we spiked and left in the woods, bringing the two only to this place. Before getting fairly under way, the enemy made his appearance again, and attempted to surround us. Our troops were not in the least dis couraged, but charged on the enemy again, and defeated him. Our loss was about eighty-four killed, one hundred and fifty wounded many of them slightly and about an equal number missing. Nearly all the missing were from the Iowa Regiment, who behaved with great gallantry, and suf fered more severely than any other of the troops. I have not been able to put in the reports from sub-commands, but will forward them as soon as received. All the troops behaved with much gal lantry, much of which is attributed to the coolness and presence of mind 5 66 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. of the officers, particularly the colonels. General McClernand was in the midst of danger throughout the engagement, and displayed both coolness and judgment. His horse was three times shot. My horse was also shot under me. To my staff, Captains Rawlins, Logan, and Hillyer, volunteer aids, and to Captains Hatch and Graham, I am much indebted for the assistance they gave. Colonel Webster, acting chief-engineer, also accom panied me, and displayed highly soldier-like qualities. Colonel Doherty, of the Twenty-second Illinois volunteers, was three times wounded and taken prisoner. The Seventh Iowa Regiment had their lieutenant-colonel killed, and the colonel and major were severely wounded. The reports to be forwarded will detail more fully the particulars of our loss. Surgeon Brinton was in the field during the entire engagement, and displayed great ability and effi ciency in providing for the wounded and organizing the medical corps. The gunboats Tyler and Lexington, Captains Walker and Stemble, United States navy, commanding, convoyed the expedition and rendered most efficient service. Immediately upon our landing, they engaged the enemy s batteries, and protected our transports throughout. For particulars, see accompanying report of Captain Walker. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GEANT, Brigadier- General Commanding. General Folk s account of the "battle is brief and exul tant : HEAD-QUARTERS, FIRST DIVISION WESTERN DEPARTMENT, ^ COLUMBUS, KENTUCKY, November 7, 1861. J To General Head-Quarters, through General A. S. JOHNSTON : The enemy came down on the opposite side of the river, Belmont, to day, about seven thousand five hundred strong, landed under cover of gun boats, and attacked Colonel Tappan s camp. I sent over three regiments, under General Pillow, to his relief, then, at intervals, three others, then General Cheatham. I then took over two others in person, to support a flank movement which I had directed. It was a hard-fought battle, lasting from half-past ten A. ii. to five r. M. They took Beltzhoover s Battery, four pieces of which were recaptured. The enemy were thoroughly routed. We pur sued them to their boats seven miles, then drove their boats before us. The road was strewn with their dead and wounded, guns, ammunition, and equipments. Our loss considerable ; theirs heavy. L. POLK, Major-General Commanding. General Folk s dispatch confesses to a severe rebel loss, both of men and artillery. No blame can reasonably be attached to General Grant for the movement because not successful, acting, as he did, under the orders of the Department of which he was only district commander, and SCENES AFTER THE BATTLE OF BELMONT. 67 consequently responsible only for the time and manner of fighting. The attack was undeniably well planned and brilliantly executed. Braver troops never shed their blood on the battle-field, and, had it not been for the large re-enforcements of the enemy, would have been re garded as one of the most gallant encounters in the early history of the war. Neither General Grant nor the coun try will blush over the faithful record of the action at Bel- mont. When General Halleck scanned the battle with his fine military appreciation, he said: "Grant will do to trust an army with." While the rebels lost, in killed and wounded, two thousand eight hundred, General Grant lost, in all, less than six hundred. Of the cannon taken, two were cap tured from as at Bull Hun. But the noble leader in the strife did not forget that there was a third class of men, besides the living in the ranks and the dead which had left them the wounded in the hands of the enemy. When, after the struggle, General Grant, under a flag of truce, sent a detachment to bury the dead and remove the wounded, they heard the song of "The Star-spangled Banner" rising on the still air. Following the sound, they discovered under a tree a war rior with both legs mangled, from whose feverish lips the national anthem rang out over the gory plain. Of such material was the chieftain s army made. Another incident strikingly illustrated a mournful pe culiarity of the war near relatives and friends fighting against each other. Captain Brooks, of the Twenty- sev enth Illinois, came against a corpse. Looking at the dead surgeon, he recognized his own brother, who, he knew, was in the rebel army, but had no intimation where he was serving the cause of treason. General Fremont, then at the head of the Department in which the field of conflict lay, about this time was superseded by General Hunter. 68 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER V. A NEW ORDER OF THINGS. A new Order of Things. Advance upon the Enemy. Naval Attack. Picket- Shooting. Discipline of Marching Troops. Protection of Private Property. Reconnoissance. Hard Marches. Plans of Campaign. Commodore Foote and his Fleet. Sails for Fort Henry to act in concert with General Grant. Reaches the Fortress After waiting for Land-Forces, Bombards the Works. The Surrender. General Grant s Report. General Tilghman s Testimony to his Conqueror s high qualities of Character. EARLY in the winter, General Halleck, who had been called from California, and made Major- General, was placed in command of the Department of the Missouri, and began to organize the same into proper military dis tricts, to give the commander of each full control of the section of country embraced within his lines. On the 20th of December, 1861, appreciating the mili tary ability of General Grant, he issued an order defining what should constitute the District of Cairo, and extend ing the command until it became one of the largest in the country. To General Grant was immediately given the administration of the new Department. He assumed the command on December 21, 1861, announcing it in the fol lowing order, arid giving the roll of his staff officers, of whom Captain Rawlins has always justly been a favorite a competent, faithful, and congenial man : HEAD-QTTAETEES, DISTBICT OP CAIKO, > CAIRO, December 21, 1861. > In pursuance of Special Order No. 78, from Head-Quarters, Depart ment of the Missouri, the name of this Military District will be known as the " District of Cairo," and will include all the southern part of Illinois, that part of Kentucky west of the Cumberland River, and the southern counties of Missouri, south of Cape Girardeau. The force at Shawneetown will be under the immediate command of Colonel T. H. Cavanagh, Sixth Illinois Cavalry, who will consolidate A NEW ORDER OF THINGS. (59 the reports of his command weekly, and forward to these head quarters. All troops that are, or may be, stationed along the banks of the Ohio, on both sides of the river, east of Caledonia, and to the mouth of the Cumberland, will be included in the command, having head-quarters at Paducah, Kentucky. Brigadier-General E. A. Paine is assigned to the command of the forces at Bird s Point, Missouri. All supplies of ordnance, Quartermaster and Commissary stores, will be obtained through the chiefs of each of these departments, as district head- quarters, where not otherwise provided for. For the information of that portion of this command, newly attached, the following list of Staff-Officers is published : Captain John A. Rawlins, Assistant Adjutant- General. Captain Clark B. Lagow, Aide-de-Camp. Captain Wm. S. Hillyer, Aide-de-Camp. Major John Riggin, Jr., Volunteer Aide-de-Camp. Captain R. B. Hatch, Assistant Quartermaster U. S. Volunteers, Chief Quartermaster. Captain W. W. Leland, A. C. S. U. S. Volunteers, Chief Commissary. Captain W. F. Brinck, Ordnance Officer. Surgeon James Simmons, U. S. A., Medical Director. Assistant Surgeon J. P. Taggart, U. S. A., Medical Purveyor. Major I. 1ST. Cook, Paymaster. Colonel J. D. Webster, Chief of Staff, and Chief of Engineers. By order, U. S. GRANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. General Grant at once commenced organizing, under Ms personal supervision, the new troops, and, as soon as deemed fit for such service, they were sent to the various posts belonging to the district, including Fort Jefferson and Paducah, in Kentucky. By this plan he could readily handle his forces, while they were so distributed that it was a matter of great difficulty, if not quite impossible, for the enemy to learn his strength. On the 10th of January, the forces under the immediate command of General McClernand left Cairo in transports, and disembarked at Fort Jefferson. The transports were protected by two gunboats, which were next ordered to lie off the fort. The rebels, with three armed vessels, attacked these gunboats the next morning ; but, after a brisk engagement, had to beat a retreat the Union vessels chasing them until they took refuge under the guns of Columbus. 70 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. As picket-shooting had existed to a fearful extent in the vicinity of Cairo, General Grant, on the llth of January, met the barbarous warfare with the subjoined expression of indignation and authority : CAIRO, January 11, 1862. Brigadier-General PAINE, Bird s Point: I understand that four of our pickets were shot this morning. If this is so, and appearances indicate that the assassins were citizens, not regularly organized in the rebel army, the whole country should be cleared out for six miles around, and word given that all citizens making their appearance within those limits are liable to be shot. To execute this, patrols should be sent in all directions, and bring into camp, at Bird s Point, all citizens, together with their subsistence, and re quire them to remain, under penalty of death and destruction of their property, until properly relieved. Let no harm befall these people, if they quietly submit ; but bring them in, and place them in camp below the breastwork, and have them properly guarded. The intention is not to make political prisoners of these people, ljut to cut off a dangerous class of sines. This applies to all classes and conditions, age and sex. If, however, women and children prefer other protection than we can afford them, they may be allowed to retire beyond the limits indicated not i>o return until authorized. By order of U. S. GEANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. As General Grant states in the above order, it was necessary to keep spies away from his vicinity, as he was then about to start on a perilous expedition. He had already divided his forces into three columns under Generals Paine, McClernand, and C. F. Smith General Grant commanding the whole expedition in person. Before starting on this adventure, he issued a stringent, yet humane order to his troops : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF CAIRO, ) CAIRO, January 18, 1SG2. f During the absence of the expedition now starting upon soil occupied almost solely by the rebel army, and when it is a fair inference that every stranger met is an enemy, the following orders will be observed : Troops, on marching, will be kept in the ranks ; company officers being held strictly accountable for all stragglers from their companies. No firing will be allowed in camp or on the march, not strictly required in the per formance of duty. While in camp, no privilege will be granted to officers ORDER AGAINST SPIES AND PILLAGE. 71 or soldiers to leave their regimental grounds, and all violations of this order must he promptly and summarily punished. Disgrace having heen brought upon our brave fellows by the bad con duct of some of their members, showing on all occasions, when marching through territory occupied by sympathizers of the enemy, a total dis regard of the rights of citizens, and being guilty of wanton destruction of private property, the general commanding desires and intends to enforce a change in this respect. The interpreting of confiscation acts by troops themselves has a de moralizing effect weakens them in exact proportions to the demoraliza tion, and makes open and armed enemies of many who, from opposite treatment, would become friends, or, at most, non-combatants. It is ordered, therefore, that the severest punishment be inflicted upon every soldier who is guilty of taking, or destroying, private property ; and any commissioned officer, guilty of like conduct, or of countenancing it, shall be deprived of his sword and expelled from the camp, not to be per mitted to return. On the march, cavalry advance guards will be thrown out, also flank guards of cavalry or infantry, when practicable. A rear guard of infantry will be required to see that no teams, baggage, or disabled soldiers are left behind. It will be the duty of company commanders to see that rolls of their company are called immediately upon going into camp each day, and every member accounted for. By order, U. S. GKANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. On the morning of Tuesday, January 14, 1862, General McClernancl s column moved forward from Fort Jefferson, and the columns under Generals Paine and Smith, at Padu- cah, commenced similar movements. The three columns combined made a force of nineteen regiments of infantry, four regiments of volunteer cavalry, two companies of regular cavalry, and seven "batteries of artillery. It was now just midwinter. The Western and North ern homes still retained the cheerful light left "by the "holidays;" and the merry bells of sleighing rang along the streets familiar to many of the brave volunteers. In the moving host on the banks of the Mississippi, the largest proportion had no other experience than these pleasant pastimes amid the business labors of peaceful life. They now look on the broad river, filled with floating ice, on which they are to embark, and along the dreary roads of frost and mire beyond, and tJiink of liome. But there is no faltering, and no complaint from the "boys." Demonstrations were made by General McClernand s 72 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. column, as if with the intention of attacking Columbus in the rear, by way of Blandville, Kentucky, while the real object was to concentrate with the troops marching from Paducah, Kentucky. The feint proved successful, and a great alarm was manifested by the rebel forces in Co lumbus. As General McClernand s column advanced, it was at intervals joined by a regiment from the other columns, and, on the night of January 15th, his force encamped in line of battle ten miles to the rear of Columbus, threaten ing that post by two roads. Here General Grant, who had been with the column from Paducah, came up with this part of the expedition, and personally superintended the disposition of the troops. The First Division was next morning marched to Mil- burn, apparently en route for May field ; but instead of following that path, the troops, after passing through Milburn, turned southward, so as to communicate with the force from Paducah ; and, on the 17th, were within eight miles of Lovelaceville. They then turned westward, and, on the nights of the 18th and 19th, encamped about a mile from Blandville. On January 20th, the column re turned to Fort Jefferson. During the interval between the 14th and 20th of January, the infantry of this column inarched over seventy-five miles, and the cavalry about one hundred and forty miles, over icy and miry roads, and during a most inclement season. This march was a very heavy one for troops who had never before been in the field. The reconnoissance developed the fact that the rebel army was not in large force west of the Paducah and Mayfield railroad, except, perhaps, in the rebel works at Columbus, and led to the discovery of valuable side- roads, not laid down in any map of that time. It also showed that Columbus was far from being as strong as was supposed, and that it could be attacked in the rear by several different roads, along which, large forces of troops could be moved. As soon as General Grant had communicated with Gen eral McClernand, at his encampment, on the night of the 15th, and had received his report, he saw the mere shell of COMMODORE FOOTE S NAVAL FORCE. 73 rebel defence which held that part of the State of Ken tucky, and allowing General McClernand s column to keep up the appearance of an advance, he withdrew the other two columns to Cairo. He had, in fact, accom plished and ascertained all that he desired by the move ment. Commodore Foote, of the navy, had been sent in the autumn of 1861 to create and command a fleet of gunboats on the Mississippi. He had now ready for service seven gunboats, four of which were iron-clad. They were built at Cincinnati and St. Louis, then taken to Cairo to com plete the outfit, and man them. To secure crews for them, General Grant issued a significant circular : HEAD-QUAETERS, DISTRICT or CAIRO, | CAIRO, January 20, 1862. ) Commanders of regiments will report 1 to these head-quarters, without delay, the number of river and seafaring men of their respective com mands, who are willing to be transferred from the military to the gunboat service. Seeing the importance of fitting out our gunboats as speedily as possible, it is hoped there will be no delay or objections raised by company or regimental commanders in responding to this call. Men thus volunteer ing will be discharged at the end of one year, or at the end of the war, should it terminate sooner. By order, TJ. S. GBANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. A few days afterward, General McClernand s forces were withdrawn from Kentucky, and again rendezvoused at Cairo, the commander being placed in temporary charge of the District during the necessary absence of General Grant. A few days disclosed the whole object of the move ment made by General Grant s forces in the western part of the State of Kentucky. It must be borne in mind that his troops still held the posts at Paducah and Smithland, at the mouth of the Tennessee and Cumberland Eivers. By keeping up a false show of advance upon the rear of Columbus, which had several times been attacked in the front by armed vessels, the rebels were thoroughly deceived, and concentrated all their available forces in that vicinity. 74 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. In the mean time, General Grant was preparing for an advance into the State of Kentucky by an entirely differ ent route, and, to have his forces well in hand, he issued the following order, brigading them : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT or CAIRO, ) CAIRO, February 1, 1862. i For temporary government, the forces of this military district will be divided and commanded as follows, to wit : The First Brigade will consist of the Eighth, Eighteenth, Twenty- seventh, Twenty- ninth, Thirtieth, and Thirty-first Regiments of Illinois Volunteers, Schwartz s and Dresser s batteries, and Stewart s, Dollin s, O Harnett s and Carmichael s Cavalry. Colonel R. J. Oglesby, senior colonel of the brigade, commanding. The Second Brigade will consist of the Eleventh, Twentieth, Forty- fifth, and Forty-eighth Illinois Infantry, Fourth Illinois Cavalry, Taylor s and McAllister s Artillery. (The latter with four siege guns.) Colonel W. H. L. Wallace commanding. The First and Second Brigades will constitute the First Division of the District of Cairo, and will be commanded by Brigadier-General John A. McClernand. The Third Brigade will consist of the Eighth "Wisconsin, Forty-ninth Illinois, Twenty-fifth Indiana, four companies of artillery, and such troops as are yet to arrive. Brigadier-General E. A. Paine commanding. The Fourth Brigade will be composed of the Tenth, Sixteenth, Twenty- second, and Thirty- third Illinois, and the Tenth Iowa Infantry ; Hou- taling s battery of Light Artillery, four companies of the Seventh and two companies o f the First Illinois Cavalry. Colonel Morgan com manding. General E. A. Paine is assigned to the command of Cairo and Mound City, and Colonel Morgan to the command at Bird s Point. TJ. S. GEANT. Brigadier-General Commanding. Subsequently, General E. A. Paine was placed in com mand at Cairo. The order having been publicly announced, if it fell into the hands of the rebels and there was but little doubt that such would be the case would give them the idea that the above were all the troops that comprised the forces under General Grant ; whereas the divisions then organizing under Generals C. F. Smith and Lewis Wallace, at the posts of Paducah and Smithland, are not mentioned at all. General Grant, having secured his base, left Cairo on the night of February 2d, and, with Generals McClernand SCENES AT CAIRO BEFORE THE ADVANCE. 75 and Smith s Divisions, soon after began moving from Paducah upon Fort Henry, a defensive work erected near the "border-line of the States of Kentucky and Tennessee, on the east side of the Tennessee River, so as to command the stream at that point. The first day of February was the Sabbath. In the streets of Cairo is mud, mud, mud ! Dirty people, dogs, pigs, and carts are mingled in ludicrous confusion. Though a mild, sunny day, and birds are singing, noth ing else would remind one of the holy time. Steamers ascend with soldiers on the river, and all the sights of a port in time of war during the week meet you in your walks about the town. But hark! the church-bells toll the hour of worship. Sweet music amid the din and dis cord through which it floats! Enter this church, and, among the many soldiers, there is the nobly true and devout Commodore Foote. His fleet are ordered to keep the Sabbath, and maintain the worship of God in the ships. With an army and navy led by such commanders, how sublime the spectacle, and how invincible the ad vance in a righteous cause ! If you visit the flagship of the Commodore, he will show you, amid the fourteen heavy guns and all the strong machinery of those dark engines of destruction, the Sacred Place a quiet spot, where those who desire may commune with God. Monday dawns. The strange fleet, unseen before upon the Western rivers, steams from Cairo with ten regiments of troops in accompanying steamers, and, at nightfall, wheels into the Tennessee. Approaching Fort Henry, the anchors are dropped and scouts sent ashore. "You will never take Fort Henry!" said a woman in a farm-house which they entered. "Oh, yes, we shall. We have a fleet of iron-clad gunboats," said one. "Your gunboats will be blown sky-high before they get into the fort." "Ah! How so?" The question reminded the talking woman that she was telling secrets, and she said no more. The scouts 76 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. informed her that she must explain, or go with them a prisoner. She then said : "Why, the river is full of torpedoes; and they will "blow up your gunboats." The intelligence was carried to the Commodore, and six infernal machines raked from the bottom. The plan was, to pour shot and shell upon the fort from the river in front, and drive with this storm of iron and fiery hail the rebels out, for General Grant to catch with his troops in the rear. Admiral Foote had suggested to General Grant that the roads were so bad, it would be well for the land force to start an hour in advance. And when the General ex pressed his confidence in the ability of the troops to reach the field in time, the Admiral replied, good-naturedly : "I shall take the fort before your forces get there;" words that proved to be prophetic of the important result. The order of march was as follows : IlEAD-QtJARTERS, CAIRO, > CAMP IN FIELD NEAR FORT HENRY, February 5, 1862. > The First Division, General McClernand commanding, will move at eleven o clock A. M., to-morrow, under the guidance of Lieutenant-Colonel McPherson, and take a position on the roads from Fort Henry to Donelson and Dover. It will be the special duty of this command to prevent all re-enforce ments to Fort Henry, or escape from it; also, to be held in readiness to charge, and take Fort Henry by storm, promptly on the receipt of orders. Two brigades of the Second Division, General C. F. Smith command ing, will start at the same hour from the west bank of the river, and take and occupy the heights commanding Fort Henry. This point will be held by so much of the artillery as can be made available, and such other troops as, in the opinion of the general commanding the Second Division, may be necessary for its protection. The Third Brigade, Second Division, will advance up the east bank of the Tennessee River as fast as it can be securely done, and be in readiness to charge upon the fort, or move to the support of the First Division, as may be necessary. All the forces on the west bank of the river, not required to hold the heights commanding Fort Henry, will return to their transports, cross to the east bank, and follow the First Brigade as fast as possible. The west bank of the Tennessee River not having been reconnoitred, the commanding officer intrusted with taking possession of the enemy s works there will proceed with great caution, and obtain such information NAVAL ATTACK ON FORT HENRY. 77 as can be gathered and -such guides as can be found in the time interven ing before eleven o clock to-rnorrow. The troops will receive two days rations of bread and meat in their haversacks. One company of the Second Division, armed with rifles, will be ordered to Flag-Officer Foote, as sharpshooters on board the gunboats. U. S. GEANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. On the 5th, the fleet lay before the fortress, the dark- mouthed ordnance waiting the gunner s hand to pour forth fire and hail upon it. The first plan was to invest or sur round the fort, before the attack, and to secure the garri son. But, hearing that re-enforcements were coming, at noon, it was decided not to wait for the troops, but that the Commodore should try the fight alone. The command flies over tne fleet to open the battle. It is answered by a huzza, and in another moment the thunder of cannon shakes the decks, wrapped in smoke, and the massive iron hail and exploding shells falling in the fort give the garri son notice that the Yankee "tars" are knocking for admis sion within the walls. For two hours Fort Henry rains back her storm of heavy shot, striking the flagship Cincin nati thirty-one times. Suddenly the tempest ceases, and the rebel flag comes down ; the garrison begin to fly. General Tilghman, finding his retreat cut off by the ad vancing troops of General Grant, decides upon a sur render. He was then rowed to the Admiral s ship, and, stand ing before him, inquires what terms would be granted. "Unconditional surrender!" was the brave and patriotic reply. The rebel officer s answer was in the words of a gen tleman who appreciated high qualities of character in a "Well, sir, if I must surrender, it gives me pleasure to surrender to so brave an officer." "You do perfectly right to surrender," added the heroic Foote ; "but I should not have surrendered to you on any condition." " Why so ? I do not understand you," answered Gen eral Tilghman, with surprise. 78 LIFE AHD CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRAtfT. " Because I was fully determined to capture the fort, or go to the "bottom," was the satisfactory response of the gallant Admiral. "I thought I had you. Commodore ; but you were too much for me." " How could you fight against the old flag, General ?" " Well, it did come hard at first ; but, if the North had let us alone, there would haye been no trouble. They would not abide by the Constitution." The Commodore assured him the opposite of that was the truth, and that the South was responsible for the blood shed that day. General Grant s account of the affair is marked with the unostentatious and honorable bearing of the brave chieftain : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF CAIRO, J FORT HENRY, TEKN., February 6, 1862. ) CAPT. J. 0. KELTON, A. A. General, Department of Mo., St. Louis, Mo. : CAPTAIN : Owing to dispatches received from Major-General Halleck, and corroborating information here, to the effect that the enemy were rapidly re-enforcing, I thought it imperatively necessary that the fort should be carried to-day. My forces were not up at ten o clock last night, when my order was written, therefore, I did not deem it practicable to set an earlier hour than eleven o clock to-day to commence the investment. The gunboats started up at the same hour to commence the attack, and engage the enemy at not over six hundred yards. In little over one hour all the batteries were silenced, and the fort surrendered at discretion to Flag-Officer Foote, giving us all their guns, carnp and garrison equipage. The prisoners taken are General Tilghman and Staff, Captain Taylor and company, and the sick. The garrison, I think, must have commenced their retreat last night, or at an early hour this morning. Had I not felt it imperative to attack Fort Henry to-day, I should have made the investment complete, and delayed until to-morrow, so as to secure the garrison. I do not believe, however, the result would have been any more satisfactory. The gunboats have proved themselves well able to resist a severe cannonading. All the iron-clads have received more or less shots the flag ship some twenty-eight without any serious damage to any, except the Essex. This vessel received one shot in her boiler that disabled her, killing and wounding some thirty-two men, Captain Porter among the wounded. I remain, your obedient servant, U. S. GKANT, Brigadier- General. General Tilghman, in his dispatches, bears fine testi- GENERAL TILGHMAN S DISPATCHES. 79 mony to the greatness of Grant s character, rising above the mean reyenge of baser minds when flushed with vic tory : "Through the courtesy of Brigadier- General Ulysses S. Grant, commanding Federal forces, I am permitted to communicate with you in relation to the result of the ac tion "between the fort under my command at this place and the Federal gunboats, on yesterday. I take great pleasure in acknowledging the courtesies and considera tion shown by Brigadier- General U. S. Grant and Commo dore Foote, and the officers under their command." 80 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTEE VI. THE ATTACK UPON FORT DONELSON, AND ITS RESULTS. General Grant turns his Attention to Fort Donelson. The Plan of Advance. The March. Bivouac. The Morning of Battle. The Conflict opens. The Struggle of Thursday. The Rebels Victorious. The Heroism of Wallace s Troops. The Tide of Battle turns. The Council of War. The Victory. The Second Conclave of Rebel Generals. The Surrender. The General Joy. General Grant s Report. Incidents.- Fine Commemorative Lines. THE reduction of Fort Henry, in which the lamented Christian hero, Commodore Foote, was providentially con spicuous, was only a part of the grand work to be accom plished in the general plan of the commanding mind. No time was wasted by General Grant over the success of his movement ; but he at once ordered all available troops in his district to be sent to his command, for an advance upon the more formidable works of Fort Donelson, on the west ern shore of the Cumberland River, a dozen miles from Fort Henry. These fortifications, guarding the waters flowing into the Ohio, as will be seen on the map, were the great barrier between the Union army and the very heart of the treasonable Confederacy. The plan of march was given in the following order, issued on the evening of February 11 : One brigade of the First Division will move by the Telegraph Road directly upon Fort Donelson, halting for further orders at a distance of two miles from the fort. The other brigades of the First Division will move by the Dover Ridge road, and halt at the same distance from the fort, and throw out troops, so as to form a continuous line between the two wings. The two brigades of the Second Division, now at Fort Henry, will follow as rapidly as practicable, by the Dover road, and will be followed by the troops from Fort Heiman, as fast as they can be ferried across the river. One brigade of the Second Division should be thrown into Dover, to cut off all retreat ~by the river, if found practicable to do so. THE MARCH ON FORT DONELSOff. 81 The force of the enemy being so variously reported, it is impossible to give exact details of attack ; but the necessary orders will be given on the field. TJ. S. GRANT. Having properly disposed of the troops in "brigades and divisions, lie placed the latter under the command of the following generals : First Division Acting Major-General J. A. McCler- nand. Second Division Acting Major-General C. F. Smith. Third Division Acting Major-General Lewis Wal lace. While the First and Second Divisions of the army were to march across the country, and attack the fort in the rear, another division, attended by the gunboats, was sent up the Cumberland, to make the assault from that direction. There was, it would seem, a lack of close cal culation in regard to the time required to descend the Ohio and go up the Cumberland, which, as will be seen in the final conflict, deranged, to some extent, the movements of the troops. General Lewis Wallace, with a single bri gade, remained at Fort Henry, while six of his regiments embarked on the steamboats. It was a splendid specta cle, when those transports sailed down the Tennessee, with banners flying over the crowded decks, glittering with burnished arms, gay with uniforms, and the whole scene enlivened with martial music. The fleet met other boats, and, turning them back, they all moved a grand naval cavalcade up the Cumberland. Meanwhile the land forces, on the morning of Febru ary 12th, were followed by General Grant and staff. The winding road between the forts was among steep hills, over sandy plains, and along deep ravines shaded by primeval forests. Occasionally a solitary clearing, with its quiet farm-house, greeted the eye of the heroic host. As night came down they halted by the side of a brook, whose waters had rare music to the ear of the weary troops. They had no tents, but uncomplainingly began to prepare for a brief repose upon the frozen ground swept by the chilly winds. The woodman s ax, wielded by strong arms, soon brought down the forest-trees, and cheerful 6 82 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. fires on every hand soon lit up the wintry scene. Stray pigs were pierced by Minie "balls, and the next moment were smoking, in fragments, over the glowing embers. After supper, the men prepared from the dead leaves their "beds, beneath the lowering sky, and, wrapping their blankets around them, sought a brief repose. Thus fifteen thousand men, excepting the pickets, who kept sleepless watch toward Fort Donelson, slumbered on the cold bosom of the earth, which, a few hours later and a few miles dis tant, would be reddened with the blood of hundreds of that great army. Its two divisions comprised seven bri gades, commanded by Colonels Oglesby, Wallace, McAr- thur, Morrison, Cook, Louman, and Smith. Accompany ing the First Division were Schwartz s, Taylor s, Dresser s, and McAllister s Batteries. In the Second Division there was a remarkable regiment of sharpshooters, command ed by Colonel Birge. They were old hunters, and wore suits of gray, small caps, buffalo knapsacks, and a pow der-horn. The shrill whistle, which each man carried, gave the signals for all their movements. They would creep or dart along the forest-paths with Indian-like stealthiness and agility, sending the unerring bullet from their ambush into the rebel lines ; then turning in a mo ment, on their backs, load again the death-dealing rifle. The cavalry swept the country to observe the position and movements of the enemy. On the early morning of February 13th, General Grant s columns were again in motion. Before the sun had reached the horizon, the white tents of the foe appeared upon the hills in the intrenchments. The army of the Union paused to survey the field of impending conflict. The activity of preparation was visible there ; implements and arms were moving in every direction. It was too near night to do more than take a look at the enemy, and then refresh their weary forms with the supper, and rest on the cold ground, for the next day s sanguinary work. While yet the flush of morning heralded a bright and mild day, the startling scream of a rebel shell was heard over the heads of Colonel Oglesby s Brigade. The brave fellows answered with a " Hurra!" and looked with flashing eye THE MARCH ON FORT DONE^SOBT, 83 to ward* sombre Donelson, frowning defiance on the defend ers of the republic. Sweeping down with flying banners on the citadel of treason, General McClernand s Division moved along the Dover Road, led by Oglesby s Brigade, to the west and south of the fortifications, and General Smith remained opposite the northwest angle of the fort. The tempest of shot and shell now began to fall on our ranks from the enemy s batteries, while our own returned the fire. Thus all the forenoon the artillery fight thun dered on, drowning the crack of countless rifles under the breastwork. Then the infantry opened their fire. General McClernand had fixed his eye upon a redoubt on the west side of the town, which, with the rifle-pits, protected their batteries, and he resolved to take it. The Forty- eighth, Seventeenth, and Forty-ninth Illinois Regiments y/ere selected for a storming party, and commanded by Colonel Hayne. McAllister s Battery covered the attack. The word of command to advance rang along the lines of those sons of the republic, most of whom had never been in the smoke of battle before. It was a sad and a glorious sight to see that living tide moving over the undulating ground, and then rushing up the hight into the sheets of flame, with steady step, and firing with deliberate aim as they advanced. Men fell, but their places were promptly supplied. They reached the impassable abatis, and then only paused in their gallant assault. Colonel Birge s sharpshooters were called to the rescue, and were soon hidden among the bushes in rifle-range of the enemy, dropping his pickets, and getting close to his batteries. Strangely comic scenes transpired amid this roar and din of murderous battle. A rebel head apparently rose above the breastworks, and toward it whistled a bullet, piercing only a liat covering a ramrod. A shout of derision came from the unharmed owner below. "Why don t you come out of your old fort ?" exclaims one of Birge s men. "Why don t you come in?" was the reply. "Oh, you are cowards !" responded another Union soldier. "When are you going to take the fort ?" came back. When that Thursday night flung its shadows over the great crescent formed by our army, whose tips reached 84 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. nearly to the river s "bank, above and below the fort, and over the fortress lying thus within the ample curve, it was a dark hour for the National troops. The dying and the dead were in thicket and hospital the steamers had not arrived our force was inferior to that of the foe the rations gone, excepting a little hard-tack and the rain fall ing upon the farrowed soil and matted leaves. Blankets and overcoats had been thrown away, and the very ele ments seemed to conspire against the surviving heroes of that terrible day. There was suffering in every part of the gloomy arena of conflict. The morning of Friday, the 14th, dawned upon the hos tile armies, both in anxious mood the rebels ignorant of their superiority in numbers, and our troops waiting impa tiently for the arrival of the fleet, without a thought of ulti mate failure. " We came here to take the fort, and we intend to do it," were the brave words of Colonel Oglesby. At length a courier announced the appearance of the gunboats in the distance, and when the roar of the Caron- delet s columbiad was heard, it was welcomed with cheers from even dying lips. The men and supplies were landed three miles below, and a path to them opened through the forest. General Grant had sent, in the mean time, orders to Fort Henry for the troops there. Of the re-enforcements, General Lewis Wallace led a division, in which Colonel Cruft commanded the first brigade. The day was consumed in putting the forces in battle array, and supplying them with rations and ammunition. At three o clock p. M., Commodore Foote brought up the already scarred leviathans of naval warfare, and opened the assault upon the fort. In another moment, fire, smoke, falling shot, and bursting shells covered the fleet, and the lofty walls and grounds of Fort Donelson. It was a terrible scene. While Commodore Foote s flag-ship, the St. Louis, was under a tempest of the massive iron hail, he said to the pilot, kindly: "Be calm and firm; everything depends upon coolness now." The next moment, a sixty -four- BRAVEKY OF THE ILLINOIS REGIMENTS. 85 pound shot came hissing along the decks : a stunning sound a crash and the pilot lay a mangled corpse at the Commodore s feet. The ball had crushed its way through the iron plating, and a fragment pierced the Commodore s ankle. Still, his courage and faith made him. quite forget ful of the painful injury. Through the steering apparatus of this vessel and the Louisville, other heavy balls had been hurled, leaving them both at the mercy of the cur rent ; and they were compelled to drift from the scene of action. In one hour and a quarter it was all over, and Fort Donelson was wild with the hurra of fancied vic tory. The rudder-chains of the Carondelet were cut by a shot, the pilot-house of the St. Louis crushed, and the pilot killed, and fifty others slain. That night, while suffering from the severe wound in his foot, the Commodore wrote to a friend, in the sublimely heroic language of "the highest style of man" a Chris tian : " While I hope ever to rely on Him who controls all things, and to say from my heart, Not unto us, but unto Thee, O Lord, belongs the glory, yet I feel bad at the result of the attack upon Fort Donelson. To see brave officers and men, who say they will go where I lead them, fall by my side, it makes me sad to lead them to almost certain death." While thus relieving his burdened heart, General Grant was maturing his plan for thoroughly investing the fort ress, to reduce it by siege, or wait until the gunboats could be repaired ; and at the same hour General Floyd held a council of war at his head-quarters in the town. Generals Buckner, Johnson, Pillow, and other officers were in the rebel conclave, deliberating upon the order of next day s battle. That prince of thieves, Floyd, guessed the design of his enemy, and did not care to fall into his hands by the surrender of the fort. It was therefore decided to antici pate General Grant, and, at daybreak on Saturday, hurl the divisions of Pillow and Johnson upon McClernand s col umns, forcing him back upon Wallace, while Buckner, with the remaining half of the troops, came out from the 86 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. northwest angle of the fort, pressed Wallace toward Mc- Clernand, and, by the shuttlecock game, create general disorder in the Union arrny, from which to snatch victory, or open a way of escape frem the grasp of General Grant. Before the bugle-notes of Saturday s reveille had died away over the reposing troops lying on the snow-whitened ground, the report of rifles was the signal of danger. General B. R. Johnson, with twelve thousand men, was falling, by a circuitous march, upon the troops of Oglesby, McArthur, and Wallace, hastening into position. The batteries of Schwartz, Dunn, and McAllister had turned their front toward General Pillow s battalions. Un der the terrible onset of a rebel brigade, General Logan, the brave and patriotic Congressman, who told the Southern conspirators the men of the Northwest would hew their way to the Gulf of Mexico if the Mississippi were closed, held his regiment, the Thirty-first Illinois, firmly under the horrible tempest of unequal battle. McArthur was compelled, after gallant resistance, to yield, and the prospect of making a hopeless breach in the living wall of Union hearts brightened to the demoniac eye of treason. Oh ! how those Illinois regiments, the Eleventh, Twentieth, Forty-fifth, Forty-eighth, and por tions of the Forty-ninth and Seventeenth, breasted the tide of exultant, desperate foemen, till the snow became crimson around the pavement of dead men ! General Buckner s troops left the intrenchinents at this crisis, and rushed upon Wallace. Before the greatest part of the rebel army, McClernand s troops melted rapidly away. Oglesby was driven back, and still Wallace stood unyielding in the slaughter. The posi tion of Wallace, with Pillow s brigades in front and on the right, and Buckner s on the left, now became desperate. He began to retreat, but continued firing at the enemy. There was some confusion occasioned by re-enforcements mistaking their brethren-in-arms for the enemy, and open ing fire. A few frightened troops broke ranks and fled to the rear. Among them was an officer, who, Gilpin-like, dashed wildly along the road, exclaiming : " We are cut to pieces ! The day is lost !" STORMING THE ENEMY S RAMPARTS. g7 "Shut up your head, you scoundrel.!" shouted back General Wallace. The effect was magical upon his troops ; "but signs of disaster increased, and the columns took the " double-quick," General Wallace galloping in advance. Colonel Wallace, leading back his brigade, came up, and calmly said : " We are out of ammunition. The enemy are following. If you will put your troops into line, until we can fill our cartridge-boxes, we will stop them." The general was astonished and reassured. His batteries were put in position, and ready to open upon the approaching enemy. The rebels had paused upon the field from which they swept McClernand, to rifle the pockets of the dead and dying. The elated General Pillow telegraphed to Nashville: "On the honor of a soldier, the day is ours!" Uniting their columns, and flushed with success and the spoils of victory, Generals Buckner and Pillow again advanced. Over the bloody brook, the piled bodies, and the mangled living, rushed the angry masses of armed men. The rebel forces struck at length the First Nebraska, whose stalwart hunters neither feared nor wasted fire, and the "proud waves were stayed." They stood wild and raging a mo ment, and, failing where the hunters were most effective in their aim, then trembling, rolled back. Lying before the breastworks, in ambush, were Birge s sharpshooters. A splendid rebel marksman, whose rifle had slain a number of our officers, and one of these hunt ers, had a comical duel. The former, raising his hat above the ramparts, deceived the sharpshooter, sending a loud laugh to the equally shrewd antagonist. Then a return shot passed over him. Turning on his back, he loaded his gun, and lay perfectly still. After waiting a while, the rebel thought his ball had done the work. Up went his head, cap and all, that he might enjoy the view of his dead enemy. "Crack!" went the well-aimed rifle, and back ward into the trenches fell the just now laughing rebel. In his tent, at head- quarters, General Grant sat, without any shadow of despondency on his face ; his lips, well sur rounded by short, sandy hair, compressed with his native inflexibility of purpose. One after another, the subor- 88 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. dinate officers brought in reports from the commanders. His brightening eye glanced over the pages scarcely dry, and with triumph he exclaimed to a member of his staff : 4 We have them now j ust where we want them. His plan was formed. The rifle-pits on the northwest angle of the fort must be carried, and make an approach for the batteries to shell it. General Smith s Division, stationed there, had been in reserve, and could start fresh on the daring and awful venture. General Wallace was ordered to drive the rebels, before whom he had retired, back, and assault the works there. Colonel M. L. Smith led the brigade. Eight there on the bloody field, with a desperate attack before them, and certain death to many, the Eighth and Eleventh Missouri fairly quarreled for the honor of taking the front, the most exposed position in the assault. To the announcement of the work before them, the reply was, "Hurra! hurra!" and then "Forward!" to the storming of the ramparts. But away in the mellow glory of the setting sun, in solid masses, General Smith s Division advanced over the mea dow, toward the bristling rows of rifle-pits. Along the dauntless lines of "citizen soldiery," like an incarnation of the daring and gallantry of the high occasion, rode the veteran, his long locks, whitening to the "almond blossom," streaming back upon the electric air of that eventful even ing. Heavy shot and bursting shell made clean avenues through the unflinching columns. They closed again for another harvest of death. Up and down that front, lifting high his cap, amid the hissing missiles that rent the air, galloped General Smith. "Steady! steady!" and it was steady steady advance and steady slaughter. Wallace did his work on the right, and Cook upon the left. Against fallen trees, into the thunder-cloud ablaze, and raining bolts, the unshrinking battalions dashed, as though they were leaping into the spray of a summer sea. We will let "Carleton," who was there, tell, in his own fine style, the rest of that memorable day s story of carnage and heroism, and what the rebel commanders did "at dead of night." "The rebels reeled, staggered, tumbled, ran! A REBEL COUNCIL OF WAR. 89 " Hurra! " It is a wild, prolonged, triumphant shout, like the blast of a trumpet. They planted their banners on the works, and fired their volleys into the retreating foe. Stone s battery galloped over the meadow, over the logs, up the hill ; the horses leaped and plunged as if they, too, knew that victory was hanging in the scale. The gunners sprang from their seats, wheeled their pieces, and threw their shells an enfilading fire into the upper works. " Hurra! hurra! hurra! rang through the forest, down the line to Wallace s men. " i We have carried the works! We are inside! shouted an officer, bearing the welcome news. "The men tossed their caps in the air; they shook hands ; they shouted, and broke into singing. They forgot all their hardships and sufferings, the hungry days, the horrible nights, the wounded and the dead. The success is worth all the sacrifice. " All through the night, the brave men held the ground they had so nobly won. They rested on snowy beds. They had no supper. They would kindle no fires to warm the wintry air. The cannon above them hurled dow^n shells, and sent volleys of grape, which screamed above and around them, like the voices of demons, in the darkness. The branches of the trees were torn from their trunks by the solid shot, and the trunks were splintered from top to bottom ; but they did not falter or retire from that slope, where the snow was crimsoned with the life- blood of hundreds of their comrades. Nearly four hundred had fallen in that attack. The hill had cost a great deal of blood ; but it was worth all it cost, and they would not give it up. So they braved the leaden rain and iron hail through the weary hours of that winter night. They only waited, for daybreak, to storm the inner works and take the fort. Their ardor and enthusiasm were unbounded. u As the morning approached they heard a bugle-call. They looked across the narrow ravine, and saw, in the dim light of the dawn, a man waving a white Hag upon the intrenchments. It was a sign for a parley. He jumped down from the embankment and descended the hill. 90 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. " Halt ! Who comes there ? shouted the picket. " Flag of truce, with a letter for General Grant. " An officer took the letter, and hastened down the slope, across the meadow, up to the house on the Dover Boad, where General Grant had his head-quarters. During the night, there had Ibeen another council of war at General Floyd s head-quarters. Nearly all the rebel officers commanding brigades and regiments were there. They were downhearted. They had fought bravely, won a victory, as they thought ; but had lost it. A rebel officer, who was there, told me what they said. General Floyd and General Pillow blamed General Buckner for not advancing earlier in the morning, and for making what they thought a feeble attack. They could have escaped, after they drove McClernand across the brook ; but now they were hemmed in. The prospect was gloomy. The troops were exhausted by the long conflict, by constant watching, and by the cold. What bitter nights those were to the men who came from Texas, Alabama, and Mississippi, where the roses bloom and the bluebirds sing through all the winter months ! What should be done 3 Should they make another attack, and cut their way out, or should they surrender ? I cannot hold my position a half-hour. The Yankees can turn my flank or advance directly upon the breast works," said General Buckner. 4 i If you had advanced at the time agreed upon, and made a more vigorous attack, we should have routed the enemy," said General Floyd. " I advanced as soon as I could, and my troops fought as bravely as others," was the response from General Buckner, a middle-aged, medium-sized man. His hair is iron-gray. He has thin whiskers and a mustache, and wears a gray kersey overcoat with a great cape, and gold lace on the sleeves, and a black hat with a nodding black plume. " Well, here we are, and it is useless to renew the at tack with any hope of success. The men are exhausted," said General Floyd, a stout, heavy man, with thick lips, a large nose, evil eyes, and coarse features. FLIGHT OF TWO REBEL GENERAL& 91 " We can cut our way out," said Major Brown, com manding the Twentieth Mississippi, a tall, "black-haired, impetuous, fiery man. " Some of us might escape in that way, but the attempt would be attended with great slaughter," responded Gen eral Floyd. " My troops are so worn out, and cut to pieces, and de moralized, that I can t make another fight," said Buckner. " My troops will fight till they die !" answered Major Brown, setting his teeth together. "It will cost the command three-quarters of its present number to cut its way through ; and it is wrong to sacri fice three-quarters of a command to save the other quar ter," Buckner continued. "No officer has a right to cause such a sacrifice," said Major Gilmer, of General Pillow s staff. "But we can hold out another day, and by that time we can get steamboats here to take us across the river," said General Pillow. "No, I can t hold my position a half-hour; and the Yankees will renew the attack at daybreak," Buckner replied. " Then we have got to surrender, for aught I see," said an officer. "I won t surrender the command, neither will I be taken prisoner," said Floyd. He doubtless remembered how he had stolen public property while in office under Buchanan, and would rather die than fall into the hands of those who, he knew, would be likely to bring him to an account for his villainy. " I don t intend to be taken prisoner," said Pillow. " What will you do, gentlemen 3" Buckner asked. " I mean to escape, and take my Virginia brigade with me, if I can. I shall turn over the command to General Pillow. I have a right to escape, if I can, but I haven t any right to order the entire army to make a hopeless fight," said Floyd. " If you surrender it to me, I shall turn it over to Gen eral Buckner," said General Pillow, who was also dis posed to shirk responsibility and desert the men whom he 92 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. had induced to vote to secede from tke Union and take up arms against their country. "If the command comes into my hands, I shall deem it my duty to surrender it. I shall not call upon the troops to make a useless sacrifice of life, and I will not desert the men who have fought so nobly," Buckner replied, with a bitterness which made Floyd and Pillow wince. It was past midnight. The council broke up. The brigade and regimental officers were astonished at the result. Some of them broke out into horrid cursing and swearing at Floyd and Pillow. "It is mean 1" "It is cowardly!" "Floyd always was a rascal." "We are betrayed 1" "There is treachery!" said they. " It is a mean trick for an officer to desert his men. If my troops are to be surrendered, I shall stick by them," said Major Brown. " I denounce Pillow as a coward ; and if I ever meet him, I ll shoot him as quick as I would a dog," said Major McLain, red with rage. Floyd gave out that he was going to join Colonel For rest, who commanded the cavalry, and thus cut his way out. But there were two or three small steamboats at the Dover landing. He and General Pillow jumped on board one of them, and then secretly marched a portion of the Virginia Brigade on board. Other soldiers saw what was going on that they were being deserted. They became frantic with terror and rage. They rushed on board, crowding every part of the boat. " Cut loose !" shouted Floyd to the captain. The boats swung into the stream and moved up the river, leaving thousands of infuriated soldiers on the land ing. So, the man who had stolen the public property, and who did all he could to bring on the war, who in duced thousands of poor, ignorant men to take up arms, deserted his post, stole away in the darkness, and left them to their fate. It is not strange that a messenger appeared, bringing this message : SURRENDER OF FORT DONELSOK 93 IlEAD-QcrAETER3, FORT DONELSON, February 16, 1862. SIE : In consideration of all the circumstances governing the present situation of affairs at this station, I propose to the commanding officer of the Federal forces the appointment of commissioners to agree upon terms of "capitulation of the forces and fort under my command, and, in that view, suggest an armistice till twelve o clock to-day. I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, S. B. BTJCKNEE, Brig.-Gen. C. S. A. To Brigadier-General GEANT, commanding United States forces near Fort Donelson. Had the rebel general known his conqueror, he would never have sent such a line. Grant did not want many minutes to consider his reply. In place of any such pro posal, the bearer s hand had the subjoined brief and com prehensive note : HEAD-QUARTERS, AEMY IK THE FIELD, ( CAMP NEAR DONELSON, February 16, 1862. f To GEDTEEAL S. B. BUCKNEE, Confederate Army : Yours of this date, proposing an armistice, and appointment of com missioners to settle terms of capitulation, is just received. No terms other than unconditional and immediate surrender can ~be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works. I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GEANT, Brig.-Gen. U. S. A. Commanding. Buckner knew, what Grant did not, that Pillow and Floyd had fled the night before, leaving him alone. The proud, helpless, and chagrined Buckner was obliged to make the best of a very unpleasant affair. So he wrote this answer : HEAD-QUARTERS, DOVEB, TENNESSEE, February 16, 1862. To Brigadier-General U. S. GEANT, U. S. A. : SIR: The distribution of the forces under my command, incident to an unexpected change of commanders, and the overwhelming force under vonr command, compel me, notwithstanding the brilliant success of the Confederate arms yesterday, to accept the ungenerous and unchivalroua terms which you propose. I am, sir, your very obedient servant, S. B. BUCKNEE, Brig.-Gen. C. S. A. The soldiers again slept on their arms, with the inten tion of renewing the attack at daybreak ; but the morning sun found a flag of truce waving over the enemy s works. The rebels wished to treat for a surrender. 94 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. And thus fell into the hands of General Grant and his army the whole of the forces that garrisoned the works of Forts Henry and Donelson, with the exception of one small brigade of rebel troops, which escaped during the night with Generals Floyd and Pillow. The troops under the former general were stationed in the extreme rear of the works ; and when it was ascertained that the day was certainly lost, the two generals, with this brigade, left Gen eral Buckner to please himself as to whether he would run, fight, or surrender. The rebel loss in the surrender of Fort Heniy was the commander, General Tilghman, his staff, arid about sixty men, the rest of the garrison having moved to support the troops at Fort Donelson. At Fort Donelson the rebels lost General Buckner, over thirteen thousand prisoners, three thousand horses, forty-eight field-pieces, seventeen heavy guns, twenty thousand stand of arms, and a large quantity of commissary stores. The rebels killed in the last engagement were two hundred and thirty-one, and wounded, one thousand and seven, some of whom were prisoners. The Union loss was four hundred and forty- six killed, one thousand seven hundred and thirty-five wounded, and one hundred and fifty prisoners. The Union troops having to fight in an open field, against the works of the rebels, accounts for the disparity of numbers in killed and wounded. Two regiments of rebel Tennesseans, who had been ordered to re- enforce the garrison at Fort Donelson, marched into that work on the day after the capitulation, being unaware of its capture. They went along with their colors flying and their bands playing, and were allowed to enter the camp without any warning as to the character and nationality of those who held it in possession. The whole force (one thousand four hundred and seventy-five, men and officers) were at once captured. The result of this campaign was far more valuable than would at the first sight appear. The rebel line, at this particular part of the country, may be said to have ex tended from Columbus to Bowling Green, Kentucky, a distance of one hundred and twenty miles, with the ex- ARRIVAL OF GUNBOATS. 95 treme points of eacli wing resting on those two places, which had "been strongly fortified. The reduction of Forts Henry and Donelson, and the opening of the rivers at this point, broke the center or "backbone of this whole line, and, as a natural sequence, the wings had to fall. In a few days after, both Bowling Green and Columbus were in the possession of the Union troops, the rebels having evacuated those defences. General Grant s clear and impartial outline of the strug gle is quite characteristic : HEAD-QUARTERS, ARMY ix THE FIELD, J FORT DONELSOX, February 16, 1862. i General G. W. OULLTTM, Chief of Staff, Department of Missouri : GENERAL : I am pleased to announce to you the unconditional surrender, this morning, of Fort Donelson, with twelve to fifteen thousand prisoners, at least forty pieces of artillery, and a large amount of stores, horses, mules, and other public property. I left Fort Henry on the 12th instant, with a force of about fifteen thousand men, divided into two divisions, under the command of Generals McClernand and Smith. Six regiments were sent around by water the day before, convoyed by a gunboat, or rather started one day later than one of the gunboats, with instructions not to pass it. The troops made the march in good order, the head of the column arriving within two miles of the fort at twelve o clock, ir. At this point the enemy s pickets were met and driven in. The fortifications of the enemy were from this point gradually ap proached and surrounded, with occasional skirmishing on the line. The following day, owing to the non-arrival of the gunboats and re-enforce ments sent by water, no attack was made ; but the investment was ex tended on the Hanks of the enemy, and drawn closer to his works, with skirmishing all day. The evening of the 13th, the gunboats and re-enforce ments arrived. On the 14th, a gallant attack was made by Flag-Officer Foote upon the enemy s works with his fleet. The engagement lasted probably one hour and a half, and bid fair to result favorably to the cause of the Union, when two unlucky shots disabled two of the armored gun boats, so that they were carried back by the current. The remaining two were very much disabled also, having received a number of heavy shots about the pilot-house and other parts of the vessels. After these mishaps, I concluded to make the investment of Fort Donelson as perfect as possible, and partially fortify, and await repairs to the gunboats. This plan was frustrated, however, by the enemy making a most vigorous attack upon our right wing, commanded by General J. A. McClernaml, with a portion of the force under General L. Wallace. The enemy were repelled after a closely contested battle of several hours, in which our loss was heavy. The officers, and particularly field-officers, suffered out of proportion. I have 96 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEEAL GRANT. not the means yet of determining our loss even approximately, but it can not fall far short of one thousand two hundred killed, wounded, and miss ing. Of the latter, I understand through General Buckner, about two hundred and fifty were taken prisoners. I shall retain enough of tho enemy to exchange for them, as they were immediately shipped off and not left for recapture. About the close of this action the ammunition in the cartridge-boxes gave out, which, with the loss of many of the field-officers, produced great confusion in the ranks. Seeing that the enemy did not take advantage of this fact, I ordered a charge upon the left enemy s right with the division under General 0. F. Smith, which was most brilliantly executed, and gave to our arms full assurance of victory. The battle lasted until dark, giving us possession of part of their intrenchrnents. An attack was ordered upon their other flank, after the charge of General Smith was commenced, by the divisions under Generals McClernand and Wallace, which, notwith standing the hours of exposure to a heavy fire in the fore part of the day, was gallantly made, and the enemy farther repulsed. At the points thus gained, night having come on, all the troops encamped for tho night, feeling that a complete victory would crown their labors at an early hour in the morning. This morning, at a very early hour, General S. B. Buck ner sent a message to our camp under a flag of truce, proposing an armistice, etc. A copy of the correspondence which ensued is herewith appended. I cannot mention individuals who specially distinguished themselves, but leave that to division and brigade officers, whose reports will be forwarded as soon as received. To division commanders, however, Gen erals McClernand, Smith, and Wallace, I must do the justice to say that each of them was with his command in the midst of danger, and was always ready to execute all orders, no matter what the exposure to him self. At the hour the attack was made on General McClernand s command, I was absent, having received a note from Flag-Officer Foote, requesting me to go and see him, he being unable to call. My personal staff Colonel J. D. Webster, Chief of Staff; Colonel J. Eiggin, Jr., Volunteer Aide ; Captain J. A. Kawlins, Assistant Adjutant- General ; Captains C. B. Lagow and TV. S. Hilly or, Aides ; and Lieutenant- colonel J. B. McPherson, Chief Engineer all are deserving of personal mention for their gallantry and services. For full details and reports and particulars, reference is made to the reports of the Engineer. Medical Director, and commanders of brigades and divisions, to follow. I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GKANT, Brigadier-General. There will always "be an unwritten history of such battle-days and nights deeds and words of valor which A HERO GENERAL GRANT. 97 live only in the memories of the few who saw and heard them. An incident will illustrate. In the Ninth Illinois Regiment, a soldier received a shot through his arm. The wound was dressed, and again he hastened to his place in the ranks. Soon after, a ball entered his thigh, and he fell. His brave associates offered him help. "No," he replied; "I think I can get along alone." Away he staggered, leaning on his gun, through the iron and leaden hail, found a surgeon, who did his work, and gave the brave refreshment. He rose, and saying, I feel pretty well ; I must go into the fight again," he joined his comrades. He stooped to point his gun ; a bullet pierced his neck, and went downward into his body. The next moment balls riddled his head, and the mangled hero fell in death. Such were the warriors, who, thinking not of fame or life, lay down under the dear old flag waving- on the battered walls of Donelson. The magnificent conquest sent a thrill of joy over the nation. Thousands of cannon in the peaceful towns of the North thundered forth the rejoicing, and banners floated over almost every loyal house. Our modest victor, in the successful performance of a great duty to the country he loved better than life, took another stride in the rapid march of fame. He was made Major- General of Volunteers, dating from the day of the fort s surrender, February 16, 1862. No one would suspect, from the manner of General Grant, amid these exciting events and clustering honors, the echoing salutes and hurrahs of the soldiery and the people, that he was the hero and object of them all. Un ostentatious, "calm as a clock," he kept time to the "drum-beat of duty," unheeding the storm of conflict, or the sunshine of triumph around him. Let us take a glimpse at scenes apart from the hero and the strife. A friend, who went to the fort after the victory, in behalf of the Christian Commission one of the noblest enterprises called out by the war, blessing the embattled hosts in its care for them physically and spiritually related two striking incidents. He visited a- hospital-steamer, and found, not far apart, fatally wound- 7 98 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ed, a religious and a profane young man. The former was ready to die under the old flag, with a banner seen only by faith, bearing the "Star of Bethlehem" and the " stripes by which we are healed," flying over him. The other said: "I have never prayed. And do you think, after such a life, I will now ask for mercy ! Never ! I will face the music." And soon he also died. Going to the plains of death, he saw a soldier half buried in the snowy mud, lying on his back with a Testament, which had fallen from the side-pocket of his coat, on the breast. Further on, he came against a corpse, from the pocket of whose coat a pack of cards had drop ped, and were scattered over it and on the ground. What instructive contrasts along the track of unpitying war ! In the Atlantic Monthly appeared the following fine little poem, commemorative of the costly yet magnificent victory. . gales, that dash the Atlantic swell Along our rocky shores, Whose thunders diapason well New England s glad hurrahs ; Bear to the prairies of the West The echoes of our joy, The prayer that springs in every breast "God bless thee, Illinois!" Oh, awful hours, when grape and shell Tore through the unflinching line ! 14 Stand firm ! Remove the men who fell? Close up, and wait the sign!" It came at last : " Now, lads, the steel! 1 The rushing hosts deploy ; " Charge, boys ! " The broken traitors reel ; Hurrah for Illinois ! In vain thy rampart, Donelson, The living torrent bars; It leaps the wall the fort is won Up go the iStripes and Stars. Thy proudest mother s eyelids fill, As dares her gallant boy, And Plymouth Rock and Bunker Hill Yearn to thee, Illinois. HABITS OF MAJOR-GENERAL GRANT. 99 CHAPTER VII. HABITS OF MAJOR-GENERAL GRANT. Rumors about the Habits of Major-General Grunt. Amusing Incident. Enlarged Field of Action. Congratulations to his Army. Movements of the Fleet. General Grant s Discipline. Sword Presentation. Enlarged Command. Prep arations for Conflict at Corinth. The advance to Pittsburg Landing. The Plans of .the Enemy. Tie Surprises the Union Army. The Battle of Sunday. The arrival of General Bucll. General Grant Victorious. Congratulations. A Christian Hero. GENERAL GRANT was becoming sufficiently conspicu ous to attract general interest, and lead those who, for any reason, would weaken his influence, to parade before the public real or imaginary faults. With most of the officers of the regular army, and it may be added, of the volunteer service, he probably sometimes indulged in stimulants. But he certainly was never a drunkard, and, when he found himself rising to serious responsibilities in the national cause, abandoned the use of them alto gether. An incident occurred, after the victories of the Ten nessee and Cumberland Rivers, in connection with this discussion of the great commander s habits, which occa sioned much merriment among his friends in the South west. The rumors that he would get intoxicated had moved the friends of the Illinois troops at home to send a delegation of gentlemen to confer with General Halleck respecting his removal. They accordingly waited upon the Chief of the Department, and gravely stated the ob ject of their visit. 4 You see, General, we have a number of Illinois vol unteers under General Grant, and it is not safe that their lives should be intrusted to the care of a man who so constantly indulges in intoxicating liquors. Who knows what blunders he may commit ?" 100 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. "Well, gentlemen," said General Halleck, "I am sat isfied with General Grant, and I have no doubt you also soon will be." While the deputation were staying at the hotel, the news arrived of the capture of Fort Donelson and thir teen thousand prisoners. General Halleck posted the intelligence himself on the hotel-bulletin, and as he did so he remarked, loud enough for all to hear : "If General Grant is such a drunkard as he is re ported to be, and can win such victories as these, I think it is my duty to issue an order that any man found sober in St. Louis to-night shall be punished with fine and im prisonment." The people of St. Louis took the hint, and those whose temperance principles were easy, including members of the delegation, passed a festive night. Wrote a staff offi cer, about this time, to a friend in New York City : "I have seen it stated in the public prints that Gen eral Grant is a drunkard. I have seen him in every phase of his military life, and I can assert that the accu sation is false. I have been in the same tent with him at all hours of the day and night, and I never kneAV him to be under the influence of liquor, or any thing even approaching to it. I do not know what his former life may have been, but I do know that now he is a temper ate man." There was another reason for attacks upon distin guished generals, which should here be stated. It was, disappointment of ambitious or mercenary designs. General Grant was approached by reporters of the press, to secure a place, and the compensation of it, on his staff. Generals Halleck, Sherman, and C. F. Smith agreed with him that no Government funds should be applied to such a purpose. The "cut" made a wound, whose irritation was aimed at the offenders. General Sherman was called crazy, and General Smith a traitor. It was only at the special request of General Grant that the United States Senate confirmed the nomination of Gen eral Smith, and ho was able to retain General Sherman ; he assuring the Government that both were true men. GENERAL GRANT S NEW COMMAND. 1Q1 To the same source may be traced repeated attempts to destroy the rising reputation of General Grant. The operations of the early part of February, 1862, had brought him and his army into the State of Tennessee ; and to enable him to act with promptitude and success it became necessary to increase his line of operations. Therefore, on the 14th day of February, General Halleck issued an order creating the new district of West Ten nessee, to embrace all the country between the Tennessee and Mississippi rivers, to the Mississippi State line, and Cairo, making the head-quarters temporarily at Fort Donelson, or wherever the general might be. The first order issued by General Grant, after the assumption of the command of that district, was a con gratulatory order to his troops on their late victory : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, | FOET DONELSON, February 17, 3862. The general commanding takes great pleasure in congratulating the troops of this command for the triumph over rebellion, gained by their valor, on the 13th, 14th, and 15th instants. For four successive nights, without shelter, during the most inclement weather known in this latitude, they faced an enemy in large force, in a position chosen by Jiimself. Though strongly fortified by nature, all the additional safeguards suggested by science, were added. Without a mur mur this 1 was borne, prepared at all times to receive an attack, and, with continuous skirmishing by day, resulting ultimately in forcing the enemy to surrender without conditions. The victory achieved is not only great in the effect it will have in breaking down rebellion, but has secured the greatest number of prisoners of war ever taken in any battle on this continent. Fort Donelson will hereafter be marked in capitals on the map of our United Country, arid the men who fought the battle will live in the memory of a grateful people. By order, U. S. GKANT, Brigadier-General Commanding. General Grant never paused to enjoy congratulations or fruits of victory, but followed promptly every advan tage gained over the enemy. West Tennessee was evi dently within his grasp. Although one of the principal objects of the campaign the reopening of the Tennessee and Cumberland Eivers had been accomplished, he did not allow his forces to 102 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. remain long idle. After Fort Donelson had been reduced, the gunboats, under Commodore Foote, were pushed up the Cumberland River, while, at the same time, a co-operating land force, under General C. F. Smith, con sisting of a division of General Grant s army, marched along the western bank. On the 20th of February, the town of Clarksville was taken, without a fight ; and at this depot were found supplies enough for subsisting General Grant s army for twenty days. The place was at once garrisoned and held, while the gunboats moved still farther up the river, to open the way for the army of the Ohio to occupy Nashville. The Union army had by this time advanced some distance into the territory of the rebels ; and it became necessary, to protect the morale as well as the persons of those composing that army, that a most rigid discipline should be exacted, and searching law imposed upon all, both friend and foe. General Grant appended to his army orders of February 22d the following : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, | FORT DONELSON, TENN., Feb. 22, 18G2. ) Tennessee, by her rebellion, having ignored all laws of the United States, no courts will be allowed to act under State authority ; but all cases coming within, the reach of the military arm will be adjudicated by the authorities the Government has established within the State. Martial law is, therefore, declared to extend over West Tennessee. Whenever a sufficient number of citizens return to their allegiance to maintain law and order over the territory, the military restriction here indicated will be removed. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. In addition to the above, General Grant also had another order, from the head of the department, read at dress parade : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OK WEST TENNESSEE, \_ February, 1862. J The following order from the commander of the department is pub lished for the information of this command : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF MISSOURI, \ ST. Louis, February 23. The major-general commanding this department desires to impress upon all officers the importance of preserving good order and discipline among these troops and the armies of the West, during their advance into Tennessee and the Southern States. GENERAL HALLECK S ORDER OF MARCH. 1Q3 Let us show to our fellow-citizens of these States, that we coino merely to crush out this rebellion, and to restore to thera peace and the benefits of the Constitution and the Union, of which they have been deprived by selfish and unprincipled leaders. They have been told that we come to oppress and plunder. By our acts we will undeceive them. We will prove to them that we come to restore, not violate, the Consti tution and the laws. In restoring to them the glorious flag of the Union, we will assure them that they shall enjoy, under its folds, the same pro tection of life and property as in former days. Soldiers ! Let no excesses on your part tarnish the glory of our arms! The orders heretofore issued from this department in regard to pillaging, marauding, and the destruction of private property, and the stealing and concealment of slaves, must be strictly enforced. It does not belong to the military to decide upon the relation of master and slave. Such ques tions must be settled by the civil courts. No fugitive slave will, therefore, be admitted within our lines or camps, except when especially ordered by the general commanding. "Women and children, merchants, farmers, and all persons not in arms, are to be regarded as non-combatants, and are not to be molested, either in their persons or property. If, however, they assist and aid the enemy, they become belligerents, and will be treated as such. As they \ 7 iolate the laws of war, they will be made to suffer the penalties of such violation. Military stores and public property of the enemy must be surrendered; and any attempt to conceal such property, by fraudulent transfer or other wise, will be punished. But no private property will be touched, unless by order of the general commanding. Whenever it becomes necessary, forced contributions for supplies and subsistence for our troops will be made. Such levies will be made as light as possible, and be so distributed as to produce no distress among the people. All property so taken must be receipted fully and accepted for as heretofore directed. These orders will be read at the head of every regiment, and all officers are commanded strictly to enforce them. By command of Major-General HALLEOK. Major-General U. S. GKA.NT. Although strict martial law was to be exacted, and every effort made to crush the rebellion, still non-com batants were to be respected in their persons and property. When, upon the evacuation of Nashville, our troops under General Buell occupied the city, a rebel officer sig nificantly remarked to him : 4 We can leave our homes, and General Buell will protect our slave property more vigilantly than we can do it ourselves." 104 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. On the 23d of February, General Grant accompanied Admiral Foote up the river to Nashville. It was a strikingly beautiful interlude to the sanguinary scenes of conflict. The brightening verdure along the banks, the fragrant flowers, and the music of birds must have refreshed the stern warriors who ever acted with the perfect harmony of great and magnanimous minds. No rebels in Nashville were more insulting in their conduct to our troops than females. They became too outrageous for even the patience of General Buell. Pass ing by a palatial residence, the fair and proud owner waved a secession flag, and shouted: "Hurrah for Jeff Davis and the Southern Confederacy!" Reining up his steed, and touching his hat, he calmly said: "An excel lent house for a hospital !" Before the evening darkened about it, the ambulances bore their melancholy burdens to its doors. General Grant called on Mrs. James K. Polk, the widow of the former President, under whose administra tion was opened the Mexican war, and the cadet com menced his military career. He little dreamed, then, he should ever call upon the widow, a rebel in a conquered city. The interview was cold and formal. She merely ex pressed the hope that her husband s tomb would be the protection of her home and property. The United States, which so elevated her before almost unknown husband, she despised. After Nashville had been occupied, the gunboats were taken down the Cumberland River for further operations ; and, among others, a reconnoissance was made up the Tennessee River, as far as the northern State lines of Mississippi and Alabama. It was ascertained by the officers of the fleet, that along the banks of this river the Union feeling was strongly manifested, and that the gunboats were welcomed with enthusiasm. It was also discovered that no large rebel force was concentrated near the river itself, and that a base of operations might be established near the borders of the southern Tennessee State line. General Grant, therefore, removed his head- THE POSTURE OF AFFAIRS REBEL VIEWS. 105 quarters to Fort Henry, on the Tennessee River, where he fitted out his expedition for operations at a distance of about one hundred miles further up that stream. About this time, another very strong effort was made, by General Grant s detractors, to get him removed, and it was even reported, while the unjust suspicion was under investigation, that he had been deprived of his command. General C. F. Smith had been placed in command of the troops in the field, and General Grant was still at Fort Henry, organizing and fitting out the forces with which he was about to operate. The advance troops were sent by transports up the Tennessee Eiver, to Savannah, Tennes see, and while en route, and even after disembarking, General Smith held the command until the arrival of Gen eral Grant at that place. The Florence- (Alabama) Gazette, of March 12, 1862, had the following very significant article : "We learned yesterday that the Unionists had landed a very large force at Savannah, Tennessee. We suppose they are making preparations to get possession of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. They must never be allowed to get this great thoroughfare in their possession, for then we would indeed be crippled. The labor and untiring industry of too many faithful and energetic men have been expended on this road to bring it up to its present state of usefulness, to let it fall into the hands of the enemy, to be used against us. It must be protected. We, as a people, are able to protect and save it. If unavoidable, let them have our river ; but we hope it is the united sentiment of our people, that we will have our railroad." On the llth of March, 1862, General Grant, while at Fort Henry, was presented with a handsome sword, by the regimental commanding officers. The handle of the sword was made of ivory, mounted with gold, and the blade was of the finest tempered steel. Two scabbards were attached to the sword, the service one being of fine gilt, while the parade scabbard was of rich gilt, mounted at the band. The sword was inclosed in a fine rosewood case, and accompanied by a suitable sash and belt. The 106 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT, inscription on the sword was very simple, being mere- iy:- " Presented to General U. S. Grant, Try G. W. Graham, C. B. Lagow, C. C. Marsh, arid John Cook, 1862." While the Tennessee programme of operations was thus carried out, General Grant was not unmindful of the fact that he had hostile forces scattered about at posts nearer home. He sent expeditions and reconnoitring par ties in all directions ; and, on the 12th of March, 1862, he attacked with artillery and cavalry the enemy s works at a point a mile and a half west of Paris, and commanding the various roads leading to that place. The rebels were driven out, with a loss of about one hundred killed, wound ed, and prisoners, and the Union forces occupied the works. With the tendency of the movements of the different armies of the West toward the mouth of the Mississippi River and the Gulf, it became necessary that one chief should have the direction of the whole, to make the combinations at the proper time. Therefore, a new de partment was created, to be known as the "Department of the Mississippi," which embraced all the country west of a line drawn north and south through Knoxville, as far as Kansas and the Indian Territory, and running north to the lakes. Of this large department, General Grant com manded a very important district. The fall of Donelson had startled the entire Confed eracy, as the cannonading of Sumter did the North ; and General Beauregard addressed himself to the work of mustering an irresistible army, with which to roll back ward the advancing columns of the Army of Freedom. The rebels began concentrating a large force in the South west, under General Albert Sydney Johnston. General P. G. T. Beauregard commanded the troops which con stituted the rebel army of the valley of the Mississippi. The head- quarters of this army were located at Corinth, Mississippi, with the intention of holding the line of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad ; of preventing any advance of the Union forces below the line of the Ten nessee River ; and also to have a force ready to move into Kentucky and across the Ohio River, if an opportunity THE MOVEMENTS TOWARD CORINTH. 107 should offer. The Mississippi Eiver was also blockaded by fortified positions, at Island No. 10, and other points above Memphis, and at Vicksburg, New Orleans, &c., below that city. It was consequently thought by the rebels, that Corinth could not be attacked by the way of the Mississippi, and they determined to mass their forces to resist the advance of Grant s army from the Tennessee River. As the remainder of the troops under General Grant passed up the river, they encamped at Savannah and Pittsburg Landing, about twenty miles from Corinth. On the 15th of March, 1862, the troops belonging to the Third Division of Grant s arm}^ advanced from Sa vannah, Tennessee, into McISTairy County, and struck the line of the Jackson and Corinth Railroad, at Pur- dy, where they burned the railroad bridge, and tore up the track for a long distance. This movement prevented a train, heavily laden with rebel troops, from passing over that line from Jackson, the cars arriving shortly after the bridge was destroyed. As the rebels held the road between Jackson and Grand Junction, thence to Corinth, the concentration of the rebel army was not pre vented, but only delayed, by the destruction of this part of the line. Never before, and perhaps not since, did the South summon with so much pride and confidence the flower of her army to overwhelm the "Yankee invaders." From Pensacola, under Bragg, from Mobile, where the troops had gone to dispute the landing of Butler, and other points, came the chivalry, and their poor whites, to swell the ranks. General Bishop Polk hastened forward divi sions from Columbus ; Johnson retraced his retreating steps to augment the Confederate force. The rebel troops which had concentrated at Corinth, about the 1st of April, 1862, were supposed to number, at least, forty-five thousand men, under General A. S. Johnston, commanding department ; General P. G. T. Beauregard, commanding army at Corinth ; and Generals Bragg, Hardee, Breckinridge, and Polk, in command of divisions. It was also expected, by General Johnston, 108 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. that the forces under Generals Van Dorn and Price wonld have reached them within a few days, swelling his number to at least seventy thousand. General Grant s forces had, "by this time, been nearly all brought together at Pittsburg Landing, Savannah, and other places within reach the cavalry pickets oc cupying the outposts of the army. General Buell, who had been pursuing Johnston through Nashville, was leisurely marching across the country to join General Grant. "Corinth must be defended," declared the papers of Memphis. And the Governor of Tennessee, by a flaming proclamation, called for enlistments : "As Governor of your State, and commander-in-chief of its army, I call upon every able-bodied man of the State, without regard to age, to enlist in its service. I command him who can obtain a weapon to inarch with our armies, I ask him who can repair or forge an arm to make it ready at once for the soldier." The rebel generals had the railroads, by which they could rapidly concentrate their troops, and they deter mined to attack General Grant at Pittsburg, with their superior force, before General Buell could join him. Beauregard had his pickets within four miles of the Union forces, and he could move his entire army within striking distance before General Grant would know of his danger. He calculated that he could annihilate General Grant, drive him into the river, or force him to surrender, cap ture all his cannon, wagons, ammunition, provisions, steamboats : every thing by a sudden stroke. If lie suc ceeded, he could then move against General Buell, destroy his army, and not only recover all that had been lost, but he would a] so redeem Kentucky and invade Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. All but one division of General Grant s army was at Pittsburg. Two miles above the Landing, the river be gins to make its great eastern bend. Lick Creek comes in from the west, at the bend. Three miles below Pitts burg is Snake Creek, which also comes in from the west. Five miles further down is Crump s Landing. General THE ARMY AT PITTSBURGH LANDING. 109 Lewis Wallace s division was near Crump s, but the other divisions were "between the two creeks. The banks of the river are seventy -five feet high, and the county is a succession of wooded hills, with numerous ravines. There are a few clearings and farm-houses, but it is nearly all forest tall oak-trees, with here and there thickets of underbrush. From the Landing at Pittsburg, which is the nearest point to Corinth on the Tennessee, the road runs beside a ravine in a southwesterly direction, passing, a mile distant, a log-house, where another road branches off to the left, leading to Hamburg, and a third to the right, which goes to Shiloh Church, two miles further, in the direction of Corinth. This primitive sanctuary is a dilap idated log-building, without ceiling or windows a fair type of the legitimate effect, upon Church and State, of American slavery. A great advantage would be secured to the rebel army if the attack upon Grant could be made before General Buell reached him. The hostile force would not only out number ours by fifteen thousand men, but General Van Dorn was expected from Arkansas with thirty thousand more. But his arrival was delayed, which hastened the movement against .Grant to get the start of Buell, wlio, Johnston learned on the first of April, was within two or three days march of Savannah. The orders to advance were hailed with wildest joy by the rebel columns, who were assured by their commanders that it would be but a holiday pastime to overwhelm and rout the adversary. The march of eighteen miles was commenced on Thursday, and, hindered by a storm Friday night, the position of attack was not gained till Saturday afternoon. Prepara tions were immediately made for the onset on Sabbath morning. Along the Union lines there was no dream of the impending danger ; no thought of meeting the foe this side of Corinth, where General Halleck, Chief of the De partment, was to take the command. A skirmish on the evening of Friday was regarded as a mere reconnoissance by the enemy. The position of affairs Saturday night was unlike any HO LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. other in the progress of the war. There was certainly the appearance of vigilance in our army. But. the divisions were scattered ; the commanding general was at Savannah, ten miles from the threatened point, and Buell twenty miles away. Rebel sympathizers in the region had thor oughly posted the enemy, whose superior force had, it would seem, every possible advantage. And it must be recollected that nothing excepting the picket firing and light skirmishing changed at all the force of the many con siderations which pointed to Corinth, the enemy s strong hold, as the battle-field. General Grant personally reconnoitered, to discover if there were any indications that the rebels had advanced. The rebel leader the late candidate for Vice-President of the United States addressed the soldiers with great earnestness and sensational eloquence : SOLDIERS OF THE ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI : I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your coun try, with the resolution and discipline and valor becoming men, fighting, as you are, for all worth living or dying for. You can but march to a decisive victory over agrarian mercenaries, sent to subjugace and despoil you of your liberties, property, and honor. Remember the precious stake involved; remember the dependence of your mothers, your wives, your sisters, and your children, on the result. Remember the fair, broad, abounding lands, the happy homes, that will be desolated by your defeat. The eyes and hopes of eight million people rest upon you. You are expected to show yourselves worthy of your valor and courage, worthy of the women of the South, whose noble devotion in this war has never been exceeded in any time. With such incentives to brave deeds, and with trust that God is with us, your general will lead you confidently to the combat, assured of success. General A. S. JOHNSTON, Commanding. The rebel army of the Mississippi was divided into three army corps, and was commanded as follows : Commanding- General, General Albert Sydney John ston. Second in Command, General P. G. T. Beauregard. First Army Corps, Lieutenant-General L. Polk. Second Arrny Corps, Lieutenant - General Braxton Bragg. Third Army Corps, Lieutenant-General W. J. Hardee. THE ARMY CORPS OF THE HOSTILE FORCES. Reserves, Major-General G. B. Crittenden. Against this force, Major- General Grant had but a small army in comparison, consisting of live divisions. The organization of this army was as follows : Commanding-General, Major-General U. S. Grant. First Division, Major-General J. A. McClernand. Second Division, Brigadier-General W. H. L. Wallace. Third Division, Major- General Lewis Wallace. Fourth Division, Brigadier- General S. A. Hurlburt. Fifth Division, Brigadier- General W. T. Sherman. General Johnston s plan of battle was to fall, with his entire force, upon the columns of Prentiss and Sherman. With their small fires deep in the ground, and whispered signals, that no tidings of their proximity might meet the Union lines, they partook of their Saturday evening re past, and laid down to dream of conquest and Yankee luxuries in the morning. Apart from the sleeping sol diery around General Johnston s bivouac-lire, was held a council of war, of which an aid-de-camp of General Breck- inridge, who had been impressed into the rebel service, has published an account : " In an open space, with a dim fire in the midst, and a drum on which to write, you could see grouped around their Little Napoleon, as Beauregard was sometimes fondly called, ten or twelve generals, the flickering light playing over their eager faces, while they listened to his plans, and made suggestions as to the conduct of the fight, "Beauregard soon warmed with his subject, and, throwing off his cloak, to give free play to his arms, he walked about the group, gesticulating rapidly, and jerk ing out his sentences with a strong French accent. All listened attentively, and the dim light, just revealing their countenances, showed their different emotions of confidence or distrust of his plans. "General Sydney Johnston stood apart from the rest, with his tall, straight form standing out like a spectre against the dim sky, and the illusion was fully sustained by the light-gray military cloak which he folded around him. His face was pale, but wore a determined expres- 112 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. sion, and at times lie drew nearer the centre of the ring, and said a few words, which were listened to with great attention. It may be he had some foreboding of the fate he was to meet on the morrow, for he did not seem to take much part in the discussion. General Breckinridge lay stretched out on a blanket near the fire, and occasionally sat upright, and added a few words of counsel. General Bragg spoke frequently, and with earnestness. General Polk sat on a camp-stool at the outside of the circle, and held his head between his hands, buried in thought. Others reclined or sat in va rious positions. " For two hours the council lasted, and as it broke up, and the generals were ready to return to their respective commands, I heard General Beauregard say, raising his hand and pointing in the direction of the Federal camp, whose drums we could plainly hear, Gentlemen, we sleep in the enemy s camp to-morrow night. The beautiful Sabbath morning came with vernal beauty and fragrance, in strange contrast with the terrible scenes which -would make it forever memorable in the world s history. Soon after two o clock the rebel army quietly dispatched their breakfast, and by the hour of three stood in marching order, with only their arms, that they might move with the greater celerity through the woods. The Union troops were still enjoying their night s repose. The whole aspect of the camp was that of assured security ; a few early risers alone were astir, looking after the patient animals, and rekindling the dying fires. General Prentiss had increased the number of pickets, because of the reported presence of rebel cavalry near. In addition to this precaution, he sent Colonel Moore, with a part of the Twenty-first Missouri, to the front. He was met by the rebel skirmishers at the picket line, where the firing commenced. Though in the forest twilight every thing was indistinct, the rebel force was evidently large, and Colonel Moore sent for the rest of his regiment. General Prentiss immediately formed his several regiments into two brigades, and sent a mes- THE SURPRISE AND BATTLE AT SHILOH. senger to Generals Hurlburt and Wallace, in his rear toward the landing, with tidings of the attack. There was no haste in the camp to prepare for battle, because it was believed the alarm arose from the discharge of their guns by the returning pickets, who were, accustomed to such daily exercise at target-shooting. Soon the Twenty- first Missouri came hurrying back from, the front, report ing the advance of the rebel army. It marched in four lines, the third corps in front, led by Hardee ; the Second Corps following under Bragg ; the first corps next, com manded by Polk ; and behind these, Breckinridge with the reserves. Never, perhaps, was there a more sudden and intense excitement throughout a great army than that which spread over the Union camp. Amid the confusion, General G]adden s Brigade of Bragg s Corps poured in a murderous fire, killing soldiers still lying in their tents. General Prentiss formed and encouraged his troops, determined to stem the advancing tide. And now Hardee brought his brigades between Prentiss and Sherman, flanking each by the adroit movement, determined to separate the former from the river. Eegiments began to break, and the rebels, encouraged with their well-known and terrific shout, pressed forward. Don t give way ! Stand firm! Drive them back with the bayonet!" were the cool, ringing orders of Colonel Peabody, whose brave Missourians stood unmoved in the shock of battle. Just then, while General Gladden was shouting, "On! on! forward, boys !" a cannon-ball struck him, and he dropped from his horse. The nearly surrounded regiments of General Prentiss were compelled to give way ; the gallant Peabody falling before a rebel bullet. General Hurlburt was met by them, but advanced with steady and rapid step. The jubilant victors, wild with rum and premature joy, pillaged Prentiss s camp and robbed the prisoners taken. But where, during this progress of- the surprise, had been General Grant ? He had ordered a signal-gun to be 114 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. fired if an attack occurred, and when its startling roar reached his ear, he instantly ordered his horses and also the train to be ready. At the same moment he sent a messenger to General Buell, ten miles away, to hasten his march to the scene of conflict ; and in one hour and a quarter he was at the head of the army, breasting the wild tumult of panic and invasion. We turn to another part of the field, and find the noble Sherman bringing order out of the chaos around him. The sun had risen when his frightened pickets came in with their alarming reports. There was hurrying to and fro" after sabres, guns, and the various appliances of war. Fortunately General Hardee, instead of advancing with a charge upon the unprepared troops, halted to open his batteries. They formed in order of battle. "When the alarm was given, General Sherman was instantly on his horse. He sent a request to McClernand to support Hildebrand. He also sent word to Prentiss that the enemy were in front, but Prentiss had already made the discovery, and was contending with all his might against the avalanche rolling upon him from the ridge south of his position. He sent word to Hurlburt that a force was needed in the gap between the church and Prentiss. He was everywhere present, dashing along his lines, paying no attention to constant fire aimed at him and his staff by the rebel skirmishers, within short musket range. They saw him, knew that he was an officer of high rank, saw that he was bringing order out of confusion, and tried to pick him off. While gal loping down to Hildebrand, his orderly, Halliday, was killed." And thus the battle raged with increasing fury, cover ing the entire field of the late quiet encampment with the roar, fire, and smoke of the severest battle thus far of the war. Major Taylor s and Barrett s batteries made fright ful havoc with the enemy, and yielded their position when it was no longer possible to hold it. At length Sherman could no longer hold his camp, and fell back of McClernand. And again the rebels reveled with yells of delight upon the rations of the -deserted camp, and THE PROGRESS OF THE CONFLICT. 115 dressed themselves in the Federal uniform. While these scenes of carnage and disaster to the Union cause were transpiring around Shiloh Church, the prospect was no brighter between it and the Tennessee. The men of Meyer s Battery, who had never heard a shell, ran when its first shriek rent the air overhead. General Johnston had made the clear gain of a mile, crushing in our front on every hand. When the sun was sinking toward the west, the hurrahs of treason over the expected triumph seemed to drown the fearful sounds of the conflict. General Wallace, the very incarnation of heroism, maintained his ground from eleven till four o clock, his men repeating the deeds of valor which cov ered them with glory at Fort Donelson. General Breckinridge had brought up his reserves near the river, and before Stuart s Brigade. Eiding up to General Johnston, who was upon the hills, surrounded by his staff, and surveying the field, Johnston said to him : "I will lead your men into the fight to-day, for I intend to show these Kentuckians and Tennesseeans that I am no coward," referring to the suspicion created by his abandonment of Nashville. Breckinridge moved against Huiiburt, but was repulsed. He sent to Johnston for instructions. As the aid rode up, a shell exploded over head, and one of its fragments entered the Commander s thigh, cutting an artery from which he bled to death in a few hours. The disheartening blow was kept a secret from the Union troops by the order of General Beaure- gard. Soon after, General Wallace received a mortal wound, and his discouraged division followed his bleed ing body to the rear. General Prentiss was surrounded and taken prisoner. A passage from General Bragg s report will indicate the rebel view of the fortunes of the day, as that Sabbath- day s sun went down: "The enemy were driven head long from every position, and thrown in confused masses upon the river-bank, behind his heavy artillery, and un der cover of his gunboats at the Landing. He had left nearly all his light artillery in our hands, and some three thousand or more prisoners, who were cut off in their 116 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. retreat by the closing in of our troops on the left, under Major-General Polk, with a portion of his reserve corps, and Brigadier- General Ruggles, with Anderson s and Pond s brigades of his division." In the midst of this disaster the shattered army forced "backward toward the Landing, where panic-smitten fugi tives crowd the transports General Grant is calm, and confident of final success. He says, in his quiet way, "We shall hold them yet." An officer of the gunboat Tyler approaches, and suggests that the silent leviathans on the tranquil river have now a chance to harm the enemy. He returns with the brief message : " Tell Cap tain Gwin to use his own discretion." The impatient men of the Tyler and Lexington, with a bound, hasten to the guns and open their thunder. On the banks of a ravine running northwest from the Landing was a battery, which, for want of men to work it, had been useless. The favoring moment urged the call for volunteers, and, led by Dr. Corwyn, Surgeon of the First Missouri Artillery, they soon send a tempest of shot and shell along the gorge. McAllister, Stone, Walker, and Silversparre, and, nearer the church, Eichardson, Powell, Edwards, Taylor, Willard, Mann, Dresser, and Ross, had Parrots and howitzers ready to join in the can nonade of this decisive day a day which would either give Tennessee to the rebels, and win foreign recognition of the Confederacy, or check the invaders till re-enforce ments arrive. The canteens left by the rebels on the battle-field showed that numbers of them were infuriated with whis ky, in which was dissolved gunpowder ; and they shouted wildly with every advantage gained, "Bull Run! Bull Run !" And whenever our troops made an impression on the hostile front, the shout rang back, "Fort Donelson ! Fort Donelson !" The columns of Beauregard boldly advanced, but sud denly met a wasting fire, and reeled before the unex pected welcome of the patient, hopeful, and determined Grant. In vain he shouted, "Forward, boys, and drive them into the Tennessee!" The horrible carnage mowed GENERAL BUELL S RE-ENFORCEMENTS. H7 down the ranks in the ravine, till the living could no longer endure the hopeless, slaughter. And thus, by the hour, destruction rode upon the awful storm of batteries protected by and acting in con cert with the boats. Said Colonel Fagan, of an Arkansas brigade : Three different times did we go into the i Valley of Death, and as often were forced back by overwhelming numbers, intrenched in a strong position. That all was done that possibly could be done, the heaps of killed and wounded left there give ample evidence." Suddenly, there was a wild hurra on the highland near the river, which was caught up by the Union ranks, till its sound drowned the roar of the terrible arid doubtful strife, and startled the rebel host, while it rekindled the fading eyes of our dying heroes. Eager watchers had suddenly discerned in the distance, on the opposite bank, rapidly marching troops, bearing the dear old banner of the Kepublic. The advance columns of Buell were now at last near ! It was four o clock in the afternoon, when General Nelson, of Kentucky, command ing the welcome re-enforcements, rode up to General Grant, who was in the fiercest storm of battle, and with his mar tial salutation, pointing to his noble ranks of athletic, well- drilled men pouring on the transports to be ferried over the river, said exultingly : Here we are. We are not very military in our division. We don t know many fine points or nice evolutions ; but, if you want stupidity and hard fighting, I reckon we are the men for you." General Buell, who had reached General Grant s head quarters, was depressed by the aspect of the battle-field, and saw little prospect of saving the fortunes of the day. He asked General Grant what preparations he had made for retreat in case of defeat. " I am not going to be defeated," replied the iron man. " Such an event is possible," added Buell. " And it is the duty of a prudent general to provide for the contin gency." General Grant pointed to the transports, quietly asking : 118 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GEANT. " Don t you see those Iboats ?" " Yes ; but they will not carry more than ten thousand, and we have thirty thousand." i i Well, ten thousand are more than I intend to retreat with," replied General Grant. General Buell evidently anticipated defeat. That Sabbath s twilight curtained a Golgotha seldom known in war s dread havoc. Though the rebel chief did not finish the work anticipated, he had made good his promise of sleeping in Union camps, and paused, dripping with blood, to repeat on Monday the treasonable and deadly blows upon the hated Kepublic. General Grant was anxious ; but here he Jiad held them at last. During the awful night of groans from the dying thousands, and shrieking of shells in the air, General Grant said to his officers : We must not give the enemy the moral advantage of attacking to-morrow morning. We must fire the first gun." Monday s sun had only streaked with herald-beams the east, when General Grant, strengthened by General Buell and his Army of the Ohio, ordered an attack. Beaure- gard, who anticipated a finishing onset upon his foe, was met by Nelson, on whose front the gunboats had driven back the rebels. For an hour the doubtful struggle raged, till Mendenhall s Battery came up, and poured in the grape. Hazen also was ordered forward. "Into position there ! Livety, men !" shouts Captain Tirrell to his battery, flying from one thundering tube of flame to another. " Grape and cannister !" he said to the officers of the twelve-pounders ; and away he rode again to another post of peril. Crittenden, McCook, Eousseau, advanced. A little later, the general and final engagement opened. Then, what deeds of valor lent sanguinary glory to the awful plains of battle for a nation s life ! The falling banner was seized before it touched the dust, from the hand of the slain. Colonel Ammen, the first in the broken lines from General Buell s transports, husked corn and fed nis noble steed in the tempest of shells. "The enemy knew," wrote an eye-witness, "that a THE DECISIVE HOUES OF CONFLICT. defeat here would be the death-Mow to their hopes, and that their all depended on this great struggle ; and their generals still urged them on in the face of destruction, hop ing, by flanking us on the right, to turn the tide of battle. Their success was again, for a time, cheering, as they be gan to gain ground on us, appearing to have been re- enforced ; but our left, under General Nelson, was driv ing them, and with wonderful rapidity ; and, by eleven o clock, General Buell s forces had succeeded in flanking them, and capturing their batteries of artillery. "They, however, again rallied on the left, and re- crossed ; and the right forced themselves forward in another desperate effort. But re-enforcements rrom Gen eral Wood and General Thomas were coming in, regiment after regiment, which were sent to General Buell, who had again commenced to drive the enemy. "About three o clock in the afternoon, General Grant rode to the left where the fresh regiments had been or dered, and, finding the rebels wavering, sent a portion of his body-guard to the head of each of five regiments, and then ordered a charge across the field, himself leading; and as he brandished his sword, and waved them on to the crowning victory, the cannon-balls were falling like hail around him. "The men followed with a shout that sounded .above the roar and din of the artillery, and the rebels fled in dis may as from a destroying avalanche, and never made another stand. "General Buell pursued the retreating rebels, driving them in splendid style, and, by half-past five o clock, the whole rebel army was in full retreat to Corinth. "There has never been a parallel to the gallantry and bearing of our officers, from the commanding General to the lowest officer. " General Grant and staff were in the field, riding along the lines in the thickest of the enemy s fire, during the en tire two days of the battle ; and all slept on the ground Sunday night, during a heavy rain. On several occasions General Grant got within range of the enemy s guns, and was discovered and fired upon. 120 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. " Lieutenant-Colonel McPherson had his horse shot from under him when along side of General Grant. " Captain Carson was near General Grant when a can non-ball took off his head, and killed and wounded several others. " General McClernand and General Hurlbut, each re ceived bullet-holes through their clothes." And no better vindication of General Grant s manage ment of affairs at Pittsburg Landing can be offered, than the testimony of General Sherman, in his lengthy and able letter on the struggle ; in which he says : "The battle-field was chosen by the lamented Major- General Charles F. Smith, and it was well chosen ; on any other the Union army would have been overwhelmed. General Grant was early on the field, and visited his ( Sher man s) division in person about ten A. M., when the bat tle was raging fiercest ; approved of his stubborn resist ance to the enemy, and, in answer to his inquiry. con cerning cartridges, told him that he had anticipated their want, and given orders accordingly ; and, remarking that his presence was more needed over at the left, rode off to encourage the hardly-pressed ranks of McClernand s and Huiiburt s Divisions. General Sherman says further: " About live P.M., before the sun set, General Grant came again to me, and, after hearing .my report of matters, explained to me the situation of affairs on the left, which were not so favor able ; still, the enemy had failed to reach the landing of the boats. We agreed that the enemy had expended the furore of his attack, and we estimated our loss and ap proximated our then strength, including Lew. Wallace s fresh division, expected each minute. He then ordered me to get all things ready, and, at daylight the next day, to assume the offensive. That was before General Buell had arrived, but he was near at hand. General Buell s troops took no essential part in the first day s fight, and Grant s army, though collected together hastily, green as militia, some regiments arriving without cartridges even, and nearly all hearing the dread sound of battle for the first time, had successfully withstood and repelled the GENERAL SHERMAN S VIEW OF THE BATTLE. first day s terrific onset of a superior enemy, well com manded and well handled. I know I had orders from General Grant to assume the offensive "before I knew Gen eral Buell was on the west side of the Tennessee. * * * I understood Grant s forces were to advance on the right of the Corinth road, and Buell s on the left (this was on the 7th), and, accordingly, at daylight I advanced my division by the flank, the resistance being trivial up to the very spot where the day before the battle had been most severe, and then waited till near noon for Buell s troops to get up abreast, when the entire line ad vanced and recovered all the ground we had ever held. I know that, with the exception of one or two severe struggles, the fighting of April 7th was easy as compared with that of April 6th. I never was disposed, nor am now, to question any thing done by General Buell and his army, and know that, approaching our field of battle from the rear, he encountered that sickening crowd of laggards and fugitives that excited his contempt and that of his army, who never gave full credit to those in the front line who did fight hard, and who had, at four P. M., checked th t e enemy, and were preparing the next day to assume the offensive." The impressions made by the officers and scenes of the battle-days of Shiloh, recorded by Mr. A. D. Eichardson, who was on the plains of death, are remarkably clear and just: "Throughout the battle, Grant rode to and fro on the front, smoking his inevitable cigar, with his usual stolidity and good fortune. Horses and men were killed all around him, but he did not receive a scratch. On that wooded field it was impossible for any one to keep advised of the progress of the struggle. Grant gave orders, merely bid ding his generals to do the best they could. Sherman had many hair-breadth escapes. His bridle- rein was cut off by a bullet within two inches of his fingers. As he was leaning forward in the saddle, a ball whistled through the top and back of his hat. His metal lic shoulder-strap warded off another bullet, and a third passed through the palm of his hand. Three horses were 122 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEEAL GRANT. shot under him. He was the hero of the day. All award ed to him the highest praise for skill and gallantly. He was promoted to a major-generalship, dating from the battle. His official report was a clear, vivid, and fasci nating description of the conflict. "Five bullets penetrated the clothing of an officer on McClernand s staff, but did not break the skin. A ball knocked out two front teeth of a private in the Seven teenth Illinois Infantry, but did him no further injury. A rifle-shot passed through the head of a soldier in the First Missouri Artillery, coming out just above the ear, but did not prove fatal. Dr. Corwyn, of St. Louis, told me that he extracted a ball from the brain of one soldier, who, three days afterward, was on duty, with the bullet in his pocket. "Brigadier-General Thomas W. Sweeney, who had lost one arm in the Mexican War, received a Minie bullet in his remaining arm, and another shot in his foot, while his horse fell riddled with seven balls. Almost fainting from loss of blood, he was lifted upon another horse, and remained on the field through the entire day. His cool ness and his marvelous escapes were talked of before many camp-fires throughout the army. "Once, during the battle, he was unable to determine whether a battery, whose men were dressed in blue, was rebel or Union. Sweeney, leaving his command, rode at a gentle gallop directly toward the battery, until with in pistol-shot, saw that it was manned by Confederates, turned in a half-circle, and rode back again at the same easy pace. Not a single shot was fired at him, so much was the respect of the Confederates excited by this daring act. I afterward met one of them, who described, with great vividness, the impression which Sweeney s gallantry made upon them. "The steady determination of Grant s troops during that long April Sunday was, perhaps, uriequaled during the war. At night companies were commanded by ser geants, regiments by lieutenants, and brigades by majors. In several regiments, one-half the men were killed and wounded ; and in some entire divisions the killed and THE FIELD OF CARNAGE AFTER BATTLE. wounded exceeded thirty-three per cent, of the numbers who went into battle. "I have seen no other field which gave indication of such deadly conflict as the Shiloli ridges and ravines, everywhere covered with a very thick growth of timber Shot-sown and bladed thick with steel. In one tree I counted sixty bullet-holes ; another bore marks of more than ninety -balls within ten feet of the ground. Sometimes, for several yards in the dense shrub bery, it was difficult to find a twig as large as one s finger, which had not been cut off by balls. "A friend of mine counted one hundred and twenty- six dead rebels, lying where they fell, upon an area less than fifty yards wide and a quarter of a mile long. One of our details buried, in a single trench, one hundred and forty-seven of the enemy, including three lieutenant- colonels and four majors. "It was long after the battle of Shiloh before all the dead were buried. Many were interred in trenches, scores together. A friend, who was engaged in this revolting labor, told me that, after three or four days, he found himself counting off the bodies as indifferently as he would have measured cord- wood. "When the army began to creep forward, I messed at Grant s head- quarters, with his chief of staff; and around the evening camp-fires I saw much of the General. He rarely uttered a word upon the political bearings of the war ; indeed, he said little upon any subject. With his eternal cigar, and his head thrown slightly to one side, for hours he would sit silently before the fire, or walk back and forth, with his eyes upon the ground, or look in upon our whist-table, now and then making a sugges tion about the play. " Most of his pictures greatly idealize his full, rather heavy face. The journalists called him stupid. One of my confreres used to say : c How profoundly surprised Mrs. Grant must have been when she woke up and learned that her husband was a great man ! 124 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. "He impressed me as possessing great purity, integ rity, and amiability, with excellent judgment, and bound less pluck. But I should never have suspected him of military genius. Indeed, nearly every man of whom, at the beginning of the war, I prophesied a great career, proved inefficient, and vice versa. "Military men seem to cherish more jealousies than members of any other profession, except physicians and artists. At almost every general head-quarters, one heard denunciations of rival commanders. Grant was above this mischievous, foul sin of chiding. I never heard him speak unkindly of a brother officer. 4 { Hooker once boasted that he had the best army on the planet. One would have declared that Grant com manded the worst. There was little of that order, per fect drill, or pride, pomp, and circumstance, seen among Buell s troops, and in the Army of the Potomac. But Grant s rough, rugged soldiers would fight wonderfully, and were not easily demoralized. If their line became broken, every man from behind a tree, rock, or stump, blazed away at the enemy on his own account. They did not throw up their hats at sight of their general, but were wont to remark, with a grim smile : " There goes the old man. He doesn t say much; but he s a pretty hard nut for Johnny Reb. to crack. "Unlike Halleck, Grant did not pretend to familiarity with the details of military text-books. He could not move an army with that beautiful symmetry which McClellan displayed ; but his pontoons were always up, and his ammunition trains were never missing. * Though not occupied with details, he must have given them close attention ; for, while other command ing generals had forty or fifty staff officers, brilliant with braid and buttons, Grant allowed himself but six or seven." Whatever the valor of such commanders as Sherman, McPherson, and Buell, with his re-enforcements, accom plished for the country s imperiled cause, the record of the struggle is clear, that General Grant rode through it all with cool, resolute heroism, never for an instant despairing INCIDENTS AND RESULTS OF THE CONTEST. 125 of success. He was slightly wounded in the ankle, "but able to remain on the field. While the South was jubilant over the report of victory, the chaplains of the noble army were leading thousands of devout soldiers in prayer and thanksgiving to God. An amusing incident made a singular interlude to the worship of one assembly. The chaplain was reading the lines, " Show pity, Lord ; O Lord, forgive ! Let a repenting rebel live," when a patriotic soldier, forgetting the exact meaning, exclaimed : { No, sir ; not unless they lay down their arms, every one of them." Of the Union troops, one thousand six hundred and fourteen were slain, seven thousand seven hundred and twenty-one wounded, and three thousand nine hundred and sixty-three missing ; making the entire loss more than thirteen thousand men. The enemy s loss was at least as great. Over twenty-five thousand husbands, fathers, and sons killed, mangled, captured, and astray is the cost of a single battle ! The tidings of victory created a great excitement among the citizens of New York, and during the day it was telegraphed to the National Capital and to other parts of the Union. The proprietor of the newspaper in which it was published telegraphed it immediately to the Presi dent and to both Houses of Congress, in which it was read aloud. In the Lower House, Mr. Colfax, on asking leave to read the dispatch, was greeted on all sides of the House with cries of "To the Clerk s desk." The previous noise and excitement subsided, and as the House listened to the brief and pregnant details of the bloody struggle which preceded the glorious victory over the concentrated strength of rebeldom, all hearts were stilled, and the very breathing almost suppressed, till the last word of the dispatch, was read. The rejoicing was great at the victory, though saddened at the price of blood with which it. had been purchased. 126 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GEKERAL GRANT. The following extract from the official War Bulletin is complimentary to the commanding generals : WAK DEPARTMENT, "WASHINGTON, April 9. 1SC2. That the thanks of the Department are hereby given to Major-Generals Grant and Buell, and their forces, for the glorious repulse of Beauregard, at Pittsburg, in Tennessee. A salute of one hundred guns was fired at the National Capital ; and from every part of the North the responsive echoes of gratitude and joy were heard. It will be seen by the details of the struggle, that the iirst day the success seemed to be entirely on the side of the rebels, and on that ground, General Beauregard, who succeeded General Johnston, telegraphed to the rebel government as follows : COEINTH, Tuesday, April 8, 1862. To THE SECRETARY OF WAR, RICHMOND: We have gained a great and glorious victory. Eight to ten thousand prisoners, and thirty-six pieces of cannon. Buell re-enforced Grant, and we retired to our intrencliments at Corinth, which we can hold. Loss heavy on both sides. BEAUREGARD. From the following correspondence, it does not appear that the rebels could have moved about at will, or had even the consolation of a victory : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF MISSISSIPPI, ) MONTEREY, April 8, 1SC2. ) SIR : At the close of the conflict yesterday, my forces being exhausted by the extraordinary length of the time during which they were engaged with yours, on that and the preceding day, and it being apparent that you had received, and were still receiving, re-enforcements, I felt it my duty to withdraw my troops from the immediate scene of the conflict. Under these circumstances, in accordance with the usages of war, I shall transmit this under a Hag of truce, to ask permission to send a mounted party to the battle-field of Shiloh, for the purpose of giving decent inter ment to rny dead. Certain gentlemen wishing to avail themselves of this opportunity to remove the remains of their sons and friends, I must request for them the privilege of accompanying the burial party ; and in this con nection, I deem it proper to say, I am asking what I have extended to your own countrymen under similar circumstances. Respectfully, General, your obedient servant, P. G. T. B EAUREGARD, General Commanding. To Major-General U. S. GRANT, Major-General, Commanding United States Forces, Pittsburg Landing. BURIAL OF THE DEAD. 127 HKAD-QUARTERS, ARMY IN FIELD, I PITTSBUKG, April 9, 18G2. ) General P. G. T. BEAUEEGARD, Commanding Confederate Army on Mis sissippi, Monterey, Tenn. : Your dispatch of yesterday is just received. Owing to the warmth of the weather, I deemed it advisable to have all the dead of Loth parties buried immediately. Heavy details were made for this purpose, and it is now accomplished. There cannot, therefore, be any necessity of admitting within our lines the parties you desired to send on the ground asked. I shall always be glad to extend any courtesy consistent with duty, and especially so when dictated by humanity. I am, General, respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GKAXT, Major-General Commanding. On the morning of April 8th, General Sherman, the commander of the Fifth Division, at the head of a cavalry force and two brigades of infantry, made a reconnoissance along the Corinth road, where he found the abandoned carnps of the rebels lining the roads, with hospital flags for their protection. Shortly after he came upon the rebel cavalry, which, after a skirmish, was driven from the field. He then destroyed the rebel camp, including the ammunition intended for the rebels guns. General Sherman found the road to Corinth strewed with abandoned wagons, ambulances, and limber-boxes, and other indications of a hasty retreat. The enemy had succeeded in removing the guns ; but crippled his batteries by abandoning the limber-boxes of at least twenty pieces. The retreat of the enemy s infantry was evidently a disorderly one, and, had not the cavalry been in great force to protect the rear, might soon have been turned into a disastrous rout. When the news of this battle reached St. Louis, Gen eral Halleck, the commander of the department, determined to take to the field himself, and inquire into the real results of the "Battle of Shiloh." On his arrival at Pittsburg Landing, he issued the following order to the troops : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF TIIK MISSISSIPPI, J. PITTSBURO, TEXN., April 13, 1SC2. I. The major-general commanding this department thanks Major- 128 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Grant and Major-General Buell, and the officers and men of their respective commands, for the bravery and endurance with which they sustained the general attacks of the enemy on the 6th, and for the heroic manner in which, on the 7th instant, they defeated and routed the entire rebel army. The soldiers of the great West have added new laurels to those which they have already won on numerous battle-fields. III. Major-Generals Grant and Buell will retain the immediate com mand of their respective armies in the field. By command of Major-General HALLEOK. Cavalry skirmishes still continued, at intervals, to take place along the outposts of the Union army ; but nothing important occurred until April 17, 1862, when the move ment was made toward Corinth. The hero of Shiloh gave his story of the contest in these words : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF WESTEUK TENNESSEE, ) , April 9, 1S62. f Captain N. II. McLEAsr, Assistant Adjutant-General, Department of Mississippi, St. Louis : CAPTAIX: It becomes my duty again to report another battle, fought by two great armies, one contending for the maintenance of the best government ever devised, and the other for its destruction. It is pleasant to record the success of the army contending for the former principle. On Sunday morning our pickets were attacked and driven in by the enemy. Immediately the five divisions stationed at this place were drawr up in line of battle to meet them. The battle soon waxed warm on the left and centre, varying at times to all parts of the line. There was the most continuous firing of musketry and artillery ever heard on this continent kept up until nightfall. The enemy, having forced the entire line to fall back nearly half way from their camps to the Landing, at a late hour in the afternoon a des perate effort was made by the enemy to turn our left and get possession of the Landing, transports, &c. This point was guarded by the gunboats Tyler and Lexington, Captains Gwin and Shirk commanding, with four twenty-four-pounder Parrott guns, and a battery of rifled guns. As there is a deep and impassable ravine for artillery or cavalry, and very difficult for infantry, at this point, no troops were stationed here, ex cept the necessary artillerists and a small infantry force for their support. Just at this moment the advance of Major-General Buell s column and a part of the division of General Nelson arrived. The two generals named GENERAL GRANT S REPORT OF THE BATTLE . 129 both being present, an advance was immediately made upon the point of attack, and the enemy was soon driven back. Irt this repulse much is due to the presence of the gunboats Tyler and Lexington, and their able commanders, Captains G win and Shirk. During the night, the divisions under Generals Crittenden and McCook arrived. General Lewis Wallace, at Camp Landing, six miles below, was ordered, at an early hour in the morning, to hold his division in readiness to move in any direction it might be ordered. At eleven o clock the order was delivered to move it up to Pittsburg; but, owing to its being led by a circuitous route, it did not arrive in time to take part in Sunday s action. During the night all was quiet, and, feeling that great moral advantage would be gained by becoming the attacking party, an advance was ordered as soon as day dawned. The result was the gradual repulse of the enemy at all points of the line, from nine until probably five o clock in the after noon, when it became evident the enemy was retreating. Before the close of the action, the advance of General T. J. "Wood s division arrived in time to take part in the action. My force was too much fatigued from two days hard fighting, and ex posure in the open air to a drenching rain during the intervening night, to pursue immediately. Night closed in cloudy, with a heavy rain, making the roads impractica ble for artillery by the next morning. General Sherman, however, followed the enemy, finding that the main part of their army had retreated in good order. Hospitals, with the enemy s wounded, were found all along the road as far as pursuit was made. Dead bodies of the enemy, and many graves were also found. I enclose herewith a report of General Sherman, which will explain more fully the result of the pursuit arid of the part taken by each separate command. I cannot take special notice in this report, but will do so more fully when the reports of the division commanders are handed in. General Buell, commanding in the field, with a distinct army long under his command, and which did such efficient service commanded by himself in person, on the field, will be much better able to notice thoso officers commands, who particularly distinguished themselves, than I pos sibly can. I feel it a duty, however, to a gallant and able officer, Brigadier-Gen eral "W. T. Sherman, to make a special mention. He not only was with his command during the entire two days of the action, but displayed great judgment and skill in the management of his men. Although severely wounded in the hand on the first day, his place was never vacant. He was again wounded, and had three horses killed under him. In making this mention of a gallant officer, no disparagement is intended to other division commanders or Major-Generals John A. McClernand and Lewis Wallace, and Brigadier-Generals S. A. Hurlbut, P. M. Prentiss, and 9 130 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. W. H. L. Wallace, all of whom maintained their places with credit to themselves and the cause. General Prentiss was taken prisoner on the first day s action; and General W. II. L. Wallace was severely arid probably mortally wounded. His Assistant Adjutant- General, Captain Wm. McMichael, is missing, and was probably taken prisoner. My personal staff are all deserving of particular mention, they having been engaged during the entire two days in carrying orders to every part of the field. It consists of Colonel J. D. Webster, Chief-of-Staff; Lieuten- ant-Coloricl J. B. McPherson, Chief of Engineers, assisted by Lieutenants W. L. B. Jenney, and William Kossac ; Captain J. A. Rawlins, Assistant Adjutant-General W. S. Hilger, W. R. Rawley, and 0. B. Lagow, Aids-de- Camp ; Colonel G. Pride, Volunteer Aid, and Captain J. P. Hawkins, Chief Commissary, who accompanied me upon the field. The Medical Department, under direction of Surgeon Hewitt, Medical Director, showed great energy in providing for the wounded, and in get ting them from the field, regardless of danger. Colonel Webster was placed in special charge of all the artillery, and was constantly upon the field. He displayed, as always heretofore, both skill and bravery. At least, in one instance, he was the means of placing an entire regiment in position of doing most valuable service, and where it would not have been but for his exertions. Lieutenant-Colonel McPherson, attached to my staff as Chief of En gineers, deserves more than a passing notice for his activity and courage. All the grounds beyond our camp, for miles, have been reconnoitred by him, and the plans, carefully prepared under his supervision, give the most accurate information of the nature of the approaches to our lines. During the two days battle he was constantly in the saddle, leading the troops as they arrived, to points where their services were required. During the engagement he had one horse shot under him. The country will have to mourn the loss of many brave men who fell at the battle of Pittsburg, or Shiloh, more properly. The exact loss in killed and wounded will be known in a day or two. At present I can only give it approximately at fifteen hundred killed, and thirty-five hundred wounded. The loss of artillery was great, many pieces being disabled by tho enemy s shots, and some losing all their horses and many men. There were, probably, not less than two hundred horses killed. The loss of the enemy, in killed and left upon the field, was greater than ours. In the wounded, an estimate cannot be made, as many of them must have been sent to Corinth and other points. The enemy suffered terribly from demoralization and desertion. A flag of truce was sent to-day from General Beauregard. I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Major-GeneraL THE "WOUNDED CHRISTIAN HERO. We shall leave the field of Shiloli with a single scene after the shock of battle was over, illustrating the Chris tian heroism, which was never, since men were arrayed against each other in arms, so conspicuous as in the war of our nation s redemption. On Tuesday morning, among the wounded "borne from the red field to the hospitals, was a brave and devout captain, fatally shot through both thighs with a bullet. He gave the following narrative of the long night, whose shades had just departed, and uncovered its horrors to the calm, sweet light : 4 While lying there, I suffered intense agony from thirst. I leaned my head upon my hand, and the rain from heaven was falling around me. In a little while a pool of water formed under my elbow, and I thought, if I could only get to that puddle, I might quench the burning thirst. I tried to get into a position to suck up a mouth ful of muddy water, but was unable to reach within a foot of it, I never felt so much the loss of any earthly bless ing. By and by, night fell, and the stars shone out clear and beautiful above the dark field, and I began to think of that great God who had given His Son to die a death of agony for me, and that he was up there up above the scene of suffering, and above these glorious stars ; and I felt that I was going home to meet Him, and praise Him there ; and I felt that I ought to praise God, even wound ed and on the battle-field. I could not help singing that beautiful hymn : * When I can read my title clear To mansions in the sky, I ll bid farewell to every fear, And wipe my weeping eyes. And there was a Christian brother in the brush near me. I could not see him, but I could hear him. He took up the strain, and beyond him another and another caught it up, all over the terrible battle-field of Shiloli. That night the echo was resounding, and we made the field of battle ring with hymns of praise to God." ISTor were there wanting instances of similar trust in the 132 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEKAL GRANT. ranks of treason; soldiers who were deluded by their leaders, and others impressed into the service, whose souls went up from the ensanguined plain or hospital, to wor ship in " goodly fellowship" before the throne, with him who sang, in the dark, damp night, of Heaven ! A RECONNOISSANCE. NAVAL MOVEMENTS. 153 CHAPTER VIII. RECONNOISSANCE TOWARD CORINTH. Rcconnoissanco toward Corinth. Movements on the Mississippi River. Capture of New Orleans. Beauregard alarmed. Calls upon the Planters to burn their Cotton. Cavalry Skirmish near Corinth. Reconnoissance toward Jackson, Ten nessee. Troops concentrate at Pittsburg Landing. General Grant s Command farther Enlarged. Enemies again assail his Reputation. Hon. Mr. "Wasli- burne s Defense. General Halleck s Confidence in Grant. Siege and Evacua tion of Coi Inth. ON the morning of April 17, 1862, a heavy cavalry force, under Brigadier-General Smith, Chief of Cavalry, was detailed to make a reconnoissance along the upper road from Pittsburg Landing to Corinth. The force ar rived within two miles of Monterey without meeting any opposition. Several of the men dismounted to act as skirmishers, and steadily advanced until they discovered the exact position of a large force of the enemy, when they fell back upon the main body, and returned. On April 24th, another similar reconnoissance was made, under the same commander, toward an elevation known as Pea Ridge, where a rebel camp was discovered and destroyed, and a few prisoners taken. Meanwhile, there had been in progress a naval cam paign, whose grand success followed immediately the great land triumphs at Donelson and Shiloh. And as it was connected., in its results, directly with General Grant s movements and victories during the succeeding months, it will lend interest to the narrative of them, and shed light upon the whole field of conflict, to glance at the naval expedition culminating in the fall of New Or leans. It will be recollected, that the first battle of Manas- sas was fought in July, 1861. The latter part of August, the first secret naval expe dition, including the Minnesota, WabasTi, Pawnee, Mon- 134 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ticello, and Harriet Lane, war- steamers, sailed with trans ports from Hampton Roads for Hatteras Inlet, to take the rebel forts erected there, and hold the key of Albemarle Sound. Commodore Stringham commanded the sea forces, and General Butler those of the land. The splendid suc cess of the expedition we know. After a protracted and terrible bombardment, the white flag was raised on the walls of Fort Hatteras. The next grand move in the naval field of action was under Dupont, in October, 1861, whose fleet consisted of eighteen men-of-war and thirty- eight transports ; the lat ter carrying troops for the land attack. Port Royal was the destination of the armada. The guarding forts were Beauregard and Walker, which the rebels thought were impregnable, till the fleet rained its ponderous iron hail and exploding shells upon the garrisons. The terrified enemy made their escape. Among the heroes of this bat tle was William II. Steel, only fourteen years of age, who handed up powder for one of the guns, amid the fiery hail and flying fragments, as coolly as a veteran of three-score years could have done. January, 1862, a third maritime expedition was fitted out, Commodore Goldsborough commanding, and General Burnside leading the land forces. The splendid fleet moved from Hampton Roads while a host of admiring spectators watched the grand march of the seventy ships, with banners in the breeze, and bands of music beneath tho starry ensigns. Oft Cape Hatteras a terrific gale scattered the fleet. Amid the awful dash and roar of the billows, General Burnside was calm in his trust ; " feeling," he said, "that God held them in the hollow of his hand." February 8th, saw the victorious charge on Park Point battery, followed by the capture of Roanoke Island and Newbern. A month later, the Monitor and the Mer~ rimac met at Hampton Roads, and the "Yankee Cheese- Box " sent the rebel monster limping to his guarded den. Fort Pulaski was added, early in April, to the bom barded and conquered strongholds of the rebellion. On the 15th, the troops selected for a grand expedition PASSING THE FORTS GUARDING NEW ORLEANS. 135 against New Orleans, having their rendezvous at Ship Island, near New Orleans, the fleets under Commodores Porter and Farragut were united, and the mortar flotilla anchored not far from Pilot Town. Farragut commanded the fleet, whose flag-ship was the Hartford. The formidable defenses of the Southern metropolis were Forts Jackson and St. Philip, sixty miles below it, two magnificent fortresses, whose scientific and elaborate construction defied attack ; and the garrisons within them, with the Confederacy around them, laughed the united fleets to scorn. They were reared by our own Govern ment to guard from foreign invasion the common purchase of Revolutionary blood. They stand at a sharp bend of the "Father of Waters," and before them the current is rapid. On the 15th, a sudden alarm was signaled through the fleet. A raft, with its cords of pine-wood in a blaze, was running with the glow of wrath upon the Union fleet. Providentially, before reaching its goal it grounded and burned to the water s edge. Commodore Porter made prompt provision for a similar assault. One hundred and fifty boats were furnished with picked crews, axes, grapnel-ropes, and buckets, to intercept the flaming her alds of treason. We quote from a fine sketch of the scene : "As the signal rose at two o clock on the morning of the 24th, which was two red lights, too common to at tract the attention of the enemy, Commodore Farragut s fleet started on its voyage of victory or ruin. The ad vance was made in two columns. In the van were the three magnificent ships, the Hartford, the Brooldyn, and the Richmond, followed by the gunboats Sciota, Iroquois, Kennebec, Piuola, Itasca, and Winona ; the second col umn by the Pensacola and the Mississippi. They all made for the chasm in the barrier of hulks and chains, keeping up an incessant fire upon the forts, and, as orre after another they passed through, the vessels of the first division ranged themselves to assail Fort St. Philip, and the second Fort Jackson, while all alike were prepared to attack and repel the rebel rams and gunboats, as occa sion might require. It may be safely said that such a* 136 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. naval conflict was never witnessed on this earth before. The enemy were on the alert, and the beacon-fires soon blazed so brightly as to expose every movement of the fleet; and the whole stormy scene was illumined with a lurid glare, which added vastly to its sublimity, and its almost fiendlike horror. The Cayuga was the first which passed the chain-boom, under a terrible fire from both of the forts, which struck her repeatedly from stem to stern. The rest of the squadron rapidly followed. They were now directly abreast of the forts, exposed to the direct action of their guns, while the river above was crowded with the fire-rafts, rams, and gunboats of the foe. " Every ship in the fleet signalized itself by heroism which could not be surpassed. We cannot record the deeds of all ; let us allude to a few, as specimens of the rest. The United States steamship Brooklyn, in the dark ness, and while exposed to the hottest fire, became en tangled in the barricading hulks and chains. In attempt ing to extricate the ship her bow grazed the shore. She, however, worked her way through, when the ram Ma nas sas came rushing upon her from the gloom. At the distance of ten feet the ram discharged her shot, which pierced the ship, and then, with a crash, struck her side, battering in the starboard gangway. The chain armor saved the ship from destruction, and the ram slid off and disappeared in the darkness. i Fort Jackson, in the liftings of the smoke, caught a glimpse of the majestic ship, and opened upon her a rak ing fire. Just then a large rebel steamer came rushing up on the port broadside. When at the distance of but sixty yards, the Brooklyn poured into the audacious stranger one single volley of shell and red-hot shot, and the frag ments of the steamer, in a mass of crackling flame, drifted down the stream. " The Brooklyn, still groping its way along, lighted by the flames of an approaching fire-raft, and yet enveloped in its resinous smoke, soon found itself abreast .of St. Philip, almost touching the shore. The ship chanced to be in such a position that she could bring almost every gun to bear. Tarrying for a moment, she poured into the THE PROGRESS OF THE NAVAL BATTLE. 137 fort such a storm of grape and canister as completely to silence the work. The men stationed in the tops of the frigate said that, by the light of their "bursting shrapnels, they could see the garrison i running like sheep for more comfortable quarters. "The Brooklyn then rushed into the nest of rebel gun boats, lighting them indiscriminately, with her broadsides striking the most terrific blows, and continuing the con test, in, connection with the other vessels, for an hour and a half, until the rebel fleet was annihilated. After the ac tion was over, Commodore Farragut took the hand of Cap tain Craven, of the Brooklyn^ in both of his, and said : You and your noble ship have been the salvation of my squadron. You were in a complete blaze of fire ; so much so that I supposed your ship was burning up. I never saw such rapid and precise firing. It never was sur passed, and probably never was equaled. "The Mississippi encountered the ram Manassas, rushing upon her at full speed. The noble old frigate, un daunted, instead of evading the blow, turned to meet her antagonist, and, with all steam on, made a plunge at the monster. Just as the blow was to come which would decide whose head was to be broken open, the Manassas, .taking counsel of discretion, dodged. But as she glided by, a point-blank broadside t from the immense armament of the Mississippi swept off her smoke-stack, crashed through her iron sides, and set her on fire. The crew took to the shore, and the redoubtable ram drifted, a total wreck, down the stream. The nondescript monster presented a curious spectacle as she floated along, the flames bursting through the broken chinks of her mail, her shot-fractures, and her port-holes. Commodore Por ter, wishing to save her as a curiosity, sent some boats to pass a hawser around the ram and secure it to the shore. Scarcely was this done when the monster uttered as it were, an expiring groan, as the water rushed in, driving the air and the belching flames through her bow-port, and then, like a huge animal, she gave a plunge, and dis appeared under the water. The achievements of the Vatuna, under Captain Boggs, were among the crowning 138 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. glories of this eventful day. It lias been well said, lie fought a battle fully equal in desperate hardihood and resolute bravery to the famous sea-fight of John Paul Jones, which nothing human could surpass. After taking, or destroying six of the enemy s vessels, an un armed point was pierced, and, while the water rushed in, the crew jumped into the boats of the Oneida, sent for their rescue, as she went down with her dead, victorious in death, her flag still flying, covered with glory." The next morning dawned on drifting wrecks and smoke, through and beyond which the Union fleet was marching for New Orleans. A dispatch was sent to General Butler that the way was clear for landing his troops. Soon after, at noon, the armada, having had only three gunboats disabled, thirty men killed, and one hundred and ten wounded, moored in front of the city. The pride of the boastful chivalry, already humbled, on the 26th, was now in the dust, under the national colors floating from the public buildings. With New Orleans safely under the Stars and Stripes, Flag- Officer Farragut pushed up the " Father of Waters." On the 27th he reached and passed the batteries above the . city without injury. The object of the expedition was to communicate with Flag-Officer Davis, commanding the Mississippi squadron, look after the rebel ram Arkansas, and complete arrange ments for a joint attack on Yicksburg. A bombardment proved fruitless, because the high banks, bristling with ordnance, could not be battered down, nor the fortress taken by shot from the decks of the fleet, without the co operation of land forces. Eighteen days later, Farragut returned, successfully repassed the batteries, and made Pensacola the place of rendezvous for the squadron. The operations along the Mississippi River had opened that highway some distance below Island No. 10, and, on learning this, General Beauregard, who had assumed the chief command of the rebel troops, issued an address to the planters, as follows : COTTON-BURNING. SKIRMISHING. 139 " The casualties of Avar have opened the Mississippi to our enemies. The time has, therefore, come to test the earnestness of all classes, and I call upon all patriotic planters owning cotton in the possible reach of our ene mies, to apply the torch to it without delay or hesita tion." It was thought that by this mode of procedure the Union troops would have less inducement to fight, as the profit of their victories would necessarily be greatly decreased. In this, however, the rebels had greatly deceived themselves. On April 27th, Purdy, on the Jackson and Corinth Railroad, was abandoned by the rebels, and a cavalry skirmish took place near Monterey, a village situated about ten miles from Corinth. Several prisoners were taken, from whom it was ascertained that Beauregard was concentrating all his available force at Corinth, which he had fortified, and where, he said, he was determined to make a desperate resistance. On the 29th, a similar affair took place at Monterey, the rebels losing their camp and several prisoners. A reconnoissance in force was made by the right wing of General Halleck s grand army, on April 30, 1862, to a point of the railroad four miles above Purdy, between Corinth and Jackson, Tennessee. The Union troops were met by a body of rebel cavalry, who fled to that town, closely pursued by the advancing forces. Purdy was taken possession of by the Unionists, who soon, by the destruction of bridges, etc., cut off all railroad communi cation along that route between Corinth and Northwestern Tennessee. On this day the siege of Corinth may be said to have commenced. General Halleck, determined to have a force of men under him, that should be invincible in the event of a battle, sent for all the unemployed troops in his large department, ordering them to be concentrated at Pitts- burg Landing, which was constituted a base of op erations in the movement upon Corinth. This force he designated as the "Grand Army of the Tennessee," a special compliment to General Grant, the commander of 140 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the original Army of the Tennessee. The a Grand Army" was divided as follows : The Army of the, Ohio (centre), under General Buell. The Army of the Mississippi (left), under General Pope. The Army of the Tennessee (right), under General Grant. This grand army was composed of sixteen divisions, eight of which formed the Army of the Tennessee, and were placed under the immediate command of General Grant ; four under General Pope, and four under General Buell. General Grant s command was, therefore, as large as the two other armies combined, and was divided into the " right," or active wing, under General Thomas, and "the reserve," under General McClernand. At this time there was again bitter opposition to General Grant, and complaints were heard from the excited friends of those who had fallen at Donelson and Shiloh. The charges preferred against him were inca pacity and inebriety, and the persons who made them had, doubtless, been stirred up by those who wished to kill the rising fame of the heroic commander. The feeling against him found its way into the halls of Congress, and every effort was made to remove him from his command. The Hon. E. B. Washburne, representing in Congress the Galena District, the home of both General Grant and himself, promptly undertook his defense. As a compre hensive review of the commander s history, an index of the popular feeling at that period of the war, and an eloquent vindication of comparatively unappreciated gen eralship, his words have a peculiar and abiding interest. It seems indeed strange to us now, and can only awaken a smile both in him and his admirers, in the present light of his world- wide and undying fame. The loyal member from Illinois said in his address : " Lamartine, in his celebrated history of the Girondins, speaking of one of those incidents so characteristic of the French Revolution, says : " The news of the victory of Hondschoote filled Paris with joy. But even the joy of the people was cruel. The HON. E. B. WASHBUENE ON GRANT. 141 Convention reproached as a treason the victory of a vic torious general. Its commissioners to the army of the North, Hentz, Peyssard, and Duquesnoy, deposed Hou- chard, and sent him to the revolutionary tribunal. The unfortunate Hou chard was condemned to death, and met his fate with the intrepidity of a soldier and the calmness of an innocent man. It was shown that even victory was not protection against the scaffold. " It may be inquired whether, in this rebellion, history is not repeating itself. I come before the House to do a great act of justice to a soldier in the field, and to vindi cate him from the obloquy and misrepresentations so persistently and cruelly thrust before the country. I refer to a distinguished general who has recently fought the bloodiest and hardest battle ever fought on this con tinent, and won one of the most brilliant victories. I refer to the battle of Pittsburg Landing, and to Major- General Ulysses S. Grant. A native of Ohio, he gradua ted at West Point, July 1, 1843, with the brevet rank of second-lieutenant, and was appointed second-lieutenant September 30, 1845. Though but forty years old, he has been oftener under fire and been in more battles than any other man living on this continent, excepting that great chieftain now reposing on his laurels and on the affections of his countrymen, Lieutenant- General Scott. He was in every battle in Mexico that it was possible for any one man to be in. He followed the victorious standard of General Taylor on the Rio Grande, and was in the battles of Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, and Monterey. He was with General Scott at Vera Cruz, and participated in every battle from the Gulf to the City of Mexico. He was breveted first-lieutenant September 8, 1847, for gallant and meritorious conduct at the battle of Molino del Key, and on the 13th of the same month he was breveted captain for gallant and meritorious conduct at the battle of Chapulte- pec. He has received the baptism of fire. No young officer came out of the Mexican War with more distinc tion than Grant, and the records of the War Department bear official testimony to his gallant and noble deeds. He resigned in 1855, and afterward settled in Galena, 142 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT in the district I have the honor to represent on this floor. " Grant was among the first to offer his services to the country at the commencement of hostilities, saying that as lie had "been educated by the Government, that Govern ment was entitled to his services in its time of peril. Early made a colonel of one of the Illinois regiments, he went into actual service in Missouri. His commands there were important, and he discharged every duty with great fidelity and advantage to the public service. With a military head and a military hand, he everywhere evoked order from chaos. Military discipline, order, and economy traveled in his path. In time he was made a brigadier- general, and intrusted with the important command of the district of Cairo ; and how diligently, how faithfully, how satisfactorily he discharged all his duties, is well known to the country. While in that command, learning of a move ment about being made by the rebels at Columbus to send out a large force to cut off Colonel Oglesby, who had gone into Missouri after that roaming bandit, Jeff. Thompson, by a sudden and masterly stroke he fell upon Belmont, and, after a brilliant and decisive action, in which he and all his troops displayed great bravery, he broke up the rebel camp with great loss, and then returned to Cairo. The expedition was broken up, Oglesby s command was eaved, and every thing was accomplished that was ex pected. " In time came the operations up the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers, and I state what I know. By a singular coincidence, on the 29th day of January last, without any suggestion from any source, General Grant and Commo dore Poote, always acting in entire harmony, applied for permission to move up those rivers, which was granted. The gunboats and land forces moved up to Fort Henry. After that fort was taken, it was determined to attack Fort Donelson. The gunboats were to go round and up the Cumberland River, while the arm}^ was to move overland from Fort Henry to Fort Donelson. "The roads were the worst ever known, and almost any other general or any other troops would have de- HON. E. B. WASHBUBNE ON GRANT. spaired of moving. But they did move. If General Grant had been told that it was impossible to move his army there, he would have made a reply like to that of the royal Pompey, when he was told that his fleet could not sail: "It is necessary to sail, not necessary to live." It was necessary for this western army to march, but it was not necessary to live. The country knows the result Donelson fell. The enemy, twenty thousand strong, behind his intrenchments, succumbed before the unrelent ing bravery and vigor of our troops, no more than twenty- eight thousand engaged. We took there, not twelve thousand, not fifteen thousand, but more than sixteen thousand prisoners. I have it from General Halleck that we have actually paid transportation for more than sixteen thousand prisoners. That, in most countries, would have been called a most brilliant military achievement, Napo leon surrounded Old Mack at Ulm, and captured twenty thousand or more prisoners, and that exploit has filled a great space in history. " While the capture of Donelson filled the country with joy, there was a cruel disposition to withhold from the commanding general the meed of gratitude and praise so justly his due. Captious criticisms were indulged in that he did not make the attack properly, and that if he had done differently the work might have been better accomplished. It was not enough that he fought and gloriously conquered, but he ought to have done it differently, forsooth. Success could be no test of merit with him. That was the way the old generals spoke of the young Napoleon when he was beating them in every battle, and carrying his eagles in triumph over all Europe. He did not fight according to the rules of war. But there was a more grievous suggestion touching the general s habits. It is a suggestion that has infused itself into the public mind everywhere. There never was a more cruel and atrocious slander upon a brave and noble-minded man. There is no more temperate man in the army than General Grant. He never indulges in the use of intoxi cating liquors at all. He is an example of courage, honor, fortitude, activity, temperance, and modesty, for he is as 144 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. modest as lie is brave and incorruptible. To the bravery and fortitude of Lannes, he adds the stern republican simplicity of Guvion St. Cyr. It is almost vain to hope that full justice will ever be done to men who have been thus attacked. Truth is slow upon the heels of falsehood. It has been well said that falsehood will travel from Maine to Georgia while truth is putting on its boots. "Let no gentleman have any fears of General Grant. He is no candidate for the Presidency. He is no politi cian. Inspired by the noblest patriotism, he only desires to do his whole duty to his country. When the war shall be over he will return to his home, and sink the soldier in the simple citizen. Though living in the same town with myself, he has no political claims on me ; for, so far as he is a politician, he belongs to a different party. He has no personal claims upon me more than any other constituent. But I came here to speak as an Illinoisian, proud of his noble and patriotic State ; proud of its great history now being made up ; proud above all earthly things of her brave soldiers, who are shedding their blood upon all the battle-fields of the Eepublic. If the laurels of Grant shall ever be withered, it will not be done by the Illi nois soldiers who have followed his victorious ban ner. "But to the victory at Pittsburg Landing, which has called forth such a flood of denunciation upon General Grant. When we consider the charges of bad generalship, incompetency, and surprise, do we not feel that even the joy of the people is cruel? As to the question of whether there was, or not, what might be called a sur prise, I will not argue it ; but even if there had been, General Grant is nowise responsible for it, for he was not surprised. lie was at hig head- quarters at Savannah when the fight commenced. Those head-quarters were estab lished there as being the most convenient point for all parts of his command. Some of the troops were at Crump s Landing, between Savannah and Pittsburg, and all the new arrivals were coming to Savannah. That was the proper place for the head-quarters of the commanding HON. E. B. WASHBUENE ON GRANT. 14.5 general at that time. The general visited Pittsburg Land ing and all the important points every day. The attack was made Sunday morning by a vastly superior force. In five minutes after the first firing was heard, General Grant and staff were on board a steamboat on their way to the battle-field, and instead of not reaching the field till ten o clock, or, as has : been still more falsely represented, till noon, I have a letter before me from one of his aids who was with him, arid who says he arrived there at eight o clock in the morning, and immediately assumed com mand. There he directed the movements, and was always on that part of the field where his presence was most re quired, exposing his life, and evincing in his dispositions the genius of the greatest commanders. With what des perate bravery that battle of Sunday was fought ! What display of prowess and courage ! What prodigies of valor ! Our troops, less than forty thousand, attacked by more than eighty thousand of the picked men of the rebels, led by their most distinguished generals ! "But it is gravely charged by these military critics who sit by the fireside while our soldiers are risking their lives on the field of conflict, that Grant was to blame in having his troops on the same side of the river with the enemy. I suppose they would have the river interpose between our army and the enemy, and permit that enemy to intrench himself on the other side, and then undertake to cross in his face. It was, in the judgment of the best military men, a wise disposition of his forces, placing them where he did. To have done otherwise, would have been like keeping the entire Army of the Potomac on this side of the river, instead of crossing it when it could be done, and advancing on the other side. After fighting all day with immensely superior num bers of the enemy, they only drove our forces back two- and one-half miles, and then it was to face the gunboats; and the terrible batteries so skilfully arranged and worked by the gallant and accomplished officers, Webster and Callender, and which brought the countless host of tlie enemy to a stand. And when night came, this uncon querable army stood substantially triumphant on that 10 146 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. "bloody field. I am not here to speak disparagingly of the troops of any other State, "but I will speak in praise of the troops of my own State. No Illinois regiment, no Illinois company, no Illinois soldier, fled from the battle field. If any did flee, they were not from Illinois, arid they would "be the ones who, after their own flight, would seek to cover up their own disgrace, but only add to it, by attacks upon an Illinois general. * I have something to say about the generals and the soldiers who fought in the battle. I have a word to say about the brave McClernand, so lately our colleague here, who, as I learn from a man who was on the battle-field on that Sunday, was seen riding at the head of his di vision, holding his flag in the face of the enemy, daring them to come on. I would say something in relation to the bravery and skill of Hurlburt, from my own district, who commanded another division there, and won great glory. I would say something in defence of another man who has been charged with having his division surprised, and having been taken prisoner at the time. I mean General Prentiss. I have a letter upon my desk which says, that instead of being surprised on Sunday morning, the writer saw him at half-past two o clock of that day lighting most gallantly at the head of his division. I rejoice to have this opportunity to make that statement in justice to a brave man and true soldier. "If I had time I would like to speak of others; I would speak of General Wallace, of my State, who fell nobly fighting at the head of his division, a soldier by nature, a pure and noble man, whose memory will be ever honored in Illinois. I would speak of the gallant Colonel Ellis, falling at the head of the Fifteenth, and of Major Goddard, of the same regiment, also killed ; of Davis, of the Forty-sixth, terribly wounded while gallantly bear ing in his own hands the colors of his regiment. I would speak of the deeds of valor of the lead-mine Forty -fifth, covering itself with undying honor ; of Captains Connor and Johnson, falling at the head of their companies ; of the genial and impetuous young Irishman, Lieutenant George Moore, mortally wounded ; of Captains Wayne, HON. E. B. WASHBURNE ON GRANT. 147 and Nase, and Brownell all killed. Nor would I fail to mention Brigadier- General Me Arthur and Acting Brig adier-General Kirk, who boldly led their "brigades wher ever duty called and danger threatened, and were at last carried from the field badly wounded. And of Colonel Chetlain, of the old Twelfth, rising from a sick-bed and entering into the thickest of the fight. And, too, I would like to speak of the dauntless valor of Rawlings, and Rowley, and Campbell, and of many others who distin guished themselves on that field. "I see before me my friend from Pennsylvania (Mr. McPherson), which reminds me of a friend of us both young Baugher, a lieutenant in the lead-mine regiment, who. wounded six times, refused to leave the field ; and, when finally carried off, waved his sword in defiance to the enemy. But who shall attempt to do justice to the bravery of the soldiers and the daring and skill of the officers ; who shall describe all the valor exhibited on those days ; who shall presume to speak of all the glory won on that blood-stained field ? I have spoken of those more particularly from my own part of the State ; but it is because I know them best, and not because I claim more credit for them than I know to be due to the troops from all parts of the State. They all exhibited the same bravery, the same unbounded devotion, the same ardor in vindicating the honor and glory of the flag, and main taining the prestige of our State. "I have detained the House too long, but I have felt called upon to say this much. I came only to claim public justice ; the battle of Pittsburg Landing, though a bloody one, yet it will make a bright page in our his tory. The final charge of General Grant at the head of his reserves will have a place, too, in history. While watching the progress of the battle, on Monday afternoon, word came to him that the enemy was faltering on the left. With the genius that belongs only to the true mili tary man, he saw that the time for the final blow had come. In quick words he said, 4 Now is the time to drive them. It Y/as worthy the world-renowned order of Wel lington, Up, Guards, and at them ! 148 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. c c Word was sent by his "body-guard to the different regiments to be ready to charge when the order was given ; then, riding out in front amid a storm of bullets, he led the charge in person, and Beauregard was driven howl ing to his intrenchments. His left was broken, and a retreat commenced which soon degenerated into a perfect rout. The loss of the enemy was three to our two in men, and in much greater proportion in the demoraliza tion of an army which follows a defeat. That battle has laid the foundation for finally driving the rebels from the Southwest. So much for the battle of Pittsburg Landing, which has evoked such unjust and cruel criticism, but which history will record as one of the most glorious victories that has ever illustrated the annals of a great nation." General Halleck does not appear to have been influ enced at all by the attempts to injure his most successful general. On the contrary, May 1st, he expressed his strengthening confidence in the ability of the patient, dignified officer, whose silence amid detraction and mis representation was a sublime assurance of his true great ness by placing him second in command to himself over the grand army, and allowing him to retain the personal command of his own special forces on the right, and of the District of Tennessee, in which the expected battle was to be fought. General Beauregard being advised of the manner of procedure of the Union troops, and expecting a severe battle, called for all the re-enforcements he could obtain. On the 2d of May, 1862, a strong rebel force concentrated at Corinth, and to this united command he issued a very spirited address. Reconnoissances were continually sent out, and, on the 8th of May, the cavalry penetrated the enemy s lines within a mile and a half of Corinth. The rebels made several dashes upon our front, and succeeded in com pelling some of the forces on the left to retire. On the 11 th of May, a consultation of the officers was held at General Halleck 1 s head-quarters, and it was de cided that a general advance should be made. Shortly THE MOVEMENT TOWARD OORIKTH. 149 after, the movement of the troops commenced. Steadily they marched forward toward a common centre, which was understood to "be Corinth, with enthusiasm, sobered "by the anticipation of a terrific "battle to secure vic tory. The rebels did not intend to let the Union troops arrive at Corinth, or in its close vicinity, without a struggle. And, on May 17, 1862, General Sherman s Fifth Division of General Grant s Army of the Tennes see was brought into conflict with the enemy at Russell s House, on the road to that city. They were forced back to their strongholds, while the Union forces continued to occupy this former rebel position, which they in trenched. When the strength of Corinth was definitely ascer tained, the plan was to reduce* the fortified city by regu lar approaches. General Beauregard, as an engineer officer, being fully aware of the ultimate result, began to withdraw his garrison by the roads still open to him. This movement became the more necessary, as the United States naval forces were rapidly approaching Memphis from above, and New Orleans and other points of the Mississippi River below had already fallen into our hands. Should Memphis and Vicksburg be taken before his forces could escape from Corinth, it was more than likely that his whole command, which was becoming de moralized, would have surrendered, rather than endure the horrors of a siege. To cover his retrograde movements, General Beaure gard sent out a force to resist the advance of our troops, who were about to take possession of the ridge to the north of Phillip s Creek. On May 21st, the Second Di vision of General Grant s Army of the Tennessee, under General T. A. Davis, made the necessary movements to occupy the elevation, but found the rebels very strongly posted. By a feint of a retreat the garrison was brought out of their works, and, after a vigorous contest, was completely routed. The Union division then took pos session of the heights, securing at the same time several prisoners, with their arms, camp, and equipage. A recon- 150 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. noissance was then made toward Corinth, to find out the position of the enemy, who still was able to show a bold front. The parallels of the Union army began daily to get nearer and nearer to the city, and skirmishing was a con stant occurrence along the whole line. A sharp fight between General Sherman s division and the rebels took place on May 27th ; but as the latter, though having the largest force, retreated, it was evident that the contest was merely to delay the advance of the Union army. General Sherman, in his report of the engagement, says : "The enemy was evidently surprised, and only killed two of our men, and wounded nine. After he had reached the ridge he opened on us with a two-gun battery on the right and another from the front and left, doing my bri gades but little harm, but killing three of General Yeatch s men. With our artillery we soon silenced his, and by ten A. M. we were masters of the position. Generals Grant and Thomas were present during the affair, and witnessed the movement, which was admirably executed, all the officers and men keeping their places like real sol diers." The above extract indicated that the impression was false that General Grant had been relieved from actual command in the field for the result of the first day s en gagement at Shiloh. Three columns of Union troops advanced the next day, under the personal superintendence of General Grant, to within gunshot of the rebel works at Corinth, and made a reconnoissance in force. The enemy hotly contested the ground ; but, being closely pressed, fell back, with con siderable loss. The column on the left encountered the greatest opposition. The following account of the advance is given by one who participated in the siege : "Though the task be a most difficult one, yet I will try to give a faint idea of the scenes which an advance presents. "First, the enemy must be driven back. Regiments THE ADVANCE ON CORINTH. 151 and artillery are placed in position, and generally the cav alry is in advance ; but, when the opposing forces are in close proximity, the infantry does the work. The whole front is covered by a cloud of skirmishers, and then re serves formed, and then, in connection with the main line, they advance. For a moment all is still as the grave to those in the background ; as the line moves on, the eye is strained in vain to follow the skirmishers as they creep silently forward ; then, from some point of the line, a single rifle rings through the forest, sharp and clear, and, as if in echo, another answers it. In a moment more, the whole line resounds with the din of arms. Here the fire is slow and steady, there it rattles with fearful rapidity, and this mingled with the great roar of the reserves as the skirmishers chance at any point to be driven in ; and if, by reason of superior force, these reserves fall back to the main force, then every nook and corner seems full of sound. The batteries open their terrible voices, and their shells sing horribly while winging their flight, and their dull explosion speaks plainly of death ; their canister and grape go crashing through the trees, rifles sing, the mus kets roar, and the din is terrific. Then the slackening of the fire denotes the withdrawing of the one party, and the more distant picket-firing, that the work was accom plished. The silence becomes almost painful after such a scene as this, and no one can conceive of the effect who has not experienced it ; it cannot be described. The occasional firing of the pickets, which shows that the new lines are established, actually occasions a sense of relief. The movements of the mind under such circum stances are sudden and strong. It awaits with intense anxiety the opening of the contest, it rises with the din of battle, it sinks with the lull which follows it, and finds itself in fit condition to sympathize most deeply with the torn and bleeding ones that are fast being borne to the rear. "When the ground is clear, then the time for working- parties has arrived, and as this is the description of a real scene, let me premise that the works were to reach through the center of a large open farm of at least three hundred 152 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. acres, surrounded by woods, one side of it being occupied by rebel pickets. These had been driven back, as I have described. "The line of the works was selected, and at the word of command three thousand men, with axes, spades, and picks, stepped out into the open field from their cover in the woods ; in almost as short a time as it takes to tell it, the fence-rails which surrounded and divided three hun dred acres into convenient farm-lots were on the shoulders of the men, and on the way to the intended line of works. In a few moments more a long line of crib-work stretches over the slope of the hill, as if another anaconda fold had been twisted around the rebels. Then as for a time, the ditches deepen, the cribs fill up, the dirt is packed on the outer side, the bushes and all points of concealment are cleared from the front, and the center divisions of our army had taken a long stride toward the rebel works. The siege-guns are brought up and placed in commanding positions. A log-house furnishes the hewn and seasoned timber for the platforms, and the plantation of a Southern lord has been thus speedily transferred into one of Uncle Sam s strongholds, where the Stars and Stripes float proudly. Thus had the whole army (under the imme diate charge of General Grant, the commander in the field) worked itself up into the very teeth of the rebel works, and rested there on Thursday night, the twen ty-eighth, expecting a general engagement at any mo ment. "Soon after daylight, on Friday morning, the army was startled by rapid and long-continued explosions, similar to musketry, but much louder. The conviction Hashed across my mind that the rebels were blowing up their loose ammunition and leaving. The dense smoke arising in the direction of Corinth strengthened this belief, and soon the whole army was advancing on a grand recon- noissanco. The distance through the woods was short, and in a few minutes shouts arose from the rebel lines, which told that our army was in the enemy s trenches. Regiment, after regiment pressed on, and passing through extensive camps just vacated, soon reached Corinth, and THE EVACUATION OF CORINTH. 153 found half of it in flames. Beanregard and Bragg had left the afternoon before, and the rear-guard had passed out of the town before daylight, leaving enough stragglers to com mit many acts of vandalism, at the expense of private prop erty. They burned churches and other public buildings, private goods, stores, and dwellings, and choked up half the wells in the town. In the camps immediately around the town, there were few evidences of hasty retreat, but on the right flank, where Price and Van Born were en camped, the destruction of baggage and stores was very great, showing precipitate flight. Portions of our army were immediately put in pursuit. It seems that it was the slow and careful approach of General Halleck which caused the retreat. They would doubtless nave remained had we attacked their positions without first securing our rear. But they could not stand a siege. The position was a most commanding one and well protected." The works were first occupied by the Fifth Division of General Grant s Army of the Tennessee, under the com mand of Major- General William T. Sherman, which, be tween the interval of leaving Shiloli and the occupa tion of Corinth, had occupied and strongly intrenched seven distinct camps, in a manner to excite the admira tion and high commendation of the commanding gen erals. This division was on the right flank of the grand army during the whole advance, and was, therefore, espe cially exposed by its position, and having to detail a larger guard and perform more work than its companion divisions. Shortly before midnight, on May 29, 1862, the last col umn of the rebel army was withdrawn from the works, leaving their pickets unprotected. The evacuation of Corinth at the time, and the manner in which it was done, was a clear back-down from the high and arrogant tone heretofore used by the rebels. They had chosen their own ground, which they had fortified, occupying a very large force for two months in the construction of their defenses, and they naturally believed the works to be strong enough to resist and defeat their assailants. 154 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Ten days "before, General Grant had urged an advance upon the works, sure that the Union forces could "bag" the rebel army. After the evacuation, General Halleck acknowledged the mistake, and assured Grant he should, after that, have his own way. Corinth was, indeed, a stronghold, and its importance, to whichever side should hold it, cannot be over-estimated. As an evidence of its value, it was kept by the United States forces as a strongly-garrisoned military post until the beginning of 1864. There is a good description of the occupation of Cor inth, written on the spot, but the name of the author is not n : The siege of Corinth, begun on April 30, ended this morning. About half-past six, in the morning, orders to march were received, and at seven, the greater portion of the men were outside their breastworks, cautiously feeling their way through the dense underbrush which intervened between our fortifications and the defenses of Corinth ; but, after proceeding three-eighths of a mile, they came to an open space, and the enemy s works, abandoned and desolate, burst upon their astonished gaze. The sight was entirely unexpected. " The opening was made by the rebels, who had felled the timber for about three hundred yards in front of their intrenchments, for the double purpose of obstructing our progress and giving them a fair view of our column when within rifle-range. " The view from the highest point of the rebel works, immediately in front of Davies s, now Rosecrans s, divis ion of Grant s Army of the Tennessee, was truly grand. The circle of vision was at least five miles in extent, stretch ing from the extreme right to the extreme left, and the magnificent display of banners, the bristling of shining bayonets, and the steady step of the handsomely-attired soldiers, presented a pageant which has seldom been wit nessed on this continent. "Upon many of the regimental ensigns were printed Wilson s Creek, Dug Springs, Donelson, or Shiloh, and one or two wave all these mottoes in the breeze. SCENES IN THE SIEGE. OF CORINTH. 155 Those who passed through all these trying ordeals, un scathed, or who received honorable wounds in either, in in future can look back upon a life devoted to their coun try s service, and feel that proud satisfaction which is de nied to others not less patriotic, but less fortunate. In future pageants in honor of the nation s birthday, when the last relics of former struggles have become extinct, and when these shall be bowed down with age, they will be their country s honored guests, and receive that considera tion due their noble deeds. " Notwithstanding the desire of the soldiers to possess themselves of relics of the retreating foe, perfect order was maintained in the lines. Your correspondent wan dered around the large area lately occupied by the rebel troops, but found few trophies which were worth pre serving. A broken sword and double-barrelled shot-gun were picked up after an hour s search, but these were seized by the provost-marshal at the Landing, and con fiscated. "The enemy, with the exception of the rear-guard, had left with the greatest deliberation. A few worthless tents, some heavy kettles, a large number of old barrels, tin cups, and articles of this description, were the only camp equipages not taken away. " There is nothing so desolate as a newly -deserted camp. But yesterday, and all was life and animation ; to day the white tents have disappeared, the heavy footsteps have ceased to sound, and no evidence, save the desolated, hard-trodden ground, and a few tent-stakes, remains to tell the story. " Nothing surprised me more than the character of the rebel works. Prom the length of time Beauregard s army had been occupying the place, with a view to its defense, and from the importance the rebel general attached to it, in his dispatch which was intercepted by General Mitchel, I had been led to suppose that the fortifications were really formidable. But such was not the case. I admire the en gineering which dictated the position of the intrenchments, and the lines they occupied, but that is all that deserves the slightest commendation. 156 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. "But a single line of general fortifications had been constructed, and these were actually less formidable than those thrown up by our forces last night, after occupying a new position. There were, beside this general line, occa sional rifle-pits, both outside and inside the works, but they could have been constructed by three relief-details ill six hours. " The only fortifications really worthy the name were a few points where batteries were located, but these could not have resisted our Parrot and siege-guns half an hour. Yet the positions occupied by .the breastworks were capa ble of being strengthened so as to render them almost in vulnerable to a front attack, and no little difficulty would have been experienced in flanking the position, either on the right or left. " The works were on the brow of a ridge, considerably higher than any in the surrounding country, and at the foot of it was a ravine, correspondingly deep. The zigzag course of the line gave the defenders the command of all the feasible approaches, and hundreds could have been mowed down at every step made by an assailing army, even from the imperfect earth-banks which had been thrown up. Had a fight occurred, it must have been decided by artillery, and in this respect we had the advantage, both in number and calibre of our guns ; but had they im proved the advantages they possessed, and fortified as men who really intended to make a stubborn defense, this superiority might have been overcome. The conduct of the rebels is, indeed, beyond compre hension. Here is a place commanding several important railroads ; a place, the seizure of which, Beauregard con fessed, in his celebrated dispatch to Davis, would open to us the valley of the Mississippi ; a position capable of as stubborn a defense as Sebastopol, and yet scarcely an effort is made to fortify it, and its possessors fly at our approach. A stubborn resistance, even though followed by defeat, would command respect abroad ; but a succes sion of evacuations, upon the slightest approach of danger, can insure only contempt. THE SITUATION AND APPEARANCE OF CORINTH. 157 1 c The troops from every direction marched toward a common center Corinth ; and as they neared each other and friends recognized friends, whom they had not seen for weeks or months, though separated but a few miles, greetings were exchanged, and as regiments met for the first time since leaving the bloody fields of Donelson and Shiloli, cheer after cheer resounded through the forests, and "was echoed and re-echoed by the hills as if the earth itself desired to prolong the sound. "As no rain had fallen for some time, the roads were exceedingly dusty, as was the whole camping-ground, which had been trampled solid by eighty thousand rebels. But all forgot obstacles and annoyances in the eagerness to see the town before which they had lain so long. A little after eight o clock, a portion of the left and centre iiled in, and were met by Mr. Harrington, the Mayor s clerk, who asked protection for private property, and for such of the citizens as had determined to remain. It is needless to add that his request was granted, and guards stationed at every door, as the object of our march was, not to plunder, but to save." Corinth is built upon low lands and clay soil, so that in wet weather the place may very properly be denomi nated a swamp ; but the soil is as easily affected by the drought as by rains. Just outside of the town are the ridges, which might be appropriately denominated hills, and upon which second, third, and fourth lines of defenses could have been erected. The highest lands are in the direction of Farmington on the east, and College Hill on the southwest. The town is situated at the junction of the Mobile and Ohio and the Memphis and Charleston railroads, both very important lines of communication, and indispensable to the enemy. The town is nearly all north of the Memphis and east of the Mobile road. Cor inth was at one time a pleasant country village, of about twelve hundred inhabitants, and the houses were built in a style only used in the South. The rebel generals all had their head-quarters in houses during the siege, generally occupying the finest residences in the place. Bean regard s war, on the east of the Purdy 158 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. road, and at the outskirts of the village. The rebel chief tain was evidently surrounded by all the comforts and luxuries of life. Telegraph wires ran in every direction from the building, but the wires were all cut, and the in struments taken away. THE PURSUIT OF THE REBEL ARMY. 159 CHAPTER IX. THE PURSUIT. GENERAL GRANT S WESTERN COMMAND. The pursuit. Colonel Elliott s Cavalry. Sheridan Sherman takes Holly Springs, General Halleck called to Washington. General Grant succeeds him in the Western command. He takes care of disloyal citizens, editors, and the Gurrillas. Guards the rights of loyal people. The Contrabands. Refugees. A rebel letter to General Grant. West Point Generals in the war. The position of the armies. Their advance. luka. A bloody battle. Victory. Pursuit of the enemy. Congratulations. Effort to restore the former condition of things in the State. General Bragg gets near the capital. THE Union army pursued promptly the flying foe far down the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, through a difficult country much obstructed by the enemy. On the after noon of the 30th of May, the forces, sent out on the night of May 28th to cut off the rebel retreat, reached Boones- vilie, Missouri, and there destroyed the track, both north and south of the town, blew up one culvert, burned the depot, locomotives, and a train of twenty-six cars loaded with supplies, destroyed a quantity of arms, including artillery, clothing, and ammunition, besides taking a num ber of prisoners who belonged to the rear of the retreat ing forces. So desolated had the country become, that the pursuers had to live upon meat alone, such as they could find around them on their line of travel. Colonel Elliott, the commander of the cavalry, among whose offi cers was the gallant Sheridan, then just entering upon his brilliant career as a cavalry chief, not having any wagons with him, could not collect food and forage : he, however, found a few sheep, which he devoted to the use of his followers ; but the flesh was very poor and tough. The prisoners he captured were mostly infantry, and find ing that he would have very great difficulty in looking after them if he took them along with him, he merely dis armed them and sent them about their business. 160 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Plans were laid by the rebels to cut off Colonel Elliott s command, on its return ; but lie judiciously chose another road, and arrived safely at Tuscumbia, on June 1st, 1862. The route taken was by luka, East-port, and Fulton, thence along the Tuscumbia and Jacinto road to Cartersville, thence to Padens and Boonesville, where the damage was principally inflicted on the rebels. The return was by the road to Tuscumbia. On the Oth of June, 1862, General Halleck reported that the rebels had fallen back fifty miles from Corinth, by the nearest railroad route, and seventy miles by the wagon- road, and that the estimated rebel loss, during the cam paign near that place, was about forty thousand men. He also reported a state of demoralization existing in General Beauregard* s army, and that the prisoners taken in many cases begged that they should not be exchanged, as they had purposely allowed themselves to be captured. Holly Springs, Missouri, on the railroad from Jackson, Tennessee, to sew Orleans, was taken possession of by General Sherman s forces on June 20th, 1862 ; and, to pre vent surprise by the rebels, several pieces of trestle- work on the Mississippi Central Railroad were destroyed. The enemy, before evacuating the place, had removed their machinery, for the repairing and making of arms, to Atlanta, Georgia. The campaign in this part of the country having virtually ended, General Halleck was, on July 11, 1862, ordered to Washington, to assume the position of General in-Chief ; and, on the 17th, he took leave of his army in a farewell address, congratulating the officers and soldiers, for their endurance and bravery. The removal of General Halleck was followed by a re organization of the troops in the West, and new depart ments were created .out of the original Department of the Mississippi. General Buell s forces were formed into the Department of the Ohio, embracing the district of country north and east of the Tennessee River. Missouri was also made a distinct department. All the country from the Mississippi River to the west ern shores of the Tennessee, Cairo, Forts Henry and GENERAL GRANT S ORDER AGAINST REBEL TRADE. 16 J Donelson, the western shore of the Mississippi River, and the northern part of the State of Mississippi, became the " Department of West Tennessee." Of this, General Grant was made the commander, with his head-quarters at Corinth. Memphis, which had surrendered on June 6, 1862, soon after the evacuation of Corinth, was in this depart ment, and was, "by this time, a very important post, both as a base of operations and of supplies. General Grant, while commanding the district, visited the post, placing it under the jurisdiction of a provost-marshal. Among other orders, he issued the following, as it was necessary to pre vent the co-operation between the latent rebels in that city with those in arms outside our lines : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, \ OFFICE PROVOST-MARSIIAL-GENEEAL, V MEMPIIIS, June 23, 1862. # * * # * * Passes issued for persons to pass out of the city will be understood to mean the person alone, and will not include goods, letters, or pack ages. Where letters are found on persons passing out, without being marked PASSED by the provost-marshal, post-commander, or general-commanding, they will be seized and delivered to the provost-marshal, and the offender arrested. Powder, lead, percussion-caps, and fire-arms of all descriptions are positively prohibited from being carried out of the city by citizens. Citizens are also prohibited from carrying them within the city limits on pain of forfeiture of such weapons, and ten days confinement, for the first offense, and expulsion south of our lines, to be treated as spies, if ever caught within them thereafter, for the second. By command of U. S. GEANT, Major-General. The disloyal editors and speculators in conspiracy with the enemy at large took their turn, as will appear in the annexed spicy correspondence. It is paper warfare, in part, but, in General Grant s hands, made the traitors wince, and act like honest men : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, \ OFFICE PROVOST-MARSIIAI.-GENERAL, V MEMPHIS, TENN., July 1, 1SC2. Messrs. WILLS, BINGHAM & Co., Proprietors of the Memphis Avalanche: Yon will suspend the further publication of your paper. The spirit 11 162 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. with which it is conducted is regarded as both incendiary and treasonable, and its issue cannot longer be tolerated. This order will be strictly observed from the time of its reception. By command of U. S. GRANT, Major-General. MEMPHIS, July 1, 1862. WM. S. HILLYER, Provost-Marshal-General: The Avalanche can continue by the withdrawal of the author of the ebnoxious article under the caption of "Mischief Makers," and the editorial allusion to the same. U. S. GRANT, Major-General. To OUR PATRONS. For reasons apparent from the foregoing order, I withdraw from the official management of the Avalanche. Self-respect, and the spirit of true journalism forbid any longer attempt to edit a paper. I approved and endorsed the articles in question. Prudence forbids my saying more, and duty less, to the public. JEPTHA FOWLKES. For the lawless guerrillas, who were murdering and plundering around Memphis, General Grant had also a message : HEAD-QUARTERS, DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE,. | MEMPHIS, TENN., July 3, 1S62. 1 The system of guerrilla warfare now being prosecuted by some troops organized under authority of the so-called Southern Confederacy, and others without such authority, being so pernicious to the welfare of the community where it is carried on, and it being within the power of the community to suppress this system, it is ordered that, wherever loss is sus tained by the Government, collections shall be made, by seizure of a sufficient amount of personal property, from persons in the immediate neighborhood sympathising with the rebellion, to remunerate the Govern ment for all loss and expense of the same. Persons acting as guerrillas without organization, and without uniform to distinguish them from private citizens, are not entitled to the treatment of prisoners of war when caught, and will not receive such treatment. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. JOHN A. EAWLINS, A. A. G. Finding that the previous order had no effect upon the illicit traffic, General Grant had more positive commands issued, which greatly aided him in restoring the City of Memphis to order and loyalty : DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, \ OFFICE OF THE PROVOST-MARSIIAL-GENEKAL, > MEMPHIS, TENN., July 9, 1862. * * * # * H All passes heretofore issued to citizens, either by the commanding- GENERAL GRANT AND REBEL SYMPATHIZERS. 163 general, the provost-marshal-general, the provost-marshal of Memphis, or any other officer, which may have been issued without the party being required to take the oath of allegiance, or give the prescribed parole of honor, are hereby revoked. No pass will be granted, in any case hereafter, except upon the taking of the oath or parole. The parole will be substituted for the oath only in special cases (at the discretion of the officer authorized to grant passes), where the party lives beyond the protection of our army. By command of Major-General GEANT. The next edict of military authority was demanded "by the constant sympathy and aid extended to the rebel army by the conquered, but unsubdued, traitors at home the great hirdrance to the success of loyal arms from the beginning of the contest. The people, from the Gulf to Canada, and across the Atlantic, who, under our own and a foreign flag, have taken sides with treason against free dom, are the most responsible, and therefore guilty of all connected with the murderous work. DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, OFFICE PKOVOST-MAHSIIAL-GENERAL, MEMPHIS, July 10, 1862. The constant communication between the so-called Confederate army and their friends and sympathizers in the City of Memphis, despite the orders heretofore issued, and the efforts to enforce them, induced the issuing of the following order : The families now residing in the City of Memphis, of the following per sons, are required to move South, beyond the lines within five days of the date hereof: First All persons holding commissions in the so-called Confederate army, or who have voluntarily enlisted in said army, or who accompany and are connected with the same. Second All persons holding office under or in the employ of the so- called Confederate Government. Third All persons holding State, county, or municipal offices, who claim allegiance to said so-called Confederate Government, and who have abandoned their families, and gone South. Safe conduct will be given to the parties hereby required to leave, upon application to the provost-marshal of Memphis. By command of Major-General GRANT. To guard the justly severe measure from any oppres- 164 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. sive effect upon the innocent, General Grant added, the next day, the following modification : DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, \ OFFICE OF THE PROVOST-MARSHAL-GENERAL, V MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, July 11, 1862. I ****** In order that innocent, peaceable, and well-disposed persons may not suffer for the bad conduct of the guilty parties coming within the purview of Special Order, dated July 10, 1862, they can be relieved from the opera tion of said order by signing the following parole, and producing to the provost-marshal-general, or the provost-marshal of Memphis, satisfactory guarantees that they will keep the pledge therein made : PAEOLE. First I have not, since the occupation of the City of Memphis by the Federal army, given any aid to the so-called Confederate army, nor given or sent any information of the movements, strength, or position, of the Federal army to any one connected with said Confederate army. Second I will not, during the occupancy of Memphis by the Federal army and my residing therein, oppose or conspire against the civil or military authority of the United States, and that I will not give aid, com fort, information, or encouragement to the so-called Confederate army, nor to any person co-operating therewith. All of which I state and pledge upon my sacred honor. By command of Major-General GRANT. The ruinous system of guerrilla warfare continuing, and it "being found almost impossible to stop the contra band trade which was being carried on through Memphis, in aid of the rebellion, General Grant appointed General Sherman to the command of that city, quite confident that he would soon check both operations. On the 21st of July, 1862, he entered upon the new official duties. The difficulty was soon discovered, and a remedy ap plied, as the subjoined order intimates : U. S. MILITARY TELEGRAPH, CORINTH, July 26, 1862. To Brigade-General J. T. QUIMRY, Columbus, Kentucky : GENERAL : Examine the baggage of all speculators coming South, and when they have specie turn them back. If medicine and other contraband articles, arrest them and confiscate the contraband articles. Jews should receive special attention. U. S. GRANT, Major-General. General Grant was resolved to have the most stringent ARMY SPECULATORS AND GUERRILLAS. 165 measures enforced against all guerrillas and their agents ; and the following dispatch is an indication of the way in which his orders were carried out : TRENTON, TENNESSEE, July 29, 1862. GENEKAL: The man who guided the rebels to the bridge that was burned was hung to-day. He had taken the oath. The houses of four others who aided have been burned to the ground. G. M. DODGE, Brigadier-General. On July 28th, General Grant ordered General Sherman to take possession of all unoccupied dwellings, manu factories, and stores, within the City of Memphis, to hire them out, and to collect the rents for the United States Government, in all cases where the owners were absent and in arms against the United States. This plan was adopted to prevent the destruction and abuse of property, besides securing a revenue from the enemy to help pay the expenses of the war. A part of the hostile forces engaged at Corinth were afterward concentrated at Jackson, Mississippi, whence they were sent to Vicksburg, Baton Rouge, Port Hudson, and other points along the Mississippi Elver, again to blockade the stream. On the 5th of August, a battle was fought at Baton Rouge. The large number of negroes who had found refuge wilhin the Union lines were becoming a serious incubus upon the army, and it was decided to give them some useful employment. General Grant, in his own special department, issued the following order, relating to both the negro refugees and the Confiscation law, as passed by the Houses of Congress, and signed by the President : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF WEST TENNESSEE \ CORINTH, MISSOURI, August 11, 1862. > The recent Act of Congress prohibits the army from returning fugi tives from labor to their claimants, and authorizes the employment of such persons in the service of the Government. The following orders are therefore published for the guidance of the army in this matter: 1. All fugitives thus employed must be registered ; the names of the fugitives and claimant given, and must be borne upon the morning report of the command in which they are kept, showing how they are em ployed. 166 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. 2. Fugitives may be employed as laborers in the quartermaster s sub sistence, and engineer s department ; and whenever, by such employment, a soldier may be saved to its ranks, they may be employed as teamsters and as company cooks, not exceeding four to a company, or as hospital attendants and nurses. Officers may employ them as private servants ; in which latter case, the fugitives will not be paid or rationed by the Gov ernment. Negroes thus employed must be secured as authorized persons, and will be excluded from the camps. 3. Officers and soldiers are positively prohibited from enticing slaves to leave their masters. When it becomes necessary to employ this kind of labor, the commanding officer of the post or troops must send details, all under the charge of a suitable commissioned officer, to press into service the slaves of persons to the number required. 4. Citizens within reach of any military station, known to be dis loyal and dangerous, may be ordered away or arrested, and their crops and stock taken for the benefit of the Government or the use of the army. 5. All property taken from rebel owners must be duly reported and used for the benefit of the Government, and be issued to the troops through the proper department, and, when practicable, the act of taking should be accompanied by the written certificate of the officer so taking to the owner or agent of such property. It is enjoined on all commanders to see that this order is executed strictly under their own direction. The demoralization of troops subse quent upon being left to execute laws in their own way, without a proper head, must be avoided. By command of Major-General GKAXT. General Grant intended to execute the laws according to their letter and spirit, but would allow no wholesale plunder within the limits of his department. Several itinerant refugees had taken advantage of the advance of the armies to visit places in the Southern States within the Union lines ; they had fled from their own States to avoid the enrollment ordered under the Conscription Act. These men were generally of a disrepu table character, and made their living by following the army, robbing the soldiers, or trading with the rebels. General Grant, from his departmental head -quarters, sent forth his timely communication in their behalf : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF WEST TENNESSEE, j . . CORINTH, MISSOURI, August 16, 1862. > 1. All non-residents of this department, found within the same, who, if at home, would be subject to draft, will at once be enrolled under tho KEFUGEE TRADERS. A REBEL LETTER. 167 supervision of the local commanders where they may be found, and, in case of a draft being made by their respective States, an equal proportion will be drawn from persons thus enrolled. Persons so drawn will at once be assigned to troops from the States to which they owe military service, and the executive thereof notified of such draft. 2. All violation of trade by army-followers may be punished by confis cation of stock-in-trade, and the assignment of offenders to do duty as private soldiers. By order of Major-General U. S. GEANT. There was very soon a thinning of the ranks of the worthless wanderers. A specimen of a rebel letter written about this time will show you how bitter was the hate of our enemies, arid how demoniac their conduct. It is addressed to General Grant, on account of his proclamation respecting the guerrillas, threatening to confiscate rebel property in return for their ravages. The gentle missive was written on three leaves out of a memorandum-book, about four by three inches in size : SINATOBIA, July 16, 1862. U. S. GEANT : SIE : We have seen your infamous and fiendish procla mation. It is characteristic of your infernal policy. We had hoped that this war would be conducted upon principles recognized by civilized nations. But you have seen fit to ignore all the rules of civilized warfare, and resort to means which ought to, and would, make half-civilized nations blush. If you attempt to carry out your threat against the pro perty of citizens, we will make you rue the day you issued your dastardly proclamation. If we can t act upon the principle of lex talionis in regard to private property, we will visit summary vengeance upon your men. You call us guerrillas, which you know is false. We are recognized by our government, and it was us who attacked your wagon-train at Morning Sun. We have twenty-three men of yours, and as soon as you carry out your threat against the citizens of the vicinity of Morning Sun, your Hessians shall pay for it. You shall conduct this war upon proper principles. We intend to force you to do it. If you intend to make this a war of extermination, you will please inform us of it at the earliest convenience. We are ready, and more than willing, to raise the u black flag." Thqre are two thousand partisans who have sworn to retaliate. If you do not re tract your proclamation, you may expect to have scenes of the most bloody character. We all remember the manner in which your vandal soldiers put to death Mr. Owens, of Missouri. Henceforth our motto shall be, Blood for blood, and blood for property. We intend, by the help, of God, to hang on the outskirts of your rabble, like lightning around 168 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the edge of a cloud. We don t intend this as a threat, but simply as a warning of what we intend to do, in case you pursue your disgraceful and nefarious policy toward our citizens, as marked out in your threat of recent date. Respectfully, GEO. R. MEKEITT. The active business-life of the North had, previous to the civil war. demanded so largely our young men, that the majority of cadets in the Military Academy at West Point were from the South ; and, for the same reason, the largest number of commanders in the army and navy were of Southern origin or associations. It was therefore truly, though "boastfully, stated by a rebel writer, after the battle of Shiloh, that, " of the West Point graduates, who are officers in the armies of the United States and Confederate States, it appears that there are in the United States army seventeen major-generals and twenty-four brigadier-generals ; in the Confederate States army, five generals (beside A. S. Johnson, killed at Shiloh), eighteen major-generals, forty-one brigadier-gen erals. From this list, which ends with 1848, it appears that we have sixty-four generals from West Point in our army, while the United States have but forty-one. It was no idle or unmeaning boast of President Davis that he had the pick and choice of the officers of the old army. Not withstanding the frequent flings at West Pointers, we may yet find it a cause of congratulation that we had at the head of our Government one who was educated at West Point himself, but who, by his service in the army and in the War Department, was thoroughly acquainted with the military talent of all the United States officers." Here we may pause, and see how the combatants stand. The Mississippi is clear to Memphis, and at the mouth ; for Butler, who knew so well how to deal with rebels, is at New Orleans. The forces defeated by Halleck and Grant had gone to Vicksburg, Port Hudson, and Baton Rouge, and other points on the Mississippi, to blockade and hold that great thoroughfare of trade in the valley of the West. Although, during the summer months, there was a lull THE POSITION OF THE ARMIES. 169 in the wide arena of the Western conflict, neither army was idle. Major- General Buell s forces were east of Memphis, not far from Huntsville in Alabama, with Chat tanooga for his coveted prize. For this, he left Corinth in June. Major-General Curtis was west of the Mississippi, at Helena, Arkansas. Brigadier- General Schofield was north of him, in Southwestern Missouri ; while General Grant, with the central army, was on the line of West Tennessee, and North Mississippi, between Memphis and luka, protecting the railroads south from Columbus, our only channels of supply. As far as actual fighting was concerned, from June to September, 1862, General Grant s department was particu larly quiet. Skirmishes would occasionally take place between guerrillas and the troops occupying small dis tricts, as at Bolivar, on August 30th, and at the Medon Station of the Mississippi Central Railroad, on August 31st. In every instance the rebels were routed, because the vigilant commander had not overlooked the defenses of these posts. The mighty sweep of these combined armies was around and across a territory six hundred miles in width, from Western Arkansas to the Cumberland Gap, and more than one hundred and fifty miles in the other direc tion. From this area the enemy had been recently driven. The foe, greatly re-enforced by conscription, while we were weakened by losses, had formed magnificent plans of conquest. The grand programme was to reoccupy the lost ground back to Kentucky, and then roll their tide of invasion, like the Goths and Huns of old, over the bor ders of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. Raids into Maryland and Pennsylvania, with Indian troubles at the West, were to furnish a most auspicious time for the sublimely daring advance through the valley of the West. General Braxton Bragg, of the rebel army, opened the gigantic enterprise finely. Hastening from Tripoli, Mis sissippi, through Alabama and Georgia, he reached Chat tanooga, by nature a stronghold, ahead of Buell, who fell back to Nashville, Tennessee. Another hostile column had got into Cumberland Gap, and looked menacingly 170 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. toward Cincinnati. Meanwhile the President had, wisely, and just in season, issued another call for troops. Oh, how wildly the great Northwest echoed back the appeal ! Her sons went streaming down like the rivers, in living tides, toward the seat of Avar. Cincinnati and Louisville were soon fortified. September 5th, while the general advance of the rebel army was in progress, General Bragg published an order, dated at Sparta, in the southern part of Alabama, to deceive the Union generals in regard to his whereabouts, while at the same moment he was at Chattanooga, Ten nessee, preparing for a flank movement through East Ten nessee and Kentucky to the Ohio River. The trick seems to have succeeded with the commander of the Army of the Ohio, but did not impose upon General Grant, He was found, and General Buell sent after him with one hundred thousand men. At Perry ville a severe battle was fought, and the ene my routed. Bragg had hoped to swing, by a flank move ment, around Grant, to the Ohio River ; Corinth lying nearly in a direct westerly line from Chattanooga. It was ascertained that Generals Van Dorn and Price were ad vancing toward our camp at Jacinto, which was at once removed, to prepare for the greater conflict impending. September 18th, soon after break of day, in a drench ing rain, and through mud, the uncomplaining volunteers moved toward the enemy ; Generals Grant and Ord ap proaching luka from the north, and General Rosecrans from the south. The position of the rebel army cut oif communication between Generals Grant and Buell, and at any cost it must be routed. Price, finding that the Union lines were likely to close around him, left the town, and fell on Rosecrans, with desperate fury, at four o clock P. M. Till the sun went down, darkened with the "sulphurous canopy," bullets and steel, cannon and shell did their work well. From the long ridge, commanding a large extent of the country around, the rebels rained down de struction, till one-third of our troop s were killed or wounded. The careful system of reconnoissance adopted in Gen- A FIGHT WITH GENERAL PRICE. 171 eral Grant s army made tlie commander of the Depart ment of West Tennessee, and his subordinate general officers, fully aware of the approach of the rebels upon their lines long before the actual attack took place. Even as early as September 10, 1862, it was known that General Sterling Price, at the head of a far superior force of rebel troops, was marching upon the little camp at Jacinto, Tishamingo County, Mississippi. Orders were, of course, quickly given to break up this camp, and take the wagon trains to the defenses at Corinth. The men who were ordered to remain behind were thereby compelled to sleep on their arms, and in the open air, for several nights. On September 17th, a general advance was ordered by General Grant, and, at four o clock on the morning of September 18th, the regiments from Corinth and Jacinto were pushing toward luka, where General Price had concentrated his forces. The march of the Union troops was made amid a drenching rain, and along muddy roads, advancing upon the place by different routes ; the force under General Rosecrans, known as the Army of the Mis sissippi, moving along the road from the south, while that under Generals Grant and Ord approached the town from the north, via Burnsville. At daybreak, on the morning of September 19th, the march was renewed, and the advance of General Hamil ton s Division encountered the rebel pickets at Barnett s Corners, on the road to luka. After a sharp skirmish, the pickets were driven six miles toward that town, losing slightly in killed and prisoners. The division again push ed forward, until within two miles of luka, where they were received with a hot fire of musketry from the rebels, who were posted on the ridge which commanded the coun try for several miles around. The engagement soon be came general on this part of the line, and lasted until dark, when the men threw themselves down on their arms, to snatch the rest needed to renew the struggle on the morrow. The contest had been very sanguinary and fierce while it lasted, nearly one-third of the Union forces engaged being placed Jiors de combat. During the night General Price evacuated the town, 172 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and in the morning General Rosecrans s troops entered luka from the south, and hastened after the flying rebels. Shortly after, the forces under Generals Grant and Ord arrived by the northern route. As the intention of General Grant was to cut off Price s retreat by that road, and he had chosen another toward the east, this part of the army was not engaged, although its position contributed toward forcing the enemy to evacuate the place. The following extracts from a private letter of a rebel to a friend, under date of September 24, 1862, present a graphic view from the enemy s side : "We held peaceable possession of luka for one day, and on the next were alarmed by the booming of cannon, and were called out to spend the evening in battle array in the woods. On the evening of the 19th, when we sup posed we were going back to camp, to rest awhile, the sharp crack of musketry on the right of our former lines told us that the enemy was much nearer than we ima gined. In fact, they had almost penetrated the town it self. How on earth, with the woods full of our cavalry, they could have approached so near our lines, is a mys tery. They had planted a battery sufficiently near to shell General Price s head-quarters, and were cracking away at the Third Brigade when the Fourth came up, at double-quick ; and then, for two hours and fifteen minutes, was kept up the most terrific fire of musketry that ever dinned my ears. There was one continuous roar of small-arms, while grape and canister howled in fearful concert above our heads and through our ranks. General Little was shot dead early in the action. * * * * It was a terrible struggle, and we lost heavily. All night could be heard the groans of the wounded and dying, forming a sequel of horror and agony to the deadly straggle, over which night had kindly thrown its mantle. Saddest of all, our dead were left unburied, and many of the wounded on the battle-field to be taken in charge by the enemy. " Finding that the enemy were being re-enforced from the north, and as our strength would not justify us in A REBEL VIEW OF THE AFFAIR AT IUKA. 173 trying another battle, a retreat was ordered, and we left the town during the night. The enemy pressed our rear the next day, and were only kept off by grape and can ister. "It grieves me to state that acts of vandalism, dis graceful to any army, were, however, perpetrated along the line of retreat, and makes me blush to own such men as my countrymen. Corn-fields were laid waste, potato- patches robbed, barn-yards and smoke-houses despoiled, hogs killed, and all kind of outrages perpetrated in broad daylight, and in full view of the officers. The advance and retreat were alike disgraceful, and I have no doubt that women and children along the route will cry for the bread which has been rudely taken from them by those who should have protected and defended them." The Army of the Mississippi bore the brunt of the fight, but the combinations caused the evacuation of the town. On the morning of the 20th of September, 1862, General Grant sent the following dispatch to the general- iri- chief at Washington : IUKA, Miss., September 20, 1SC2. To Major-General II. W. HALLECK, General-in-Chief: General Rosecrans, with Stanley s and Hamilton s Divisions and Mise- ner s Cavalry, attacked Price south of this village, about two hours before dark, yesterday, and had a sharp fight until night closed in. General Ord was to the south with an armed force of about five thousand men, and had some skirmishing with the rebel pickets. This morning the fight was renewed by General Rosecrans, who was nearest to the town ; but it was found that the enemy had been evacuating during the night, going south. Generals Hamilton and Stanley, with cavalry, are in full pur suit. This will, no donbt, break up the enemy, and possibly force them to abandon much of their artillery. The loss on either side, in killed and wounded, is from four hundred to five hundred. The enemy s loss in arms, tents, &c., will be large. We have about two hundred and fifty pris oners. I have reliable intelligence that it was Price s intention to move over east of the Tennessee. In this he has been thwarted. Among tho enemy s loss are General Little, killed, and General Whitefield, wounded. I cannot speak too highly of the energy and skill displayed by General Rosecrans in the attack, and of the endurance of the troops. General Ord s command showed untiring zeal; but the direction taken by tho 174 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. eiierny prevented them from taking the active part they desired. Price s force was about eighteen thousand. ., U. S. GRANT, Major-General. The examination of the field, after the first excitement of the battle was over, showed a still more favorable re sult for the Union forces, as will be seen by the following dispatch : HEAD-QUARTERS, CORINTH, September 2 /, 1862. Major-General HALLECK, General-in-Chief: In my dispatch of the 20th our loss was over-estimated, and the rebel loss under-estimated. We found two hundred and sixty-one of them dead upon the field, while our loss in killed will be less than one hundred. U. S. GRANT, Major- General. General Grant, on the same day he sent the dispatch, complimented his officers and men upon their bravery, not forgetting those who fell in the conflict : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF WEST TENNESSEE, | CORINTH, September 22, 1862. f The General Commanding takes great pleasure in congratulating the two wings of the army, commanded respectively by Major-General Ord and Major-General Rosecrans, npon the energy, alacrity, and bravery displayed by them on the 19th and 20th insts., in their movement against the enemy at luka. Although the enemy was in numbers reputed far greater than their own, nothing was evinced by the troops but a burn ing desire to meet him, whatever his numbers, and however strong his position. With such a disposition as was manifested by the troops on this occasion, their commanders need never fear defeat against any thing but overwhelm ing numbers. While it was the fortune of the command of General Rosecrans, on the evening of the 19th inst., to engage the enemy in a most spirited fight for more than two hours, driving him -with great loss from his position, and winning for themselves fresh laurels, the command of General Ord is enti tled to equal credit for their efforts in trying to reach the enemy, and in diverting his attention. And while congratulating the noble living, it is meet to offer our condo lence to the friends of the heroic dead, who offered their lives a sacrifice in defense of constitutional liberty, and in their fall rendered memorable the field of luka. By command of Major-General U. S. GRANT. CONCENTRATION OF HOSTILE TROOPS. 175 General Bragg s forces were all this time pushing for ward toward the Ohio River, and General Grant moved his head- quarters to a more central position. He selected Jackson, Tennessee, placing the commander of the Army of the Mississippi in local command at Corinth. The rebel forces which had retreated from luka were next concentrated near Bipley, Tippah County, Missis sippi, and southwest of Corinth, at which point they were joined by those under Generals Van Dorn and Lovell. Price s forces, in retreating from luka, countermarched at a point several miles south of the Union position, crossed the Mobile and Ohio Eailroad in the vicinity of Bald- wyn, Tupello, &c., and were able to form a junction with the troops under the before-mentioned generals, com bining all the available rebel forces in North Mississippi. The intention of the enemy was to retake Corinth at all hazards, at least to break the line of communications, and force a retreat. General Grant, advised of these facts, so arranged his forces that if the rebels were driven from Corinth and he had no doubt they would be they should not escape without severe punishment. Cavalry scouts were sent out in all directions, and demonstrated the fact that the rebels were, on October 1, 1862, moving from Bipley, via Buckersville, upon Corinth, while the main army was at Pocahontas. The question then was, where did they intend to strike the principal blow, as they were situated in such a position that they could attack with equal ease either of the posts at Bethel, Bolivar, Corinth, or Jackson. In fact, they held the cen ter of the base of the irregular triangle which had Jackson for its apex and Corinth for its right- hand corner. General Grant was master of the situation, and it mat tered little at what point the rebels struck, as he could move his forces to support the position attacked so ad mirably were they arranged within available reach of each other. General Ord held the position at Bolivar, General Hurlburt was stationed nearer Pocahontas, General Rose- crans was at Corinth, and General Grant at Jackson. It will be seen, by reference to the map, that the rebels 176 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. were, hemmed in by the triangular lines of the Union army, except on the south. On the 4th of October, the enemy made a determined and vigorous attack upon the works at Corinth, and the most obstinate fighting ensued. General Grant was in constant telegraphic communication with General Rose- crans, during the attack, and also with his other generals. He could move his forces to meet the maneuvering of the enemy. October 2d, skirmishing began before Corinth. Briga dier-Generals Hamilton, McKean, Davies, and Stanley, were within its walls, with Rosecrans. On the 3d the contest was fairly opened. General Grant, with his eye on the field, was directing the whole machinery of the opening struggle. General Mc- Pherson, at Jackson, was ordered to join, with a brigade, General Rosecrans ; while General Hurlburt, with other forces, was marching to cut off retreat by way of Poca- hontas. Noon came, and thunder, smoke, hissing shot, scream ing shell, yelling combatants, and the shouts of command, were the signs of the terrible strife. The sun sank toward the west, flinging his golden beams over the rich autumnal landscape, and on the surging columns of the foemen, on both sides equally un yielding. For many miles the heavy roar of the artillery swelled with strange distinctness, as the twilight stillness stole upon the bosom of nature. Then, darkness hung a veil between the fiery eyes of the grappling brethren of a common heritage, and they relaxed the bloody grasp, and lay down in weariness on their arms to sleep. The next morning s light kindled upon the uprisen hosts among the dead and wounded, in battle array. Back and forth the swaying masses of armed men moved in the darkened atmosphere, till noon. Then the rebel ranks fell back : the die was cast. The struggle had been a fierce and sanguinary one, and bravely did the garrison defend the position. The rebels had even forced their way into the town, and severe fighting took place in the streets ; but they were THE STKUGGLE BEFORE CORINTH. 177 driven ont of Corinth, and their broken fragments chased into the woods. The victory had, however, cost the Union army dearly, as may be seen from the following brief dispatch from General Grant to the general-in-chief : GRANT S HEAD-QUARTERS, JACKSON, TENN., October 58 A.M. To Major-General II. W. HALLECK, General-in-Chief U. S. A. : Yesterday the rebels under Price, Van Dorn, and Lovell, were repulsed from their attack on Corinth with great slaughter. The enemy are in full retreat, leaving their dead and wounded on the field. Rosecrans telegraphs that the loss is serious on our side, particularly in officers, but bears no comparison with that of the enemy. General Hacklernan fell while gallantly leading his brigade. General Oglesby is dangerously wounded. General McPherson, with his command, reached Corinth yesterday. General Rosecrans pursued the retreating enemy this morning ; and, should they attempt to move toward Bolivar, will follow to that place. General Hurlburt is at the Hatchie River, with five or six thousand men, and is no doubt with the pursuing column. From seven hundred to a thousand prisoners, besides the wounded, are left in our hands. U. S. GEANT, Major-General Commanding. According to the above dispatch, General Rosecrans pursued the enemy, on the morning of the 5th of October, and pushed them toward the Hatchie River. General Hurlburt, who had moved forward to that position along the line of railroad from Grand Junction, had already, on the previous day, driven in the rebel videttes, but his advance had been somewhat disputed during the night. General Hurlburt was, on the morning of October 5th, joined by General Ord s forces from Bolivar. General Ord assumed command ; but finding General Hurlburt had made excellent arrangements for the advance, he followed out the same plan. The road, narrow and winding, through swamps and over precipitous ridges, across which the guns were with great labor dragged by hand, made the advance more than ordinarily dan gerous in the face of the enemy, especially as the retreating forces from Corinth were likely soon to be joined with the others in the front. The rebels made- 12 X78 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. use of every advantage the country gave them, using the swamps and jungles for their infantry, and the ridges for their artillery ; "but so heroic and impetuous was- the attack of the forces under Generals Ord and Hurlburt, that the enemy was driven for five miles to, and across the Hatchie, and up the heights beyond. The following dispatch from General Grant announces the victory on the Hatchie : GRANT S HEAD-QUARTERS, JACKSON, TENN., October 5, 1862. To Major-General H. W. HALLKOK, General-in-Chief U. S. A. : General Ord, who followed General Hurlburt, met the enemy to-day on the south side of the Hatchie, as I understand from a dispatch, and drove them across the stream, and got possession of the heights with our troops. General Ord took two batteries and about two hundred prisoners. A large portion of General Rosecrans s forces were at Chevalla. At this distance every thing looks most favorable, and I cannot see how the enemy are to escape without losing every thing but their small- arms. I have strained every thing to take into the fight an adequate force, and to get them to the right place. U. S. GKAET, Major-General Commanding. The union of General McPherson s forces with those at Corinth enabled General Rosecrans to continue vigorous ly the pursuit of the enemy, and about noon on the 6th of October General Grant sent the following dispatch, which announces the rout of the rebels on every side : HEAD-QUARTERS OF GENERAL GRANT, ^ JACKSON, TENN., 12 : 20 P. M., October 6, 1862. ) To Major-General HALLEOK, General-in-Chief: Generals Ord and Hurlburt came upon the enemy yesterday, and, Gen eral Hurlburt having driven in small bodies of the rebels the day before, after seven hours hard fighting, drove the enemy five miles back across the Hatchie toward Corinth, capturing two batteries, about three hundred prisoners, arid many small arms. I immediately apprised General Rosecrans of these facts, and directed him to urge on the good work. The following dispatch has just been re ceived from him : CHEVALLA, October G, 186 J. To Major-General GKANT: The enemy is totally routed, throwing every thing away. We are fol lowing sharply. W. S. ROSEORANS, Major-General. THE VICTORY OX THE HATCIIIE. 179 Under previous instructions, General Hurlburt is also following. Gen eral McPherson is in the lead of General Rosecrans s column. The rebel General Martin is said to be killed. IT. S. GRANT, Major-General Commanding. It was a disastrous repulse to the enemy. The ac counts published in the Southern newspapers indicated a heavy loss, and that they failed in accomplishing the ob ject of their movement the capture of Corinth. But the same journals endeavored to console themselves and the people with the idea that General Grant had, at least, been prevented from sending re-enforcements to the aid of General Buell, who was then about to engage the rebel forces under General Bragg. The following is the congratulatory order of General Grant to his troops relative to this campaign : HEAD-QUARTEKS, DEPARTMENT OF WEST TENNESSEE, J JACKSON, TENNESSEE, October 7, 1862. f It is with heartfelt gratitude the general commanding congratulates the armies of the West for another great victory won by them on the 3d, 4th, and 5th instants, over the combined armies of Van Dorn, Price, and Lovell. The enemy chose his own time and place of attack, and knowing the troops of the West as he does, and with great facilities for knowing their numbers, never would have made the attempt except with ft superior force numerically. But for the undaunted bravery of officers and soldiers, who have yet to learn defeat, the efforts of the enemy must have proved successful. While one division of the army, under Major-General Rosecrans, was resisting and repelling the onslaught of the rebel hosts at Corinth, another, from Bolivar, under Major-General Hurlburt, was marching upon the ene my s rear, driving in their pickets and cavalry, and attracting the attention of a large force of infantry and artillery. On the following day, under Major-General Ord, these forces advanced with unsurpassed gallantry, driving the enemy back across the Hatchie, over ground where it is almost incredible that a superior force should be driven by an inferior, capturing two of the batteries (eight guns), many hundred small-arms, and several hundred prisoners. To those two divisions of the army all praise is due, and will be awarded by a grateful country. Between them there should be, and I trust are, the warmest bonds of brotherhood. Each was risking life in the same cause, and, on this occa sion, risking it also to save and assist the other. No troops could do more than these separate armies. Each did all possible for it to do in the places assigned it. 180 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. As in all great battles, so in this, it becomes our fate to mourn the loss of many brave arid faithful officers and soldiers, who have given up tneir lives as a sacrifice for a great principle. The nation mourns for them. By command of Major-General U. S. GRANT. President Lincoln, upon receiving the intelligence from General Grant announcing the victories at Corinth and on the Hatchie, dispatched to him the following congratula tions and inquiries : WASHINGTON, D. C., October 8, 1S62. Major-General GRANT : I congratulate you and all concerned in your recent battles and vic tories. How does it all sum up ? I especially regret the death of General Hackleman, and am very anxious to know the condition of General Oglesby, who is an intimate personal friend. A. LINCOLN. The rebel forces of General Bragg were by this time in full retreat from the Ohio River, and were being pur sued by the Army of the Ohio. Skirmishes with guerrillas occurred occasionally within General Grant s lines ; but otherwise this department was once more quiet. On the 16th of October, 1862, it was designated as the Department of the Tennessee, and was further extended so as to embrace the State of Mississippi as far as Yieks- burg. General Eosecrans was shortly after made com mander of the Army of the Ohio, in the place of General Buell. The combined troops under General Grant were now known as the Thirteenth Army Corps. The victories of General Grant s forces were supposed, in Washington, to have had a beneficial effect upon the people of Tennessee ; and, to aid them in resuming their own government under the auspices of the United States, the following document was sent to General Grant : EXECUTIVE MANSION, WASHINGTON, October 21, 1862. Major-General GRANT, Governor JOHNSON, and all having "Military, Naval, and Civil Authority under the United States within the State of Ten nessee : The bearer of this, Thomas R. Smith, a citizen of Tennessee, goes to that State, seeking to have such of the people thereof as desire to avoid LOYALTY IN TENNESSEE. 181 the unsatisfactory prospect before them, and to have peace again upon the old terms under the Constitution of the United States, to manifest such desire by elections of members to the Congress of the United States par ticularly, and perhaps a Legislature, State officers, and a United States Senator friendly to their object. I shall be glad for you and each of you to aid him, arid all others acting for this object, as much as possible. In all available ways give the people a chance to express their wishes at these elections. Follow law, and forms of law, as far as convenient ; but, at all events, get the expression of the largest number of the people possi ble. All see how much such action will connect with and affect the proclamation of September 22d. Of course, the men elected should be gentlemen of character, willing to swear support to the Constitution as of old, and known to be above reasonable suspicion of duplicity. Yours, very respectfully, A. LINCOLN. We smile at the talk, then, of " peace again upon the old terms, under the Constitution." The good President had much to learn of the true character of the war, and the will of the King of kings in regard to the struggle then scarcely "begun, in its connection with slavery, the bitter cause of the war. To prevent any practical result from the President s message to General Grant and the State authorities, General Bragg moved his forces to within striking distance of Nashville. General Grant s report, of October 22d, presents a clear record of his plans and successes : HEAD-QUARTERS DISTRICT WEST TENNESSEE, } JACKSON, TENN., October 22, 1862. J Colonel J. 0. KELTON, A. A.-G-., Washington, D. 0. : COLONEL : I have the honor to make the following report of the battle of luka, and to submit herewith such reports of subordinates as have been received. For some ten days or more before the final move of the rebel army under General Price, eastward from the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, it was evident that an attack upon Corinth was contemplated, or some change to be made in the location of that army. This caused great vigilance to be necessary on the part of our cavalry, especially that to the southern front under Colonel Mizner. The labor of watching, with occasional skirmishing, was most satisfactorily performed, and almost every move of the enemy was known as soon as commenced. About the llth of September, Price left the railroad, the infantry and artillery probably moving from Baldwin, and the cavalry from the roads north of Baldwin, toward Bay Springs. At the latter place a halt of a few 182 WFE AND CAMPAIGNS OP GENERAL GRANT. days seems to have been made ; likely for the purpose of collecting stores, and reconnoitering on the eastern flank. On the 13th of September, the enemy s cavalry made their appearance near luka, and were repulsed by the small garrison under Colonel Murphy, of the Eighth Wisconsin Infantry, still left there to cover the removal of stores not yet brought into Corinth. The enemy appearing again in increased force on the same day, and having cut the railroad and telegraph between there and Burnsville, Colonel Murphy thought it prudent to retire to save his forces. This caused a considerable amount of commissary stores to fall into the hands of the enemy, which property should have been destroyed. Price s whole force soon congregated at luka. Information brought in by scouts, as to the intention of the enemy, was conflicting. One report was, that Price wanted to cross Bear Creek and the Tennessee River, for the purpose of crossing Tennessee and getting into Kentucky. Another, that Van Dorn was to march by way of Ripley and attack us on the southwest, while Price should move on us from the east or northwest. A third, that Price would endeavor to cross the Tennessee, and, if pursuit was attempted, Van Dorn was in readiness to attack Oorinth. Having satisfied myself that Van Dorn could not reach Corinth under four days, with an army embracing all arms, I determined to leave Corinth with a force sufficient to resist cavalry, and to attack Price at luka. This I regarded as eminently my duty, let either of the enemy s plans be the correct solution. Accordingly, on the 16th, I gave some general directions as to the plan of operations. General Rosecrans was to move on the south side of the railroad to opposite luka, and attack from that side with all his available force, after leaving a sufficient force at Rienzi and Jacinto, to prevent the surprise on Corinth from that direction. Major-General Ord was to move to Burnsville, and from there take roads north of the railroad and attack from that side. General Ord having to leave from his two divisions, already very much reduced in numbers, from long-continued service and the number of battles they had been in, tho garrison at Corinth ; he also had one regiment of infantry and a squadron of cavalry at Kossuth, one regiment of infantry and one company of cavalry at Cheuvall, and one regiment of infantry that moved, under Colonel Mower, and joined General Rosecrans s command, reduced the number of men of his command, available to the expedition, to about thirty thousand. I had previously ordered the infantry of General Ross s command at Boli var to hold themselves in readiness to move at a moment s warning; had also directed the concentration of cars at Jackson, to move these troops. Within twenty-four hours from the time a dispatch left Corinth for those troops to "come on," they had arrived three thousand four hundred in number. This, notwithstanding the locomotive was thrown off the track on the Mississippi Central Road, preventing the passage of other -trains for several hours. This force was added to General Ord s command, making his entire strength over six thousand to take into the field. From this forco GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 183 two regiments of infantry and one section of artillery were taken, about nine hundred men, for the garrison or rear guard, to be held at Burnsviile. Not having General Ord s report, these figures may not be accurate. Gen eral Rosecrans was moving from Jacinto eastward, with about nine thou sand men, making my total force, with which to attack the enemy, about fifteen thousand. This was equal to or greater than their number, as I estimated them. General Rosecrans, at his suggestion, acquiesced in by me, was to move northward from his eastern march in two columns one, under Hamilton, was to move up the Fulton and Eastport road ; the other, under Stanley, on the Jacinto road from Barnett s. On the 18th, General Ord s command was pushed forward, driving in the enemy s pickets and -capturing a few prisoners, taking position within six miles of luka. I expected, from the following dispatch, that General Rosecrans would be near enough by the night of the 18th to make it safe for Ord to press forward on the morning of the 19th, and bring on an engagement : "To General GRANT: u One of my spies, in from Reardon s, on the Bay Spring Road, tells of a continuous movement, since last Friday, of forces eastward. They say Van Dorn is to defend Vicksburg, Breckinridge to make his way to Kentucky, Price to attack luka or go to Tennessee. If Price s forces are at luka, the plan I propose is, to move up as close as we can to-night, conceal our move ments ; Ord to advance from Burnsviile, commence the attack, and draw their attention that way, while I move in on the Jacinto and Fulton road, and, crushing in their left, cut off their retreat eastward. "I propose to leave, in ten minutes, for Jacinto, whence I will dispatch you by line of vedettes to Burnsviile. "Will wait a few minutes to hear from you before I start. What news from Burnsviile? " Signed, "W. S. ROSEOEANS, Brigadier- General." To which I sent the following reply : " HEAD-QUARTERS DISTRICT WEST TENNBSSEB, ) BUBNSVILLE, Miss., September 18, 1862. ) " General ROSECEANS : " General Ross s command is at this place, McArthur s division is north of the road, two miles to the rear, and Davis s division south of the road, north. I sent forward two regiments of infantry, with cavalry, by the road north of the railroad toward luka, with instructions for them to bivouac for the night at a point, which was designated, about four miles from here, if not interrupted, and have the cavalry feel where the enemy are. Before they reached the point on the road (you will see it on the map the road north of the railroad), they met what was supposed to be Armstrong s cavalry. The rebel cavalry were forced back, and I sent instructions there to have them stop for the night where they thought they could safely hold. "In the morning troops will advance from here at half-past four A. M. 184 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. An anonymous dispatch, just received, states that Price, Magruder, and Breckinridge have a force of sixty thousand between luka and Tupelo. This, I have no doubt, is the understanding of citizens ; but I very much doubt this information being correct. Your reconnoissances prove that there is but little force south of Corinth for a long distance, and no great force between Bay Spring and the railroad. Make as rapid an advance as you can, and let us do to-morrow all we can. It may be necessary to fall back the day following. I look npon the. showing of a cavalry force so near us as an indication of a retreat, and they a force to cover it. " Signed : U. S. GBAXT, Major-General." After midnight the following dispatch was received : " HE AD -QUARTERS ENCAMPMENT, September 18, 1862. " GENERAL: Your dispatch received. General Stanley s division arrived after dark, having been detained by falling in the rear of Ross through fault of guide. Our cavalry six miles this side of Burnett s ; Hamilton s first brigade eight, second brigade nine miles this side; Stanley s near Daven port Mills. We shall move as early as practicable ; say half-past four A. M. This will give twenty miles march for Stanley to luka. Shall not, therefore, be in before one or two o clock, but when we come in will endeavor to do it strongly. " Signed : W. S. ROSECRANS, Brigadier-General U. S. A." Receiving this dispatch, as I did, late at night, and when I supposed these troops were far on their way toward luka, and had made my plans accordingly, caused some disappointment, and made a change of plans ne cessary. I immediately dispatched General Ord, giving him the substance of the above, and directions not to move on the enemy until Rosecrans arrived, or he should hear firing to the, south of luka. Of this change General Rosecrans was promptly informed by dispatch, sent with his return messenger. During the day General Ord returned to my head-quarters at luka, and, in consultation, we both agreed that it would be impossible for General Rosecrans to get his troops up in time to make an attack that day. The General was instructed, however, to move forward, driving in the enemy s advance guards, but not to bring on an engagement unless he should hear firing. At night another dispatch was received, from General Rosecrans, dated from Barnett s, about eight miles from luka, written at 12:40 P. M., stating that the head of the column had arrived there at 12 M. Owing to the density of the forests, and the difficulties of passing the small streams and bottoms, all communications between General Rosecrans and myself had to pass far around near Jacinto even after he had got on the road leading north. For this reason his communication was not received until after the engagement. I did not hear of the engagement, however, until the next day, although the following dispatch had been promptly forwarded : GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 185 " IlKAD-QUARTERS ABMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI, ) Two MILKS SOUTU OF IUKA, September 19, 1862 10$ p. M. ) " GENERAL : We met the enemy in just about this point. The engage ment lasted several hours. We have lost two or three pieces of artillery. Firing was very heavy. You must attack in the morning, and in force. The ground is horrid unknown to us, and no room for development couldn t use our artillery at all ; fired but few shots. Push in on to them until we can have time to do something. We will try to get a position on our right, which will take luka. " Signed : W. S. ROSECEAJKS, Brigadier-General, U. S. A." This dispatch was received at 8:35 A. M., on the 20th, and the following was immediately sent : 0, 18628:35 A. M. "General ORD: " Get your troops up and attack as soon as possible. Rosecrans had two hours fighting last night, and now this morning again, and, unless you can create a diversion in his favor, he may find his hands full. u Hurry up your troops all possible. " Signed : " U. S. GP.ANT, Major-General." The statement that the engagement had commenced again in the morn ing "was on the strength of hearing artillery. General Ord, hearing the same, however, pushed on with all possible dispatch, without awaiting orders. Two of my staff Colonels Dickey and Logan had gone around to where General Rosecrans was, and were with him during the early part of the engagement. Returning in the dark, and endeavoring to cut off some of the distance, they became lost and entangled in the woods, and remained out over night, arriving at head-quarters next morning about the same hour that General Rosecrans s messenger arrived. For the particular troops engaged, and the part taken by each regiment, I will have to refer you en tirely to the accompanying report of those officers who were present. Not occupying luka afterward for any length of time, and then, not until a force sufficient to give protection for any great distance arrived (the battle was fought about two miles out), I cannot accompany this with a topographical map. I send, however, a map showing all the roads and plans named in this report. The country between the road traveled by General Ord s command, to some distance south of the railroad, is impass able for cavalry, and almost so for infantry. It is impossible for artillery to move southward to the road traveled by General Rosecrans s command. Soon after dispatching General Ord, word was brought by one of my staff, Colonel Hillyer, that the enemy were in full retreat. I immediately pro ceeded to luka, and found that the enemy had left during the night, taking every thing with them except their wounded, and the artillery taken by them the evening before. Going south by the Fulton road, Generals Stanley and Hamilton were in pursuit. 186 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. This was the first I knew of the Fulton road; with it occupied, no route would have been left them except east, with the difficult bottom of Bear Creek to cross, or northeast, with the Tennessee River in their front, or to conquer their way out. A partial examination of the country after ward convinced me, however, that troops moving in separate columns by the route suggested could not support each other until they arrived near luka. On the other hand, an attempt to retreat, according to programme, would have brought General Ord, with his force, on the rear of the retreat ing column. For casualties and captures, see accompanying reports. The battle of luka foots up as follows : On the 16th of September we commenced to collect our strength to move upon Price, at luka, in two columns; the one to the right of the railroad commanded by Brigadier-General (now Major-General) W. S. Rosecrans; the one to the left commanded by Major-General E. O. 0. Ord. On the night of the 18th, the latter was in position to bring on an engagement in one hour s march. The former, from having a greater dis tance to march, and, through the fault of a guide, was twenty miles back. On the 19th, by making a rapid march, hardy, well-disciplined, and tried troops arrived within two miles of the place to be attacked. Unexpectedly the enemy took the initiative and became the attacking party. The ground chosen was such that a large force on our side could not be brought into action ; but the bravery and endurance of those brought in were such that, with the skill and presence of mind of the officer commanding, they were able to hold their ground till night closed the conflict. During the night the enemy fled, leaving. our troops in possession of the field, with their dead to bury and wounded to care for. If it was the object of the enemy to make their way into Kentucky, they were defeated in that ; if to hold their position until Van Dorn could come up on the southwest of Corinth, and make a simultaneous attack, they were defeated in that. Our only defeat was in not capturing the entire army, or in destroying it, as I had hoped to do. It was a part of General Hamilton s command that did the fighting, directed^ entirely by that cool and deserving officer. I commend him to the President for acknowledgment of his services. During the absence of these forces from Corinth, that post was left in charge of Brigadier-General T. J. McKean. The southern front, from Jacinto to Rienzi, was under the charge of Colonel Du Bois, with a small infantry and cavalry force. The service was most satisfactorily performed, Colonel Du Bois showing great vigilance and efficiency. I was kept con stantly advised of the movements of flying bodies of cavalry that were hovering in our front. The wounded, both friend and enemy, are much indebted to Surgeon J. G. F. Holbrook, Medical Director, for his untiring labor in organizing hospitals and providing for their every want. I cannot close this report without paying a tribute to all the officers and soldiers comprising this command. Their conduct on the march was exem- GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 187 plary, and all were eager to meet the enemy. The possibility of defeat I do not think entered the mind of a single individual, and I believe this same feeling now pervades the entire army which I have the honor to command. I neglected to mention, in the proper connection, that, to cover our movements from Corinth, and to attract the attention of the enemy in another direction, I ordered a movement from Bolivar toward Holly Springs. This was conducted by Brigadier- General Lauman. Before completing this report, the report of Major-General Ord was re ceived, and accompanies this. I am, Oolonel, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GKAMT, Major- General. 188 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER X. GENERAL GRANT S NEW COMMAND. HIS INTEGRITY. General Grant s New Command. Its Limits and Sub-divisions. Preparation for a Grand Campaign. Reconnoitering. Protects Citizens. A new Staff. Light- Marching. The Contrabands. Robbery in Camp. Regulation of Trade. The Jews Expelled from the Department. Anecdote Illustrating General Grant s Integrity. On to Vicksburg. Plans for Assaulting or Investing the City. The Army in Motion. Holly Springs Taken by the Rebels. General Grant s Campaign Interrupted. General Sherman s Advance. GENERAL GRANT assumed the command of liis new department on the 25th day of October, 1862, and imme diately announced the new order of things to his troops : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, J JACKSON, TENN., October 25, 1S62. ) I. In compliance with general orders of the War Department, of date October 16, 18G2, the undersigned hereby assumes command of tho Department of the Tennessee, which includes Cairo, Fort Henry, and Fort Donclson, Northern Mississippi, and the portions of Kentucky and Tennes see west of the Tennessee River. II. Head-quarters of the Department of the Tennessee will remain, until farther orders, at Jackson, Tennessee. III. All orders of the District of West Tennessee will continue in force In the Departments. U. S. GEANT, Major-General Commanding. The following day, the boundaries of the districts into which the vast field would "be divided were also given : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OP THE TENNESSEE, ) JACKSON, TENN., October 2G, 1862. I. The geographical divisions designated in general orders, from head quarters, District of West Tennessee, dated September 24, 1862, will hereafter be known as districts. The First Division will constitute the "District of Memphis, 1 Major-General W. T. Sherman commanding; the Second Division, tho "District of Jackson," commanded by Major-General S. A. Ilurlburt; the Third Division, the "District of Corinth," Brigadier- General C. S. Hamilton, commanding; the Fourth Division, the "District of Columbus," commanded by Brigadier-General T. A. Davies. PREPARATION FOR THE VICKSBURG CAMPAIGN. 139 II. The army heretofore known as the "Army of the Mississippi," being now divided and in different departments, will be continued as a separate army. III. Until army corps are formed, there will be no distinction known, except those of departments, districts, divisions, posts, brigades, regiments, ~nd companies. By command of Major-General U. S. GEANT. As General Grant had now heavy work before him, and it was necessary to have his forces thoroughly organ ized, under his personal supervision, he began by rooting out, as far as possible, guerrillas ; and in the affair at Clarkson his forces were very successful. In every great and difficult achievement there is, first, the hard, quiet business of preparation, to do. From the very last of October till late in November, General Grant had just this less exciting and unappreciated toil, before attempting the gigantic enterprise of taking Vicksburg. The vast machinery of a nioving army wagons, tents, stores, hospital shelter he determined to reduce to the smallest possible amount, as indicated in the laws to gov ern the grand campaign : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPAKTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, ( JACKSON, TENS., November 1, 1862. \ I. General Orders, No. 160, from the adjutant-general s office, having been received at head-quarters, is published for the information of all con cerned : The following regulations are established for army trains and bag gage : 1. There will be allowed For head-quarters train of an army corps, four wagons ; of a division or brigade, three ; of a fall infantry regiment, six ; and of a light artillery bat tery or squadron of cavalry, three. In no case will this allowance be exceeded, but always proportionably reduced, according to the officers, and men actually present. All surplus wagons will be turned over to the chief quartermaster, to be organized, under direction of the commanding generals, into supply trains, or sent to the nearest depot. The requisite supply trains, their size depending upon the state of the roads and character of the campaign, will be organized by the chief quar termaster, with the approval of the commanding generals, subject to the control of the "War Department. 2. The wagons allowed to a regiment, battery, or squadron, must 190 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. carry nothing but forage for the teams, cooking utensils, and rations for the troops, hospital stores, and officers 1 baggage. One wagon to each regiment will transport exclusively hospital supplies, under direction of the regimental surgeon; the one for regimental head-quarters win carry the grain for the officers horses, and the three allowed for each battery or squadron will be at least half loaded with the grain for their own teams. Stores in bulk and ammunition will be carried in the regular or special supply trains. 3. In active campaign, troops must be prepared to bivouac on the march, the allowance of tents being limited, as follows : For the head- quarters of an army corps, division, or brigade, one wall- tent to the commanding general, and one to every two officers of his staff". For the colonel, field and staff of a full regiment, three wall tents ; and for every other commissioned officer, one shelter-tent each. For every two non-commissioned officers, soldiers, officers servants, and authorized camp followers, one shelter-tent. One hospital-tent will be allowed for office purposes, at corps head quarters, and one wall-tent at those of a division or brigade. All tents beyond this allowance will be left in d epot. 4. Officers baggage will be limited to blankets, one small valise or carpet-bag, and a moderate mess-kit. The men will carry their own blankets and shelter-tents, and reduce the contents of their knapsacks as much as possible. The depot quartermaster will provide storage for a reasonable amount of officers surplus baggage, and the extra clothing and knapsacks of the men. 5. Hospital-tents are for the sick and w r ounded, and, except those allowed for army corps bead-quarters, must not be diverted from their proper use. G. Commanding officers will be held responsible for the strict enforce ment of these regulations, especially the reduction of officers baggage within their respective commands. 7. On all marches, quartermasters, under the orders of their command ing officers, will accompany and conduct their trains in a way not to ob struct the movement of troops. 8. All quartermasters and commissaries will personally attend to the reception and issue of supplies for their commands, and will keep them selves informed of the condition of the dep6t, roads, and other communi cations. 9. All quartermasters and commissaries will report, by letter, on the first of every month, to the chiefs of their respective departments, at Washington, D. C., their station, and generally the duty on which they have been engaged during the preceding month. By command of Major-General HALLEOK L. THOMAS, Adjutant-General. THE CAVALRY DASH ON BIPLEY. 191 II. District commanders will immediately cause an inspection of their command, with the view to a strict compliance of the above order, and see that all tents and transportation in excess of allowance are turned over to the quartermaster ; that all extra clothing and knapsacks of en listed men are delivered, for storage as provided; that the baggage of officers does not exceed the limitation prescribed; and that all hospital- tents not in use for the sick and wounded ure turned over to the quarter master at once. III. Where there is- a deficiency of clothing or tents, as allowed by regulations and said order, proper requisitions will be made on the chief quartermaster of the Department, Captain 0. A. Reynolds, for same. IV. The requirements of this order must be complied with without delay, and report of such compliance promptly made to these head quarters. By command of Major-General U. S. GRANT. The last of October, Colonel Lee, of General Grant s army, with a Ibody of cavalry, dashed down to Kipley, Mississippi, on a reconnoissance, took it, and held it for a day. After also occupying the town of Orizaba, Colonel Lee returned to Grand Junction on November 2d, with several prisoners. On the evening of the 4th of November, General Grant removed his head-quarters to La Grange, west of Grand Junction, occupying that place with a heavy body of troops, outgeneraling the rebels, who were concentrating their forces in the vicinity of Ripley, a long distance further east. Colonel Lee again made a successful reconnoissance, with about fifteen hundred cavalry, to Hudsonville, Mis sissippi. This was but the beginning of a grand recon noissance as follows : On November 8th, General Grant ordered a strong force, consisting of two divisions of infantry and artillery, and part cf a cavalry division, upon a special reconnois sance. The cavalry was under the command of Colonel Lee, and the infantry under General McPherson. This force started from La Grange, the cavalry taking thq lead. At Lamar, the infantry halted, while the cavalry pushed toward Hudsonville. On the road Colonel Lee encoun tered a body of rebel cavalry, which lie engaged on the flank with one half of his force, while the other half pro- 192 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ceeded to Hudsonville. After routing the cavalry, killing sixteen and capturing one hundred and thirty-four, with their horses and arms, Colonel Lee joined the remainder of his command at Hudsonville, and then returned to La Grange. The following is General Grant s brief but compliment ary dispatch to the general-in- chief in relation to this movement : LA GRANGE, November 11, 1862, 10 : 30 p. n. Major-General HALLECK, General-in-Chief: One hundred and thirty-four prisoners were taken by Colonel Lee, of the Seventh Kansas Cavalry, and sixteen rebels killed. Our loss is two wounded. Colonel Lee is one of our best cavalry officers. I earnestly recommend him for promotion. U. S. GKANT. The reconnoitering expedition brought valuable infor mation to the chief, whose busy, noiseless thought was shaping martial enterprise, which, if successful, would eclipse all former achievements, and make the hosts of rebeldom tremble as never before. He learned that General Lovell, who had been in command of the rebel forces north of Holly Springs, Mississippi, had fallen back through that place on November 2d ; but while retreating, was met on November 5th by General Pemberton, who had come up from the State Capital Jackson. General Lovell was ordered back to his old post, which he held, with two divisions, on the 8th of November. Price, with twelve thousand men, was seven miles below Holly Springs, on the Salem road, and twenty-two miles further south, at Abbeville, was a rebel conscript camp of about thirteen thousand men. General Grant was a just and gentlemanly officer. These qualities were visible in all his conduct. He won from friends and foes the homage of true virtue of honor and integrity above a mean military ambition, or mercenary use of office and its opportunities to get money. No reasonable complaint was disregarded, though it came from rebels. Complaints having been made by the farmers in the vicinity, of the conduct of the rebel forces, while passing GENERAL GRANT ON PLUNDERING. 193 through their country, General Grant issued the following order, to prevent his troops from falling into a like dis graceful system of plunder : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPAKTMENT OF TIIE TENNESSEE, f LA GRANGE, TENN., November 9, 1862. Hereinafter stoppage will be made on muster and pay-rolls against di visions for the full amount of depredations committed by any member or members of the division, unless the act can be traced either to the individ uals committing them, or to the company, regiment, or brigade to which the offenders belong. In all cases the punishment will be assessed to the smallest organiza tion containing the guilty parties. Confiscation acts were never intended to be executed by soldiers ; and if they were, the General Government should have full benefit of all pro perty of which individuals are deprived. A stoppage of pay against offenders will effect this end, and it is to be hoped will correct the growing evil. It is not only the duty of commissioned officers to correct this evil, but of all good men in the ranks to report every violation ; and it is determin ed now that they shall have a pecuniary interest in doing so. Assessments will also be made against commissioned officers, in the proportion of their pay proper. Where offenses of the nature contemplated in this order are traced to individuals, they will be summarily punished to the full extent formerly given to garrison courts- martial, or be arrested and tried by a general court-martial, according to the enormity of the offense, and the severest penalties provided imposed and executed. This order shall be read on parade, before each regiment and detach ment, for three successive evenings. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. It was by this strict discipline that General Grant gath ered around him one of the finest working armies in the "United States. The change in the Department naturally led to a remod eling of the commander s staff, the officers of which were announced as follows : HEAD-QUARTERS, THIRTEENTH ARMY COBPS, DKPARTMEMT OF THE TENNESSEE, LA GRANGE, TENN., November 11. ISC OBP8, \ 2. f I. The following officers are announced as the staff and staff-corps of this department, and will be recognized and obeyed accordingly : Brigadier-General J. D. Webster, Superintendent Military Railroads, 13 194 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Lieutenant-Colonel John A. Rawlins, Assistant Adjutant- General and Chief of Staff. Colonel T. Lyle Dickey, Chief of Cavalry. Colonel William S. Hilly er, Aid-de-Cainp and Provost-Marshal- General. Colonel Clark B. Lagow, Aid-de-Camp and Acting Inspector-General. Colonel George P. Ihrie, Aid-de-Camp and Acting Inspector-General. Colonel John Riggio, Jr., Aid-de-Camp and Superintendent of Mili tary Telegraphs. Colonel George G. Pride, Chief-Engineer of Military Railroads. Lieutenant-Colonel W. L. Duff, Chief of Artillery. Lieutenant-Colonel J. P. Hawkins, Chief of Subsistence Department. Lieutenant-Colonel 0. A. Reynolds, Chief of Quartermaster s Depart ment. Surgeon Horace R. Wirtz, Chief of Medical Department. Major William R. Rowley, Aid-de-Camp and Mustering Officer. Captain T. S. Bowers, Aid-de-Camp. Captain F. E. Prime, Chief of Engineers. Lieutenant James H. Wilson, Chief of Topographical Engineers. Lieutenant S. C. Lyford, Chief of Ordnance Department. By command of Major-General U. S. GRANT. JOHN A. RAWLINS, A. A. G. Two difficulties now required further attention in the progress of the enlarged army movements. The baggage was too heavy for sudden or rapid marches, and the rebel cotton accumulated on our hands. We were just begin ning to strip and arm for the fight. Modern warfare re quired celerity, and both black and white contraband pro perty a care unknown before in any land. The com mander, in accordance with previous orders, applied such means of relief as the circumstances allowed. CHIEF QUARTERMASTER S OFFICE, > LA GRANGE, TENNESSEE, November 13, 1862. J 1. In compliance with general orders from the War Department, and general orders from Head-Quarters, Department of the Tennessee, all officers of the Quartermaster s Department are required to reduce their means of transportation as much as possible until shelter-tents are pro vided, when the transportation will be reduced in compliance with the above orders. 2. All .surplus teams and wagons in charge of regimental quarter masters will be transferred to division quartermasters, who are hereby required to organize a supply-train of from fifty to one hundred teams, as the service of their division may require ; and any teams in excess of tho REGULATIONS RESPECTING THE MARCH. 195 demands for division supply-trains will be turned over to such officer as may be designated to take charge of the general supply-train. 3. All division and brigade quartermasters arc required to report im mediately, by letter, their address and the division or brigade to which they belong, and the name of its commander to the chief quartermaster of the department ; if an acting assistant quartermaster, they will report, in addi tion, the regiment to which they are attached. 4. Brigade quartermasters will not be required to have supply-trains, as the division quartermaster will issue direct to regiments. Division, brigade, and regimental quartermasters are required to remain in camp with their respective commands. The only quartermasters allowed to take quarters or offices in the towns which the army may occupy are the depot and post quartermasters ; and no quarters will be occupied by any officer whatsoever, unless duly assigned thereto by the post quartermaster, under the direction of the chief quartermaster. 5. All cotton coming into the hands of quartermasters, seized south of Jackson, Tennessee, will be sent to that point, and invoiced to Captain G. L. Foi t, A. Q. M., or the post quartermaster, giving the name and resi dence of the parties from whom it was taken. And all cotton seized north of that place will be shipped to Captain Thomas O Brien, A. Q. M., or the post quartermaster, at Columbus, Kentucky. The quartermasters above mentioned will hold such cotton until ordered to sell the same at public auction by the general commanding or the chief quartermaster of the department. 6. All regimental and other quartermasters are required to show that they have sent the monthly papers and returns prescribed by regulations and existing orders to the quartermaster-general and the proper Auditor of the Treasury at Washington, before they can receive funds for the pay ment of extra-duty men. Extra-duty rolls should have attached to the certificate, u And that I have forwarded a copy of the above roll to the quartermaster-general at "Washington." Estimates for funds should be approved by the division general. By command of Major-General U. S. GP.ANT. The negro refugees became a source of much anxiety, as well as an incubus on the army. Several of these men had played the parts of spies, at the instigation of their rebel masters, by entering the Union lines under the pre tense of being escaped slaves, and, after gaining what in formation they could, had made their way back to the rebel lines with the intelligence. General Grant is humane, and did not ignore the claims of those whose unrequited toil was the cause of the war. 196 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. by organizing a camp especially for them. The wise provi sion is clearly stated in the order creating it : HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH ARMY CORPS, DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, ) LA GRANGE, TENNESSEE, November 14. I. Chaplain J. Eaton, Jr., of the Twenty-seventh Regiment Ohio Infan try Volunteers, is hereby appointed to take charge of all fugitive slaves that are now, or may from time to time come within the military lines of the advancing army in this vicinity, not employed and registered in accor dance with General Orders, No. 72, from Head-Quarters District of West Tennessee, and will open a camp for them at Grand Junction, where they will be suitably cared for, and organized into companies, and set to work, picking, ginning, and baling all cotton now outstanding in fields. II. Commanding officers of troops will send all fugitives that come within the lines, together with such teams, cooking utensils, and other baggage as they may bring with them, to Chaplain J. Eaton, Jr., at Grand Junction. III. One regiment of infantry from Brigadier-General McArthur s division will be temporarily detailed as guard in charge of such contra bands, and the surgeons of said regiment will be charged with the care of the sick. IV. Commissaries of subsistence will issue on the requisitions of Chap lain J. Eaton, Jr., omitting the coffee rations, and substituting rye. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. The order relative to plundering led to the detecting of guilty parties ; and General Grant, fully determined to have his orders obeyed in the spirit, assessed the guilty regiment for the whole amount of the injury inflicted, and punished the officers for neglect of duty. This summary method of dealing with " light-fingered" warriors, under military government, is amusing, and is given in practical form by the subjoined document : HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH ARMY CORPS, DEPARTMENT OP THE TENNESSEE, \ LA GRANGE, TENNESSEE, November 16, 1862. The facts having been officially reported to the major-general com manding, that a portion of the Twentieth Regiment Illinois Infantry Volunteers did, on the night of the 7th of November inst., at Jackson, Tennessee, break into the store of G. W. Graham & Co., and take there from goods to the value of $841.40, the property of said Graham & Co., and did cut the tent of R. B. Kent and N. A. Bass, and take therefrom goods to the value of $345, the property of said Kent & Bass, and burn and destroy the tent and poles, also the property of said Kent & Bass, of PENALTY OF ROBBERY AMONG THE "BOYS." 197 the value of $56.26 all of which damages amount to the sum of $1,242.66; and it further appearing from said report that Captain G. L. Page, Co. D ; Captain J. M. North, Co. E ; Captain G. W. Kermard, Co. I ; Lieutenants Harry King, Co. B ; "William Seas, Co. ; John Edmonston, Co. E; David Wadsworth, Co. F; J. Bailey. Co. F; Victor H. Stevens, Co. II ; R. M. Evans, Co. I ; Charles Taylor, Co. I, of said regiment, were absent from their commands at the time of the perpetration of those outrages, in violation of orders, and without proper cause, when they should have been present; and also that Captain Orton Frisbee, of Co. II, acting in the capacity of major, and Captain John Tunison, of Co. G, the senior captain, immediately after the commission of these depredations, did not exercise their authority to ferret out the men guilty of the offenses; but, that, on the contrary, Captain Tunison interposed to prevent search and discovery of the parties really guilty, and that Captain Frisbee, after the commission of the said depredations, being in command of the regi ment, remained behind twenty-four hours after the regiment marched, and the names of the individual parties guilty not having been disclosed, it is therefore ordered I. That the said sum of $1,242.66 be assessed against said regiment and the officers hereinbefore named, excepting such enlisted men as were, at the time, sick in the hospital or absent with proper authority ; that the same be charged against them on the proper muster and pay rolls, and the amount each is to pay noted opposite his name thereon the officers to be assessed pro rata with the men on the amount of their pay proper ; and that the sum so collected be paid by the commanding officer of the regi ment to the parties entitled to the same. II. That Captain Orton Frisbee and Captain John Tunison, of the Twen tieth Regiment Illinois Infantry Volunteers, for wilful neglect of duty and violation of orders, are hereby mustered out of the service of the United States, to take effect this day. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. The civil war among States whose commercial relations had been so interwoven gave to the question of trade an importance both great and delicate. It required wise patriotism and high moral courage to deal justly with all parties interested in traffic, not only as the means of livelihood, but also of speculation. The Treasury Department had interposed some general regulations, which could not meet the peculiar embarrass ments which arose, not unfrequently, in the conquest of insurrectionary territory by our commanders. Good sense, and the inflexible purpose to deal with out the rashness of revenge, and yet thoroughly, with 198 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. treason, made the military rule of General Grant, like that of General Sherman, uniformly the best that, in the pos ture of affairs at the time, could have been for the army and the people. The clear statement of principles curtail ing the traffic in the Department of the Tennessee is wor thy of its origin : HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH ARMY CORPS, DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, | LA GRANGE, TENNESSEE, November 19, 1862. I. In addition to permits from the Treasury Department, all persons are required to have a permit from the local provost-marshal at the post, before purchasing cotton or other Southern products in this department, and shipping the same North. II. It will be regarded as evidence of disloyalty for persons to go beyond the lines of the army to purchase cotton or other products ; and all contracts made for such articles in advance of the army, or for cotton in the field, are null and void, and all persons so offending will be expelled from the department. III. Freight agents on military railroads will report daily to the post provost-marshal all cotton or other private property shipped by them ; and when shipments are made by persons who have not the proper per mits, notice will be given by telegraph to the provost-marshal at Colum bus, Kentucky, who will seize the goods for the benefit of the Govern ment. IV. The Federal army being now in the occupancy of West Tennessee to the Mississippi line, and it being no part of the policy of the Govern ment to oppress, or cause unnecessary suffering to those who are not. in active rebellion, hereafter, until otherwise directed, licenses will be granted by district commanders to loyal persons at all military stations within the department, to keep for sale, subject to the Treasury regulations, such articles as are of prime necessity for families, and sell the same to all citizens who have taken, or may voluntarily take the oath of allegiance, and who have permits from the provost-marshal, obtained under oath, that all goods to be purchased are for their own and for their family s use, and that no part thereof is for sale or for the use of any person other than those named in the permit. Permits so given will be good until counter manded ; and all violations of trading permits will be punished by the for feiture of the permit, fine and imprisonment, at the discretion of a military commission. V. Particular attention is called to existing orders prohibiting the em ployment or use of Government teams for hauling private property. All cotton, brought to stations or places for shipments in this department by Government teams, will be seized by the Quartermaster s Department for the benefit of the Government, and persons claiming such property ex TRADERS AND TRADING IN THE ARMY. 199 pelled from the department. It is made the duty of all officers, and especially of local provost-marshals, to see that this order is rigidly en forced. By command of Major-General U. S. GKANT. But, in spite of the above orders, the Jewish camp- followers were continually engaged in an illegal traffic ; and there was no remedy for the outrage but a sweeping legislation, which not long after was so far modified, that, under careful limitations, the everywhere-present " chil dren of Abraham" were permitted to share in the profits of trade. General Grant issued an order of expulsion : HEAD-QTTARTEBS DEPAKTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, } OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI, December 17, 1862. I The Jews, as a class, violating every regulation of trade established by the Treasury Department, also department orders, are hereby expelled from the department within twenty-four hours from the receipt of this order by post commanders. They will see that all this class of people are furnished with passes and required to leave ; and any one returning after such notification will be arrested and held in confinement until an oppor tunity occurs of sending them out as prisoners, unless furnished with per mits from these head-quarters. No passes will be given these people to visit head-quarters for the purpose of making personal application for trade permits. By order of Major-General GKANT. An incident occurred, in connection with these perplex ing consequences of war in the bosom of the Republic, which finely sets forth the ingrained integrity of General Grant s character. Notwithstanding his protests, agents of the Treasury Department urged the importance, if not necessity, of some system of trade. For a long time he refused, for the reason that he could not successfully conduct his military operations while such persons were moving around him ; but at last he conceded that a certain amount of trade in the recaptured districts of the South would be safe, proper, and even highly useful to the Union provided it could be conducted through honest, unimpeachable Union hands. He was asked to name the persons to whom he would be willing to trust. "I will do no such thing," was Grant s reply; "for, 200 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. if I did, it would appear in less tlian a week that I was a partner of every one of the persons trading under my authority." " Vicksbtirg !" was now the enthusiastic war-cry of Grant s battalions. To understand the exact position of the fortress, and its relation to the army and national cause, a glance at its history since the war began is necessary. In January, 1861, the governor of Mississippi com menced the fortifications of Vicksburg by natural posi tion, with high bluffs, a place of remarkable strength for this purpose. Profiting by the loss of Island No. 10, and the forts above Memphis, no engineering skill and ex pense were spared to make it impregnable. Fortress was built within fortress ; rows of heavy guns rose one over the other in the cliffs, till the stronghold defied ironclads from the river, and armies from the land. Next to Cor inth, a railroad and general centre of the conflict in the field, Vicksburg was the object of interest to both armies. The operations of the army and the naval forces in the West up to May, 1862, had principally been for two grand objects the reopening of the Mississippi River to the Gulf, and the suppression of the rebels in arms. The movements were therefore general in their character up to this date, and had not been directed to any one par ticular point, until the advance upon Corinth, under Gen eral Halleck. About June, 1862, the reduction of Vicksburg and its neighboring batteries became a subject of more direct im portance, and a special object to be accomplished ; and on the 1st of that month, Commodore Farragut s fleet, which had taken New Orleans, and the other points of the Lower Mississippi, arrived off Grand Gulf, where it attacked a rebel battery of rifled guns. After a brief engagement, the fleet passed up the river without reducing the battery. It was the approach of this fleet from below and of the gunboat fleet from above, that warned General Beaure- gard that his army was in great danger, if he should re main too long at Corinth. As before stated, Memphis was reduced on June 6th ; BOMBARDMENT OF VICKSBURG. 201 and the next day Farragut s fleet arrived off Vicksburg. On June 8th, a portion of the fleet returned to Grand Gulf, and for the time silenced the rebel battery at that point. The gunboat fleet having cleared the river to Vicksburg from above, after reaching that place returned north, to operate on the rivers of Arkansas. The movements of the Union army under General Grant, after the evacuation of Corinth, and the arrival of Farragut s fleet before Vicksburg, so alarmed the rebel inhabitants of the State of Mississippi, that, on June 16, 1862, they removed their State archives from their capital Jackson to a more remote position. On the 27th of June, the fleet began the bombardment of Vicksburg, and, with the aid of Porter s mortar-fleet, continued shelling the rebel position at intervals, until the end of July, when the river was found to be so low, that the fleet had to retire to New Orleans, to prevent the larger vessels from getting aground. For more than four long weeks, the awful storm beat upon the walls of this rebel Gib raltar in vain. About twelve miles north of Vicksburg is the mouth of the Yazoo River, the waters of which are deep enough to float an ordinary river vessel, at almost any season of the year. Up this stream the rebels had established an improvised navy-yard ; had there constructed a pow erful iron-clad ram, called the Arkansas; and, to prevent an enemy from passing up the Yazoo River to destroy the ship-building, the rebels had fortified Haines s Bluff, a strong elevation, a short distance above the point where the Yazoo falls into the Mississippi River. On July 15th, this ram came down the Yazoo, ran by the fleet, and laid up before the city of Vicksburg, adding a floating battery to the works of that place. The gunboat Essex and the ram Queen of tlie West subsequently inflicted such injuries on the Arkansas that, in a short time, she was completely destroyed. At this time Vicksburg and its vicinity formed a por tion of the Union Department of the Gulf, and all military operations had to be made by troops having their base at New Orleans. 202 -LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Another plan of weakening effectually, though not destroying, the apparently impregnable works, was pro posed. It was believed to be possible to isolate the city of Vicksburg, which was located on a bend of the Mis sissippi River, by turning the course of that stream, and thus put the city inland, some six miles. As the only strategical value of Vicksburg to the rebels was its power in blockading the river, if the channel could be changed into another direction, the rebel works would be useless, and reduced without much bloodshed, if they were not voluntarily abandoned. To effect this, it was deemed necessary to cut a canal across the neck of land between De Soto and Richmond, Louisiana, and nearly opposite Vicksburg. The troops were employed on this work, while the fleet bombarded the city. If the channel had been changed, the piece of land cut off would have been taken out of the State of Louisiana, and added to the State of Mississippi. On the 22d of July, 1862, the canal was declared com pleted ; but the waters of the river were too low to flow through it, it was then supposed ; but afterwards ascer tained that the canal was in the wrong spot to cause any variation in the channel. The waters of the river continuing to "subside rapidly, it was deemed advisable to raise the siege ; and the rebels took this opportunity to fill up the canal cut by the Union troops, and then to add their Vicksburg garrison to the force engaged against Corinth, during the early part of October. They, also, further fortified the hills around the city, on both the land and water sides, to put it beyond the power of any probable, if not possible, force that could be sent against it by the Government to which it belonged. Such was the city, with its defenses, when General Grant turned his face toward it ; with the added precau tion, by the enemy, of strong fortifications at Port Hud son, just above Baton Rouge, to prevent further co-opera tion of the Union fleet. On the 28th of November, a force of infantry and cavalry, under Generals A. P. Hovey and Washburne, ARMY MOVEMENTS TOWARD VIOKSBURG. 203 arrived at Delta, on the Mississippi River, near the mouth of the Yazoo Pass. They had started the pre vious day from Helena, on the Arkansas shore, at which point the Union troops about to join General Grant were being concentrated. General Washburne s cavalry made a reconnoissance to the mouth of the Coldwater River, where he captured a rebel camp, a number of horses, arms, and equipments, and routed the enemy. The reconnoissance was pushed along both the Coldwater and Tallahatchie Rivers, thence to Preston, after which an expedition was sent to Garner s Station, to destroy the railroad bridge and track. This expedition was com pletely successful, as were several others of a similar character. The cavalry then returned via Charleston, and formed a junction, near Mitchell s Cross-Roads, with General Hovey s forces. The reconnoissance was next pushed up to Panola, where an abandoned rebel camp was discovered, the occupants having fled during the previous night. The cavalry again moved in a southerly direction to Oakland, and along the road towards Coffee- ville. After ascertaining the exact position of the rebel forces, and being engaged in a few skirmishes, this part of the expedition returned to the mouth of the Coldwater River. . General Hovey s command also cut some portions of the railroad lines. This movement created quite a panic among the rebels of the Southwest. Meanwhile, the main forces, under General Grant, moved steadily forward along the line of railroad leading from Grand Junction to Grenada. On November 28th, the advance left Davis s mills for Holly Springs, Colonel Lee s cavalry pushing on ahead. Along the line of march were evidences of the recent cavalry operations of the Union forces. All day Saturday and Sunday, No vember 29th and 30th, the troops poured through the charming streets, lined with foliage, of Holly Springs, until its six thousand inhabitants "began to think the entire North was emptying itself through them." In this place were discovered several evidences of the illegal traffic that had been carried on through the rebel lines ; 204 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. one house, in St. Louis, having a "branch clothing estab lishment for the supply of the rebels. Cavalry reconnoissances were sent out under Colonel Lee, and discovered the enemy in force on the Talla- hatchie. A skirmish took place on November 30th, near Abbeville, resulting in the retreat of the rebels to the defenses at that place. On the 3d of December, Abbe ville was evacuated, and occupied by the Union forces. A series of skirmishes occurred on December 3d, near Oxford, Mississippi, between the Union cavalry advance and the rebels, and resulted in the retreat of the latter. The cavalry then pushed on after Van Dorn s retreating column, and, on December 4th, drove the rebels out of Water Valley, engaging them sharply near Coffee ville, on December 5th. As the cavalry thus pushed on, they were followed by the main army, under General Grant, whose general ship was apparent in every movement. By sending Gen eral Hovey s forces, via Delta, toward the railroad lines, he created a panic in the very vicinity through which he was marching, making his advance almost a bloodless one. The gunboat fleet were also operating along the rivers, especially the Yazoo, in which torpedoes had been sunk by the rebels, to repel the advance. On December llth, the gunboat Cairo was sunk by the ex plosion of one of these hidden weapons. Skirmishes would occasionally take place at the posts left behind General Grant in his advance, but he took care to have them well guarded, and the brief contests did not, at first, interfere with his movements. On December 12th, a skirmish took place at Corinth, but was hand somely repulsed by Colonel (since General) Sweeny. General Grant s head-quarters had, by this time, been removed to Oxford, Mississippi. On the 20th, occurred a sad and memorable affair to delay his onward march. While he had taken every precaution against surprise, in the management of the columns covering many miles of the enemy s country, the rebels resolved to make a dash at Holly Springs in his rear. He feared -it, and tele graphed Colonel Murphy, in command, who was strong THE AFFAIR AT HOLLY SPRINGS. 205 enough to defend the place, that they were after him, and that re-enforcements were on the way. The troops from Grant were delayed, and on came the rebel cavalry, just as the morning beams fell on the quiet town. Two rail road trains, one loaded with cotton, were soon in a blaze. Then the work of pillage and burning was the order of the day. Colonel Murphy was a coward, and made almost no resistance. The troops fought without a leader awhile, but in vain. Up and down the streets the raiders went. People in their night-clothes rushed out of the houses. One man, whose boots had been carried off, in his fright put on only his coat containing his money, drawers, stock ings, and spurs, went to the stable, took his horse, and rode away. December 20th, with all the stores so necessary to the advance, General Grant s main forces had to fall back to that place, where he located his head-quarters, to recruit his supplies. Upon the investigation of the matter con cerning this surrender, General Grant expressed his dis pleasure in the following condemnatory order : HEAD-QUAKTERS TIIIKTEENTH ARMY CORPS, DEPARTMENT OF THB TENNESSEE, I HOLTUY SPRINGS, MISSISSIPPI, December 24, 1862. It is with pain and mortification that the general commanding reflects upon the disgraceful surrender of the place, with all the valuable stores it contained, on the 20th instant, and that without any resistance except by a few men, who form an honorable exception ; and this, too, after warning had been given of the enemy northward, the evening previous. "With all the cotton, public stores, and substantial buildings about the depot, it would have been perfectly practicable to have made, in a few hours, a, defense sufficient to resist, with a small garrison, all the cavalry force brought against them un+il the re-enforcements, which the commanding officer was notified were marching to his relief, could have reached him. The conduct of officers and men in accepting paroles, under the circum stances, is highly reprehensible, and, to say the least, thoughtless. By the terms of the Dix-llill cartel, each party is bound to take care of their prisoners and to send them to Vicksburg, or a point on the James River ? for exchange, or parole, unless some other point is mutually agreed upon by the generals commanding the opposing armies. By a refusal to be paroled, the enemy, from his inability to take care of the prisoners, would have been compelled either to have released them unconditionally, or to ha"e abandoned further aggressive movements for 206 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. the time being, which would have made their recapture and the discom fiture of the enemy almost certain. The prisoners paroled at this place will be collected in camp at once by the post commander, and held under close guard until their case can be reported to Washington for further instructions. Commanders throughout the department are directed to arrest and hold as above all men of their commands and all stragglers who may have accepted their paroles upon like terms. The general commanding is satisfied that the majority of the troops who accepted a parole did so thoughtlessly and from want of knowledge of the cartel referred to, and that in future they will not be caught in the same way. By order of Major-General U. S. GEANT. As we shall see, the affair of Holly Springs entirely and fatally deranged General Grant s plan of the expe dition against Vicksburg. General W. T. Sherman, a gifted and gallant officer at Memphis, was entrusted with a grand expedition down the Mississippi River to Vicksburg. He had previously made reconnoissances in the vicinity of the Tallahatchio River. The fleet consisted of one hundred and twenty- seven steamers, in addition to the gunboats. The troops were Western men, hardy, daring, and fighting volun teers, accustomed to a rough and adventurous life. To exclude all refuse material from his magnificent army, General Sherman threw over it the protection of an edict, severe and characteristic : HEAD-QUARTERS RIGHT WING THIRTEENTH AKMY CORPS, I MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, December 18, 1862. I. The expedition now fitting out is purely of a military character, and the interests involved are of too important a nature to be mixed up with personal and private business. No citizen, male or female, will be allowed to accompany it, unless employed as part of a crew or as servants to he transports* Female chambermaids to the boats and nurses to the sick alone will be allowed, unless the wives of captains and pilots actually belonging to the boats. No laundress, officer s, or soldier s wife must pass below Helena. II. No person whatever, citizen, officer, or sutler, will, on any consid eration, buy or deal in cotton or other produce of the country. Should any cotton be brought on board of any transport going or returning, the brigade quartermaster, of which the boat forms a part, will take posses- GENERxVL SHERMAN S EXPEDITION. 207 sion of it, and invoice it to Captain A. R. Eddy, chief quartermaster at Memphis. III. Should any cotton or other produce he brought hack to Memphis hy any chartered boat, Captain Eddy will take possession of the same, and sell it for the benefit of the United States. If accompanied by its actual producer, the planter, or factor, the quartermaster will furnish him with a receipt for the same, to be settled for, on proof of his loyalty at the close of the war. IV. Boats ascending the river may take cotton from the shore for bulk heads to protect their engines or crew, but on arrival at Memphis it will be turned over to the quartermaster with a statement of the time, place, and name of its owner. The trade in cotton must await a more peaceful state of affairs. V. Should any citizen accompany the expedition below Helena, in viola tion of these orders, any colonel of a regiment or captain of a battery will conscript him into the service of the United States for the unexpired term of his command. If he shows a refractory spirit, unfitting him for a soldier, the commanding officer present will turn him over to the captain of the boat as a deck-hand, and compel him to work in that capacity, with out wages, until the boat returns to Memphis. VI. Any person whatever, whether in the service of the United States or transports, found making reports for publication, which might reach the enemy, giving them information, aid, and comfort, will be arrested, and treated as spies. By order of Major-General SHERMAN. Army speculators certainly could not mistake the feel ings and purpose of the commander toward them. December 20th his imposing armada moved down the Mississippi, with streamers flying and bands of music playing ; presenting one of war s most rare and stirring scenes. Two days later, December 22d, General Grant made the following new arrangement of his forces into corps and divisions : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, I HOLLY SPRINGS, Miss., December 22, 1862. By directions of the general-in-chief of the army, the troops in this department, including those of the Department of the Missouri operating on the Mississippi River, are hereby divided into four Army Corps, as follows : I. The troops composing the Ninth Division, Brigadier-General G-. "W. Morgan commanding ; the Tenth Division, Brigadier-General A, J. Smith 208 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. commanding ; and all other troops operating on the Mississippi River below Memphis, not included in the Fifteenth Army Corps, will consti tute the Thirteenth Army Corps, under the command of Major-General John A. McClernand. II. The Fifth Division, Brigadier-General Morgan L. Smith command ing; the Division from Helena, Arkansas, commanded by Brigadier-Gen eral F. Steele; and the forces in the District of Memphis, will constitute the Fifteenth Army Corps, and be commanded by Major- General W. T. Sherman. III. The Sixth Division, Brigadier-General J. Me Arthur commanding ; the Seventh Division, Brigadier-General I. F. Quinby commanding ; the Eighth Division, Brigadier-General L. F. Ross commanding ; the Second Brigade of Cavalry, Colonel A. L. Lee commanding; and the troops in the District of Columbus, commanded by Brigadier-General Davies, and those in the District of Jackson, commanded by Brigadier-General Sullivan, will constitute the Sixteenth Army Corps, and be commanded by Major-Gen- eral S. A. Huiibut. IV. The First Division, Brigadier-General J. W. Denver commanding ; the Third Division, Brigadier-General John A. Logan commanding ; the Fourth Division, Brigadier-General J. G. Lauman commanding ; the First Brigade of Cavalry, Colonel B. H. Grierson commanding ; and the forces in the District of Corinth, commanded by Brigadier-General G. M. Dodge, will constitute the Seventeenth Army Corps, and be commanded by Major- General J. B. McPherson. District commanders will send consolidated returns of their forces to these head-quarters as well as to army corps head-quarters, and will, for the present, receive orders from department head-quarters. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. The divisions of Generals McArtliur and Quinby, of the Sixteenth Army Corps, were transposed, with those of Generals Lauman and Denver, of the Seventeenth. General Sherman, when he left Memphis, with his staff, had his head-quarters on board the Forest Queen, which arrived at Friar s Point on December 21st. He was, therefore, entirely unaware of the backward steps of General Grant, from Oxford to Holly Springs. BRAVERY OF UNION GARRISONS. 209 CHAPTER XI. DEFENSE OF MILITARY POSTS. GEN. GRANT S CONGRATULATIONS. Heroic Defense of Military Posts. The Commanding General s Congratulations. General Sherman Reaches and Attacks Vicksburg. The Expedition Fails. The Reason. President s Proclamation. McClernand at Vicksburg. Suspect ed Disloyalty of Illinois Troops. The Regiment Relieved of the Charge. Army Movements. Attempts to find a Passage through Bayous and Canals to Vicks burg. The Water-courses Abandoned. SEVERAL posts in General Grant s rear were attacked a~bout the same time as Holly Springs, "but were bravely defended "by their garrisons, and the rebel onslaughts re- pnlsed. The heroic conduct of our soldiery at these vari ous points of combat, often unequal, drew from the sleep- lessly watchful chief a paper quite in contrast with the former one whose burden of sadness and indignation again appears, with a brand of cowardice upon the timid colonel. Two weeks had elapsed since the shameful oc currence, giving ample time for investigation, and a calm, righteous judgment : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, ) HOLLY SPRINGS, Miss., January 8, 1863. I. The major-general commanding the department takes just pride and satisfaction in congratulating the small garrisons of the posts of Coldwater, Davis s Mills, and Middleburg, for the heroic defense of their positions on the 20th, 21st, and 24th ultimo, and their successful repulse of an enemy many times their number. The Ninetieth Illinois, at Gold water (its first engagement) ; the detach ment of the veteran Twenty-fifth Indiana, and two companies of the Fifth Ohio Cavalry, at Davis s Mills ; and the detachment of the gallant Twelfth Michigan at Middleburg, are deserving of the thanks of the army, which was in a measure dependent upon the road they so nobly defended for supplies, and they will receive the meed of praise ever awarded by a grate ful public to those who bravely and successfully do their duty. These regiments are entitled to inscribe upon their banners, respec tively, Coldwater, Davis s Mills, and Middleburg, with the names of other battle-fields made victorious by their valor and discipline. 14 210 LIFE A:N T D CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. It is gratifying to know that, at every point where our troops made a stand during the late raid of the enemy s cavalry, success followed, and the enemy was made to suffer a loss in killed and wounded greater than the entire garrisons of the places attacked. Especially was this the case of Davis s Mills and Middlehurg. The only success gained by Van Dorn was at Holly Springs, where the whole garrison was left by their commander in ignorance of the approach of danger. II. Colonel E. C. Murphy, of the Eighth Regiment "Wisconsin Infantry Volunteers, having, while in command of the post of Holly Springs, Mis sissippi, neglected and failed to exercise the usual and ordinary precau tions to guard and protect the same ; having, after repeated and timely warning of the approach of the enemy, failed to make any preparations for resistance or defense, or shown any disposition to do so ; and having, with a force amply sufficient to have repulsed the enemy and protect the public stores intrusted, to his care, disgracefully permitted him to capture the post and destroy the stores and the movement of troops in the face of an ene my rendering it impracticable to convene a court-martial for his trial is, therefore, dismissed the service of the United States to take effect from the 20th day of December, 1862, the date of his cowardly and disgraceful conduct. By order of Major- General U. S. GEANT. It lias been already intimated, that it was impossible for General Grant to inform General Sherman of his hu miliating delay ; and it was only to be hoped that, having the moral support of supposing his chief successful, he would himself succeed. The troops that had retreated before General Grant s advance, finding that they were released from the neces sity of further resisting him as it would have been a fatal madness to have pushed on to Jackson without supplies were immediately transported to Vicksburg to oppose General Sherman, of whose expedition the rebels had been apprised by their sympathizers in Memphis. General Sherman proceeded with his part of the expedition, and landed a small force, under General Morgan L. Smith, at Milliken s Bend. These troops proceeded to Delhi and Dallas, on the Vicksburg and Texas Eailroad, and destroyed the depots and a section of the track, to cut off the retreat of the rebels from Vicks burg. It is apparent that General Grant s plan was a splendid one; and, but for the surrender of Holly Springs, must have been successful. GENERAL SHERMAN S ADVANCE ON VICKSBURG. 211 The forces under General Sherman consisted of four divisions, and were known as the " Eight Wing of the Army of the Tennessee." At about noon of December 26, 1862, the fleet of trans ports arrived off Johnston s Landing, and under cover of the gunboats the men were disembarked ; the armed ves sels having first silenced the battery which the rebels had planted. By early morning the whole force, infantry and artillery, were landed the advance having already moved some distance inland. Vicksburg, from this point of landing, was peculiarly situated ; it was on a hill, with a line of hills surrounding it at a distance of several miles, and extending from Haines s Bluff, on the Yazoo Eiver, to Warrenton, ten miles below the city, on the Mississippi Eiver. The low country in the vicinity is swampy, and filled with sloughs, bayous, and lagoons. To approach the city with a large force by this route, even in times of peace, would be a matter of great difficulty, and with an enemy in front it was well nigh impossible. On Saturday morning, December 27, 1862, the army was drawn up in line of battle, prepared to make the as sault on the enemy s works. The general advance was then commenced from different points, and by dusk the enemy was driven at least a quarter of a mile from his for mer position. On the 28th, the men fought with great bravery and determination ; but the non-arrival of the left wing had completely disarranged the plan of battle. The w enemy had been re-enforced by the troops that had fled from before General Grant s advance ; and the missiles from this concentrated body were thrown with great rapidity upon General Sherman s lines. The rebels, however, re fused to come from behind their defenses, which, on the morning of the 29th, extended not less than two miles up the bluffs the newly-arrived troops having been at work during the previous night, throwing up earth work batteries in all directions, and at every assailable point. The position was naturally strong, but, by the addition of art, it was made completely impregnable 212 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. against a force so small as that commanded toy Gen eral Sherman. In addition, the woods were rilled with sharp-shooters, who picked off the officers with great rapidity. There stood Sherman s " Right Wing of the Army of the Tennessee," in the swampy ground between the hills and the city ; while the re-enforced enemy rained death on their "rank and file," and the minie balls from the forest picked off the officers. Over ditches, in which the horses mired and were left, across bloody rifle-pits, through dense woods, and over heaps of fallen timber, the columns struggled, to the sound ringing above all the tumult, " Forward !" During Monday, the 29th, several brilliant charges were made on the works ; but all was in vain ; the men were outnumbered by the enemy, and could not hold the positions, even after they were taken General Blair s brigade, led by himself, on foot, particularly distinguish ed itself, and suffered the greatest loss. As the men, swept down by the iron and leaden hail, fell back, the last of the brigade lingering behind in the storm was its commander. After hostilities had ceased, and the slain and wounded were borne away under a flag of trace, the pickets had their talk : " How far is it to Vicksburg ?" Rebel picket. u So far you ll never git thar." Federal picket. " How many men have you got ?" Rebel picket. "Enough to clean you out." Then another rebel, who seemed to be the stump speaker of the squad, with a flourish, added : " Banks has been whipped out at Port Hudson, Mem phis has been retaken, and you Yankees will not take Vicksburg till hell freezes over." And so the. conversation went on during the four hours of truce. The profane assertion of the rebel was destined to be refuted in the heat of the next midsummer. Under a flag of truce, the dead were buried and the wounded removed ; after which, General Sherman gave the order for his troops to re-embark. ADJUTANT-GENERAL THOMAS AND EMANCIPATION. 213 January 1, 1863 ! It was the most memorable New Year s Day in the history of the Republic. The President s Proclamation of Emancipation, during all its winter hours, was flying along telegraphic wires to every part of the land. Strong men wept, while others could only pray, or sing, or shout. Adjutant-General Thomas, clothed with authority to carry out that proclamation, soon after started for the Southwest, in doubt how he should be received by the officers, many of whom were Southern men by birth, or life-long sympathy. What General Grant did with the words of freedom to millions of slaves will appear in a subsequent order. Meanwhile, January 3d, General McClernand arrived at the head-quarters of General Sherman, causing a change in the command, as he ranked General Sherman by over one month in the date of his commission ; and an order was at once given by the former to withdraw from the Yazoo River, where the vessels were stationed, and return to the Mississippi River. On thus assuming the command, he ordered the title of the army to be changed, and General Sherman thus announced the fact : HEAD-QUARTERS EIGHT WING AUMY OP TENNESSEE, ) STEAMEU FOREST QUEEN, MILLIKEN S BEND, January 4, 1SG3. > Pursuant to the terms of general orders, made this day by General McClernand, the title of our army ceases to exist, and constitutes in the future the Army of the Mississippi, composed of two army corps, one to be commanded by General G. W. Morgan, and the other by ir.yself. In re linquishing the command of the Army of the Tennessee, and restricting my authority to my own corps, I desire to express to all commanders, to soldiers and officers recently operating before Vicksburg, my hearty thanks for their zeal, alacrity, and courage manifested by them on all occasions. We failed in accomplishing one purpose of our movement, the capture of Vicksburg ; but we were part of a whole. Ours was but part of a com bined movement, in which others were to assist. We were on time ; unfore seen contingencies must have delayed the others. We have destroyed the Shreveport Road, we have attacked the defenses of Vicksburg, and pushed the attack as far as prudence would justify; and, having found it too strong for our single column, we have drawn off in good order and good spirits, ready for any new move. A new commander is now to lead you. He is chosen by the President of the United States, who is charged by the Con stitution to maintain and defend it, and he has the undoubted right to 314 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. select his own agents. I know that all good officers and soldiers will give him the same hearty support and cheerful obedience they have hitherto given me. There are honors enough in reserve for all, and work enough too. Let each do his appropriate part, and our nation must in the end emerge from this dire conflict purified and ennobled by the fires which now test its strength and purity. All officers of the general staff now attached to my person will hereafter report in person and by letter to Major-General McClernand, commanding the Army of the Mississippi, on board the steamer Tigress, at our rendezvous at Gaines s Landing and at Montgom ery Point. By order of Major-General "W. T. SHERMAN. For a brief period this portion of the army was not under the command of General Grant, and, consequently, withdrawn from the grand object of the campaign the reduction of Yicksburg. The weakening of the force, intended for the enterprise which had for months occupied his thoughts, imperiled it, and called forth an application to the President to restore the columns to their former place, which was successful ; and the two army corps, the Thirteenth and Fifteenth, were ordered to report to him. They formed the Army of the Mississippi, and were taken up the Arkansas and White Kivers, to move against Fort Hindeman, a rebel defense commanding the former stream. The attack upon the batteries at Arkansas Post was gallant and victorious. The incessant cannonading was a remarkably fine display of skill in heavy gunnery, and the storming of the works by the troops a daring and admira ble affair. General McClernand announced the success to General Grant, January llth, in these words : " I have the honor to report that the forces under my command attacked the Post of Arkansas to-day, at one o clock, having stormed the enemy s work. We took a large number of prisoners, variously estimated at from seven thousand to ten thousand, together with all his stores, animals, and munitions of war. 4 Rear- Admiral David D. Porter, commanding the Mississippi Squadron, effectively and brilliantly co-oper ated, accomplishing this complete success." The heroic Porter said of the fleet : "The gunboats Louisville, De Kalb, Cincinnati, and REAR-ADMIRAL PORTER S REPORT. 215 Lexington, attacked the heavy fort at the post, on the Arkansas, last night, and silenced the Ibatteries, killing twenty of the enemy. "The gunboats attacked again this morning, and dis mounted every gun, eleven in all. "Colonel Dunnington, late of the United States Navy, commandant of the fort, requested to surrender to the Navy. I received his sword. "The army co-operated on the land side. The forts were completely silenced, and the guns, eleven in number, were all dismounted in three hours. 4 The action was at close quarters on the part of the three iron-clads, and the firing splendid. " The list of killed and wounded is small. The Louis- mile lost twelve, De Kalb seventeen, Cincinnati none, Lexington none, and Rattler two. "The vessels, although much cut up, were ready for action in half an hour after the battle." There were at this time suspicions of disloyalty in one of the Illinois regiments, awakened by facts which came to light in the investigation of the surrender of Holly Springs ; and General Grant met the dangerous spirit promptly, ordering a temporary disarming of the troops, who, it was believed, had yielded to the influence thrown over them by the designing politicians. Subsequent and more careful sifting of the statements and rumors, by a special court of inquiry convened by General Grant early in January, exonerated the regi ment. With the high sense of justice and magnanimity which have always distinguished the Lieutenant-General, he im mediately had the result read at the head of the regiment, designating the few members of it who were guilty of dishonorable conduct. In the paper referred to, he assures the troops, that "as a regiment they are relieved from all suspicion of disloyalty, and placed where the commanding general hoped to find it among the pure and patriotic in their country s defense." The cavalry, an arm of the service the South knew how to wield at the opening of the rebellion much better than 21 6 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the North, had begun to do a good work in the army of General Grant. During the pause in the movements of the grand army which followed the failure of the Vicks- "burg campaigns, there were occasional skirmishes with the horsemen. January 8th, a descent was made on a camp near Kipley, Tennessee, killing and wounding several rebel soldiers, and capturing forty -six, besides horses, arms, and camp equipage. The remainder of the force was dispersed. The commander at Memphis gave notice that, for all guerrilla raids upon Union citizens and communica tions with the city, the resident secessionists should be punished in the forfeiture of their property and expulsion beyond the extreme limits of the Union army lines. General Grant s immediate army, except the special posts held at Corinth and elsewhere, was also withdrawn from Northern Mississippi, after the diversion of the forces acting along the Mississippi River, and the head-quarters of the department were located at Memphis. After the withdrawal of the army, the rebel guerrilla forces began to make raids upon all towns recently held by the Union troops, and any one who had shown to Grant s army evidences of returning loyalty was summarily punished, either in person or property. On the 23d of January, the Army of the Mississippi, having destroyed all offensive and defensive works at Arkansas Post, returned to Memphis, and reported to General Grant. His hearty support of the President s proclamation was expressed in the following words : " Corps, division, and post commanders will afford all facilities for the completion of the negro regiments now organizing in this department. Commissaries will issue supplies, and quartermasters will furnish stores on the same requisitions and returns as are required from other troops. "It is expected that all commanders will especially exert themselves in carrying out the policy of the Admin istration, not only in organizing colored regiments, and rendering them efficient, but also in removing prejudice against them." NEW PLANS AGAINST VIOKSBURG. 2i. On the 29th of January, 1863, General Grant landed a portion of his army at Young s Point, Louisiana, and another portion at Milliken s Bend. He shortly followed these forces, and established his head-quarters at the former place a favorable point at which to control the necessary operations in the reduction of the rebel strong hold. He next thoroughly inspected the works, and was convinced that it was impossible to take them from the water front. A consultation was held with his generals, who agreed that the only method that prom ised success w r as to flank the works on the south side. The most serious question was, the means to be adopted to transport his forces to the south side of the fortified city. The river was completely blockaded above by the works on the Walnut Hills and other elevations, and no ad vance could be made from ISTew Orleans in consequence of the fortification of Port Hudson. General Grant turned his attention to the reopening of the canal first cut by General Williams, opposite Yicksburg, across the Peninsula on the Louisiana side of the river. If this canal had been made successful, transports and gunboats could have been taken through it to the south side of the city, and the troops and supplies moved to a new base of operations. The work, however, was of such a herculean nature, and was being continually interrupted by the heavy rains and the rapid rise of the river, that the number of men required to keep the water out of the camps and cuttings was much larger than those engaged on the canal, and more than could be conveniently detailed for the purpose. It now became necessary that the utmost secrecy should be used concerning every thing that was done in General Grant s army, and an order was issued to prevent any one from being admitted within the lines who did not properly belong to the army, and to prohibit those who were inside from going beyond the limits : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, ) YOUNG S POINT, LOUISIANA, February 12, 1863. I. The nature of the service the army is now called upon to perform making it impracticable to transport or provide for persons unemployed by 218 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. government, the enticing of negroes to leave their homes to come within the lines of the army is positively forbidden. They should be permitted to remain at their homes, in pursuance of the recommendation of the Presi dent, "in all cases where allowed to labor faithfully for reasonable wages." Those at present within the lines will not be turned out ; but in future, in the field, no persons, white or black, who are not duly authorized to pass the lines of sentinels, will be permitted to enter or leave camp. II. Whenever the services of negroes are required, details will be made by army corps commanders for the purpose of collecting them, and they will be registered, provided for, and employed in accordance with law and existing orders. III. The habit too prevalent of arresting citizens beyond the lines of the army, and bringing them into camp without charges, is prejudicial to the service, and must not be continued. When citizens are arrested here after without charges being preferred warranting the arrest, the citizen will be turned outside the lines, and the officer or soldier causing the arrest will be confined, and otherwise punished at the discretion of a court-martial. IV. No flag of truce will herea-fter be allowed to pass our outposts. Any message sent under it will be received by an officer and receipted for, and the flag directed to return immediately. All answers to such messages will be sent under our own flag of truce. V. Attention of army corps commanders is particularly called to the 41st, 42d, 46th, and 50th Articles of War, which will be rigidly enforced. Major-General U. S. GRANT. The Articles of War referred to are as follows : ft All non-commissioned officers and soldiers, who shall be found one mile from the camp, without leave, in wri ting, from their commanding officer, shall suffer such pun ishment as shall be inflicted upon them by the sentence of a court-martial. "jSTo officer or soldier shall be out of his quarters, gar rison, or camp, without leave from his superior officer, upon penalty of being punished according to the nature of his offense, by the sentence of a court-martial. " Any sentinel who shall be found sleeping upon his post, or shall leave it before he shall be regularly relieved, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as shall be inflicted by the sentence of a court-martial. "Any officer or soldier who shall, without urgent ne cessity, or without the leave of his superior officer, quit his guard, platoon, or division, shall be punished accord- WATER-ROUTES TO THE REBEL CITY. 219 ing to the nature of his offense, "by the sentence of a court- martial." The banks of the Mississippi River at this time were lined with guerrilla parties, firing upon the supply -boats and transports with light field-pieces, and when attacked retreating into the jungles and cane-brakes. This bandit warfare, the fitting exponent of treason, annoyed seriously, but did not interrupt, General Grant in his ripening plans for seizing Yicksburg. During the early part of February, a reconnoissance was made in the neighborhood of Lake Providence, and a skirmish took place about five miles from the lake, result ing in the defeat of the rebels. Another occurred at Old River, Louisiana, on the 10th of February, with like suc cess. By the reconnoitering, Captain Prime, chief of engi neers on General Grant s staff, ascertained facts that led him to believe a water route could be made through the bayous which run from near Milliken s Bend, north of Vicksburg, and from New Carthage, south of that city, into the Tensas River. Meanwhile, the work on the Williams Canal was prose cuted with great vigor. On the 8th of March, the over flow of the river broke in the dam at the end of the canal, and flooded the whole of the low lands, before the cutting could be completed. The season was too far advanced to renew the enterprise, and it was abandoned. Acting Rear- Admiral Porter s gunboat fleet ably co operated with General Grant in his operations before Vicksburg, and, early in February, the ram Queen of tlie West, under command of Colonel Ellet, on a reconnois sance, ran by the batteries at Vicksburg, and pushed down the Mississippi and up the Red River, which had been used by the rebels as a highway for the transporta tion of stores and supplies for the rebel garrisons at Vicks burg, Grand Gulf, Natchez, and Port Hudson ; a source of supply which must be cut off before the place could be reduced by siege. During the first trip Colonel Ellet captured three of the enemy s transports, and then returned to the lower end of the Williams Carnal. On the 10th of February, Colonel J20 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Ellet started on a second expedition in the same direction, and on the 12th arrived at the junction of the Eed and Atchafalaya Rivers. The latter stream runs from the Red River to the Gulf, through a singular, swampy tract of country in Louisiana. The Queen of the West, having left her tenders behind in a secure position, started down the Atchafalaya, and, after passing about six miles, succeeded in destroying an army wagon train, and a quantity of stores, ammunition, &c., belonging to the enemy. On February 14th, Colonel Ellet captured a rebel steam transport on the Red River, at a point about fifteen miles above the mouth of the Black River. At the time of her capture this rebel vessel had on board two lieutenants and fourteen privates of the rebel army, and was laden with four thousand five hundred bushels of corn. The prisoners were put on shore, and the vessels sent, under guard, to a place of safe keeping. He then went about thirty miles further up the Red River, with the intention of destroying three other steam ers which were lying under the protection of a rebel bat tery. The rebels opened upon the Queen with four pieces of artillery, and the pilot having purposely run the vessel aground, she was brought within easy range, and so crip pled that she was abandoned, Colonel Ellet and others escaping on bales of cotton, while the remainder of those on board were capured. On the night of the 13th, the United States gunboat Indianola successfully ran by the batteries of Vicksburg, to support the Queen of tlie West; but, after she had passed Natchez, the captain was informed of the capture of the latter vessel by those who had escaped. The Indianola, under the guidance of Colonel Ellet, who had located his head-quarters on the captured vessel Era, then returned toward the Red River, with the intention of destroying the battery and retaking the Queen of the West. On arriving at the mouth of the Red River, it was found that the enemy had armed vessels up that stream, and it was deemed advisable to return immediately to Vicksburg. Colonel Ellet s vessel was fired upon several times while ascending the river. THE INDIANOLA AND THE REBEL KAMS. 221 The Indianola was then detailed to blockade the mouth of the Red River. Barges of coal were floated by the batteries, to supply her with fuel. At about half-past nine P. M. on February 24th, four armed rebel vessels approached the Indianola under cover of darkness. The captured Queen of the West, which the rebels had armed and manned, and another ram, made the first attack upon the Indianola, and in a short time the engagement became general at close quar ter. The other two vessels were merely cotton-clad, and not being heavily armed, could do but little damage to the Union gunboat. The rebel rams plunged their prows into the Indmnola, with great violence ; but not until the sixth blow was any serious damage inflicted. The engagement lasted one hour and twenty-seven minutes, after which the Indianola became so injured that the captain ran her ashore, and surrendered, first de stroying all documents of value on board. But, before the rebels could take possession of their prize, her stern had sunk under water, and the guns which had not been thrown overboard rendered useless. The Indianola was finally destroyed by the rebels about the beginning of March, 1863. The following ex tract from the Yicksburg Whig, of March 5, 1863, explains the reason of her destruction : "We stated a day or two since that we would not en lighten our readers in regard to a matter which wag- puzzling them very much. We alluded to the loss of the gunboat Indianola, recently captured from the enemy. We were loath to acknowledge she had been destroyed, but such is the case. The Yankee barge sent down the river last week was reported to be an iron-clad gunboat. The authorities, thinking that this monster would retake the Indianola, immediately issued an order to blow her up. The order was sent down by a courier to the officer in charge of the vessel. A few hours afterward another order was sent down countermanding the first, it being ascertained that the monstrous craft was only a coal-boat ; but before it reached the Indianola she had been blown 222 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. to atoms not even a gun was saved. Who is to blame for this folly this precipitancy?" About this time the commander at Memphis thought it necessary to suppress the circulation of an opposition newspaper within the limits of the army lines ; but Gen- eral Grant, jealous of the liberty of the press, rescinded the order, as soon as he was apprised of it. The success of a bayou canal in Missouri, near the vicinity of Island No. 10, induced the engineers on Gen eral Grant s staff to examine the probable chances of success for a similar one, from the bayous above Vicks- burg to those below the city. Captain F. E. Prime and Colonel G. G. Pride made a reconnoissance along a por tion of the route, and reported the practicability of the plan. General Grant resolved to try the project, if for no other purpose than to engage the enemy s atten tion while he matured his own plans. Having more troops at Young s Point than could, at that moment, be there employed, and aware that Lake Providence was connected by Bayou Baxter with Bayou Macon, a nav igable stream, he set the men to work upon the canal between the Mississippi and the lake, to keep them from demoralizing idleness, and to divert the attention of -the enemy. To a person studying the map it would seem a very feasible project to connect the Mississippi River with the lake, especially when the level of the former lay some what higher than that of the latter. The lake is situated in Carroll County, Louisiana, about one mile west of the Mississippi Elver, which, without doubt, originally flowed through its bed, but had changed its course during one of the many freaks of Nature by which the channel of that great stream had been turned aside from its primary path. The length of the lake is about six miles, and it is fed by the Bayou Macon and the Bayou Tensas. One point of the lake, which is half-moon shaped, approaches nearer to the Mississippi River than the other, and at this point the canal was cut. It was supposed by the engineers that a highway could be made from the Mississippi, seventy -five miles above Vicksburg, through Lake Providence, thence THE ROUTE BY LAKE PROVIDENCE. 223 "by the "bayous into the Tensas River, which fall into the Black River at Trinity, Louisiana. The Black Riv.er falls into Red River, by three channels, at a point about thirty miles above the mouth of the latter, which opens into the Mississippi River at the northern limit of Point Coupee Parish, and at about fifty miles above the fortified position of Port Hudson. If this route had been prac ticable, it would have opened a water communication between the positions above and below Vicksburg, and enabled General Grant to co-operate with General Banks, who was preparing to invest Port Hudson. Under cover of this engineering movement, General Grant began mov ing his forces below the line of the city, and occupied points a short distance inland from the Louisiana shore of the Mississippi River. The work of opening the Lake Providence route pro gressed rapidly, and one steamer and a number of barges were taken through the canal ; but, about the middle of April, the Mississippi River began to fall with unusual rapidity, and, the roads becoming passable between Milli- ken s Bend and New Carthage, the proposed water route was abandoned. It is evident from General Grant s report of the capitula tion of Vicksburg, that he had little faith in the success of the Lake Providence scheme, but was willing to try it, as, on the whole, a valuable experiment. During February, 1863, another and wilder expedition was proposed. It was to open a route of water travel be tween the Mississippi River and the Coldwater and Talla- hatchie Rivers, through the Yazoo Pass. This pass had for many years been unnavigable, stagnant, dreary, and wild, and had been almost forgotten. The primary object of this expedition was to take a few troops, with some light-draft gunboats, to the upper Yazoo River, and de stroy the enemy s transports ; but it was discovered, when the snags and low timber were cut away, that the navi gation was better than was suspected. The fact suggested a flank movement by water upon Haines s Bluff, which commanded the Yazoo River a short distance above the mouth. 224 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. On the 24th of February, 1863, the fleet entered the Pass, after tearing down that part of the levee of the Mis sissippi that closed up the entrance ; and, by the 28th, after a series of dangers, slow traveling, &c., the vessels arrived in the Coldwater Eiver. An extract from an officer of the gunboat Marmora will afford a vivid view of the adventure : 4 The Rubicon is passed. Three and a half days of most tedious, vexatious, bothersome, troublesome, and damaging steamboating has brought this expedition twen ty miles on its way, and disclosed to its view the end of the now famous Yazoo Pass. A more execrable place was never known. Should one propose to run a steamboat to the moon, he would be considered equally sane, by those who had seen the Yazoo Pass before this expedition forced its way through it, as the person who proposed this move ment. "I would like to describe the Yazoo Pass. I would like to compare it to something that would be intelligible. But I know of nothing in heaven or on earth, or in the waters under the earth, that will compare with it. Had the immortal bard desired a subject from which to draw a picture of the way that leads to the realms of darkness and despair, he had only to picture the Yazoo Pass. Let me try, in the feeble language I can command, to describe it. Perhaps the reader has passed through the Disma 1 Swamp of Virginia ; or, if not, he has read accounts of travelers who have enjoyed that privilege. Then he has read of the famous jungles of India. He has seen or read of the unbroken silence of the boundless tall forests of the John Brown tract in Western New York. Conceive the ugliest feature of these three varieties of territory, and he will be able, by combining them, to form a tolerably cor rect idea of the region through which the Yazoo Pass runs. Those who have watched the course of a snake as he trails his way along the ground, winding this way and that, hither and yonder, going in all directions at the same time, and yet maintaining something of a regular course in the average, will, by exaggerating the picture in their own minds, understand something of the tortuous course MAJ GEN. W T SHERMAN SCENES AND SCENERY OF THE YAZOO PASS. 225 of tlie Yazoo Pass. I have passed through it from one end to the other, and I assert candidly, that there is not, throughout its entire length, a piece two hundred feet long of perfectly straight river. "The orders under which this expedition moved re quired that boats should keep three hundred yards apart ; "but there was no place to be found in the whole stream where they could see one-third of this distance* ahead or behind them. Once, indeed, we did catch a glimpse of the Rattler, flag-ship. She was just abreast of us, and about one hundred yards away, going in an opposite direction to us. We fancied we were close on to her, and, as it was near night, concluded to tie up, so as to let her get away from us. The next morning we got under way at daylight, and just as the sun was at the meridian we passed the spot where we had seen our file leader eighteen hours before. "Much has been said and written of the efforts put forth by the rebels to obstruct this pass. Their labor was all thrown away. Nature had placed greater obstructions in the way than any enemy could place there, no mat ter how powerful he might have been, or how long he had been employed. Cypress and sycamore trees lined the banks in great profusion, intermixed with gigantic cotton- woods, bearing the wildest entanglement of wild grape vines. The stream itself is never to exceed a hundred feet in breadth, and frequently not more than fifty or seventy-five. Over this the timber forms a most perfect arch, frequently, as good fortune would have it, so high as to admit the easy passage of the tall smokestacks be neath it, but sometimes grazing their tops, and again an grily toppling over these intruders. But Providence evi dently did not intend this pass for a military highway. Providence opposed the movement, not so much by this high arch enclosing the river and shutting it out from view, as by the long, jagged limbs it thrust out from the trees directly across the channel, and the numerous crook ed and leaning trees that formed a most effective blockade. " It may be possible, from what I have written, to get an idea of the Yazoo Pass. A short account of the trip 15 520 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. through it will be more profitable for this purpose. The total length of the pass from the Mississippi to the Cold- water River is twenty miles. From the Mississippi to the east side of Moon Lake, where the pass proper commences, is called eight miles, leaving the distance from Moon Lake to the Cold water twelve miles. We left the lake on Wednesday morning, the 25th instant, and reached the Coldwater this afternoon, just after dinner, making the trip in exactly three days and a half ! To be sure, we did not travel nights, but we made, usually, about twelve hours time each day. This gives the rapid progress of one mile in three and a half hours. Does the progress made express any thing of the character of the route ? If it does not. I hardly know what will. In the upper end of the pass the stream is confined, and runs along with great rapidity through its narrow channel, the rate being not less than five or six miles per hour. Lower down there are strips of bottom-land along the sides which are now overflowed, giving greater width, and consequently less rapidity to the current. But in no place were we able even to drift with the current. That would inevita bly have dashed us into the timber and have torn our boat to atoms. From the time we entered the pass until we emerged from it, we could only keep our wheels back ing, and even this was not enough. A small boat was requisite on either side, by which lines were passed out and made fast to the trees, to check our headway or ease us around the sharp bends. The expedition has been face tiously called "the stern- wheel expedition," from the cir cumstance of there being none but stern- wheel boats (which are narrower than side-wheel steamers) engaged in it ; but it might with equal propriety be called " the back water expedition," or "the hold-back expedition," be cause of our advancing only by holding back. "But, with all our care and labor, it has been impos sible to save our boats from much damage. Frequently it was impossible to check the headway of a vessel in time to save its smokestacks, and away would go these tall iron cylinders, crashing through the hurricane-deck, and making a complete wreck of the cabin and light upper THE VOYAGE THROUGH THE YAZOO PASS. 227 works. Again, a huge limb would come crashing and smashing along the side, tearing away stanchions and "braces, and sometimes even the light bulkheads around the upper works. The flag-ship was thus visited, and Acting Commander Smith s cabin turned into a complete wreck. In fact, all the vessels looked as if they had been in a hard-fought battle and had been badly worsted, only that none of them were damaged in machinery or hull. It has been a most exciting trip ; but I believe, or hear, all have survived it save one poor old nigger a contraband- belonging to this vessel. He was lying in his hammock, in the sick bay, being on the sick list, when a huge limb, broken off by the persistence of our smokestacks, came down endwise upon the deck, and, passing through, ad ministered the death blow to poor Cuffee." The rebels had watchful friends, who informed them of the bold attempts to thread the Yazoo Pass, but they at first scouted the idea of success, prophesying the de struction of every vessel connected with the expedition. When they learned that the fleet had safely arrived in the Coldwater River, with the other part of the stream navigable, they began to close up the lower end of the Tallahatchie River, into which the former empties. They erected a fort across the neck of land formed by a change in the course of the stream after the Yala- busha had formed a junction with the Tallahatchie. These united waters were named the Yazoo River, which, after flowing through several hundred miles of country, pours its current into the Mississippi River a little above Vicks- burg. The advance of the expedition under General Ross pro ceeded, without serious interruption, through the Cold- water and Tallahatchie Rivers until it reached the newly erected fort named Port Pemberton. The distance from the Tallahatchie shores above the defenses, to the Yazoo shores below that work, was but a few hundred yards by land, but was several miles by water. The fort, having been built across the neck, commanded both streams for a long distance. The rebels had well chosen their position, as the land about the fort was low, and at the time of the 228 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. expedition was entirely overflowed. General Ross, conse quently, in attacking this work, could not make use of his land forces to reduce it, and had to depend on the armed vessels under his command. After an engagement of sev eral hours, the vessels withdrew without silencing the battery. General Grant, on March 23d, sent orders for the with drawal of the forces. Admiral Porter, having made a reconnoissance up Steele s Bayou, and through Black Bayou to Duck Creek, reported to General Grant that those water-courses were navigable for small gunboats and light transports. It was believed that, by following this route, Deer Creek could be navigated to Rolling Fork, and thence by the Sunflower River into the Yazoo. General Grant accompanied Admiral Porter on the morning of March 15th, to farther explore the channels. The vessel with the two commanding officers proceeded along Steele s Bayou several iron-clads taking the lead to prevent a surprise until it reached the Black Bayou. General Grant then returned to Young s Point, to send up a pioneer corps to clear away the overhanging trees, which seemed to be the only important obstruction. Soon after he had reached Young s Point, a message was received from Admiral Porter, requesting the co operation of a good military force. General Grant prompt ly sent to him a division of the Fifteenth Army Corps, with General Sherman at its head. The number of steam transports suitable for such an expedition were limited ; and the largest part of the military force was sent up the Mississippi River to Eagle Bend, where the river runs within a mile of Steele s Bayou. The country was unexplored, delays were inevitable, and the enemy had time to obstruct the way ; and, when near the completion of the difficult, romantic passage, it was reluctantly given up. One of the party graphically describes the Bayou : " Large bodies were kept a good distance from the fleet, but sharp-shooters would come up behind trees and fire, taking deliberate aim at our men. The admiral sent a THE PASSAGE OF THE BLACK BAYOU. 229 dispatch back to General Sherman, stating the condition of affairs, and a force was at once sent to the relief of the gunboats, and to assist in getting them through. They made a forced inarch, skirmishing a part of the way, and reaching the gunboats before night of the 22d, a distance of twenty-one miles, over a terrible road. During the day the enemy had been largely re-enforced from the Yazoo, and now unmasked some five thousand men in fantry, cavalry, and artillery. The boats were surrounded with rebels, who had cut down trees before and behind them, were moving up artillery, and making every exer tion to cut off retreat and capture our boats. A patrol was at once established for a distance of seven miles along Deer Creek, behind the boats, with a chain of sentinels outside of them, to prevent the felling of trees. For a mile and a half to Rolling Fork, the creek was full of ob structions. Heavy batteries were on its bank, supported by a large force. To advance was impossible ; to retreat seemed almost hopeless. The gunboats had their ports all closed, and preparations made to resist boarders. The mortar-boats were all ready for fire and explosion. The army lines were so close to each other that rebel officers wandered into our lines in the dark, and were captured. It was the second night without sleep aboard ship, and the infantry had marched twenty-one miles without rest. But the faithful force, with their energetic leader, kept successful watch and ward over the boats and their val uable artillery. At seven o clock that morning (the 22d), General Sherman received a dispatch from the admiral, by the hands of a faithful contraband, who came along through the rebel lines in the night, stating his perilous condition. Leaving a dispatch for General Stuart, who was bringing up Ewing s Brigade, and orders for Stuart to follow him with the remainder of the division, General Sherman at once marched with the Second Brigade and a part of the First Brigade. Our gunboats at that time were in a bend of the creek, the three regiments of the First Brigade had been brought in and placed in position near the boats. A rebel battery of fifteen guns was in front, at Rolling Fork. The creek was barely the width 230 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. of a gunboat ; the boats were so close up that only one bow-gun apiece, of four, could be used, and then at an inconvenient angle in fact, in only one position and the broadsides of several were useless on account of the bank. Our immense superiority of metal was thus rendered almost useless for the purpose of engaging an enemy that was endeavoring to encircle the admiral s boats. If his rear was gained, their superior numbers could board the first or the last boat, and, having captured her, use her guns with fearful effect on the others. "About mid-day the enemy commenced moving upon us, with the purpose of reaching the bank of the creek below the gunboats and below the infantry. General Sherman was some six miles distant. The rebels are be lieved to have advanced with about four thousand men. It must be borne in mind that our troops were on a belt of land which forms the bank of the creek, of not great width, back of which the bottom-land was under water and impassable. The rebels came down with the inten tion of turning his right and reaching the creek below. The gunboats and four mortars opened upon them, as soon as they discovered themselves in bodies. This firing em barrassed their movements, and considerably retarded them. They debouched through the wood, and became engaged with the skirmishers. The fight was beginning to be in earnest, but the rebels were gaining ground. The object was not a battle, but to pass by our forces. The first firing of the gunboats was heard by General Sherman near the Shelby plantation. He urged his troops forward, and, after an hour s hard marching, the advance, deployed as skirmishers, came upon a body of the enemy who had passed by the force which had been engaged. Immediate ly engaging them, the enemy stood a while disconcerted by the unexpected attack, fought a short time, and gave way. Our forces pressed them, driving them back some two miles. The gunboats opened upon them thus hemmed in, and the day was ours. The rebels retreated, and the gunboats were saved for that day. Our loss was but one killed, and none wounded. The loss of the rebels was heavy. One shell from a mortar killed twenty -six, as THE ENEMY OPPOSE THE PASSAGE OF THE BAYOU. 231 they were rallying as skirmishers. Another is stated to have killed and wounded forty persons. They suffered very much ; but, as we did not attempt to occupy the field, it cannot be ascertained. It being obvious that further advance was impracticable, the boats at once commenced moving backward, and made several miles that evening. "The next effort of the rebels was, to pass around our lines in the afternoon and night, and throw their whole force still further below us. General Stuart, with four regiments, marched on Hill s plantation the same morning, having run his transports in the night, and immediately advanced one regiment up Deer Creek, and another still further to the right. The rebels, who were making a cir cuit about General Sherman, thus found the whole line occupied, and abandoned the attempt to cut off the gun boats for that day. During the afternoon the troops and gunboats all arrived at Hill s plantation. Rebel scouts followed them within two miles of the division head-quar ters. During the night the picket, about one-half mile out, was attacked by a squadron of cavalry. It immediately, upon the return of their fire, fell back. In the afternoon of the next day, another regiment was attacked by three regiments of infantry and a squadron of cavalry. Acting under instructions to draw them on. and to develop their whole force, a skirmish ensued, but they refused to fol low. The enemy, the night before, landed a steamer and two flat boats, loaded with troops and artillery, about six miles above. We remained two days at Hill s plantation, waiting for the rebels to prepare ; but they would not give or receive battle. We embarked on the transports and gunboats, and returned. "There were destroyed, by our troops and by the reb els, at least two thousand bales of cotton, fifty thousand bushels of corn, and the gins and houses of the plantations whose owners had obstructed our progress, and joined in the warfare. The resources of the country we found am ple to subsist the army at Vicksburg for some length of time, and by the destruction of them we crippled the ene my so far. 232 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. " There were features about this expedition novel and exciting. " Black Bayou, a narrow stream, heretofore only navi gated "by dug-outs, was made of the width of our steamers, with great labor of felling trees and sawing stumps below the surface. Every foot of our way was cut and torn through a dense forest, never before traversed by steam ers. I never witnessed a more exciting and picturesque scene than the transportation, on the last day, of the Third Brigade, by General Stuart. Crowded with men, the steamer, at the highest possible speed, pushed through overhanging trees and around short curves. Sometimes wedged fast between trees, then sailing along smoothly, a huge cypress would reach out an arm and sweep the whole length of the boats, tearing guards and chimneys from the decks. The last trip through the Black Bayou was in a night pitchy dark and rainy. "While the adventure was of uncertain success when the result seemed almost accomplished, and when our gun boats were surrounded with an enemy confident of vic tory, and their extrication seemed almost an impossibility officers and men worked with equal alacrity, whether in building bridges or making forced marches, both by day and in the night. The whole time was used in labor constant and severe. It seems almost a miracle that the boats were saved. If Generals Sherman and Stuart, by their utmost exertions and labor, had forwarded their troops a single half day later, if the second forced march under General Sherman had been retarded a single hour, in all human probability the whole force would have been lost," All these expeditions proved to be excellent feints to distract the enemy s attention ; and if any one of them had succeeded it would have been adopted, and might not have produced so glorious a result as the final campaign and plans of General Grant. In fact, he states in his re port, that the failure of these expeditions "may have been providential in driving him ultimately to a line of opera tions which has proved eminently successful." The losses inflicted on the enemy in the destruction of THE BAYOU EXPEDITIC^ T S NOT AN ENTIRE FAILURE. 233 supplies, and the withdrawal of certain portions of his garrison to meet the expeditionary movements, were of im mense value in his subsequent operations. It has often "been stated by generals in the field, that they had far less dread of the enemy in their front than they had of their friends .at home. While these prepara tions for the decisive advance of the army were going forward, letters to friends were for a time prohibited, to prevent information reaching the enemy through a mail captured by guerrillas ; and this absence of regular com munication between those in the army and their friends at home led the latter to believe that the former were sick. An interchange of such news between the friends of vari ous absentees, and the return of a few invalids, settled it as a matter of fact that the whole army was dying of dis ease. An official inquiry was at once made by the surgeon-in- chief, and General Grant, under date of March 6, 1863, wrote to Surgeon- General Hammond as follows : "ISTo army ever went into the field better provided with medical stores and attendance than is furnished to the army before Yicksburg. There was a deficiency in volunteer surgeons, but that is now supplied. The hos pital boats are supplied with their own surgeons, nurses, and every thing for the comfort of the sick. The purvey or s department not only has every thing furnished the sick, but more than it ever dreamed of was furnished to the army, and more than the great majority of men could have at home. Then, too, there is not that amount of sickness that persons would be led to believe, from the statements in the public prints. I question whether the health of the St. Louis force is better than that of this com mand. On my arrival here, among the men who had to put up with straw for so long a time, and then with camp ing on low ground and in the most terrible weather ever experienced, there was for a time, of necessity, a great number of sick." In addition to this informal note, General Grant for warded an official answer to the inquiries regarding the 234 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. rumors of sickness among Ms troops, which is a dis passionate, decided refutation of the slanderous reports. HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, > BEFORE VICKSBURG, March 12, 1863. Brigadier-General W. A. HAMMOND, Surgeon-General, United States Army : SIE : Surgeon J. R. Smith s letter of the 20th of February is just re ceived, inquiring into the sanitary condition of this command, and asking for suggestions for its improvement. I know a great deal has been said to impress the public generally, and officials particularly, with the idea that this army was in a suffering condition, and mostly from neglect. This is most erroneous. The health of this command will, I venture to say, coin- pare favorably with that of any army in the field, and every preparation is made for the sick that could be desired. I will refer Surgeon Smith s letter to my medical director for a fuller report of the condition of the medical department here. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GKANT, Major-General. The directions given to his quartermasters by the humane and vigilant chief, who, with Sherman, won the confidence and love of his troops by caring for their wants, are a farther vindication of his military rule against the cowardly attacks then made upon his rising fame. HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, | YOUNG S POINT, LA., March 27, 1863. f I. The Quartermaster s Department will provide and furnish a suitable steamboat, to be called the " United States Sanitary Store-Boat," and put the same in charge of the United States Sanitary Commission, to be used by it exclusively for the conveyance of goods calculated to prevent disease, and supplement the Government supply of stores for the relief of the sick and wounded. II. No person will be permitted to travel on said boat, except sick officers of the army and navy (and they only on permits from their pro per commanding officers), discharged soldiers, and employes of said Sanitary Commission ; and no goods whatever, for trading or commercial purposes, will be carried on said boat; and no goods will be taken for in dividuals, or with any conditions which will prevent their being delivered to those most needing them in the army or navy. III. The contents of all packages to be shipped on said United States Sanitary Store-Boat will be inspected before shipment by an agent of said Sanitary Commission, at the point of shipment, unless an invoice of their contents has been received, the correctness of which is assured by the signature of some persons of known loyalty and integrity. A statement, showing what goods have been placed on board at each trip, will be sent to the Medical Director of the Department at these head-quarters. GENERAL GRANT AND THE SANITARY COMMISSION. 235 IV. A weekly statement will also be made by said Sanitary Commission to the Department Medical Director, showing what sanitary supplies have been issued by said commission, and to whom issued. V. All orders authorizing the free transportation of sanitary stores from Cairo south, on boats other than the one herein provided for, are hereby rescinded. Major- General U. S. GRANT. It became evident to the unwearied and undaunted commander, that his favorite flanking movement must be abandoned. His battalions could not get through the passes, bayous, and canals into the rear of Vicksburg, and seize the railways to Jackson, the capital of the State. 236 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER XII. NAVAL MOVEMENTS TOWARD VICKSBURG. A new Plan for Seizing the Prize. Admiral Farragut passes Port Hudson. Description of the Terrific Scene. The Rams Lancaster and Switzerland make a fruitless Attempt to run the Batteries. The Army Advance. The Exhausting Marches. Admiral Porter s Ships confront Vicksburg in a night-passage of the Works. The Peril. The Success and Exultation. GENERAL GRANT now determined to move his forces below Vicksburg, on the Louisiana shore, and take the rebel -works in the rear. March 20, 1863, the great movement began : the Thirteenth Corps taking the lead, followed by the Seventeenth and Fifteenth, while to the Sixteenth Corps was left the charge of the communications and supplies. General Grant wanted Admiral Farragut to sail above Port Hudson, while Admiral Foote went below Vicksburg, uniting in the reduction of batteries there, to clear the way for Grant, whose troops were to advance down the west side of the river ; and otherwise to aid the bold enterprise as he might have opportunity. Admiral Farragut at once led with his flag- ship, the Hartford, followed by the Rich mond, the Mississippi, the Monongaliela, with the gun boats Kineo, Albatross, and Genesee, and six mortar- boats ; the latter were to assist in the bombardment, but remain below the batteries. The fleet moved toward Port Hudson near the middle of March. On the 14th, just after noon, the mortars opened their fire on the fortifications, second to none in strength but those at Vicksburg. on the Mississippi. A detachment of troops was also sent in the rear, to confuse the garrison, while the admiral got ready for his night- work. Then occurred one of those grand and unusual exhibitions of naval warfare, of which the passage of THE SPLENDID PASSAGE BY PORT HUDSON. 337 Ports Jackson and St. Philip was unrivaled in terrible sublimity. The evening was dark, but Confederate scouts had watched the Union fleet, and given notice of prepara tion for some movement to the garrison. Immediately a tremendous bonfire was kindled on the heights, and poured its flood of lurid light down the cannon-bordered bluffs upon the waters just where the ships would pass the most formidable works. In the re flected flames, each vessel and its motions would be dis tinctly visible as in the light of day. It was a crisis to try not only the metal of ordnance, but that of the admiral s character. He had never quailed in the moment cf peril, and now was calmer than ever. Right onwand toward the flashing surface, over which frowned the heaviest rebel cannon, his squadron advanced. A description of what followed is finely given in a letter penned on board the Richmond a most graphic, vivid picture of the naval action. 4 We had left the mortar-boats well astern, when a sulphurous light was seen gleaming on the shore, on our port side. Flashing up for a moment, a dull explosion followed. It was evidently an imperfect rocket. Another was essayed ; but, instead of ascending, it ran along the surface of the river close to the bank. A little further up a third was tried, and with complete success. It ascended high in the air, where it burst in the usual manner. In stantaneously it was answered by a field-piece from the opposite shore, aimed at the Hartford. The admiral was not slow in returning the compliment. Three or four guns fired from the flag- ship in rapid succession testified to the alacrity with which the wager of battle was ac cepted. " The return of the rebel fire by the Hartford was promptly followed up by a hot fire from the artillery pieces of the rebels, and quite a brisk action ensued be tween them. The scene, as viewed from the Richmond, was both brilliant and spirited. The flashes of the guns, both on shore and afloat, were incessant, while the roar of cannon kept up a deafening and almost incessant sound. Great judgment was here necessary to prevent the Ricli- 238 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. mond from running into the Hartford, and, in fact, to keep the war-vessels generally from running into each other. * And now was heard a thundering roar, equal in vol ume to a whole park of artillery. This was followed by a rushing sound, accompanied by a howling noise that beg gars description. Again and again was the sound repeat ed, till the vast expanse of heaven rang with the awful minstrelsy. It was apparent that the mortar-boats had opened fire. Of this I was soon convinced on casting my eyes aloft. Never shall I forget the sight that then met my astonished vision. Shooting upward at an angle of forty-five degrees, with the rapidity of lightning, small globes of golden flame were seen sailing through the pure ether not a steady, unfading flame, but confiscating like the fitful gleam of a fire-fly now visible and anon invisi ble. Like a flying star of the sixth magnitude, the terri ble missile a thir teen-inch shell near its zenith, up and still up higher and higher. Its flight now becomes much sloAver, till, on reaching its utmost altitude, its centri f ugal force becomes counteracted by the earth s attraction, it describes a parabolic curve, and down, down it comes, bursting, it may be, ere it reaches terra firma, but proba bly alighting in the rebel works ere it explodes, where it scatters death arid destruction around. But while the mortar-boats were at work, the Essex was not idle. Un manageable as she is, especially in so strong a current, she did not follow the rest of the fleet, but remained at the head of the bummers, doing admirable service with her heavy guns. "All this time the Richmond had to hang back, as Admiral Farragut seemed to be so enamored with the sport in which he was engaged as to be in no hurry to pass by. Once or twice, in consequence of the dense column of smoke that now rolled over the river, our bow sprit was almost over the taffrail of the Hartford, and there was an incessant call on the part of Second- Lieuten ant Terry, who commanded the forward part of the ship, to stop the engines. And here I may as well say that this gallant young officer behaved in the most chivalrous man- THE BROADSIDES OF THE RICHMOND. 239 Tier throughout the entire engagement, cheering on the men, and encouraging them, by his example, to stand to their guns like men, though little of this they required to induce them, to perform their whole duty. " The Richmond had by this time got within range of the rebel field-batteries, which opened fire on her. I had all along thought that we would open fire from our bow- guns, on the top-gallant forecastle, and that, after dis charging a few broadsides from the starboard side, the action would be wound up by a parting compliment from our stern-chasers. To my surprise, however, we opened at once from our broadside guns. The effect was start ling, as the sound was unexpected ; but beyond this I really experienced no inconvenience from the concussion. There was nothing unpleasant to the ear, and the jar to the ship was really quite unappreciable. It may interest the uninitiated to be informed how a broadside is fired from a vessel of war. I was told on board the Richmond that all the guns were sometimes fired off simultaneously, though it is not a very usual course, as it strains the ship. Last night the broadsides were fired by commencing at the forward gun, and firing all the rest off in rapid succession, as fast almost as the ticking of a watch. The effect was grand and terrific ; and, if the guns were rightly pointed a difficult thing in the dark, by-the-way they could not fail in carrying death and destruction among the enemy. " Of course we did not have every thing our own way, for the enemy poured in his shot and shell as thick as hail. Over, ahead, astern, all around us flew the death- dealing missiles, the hissing, screaming, whistling, shriek ing, and howling of which rivaled Pandemonium. It must not be supposed, however, because our broadside- guns were the tools we principally worked, that our bow and stern- chasers were idle. We soon opened with our bow eighty-pounder Dahlgren, which was followed up not long after by the guns astern, giving evidence to the fact that we had passed some of the batteries. " While seated on the fish-davit, on the top-gallant forecastle the Hartford and the lliclimond blazing away 240 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEKAL GRANT. at the time a most fearful wail arose from the river ; first on our port-bow, then on the beam. A man was evidently overboard, probably from the Hartford or the Genesee, then just ahead. The cry was: Help, oh ! help ! Help, oh ! help ! Man overboard, called out Lieutenant Terry ; throw him a rope. But, poor fellow, who could assist him in such a strait ? We were in action ; every man was at his gun ; to lower a boat would be folly ; in fact, it could not be done with any hope of success. Con sequently, although the man was evidently a good swim mer, to judge by his unfailing cries for help for a long time, nothing could be done to rescue him, and he floated astern of us, still sending up that wailing cry for help, but without effect. The terrible current of the Mississippi was too much for him, and he, without doubt, sank beneath the waves of the mighty river. " Just after this fearful incident firing was heard astern of us, and it was soon ascertained that the Monongaliela, with her consort, the Rineo, and the Mississippi were in action. The MonongaJiela carries a couple of two hun dred-pounder rifled Parrott guns, besides other ticklers. At first I credited the roar of her amiable two-hundred pounders to the bummers, till I was undeceived, when I recalled my experience in front of Yorktown last spring, and the opening of fire from similar guns from Wormley s Creek. All I can say is, the noise was splendid. The action now became general. The roar of cannon was in cessant, and the Hashes from the guns, together with the flight of the shells from the mortar-boats, made up a com bination of sound and sight impossible to describe. To add to the horrors of the night, while it contributed toward the enhancement of a certain terrible beauty, dense clouds of smoke began to envelope the river, shutting out from view the several vessels, and confounding them with the batteries. It was very difficult to know how to steer to prevent running ashore, perhaps right under a rebel bat tery, or into a consort. Upward and upward rolled the smoke, shutting out of view the beautiful stars, and ob scuring the vision on every side. Then it was that the order was passed : Boys, don t fire till you see the flash THE HERTFORD IN THE SMOKE OF BATTLE. 241 from the enemy s guns. That was our only guide through the palpable obscurity. "But this sole dependence on the flashes was likely to be attended with serious consequences, as the following incident will show : "We had got nearly into the middle of the hornet s nest, when an officer on the top-gallant forecastle called out : t Ready with the port-gun. The gun was got ready and pointed, and was about to be discharged, when Lieu tenant Terry called out : Hold on ; you are about to fire into the Hartford? And such was the fact ; for the flash of the Hartford s guns at that moment revealed the spars and rigging of that vessel. Consequently the gun was not fired, nor was it discharged during the engagement, the lighting being confined entirely to the starboard side. "Still the fight went on, and still the roar of cannon, and the screaming, howling, whistling of shot and shell, continued to make * night hideous. Still, too, the pure atmosphere was befouled with the smell of i villainous saltpetre and obscured with smoke, through the opaque mass of which the stars refused to twinkle. Intermingled with the boom of the cannonade arose the cries of the wounded and the shouts of their friends, suggesting that they should be taken below for treatment. So thick was the smoke that we had to cease firing several times ; and to add to the horrors of the night it was next to impossible to tell whether we were running into the Hartford or going ashore, and, if the latter, on which bank, or whether some of the other vessels were about to run into us or into each other. All this time the fire was kept up on both sides incessantly. It seems, however, that we succeeded in silencing the lower batteries of field-pieces. The men must have been driven from their guns ; and no wonder if they were, in that terrific storm of iron. " While a brisk fire was kept up from the decks of the several vessels, the howitzers in the tops were not per mitted to remain idle. Intermingled with the more sullen roar of the larger guns, the sharp, short crack of the brass pieces was heard from their elevated positions, adding harmony to the melody of the terrific concert. 1C 242 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. "The phrase is familiar to most persons who have read accounts of sea-fights that took place about fifty years ago ; but it is difficult for the uninitiated to realize all the horrors conveyed in muzzle to muzzle. For the first time I had, last night, an opportunity of knowing what the phrase really meant. Let the reader consult the map, and it will be seen that the central battery is situated about the middle of the segment of a circle I have already compared to a horseshoe in shape, though it may be better understood by the term c crescent. This battery stands on a bluff so high that a vessel in passing immedi ately underneath can-not elevate her guns sufficiently to reach those on the battery ; neither can the guns on the battery be sufficiently depressed to bear on the passing ship. In this position the rebel batteries on the two horns of the crescent can enfilade the passing vessel, pouring in a terrible cross-fire, which the vessel can re turn, though at a great disadvantage, from her bow and stern chasers. "We fully realized this last night; for, as we got within short-range, the enemy poured into us a terrible fire of grape and canister, which we were not slow to re turn our guns being double- shotted, each with a stand of both grape and canister. Every vessel in its turn was exposed to the same fiery ordeal on Hearing the centre battery, and right promptly did their gallant tars return the compliment. This was the hottest part of the engage ment. We were literally muzzle to muzzle, the distance between us and the enemy s guns being not more than twenty yards, though to me it seemed to be only as many feet. In fact, the battle of Port Hudson has been pro* nounced by officers and seamen who were engaged in it, and who were present at the passage of Port St. Philip and Fort Jackson, below New Orleans, and had partici pated in the fights of Fort Donelson, Fort Henry, Island No. 10, Vicksburg, &c., as the severest in the naval history of the present war. "Shortly after this close engagement we seemed to have passed the worst. The enemy s shot and shell no longer swept our decks like a hail-storm ; but the fire GALLANTRY OF THE OFFICERS OF THE RICHMOND. 243 from the batteries was kept up in a desultory manner. The starboard bow-gun could no longer be brought to bear. Consequently Lieutenant Terry ordered the men on the top-gallant forecastle to leave the guns in that part of the ship, and to descend to the main deck to help work the broadside guns. Our stern- chasers, of course, were still available, for the purpose of giving the enemy a parting blessing. I left my station on the top -gallant forecastle shortly after the men who had been working the bow- guns, and passed under where I had been sitting, taking up my station on the port side, just opposite the forward gun on the starboard side, where but a few min utes before a shell had exploded. " I was not long in this position when there came a blinding flash through the very port I was opposite to, revealing a high bank right opposite, so close that a biscuit might have been tossed from the summit on board the Richmond. Simultaneously there came a loud roar, and I thought the shot had passed through the port I was opposite to. Indeed, so close were we to the battery that the flash, the report, and the arrival of the shot, crashing and tearing through our bulwarks, were instantaneous, there being not the intermission of a second between. "It must have been about this time that Lieutenant- Commander Cummings, the executive officer of the Jticli- mond, was standing on the bridge that connects the star board with the port gangway, with his speaking-trumpet in his hand, cheering the men. Near him stood Captain Alden, when a conical shot of large calibre passed through the hammocks, over the starboard gangway, taking off the left leg of the lieutenant just above the ankle, battering his speaking-trumpet (a prize) flat, and knocking Captain Alden down with the windage, and went through the smoke-stack. Mr. Cummings was immediately taken be low, where his wound was promptly attended to by Dr. Henderson, the ship s surgeon, but not before the brave young man had lost a large quantity of blood on his way down. On being carried below he used the folloAving patriotic words, which are worthy of becoming historical : 244 LIEE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. I would willingly give my other leg so that we could but pass the batteries. "The Rev. Dr. Bacon, the loyal rector of Christ Church, New Orleans, who was acting as chaplain on board the Richmond, was on the bridge when Mr. Cum- mings received his terrible wound. He fortunately es caped unhurt, though he had been all over the ship, in the thickest of the fight, carrying messages, and exhorting and encouraging the men. "It was no easy matter, in the midst of such a dense cloud of smoke, to know where to point our guns. Even the flashes of the enemy s guns shone dimly through the thick gloom. Several times the order was given to cease fire, so as to allow the smoke to clear away ; but, as there was scarcely a breath of wind stirring, this was a very slow process ; still the order was necessary, to pre vent the several vessels from running into each other. In this respect the rebels had a decided advantage over us ; for while they did not stand in danger of collision, neither was there any apprehension of firing into their friends. The wide river was before them, and if they did not hit our vessels at each discharge, they could but miss at the worst. Matters had gone on this way for nearly an hour and a half the first gun having been fired at about half-past eleven o clock when, to my astonishment, I heard some shells whistling over our port side. Did the rebels have batteries on the right bank of the river? was the query that naturally suggested itself to me. To this the re sponse was given that we had turned back. I soon discovered that it was too true. Our return was, of course, more rapid than our passage up. The rebels did not molest us much, and I do not believe one of their shots took effect while we were running down rapidly with the current. "We were soon quietly at anchor, and were busy dis cussing the events of the fight, exchanging congratulations and comparing notes, when the lookout-man in the main top hailed the deck as follows : " On deck, there! THE MISSISSIPPI ON FIKE. 243 " Hallo! " A large fire ahead . " Where away? * " Just above the bend. " < What is it like "Like a fire-raft. "On this, Captain Alden, to whom the circumstance was duly reported by the ofiicers of the deck, sings out : 4 Keep a good lookout. Man the bow-guns, and stand by to slip the cable. " Shortly after this, a small steamer came down, the master of which informed Captain Alden that the Missis sippi was on fire. "In the dense smoke that prevailed, excluding every object from view, the glorious old Mississippi went ashore right opposite the centre and worst battery. She was soon discovered by the enemy. Up to this time she had not sustained any serious injury. She now became a standing target for the whole range of rebel batteries. The rebels began to pour into her a perfect shower of shot and shell, which was promptly returned by the Missis sippi. This murderous work continued for half an hour. Finding it impossible to escape, Captain Smith judicious ly, but reluctantly, gave orders to set the ship on fire, to prevent her falling into the hands of the rebels. Accord ingly her after-part was fired, the rebels all the time con tinuing to pour in their shot and shell as fast as they could bring their guns to bear. During this part of the contest no fewer than two hundred and fifty rounds were fired from the Mississippi. The artillery practice of the rebels would have been worthy of a better cause. The Mississippi was riddled through and through. Four men were known to have been killed ere the ship was aban doned. Among them was Acting Master Kelly, the whole of whose abdomen was shot away. Three were ascer tained to have been wounded. There may have been some more casualties, but it is impossible to tell to what extent at present, though a great many exaggerated stories are afloat on the subject. Several were known to have jumped overboard soon after the ship was set on fire, 246 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and there can be no doubt that some of them were drowned. " Soon after the vessel had been fired two shells came crashing through her, exploding and setting fire to some turpentine and oil which they upset. This caused the flames to spread, whereupon a master s mate hurried on to the gun-deck and reported that the flames had reached the entrance to the magazine. The ship was then at once abandoned, and all hands on board, including the wound ed men, were put on shore on the bank of the river oppo site Port Hudson. This was accompanied by a deafening yell of exultation from the rebels, on perceiving the blazing up of the fire. The Mississippi burned till she became lightened, to which the removal of nearly three hundred men contributed, when she swung off into deep water. She had grounded with her head up stream ; but on swinging off she turned completely round, presenting her head down the river, which position she retained till she blew up. "At length it was reported on board the Richmond that the Mississippi was coming down, and we all turned out on the poop-deck to see the sight. It was a most mag nificent spectacle. From the midships to the stern the noble vessel was enveloped in a sheet of flame, while fire- wreaths ran up the shrouds, played around the mainmast, twisted and writhed like fiery serpents. Onward she came, keeping near to the right bank, still bow foremost, as regularly as if she was steered by a pilot. It was, in deed, a wonderful sight. Captain Smith, her recent com mander, and several of her officers, who had by this time arrived on board the Richmond, assembled on the poop- deck, their emotion almost too great for words. Next to his wife, children, or sweetheart, there is nothing that a sailor loves more than his ship nothing that he regrets the loss of so much ; and, in the absence of the above- mentioned domestic ties, his ship is to him wife, child, and sweetheart. The feeling of regret at the loss of his ship is enhanced when, as in the case of the Mississippi, the gallant craft has achieved historical renown. No won der, then, that the officers of the Mississippi should feel NAVAL PYROTECHNICS. 247 a sinking at the heart on witnessing the destruction of their floating home, while they were powerless to save her. "As she arrived opposite the port-side of the Rich mond, some apprehension was entertained that her port broadsides might give us a parting salute of not a very agreeable nature. Captain Smith assured Captain Alden, however, that her port-guns had all been discharged. Just as she had cleared us, her starboard guns began to go off. This was accompanied by the explosion of the shells she had on deck, ready for use. These exploded at short intervals. The flames now began to increase in volume from amidships to the stern, and the howitzer on the maintop was discharged with the heat. Majestically the gallant craft gallant even in its last moments moved down the stream, till, turning the bend at the lower part of Prophet Island, she was hidden from our view, and nothing more was seen but a white glare, shooting up skyward. Shell after shell still exploded at intervals, and thus a couple of hours passed away till the Missis sippi was some eight or ten miles below the Richmond. The shells now begin to explode more rapidly, indicating that the fire has reached the shell-room, and cannot be far from the powder-magazine. This proves to be the fact ; for presently a sudden glare of bright flame shoots up ward toward the zenith, spreading skyward, in the form of an inverted cone ; an interval of a few seconds elapses ; then comes a stunning roar, causing the Richmond to tremble from truck to keelson, and the gallant Missis sippi, that so long has braved the battle and the breeze/ is no more ; all that remains of her is sunk in the bosom of the mighty river from which she derived her name. " Passing through the starboard side of the Richmond, amidships, a conical eighty-pounder passed through a pile of cordage on the berth-deck, narrowly missing some powder-boys who were handing up ammunition. Thence it entered the machinery-room, passing through and smashing the steam-drum, and damaging both safety- valves, so as to prevent them from closing. Taking its course under the steam-chest, the shot came out on the 248 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. other side, when it broke in two, and both pieces dropped below. Here I may take this opportunity of mentioning that Confederate iron, in these regions, is a very inferior metal. It is not half smelted, but right in the center are large stones. < Early this morning the decks of the Richmond pre sented a melancholy spectacle. Where the two men fell there was a great pool of clotted gore, which I saw a sea man tossing overboard with a shovel. The whitewashed decks, too, were any thing but tidy ; but, hey ! presto ! as if by magic, the stalwart arms of some two or three hundred men, with, the aid of a plentiful supply of Mis sissippi water, have made every thing as clean and neat as a lady s boudoir. The bodies of the two men who were killed have been removed forward, and to them has been added the body of the boatswain s mate, who lost both legs and an arm, and who has since died. The three bodies have been neatly sewed up in their ham mocks, and they are to be put into coffins for interment on shore. Headboards, with their names inscribed on them, will be placed at the heads of their graves, so that the bodies may be reclaimed at any time by their friends or relatives." On the 25th of March, the rams Lancaster and Switzer land attempted to run the batteries at Vicksburg, but were so crippled in the attempt that the former was sunk, and the latter disabled. The rams had been made by altering river steamers, and were too light to withstand the shock of a heavy fire from such batteries as those at Vicks burg. Two days later, Admiral Farragut engaged the bat teries at Warrenton, and succeeded in passing below them, en route for Red River. April 1st he had a similar en counter at Grand Gulf, and went down the current accom panied by the Albatross and Switzerland, arriving at its mouth on the evening of the 2d. In the mean time the army kept on the move, and on the 30th of March, Richmond, a village of Madison County, Louisiana, and on a direct line with Vicksburg, a few miles inland from the Mississippi River, was taken pos- DIFFICULTIES OF THE MARCH. 249 session of by a portion of the Thirteenth Army Corps, who drove out the rebel cavalry after two hours sharp lighting. The corps then pushed on toward New Carthage. The roads, although level, were in a very bad condition, and the march was necessarily slow and tedious. It was im portant that supplies and ammunition should travel with this corps, and consequently the movements were con siderably delayed, as it became at times necessary to drag the wagons by hand. When the corps was within two miles of New Carthage, it was found that, in consequence of the recent floods and the breaking of the levee of Bayou Yadal, that place was isolated, and located on an island. Boats were collected from the neighboring bayous, and barges were built ; but by this method the progress of the army was too slow for the purpose intended. The corps was therefore marched to Perkins s plantation, twelve miles below New Carthage, and thirty-five miles from the point of starting. Over these thirty-five miles, supplies and ordnance stores had to be transported ; and as the roads were soft and spongy, owing to the floods, the labor of this movement is almost inconceivable. Provisions and ammunition had to be hauled in wagons, and until- a sufficient quantity had reached the camp near the Mississippi River, below Vicks- burg, it would have been impossible to have commenced a campaign, if a successful issue was to be desired. The terrible gauntlet now to be run was the passage by Admiral Porter of the batteries at Vicksburg. The serious question was, "How can the gunboats, and the transports to convey the soldiers over the river, under the command of Admiral Porter, get by the terraces of dark-mouthed cannon overlooking the water at Vicks burg ?" April 16th shone serene and cloudless upon the flash ing tide of the majestic river of the West. At eleven o clock that night, eight gunboats and six transports were to try the mettle of the Confederate Gibraltar. Men were called for, willing to go into the jaws of destruction. The brave fellows rushed, with a hurrah, to the decks. All was ready. The signal-bell struck eleven. 250 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Oh, that kindly clouds would eclipse even the stars, and fling their shadows on the devoted ships! But not a speck obscured the vernal sky. The steamers in sight were thronged to watch the scene ; and the suspense was painful among the crowds. "A boat is coming!" are words which sent a shudder of apprehension through every heart. Slowly, darkly, steadily, it stole along the Louisiana shore, lost in foliage shadow. Then it steered across to the Mississippi side ; and another spectral form floated into view ; another, and yet another, emerged from the gloom of night and distance. Midnight came, and the -procession of fourteen vessels moved, in darkness and silence, straight toward Vicksburg, whose battlements loomed red through the gloom, relieved only by an occasional light. The boats were flreless and lampless. Hopes and fears agitated the hearts and came to the lips of the spectators. Would those strong ships and brave men go down under the fiery storm of a hun dred echoing guns, or ride safely through 1 Up shot a flame, and the thunder of ordnance succeeded it. The enemy had discovered the bold navigators. The rows of fire, followed with the roar, down from the crest of the fortress to the water s edge, flashed on the path of the iindismayed warriors of the waters. Just at this moment, a rising, steady flame above the city lit up the theater of conflict. High and broad it waved like a lumin ous banner against the sky. "Vicksburg is on fire!" was the shout. No ; on the heights the foe had kindled a beacon, to show them where to strike the advancing line of boats. The intense glare made a rope s shadow on the blight deck visible. But too late was the blaze thrown on the track of the leviathans. The rebels were in a fever of excitement. Porter s fleet must not join Farragut, if shot and shell could pre vent it. Hiss ! whirr ! crash ! was the music of the death carnival. The beacon went out, and another flame brightened on the gloom, through volumes of uprolling smoke. The transport Henry Clay had caught from a burning shell. Soon the long line of blazing battlements from Ticks- THE GAUNTLET SAFELY RUN. 251 burg to Warrenton grew dark and still, and the beholders retired to wait for the morning news. The tidings that the fleet was safe the damage small, and only one hero killed, with two others wounded filled many eyes with tears of joy. The ships, excepting the Henry Clay, were floating securely on the quiet waters between the scarred fortress and New Carthage. General Grant s heart beat lighter, with hope in the success of this last and boldest design upon Vicksburg. 252 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. jfrblofiod Oil? t " CHAPTER XIII. CAVALRY MOVEMENTS. THE ADVANCE, The Cavalry Enter the Lists in Daring Adventures. Colonel G-rierson s Great Raid. Strange and Amusing Scenes. The Cavalry Generals. The Army ad vance. Porter s Fleet Co-operates. The March. A Battle. Occupation of Port Gibson. Telegrams of General Grant and Governor Yates. Feints to de ceive the Enemy. General Sherman s Movements. General Grant s care of his Army. BEFORE leaving the north side of Vicksburg, to take command of his army in person, General Grant determined to cut all the enemy s communications with that city, to secure his columns from an attack in the rear, should it become necessary to invest the place. He therefore de tailed the First Cavalry Brigade, under Colonel B. H. Grierson, for this enterprise. April 17, 1863, the enthusiastic horsemen galloped away in the starlight from La Grange, Tennessee. Two o clock in the morning found them on the road to Ripley, Mississippi, thirty miles distant, which they reached at nightfall. Dismounting, the heroes bivouacked for brief repose. At eight o clock the next morning, they were beyond Ripley, hastening toward New Albany. A single battalion occupied this place, while the main body passed eastwardly, but all encamped within four miles of the town. The next day they rode off to their work on the rail ways, crossing forests, open fields, and frightful swamps ; now flying yonder, to deceive the rebels in regard to the real design, and then in the opposite direction, tearing up a track, capturing a train, or burning a mill. Amusing scenes enlivened the raiders wild career. Some of them, stopping at a wealthy planter s house, who was also a guerrilla, passed themselves off as Van Dorn s men; for many of our soldiers, in these adventures, wore " secesh" COLONEL GEIERSON S RAID. 253 uniforms. Finding splendid horses in his barn, they began to change the saddles from their tired steeds to the backs of his. " Can t spare em, gentlemen! can t let these horses go ! " protested the planter. "We must have them. You want us to catch the Yankees, and we shall have to hurry to do it," replied the raiders. " All right, gentlemen ; I ll keep your animals till you return. I suppose you ll be back in two or three days, at the furthest. When you return, you ll find they have been well cared for." The guerrilla is probably still waiting for his friends and horses. A young lady thus complains : The first thing they did was to carry off Lizzie s buggy. They broke into the storeroom, and took sister Emily s wine, which they carried away, and drank the next morning. As we sat quietly awaiting our fate, still hoping that God in whose care Ma had at the beginning placed us, kneeling with us in earnest prayer would yet save us, we heard them dan cing, whooping, breaking, and plundering away over the house. They stole all my jewelry ; they broke all sister Emily s pictures. Nan [a servant] was very much dis tressed at their taking the blankets." Poor girl ! we smile at and pity her. But War is no respecter of persons, nor very particular about the amount of damage done along his path. It was impossible for a large force to move through the enemy s country without meeting some of the foe ; and as a natural result, skirmishing took place all along the route, and several prisoners were taken. At one time the ad vance was engaged with the pickets of Chalmers s rebel brigade, but the latter was soon overpowered, and the main body of his troops retreated. The rebels attempted to fire the bridge at New Albany ; but so rapid was Colonel Grierson s advance, that his forces were across the river before they could accomplish their purpose. It now became necessary to mislead the enemy as to 234 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the actual destination of the main "body ; therefore, on April 19th, Colonel Grierson ordered a portion of his force to march back to New Albany, thence by Kingsbridge, where a rebel camp was said to be in existence. A second force he ordered east, and a third northwest, while the main body marched due south. It had been raining all the previous night ; consequently this day s march was performed under great difficulties. The center column then proceeded to Pontotoc, where a small rebel force was dispersed, and their camp equipage and a quantity of salt seized and destroyed. At eight o clock that evening, the command encamped six miles south of Pontotoc on the road to Houston. On the 20th, a portion of the force was detached and sent back to La Grange with the prisoners and captured baggage. They were ordered to make as much noise in returning as possible, so as to give the rebels the idea tha.t the expedition was over, while in fact the main body would still proceed south. This feint succeeded admi rably. The next day another force was detached, under Colo nel Hatch, and ordered to destroy as much as possible of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad ; to attack Columbus near the State line, between Mississippi and Alabama, and then to march back to La Grange. In this Colonel Hatch was successful, and the movement drew off General Chalmers s rebel forces from following Colonel Grierson, thus giving him three days fresh start. The main body next moved to Starkville, where they captured and destroyed a rebel mail. After traveling four miles further, the command divided one-half swim ming the Dismal Swamp, to destroy a tannery, which at the time contained a very large stock of boots and shoes, saddles, bridles, and several thousand dollars worth of leather ; the other half proceeding on its course. The command being again united, it pushed on toward Louisville, Mississippi. This part of the march was of the most dangerous character, as streams and blind marshes had to be crossed without any guide. Sometimes the horses would sink in the mud and be left to perish, and it SCENES ALOFG THE TROOPERS PATH. 255 is wonderful that some of the men did not share the same fate. Notwithstanding the horrible nature of this route, the men preserved their fortitude, and pushed on vigor ously for Philadelphia, Mississippi, where another mail was destroyed. Private property, however, was in all cases respected. Thus hurried along the troopers till the 22d, when the inarch was indeed "terrible, because the swamps of the Okanoxubee River were overflowed. After moving four miles south of Louisville, they marched a distance of eight miles through a swamp. On each side of the road were enormous trees, and the water was, everywhere, from three to four feet deep ; with every few hundred yards a mire- hole in which frequently, for a few moments, man and horse were lost to view. The Seventh Illinois being in the rear, found those holes almost impassable, from the action of the large body of cavalry which had preceded them, and they were compelled to leave drowned some twenty noble animals, whose strength was not equal to such an emergency. The men so dismounted removed their saddles, placed them on some other led beasts, and pushed onward cheerfully. On April 23d, the force pushed on to the Southern Railroad at Newton, moving by way of Decatur, and arrived at the former place about daylight on the 24th. Here two trains, bound to Vicksburg via Jackson, were captured, and the whole thirty-eight cars, with the loads of quartermaster, commissary, and ordnance stores, de- stroj^ed. The locomotives were also rendered useless. Several bridges and a quantity of trestle work were de stroyed in this vicinity, after which, on the 25th, the raiding force moved toward Montrose, thence to Raleigh, Mississippi, where they encamped for the night. At this time the rebels were close upon Colonel Grier- son s heels, on ascertaining which, he moved over the Leaf River, destroying the bridge behind him, and then marched to Westville. Here two battalions were de tached, and made a forced inarch to Hazlelmrst Station, on the Jackson and New Orleans Railroad, where they de stroyed forty cars, four of which were loaded with shell 256 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and ammunition, and the remainder with quartermaster and commissary stores. " A glance at the map will show the importance of Pearl River. Knowing it to be quite high from heavy rains, and aware also that, as rebel scouts had preceded them, it was of the utmost consequence to secure Pearl River bridge, Colonel Prince, who was in advance with the Seventh Illinois, pushed forward with energy ; and, by very fast riding, succeeded in getting to the bridge, and driving away a picket, before they had time to tear up more than a few planks, which were replaced in a few minutes. The gallant colonel devoutly speaks of this as one of the many instances in which a divine Providence seemed to be shielding them during their whole perilous journey ; for the destruction of this bridge would have been, in all probability, fatal to the whole expedition. " Although Colonel Prince, on the 27th, had marched his regiment forty -one miles, during a large portion of the time through drenching rain, he firmly believed that, as the citizens were arming themselves, and the news about them was flying in all directions, it was a matter of life and death that Pearl River should be crossed, and the New Orleans and Jackson Railroad reached, without any delay whatever. He therefore obtained permission from Colonel Grierson to move directly forward with two hundred picked men of his regiment, to secure the ferry across Pearl River before the enemy should be able to destroy it. The distance to the river was thirteen miles, and from there to Hazlehurst Station was twelve miles. The re mainder of the two regiments were to come forward as soon as they were sufficiently rested. "Colonel Prince started with the two hundred, at one A. M., and reached the bank of the river before daylight; when, contrary to his information, the flat-boat was upon the opposite side of the river. Not daring to call out, he spoke to a volunteer, who, with a powerful horse, under took to swim the river ; but the rapidity of the swollen stream carried him below the landing, where there was a quicksand, arid he barely returned to shore with his life. "A few moments later, a man came down from the SCENES IN THE GREAT EAID. 257 Louse toward the river, and, in true North Carolina accent, asked, in a careless way, if we wanted to cross ; to which he got a reply in a very capital imitation of his twang that a few of them did want to go across, and that it seemed harder to wake up his nigger ferry-man than to catch the conscripts. The proprietor took the "bait, apolo gized for the detention, and woke up his ferry-man, who immediately brought over the boat, which thenceforward became the property of Uncle Sam the proprietor all the while believing he was lavishing his attentions on the First Regiment of Alabama Cavalry, fresh from Mobile ! The breakfast given to the Alabama colonel that morning was highly relished and appreciated ; but too much time was not spent over it, and the importance of speed was clearly proved, only half an hour afterward, when they caught a courier flying to the ferry with the news that the Yankees were coming, and that all the ferries were to be immediately destroyed. "At Hazlehurst Station, Colonel Prince succeeded in capturing a large number of cars, four or five being loaded with shell and ammunition, and others with army stores. The whole of this property was utterly destroyed. "And here comes one of the most amusing episodes of the whole affair. Captain Forbes, who had been sent to Macon from near Starkville, rejoined the command, just as they had all crossed Pearl River. Having been unable to take Macon, he followed their trail to Newton, where h, was informed that they had gone to Enterprise, on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad. He followed on to that place, and marched with his little squad into town, where he found about three thousand rebel troops just getting off the cars. He promptly raised a flag of truce, and boldly rode forward, demanding the surrender of the place, in the name of Colonel Grierson. The commanding rebel officer, Colonel Goodwin, asked one hour to consider the propo sition, and wished to know where Captain Forbes would be at that time. The Captain answered that he would go back with the reply to the reserve ; which he did pretty rapidly, after having shrewdly ascertained the strength of the enemy. It is not known whether Enterprise ever 17 2o8 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. surrendered or not, or whether the rebel colonel is still trying to find the reserve to make his penitent "bow ; but one thing is certain, that Captain Forbes, with his little squad of thirty-five men, did not intend to take those three thousand rebels prisoners that time at least and was laughing in his sleeve many miles off while those Enter prise-ing people were trembling in their boots that is. if, at the present fabulous price of leather, they had any boots to tremble in. u The Mobile Register, of the 28th, in the depth of its consternation and chagrin, treats this ridiculous sell with the most absurd and amusing gravity. The only thing satisfactorily explained, says the oracular Register, is that they ran away from Enterprise as soon as they heard that "Old Blizzard" was about. The Register little thought that it was only thirty-five brave fellows whom its terrified imagination had converted into < one thousand live hundred Yankees. On that morning the advance arrived at Brookhaven, where it surprised a body of lebels, taking about two hundred prisoners. Here a camp of instruction, about five hundred tents, and a large supply of small arms were destroyed. Colonel Grierson, after making leints of moving to ward Port Gibson and Natchez, marched, on April 30th, along the New Orleans and Jackson Railroad, destroying all the bridges between Brookhaven and Bogue Chito Station. At the latter place, a number of loaded cars were found and destroyed. He next moved on to Summit, where he destroyed another train of cars. The Union cavalry force then passed along the country road toward Clinton, and on their way met a body of rebel cavalry, which they engaged and routed. They again pushed on steadily toward the Mississippi River. "On May 1st, they left camp at daylight, and proceed ing in a southwesterly direction through the woods, with out regard to roads, came into the Clinton and Osyka road, near a bridge four miles northeast of Wall s Post- office. About eighty of the enemy were lying in ambush near the bridge. Lieutenant-Colonel Blackburn, unfor- COLONEL GREEKSON S ARRIVAL AT BATON ROUGE. 259 Innately with more bravery than discretion, proceeded across the bridge at the head of the scouts and of com pany G, Seventh Illinois. He was serionsly wounded in the thigh, and slightly in the head. Colonel Prince im mediately caused his men to dismount, to skirmish the enemy out of the bushes, and, with the assistance of Captain Smith s battery, soon put them to flight. "This affair at the bridge detained the column but a few minutes. They inarched all night, and crossed the Amite River about ten P. M., without opposition, the picket being asleep. They had marched forty miles this day. They marched again early on the morning of May 2d, and the Sixth Illinois, being in advance, surprised and burned a rebel camp at Sandy Creek bridge. At this point the Seventh Illinois was ordered in advance, and, at about nine A. M., as a crowning glory to this most extraordinary series of adventures, captured forty -two of Stewart s Mississippi Cavalry, on Comite Kiver, including their colonel." On Friday, May 2d, at about noon, the inhabitants of Baton Rouge were startled by the arrival of a courier, who announced that a brigade of cavalry from General Grant s army had cut their way through the heart of the rebel country and were then only five miles outside of the city. The information seemed too astounding for belief. At four o clock, however, there was no longer doubt of the fact ; for Colonel Grierson and his heroes were escorted into the city by a company of cavalry belonging to that post. At the picket lines they were welcomed by the commander and his staff, and the cheers of the garrison, as the adventurers entered Baton Rouge, could have been heard for miles. Their triumphal entry created a furore of joyful excite ment that thrilled every loyal heart upon this continent aye, every heart that loves liberty and human bravery throughout the civilized world. "Some idea of the pluck and endurance of these men can be gleaned from the fact that during the last thirty hours, in which they had ridden eighty miles, fought two 260 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GPwANT. or three skirmishes, destroyed bridges, camps, equipages, &c., swam a river and captured forty -two prisoners and a large number of horses, they had scarcely halted at all, and went through these terrific exertions without food for man or beast ! During the last night, it was observed that nearly the entire column, worn out almost beyond human endurance, were fast asleep upon horseback, except when the sharp report of a carbine told of the nearness of the enemy. And all this was rendered without one word of murmur or complaint from any lip, either of officers or privates." In fifteen days, eight hundred miles had been traveled, four million dollars worth of property destroyed, and the alarming, humbling fact forced home on the heart of the foe, that the moment of fancied security might be that of the greatest danger. The news cheered not only the advancing host of General Grant, but also the impatient legions of the Cumberland Army, getting ready to move, with the chivalrous Sheridan s horsemen, to emulate such daring and success. During the very last days of Colonel Grierson s march, General George Stoneman, chief of cavalry in the Army of the Potomac, was dashing on to Richmond to do a similar work for Hooker, about to move on the enemy, which the former had accomplished for Grant i. e., cut the communications between the army at Chancellors- ville and the capital. In this grand ride through Vir ginia, General John Buford was one of the most gallant leaders. He and Stoneman graduated at the Military Academy at West Point ; the former two years before Sheridan entered that Institution, the latter in 1849, the very summer of his admission. These three, with Kil- patrick, who was also with Stoneman, and afterward with Sherman, form a splendid quartette of cavalry chiefs, whose names will ever shine on the record of national vic tories, while our flag floats in the breeze. General Buford was a Kentuckian, born in 1827. Ho was a finished horseman and officer a generous, high- minded, loyal man ; and died in his prime at Washington, December 16, 1863, of pneumonia and typhoid fever, GENERAL STONEMAN AND HIS RAID. 261 contracted in his exhausting marches and exposure, uni versally lamented. He was a kind, humane commander. After a day s toilsome ride, he not unfrequently, in a wild thunder-storm, would rise from a brief repose to rub down and protect the noble animals which bore their weary riders safely over hostile soil. General Stoneman was born at Burtis, Chatauque County, New York, August 8, 1822, and, like General Sheridan, went soon after his graduation to the Pacific coast. When the rebellion thundered forth its challenge to freedom in Charleston Harbor, he was in command of Fort Brown in Texas, whose surrender was demanded by General Twiggs of the rebel army. The heroic Stoneman promptly, indignantly, refused. Learning that it was de termined to withdraw the Union forces from the State, he immediately chartered a steamer, taking with him what ever he could convey of the Government property, and reached New York the middle of March. The following June, he was major of the cavalry ; and in August, 1861, brigadier and chief of cavalry. He is a noble officer and man. In the raid to co-operate with General Hooker, while Sheridan was drilling his brigade for brilliant work at hand in his department, there was some of the most ro mantic, perilous, and successful riding in the annals of cavalry service. General Kilpatrick will be more fully noticed in the record of General Sherman s grand marches. General Grant recorded his own estimate of the raid, officially, a few days after its successful termination : GBAND GULF, MISSISSIPPI, May 6. Major-General HALLECK, General-in-Chief : I learn that Colonel Grierson, with his cavalry, has been heard of, first, about ten days ago, in Northern Mississippi. He moved thence and struck the railroad thirty miles east of Jackson, at a point called Newton s Station. He then moved southward, toward Enterprise, demanded the surren der of the place, and gave one hour s grace, during which General Lorm- niey arrived. He left at once and moved toward Hazelhurst, on the New Orleans and Jackson Railroad. At this point he tore up the track. Thence he pushed to Bahala, ten miles furthe" south, on the same road; and thence 262 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. eastward, on the Natchez road, where he had a fight with Wirt Adams s cavalry. From this point he moved back to the New Orleans and Jackson Rail road, to Brookhaven, ten miles south of Bahala, and when last heard from he was three miles from Summit, ten miles south of Brookhaven, and was supposed to be making his way to Baton Rouge. He had spread excitement throughout the State, destroying railroads, trestleworks, and bridges, burning locomotives and railway stock, taking prisoners, and destroying stores of all kinds. U. S. GRANT, Major-General. The day after Colonel Grierson had started on his ex pedition, a party of Union troops, consisting of three regiments of infantry and one of cavalry, left Memphis, Tennessee, on a reconnoissance into Mississippi. At INan- connah, they met a "body of rebel cavalry, which, after a "brisk fight, was repulsed with some loss. On the 19th, another force of mounted rebels was met, and driven over the Coldwater in confusion. The Union troops having been re-enforced at Hernando, Mississippi, again crossed the Coldwater, and engaged the enemy at that point. At about the same time General Banks s forces were making a demonstration in the neighborhood of Baton Rouge. Owing to the limited number of transports below Vicksburg, it was deemed advisable by General Grant to extend his line of land-travel to a little place in Louisiana, on the Mississippi River shore, locally known by the designation of Hard Times. As this place could only be reached by a very circuitous route, the distance between the base of supplies at Milliken s Bend and the advance of the army was increased to seventy miles, with roads entirely unsuited for the operations of an army. But as the place was nearer to the point at which General Grant had intended to land his troops, on the Mississippi side of the river, he was determined that the roads should not prove an obstacle to thwart him in his plans. He there fore detailed a portion of his pioneer force to prepare the line of travel, and to keep it in order after it was con structed. The Thirteenth Army Corps was embarked during the night of the 28th and early on the morning of the 29th of A NAVAL ENGAGEMENT. 263 April, 1863, and the Seventeenth Corps being well on its way to take their place, General Grant ordered the trans ports to move over to the front of Grand Gulf. The plan had been for the navy to attack the rebel works, and for the military forces to land under cover of the guns, for tho purpose of taking the place by storm. At eight o clock in the morning, Admiral Porters fleet opened upon the works, which he engaged for five hours in the most brilliant manner. It, however, soon became evident that the enemy s batteries could not be silenced or taken from the water-front, as the whole range of hills was lined with rifle-pits, supported by field artillery, that could be moved from one position to another with the greatest ease. General Grant determined to change his plan, and effect a landing, if possible, at Rodney, some distance below Grand Gulf. But to do this, it became necessary again to run the rebel batteries. A consultation was held between him and Admiral Porter, and a plan soon formed. At dark, Admiral Porter s fleet again engaged the bat teries, and, under cover of this contest, the transports ran by the rebel works, receiving but two or three shots in the passage, and these not inflicting any material injury. During the whole of the naval engagement at Grand Gulf, General Grant was on board a tug in the middle of the stream, a witness of the conflict, and ready to move his forces to the assault as soon as the time appeared pro pitious. After the withdrawal of the fleet from before Grand Gulf, the troops were again landed at Hard Times, so that the transports might run by the rebel batteries without endangering more lives than was absolutely necessary. These disembarked troops were then marched overland, across the upper end of Coffee s Point and D Schron s plantation, to the Louisiana shore of the Mississippi River below Grand Gulf. A reconnoitering party was next sent out to discover the best point at which the troops could cross the river to the Mississippi shore. General McClernand says, in his re port of June 17, 1863: "The reconnoissance made by the 2G4 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. cavalry, in pursuance of Major-General Grant s order, in dicated Bruinsburg to be the point. Hence, embarking on the morning of the 30th, my corps immediately proceeded to that place, and disembarked before noon." The advance was now on the Vicksburg side of the river, and every thing was to be subservient to activity and rapid motion. The orders were that there should be no delay under any circumstances. Promptitude was especially necessary, as by that only could success be guaranteed. At four o clock in the afternoon, after having halted just long enough to distribute three days rations, the advance of the Thirteenth Army Corps took up its line of march for the bluffs, three miles from the river. In this movement the corps commander states in his report that he acted " agreeably with General Grant s instructions." The bluffs were, therefore, reached and taken possession of some time before sunset. The army had started in very light marching order, without trains or baggage, that nothing might interfere with their rapid movements. Each man carried his al lotted quantity of rations, and the bivouac, and not the camp, was to be the order of the night. One who par ticipated in the campaign states : " Starting on the movement, the general disencumbered himself of every thing, setting an example to his officers and men. He took neither a horse nor a servant, overcoat nor blanket, nor tent nor camp-chest, nor even a clean shirt. His only baggage consisted of a tooth-brush. He always showed his teeth to the rebels. He shared all the hardships of the private soldier, sleeping in the front and in the open air, and eating hard- tack and salt pork. He wore no sword, had on a low-crowned citizen s hat, and the only thing about him to mark him as a military man was his two stars on his undress military coat." The Thirteenth Army Corps, after reaching the bluffs, pushed on toward Port Gibson, to surprise any enemy that might be found in that neighborhood, and if possible to prevent him from destroying the bridges over Bayou Pierre, on the roads leading to Grand Gulf and to Jack- A ROMANTIC MARCH. 265 son. To accomplish this, the corps made forced marches, and traveled as far as possible along the road during that night. An exciting, romantic night-march was that of the pioneer volunteers toward Vicksburg. How grand the spectacle, as the ranks for miles sweep along the road under the levee "between them and the river ; then, turn ing from it, go winding over the crests of hills, stretching away like a sea of solid waves of orange and emerald hue ! Up the precipitous sides of some bold bluff the rows of glittering steel creep, then pass in spectral indistinctness through a deep ravine ; now they sweep between wide fields of waving corn, and again over plains of the most fragrant flowers, and through vernal forests, whose mag nolias are in full blossom, flinging, from their cups of alabaster, delicious aroma on the midnight air. The advance of the Thirteenth Army Corps approached the church at about one o clock on the morning of the first of May, 1863. This church was distant from Bruinsburg about thirteen miles, and from Port Gibson about four miles. As the Fourteenth Division of Grant s army drew near the place, they were accosted by a light fire of rebel musketry, followed at a quick interval by a sharp attack with field artillery. The Union troops were at once formed into line of battle, and their batteries replied to the fire of the rebels. After a short but brisk engagement, the guns of the latter were silenced. Our forces then withdrew out of range, and patiently waited until morning. Al daybreak the fight was re newed by the ordering of the Ninth Division of Grant s army on the road to the left. The First Brigade, while hastening forward to execute this order, encountered the enemy in force, at about half-past five in the morning ; and although the rebel position was strong, and the enemy apparently determined to keep it, he was forced to yield the possession, after a severe struggle of over an hour s duration. The Ninth Division, consisting of two brigades, pressed forward ; but the enemy had so obstructed the road that it was soon apparent a front attack would result only 266 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. in disaster. A flank movement was then resolved upon, and by a spirited assault upon the right carried the rebel works, captured three pieces of cannon, and routed the enemy. It also appears from the official reports, that the second position taken by the enemy was much stronger than the iirst, being located in a creek bottom, covered with trees and underbrush, the approach to which was over open fields, and ragged and exposed hill-slopes. At break of day, on the morning of Saturday, May 2d, the Thirteenth Army Corps triumphantly entered Port Gibson, through which place, and across the south branch of the Bayou Pierre, the enemy had hastily fled the night before, burning the bridge across that stream in his rear. This bridge was even burning when the advance entered Port Gibson, and it was necessary to remain a few hours in that village, until a floating bridge could be constructed. While this was being built, the rebels appeared on the opposite side of the Bayou Pierre, both above and below the town, and a desultory fire ensued between the belliger ents, without any material damage to either side. In the afternoon the bridge was completed, and the advance crossed over. Three miles beyond Port Gibson, on the Raymond road, the Union army came across two large piles of bacon belonging to the rebel army, arid of at least fifty thousand pounds weight. The army next came upon the upper causeway across the Bayou Pierre, which, being a sub stantial iron suspension bridge, the rebels had not time to completely destroy, although they left behind them evi dences of their attempts at its destruction. This bridge repaired, the Union army passed over it, and came to the cross-roads near the site of an old town which once rejoiced in the name of Willow Springs. As the army was proceeding leisurely along the road, a battery opened upon them with shell at short range, causing a few casualties. The advance was next drawn up in line of battle, and moved slowly forward until the rebel position was attained. The rebels then soon retired with unusual haste. BIG BLACK KIVER A SKIRMISH. 2G7 The advance of the Union army then pushed on to the bank of the Big Black River, where it arrived shortly be fore dark, and was received with a sharp fire of musketry. Lines of skirmishers were quickly formed, and the rebel troops driven across the river. Their rear-guard at tempted to destroy the pontoon bridge ; but in this design they were frustrated by the rapid movements of the sharp shooters of the Union army. After exchanging a few shell and shot, all was quiet for a time. This part of the army was seven miles beyond Grand Gulf, and within eighteen miles of Vicksburg. While passing through a deep ravine to reach the above position, the troops met a strong line of rebel skirmishers, and, after an engagement of about two hours, the latter retired, closely followed. Several prisoners were taken, from whom it was ascertained that Grand Gulf had been evac uated and the rebel magazine blown up. This was owing to two causes ; first, the flanking of the position by Gene ral Grant ; and secondly, the severe bombardment it re ceived at the hands of Admiral Porter. Finding that Grand Gulf had been evacuated, and that the advance of the Union forces was already fifteen miles on the road they would have to take to reach either Vicks burg, Jackson, or any point of the railroad between those cities, General Grant determined not to stop the troops in their victorious course, for the purpose of furnishing him self with an escort due to his rank, but took with him some fifteen men, and proceeded in person to the position, where he made the necessary arrangements for changing his base of supplies from Bruinsburg to Grand Gulf. From this point he telegraphed to the Government the complete success of the first part of his movement. The document, it will be noted, is remarkably modest, con sidering the value of the work accomplished, and was as follows : GULF, Miss., May 3, 1863. Major General HALLEOK, General-in-Chief : We landed at Bruinsburg, April 30th; moved immediately on Port Gibson ; met the enemy, eleven thousand strong, four miles south of Port Gibson, at two o clock A. M., on the 1st inst., and engaged him all day, en- 263 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tirely routing liirn with the loss of many killed, and about five hundred prisoners, besides the wounded. Our loss, about one hundred killed and five hundred wounded. The enemy retreated toward Vicksburg, destroying the bridges over the two forks of the Bayou Pierre. These were rebuilt; and the pursuit has continued until the present time. Besides the heavy artillery at the place, four field-pieces were captured, and some stores ; and the enemy were driven to destroy many more. The country is the most broken and difficult to operate in I ever saw. Our victory has been most complete, and the enemy is thoroughly demoralized. Very respectfully, U. S. GRANT, Major- General Commanding. Governor Yates, of Illinois, who was on a visit to the army at the time of the movement, and had necessarily to participate therein, telegraphed at the same time to the officials at his State capital, as follows : GRAND GULP, Miss., May 3, 1663. We gained a glorious victory at Port Gibson, on the 1st instant. The enemy are in full retreat. Our forces are in close pursuit. The Illinois troops, as usual, behaved with the greatest gallantry. The loss on our side is one hundred and fifty killed and five hundred wounded. We have taken one thousand prisoners. The loss of the enemy in killed and wounded was much greater than ours. RICHARD YATES. On the same night that Grand Gulf had been taken pos session of, several barges, loaded with stores, were sent down past the Vicksburg batteries. The firing was very heavy upon some of them, and a shell, bursting in the midst of a quantity of cotton and hay, destroyed the ves sels, and compelled those on board to surrender. General Grant, to deceive the rebel authorities at Rich mond, Chattanooga, and elsewhere, as to the precise direc tion from which he intended to strike at Vicksburg, and also to prevent heavy re-enforcements from being sent to Grand Gulf from that place, ordered very excellent feints to be made in all directions. Among others, he ordered Colonel Corwyn, with his cavalry brigade, to go down the Mobile and Ohio Rail road, on the east of his line of operations, and threaten an attack upon all the rebel posts along that road. On tht GENERAL SHERMAN AND THE FIFTEENTH CORPS. 269 6th of May, a fight took place between the Union cavalry and the rebel forces under General Ruggles, at Tupello a railroad station in Itawamba County, Mississippi and, after a half-hour s conflict, the rebels retreated in disorder, leaving behind them their arms, equipments, and ninety of their men prisoners. On the north, General Grant ordered a still more valu able feint. In moving from Milliken s Bend, the Fifteenth Army Corps had been set apart to bring up the rear, and consequently, under that order, it was to be the last to start upon the southern march. General Sherman, com manding the Fifteenth Corps, had made ever} - preparation to move by April 26, 1863, on which day he received a letter from General Grant, who was near New Carthage, ordering him to delay his march, in consequence of the state of the roads, until the system of canals, then in process of construction, could be completed. On the 28th of April, General Sherman received a letter in cipher, fixing the time when General Grant proposed to attack Grand Gulf, and stating that a simultaneous feint on the enemy s batteries near Haines s Bluff, on the Yazoo River, would be most desirable, provided it could be done without the ill effect on the army and the country of the appearance of a repulse. Knowing well that the army could distinguish a feint from a real attack, by succeeding events, General Sherman made the necessary orders, em barked the Second Division on ten steam transports, and sailed for the Yazoo River. At ten o clock on the morning of April 29th, General Sherman, with this force, proceeded to the mouth of the Yazoo River, where he found several vessels of the fleet, ready to co-operate with the feigned movement. This fact alone proves how well General Grant and Admiral Porter had agreed upon the plan of operations, and how they worked in harmony together; neither one being jealous of the other s fame, but both being ready to do battle in their country s service, and for the common cause. The united forces then went up the Yazoo River, in proper order, and lay for the night of April 29th at the mouth of the Chickasaw Bayou. The next morning, at an 270 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. early hour, the fleet advanced within easy range of the enemy s batteries. The gunboats at once made an attack upon the works, and for four hours kept up the demon stration. The vessels were then called out of range ; and toward evening, General Sherman disembarked his troops, in full view of the enemy, making preparations as if to assault the works. As soon as the landing was effected, the gunboats reopened their fire upon the rebel defenses. The perceptible activity of the enemy, in moving the guns, artillery, and infantry, gave evidence that they ex pected a real attack ; and, keeping up a show of this intent until dark. General Sherman succeeded in accomplishing the full object of his ruse. At night the troops re-em barked ; but during the whole of the next day similar movements were made, accompanied by reconnoissances of all the country on both sides of the Yazoo River. While thus engaged, he received instructions from Gen eral Grant to hasten and rejoin him at Grand Gulf. The two divisions of General Sherman s corps that had remained at Milliken s Bend were at once ordered to march, and to join General Grant by way of Richmond, Louisiana, while he, at the head of the Second Division, kept up his feint on the Yazoo River until night. Gen eral Sherman then quietly dropped back to his camp at Young s Point, when the whole corps, with the exception of one division left behind as a garrison, marched to Hard Times, four miles above Grand Gulf, on the Louisiana shore, where it arrived on the morning of May 6th, after traveling sixty-three miles on foot. During the night of the 6th, and the morning of the 7th, the forces were ferried over the river, and on the 8th commenced their march into the interior. A junction was to have been formed between the forces under General Grant and those under General Banks ; but, in consequence of the position of the troops under the latter general, this movement was found to require a much greater delay and loss of time than could be afforded, as will be seen from the following extract from the official report: Wrote General Grant: " About this time (May 4th), I WHY GET?. GRANT WAS NOT RE-ENFORCED BY BANKS. 271 received a letter from General Banks, giving his position west of the Mississippi River, and stating that he could return to Baton Rouge by the 10th of May ; that, by the reduction of Port Hudson, he could join me with twelve thousand men. 4 I learned about the same time, that troops were ex pected at Jackson from the Southern cities, with General Beauregard in command. To delay until the 10th of May, and for the reduction of Port Hudson after that, the acces sion of twelve thousand men would not leave me relatively so strong as to move promptly with what I had. Infor mation received from day to day, of the movements of the enemy, also impelled me to the course I pursued." 272 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEEAL GKANT. CHAPTER XIV. THE ARMY APPROACH VICKSBURG. General Grant s Head-Quarters moved forward to Hawkinson s Ferry. The Rebel Governor Alarmed. General Grant s Congratulatory Order. He Telegraphs to Washington. Fall of Jackson. The Army at Boltou. Clinton. Charnpiou 3 Hill. Crossing the River. The Investment of the City. GENERAL GEAISTT secured a sufficient amount of sup plies for his columns, and arranged the order of march while at Grand Gulf. May 7th he removed his head-quarters to Hawkinson s Ferry, on the Black River, leaving Sherman to guard the captured post, during the few hours it would be of service for the landing of the remainder of the supplies. While lying at Hawkinson s Ferry, waiting for the wagons, supplies, and Sherman s corps to come up, de monstrations were made to make the enemy "believe that the routes to Vicksburg by that ferry, and the one by Hall s Ferry, which was a short distance higher up the river, were very desirable to General Grant. To impress this idea still further upon the minds of the rebel generals, reconnoitering parties were sent out along the roads, on the west side of the Big Black River, to within six miles of Warrenton. The artifice was completely successful. In the mean time, Mississippi was called to arms to resist the advance of General Grant. General Grant s plans had been too carefully studied to be thwarted by any suddenly improvised forces that the Governor could then raise. On the morning of the 7th of May, a general advance was ordered. The Thirteenth Army Corps was directed to move along the ridge road from Wilton Springs ; the Seventeenth was to keep the road nearest the Black River to Rocky Springs ; and the Fifteenth was to divide in two parts, and follow. All the ferries ware closely guarded GENERAL GRANT S CONGRATULATORY ORDER. 273 until the troops were well advanced, to prevent surprise on the flanks, and also to mislead the enemy as to the intention of the movement. Before the troops were started on this march, the fol lowing congratulatory order was read at the head of every regiment : HEAD-QUAUTERS ARMY OF THE TENNESSEE, in THE FIELD, \ HAWKINSON S FEKKY, May 1. Soldiers of the Array of Tennessee : Once more I thank you for adding another victory to the long list of those previously won by your valor and endurance. The triumph gained over the enemy near Port Gibson, on the 1st, was one of the most import ant of the war. The capture of five cannon and more than one thousaad prisoners, the possession of Grand Gulf, and a firm foothold on the high lands between the Big Black and Bayou Pierre, from whence we threaten the whole line of the enemy, are among the fruits of this brilliant achieve ment. The march from Milliken s Bend to the point opposite Grand Gulf was made in stormy weather, over the worst of roads. Bridges and ferries had to be constructed. Moving by night, as well as by day, with labor inces sant, and extraordinary privations endured by men and officers, such as have been rarely paralleled in any campaign, not a murmur of complaint has been uttered. A few days continuance of the same zeal and constancy will secure to this army crowning victories over the rebellion. More difficulties and privations are before us; let us endure them manfully. Other battles are to be fought; let us fight them bravely. A grateful country will rejoice at our success, and history will record it with immortal honor. U. S. GRANT, Major-General Commanding. It seems that General Grant had intended, while at Hawkinson s Ferry, to have moved the Thirteenth and Fifteenth Army Corps in such a manner as to hug the* Black River as closely as possible, that they might be- able to strike the Jackson and Yicksburg Railroad at some point between Ed wards s Station and Bolton. The Seventeenth Army Corps was to move by way of Utica to* Raymond, thence to Jackson, at which place, and in its vicinity, the railroad, telegraph, and public stores were to* be destroyed, after which, the corps was to move west,, and rejoin the main army. The commander-in-chief was not behind his troops ; but, as they advanced, he continually changed Ms- head- is 274 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. quarters and his line of communications, keeping with the center of the army, that he might the better direct the movements of his three columns. When he had advanced far enough to be sure of his position, he sent the following telegraphic message to the Government at Washington : IN TUB FIELD, May 11, 1863. To Major-General HALLECK, General-in-Chief: My force will be this evening as far advanced along Fourteen Mil Greek, the left near Black River, and extending in a line nearly east and west, as they can get, without bringing on a general engagement. I shall communicate with Grand Gulf no more, except it becomes necessary to send a train with a heavy escort. You may not hear from me again for several days. U. S. GKANT, Major-General. The dispatch clearly intimates that General Grant had intended to cut an opening through the enemy s lines, and communicate with the general- in- chief by a more northern route. When the dispatch was sent, he foresaw the suc cess of this plan, and as he personally superintended all the movements of his army, and had not to depend upon any other outside co-operation than that of the fleet, he doubtless felt sure he could not fail through lack of proper combination at the right time. He also, in breaking up this line of communication, by way of Grand Gulf, pre vented the enemy from cutting off his supplies ; and he had taken the precaution to have with him all that was needed, until he was ready to open up the new line by the Yazoo. The Fifteenth Army Corps moved forward on the Ed wards s Station road, and crossed the Fourteen Mile Creek at Dillon s plantation. The Thirteenth Army Corps crossed the same creek a short distance further west, making a demonstration along the road toward Baldwin s Ferry, as if to advance upon Vicksburg or Warrenton by that route. While crossing the creek, both corps had to skirmish considerably with the enemy to gain possession of the right of way ; but, under the persistent attacks of the Union THE BATTLE NEAR RAYMOND. 275 troops, the rebels gave way, and the army moved toward the railroad in splendid order. In the mean time, the Seventeenth Army Corps was steadily advancing upon Raymond, but met with resolute opposition from the rebels, who were stationed in two brigades, under Generals Gregg and Walker, at a point in the road about two miles southwest of that village. Gen eral Logan s division came upon the troops, estimated at about ten thousand, posted on Fondren s Greek, at ten o clock on Tuesday morning, May 12th, and brisk skir mishing began at once, followed by a general engagement. The enemy (as in front of General Sherman) was almost wholly concealed at first by the woods bordering the stream, behind which their forces were posted. Their artillery was on an eminence that commanded the ap proach, and the Union troops had to cross an open field, exposed to a terrible fire. The First and Second Brigades were in the thickest of the contest, and suffered most. After three hours hard fighting, the enemy withdrew sul lenly in two columns the principal one taking the road to Jackson. General Grant, in his report of this action, states that the fighting was very hard ; that the enemy were driven, with heavy loss in killed, wounded, and prisoners ; and that many of the rebels threw down their arms and de serted their cause. When he discovered that the enemy had retreated from Raymond to Jackson, he, on the night of May 12th, di verted the Thirteenth and Fifteenth Army Corps from their intended route, and ordered them both to move toward Raymond, at which place he established his head-quarters on the evening of May 13th. The next day, General Grant sent the following dis patch by way of Memphis : RAYMOND, Miss., May 14, 1863. Major-General HALLECK, General-in-Chief: McPherson took this place on the 12th inst., after a brisk fight of more than two hours. Our loss was fifty-one killed, and one hundred and eighty wounded. The enemy s loss was seventy-five killed (buried by us), and one hundred and eighty-six prisoners captured, besides the wounded. 276 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. McPherson is now at Clinton. General Sherman is on the direct Jack- son road, and General McClernand is bringing up the rear. I will attack the State capital to-day. U. S. GBANT, Major-General. The commander at Memphis, before receiving the above dispatch from General Grant, sent the following to Wash ington : MEMPHIS, TENN., May 17, 1868. Major-General HALLECK, General-in-Chief: Papers of the 14th from Vicksburg and Jackson report that Grant de feated Gregg s brigade at Raymond, on Tuesday, the 12th. The rebel loss is admitted in the papers at seven hundred. The next day Gregg was re-enforced by General W. H. T. Walker, of Georgia, when he was attacked at Mississippi Springs, and driven toward Jackson on Thursday. General Joseph Johnston arrived at Jackson on the 13th, and went out toward Vicksburg with three brigades. The force which General Grant fought, viz., Gregg s brigade, was from Port Hudson, while "Walker s was from Jordan. Every horse fit for service in Mississippi is claimed by the rebel govern ment, to mount their troops. Grant has struck the railroad. S. A. HUELBUT, Major-General. The Seventeenth Army Corps had moved up to Clinton, on the Jackson and Vicksburg Railroad, during the pre vious day, May 13th, to be able to make the movement along that railroad to Jackson, simultaneously with that of the Fifteenth Army Corps, by way of the Eaymond and Jackson turnpike road. Clinton was no sooner taken possession of, than parties were sent out to destroy the track and telegraph ; and while engaged on this duty, several important dispatches from General Pemberton to General Gregg, both of the rebel forces, were captured, and taken to General Grant s head-quarters. As the Seventeenth Army Corps advanced along the railroad, a parallel line of march was kept up by the Fif teenth Army Corps, along the turnpike road, by way of Mississippi Springs, while the Thirteenth Army Corps occupied Raymond. THE APPROACH TO JACKSON. 277 On May 14th, the Fifteenth and Seventeenth Corps moved, with their whole force, then present on the field, upon Jackson the march being made amidst a heavy storm of rain, which fell in torrents, from midnight of the 13th until noon of the 14th. The roads were therefore in the most horrible condition at first slippery, next ankle- deep in mud. "Notwithstanding this," says General Grant, "the troops marched in excellent order, without straggling, and in the best of spirits, nearly fourteen miles, and engaged the enemy, at about twelve o clock noon, near Jackson." As the two corps marched toward Jackson, the Thir teenth garrisoned the places they had vacated, one division occupying Clinton, another holding Mississippi Springs, while a third took possession of Raymond. General Blair s division of the Fifteenth Corps guarded the wagon- train at New Auburn, and the road to Utica was held by an advancing brigade of the Seventeenth Corps that had not, since the movement commenced, been joined to the main column. These forces were kept back as a corps of reserve, if necessary, and ready to move in either direction, toward Jackson or Vicksburg. When General Joseph E. Johnston, who commanded the rebel forces at Jackson, saw that Grant s troops were marching upon him, he determined to meet them on the outside of the city, and delay their advance as long as possible, to give him an opportunity to remove a portion, if not the whole, of the property of the rebel government then at Jackson. As his forces were small in numbers, he ordered a feigned resistance to be made with artillery, supported by a small body of infantry, against the advance of the Fifteenth Army Corps by the turnpike road, while, with the bulk of his army, he marched out on the Clinton road, and engaged the Seventeenth Corps about two and a half miles from the city. The advance of the skirmishers of the Fifteenth soon drove in the rebels ; they took refuge in their rifle-pits, which had been thrown up just outside the city of Jack son. General Sherman, the commander, soon learned the weakness of the enemy by a reconnoissance to his right ; 278 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and his flank movement caused an evacuation of the rebel position on this part of their line. Meanwhile, General McPherson, at the head of two divisions of the Seventeenth Corps, engaged the main forces from Jackson, without any support, or requiring any further aid. After a very spirited contest of over two hours duration, he defeated the rebel forces, and the dis heartened and beaten troops retreated northward, along the Canton road, leaving the city in the hands of the conquerors. A pursuit was immediately ordered ; but the rebels had escaped their retreat having been made in the greatest haste. The following is General Grant s modest dispatch con cerning this brilliant operation : JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI, May 15, 1663. Major-General H. W. HALLEOK, General-in-Chief, Washington : This place fell into our hands yesterday, after a fight of about three hours. Joe Johnston was in command. The enemy retreated north, evidently with the design, of joining the Vicksburg forces. U. S. GBANT, Major-General. General Grant entered the town of Jackson on the afternoon of the 14th, and held a consultation with the commanders of the two corps which had taken possession of the city. To prevent any unjustifiable plunder or marauding, the troops were encamped on the outskirts of the city during the night. General Grant ordered the rifle- pits to be occupied at once, and on the following day to destroy effectually the railroad tracks in and about Jack son, and all the property belonging to the enemy. Accordingly, on the morning of May 15th, one division was set to work to destroy the railroad and property to the south and east of the city, including the Pearl River bridge, while another division was engaged on the road to the north and west. This work of destruction was so well performed that Jackson, as a railroad or military center, or as a depot of stores or military supplies, was completely ruined for the time being. The roads were laid THE OCCUPATION OF JACKSON. 279 waste for at least four miles to tlie east of Jackson, three miles south, three miles north, and nearly ten miles west. Cavalry raids were also sent along the road running to ward Meridian, and cut the railroad at Brandon and else where. In the city itself, the arsenal building, government foun- dery, a gun-carriage establishment, including the carriages for two complete batteries of artillery, military carpenter s shop, stables, and paint-shops were at once destroyed. Some convicts who had broken loose succeeded in setting fire to the penitentiary during the time the military were thus engaged. A valuable cotton factory was also de molished. General Sherman, in speaking of the destruc tion of this establishment, says : This factory was the property of the Messrs. Greene, who made strong appeals, based on the fact that it gave employment to very many females and poor families ; and that, although it had woven cloth for the enemy, its principal use was in weaving cloth for the people. But I decided that machinery of that kind could so easily be converted into hostile uses, that the United States could better afford to compensate the Messrs. Greene for their property, and for the poor families thus thrown out of employment, than to spare the property. I therefore assured all such families that, if want should force them, they might come to the river, where we would feed them until they could find employment or seek refuge in some more peaceful land." General Grant, after he had taken possession of the State capital of Mississippi, on May 14th, obtained some very important information relative to the plans of the rebel army ; and, among other things, ascertained that General Johnston had ordered General Pemberton peremp torily to move out of Vicksburg and attack the United States forces in the rear. He at once ordered the Thir teenth Army Corps and General Blair s division of the Fif teenth Army Corps to face their troops toward Bolton, with a view of marching upon Edwards s Station. These troops, being admirably located for such a move, marched along different roads converging near Bolton, and it re sulted in a complete success. The Seventeenth Army 280 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Corps was ordered to retrace its steps to Clinton, and com menced its march early on the morning of the 15th of May. The remainder of the Fifteenth Army Corps was left at Jackson to destroy every thing that might have been or was capable of being used in a hostile manner by the enemy. At half-past nine o clock on the morning of the 15th, a division of the Thirteenth Army Corps occupied Bolton, capturing a number of prisoners, and driving away the rebel pickets from the post. On the afternoon of the same day, General Grant re moved his head-quarters to Clinton, where he arrived at about a quarter to five o clock p. M. It will be seen that, during the successive changes in the position of the army, General Grant was always in the immediate vicinity of his fighting troops, directing their movements. The Seventeenth Army Corps having passed through Clinton to the support of the right of the Thirteenth, Gen eral Grant ordered General McClernand to move his com mand, early the next morning, upon Edwards s Station, marching so as to feel the enemy ; but not to bring on a general engagement unless he felt sure of defeating the force before him. In accordance with this order, cavalry reconnoissances were sent out toward the picket lines of the enemy ; three good roads were discovered leading from the Bolton and Raymond road to Edwards s Station ; and, on the night of the 15th of May, the necessary orders were given for the advance of the corps on the morrow. An account of the battle of Champion s Hill is given by a participant : " The programme of the advance was arranged by Gen eral Grant and General McClernand, as follows : Extreme left, General Smith, supported by General Blair ; on the right of General Smith, General Osterhaus, supported by General Carr ; General Hovey in the center, with General McPherson s corps on the extreme right, with General Crocker as reserve. In this order the advance was made, General McClernand s corps, with the exception of General Hovey s division, reaching the position by way of the several roads leading from Raymond to Edwards s Station. BATTLE AT CHAMPION S HILL. 281 "The enemy s first demonstration was upon our ex treme left, which they attempted to turn. This attempt was most gallantly repulsed by General Smith, command ing the left wing. At seven o clock the skirmishers were actively engaged ; and, as the enemy sought the cover of the forest, our artillery fire was opened, which continued without intermission for two hours. At this time General Hansom s brigade marched on the field, and took up a position, as reserve, behind General Carr. 4 Now the battle raged fearfully along the entire line, the evident intention of the enemy being to mass his forces upon Hovey on the center. There the fight was most earnest ; but General McPherson brought his forces into the field, and, after four hours hard fighting, the tide of battle was turned, and the enemy forced to retire. " Disappointed in his movements upon our right, the rebels turned their attention to the left of Hovey s division, where Colonel Slack commanded a brigade of Indianians. Massing his forces here, the enemy hurled them against the opposing columns with irresistible impetuosity, and forced them to fall back ; not, however, until at least one quarter of the troops comprising the brigade were either killed or wounded. Taking a new position, and receiving fresh re-enforcements, our soldiers again attempted to stem the tide, this time with eminent suqcess. The enemy was beaten back, and compelled to seek the cover of the forest in his rear. Following up their advantage, without wait ing to re-form, the soldiers of the Western army fixed their bayonets and charged into the woods after them. The rebels were seized with an uncontrollable panic, and thought only of escape. In this terrible charge, men were slaughtered without mercy. The ground was literally covered with the dead and dying. The enemy scattered in every direction, and rushed through the fields to reach the column now moving to the west, along the Vicksburg road. At three o clock in the afternoon the battle was over and the victory won." General Johnston s dispatch thus announced the defeat of the rebel forces : 282 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CAMP BETWEEN LIVINGSTON AND BROWNSVILLE, > MISSISSIPPI, May IS, 1863. f To General S. Coo PEE: Lieutenant-General Pembertotf was attacked by the enemy on the morn ing of the 16th inst., near Edwards s Depot, and, after nine hours fighting, was compelled to fall back behind the Big Black. J. E. JOHNSTON, General Commanding. The dispatch also shows the position of the forces that retreated from Jackson, and how, by General Grant s rapid movements, they had "been cut off from forming a junction with Pemberton. Before leaving Clifton, General Grant apprised General Sherman of the approaching engagement at Edwards s Sta tion, and ordered him to advance upon Bolton as rapidly as possible. The dispatch was received on the morning of May 16th, and, with his usual promptitude, one of his divisions marched at ten o clock in the forenoon, and he followed with the other at noon. The whole corps advanced during that day from Jack son to Bolton, nearly twenty miles, and the next morning, by order of General Grant, resumed the march, by a road lying north of Baker s Creek, to Bridgeport, on the Big Black River, where it arrived at noon. At this point General Blair s division, by order of General Grant, re joined the command. The success at Champion s Hill was the cause of this change of route, and, as the enemy had fallen back over the Big Black River, toward Yicksburg, it was necessary that means of crossing should be supplied to the pursu ing troops. When General Sherman arrived at Bridge port, he found that General Grant had looked after this vital point, for in his official report he says: " There I found General Blair s division and the pontoon train." The pontoon bridge was laid, and two divisions crossed the river that night, the third following the next morning. The defeated rebels fell back from Edwards s Sta tion to the Black River, which they crossed by means of the railroad bridge. At daylight, on May 17th, the pur suit was renewed, with General McClernancT s Thirteenth MEETING THE ENEMY AT BLACK RIVER. 283 Army Corps in the advance. The enemy was found strongly posted on both sides of the Black River. At this point of the stream the bluffs extend to the water s edge on the west or Vicksburg bank, while on the east side is an open, cultivated bottom of nearly one mile in width, surrounded by a bayou of stagnant water, from two to three feet in depth, and from ten to twenty feet in width, running from the river above the railroad to the river below. The enemy, by constructing a line of rifle-pits along the outside edge of this bayou, had formed it into a natural ditch before a fortified work. The spot was well chosen for defense, and gave to the enemy every advantage. The position had, however, to be carried before Vicks burg could be reached ; and notwithstanding the level ground over which a portion of the troops had to pass without cover, and the great obstacle of the bayou in front of the enemy s works, the charge was gallantly and successfully made, and in a few minutes the entire garri son with seventeen pieces of artillery were the trophies of this brilliant and daring movement. When the rebels on the west bank of the river discov ered that the position on the level below was sure to be taken, they destroyed the railroad bridge by fire, with the intent of preventing General Grant s army from crossing the Big Black River : but in this operation they merely cut off every chance of escape for the garrison on the east ern bank, and the men were therefore all taken prisoners with their arms and equipments. The enemy had, earlier in the day, out of the hulls of three steamboats, constructed a bridge, over which he had passed the main body of his army. As the charge was made, and it became evident that we should capture the position, they burned this bridge, and also the railroad bridge across the river just above. In the afternoon several attempts were made to cross the river, but the sharpshooters lined the bluffs beyond and entirely prevented it. Later, the main body of the sharp shooters were dispersed by our artillery. It was not, how ever, safe to stand upon the bank, or cross the open field 284 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. east of the bridge, until after dark, when the enemy with drew altogether. General Sherman, who, with the Fifteenth Corps, during the time the battle of Black River was fought, had reached Bridgeport by the morning of May 18th, had crossed to the west side of the stream, and was ready for the onward march. It appears by General Grant s report, that u the only pontoon train with the expedition was with him;" and as the rebels had destroyed the railroad bridge, it be came necessary, in order to get the Thirteenth and Seven teenth Corps across the river, to build floating bridges, which were constructed during the night of May 18th, and early morning of the next day. At eight o clock, the two army corps were ready to make the crossing. The Fifteenth Corps were now ordered in the advance, and commenced moving along the Bridge port and Vicksburg road at a very early hour. As the corps arrived within three and a half miles of Vicksburg, the men turned to the right, to get possession of the Walnut Hills, and to open a communication with the fleet in the Yazoo River. This maneuver was successfully accomplished by the evening of May 18th. The Seventeenth Corps followed the Jackson road until it connected with the same road previously taken by the Fifteenth. The former then took up the line of march to the rear of the latter, and about nightfall arrived at the point of the road where General Sherman had turned off toward the Yazoo River. The Thirteenth Corps had moved by the Jackson and Vicksburg road to Mount Albans, whence it turned to the left, for the purpose of striking the Baldwin s Ferry road. " By this disposition," says General Grant, " the three army corps covered all the ground their strength would admit of, and by the morning of the 19th of May the in vestment of Vicksburg was made as complete as could be by the forces under my command." As the army advanced, it was continually met by the rebel skirmishers, who fell back steadily to their works before the city. "Relying," adds Grant, " upon the de moralization of the enemy, in consequence of repeated ASSAULT ON VICKSBUBGk 285 defeats outside of Vicksburg, I ordered a general assault at two P. M.J on this day." At the appointed signal, the line of the Fifteenth Army Corps advanced, and made a vigorous assault ; but the other two corps succeeded only in securing advanced posi tions, where they were covered from the enemy s fire. The ground to the right and left of the road by which the Fifteenth Corps advanced was cut up in deep chasms, filled with standing and falling timber, and was so imprac ticable that the line was slow and irregular in reaching the trenches. The object was finally attained, and the colors of the Thirteenth United States Infantry planted on the exterior slope of the works. But this was not accomplished without serious loss. General Sherman reports that the "commander of the regiment was mortally wounded, and five other officers were wounded more or less severely. Seventy-seven, out of two hundred and fifty men, are re ported killed or wounded." Two other regiments reached the position about the same time, held their ground, and fired upon any head that presented itself above the para pet ; but it was found impossible to enter the works. The fight was continued till night ; the men were still outside the defenses, and the assaulting column was "then withdrawn to a more sheltered position, for the purpose of bivouac. The army crossed the river early on Monday morning, over the bridge constructed during the night. The action began by a slow fire from our artillery along the whole line, our guns having a pretty long range, and eliciting but feeble response from the enemy. About noon, Osterhaus s division advanced on the left to within about six hundred yards of the enemy s works, to find themselves confronted by fifteen redoubts, with their rifle-pits, which opened fire upon us whenever we appeared on a crest or through a hollow. The guns of the rebels appeared to be of small caliber, throwing principally grape and canister. Our skirmishers were thrown further up ; but little firing was done on either side. At two o clock the order came for a general advance 286 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. upon the rebel works, over ground which, on the left, at least, was almost impassable under the most peaceful cir cumstances. The order seemed a hard one ; yet nothing is too hard for true soldiers to try. General A. L. Lee, who commanded the First Brigade of Osterhaus s division, and was in the advance, deter mined to carry out his orders if their execution was possi ble. Addressing a few words of cheer to his men, he placed himself in front of the center of his brigade, led them for ward in line of battle, and was the first man to gain the crest of the hill which he was attempting. He then found that it was only the first of several ridges which were to be crossed, the ravines between which were swept by the guns of the enemy s redoubts. Still he tried to press on, and his brigade of young fellows to follow him, the air, in the mean time, thick with bullets and shells ; but a ball from the rilie of a sharpshooter struck him on the face, and he fell. His brigade withdrew a few feet onty , behind the crest of the hill on which they had just raised, and held their position ; one of the regiments getting so favorable a point, that they were able to remain within about two hundred yards of one of the redoubts, and to prevent the gunners from firing a single shot. General Lee, though severely, was by no means dan gerously wounded. His brigade sustained a much smaller loss than a distant observer could have believed possible. The same degree of success, or want of success, attend ed the movement along the whole line. Our forces moved very close to the works, and then remained waiting and watching for the near approach of our artillery. At night fall our troops retired a short distance and went into camp. During the night, heavy siege-guns were planted by us for future use, our light artillery moved nearer, and a slight earthwork was thrown up to protect them. The official dispatches from General Pemberton, the commander at Vicksburg, were sent to Jackson, Miss., and from thence telegraphed to the rebel President Davis : VIOKSBUEG, May 20, 1S63. The enemy assaulted our intrenchments yesterday on our center and left. They were repulsed with heavy loss. Our loss is small. The enemy s force is at least sixty thousand. GENERAL P^MBERTON S REPORT. 287 VICKSBURG, May 21, 1863. The enemy kept up a heavy artillery fire yesterday. Two of our guna were dismounted in the center. Our works, however, were uninjured. Their sharpshooters picked off officers and men all day. Our works were repaired, and our guns replaced last night. Our men are encouraged by a report that General Johnston is near with a large army, and are in good spirits. We have had a brisk artillery and musketry firing to-day, also heavy mortar firing from gun-boats. During the past two days transports with troops have gone up the river. Their destination is unknown. After the withdrawal of the forces from before Vicks burg, the army, for two days, was kept in a state of comparative inactivity, although lively skirmishing oc curred all along the line. General Grant was engaged in perfecting communications with the depots of supplies north of the invested city. The greater part of the troops had "been marching, and fighting battles for twenty days, on an average of about five days rations, drawn from the commissary department. Although the men had not suf fered up to this time, they began to feel the want of bread with the other food they had, and to remedy this defi ciency was the commander s first object. By the 21st of May, he had completed arrangements for the drawing of every description of supply, and was de termined to make another effort to take the city of Vicks- burg by storm. He was induced to again make the assault upon the rebel defenses of Vicksburg from considerations, which will be at once appreciated by reading a quotation from his report: "There were many reasons to determine me to adopt this course. I believed an assault, from the posi tion gained by this time, could bo made successfully. It was known that Johnston was at Canton with the force taken by him from Jackson, re-enforced by other troops from the East, and that more were daily reaching him. With the force I had, a short time must have enabled him to attack me in the rear, and, possibly, succeed in raising the siege. Possession of Vicksburg at that time would have enabled me to have turned upon Johnston and 288 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. driven Mm from the State, and possess myself of all the railroads and practical military highways, thus effectually securing to ourselves all territory west of the Tombig- "bee, and this before the season was too far advanced for campaigning in this latitude. I would have saved the Government sending large re-enforcements, much needed elsewhere ; and, finally, the troops themselves were im patient to possess Yicksburg, and would not have worked in the trenches with the same zeal, believing it unnecessary, that they did after their failure to carry the enemy s works." General Grant prepared for a general assault at ten o clock the next morning, by the whole line; and, that there should be no mistake in the time, when so much often depends upon minutes, all the corps commanders set their chronometers by the one in the possession of General Grant. The order was issued to the corps commanders : HKAD-QTTAETEES IN THE FIELD, May 21, 1863. GENERAL: A simultaneous attack will be made to-morrow at ten o clock A. M., by all the army corps of this army. During this day, army corps commanders will have examined all prac tical routes over which troops can possibly pass. They will get in position all the artillery possible, and gain all the ground they can with their infantry and skirmishers. At an early hour in the morning a vigorous attack will be commenced by artillery and skirmishers. The infantry, with the exception of reserves and skirmishers, will be placed in column of platoons, or by a flank, if the ground over which they may have to pass will not admit of a greater front, ready to move forward at the hour designated. Promptly at the hour designated all will start, at quick time, with bayonet fixed, and march immediately upon the enemy, without firing a gun until the outer works are carried. Skirmishers will advance as soon as possible after heads of columns pass them, and scale the walls of such works as may confront them. By order of U. S. GKANT, Major-General Commanding. Five minutes before ten o clock, 0^1 the morning of May 22d, the bugles rang along the line to prepare for the charge, and, at ten o clock precisely, the three army corps commenced their movement in the following order : Gen eral McClernand, with the Thirteenth Army Corps on the SECOND ASSAULT ON VICKSBURG. 289 left, General McPherson, with the Seventeenth in the center, and General Sherman, with the Fifteenth on the right. General Grant himself took up a commanding position near the front of the Seventeenth Corps, by which he was enabled to see all the advancing columns from that corps, and part of each of those on the right and left. The preliminary work had been performed by the artillery, and the outer works were breached in several places. Under cover of this fire, the infantry advanced to the charge. Brigade after brigade rushed forward, and slope and ditch were carried at the point of the bayonet. The Stars and Stripes were planted on several portions of the outer slopes of the enemy s bastions, and they were maintained in that position until night. The assault was a splendid one, and was gallantly performed by all the troops on every part of the line ; but the position of the enemy could not be thus taken. Vicksburg had always been naturally strong, and art had greatly improved it by the cutting of ditches, felling of trees, construction of works, and, what is of far more importance, the proper location of batteries to guard every avenue of approach. General Sherman reported that the artillery fire from the rebel works, on one part of his line, was so steady and severe, that it was impossible for the infantry to pass that point ; and, even when an attempt was made to take the death-dealing works, it was found to be so well covered by others, that the assaulting party recoiled under the effects of a staggering fire. Notwithstanding this fearful artillery reply to the on set, there were instances of individual bravery never surpassed. The walls were scaled, but with no success ful result. Although assaulted in every part and at the same time, the enemy was able to show as much force as his works could cover. u The assault failed," says Gen eral Grant, "but without weakening the confidence of the troops in their ability to ultimately succeed." They knew well that the failure did not arise from lack of courage in themselves, or skill in their commander ; but they also discovered that works of the character which defended Vicksburg could not be carried by storm. 19 290 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. The position taken up "by General Grant gave him a view of the whole field of action, and he states emphatic ally that c the assault of this day proved the quality of the soldiers of the Army of the Tennessee. Without success, and with a heavy loss, there was no murmuring nor com plaining, no falling back, nor other evidence of demoraliza tion." This fact alone proves the value of the discipline "by which he had reared his army, and the love the men bore their commanders. Shortly after this assault, dissensions arose in the army in regard to the merits of the troops, and in consequence of a congratulatory order, issued by General McClernand, on May 30th, the quarrel would have probably ended in a complete disruption of the whole force, had it not been for the prompt action of General Grant. It will be remem bered that General McClernand had served with him from the time he first took command at Cairo to the assault of Vicksburg ; an& that naturally there existed a friendship between them, which would have been provocative of great jealous}^ among the other commanders if General Grant had overlooked the matter in question, especially under the circumstances. This was the objectionable passage in the order : "How and why the general assault failed, it would be needless now to explain. The Thirteenth Army Corps, acknowledging the good intentions of all, would scorn in dulgence in weak regrets and idle criminations. Accord ing justice to all, it would only defend itself. If, while the enemy was massing to crush it, assistance was asked for by a division at other points, or by re-enforcements, it only asked what, in one case, Major- General Grant had specifically and peremptorily ordered, namely, simulta neous and persistent attack all along our line, until the enemy s outer works should be carried ; ""and what, in the other, by massing a strong force in time upon a weak ened point, would have probably insured success." A correspondence between the commander of the Thir teenth Army Corps and the general commanding the army followed, and the following letter was sent from the former to the latter : GENERAL McCLERK AND AND GENERAL GRANT. 291 HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH ARMY CORPS, j BATTLE-FIELD NEAR VICKSBURG, June 4, 1863. > GENERAL : What appears to be a systematic effort to destroy my use fulness and reputation as a commander, makes it proper that I should address you this note. It is reported, among other things, as I understand, that I attacked the enemy s works, on the 22d ult., without authority ; again, that I attacked too late ; again, that I am responsible for your failure and losses ; again, that I am arrested and being sent North ; again, that my command is turned over to another officer ; and again, that you have personally as sumed command of it. These reports are finding their way from the laud- ings up the river. I hardly need say to you that all these reports are false ; that I obeyed orders in attacking; that my attack was more prompt, and in a large meas ure more successful, than any other ; that the ultimate failure of the gen eral attack, and losses attending the failure, were, under the circumstances, unavoidable consequences of obstacles found to be insurmountable, and in spite of a determined effort on my part to carry and hold the works in obedience to your express and peremptory order. I may add that I am not yet under arrest, or being sent away, or superseded in my com mand. All these things being known to you, and these false reports being brought to your notice, it remains for you to determine whether truth, justice, and generosity do not call on you for such a declaration as will be conclusive in the matter. Your obedient servant, JOHN A. McCLERNAND, Major-General Commanding. Major-General U. S. GRANT, Commanding Department Tennessee. To this General Grant replied as follows : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, | NEAR VICKSBURG, June 7, 18C3. ) . Major-General J. A. MOCLERNAND, Commanding Thirteenth Army Corps: GENERAL : Inclosed I send you what purports to be your congratula tory address to the Thirteenth Army Corps. I would respectfully ask if it is a true copy. If it is not a correct copy, furnish me one by bearer, as required both by regulations and existing orders of the Department. Very respectfully, U. S. GRANT, Major-General. General McClernand was absent at the time General Grant s dispatch reached .his head-quarters, and did not return until the 15th of June. As soon as he came "back, 292 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. and had read General Grant s communication, he at once telegraphed the following reply thereto : HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH ARMY CORPS, I NEAK VICKSBUBG, Jun& 15, 1863. f Major-General GEANT: I have just returned. The newspaper slip is a correct copy of my con gratulatory order, No. 72. I am prepared to maintain its statements. I regret that my adjutant did not send you a copy promptly, as he ought, and I thought he had. N A. MoCLEENAND, Major-General Commanding. This, of course, settled the matter as to the authenticity of the document in question ; and as the order implied a direct censure of the commanding general, and an indirect breach of the sixth Article of War, General Grant, rightly appreciating the urgent necessity of the case, with the de sire to save his army even at the cost of his friend, imme diately issued a special order, of which the following is an extract : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF TIE TENNESSEE, } NEAR VICKSBXTKG, Miss., June 15, 1863. [Special Orders, No. 164.] Extract. Major-General John A. McClernand is hereby relieved from the com mand of the Thirteenth Army Corps. He will proceed to any point he may select in the State of Illinois, and report by letter to head-quarters of the army for orders. Major-General E. O. C. Ord is hereby appointed to the command of the Thirteenth Army Corps, subject to the approval of the President, and will immediately assume charge of the same. Major-General U. S. GEANT. On receipt of this order, General McClernand turned over his command to General Ord. That no ill feeling existed between the commanders is evident from the concluding paragraph of General McCler nand s report of the part taken by himself and his corps in the Vicksburg campaign. The report is dated two days after he was removed from command, and closes with these words : u Sympathizing with the general commanding the noble Army of the Tennessee, in the loss of so many brave men, killed and wounded, I cannot but congratulate him in my THE BOAST OF GENERAL PEMBERtON. 298 thankfulness to Providence upon the many and signal successes which haye croAvned his arms in a just cause." It had been reported in the rebel army that General Pemberton had "sold" the battle-fields of Champion s Hill and Big Black River Bridge. After the repulse of the Union assault upon the works at Vicksburg, he made a brief but pithy speech to his command : " You have heard that I was incompetent and a traitor, and that it was my intention to sell Vicksburg. Follow me, and you will see the cost at which I will sell Vicks burg. When the last pound of beef, bacon, and flour ; the last grain of corn ; the last cow, and hog, and horse, and dog shall have been consumed, and the last man shall have perished in the trenches, then, and only then, will I sell Vicksburg." The bold words indicate the determination with which the rebels intended to resist the advance of General Grant, and the reduction of their fortified city. In the mean time Colonel Corwyn s brigade of Union, cavalry was making very successful raids into Alabama, etc., destroying lines of communication, factories, mills, workshops, ammunition, ordnance stores, depots of sup plies, and other valuable property belonging to the rebel government, or its military authorities. Private prop erty, however, was almost universally respected, with the exception of such supplies as were needful for his com mand, and for which proper receipts were given. 294 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER XV. THE SIEGE AND SURRENDER OF YICKSBURG-. General Grant falls Back. The slower work of a Siege. The Troops Ready for it. Anecdotes of General Grant. Amusing Scenes. Various Movements. The Sapping and Mining. Mine Exploded. An Exciting Struggle. The Siege goes on. The Rebels begin to feel the Death-grasp of General Grant. General Pemberton opens Correspondence. The Surrender of the City. AFTER the failure of the assault, General Grant deter mined to resort to the slow, but certain method of a regular siege. The troops, having seen the necessity of it, performed their part with cheerfulness. The advance of each corps was pushed up as close as possible to the rebel works, which were nearly invested by the troops already under General Grant s command. But still there were points at which portions of the rebel garri son would slip out, and supplies be taken into their fortress. The communication between General Johnston, who was at Canton, Miss., and General Pemberton, at Vicksburg, was but partially interrupted ; and, while this leak existed, it was impossible to reduce the place by siege. General Her- ron s command was, therefore, withdrawn from northwest ern Arkansas, and added to the force at the extreme left of the Union lines. This secured the complete investment of the fortified city. The position of the army at the end of May was as fol lows : General Grant was well up to the rebel fortifications, and was daily enlarging and strengthening his own. The extreme left, occupied by General Herron, was so situated topographically as to require less formidable opposing works than at any other point ; but even there they were on a scale sufficiently important to meet successfully any demonstration the rebels might make in that direction. The Thirteenth Army Corps had the perfect range of the MOVEMENTS AROUND VICKSBURG. 295 forts opposite their position, and kept down the re~bel sharpshooters, and prevented the successful working of their artillery. The Seventeenth Corps planted a heavy battery of siege- guns within a hundred yards of the fort, and expected to do excellent service in battering down the earthworks. Advantage had been taken of the topographical peculiarities of the ground, and a covered pathway constructed, through which the cannoneers could pass to and fro without danger from the sharpshooters. The Fifteenth Corps, on the extreme right, was equally busy. General Tuttle had built a fort, the guns of which enfiladed one of the enemy s most important, and, to us, destructive positions. This, of course, rendered it practi cally useless, and, had it not been for the line of rifle-pits on the Yicksburg side, which commanded the interior, it might have been stormed and carried any time. General Blair held Haines s Bluff, and the country be tween the Yazoo and the Big Black River. There the fated city stands, in the ring of Union cannon and bayonets, while the unyielding, taciturn, patient com mander settles down, the last of May, for a summer resi dence there. If he can continue his visit to Pemberton longer than the latter wishes him to, or can stay at home himself, then he will have to leave his castle, and let his outdoor and unwelcome visitor go in and help himself to what may remain. Subterranean pathways are dug for the gunners, and other troops, who thus escape the bullets of the sharpshooters. Around Yicksburg, our men took what rations they could, and then tried to live on the country, which had little to offer. At one time, their movements were so rapid that there was no time to cook, if they had food. A hardbread or a corn pone would command a dollar at any moment. Some one found a negro with a half peck of meal, and six men, with bayonets, mounted guard over the fire while the bread was baking for General Grant s luxu rious repast. After these privations, one of the officers, who was coming down, brought a basket of ale to the gen eral and his staff. General Grant expressed his thanks, 296 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. appreciated the kindness, and would just taste it, in acknowledgment ; but lie drank none not even ale. In repeating some anecdote of General Grant which he had heard, a gentleman said : " Grant s answer was, with an oath, I don t believe it. It is one of the rebel lies. An officer replied : T\"o, I do not think he said that. I never heard him utter one pro fane word. The same officer was speaking of the difference between Rosecrans and Grant, in the matter of generalship. On one occasion, during a fight, Rosecrans was standing in a commanding position, and giving his orders. Suddenly he started, and made toward a regiment, to chase back one man who was running, and spent some little time, in the height of the battle, sending him back to his place. Grant, in the midst of fighting, was watching intently, and working earnestly, when he was accosted by a surgeon. He had taken a fine house for a hospital, and had his wounded gathered in and about it, when, in the turn of the fight, shot and shell began to fall among the poor fellows. " General," said he, " what shall I do ? Some of my poor men are getting wounded a second time." "Don t come to me," said General Grant, mildly, but earnestly ; " I have this battle to fight ; that is your business. I can t attend to your wounded, nor think of them now. Don t interrupt me!" waving his hand; "I have this fighting to attend to." A cloud passed over the " Confederacy," with the in credible, astounding fact, that General Grant had completely outwitted the traitors gone across their soil, and set him self down coolly to watch the boasted Sebastopol, making a fearful prison of his enemy s fortress. How fearful it soon became, you can guess from the thousands of horses and mules turned out of it because they could not be fed. Gen eral Grant secured and used many of them. Singular scenes occur across the lines of the hostile armies. Just after Vicksburg was invested, a sharpshooter, from the works, politely asked of one in ours : " Can you give a fellow a drink of coffee, if he goes there?" THE REBEL VISITOR. 9Q7 "Plenty of it." " Well, comrades," says reb., " shall I go ?" "Yes; go ahead." The rifleman did go, and, for the first time in a year, drank a cup of coffee. He lingered, and was evidently in no haste to return. " Come back !" shouted his friends. " Think not ; this coffee won t let me. Good-by." And the soldier of Yicksburg remained where he found "enough and to spare," while his disloyal brethren, of a common heritage, were "in want." It became apparent to the commanding general that it was Johnston s purpose to advance and fall upon his rear. The mode of getting the intelligence was novel, and is related by an officer of the army : " General Pemberton was anxious to indicate to General Johnston his exact situation, and sent a trusty fellow named Douglas son of a prominent citizen of Illinois, who, several years before, migrated to Texas, and there joined the rebel service through his lines, with instructions to make his way by night past the Union pickets, and, seizing the first horse he met, to ride to General Johnston, at Jackson. On the night of May 27th, at dark, he started, and, holding a pass from Pemberton, was allowed to leave the inclosure in the rear of Yicksburg. Young Douglas had, unknown to his superiors, for a long time meditated escape, and he could not neglect this golden opportunity. Instead of try ing to avoid our pickets, therefore, he marched boldly up to them, and surrendered himself a prisoner. General Lauman conversed with him long enough to discover that there was meat in that shell, and sent him to Gen eral Grant. To him he delivered the message he was in structed to deliver to Johnston. It was, in effect, as follows : " I have 15,000 men in Vicksburg, and rations for thirty days one meal a day. Come to my aid with an army of 30,000 men. Attack Grant in his rear. If you cannot do* this within ten days, you had better retreat. Ammunition is almost exhausted, particularly percussion caps. This is the substance of the message, although not 298 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. its exact terms. Douglas volunteered, also, other valuable information, which leaves no doubt of the ultimate capture of the rebel army." General Pemberton saw that the siege might be a long one, and as his supplies had been cut off, he, for the sake of economizing rations, ordered every horse and mule, ex cept those used by field and staff officers, to be turned out side his lines. Of these the Union troops secured several thousand. When General Grant first opened a concen trated fire upon Yicksburg from his lines of circumvalla- tion, the herd of beef cattle was exposed, and a large number killed. The rebels soon removed these animals to a place of greater safety. To prevent Johnston s forces from getting to the rear, General Osterhaus, with his division, was sent to the Big Black River to guard the crossings, and to resist an} r at tempt of the enemy to force a passage. A reconnoissance was also sent out, under General Blair, to ascertain the po sition of Johnston s army, and reported no enenry within striking distance. The facts collected concerning the enemy were, that Johnston had at his call twenty thousand men at Canton, and a similar number at Jackson. This force was com posed of very old and young men, all conscripted for the occasion, and were without arms. His serviceable force did not number more than fifteen thousand, though by the inhabitants it is estimated much higher. The expedition returned, confident that no fears should be entertained of serious difficulty from the Big Black, at any rate for some time. His last experience had so intimi dated the rebel general that there was little danger of great boldness on his part, and, so long as he remained on the other side of the river, General Grant was informed that he need have no concern about him. Our cavalry was always in movement in that direction, and kept close watch on all his plans. The captures made during the expedition amounted to five hundred head of cattle, five hundred horses, and mules, one hundred bales of cotton, and ten thousand pounds of bacon. All bridges were either burned or demolished, and THE PROGRESS OF THE SIEGE. . 299 all forage destroyed. In a word, the country was divest ed of every tiling useful to the. enemy. Meanwhile General Grant set the sappers and miners at work upon the most eligible sites. Mines were dug, pow der planted, and every thing made ready to blow up the advanced works, at the shortest notice. The rebel works, in the front and rear, were also bombarded, at intervals, night and day, first by the fleet, then from the approaching parallels, and so alternately, during the whole month of the siege. And as the shells burst in the works, it inspired the men with greater vigor. About the middle of June, the Ninth Army Corps, un der General Parke, and a part of the Sixteenth Army Corps, under General Washburne, were added to General Grant s command, and by him stationed in the vicinity of the Big Black Hiver, to resist any movement of Johnston, and, if necessary, to attack and drive him back. It had also been reported that General Johnston was again approaching the Big Black Hiver, with a very large improvised force. About this time a courier was captured, who had managed to get out of Vicksburg during the night, and had passed the picket lines under cover of the dark ness. He had upon him a number of letters from the rebel soldiers, to their wives. The men wrote in a sad tone ; but stated that they were resigned, and put their trust in the Lord. They, however, still lived in hopes of Joe Johnston coming to their relief. An expedition was then formed to resist the advance of General Johnston s forces, and General Sherman was placed in command. General Grant, in his notes to General Sherman, accompanying the order for the movement, spoke of these letters. "They seem," said he, "to put a great deal of faith in the Lord and Joe Johnston, but you must whip Johnston at least fifteen miles from here." The following order to General Parke shoAvs the same decided determination with regard to Johnston s forces : June 22, 1S63. General PARKE : Sherman goes out from here with five brigades, and Ostorhaus s division subject to his orders besides. In addition to this, another division, 5,000 strong, is notified to be in readiness to move on no- 300 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. tice. In addition to tins, I can spare still another division, 6,000 strong, if they should be required. "We want to whip Johnston at least fifteen miles off, if possible. U. S. GRANT, Major- General. The result of the movement was, that General Johnston, finding General Grant s position to be as strong in the rear as it was in the front, and that ,Vicksburg was certainly doomed, gave up all hope of diverting the attacking general from his settled purpose, and retreated toward Jackson. The sappers and miners pushed on their work with a steady perseverance, until, on June 25th, 1863, the mines were ready to be sprung. All the time the excavation had been in progress a most rigid guard had been kept upon the entrances, and even the field and line officers of General Grant s army were not allowed to inspect the mines. The utmost secrecy was observed, and though some knew the intention to blow up the enemy s works, yet how or where it was to be done was a matter known to but few. The guards at the head of the saps were instructed to allow no one to pass under the rank of a general, with an exception in the case of engineers and workmen immediately in charge. Every thing was finished. The vitalizing spark had quickened the hitherto passive agent, and the now harm less flashes went hurrying to the center. The troops had been withdrawn. The forlorn hope stood out in plain view, boldly awaiting the uncertainties of the precarious office. A chilling sensation ran through the frame as an observer looked down upon this devoted band about to hurl itself into the breach perchance into the jaws of death. Thousands of men in arms flashed on every hill. Every one was speechless. Even men of tried valor veterans insensible to the shouts of contending battalions, or nerved to the shrieks of comrades suffering under the torture of painful agonies stood motionless as they direct ed their eyes upon the spot where soon the terror of a buried agency would discover itself in wild concussions and contortions, carrying annihilation to all within the scope of its tremendous power. It was the seeming torpor y if / THE EXPLOSION OF THE MINE. 301 which precedes tlie antagonism of powerful "bodies. Five minutes had elapsed. It seemed like an existence. Five minutes more, and yet no signs of the expected exhibition. An indescribable sensation of impatience, blended with a still active anticipation, ran through the assembled specta tors. A small column of smoke now appeared; every one thought the crisis had come, and almost saw the ter rific scene which the mind had depicted. But not yet. Every eye now centered upon the smoke, momentarily growing greater and greater. Thus another live minutes wore away, and curiosity was not satisfied. Another few minutes, then the explosion ; and upon the horizon could be seen an enormous column of earth, dust, timbers, and projectiles lifted into the air at an altitude of at least eighty feet. One entire face of the fort was disembodied and scattered in particles all over the surrounding surface. The right and left faces were also much damaged ; but fortunately enough of them remained to afford an excellent protection on our flanks. As soon as the explosion had taken place, the greatest activity was manifested along the whole line, under the soul-inspiring orders of General Grant. Here is a speci men of the style in which that general called for vigilance on the part of his troops : June 25, 1SC3. General OED : McPhcrson occupies the crater made by the explosion. He will have guns in battery there by morning. He has been hard at work running rifle-pits right, and thinks he vrill hold all gained. Keep Smith s division sleeping under arms to-night, ready for an emergency. Their services may bo required, particularly about daylight. There should be the greatest vigilance along the whole line. IT. S. GKANT. Major-General . In the mean time, the gunboat fleet off Warrenton com menced a bombardment of the enemy s forts. This was kept up without intermission until midnight, when it was slackened to desultory shots. The fuses of the shells as they ascended in the air were easily distinguishable, and looked in their course like shooting meteors. When they struck, the shells exploded with terrific report. Others 302 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. burst in tlie air, with fiery flashes and streams, forming, with the illumined arena of the conflict below, a rare and awfully grand pyrotechnic display. General Grant resumed the operation of constructing parallels, to approach sufficiently near the rebel fortifica tions to take them by a sudden dash. As the United States troops advanced, the rebels retired, constructing inner lines of defenses as the outer ones were taken. On the 28th of June ours were thirteen hundred yards nearer the city than the original works. As these lines were ad vanced on all sides at the same time, the rebel area of operations became more and more circumscribed. During this bombardment every effort was made to re duce the works without unnecessarily damaging the city. Affirmed a close observer of the siege "At no time has General Grant sought the destruction of the city. He wishes to spare it for the city itself, and because it con tains women and children. As long as the rebel army confines its operations outside its limits, the city will remain intact. If it had been necessary to destroy the city, our guns now in range could have accomplished the work. The capture of Vicksburg is a foregone conclusion. We get the evidence of the fact from the rebels them selves. A few days ago, a rebel mail was captured coming out from Vicksburg, in which were letters from prominent men in the rebel army, who state that they cannot hold out much longer, and informing their friends that they ex pect to spend their summer in Northern prisons. Better evidence of the condition of things in the rebel army can not be desired. So far as the siege of this place goes, I presume the people at home, in their easy chairs, think it ought to have been finished long since. To such let me say, could they be present here, and make a tour of the country in this vicinity, and see the configuration of the country, its broken topography, its high and abrupt hills, deep gul lies, gorges, and dilapidated roads, they would then realize the difficulties of the work. Then there is a large army to feed, great materiel to be brought into position, GENERAL GRANT CONFIDENT OF SUCCESS. 303 all of which demands large transportation, and the united efforts of thousands of men. General Grant acts independently of opinions of the public. He fully realizes the responsibility of his position, and, in the duty before him, he is determined to accom plish his work with as great an economy of human life as possible. He feels now that the prize is within his grasp, and a little patience will achieve all, which, if rashly sought, might cost the lives of the brave army with whom he has gained so many victories. General Sherman s expedition returned without meeting near the doomed city the army under General Joseph E. Johnston. The commander obtained sufficient intelligence of his movements to decide General Grant s plan of opera tions after the reduction of Yicksburg. The bombardment and approaches steadily progressed, and it was whispered about among the troops that on the following anniversary of the day of Independence a grand assault was to be made, to take the place by storm. The rebels at least suspected it ; for, on the morning of the pre vious day, July 3, 1863, a flag of truce left the rebel lines, with a sealed communication for General Grant, borne by General Bowen and Colonel Montgomery. The bearers of the document having been taken to the nearest general head-quarters, a courier was at once dispatched, with all possible haste, to the chief commanding officer. On opening the document, General Grant found the fol lowing communication, .addressed to himself : HEAD-QUAETERS, VICKSIJUKG, July 3, 18G3. Major-General GEANT, commanding United States forces: GENEEAL : I have the honor to propose to you an armistice for hours, with a view to arranging terms for the capitulation of Vicksburg. To this end, if agreeable to you, I will appoint three commissioners, to meet a like number to be named by yourself, at such place and houjr as you may find convenient. I make this proposition to save the further effusion of blood, which must otherwise be shed to a frightful extent, feeling myself fully able to maintain my position for a yet indefinite period. This communica tion will be handed you, under a flag of truce, by Major-General James Bowen. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. C. PEMBEETON. 304 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. To tins General Grant replied as follows : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF TENNESSEE, i IN THE FIELD, NEAR YICKSBCBG, July 3, 1863. J Lieutenant-General J. C. PEMBERTON, commanding Confederate forces, &c. : GENERAL: Your note of this date, just received, proposes an armistice of several hours for the purpose of arranging terms of capitulation through commissioners to ho appointed, &c. The effusion of blood you propose stopping hy this course can be ended at any time you may choose, by an unconditional surrender of the city and garrison. Men who have shown so much endurance and courage as those now in Yicksburg will always challenge the respect of an adversary, and I can assure you will be treated with all the respect due them as prisoners of war. I do not favor the proposition of appointing commissioners to arrange terms of capitulation, because I have no other terms than those indicated above. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GEANT, Major-General. General Bowen expressed a wish to converse with the general on this important matter ; but the latter at once de clined. General Bowen then requested that General Grant would meet General Pemberton on neutral ground, as more could be arranged at one personal interview than by an ex change of numerous dispatches. General Grant very readily replied he would willingly do so in person, offering to meet General Pemberton the same afternoon at three o clock, and consult with him on the terms he would grant the garrison. This reply was placed in the hands of the rebel messengers, who, blindfolded, were conducted back to the place of entrance to the Union lines, and were there set at liberty, to return with the answer.- Nothing more was now done until afternoon. The artillery reopened, and the siege went on as before. By noon, however, the general promulgated his orders, requir ing a temporary cessation of hostilities. At three o clock precisely, one gun, the prearranged signal, was fired, and immediately replied to by the enemy. General Pemberton then made his appearance on the works in McPherson s front, under a white flag, considerably on the left of what is known as Fort Hill. General Grant rode through our trenches until he came to an outlet, leading to a small green space, which had not been trod by either array. Here he dismounted, and advanced to meet Gen- THE CONFERENCE WITH GENERAL PEMBERTON. 305 eral Pem"berton, with whom he shook hands, and greeted familiarly. It was beneath the outspreading branches of a gigantic oak that the conference of the generals took place. Here presented the only space which had not been used for some purpose or other by the contending armies. The ground was covered with a fresh, luxuriant verdure ; here and there a shrub or clump of bushes could be seen standing out from the green growth on the surface, while several oaks filled up the scene, and gave it character. Some of the trees, in their tops, exhibited the effects of flying pro jectiles, by the loss of limbs or torn foliage, and in their trunks the indentations of smaller missiles plainly marked the occurrences to which they had been silent witnesses. The party made up to take part in the conference was composed as follows : UNITED STATES OFFICERS. Major- General U. S. Grant. Major-General James B. McPherson. Brigadier-General A. J. Smith. REBEL OFFICERS. Lieutenant- General John C. Pemberton. Major-General Bowen. Colonel Montgomery, A. A. G. to Gen. Pemberton. When Generals Grant and Pemberton met, they shook hands, Colonel Montgomery introducing the party. A short silence ensued, at the expiration of which, General Pem berton remarked : " General Grant, I meet you in order to arrange terms for the capitulation of Yicksburg and its garrison. What terms do you demand ?" "Unconditional surrender" replied General Grant. " Unconditional surrender!" said Pemberton. " Nev er, so long as I have a man left me ! I will fight rather." "Then, sir, you can continue the defense," coolly said General Grant. "My army has never been in a better condition for the prosecution of the siege." 20 306 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. During the passing of these few preliminaries, General Pemberton was greatly agitated, quaking from head to foot ; while General Grant experienced all his natural self-pos session, and evinced not the least sign of embarrassment. After a short conversation standing, by a kind of mu tual tendency, the two generals wandered off from the rest of the party and seated themselves on the grass, in a cluster of bushes, where alone they talked over the important events then pending. General Grant could be seen, even at that distance, talking coolly, occasionally giving a few puffs at his favorite companion his black cigar. General McPherson, General A. J. Smith, General Bo wen and Colo nel Montgomery, imitating the example of the commanding generals, seated themselves at some distance off, while the respective staffs of the generals formed another and larger group in the rear. After a lengthy conversation, the generals separated. General Pemberton did not come to any conclusion on the matter, but stated his intention to submit the matter to a council of general officers of his command ; and, in the event of their assent, the surrender of the city should be made in the morning. Until morning was given him to consider, to determine upon the matter, and send in his final reply. The generals now rode to their respective quarters. General Grant conferred with his corps and division commanders, and sent a letter to General Pemberton, by the hands of General Logan and Lieutenant-Colonel Wil son : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPAETMENT OF TENNESSEE, NEAB VICKSBUKG, July 3, 1863. Lieutenant-General J. 0. PEMBERTON, commanding Confederate forces, Vicksburg, Miss. : GENERAL : In conformity with the agreement of this afternoon, I will submit the following proposition for the surrender of the city of Vicksburg, public stores, &c. On your accepting the terms proposed, I will march in one division, as a guard, and take possession at eight o clock to-morrow morning. As soon as paroles can be made out and signed by the officers and men, you will be allowed to march out of our lines, the officers taking with them their regimental clothing, and staff, field, and cavalry officers one horse each. The rank and file will be allowed all their clothing, but no other property. SCENES ATTENDING THE VICTORY. 307 If these conditions are accepted, any amount of rations you may deem necessary can be taken from the stores you now have, and also the neces sary cooking utensils for preparing them; thirty wagons also, counting two two-horse or rnule teams as one. You will be allowed to transport such articles as cannot be carried along. The same conditions will be allowed to all sick and wounded officers and privates, as fast as they become able to travel. The paroles for these latter must be signed, however, while officers are present, authorized to sign the roll of prisoners. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GKANT, Major-General. From the time of the breaking up of the conference of generals, till this morning, when the surrender became an irrevocable fact, the impatience and restlessness of the en tire arrny were greater than can possibly be imagined. The troops ceased their customary vigilance and wandered from camp to camp in a state of listless inaction. There was no firing from the trenches or batteries, for orders had been promulgated that all operations of a hostile character should cease until resumed by authority from head-quarters. This was the first instance of a cessation of firing since our arrival. The existence of the two armies was not perceptible except in the presence of the troops. Everywhere silence and re laxation reigned. It was a change from the most exacting duty on the one hand, to the most extreme idleness on the other. The only appearance of duty by either army was on the part of a few sentinels, national and rebel, posted at various points along our lines and the rebel works, to keep, back the curious of our own men, as well as to stay the desire of the enemy to penetrate within our lines and see the perfect network of approaches by means of which we have advanced unharmed up to the very ditches of their forts. The remainder of yesterday was passed by many of the soldiers of both armies in chats upon various matters con nected with the campaign. Knots of a half dozen of our men, and a like number of rebels, could be seen here and there reclining upon the exterior slope of the enemy s works, engaged in enthusiastic conversation, not unfre- quently relieving its monotony by physical application upon each other, to enforce the veracity of their assertions, 308 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. wlien doubted by the party opposite. Thus did they while away the hours of the evening until tattoo, when the soldiers of each side, excepting those on sentinel duty, disappeared. During the night no startling occurrence happened, all being quiet. The morning of this thrice glorious Fourth dawned with a cloudless sky, and, even ere the sun had risen, the camps were alive with an anticipating and impatient set, whose loquacity poured itself forth, in a confusion of languages which might be heard ringing in the clear air at a distance several times the usual compass of the human voice. Nor were the speculations of the men less various than their language. One had his reasons for knowing that the rebels were using the present moments of respite to strengthen themselves, or to consolidate their force on some unexpect ed point of attack, or perhaps to effect some other designs equally as nefarious, of which we were not aware. Some said the enemy had no intention of surrendering, but, fear ing a first-class Fourth- of- July bombardment, they hit upon the present plan of eluding such a direful visitation and its necessary results. In this way reasoned many. Another set thought, if it really were the intention of the enemy to surrender, it was time they were coming to a con clusion. They "could not see why they did not do so at once ;" "they thought the rebels were playing a sharp game," and so forth every man giving himself a vast amount of unnecessary trouble and concern. Thus time moved along heavily, each moment passing like a duration of almost weeks, until the eventful time had arrived, and it was known to a certainty that Vicksburg had indeed surrendered. Having a few hours leisure this morning, prior to the arrival of the dispatch from General Pemberton, stating he was ready to surrender, I took occasion to visit General Grant, and found everybody about his head-quarters in a state of the liveliest satisfaction. It was evident the glo rious events of the day were duly appreciated. "The general I found in conversation more animated than I have ever known him. He is evidently contented VIEWS OF THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. 3QH with the manner in which he has acquitted him self of the responsible task which has for more than five months engrossed his mind and his army. The consummation is one of which lie may well be proud. From Bruinsburg to Vicksburg, nineteen days, presents one of the most active records of marches, actions, and victories of the war. All the combined operations of our armies, for a similar length of time, cannot equal it. It is unparalleled, the only cam paign of the war which has involved celerity of movement, attack, victory, pursuit, and the annihilation of the enemy. But of this I have occasion to speak in another place, and will therefore drop it for the present. Among other things, the general signified his intention to enter into an immediate pursuit of the rebel Johnston. He was ready, as soon as he received Pemberton s final reply, to order the troops under Sherman (then resting this side of the Big Black) across the river, while the con tingent forces held at Haines s and Snyder s Bluifs were to follow, overtake and effect a junction with the other troops. This would create a force equal to all the possibilities of the campaign, and irretrievably wrest Southern Mississippi, with the towns of Jackson, Canton, and Meridian, from the possession of the enemy. Such action would restore a large territory to the Government, and weaken the enemy correspondingly by subtracting so much from his already limited resources. From General Grant I returned to the head- quarters of the Seventeenth (McPherson s) Corps, and found the same prevailing good humor that I remarked everywhere else. The officers who received General Grant s letter stated that it would be impossible to answer it by night, and it was not till a little before the peep of day that the pro posed reply was furnished. Then a messenger arrived with a note from General Pemberton : HKAD.QO-ARTKRS, VIOKSBITBG, July 3, 18631 Major-General GRANT, commanding United States forces : GENERAL: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your com munication of this date, proposing terms for the surrender of this garrison and post. In the main, your terms are accepted; but in justice, both to the honor and spirit of my troops, manifested in the defense of Vicksburg, 310 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. I have the honor to submit the following amendments, which, if acceded to by you, will perfect the agreement between us. At ten o clock to-morrow, I propose to evacuate the works in and around Vicksburg, and to surrender the city and garrison under my command, by marching out with my colors and arms and stacking them in front of my present limits, after which you will take possession ; officers to retain their side-arms and personal pro perty, and the rights and property of citizens to be respected. I am, general, yours, very respectfully, J. 0. PEMBEKTON, Lieutenant-General. This was a proposal for the besieged to march out with the honors of war, only allowed to garrisons after a very obstinate and brave defense. It is entirely optional on the part of the victor to allow such a privilege, and many com manders have entirely refused it. General Grant, with his accustomed magnanimity to the conquered, acquiesced in the request as follows : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT or TENNESSEE, ) BEFORE YICKSUURG, July 4, 1803. Lieutenant-General PEMBERTON, commanding forces in Vicksburg: GENERAL : I have the honor to acknowledge, your communication of the 3d of July. The amendments proposed by you cannot be acceded to in foil. It will be necessary to furnish every officer and man with a parole signed by himself, which, with the completion of the rolls of prisoners, will necessarily take some time. Again, I can make no stipulation with regard to the treatment of citizens and their private property. While I do not propose to cause any of them any undue annoyance or loss, I cannot con sent to leave myself under restraint by stipulations. The property which officers can be allowed to take with them will be as stated in the proposi tion of last evening that is, that officers will be allowed their private baggage and side-arms, and mounted officers one horse each. If you mean by your proposition for each brigade to march to the front of the lines now occupied by it, and stack their arms at ten o clock A. M., and then return to the inside and remain as prisoners until properly paroled, I will make no objection to it. Should no modifications be made of your acceptance of my terms by nine o clock A. M., I shall regard them as having been rejected, and act accordingly. Should these terms be accepted, white flags will bo displayed along your lines, to prevent such of my troops as may not have been notified from firing on your men. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, TJ. S. GRANT, Major- General U. S. A. After a very short consultation with his general officers, the commandant of Vicksburg sent his answer : SIGNALS OF CAPITULATION. 311 HEAD-QUAETERS, VICKSBITEO, July 4, 18C3. Major-General U. S. GRANT, commanding United States forces, &c.: GENEKAL : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your com munication of this date, and, in reply, to say that the terms proposed by you are accepted. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. C. PEMBEETON", Lieutenant-General. General Grant telegraphed to General McPherson s head-quarters, with instructions that the Seventeenth Corps be ordered under arms immediately, to be in readiness to move instantly into the city, upon the receipt of orders to that effect. Shortly after the rebel works were surmounted by a large number of white flags along the entire lines, extending from right to left the signals of surrender. Soon the ene my marched out by regiments, on McPherson s front, and stacked their arms and returned within, where they were paroled in a body, prior to the individual parole. The privilege allowed by General Grant to the enemy of stacking their arms outside of their fortifications some what crowded matters, as the enemy was pressed for room to avoid trespassing beyond the small strip of unoccupied territory lying between the works of the two armies. In attendance upon the capitulation of the rebels, there were a number of line officers and privates of the Union army as lookers-on. No one had been delegated by Gen eral Grant to superintend the matter, out of courtesy to the enemy, whose heroic defense had won them the admiration of both officers and men. The surrender was hardly known until some time after, owing to the quietness with which it was conducted. 312 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER XVI. THE OCCUPATION OF VICKSBURG. ORDER OF MARCH. The Occupation of the City. The Value of the Possession. Incidents. The Ap pearance of the Conquered. The Dead. Rebel Bill of Fare. Grant and his Cigar. Port Hudson hears the Tidings of Victory. Correspondence between the hostile Commanders. The Surrender of the Fortress. General Grant s Report of the great Achievement. The President s Congratulations. One of his Anecdotes. THE Fourth of July, 1863 ! forever memorable in the history of the United States and of its armies. On this day the glad tidings of victory at Gettysburg, in Pennsylvania, was sounded throughout the land, and on this day the victorious "Army of Tennessee" took possession of the boasted stronghold of the rebels " the Gibraltar of the Mississippi " Vicksburg. It was about one o clock, p. M. , before matters had as sumed such a stage of completion as would admit of the entrance of the city by our troops. A slight further deten tion was also occasioned, awaiting the pioneer corps, thrown out in advance, to open a passage through the breastworks and across the ditches and rifle-pits of the enemy. After this was finished no further obstructions presented them selves, and the column moved forward. The order of march was by a seniority of brigade commanders, with an exception in the case of the Forty-fifth Illinois Infantry, Colonel J. A. Maltby, which was specially ordered to lead the column, in consequence of heroic conduct during the siege and operations in the campaign against Yicksburg. The order of formation, in the march into the city, was as follows : Major-General U. S. Grant and staff. Major- General J. B. McPherson and staff. Major- General J. A. Logan and staff. Brigadier-General M. D. Leggett, First Brigade, Third Division, led by the Forty-fifth Illinois Infantry. VICTORIOUS ENTRY OF THE TROOPS. 313 Brigadier- General Z. C. G. Ransom, First Brigade, Sev enth Division, temporarily assigned to Logan. Brigadier- General John Stevenson, Second Brigade, Third Division ; and with each brigade its batteries, bag gage train, c. The division of General John E. Smith, though part of the Seventeenth Army Corps, which was designated by General Grant to occupy the city, was held outside of the works as a kind of outer line of guards to prevent the escape of prisoners. After passing through several inner lines of the rifle- pits and breastworks, the column of occupation penetrated the suburbs of the city, and marched through its principal streets to the Court- House. As might be expected, from the long schooling the city had received under the influ ence of the secession conspirators, no demonstrations of satisfaction at our arrival were made along the line of march ; but, on the contrary, houses were closed, the citi zens within doors, and the city was wrapped in gloom. It seems as if the population anticipated their next step would be into the grave. Upon arriving at the Court-House, the troops were drawn up in line facing the building. This done, the ceremony of possession was completed by the display of the flags of the Forty-fifth Illinois Infantry, and of the head-quarters of the Seventeenth Corps, from the dome of the Court-House. Upon the appearance of the flags the troops cheered vociferously, making the city ring to its very suburbs with shouts of the votaries of liberty. It was an occasion which few ever have the opportunity of witnessing, and one which will secure a life-long remembrance in the minds of all present. In consideration of the active part taken by the Seven teenth Corps in the campaign which consummated in the capture of Vicksburg, that command was designated by General Grant to take possession of the city. General Logan s division occupied within the works, while General John E. Smith held the Union works without. General Me Arthur continued with General Sherman s army in its operations against Johnston. 314 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. In view of General Grant s plans, Major-General Me- Pherson was appointed to the command of the new district about to be formed, and having Vicksburg for its center. Major-General Logan commanded the city and its envi rons. The Provost-Marshal s Department was placed in charge of Lieutenant- Colonel James Wilson, provost-marshal of the corps provost-guard, Forty-fifth Illinois Infantry. A number of subordinate officers had to be created to carry out the laborious and endless details which naturally occur in the administration of a city in population as large as the present. However, as initiatory measures, the above answered every purpose, and the workings of the plans were harmonious and effective. There were no disgraceful scenes of rapine, violence, or insult to note, nor had any thing occurred to compromise as a mass the soldiers of the Government. There were a few instances of battering down store doors to examine the contents of the establishments, but this was soon stopped, upon the inauguration of the provost-guard. One rather unaccountable fact was, the trouble the guard experienced in keeping down the rebel soldiery. The people feared the thieving proclivities of their own men even more than ours. It was not long, however, before the efficient guard patrolling the city had picked up all vagrant individuals, compelled them to disgorge, and then quietly consigned them to the peaceable retirement of the guard-house, to await their trial before his worship, the provost-marshal. The aforesaid establishment is already quite populous with miscreant secesh, and a slight sprink ling of our own unfortunates. While they are amongst us they must expect to be obliged to conduct themselves like soldiers, and obey the newly inaugurated authority now ruling and insuring order and security to the inhabitants and property within the city. The quiet which now pre vails everywhere is astonishing, and reflects great credit upon the abilities and judgment of those at the head of affairs. After the surrender of the city was officially known to the transportation officers in charge of steamboats at Chick- asaw Bayou, there was a general, mixed, and laughable THE ARRIVAL OF THE FLEET. 315 stampede of boats out of the Yazoo and down the Missis sippi for the levee of Vicksburg. The Jolin H. Groesbeclc, being the office-boat of the chief of transportation, appro priated the advance of the Yazoo Elver batch. The transports, however, were not the iirst to arrive be fore the city, for the Neptune, of the Mississippi was on the alert, and impatiently awaited the course of events, under full steam. No sooner was the flag thrown to the breeze from the Court-House than the admiral s glass caught sight of its beautiful folds, and in due time his vessel steamed down to the city, followed by all the gunboats in the neighborhood, and took possession of a few feet of river front. In less than four hours after the city had capitulated, the levees were lined with steamers as far as the eye could reach. At least seventy-live had arrived up to that time, and more were coming in hourly. All the boats from be low, as well as those from above, were there to swell the number. The city had the appearance of a great inland commercial metropolis. The levees were almost instanta neously covered with a busy, moving crowd of humanity, pushing hither and thither, as if they were old residents, and the city had not experienced the interregnum of inter course with the outer world, which had been her fate for nearly two years. Many of the boats had already com menced to discharge their cargoes, which, of course, occa sioned a lively activity on shore, while teams and men were busily engaged in hauling the different stores to their respective destinations. It may be said that Vicksburg is once more a living city. Reclaimed from her late oppressors, she is free to share with her sister cities the numerous opportunities which have been restored to them by the reinstated authority of our great, and glorious, and ever to be per petuated Republic. The value of the reduction of Vicksburg was not only great in a moral, political, and strategical point of view ; but it possessed still further importance by inflicting a severe loss upon the rebels, in both men and material. The following is a rough estimate of the number of 316 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GKAN1. officers, soldiers, and ordnance, which fell into the hands of the United States authorities with the city of Vicks- "burg : One lieutenant-general, John C. Pemberton, late com mandant of the army for the defense of Vicksburg. Nineteen major and brigadier-generals, as follows : Major-General Bowen, Major-General Martin L. Smith, and Major-General Forney ; Brigadier-Generals Barton, Cochran, Lee, Vaughn, Reynolds, Baldwin, Harris, Tay lor, Cummings, Stevenson, of Georgia, Hebart, Wall, of Texas, commanding Texan Legion, Moore, Schoep, Bu- ford, and Cockerell. Over four thousand field, line, and staff officers. About twenty-three thousand effective men, non-com missioned officers and privates, and over six thousand men in hospital. Ninety siege-guns. One hundred and twenty-eight field-pieces. Thirty-five thousand (approximately) muskets and rifles, principally Enfield, and in excellent order. Powder and shell, for ordnance of different calibre, in abundance. A large quantity of miscellaneous matter, such as wag ons, a few animals, armorers tools, machinery, &c. Among the military establishments taken possession of, were the arsenal, well supplied with unused rifles, and the foundry, with all conveniences for casting shot, shell, and cannon, and capable of doing a great deal of other work of a similar character, such as casting. The troops taken prisoners were mainly composed of Mississippiaris, called "the State troops," Georgians, Alabamians, Louisianians, Missourians, and regulars. General Grant, in his official report, sums up the Union losses, during the series of battles of the Vicksburg cam paign, as follows : Killed. Wounded. Missing. Total Port Gibson 130 V18 5 853 Fourteen-Mile Creek (skirmish) . . 4 24 28 Raymond 69 341 32 442 Jackson.. .40 240 6 286 TROPHIES PEMBERTON AND VICKSBURG. 317 Killed. Wounded. Missing. Total. Champion s Hill 426 1,842 189 2,457 Big Black Railroad Bridge 29 242 2 273 Vicksburg 245 3,688 303 4,230 Grand total. . . ; 943 7,095 537 8,575 "Nearly one-half of the wounded returned to duty within a month. GENERAL EEOAPITULATION. Rebel losses in killed, wounded, stragglers, and prisoners 46,420 Union losses in killed, wounded, stragglers, and prisoners. . . . 8,575 Balance in Grant s favor 37,845 One who was there, wrote : "Pemberton was, of course, the chief attraction. He is, in appearance, a tall, lithe-built, and stately personage. Black hair, black eyes, full beard, and rather severe if not sinister expression of countenance, as of one who had great trials of the soul to endure." This general was a Philadelphian, but married a Southern lady, and so became a Secessionist. The same observer adds : "The greatest curiosities are the caves hewn into the banks of earth, in which the women and children and non-combatants crept during the heat of the bombard ment. At night, and sometimes during an entire day, the whole of these people would be confined to their caverns. They are constructed about the height of a man, and three feet wide, a fork Y shaped into the bank. There are, perhaps, five hundred of these caves in the city, around the works. As many as fifteen have been crowded into one of them." A highly cultivated and Christian lady, who lived in one of these caves, with no words of bitterness, has given a very interesting account of her captivity. They were dug, at first, with their mouths, or doors, opening toward the rear of the city, and away from the gunboats. And when General Grant so arranged his batteries that the shells came from that side, often they exploded right in the caves. One day, near her, a shell went crushing through the roof of a neighbor s cell, and tore in frag- 318 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ments her sleeping babe. What an awful life of sus pense ! Even the moonlight evening, bathing rampart, deserted mansion, and cave, with soothing radiance, was no protection. She saw a scene, after Burbridge s charge, which she thought looked, after all, as if the millennium might be near. A wounded Confederate was lying nearer to our troops than his own. He looked and begged for water. The air was full of death s missiles. But a noble Union soldier stepped forward, and, taking his canteen, went to the sufferer, and, while he fanned him, gave him the cooling draught. It was a touching scene. A little of heaven s pure light athwart the sulphurous gloom of war ! The spectacle of the first surrender of a great army to a Union general, after the civil conflict began, was very impressive, and thrilled, with quiet delight, each loyal beholder. As melancholy a sight as ever man witnessed : for brave men conquered and humbled, no matter how vile the cause for which they fight, present always a sorrowful spectacle ; and these foes of ours, traitors and enemies of liberty and civilization though they be, are brave, as many a hard-fought field can well attest. They marched out of their intrenchments, by regiments, upon the grassy declivity immediately outside their fort ; they stacked their arms, hung their colors upon the center, laid off their knapsacks, belts, cartridge-boxes, and cap-pouches ; and thus shorn of the accouterments of the soldier, re turned inside their works, and thence down the Jackson road into the city. The men went through the ceremony with that downcast look so touching on a soldier s face; not a word was spoken ; there was none of that gay badi nage we are so much accustomed to hear from the ranks of regiments marching through our streets ; the few words of command necessary were given by their own officers in that low tone of voice we hear used at funerals. Generals McPherson, Logan, and Forney, attended by their respec tive staffs, stood on the rebel breastworks overlooking the scene never before witnessed on this continent. The rebel troops, as to clothing, presented that varied appearance so STACKING ARMS. THE CONQUERED. 319 familiar in the North from seeing prisoners, and were from Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, and Mis souri ; the arms were mostly muskets and rifles of superior excellence, and I saw but very few shot-guns, or indis criminate weapons of any kind. It was plain that Pem- berton had a splendidly appointed army. Their flags were of a kind new to me all I saw being cut in about the same dimensions as our regimental colors, all of the single color red, with a white cross in the center. The ceremony of stacking arms occupied little over an hour upon that part of the lines ; and when it was con cluded, the glittering cavalcade of officers, Federal and rebel, mounted and swept cityward on the full gallop, through such clouds of dust as I hope never to ride through again. A few minutes, fortunately, brought ua to a halt at a house on the extreme outskirts of the city, built of stone in the Southern fashion, with low roof and wide verandas, and almost hidden from view in an ex uberance of tropical trees, and known as Forney s head quarters. And here were gathered all the notables of both armies. In a damask-cushioned arm rocking-chair sat Lieutenant- General Pemberton, the most discontented-look ing man I ever saw. Presently there appeared in the midst of the throng a man small in stature, heavily set, stoop- shouldered, a broad face, covered with a short, sandy beard, habited in a plain suit of blue flannel, with the two stars upon his shoulders, denoting a Major- Gen eral in the United States Army. He approached Pem berton and entered into conversation with him ; there was no vacant chair near, but neither Pemberton nor any of his generals offered him a seat, arid thus for five minutes the conqueror stood talking to the vanquished seated, when Grant turned away into the house and left Pem berton alone with his pride or his grief it was hard to tell which. Grant has the most impassive of faces, and seldom, if ever, are his feelings photographed upon his countenance ; but there was then, as he contemplated the result of his labors, the faintest possible trace of inward satisfaction peering out of his cold, gray eyes. All this 320 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. occupied less time than this recital of it, and meantime officers of both armies were commingled, conversing as sociably as if they had not been aiming at each other s lives a few hours before. Generals McPherson and Logan now turned back toward our camps to bring in the latter s division, and a party specially detailed galloped cityward, about a mile distant, for the purpose of hoisting the flag over the Court-House. From the living we turn to the dead of Yicksburg : They lay in all positions ; some with musket grasped as though yet contending ; others with the cartridge in the fingers just ready to put the deadly charge where it might meet the foe. All ferocity had gone. Noble patriots ! uninhabited tenements ! ye rest here now in security ! Your portals whence the spirits fled are as calm and pale as moonlight upon snow as though no sweet love had ever woven for ye myrtle wreaths, nor death draped your hearts in ivy as though mirth had never smiled nor sorrow wept where ail is now silent. War, with its dangers, earth with its perplexities, neglect and poverty with their pangs, slander with its barb, the dear heart broken ones at home all fail to call ye back to strife. A dark and fearful shadow has crept over the land and gathered ye in its gloom. O the tears that will be shed ! O the hearths that will be desolated ! Eyes will look in vain for your return to the hearths that ye once gladdened, while Fame crowns ye with its laurels, and the land of the hereafter welcomes ye as "they who saved the land." A remarkably sweet and youthful face was that of a rebel boy. Scarce eighteen, and as fair as a maiden, with quite small hands, long hair of the pale golden hue that auburn changes to when much in the sun, and curling at the ends. He had on a shirt of coarse white cotton, and brown pants, well worn ; while upon his feet were a woman s shoes of about the size known as fours. Too delicate was his frame for war; perchance some mother s idol. His left side was torn by a shell, and his left shoulder shattered. Poor, misguided boy ! Hyacinth was scarce more delicately beautiful than he. Mayhap he had his Apollo too. REBEL BILL OF FARE. 321 Two men who had caught at a fig-tree to assist them up a steep embankment lay dead at its feet, slain in all probability by an enfilade fire from their right ; the branch at which they caught was still in their grasp. Some could not be recognized by their nearest friends. Several were headless others were armless ; but the manner of their death was always plain. The Minie left its large, rather clear hole ; the shell its horrid rent ; the shrapnel and grape their clear great gashes, as though one had thrust a giant s spear through the tender, quivering flesh. This is the work of treason ! This it is to unroof the temple of law and order, and let loose the demon of dis cord. A people more than prosperous have fallen upon evil times. Murder, arson, theft, all kinds of injustice, follow in the footsteps of war. Nor is the end yet. When shall spears and swords be beaten into plough shares and pruning-hooks ? How long, O Lord V In contrast with the tragical scenes of the triumph, we have a comic exhibition of the very destitution of the enemy : KEBEL BILL OF FARE. J. H. Early, Surgeon of the Seventeenth Iowa regiment, found the following copy of a bill of fare in the rebel camps at Vicksburg. It is a burlesque upon the rebel rations of mule flesh indulged in by them during the last day of the siege HOTEL DE VICKSBURG. Bill of Fare for July, 1863. SOUP. Mule Tail. BOILED. Mule bacon with poke greens. Mule ham canvased. ROAST. Mule sirloin. Mule rump, stuffed with rice. 21 322 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. VEGETABLES. Peas and rice. &c., &c., &c. *# **####** DESSERT. White oak acorns. Beech-nuts. Blackberry -leaf tea. Genuine Confederate Coffee. LIQUORS. Mississippi water, vintage of 1492, superior, . . $3.00 Limestone water, late importation, very fine, . . 2.75 Spring water, Vicksburg brand, 1.50 Meals at all hours. Gentlemen to wait on them selves. Any inattention on the part of ser vants will be promptly reported at the office. JEFF. DAVIS & Co., Proprietors. CARD. The proprietors of the justly celebrated Hotel de Vicksburg, having enlarged and refitted the same, are now prepared to accommodate all who may favor them with a call. Parties arriving by the river, or Grant s inland route, will find Grape, Canister & Co. s carriages at the landing, or any depot on the line of entrenchments. Buck, Ball & Co. take charge of all baggage. No effort will be spared to make the visit of all as interesting as possible. General Grant entered Vicksburg with a cigar in his mouth ; a thing so entirely characteristic, the absence of it would have been unnatural. Upon this evidence of cool ness and illustration of the power of habit, a newspaper of strong Southern proclivities remarked as follows : " We pardon General Grant s smoking a cigar as he en tered the smouldering ruins of the town of Vicksburg. A little stage effect is admissible in great captains, consid ering that Napoleon at Milan wore the little cocked hat and sword of Marengo, and that snuff was the inevitable con comitant of victory in the great Frederick. General Grant is a noble fellow, and, by the terms of capitulation he ac corded to the heroic garrison, showed himself as generous GENERAL GRANT IN VIOKSBURG. 323 as Napoleon was to Wurmser at the surrender of Mantua. His deed will read well in history, and he has secured to himself a name which posterity will pronounce with vene ration and gratitude. There is no general in this country or in Europe that has done harder work than General Grant, and none that has better graced his victories by the exercise of humanity and virtue. What we learn of the terms of capitulation is sufficient to prove General Grant to be a generous soldier and a man. A truly brave man respects bravery in others, and when the sword is sheathed considers himself free to follow the dictates of humanity. General Grant is not a general who marks his progress by proclamations to frighten unarmed men, women, and chil dren ; he fulminates no arbitrary edicts against the press ; he does not make war on newspapers and their correspond ents ; he flatters no one to get himself puffed ; but he is terrible in arms and magnanimous after the battle. Go on, brave General Grant ; pursue the course you have marked out for yourself, and Clio, the pensive muse, as she records your deeds, will rejoice at her manly theme." Among the results of the fall of Vicksburg is one that must not be overlooked Port Hudson. As soon as the garrison had surrendered, General Grant notified General Banks of the fact, and that officer at once imparted the glorious intelligence to his command. Like lightning the welcome news flew along the line, and the Union pickets joyously informed the rebel sentinels that their boasted stronghold had fallen. The morning sun of July 7th flooded the Father of Waters, whose naval leviathans roared upon the tide. Peal after peal reverberated along the green shores. The rebel garrison of Port Hudson, whose guns are silent, won der at the sound, the interludes of which were cheers of wildest rejoicing. They listen all day, and, as the evening approaches, their curiosity could endure the strange demon stration no longer. At one of the points, where the armies were within speaking distance, a rebel officer called out : " What are you making all that noise about ?" Union officer. 4 We have taken Vicksburg. Reid. " Don t believe it. 324 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Union officer. " What will convince you?" Rebel. "Nothing but a copy of the dispatch, or some reliable authority." Union officer. "Well, I ll get a copy, and pass it over the parapet." Rebel. If you 11 do that, and vouch for its genuineness on your honor as a gentleman and a soldier, I ll believe it." The Union man soon furnished the evidence required, copied in his own hand.. The rebel took it, and read it, saying : I am satisfied. It is useless for us to hold out any longer." Meanwhile, General Grant had managed to have a mes sage to General Banks intercepted by the enemy, conveying the same intelligence. General Frank Gardner sent to the latter to know if it were true that Yicksburg had surren dered. When assured it was, he sent the only message he wo aid have been permitted to transmit : HEAD-QUARTERS, PORT HUDSON, LA., July 7, 18G3. GENERAL : Having received information from your troops that Vicks- burg has been surrendered, I make this communication to ask you to give me the official assurance whether this is true or not, and if true, I ask for a cessation of hostilities, with a view to the consideration of terms for surren dering this position I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, FRANK GARDNER, Major- General commanding Confederate States forces. To Major-General BANKS, commanding II. S. forces near Port Hudson. General Banks, early the next morning, replied as fol lows : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE GULF, \ BEFORE POET HUDSON, July 8, 1863. > GENERAL : In reply to your communication, dated the 7th instant, by flag of truce received a few moments since, I have the honor to inform you that I received yesterday morning, July 7th, at forty-five minutes past ten o clock, by the gunboat General Price, an official dispatch from Major-Gen eral Ulysses S. Grant, United States Army, whereof the following is a true extract : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, > NEAR VICKSBURG, July 4, 1SOS. > Major-General N. P. BANKS, commanding Department of the Gulf: GENERAL : The garrison of Vicksbnrg surrendered this morning. The SURRENDER OF PORT HUDSON. 325 number of prisoners, as given by the officers, is twenty-seven thousand ; field artillery, one hundred and twenty-eight pieces; and a large number of siege-guns, probably not less than eighty. Your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Major- General. I regret to say that, under present circumstances, I cannot, consistently with my duty, consent to a cessation of hostilities for the purpose you in dicate. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, N. P. BANKS, Major- General Commanding. To Major-General FRANK GARDNER, commanding Confederate States forces, Port Hudson. The unwelcome news was all that was wanting to de cide the fate of Port Hudson. In fact, after Vicksburg had capitulated, Port Hudson was untenable. The rebel commandant, therefore, immediately dis patched the following communication to General Banks : PORT HUDSON, July S, 1863. GENERAL : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your com munication of this date, giving a copy of an official communication from Major-General U. S. Grant, United States Army, announcing the surrender of the garrison of Vicksburg. Having defended this position as long as I deem my duty requires, I am willing to surrender to you, and will appoint a commission of three officers to meet a similiar commission appointed by yourself, at nine o clock this morning, for the purpose of agreeing upon and drawing up the terms of surrender, and for that purpose I ask a cessation of hostilities. Will you please designate a place outside of my breastworks where the meeting shall be held for this purpose ? . I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, FRANK GARDNER, commanding Confederate States forces. To Major-General BANKS, commanding United States forces. General Banks replied at once in the following lan guage : HEAD-QUARTERS UNITED STATKS FORCES, ) BEFORE PORT HUDSON, July 8, 1863. GENERAL : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your com munication of this date, stating that you are willing to surrender the garrison under your command to the forces under my command, and that you will appoint a commission of three officers to meet a similar commission appointed by me, at nine o clock this morning, for the purpose of agreeing upon and drawing up the terms of surrender. In reply I have the honor to state, that I have designated Brigadier- 326 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Charles P. Stone, Colonel Henry W. Birge, and Lieutenant-Colonel Richard B. Irwin, as the officers to meet the commission appointed by you. They will meet your officers, at the hour designated, at a point where the flag of truce was received this morning. I will direct that active hos tilities shall entirely cease on iny part, until further notice, for the purpose stated. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, N. P. BANKS, Major-General commanding. To Major-General FRANK GARDNER, commanding Confederate States forces, Port Hudson. The following announces the result of the surrender : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE GULF, ) NINETEENTH ARMY CORPS, PORT HUDSON, July 10, 1SC3. > To General H. W. HALLEOK : SIR: I have the honor to inform you that, with this post, there fell into our hands over five thousand five hundred prisoners, including one major-general and one brigadier-general ; twenty pieces of heavy artillery, five complete batteries, numbering thirty-one pieces of field artillery ; a good supply of projectiles for light and heavy guns, forty-four thousand eight hundred pounds of cannon-powder, five thousand stand of arms, and one hundred and fifty thousand rounds of small-arm ammunition, besides a small fefiiount of stores of various kinds. We captured, also, two steamers, one v{ tvhich is very valuable. They will be of great service at this time. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, N. P. BANKS, Major-General commanding. The report of General Grant contains a full and clear account of his great achievement : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, ( VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI, July 6, 1863. COLONEL: I have the honor to submit the following report of the operations of the Army of the Tennessee and co-operating forces, from the date of my assuming the immediate command of the expedition against Vlcksburg, Mississippi, to the reduction of that place. From the moment of taking command in person, I became satisfied that Vicksburg could only be turned from the south side, and, in accordance with this conviction, I prosecuted the work on the canal, which had been located by Brigadier-General Williams, across the peninsula on the Louisi ana side of the river, with all vigor, hoping to make a channel which would pass transports for moving the army and carrying supplies to the new base of operations thus provided. The task was much more herculean than it at first appeared, and was made much more so by the almost continuous rains that fell during the whole of the time this work was prosecuted. The river, GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. too, continued to rise and make a large expenditure of labor necessary to keep the water out of our camps and the canal. Finally, on the 8th of March, the rapid rise of the river and tho con sequent great pressure upon the dam across the canal, near the upper end, at the main Mississippi levee, caused it to give way and let through the low lands back of our camps a torrent of water that separated the north and south shores of the peninsula as effectually as if the Mississippi flowed between them. This occurred when the enterprise promised success within a short time. There was some delay in trying to repair damages. It was found, however, that with the then stage of water some other plan would have to be adopted for getting below Vicksburg with transports. Captain F. E. Prime, Chief Engineer, and Colonel G. G. Pride, who was acting on my staff, prospected a route through the bayous which run from near Milliken s Bend on the north and New Carthage otf the south through Roundaway Bayou into the Tansas River. Their report of the practicability of this route determined me to commence work upon it. Having three dredge-boats at the time, the work of opening this route was executed with great rapidity. One small steamer and a number of barges were taken through the channel thus opened, but tho river commencing, about the middle of April, to fall rapidly, and the roads becoming passable between Milliken s Bend and New Carthage, made it impracticable and unnecessary to open water communication between these points. Soon after commencing the first canal spoken of, I caused a channel to be cut from the Mississippi River into Lake Providence ; also one from the Mississippi River into Coldwater, by way of Yazoo Pass. I had no great expectations of important results from the former of these, but having more troops than could be employed to advantage at Young s Point, and knowing that Lake Providence was connected by Bayou Baxter with Bayou Macon, a navigable stream through which transports might pass into the Mississippi below, through Tansas, Wachita, and Red Rivers, I thought it possible that a route might be opened in that direction which would enable me to co-operate with General Banks at Port Hudson. By the Yazoo Pass route I only expected at first to get into the Yazoo by way of Coldwater and Tallahatchie with some lighter gunboats and a few troops, and destroy the enemy s transports in that stream and some gunboats which I knew he was building. The navigation, however, proved so much better than had been expected, that I thought for a time of the possibility of making this the route for obtaining the foothold on high land above Haines s Bluff, Mississippi, and small-class steamers were accordingly ordered for transporting an army that way. Major-General J. B. McPherson, commanding Seventeenth Army Corps, was directed to hold his corps in readiness to move by this route ; and one division from each the Thirteenth and Fifteenth Corps were collected near the entrance of the Pass to be added to his command. It soon became evident that a sufficient number of boats of the right class could not be obtained for the movement of more than one division. "Whilst my forces were opening one end of the Pass, the enemy was 328 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. diligently closing the other end, and in this way succeeded in gaining time to strongly fortify Greenwood, below the junction of the Tallahatchie and Vallobusha. The advance of the expedition, consisting of one division of McClernand s corps from Helena, commanded by Brigadier-General L. F. Ross, and the Twelfth and Seventeenth Regiments Missouri Infantry, from Sherman s corps, as sharpshooters on the gunboats, succeeded in reaching Coldwater on the 2d day of March, after much difficulty, and the partial disabling of most of the boats. From the entrance into Coldwater to Fort Pemberton, at Greenwood, Mississippi, no great difficulty of navigation was experienced, nor any interruption of magnitude from the enemy. Fort Pemberton extends from the Tallahatchie to the Yazoo at Greenwood. Here the two rivers come within a few hundred yards of each other. The land around the fort is low, and at the time of the attack was entirely over flowed. Owing to this fact, no movement could be made by the army to reduce it, but all depended upon the ability of the gunboats to silence the guns of the enemy and enable the transports to run down and land troops immediately on the fort itself. After an engagement of several hours, the gunboats drew off, being unable to silence the batteries. Brigadier-General J. F. Quimby, commanding a division of McPherson s corps, met the expedi tion under Ross with his division on its return near Fort Pemberton, on the 21st of March, and, being the senior, assumed command of the entire ex pedition, and returned to the position Ross had occupied. On the 23d day of March I sent orders for the withdrawal of all the forces operating in that direction, for the purpose of concentrating my army at Millikeri s Bend. On the 14th day of March, Admiral D. D. Porter, commanding Mis sissippi Squadron, informed me that he had made a reconnoissance up Steele s Bayou, and partially through Black Bayou toward Deer Creek, and so far as explored these water courses were reported navigable for the smaller iron-clads. Information, given mostly, I believe, by the negroes of the country, was to th e effect that Deer Creek could bo navigated to Roll ing Fork, and that from there, through the Sunflower to the Yazoo River, there was no question about the navigation. On the following morning I accompanied Admiral Porter in the ram Price seven iron-clads pre ceding us up through Steele s Bayou to near Black Bayou. At this time our forces were at a dead-lock at Greenwood, and I looked upon the success of this enterprise as of vast importance. It would, if successful, leave Greenwood between two forces of ours, and would neces sarily cause the immediate abandonment of that stronghold. About thirty steamers of the enemy would have been destroyed or fallen into our hands. Seeing that the great obstacle to navigation, so far as I had gone, was from overhanging trees, I left Admiral Porter near Black Bayou and pushed back to Young s Point for the purpose of sending for ward a pioneer corps to remove these difficulties. Soon after my return to Young s Point, Admiral Porter sent back to me for a co-operating military force. Sherman was promptly sent with one division of his corps. The number of steamers suitable for the navigation of these bayous being limited, GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 829 most of the force was sent up the Mississippi River to Eagle s Bend, a point where the river runs within one mile of Steele s Bayou, thus saving an important part of this difficult navigation. The expedition failed, probably more from want of knowledge as to what would be required to open this route than from any impracticability in the navigation of the streams and bayous through which it was proposed to pass. Want of this knowledge led the expedition on until difficulties were encountered, and then it would become necessary to send back to Young s Point for the means of removing them. This gave the enemy time to move forces to effectually checkmate further progress, and the expedition was withdrawn when within a few hundred yards of free and open navigation to the Yazoo. All this may have been providential in driving us ultimately to a line of operations which has proven eminently successful. For further particulars of the Steele s Bayou expedition, see report of Major-General W. T. Sherman, forwarded on the 12th of April. As soon as I decided to open water communication from a point on the Mississippi near Milliken s Bend to New Carthage, I determined to occ ipy the latter place, it being the first point below Vicksburg that could be reached by land at the stage of water then existing, and the occuprncy of which, while it secured to us a point on the Mississippi River, would >lso protect the main line of communication by water. Accordingly, ihe> Thirteenth Army Corps, Major-General J. A. McClernand commandSg, was directed to take up its line of march on the 29th day of March for New Carthage, the Fifteenth and Seventeenth Corps to follow, moving 110 faster than supplies and ammunition could be transported to them. The roads, though level, were intolerably bad, and the movement v, as therefore necessarily slow. Arriving at Smith s plantation, two miles fr-mi New Carthage, it was found that the levee of Bayou Vidal was broken in several places, thus leaving New Carthage an island. All the boats that could be were collected from the different bayous in the vicinity, and others were built, but the transportation of an army in this way was found exceedingly tedious. Another route had to be found. This was done by making a further march around Vidal to Perkins s plant ation, a distance of twelve miles more, making the whole distance to be marched from Milliken s Bend, to reach water communication on the oppo site side of the point, thirty -five miles. Over this distance, with bad roads to contend against, supplies of ordnance stores and provisions had to be hauled by wagons, with which to commence the campaign on the opposite side of the river. At the same time that I ordered the occupation of New Carthage, pre parations were made for running transports by the Vinksburg batteries with Admiral Porter s gunboat fleet. On the night of the 16th of April, Admiral Porter s fleet and the traos- ports Silver Wave, Forest Queen, and Henry Clay ran the Vicksburg batteries. The boilers of the transports were protected as well as possible with hay and cotton. More or less commissary stores were put on eac%. All three of these boats were struck more or less frequently while passing 330 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the enemy s batteries, and the Henry Clay, by the explosion of a shell or by other means, was set on fire and entirely consumed. The other two boats were somewhat injured, but not seriously disabled. No one on board of either was hurt. As these boats succeeded in getting by so well, I ordered six more to be prepared in like manner for running the batteries. These latter, viz. : Tigress, Anglo-Saxon, Clieescman, Empire City, Ilorizona, and Moderator, left Milliken s Bend on the night of the 22d of April, and live of them got by, but in a somewhat damaged condition. The Tigress received a shot in her hull below the water line, and sunk on the Louisiana shore soon after passing the last of the batteries. The crews of these steamers, with the ex ception of that of the Forest Queen, Captain D. Con way, and the Silver Wave, Captain McMillen, were composed of volunteers from the army. Upon the call for volunteers for this dangerous enterprise, officers and men presented themselves by hundreds, anxious to undertake the trip. The names of those whose services were accepted will be given in a separate report. It is a striking feature, so far as my observation goes, of the present vol unteer army of the United States, that there is nothing which men are called upon to do, mechanical or professional, that accomplished adepts cannot bo found for the duty required in almost every regiment. The transports injured in running the blockade were repaired by order of Admiral Porter, who was supplied with the material for such repairs as they required, and who was and is ever ready to afford all the assistance in his power for the furtherance of the success of our arms. In a very short time five of the transports were in running order, and the remainder were in condition to be used as barges in the moving of troops. Twelve barges loaded with forage and rations were sent in tow of -the last six boats that run the blockade ; one-half of them got through in a condition to be used. Owing to the limited number of transports below Vicksburg, it was found necessary to extend our line of land travel to Hard Times, Louisiana, which, by the circuitous route it was necessary to take, increased the dis tance to about seventy miles to Milliken s Bend, our starting point. The Thirteenth Army Corps being all through to the Mississippi, and the Seventeenth Army Corps well on the way, so many of the Thirteenth as could be got on board the transports and barges were put aboard and moved to the front of Grand Gulf on the 29th of April. The plan here was that the navy should silence the guns of the enemy, and the troops land under cover of the gunboats and carry the place by storm. At eight o clock A. M. the navy made the attack, and kept it up for more than five hours in the most gallant manner. From a tug out in the stream I witnessed the whole engagement. Many times it seemed to me the gun boats were within pistol shot of the enemy s batteries. It soon became evident that the guns of the enemy were too elevated and their fortifications too strong to bo taken from the water side. The whole range of hills on that side was known to be lined with rifle-pits, besides, the field artillery could be moved to any position where it could be made useful in case of GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 331 an attempt at landing. This determined me to run again the enemy s bat teries, turn his position by effecting a landing at Rodney, or at Bruinsburg, between Grand Gulf and Rodney. Accordingly, orders were immediately given for the troops to debark at Hard Times, Louisiana, and march across to the point immediately below Grand Gulf. At dark the gunboats again en gaged the batteries, and all the transports ran by, receiving but two or three shots in the passage, and these without injury. I had some time previously ordered a reconnoissance to a point opposite Bruinsburg, to ascertain if possible from persons in the neighborhood the character of the road leading to the highlands back of Bruinsburg. During the night I learned from a negro man that there was a good road from Bruinsburg to Port Gibson, which determined me to land there. The work of ferrying the troops to Bruinsburg was commenced at day light in the morning, the gunboats as well as transports being used for the purpose. As soon as the Thirteenth Army Corps was landed, and could draw three days rations to put in haversacks (no wagons were allowed to cross until the troops were all over), they were started on the road to Port Gib son. I deemed it a matter of vast importance that the highlands should be reached without resistance. The Seventeenth Corps followed as rapidly as it could be put across the river. About two o clock on the 1st of May the advance of the enemy was met eight miles from Bruinsburg, on the road to Port Gibson. He was forced to fall back, but, as it was dark, he was not pursued far until daylight. Early on the morning of the 1st I went out, accompanied by members of my staff, and found McClernand with his corps engaging the enemy about four miles from Port Gibson. At this point the roads branched in exactly opposite directions, both, however, leading to Port Gibson. The enemy had taken position on both branches, thus dividing, as he fell back, the pursuing forces. The nature of the ground in that part of the country is such that a very small force could retard the progress of a much larger one for many hours. The roads usually run on narrow, elevated ridges, with deep and impenetrable ravines on either side. Or the right were the divisions of Hovey, Carr, and Smith, and on the left the division of Oster- haus, of McClernand s corps. The three former succeeded in driving the enemy from position to position back toward Port Gibson steadily .all day. Osterhaus did not, however, move the enemy from the position occupied by him on our left until Logan s division, of McPherson s corps, arrived. McClernand, who was with the right in person, sent repeated messages to me before the arrival of Logan, to send Logan s and Quimby s divisions, of McPherson s corps, to him. I had been on that as well as all other parts of the field, and could not see how they could be used there to advantage. However, as soon as the advance of McPherson s corps (Logan s division) arrived, I sent one brig ade to McClernand on the right, and sent one brigade, Brigadier-General J. E. Smith commanding, to the left to the assistance of Osterhaus. 332 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. By the judicious disposition made of this brigade, under the immediate supervision of McPherson and Logan, a position was soon obtained giving us an advantage which soon drove the enemy from that part of the field, to make no further stand south of Bayou Pierre. The enemy was here repulsed with a heavy loss in killed, wounded and prisoners. The repulse of the enemy on our left took place late in the after noon. He was pursued toward Port Gibson, but night closing in, and the enemy making the appearance of another stand, the troops slept upon their arms until daylight. In the morning it was found that the enemy had retreated across Bayou Pierre, on the Grand Gulf road, and a brigade of Logan s division was sent to divert his attention whilst a floating bridge was being built across Bayou Pierre immediately at Port Gibson. This bridge was completed, eight- miles marched by McPherson s corps to the north fork of Bayou Pierre, that stream bridged, and the advance of this corps commenced passing over it at five o clock the following morning. On the 3d the enemy was pursued to Hawkinson s Ferry, with slight skirmishing all day, during which we took quite a number of prisoners, mostly stragglers, from the enemy. Finding that Grand Gulf had been evacuated, and that the advance of my forces was already fifteen miles out from there, and on the road, too, they would have to take to reach either Vicksburg, Jackson, or any inter mediate point on the railroad between the two places, I determined not to march them back, but taking a small escort of cavalry, some fifteen or twenty men, I went to the Gulf myself, and made the necessary arrange ments for changing my base of supplies from Bruinsburg to Grand Gulf. In moving from Milliken s Bend, the Fifteenth Army Corps, Major- General W. T. Sherman commanding, was left to be the last to start. To prevent heavy re-enforcements going from Vicksburg to the assistance of the Grand Gulf forces, I directed Sherman to make a demonstration on Haincs s Bluff, and to make all the show possible. From information since received from prisoners captured, this ruse succeeded admirably. It had been my intention, up to the time of crossing the Mississippi River, to collect all my forces at Grand Gulf, and get on hand a good supply of provisions and ordnance stores before moving, and in the mean time to detach an army corps to co-operate with General Banks on Port Hudson and effect a junction of our forces. About this time I received a letter from General Banks, giving his po sition west of the Mississippi River, and stating that he could return to Baton Rouge by the 10th of May ; that by the reduction of Port Hudson he could join me with twelve thousand men. I learned about the same time that troops were expected at Jackson from the Southern cities with General Beauregard in command. To delay until the 10th of May, and for the reduction of Port Hudson after that, the acces sion of twelve thousand men would not leave me relatively so strong as to move promptly with what I had. Information received from day to day ef the movements of the enemy also impelled me to the course pursued. GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 333 Whilst lying at Hawkinson s Ferry waiting for wagons, supplies, and Sher man s corps, which had come forward in the mean time, demonstrations were made, successfully, I believe, to induce the enemy to think that route and the one by Hall s Ferry above were objects of much solicitude to me. Reconnoissances were made to the west side of the Big Black to within six miles of Warrenton. On the 7th of May an advance was ordered, McPher- son s corps keeping the road nearest Black River to Rocky Springs, Mc- Olernand s corps keeping the Ridge Road from Willow Springs, and Sher man following with his corps, divided on the two roads. All the ferries were closely guarded until our troops were well advanced. It was my in tention here to hug the Black River as closely as possible with McClernand a and Sherman s corps, and get them to the railroad, at some place between Edwards s Station and Bolton. McPherson was to move by way of Utica to Raymond, and from there into Jackson, destroying the railroad telegraph, public stores, etc., and push west to rejoin the main force. Orders were given to McPherson accordingly. Sherman was moved forward on the Edwards s Station road, crossing Fourteen-Mile Creek, at Dillon s Planta tion ; McClernand was moved across the same creek, further west, sending one division of his corps by the Baldwin s Ferry road as far as the river. At the crossing of Fourteen-Mile Creek, both McClernand and Sherman had considerable skirmishing with the enemy to get possession of the crossing. McPherson met the enemy near Raymond, two brigades strong, under Gregg and Walker, on the same day engaged him, and, after several hours hard fighting, drove him with heavy loss in killed, wounded, and prisoners. Many threw down their arms and deserted. My position at this time was with Sherman s corps, some seven miles west of Raymond, and about the centre of the army. On the night of the 12th of May, after orders had been given for the orps of McClernand and Sherman to march toward the railroad by paral- rel roads, the former in the direction of Edwards s Station and the latter to a point on the railroad between Edwards s Station and Bolton, the order was changed, and both were directed to move toward Raymond. This was in consequence of the enemy having retreated toward Jack son after his defeat at Raymond, and of information that re-enforcements were daily arriving at Jackson, and that General Joe Johnston was hourly expected there to take command in person. I therefore determined to make sure of that place, and leave no enemy in my rear. McPherson moved on the 13th to Clinton, destroyed the railroad and telegraph, and captured some important dispatches from General Pember- ton to General Gregg, who had commanded the day before in the battle of Raymond. Sherman moved to a parallel position on the Mississippi Springs and Jackson road ; McClernand moved to a point near Raymond. The next day Sherman and McPherson moved their entire forces toward Jackson. The rain fell in torrents all the night before, and continued until about noon of that day, making the roads at first slippery and then miry. Notwithstanding, the troops marched in excellent order, without strag gling, and in the best of spirits, about fourteen miles, and engaged the 334 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. enemy about.twelve o clock, M., near Jackson. McClernand occupied Clin ton with one division, Mississippi Springs with another, Raymond with a third, and had his fourth division and Blair s division of Sherman s corps, with a wagon train still in the rear, near New Auburn, while Me Arthur, with one brigade of his division of McPlierson s corps, was moving toward Raymond on the Utica road. It was not the intention to move these forces any nearer Jackson, but to have them in a position where they would be in supporting distance if the resistance at Jackson should prove more ob stinate than there seemed reason to expect. The enemy marched out the bulk of his force on the Clinton road, and engaged McPlierson s Corps about two and a half miles from the city. A small force of artillery and infantry took a strong position in front of Sher man about the same distance out. By a determined advance of our skir mishers, these latter were soon driven within their rifle-pits just outside the city. It was impossible to ascertain the strength of the enemy at this part of the line in time to justify an immediate assault. Consequently McPlier son s two divisions engaged the main bulk of the rebel garrison at Jackson, without further aid than the moral support given them by the knowledge the enemy had of a force to the south side of the city, and a few infantry and artillery of the enemy posted there to impede Sherman s progress. Sherman soon discovered the weakness of the enemy by sending a recon- noitering party to his right, which also had the effect of causing the enemy to retreat from this part of his line. A few of the artillerists, however, re mained in their places, firing upon Sherman s troops, until the last moment, evidently instructed to do so, with the expectation of being captured in tho end. On entering the city, it was found that the main body of the enemy had retreated north, after a heavy engagement of more than two hours with McPlierson s corps, in which he was badly beaten. He was pursued until near night, but without further damage td him. During that evening I learned that General Johnston, as soon as he had satisfied himself that Jackson was to be attacked, had ordered Pembertpn peremptorily to march out from the direction of Vicksburg and attack our rear. Availing myself of this information, I immediately issued orders to McClernand and Blair, of Sherman s corps, to face their troops toward Bolton, with a view to reaching Edwards s Station, marching on different roads converging near Bolton. These troops were admirably located for such a move. McPherson was ordered to retrace his steps early in the morning of the 15th on the Clinton road. Sherman was left in Jackson to destroy the railroads, bridges, factories, workshops, arsenals, and every thing valuable for the support of the enemy. This was accomplished in the most effectual manner. On the afternoon of the 15th, I proceeded as far west as Clinton, through which place McPlierson s corps passed to within supporting distance of Hovey s division of McClernand s corps, which had moved that day on the same road to within one and a half miles of Bolton. On reaching Clinton, at a quarter to five P. M., I ordered McClernand to move his command early the next morning towards Edwards s Depot, marching so as to feel the GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 33? enemy, if he encountered him, but not to bring on a general engagement unless he was confident he was able to defeat hirn; and also to order Blair to move with hirn. About five o clock on the morning of the 16th, two men, employes on the Jackson and Vicksburg Railroad, who had passed. through Pemberton s army the night before, were brought to my head-quarters. They stated Pemberton s force to consist of about eighty regiments, with ten batteries of artillery, and that the whole force was estimated by the enemy at about twenty-five thousand men. From them I also learned the positions being taken up by the enemy, and his intention of attacking our rear. I had de termined to leave one division of Sherman s corps one day longer in Jack son, but this information determined me to bring his entire command up at once, and I accordingly dispatched him at 5.30 A. M. to move with all possi ble speed until he came up with the main force near Bolton. My dispatch reached him at 7.10 A. M., and his advance division was in motion in one hour from that time. A dispatch was sent to Blair at the same time, to push forward his division in the direction of Edwards s Station with all possible dispatch. McOlernand was directed to establish communication between Blair and Osterhaus, of his corps, and keep it up, moving the for mer to the support of the latter. McPherson was ordered forward at 5.45 A. M. to join McClernand, and Lieutenant-Colonel Wilson, of my staff, was sent forward to communicate the information received, and with verbal instructions to McClernand as to the disposition of his forces. At an early hour I left for the advance, and on arriving at the crossing of the Vicksburg and Jackson Railroad with the road from Raymond to Bolton, I found Mc- Pherson s advance and his Pioneer Corps engaged in rebuilding a bridge on the former road that had been destroyed by the cavalry of Osterhaus s division that had gone into Bolton the night before. The train of Hovey s division was at a halt, and blocked up the road from further advance on the Vicksburg road. I ordered all quartermasters and wagonmasters to draw their teams to one. side and make room for the passage of troops. McPherson was brought up by this road. Passing to the front, he found Hovey s division of the Thirteenth Army Corps at a halt, with our skir mishers and the enemy s pickets near each other. Ilovey was bringing his troops into line, ready for battle, and could have brought on an engage ment at any moment. The enemy had taken up a very strong position on a narrow ridge, his left wing resting on a height where the roall makes a sharp turn to the left approaching Vicksburg. The top of the ridge and the precipitous hillside to the. left of the road are covered by a dense forest and undergrowth. To the right of the road the timber extends a short distance down the hill and then opens into cultivated fields on a gentle slope, and into a valley extending for a considerable distance. On the road and into the wooded ravine and hillside Ilovey s division was disposed for the attack. McPherson s two divisions all of his corps with him on the march from Milliken s Bend (until Ransom s brigade arrived that day after the battle) were thrown to the right of the road, properly speaking, to the enemy s rear. But I would not permit an attack to be commenced by our 336 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. troops until I could hear- from McClernand, who was advancing with fonr divisions, two of them on a road intersecting the Jackson road about ono mile from where the troops above described were placed, and about tho centre of the enemy s line; the other two divisions on a road still north, and nearly the same distance off. I soon heard from McGlernand, through members of his staff, and my own, whom I had sent to him early in the morning, and found that by the nearest practicable route of communication he was two and a half miles distant. I sent several successive messages to him to push forward with all rapidity. There had been continuous firing between Hovey s skirmishers and the rebel advance, which, by eleven o clock, grew into a battle. For some time this division bore the brunt of the conflict ; but, finding tho enemy too strong for them, at the instance of Hovey, I directed first one and then a second brigade from Crocker s division to re-enforce him. All this time Logan s division was working upon the enemy s left and rear, and weakened his front attack most wonderfully. The troops here op posing us evidently far outnumbered ours. Expecting McClernand mo mentarily with four divisions, including Blair s, I never felt a doubt of the result. He did not arrive, however, until the enemy had been driven from the field, after a terrible contest of hours, with a heavy loss of killed, wounded, and prisoners, and a number of pieces of artillery. It was found afterward that the Vicksburg road, after following the ridge in a southerly direction for about one mile, and to where it intersected one of the Ray mond roads, turns almost to the west down the hill and across the valley in which Logan was operating on the rear of the enemy. One brigade of Logan s division had, unconscious of this important fact, penetrated nearly to this road, and compelled the enemy to retreat, to prevent capture. As it was, much of his artillery and Loring s division of his army was cut off, besides the prisoners captured. On the call of Hovey for more re-enforce ment?, just before the rout of the enemy commenced, I ordered McPher- son to move what troops he could by a left flank around to the enemy s front. Logan rode up at this time and told me that, if Hovey could make another dash at the enemy, he could come up from where he then was, and capture the greater part of their force. I immediately rode forward, and found the troops that had been so gallantly engaged for so many hours, withdrawn from their advanced position, and were filling their cartridge- boxes. I* directed them to use all dispatch, and push forward as soon as possible, explaining to them the position of Logan s division. Proceeding still further forward, expecting every moment to see the enemy, and reach ing what had been his line, I found he was retreating. Arriving at the Raymond road, I saw to my left and on the next ridge a column of troops, which proved to be Carr s division, and McClernand with it in person ; and to the left of Carr Osterhaus s division soon afterward appeared, with his skirmishers well in advance. I sent word to Osterhaus that tho enemy was in full retreat, and to push up with all haste. The situation was soon ex plained, after which I ordered Carr to pursue with all speed to Black River, and cross it if he could, and to Osterhaus to follow. Some of McPlierson s GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 337 troops had already got into the road in advance; but, having marched and engaged the enemy all day, they were fatigued, and gave the road to Carr, who continued the pursuit until after dark, capturing a train of cars loaded with commissary and ordnance stores and other property. The delay in the advance of the troops immediately with McClernand was caused, no doubt, by the enemy presenting a front of artillery and infantry where it was impossible, from the nature of the ground and the density of the forest, to discover his numbers. As it was, the battle of Champion s Hill, or Baker s Creek, was fought mainly by Hovey s division of McCler- nand s corps and Logan s and Quimby s divisions (the latter commanded by Brigadier-General M. M. Crocker) of McPherson s corps. Ransom s brigade, of McPherson s corps, came on to the field where the main battle had been fought, immediately after the enemy had bogun his retreat. Word was sent to Sherman, at Bolton, of the result of the day s engage ment, with directions to turn his corps toward Bridgeport, and to Blair to join him at this latter place. At daylight on the 17th, the pursuit was renewed, with McClernand s corps in the advance. The enemy was found strongly posted on both sides of the Black River. At this point on Black River the bluffs extend to the water s edge on the west bank. On the east side is an open, culti vated bottom, of near one mile in width, surrounded by a bayou of stagnant water, from two to three feet in depth, and from ten to twenty feet in width, from the river above the railroad to the river below. Following the inside line of this bayou, tho enemy h?,d constructed riile-pits, with the bayou to serve as a ditch on tho outside and immediately in front of them. Carr s division occupied the right in investing this place, and Lawless brigade the right of his division. After a few hours skirmishing, Lawler discover ed that, by moving a portion of his brigade under cover of the river bank, he could get a position from which that place could be successfully assault ed, and ordered a charge accordingly. Notwithstanding the level ground over which a portion of his troops had to pass without cover, and tho great obstacle of the ditch in the front of the enemy s works, the charge was gal lantly and successfully made, and in a few minutes the entire garrison with seventeen pieces of artillery were the trophies of this brilliant and daring movement. The enemy on the west bank of the river immediately set fire to the railroad bridge and retreated, thus cutting off all chance of escape for any portion of his forces remaining on the east bank. Sherman by this time had reached Bridgeport, on Black River, above. The only pontoon train with the expedition was with him. By the morn ing of the 18th he had crossed the river, and was ready to march on Walnut Hills. McClernand and McPherson built floating bridges during the night, and had them ready for crossing their commands by eight A.M. of the 18th. The march was commenced by Sherman at an early hour, by the Bridge port and Vicksburg road, turning to the right when within three and a half miles of Vicksburg, to get possession of Walnut Hills and the Yazoo River. This was successfully accomplished before the night of the 18th. McPher- 22 338 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. eon crossed Black River above tho Jackson road, and came into tho sarno road with Sherman, but to his rear. He arrived after nightfall with his advance to where Sherman turned to the right. McClernand moved by the Jackson and Vicksburg road to Mount Albaris, and there turned to the left to get into Baldwin s Ferry road. By this disposition the three army corps covered all the ground their strength would admit of, and by the morning of the 19th the investment of Vicksburg was made as complete as could be by the forces at my command. During the day there was continuous skirmishing, and I was not with out hope of carrying the enemy s works. Relying upon the demoraliza tion of the enemy, in consequence of repeated defeats outside of Vicks- burg, I ordered a general assault at two P. M. on this day. The Fifteenth Army Corps, from having arrived in front of tlie en emy s works in time on the 18th to get a good position, were enabled to make a vigorous assault. The Thirteenth and Seventeenth Corps suc ceeded no further than to gain advanced positions, covered from the fire of the enemy. The 20th and 21st were spent in perfecting communica tions with our supplies. Most of the troops had been marching and fight- ^ng battles for twenty days, on an average of about five days rations, drawn from the commissary department. Though they had not suffered from short rations up to this time, the want of bread to accompany the other rations was beginning to be much felt. On the 21st, my arrange ments for drawing supplies of every description being complete, I deter mined to make another effort to cdrry Vicksburg by assault. There were many reasons to determine me to adopt this course. I believed an assault from the position gained by this time could be made successfully. It was known that Johnston was at Canton with the force taken by him from Jackson, re-enforced by other troops from the east, and that more were daily reaching him. With the force I had, a short time must have en abled him to attack me in the rear, and possibly succeeded in raising the siege. Possession of Vicksburg at that time would have enabled me to have turned upon Johnston and driven him from the State, and possessed myself of all the railroads and practical military highways, thus effectually securing to ourselves all territory west of the Tombigbee, and this before the season was too far advanced for campaigning in this lati tude. It would have saved Government sending large re-enforcements, much needed elsewhere; and finally, the troops themselves were impa tient to possess Vicksburg, and would not have worked in the trenches with the same zeal, believing it unnecessary, that they did after their failure to carry the enemy s works. Accordingly, on the 21st, orders were issued for a general assault on the whole line, to commence at 10 A. M. on the 22d. All the corps commanders set their time by mine, that there should bo no difference between them in movement of assault. Promptly at the hour designated, the three army corps then in front of the enemy s works commenced the assault. I had taken a commanding position near McPherson s front, and from which I could see all the ad vancing columns from his corps, and a part of each of Sherman s and- GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 339 McClernand s. A portion of the commands of each succeeded in planting the flags on the outer slopes of the enemy s bastions, and maintained them there until night. Each corps had many more men than could 1 possibly be used in the assault, over such ground as intervened between them and the enemy. More men could only avail in case of breaking through the enemy s line, or in repelling a sortie. The assault was gallant in the extreme on the part of all the troops ; but the enemy s position was too strong, both naturally and artificially, to be taken in that "way. At every point assaulted, and at all of them at the same time, the enemy was able to show all the force his works could cover. The assault failed, I regret to say, with much loss on our side in killed and wounded, but without weakening the confidence of the troops in their ability to ulti mately succeed. No troops succeeded in entering any of the enemy s works with the exception of Sergeant Griffith, of the Twenty-first Regiment, Iowa Vol unteers, and seme eleven privates of the same regiment. Of these none returned except the sergeant and possibly one man. The work entered by him, from its position, could give us no practical advantage, unless others to the right and left of it were carried and held at the same time. About 12 M. I received a dispatch from McClernand that he was hard pressed at several points, in reply to which I directed him to re-enforce the points hard pressed from such troops as he had that were not engaged. I then rode round to Sherman, and had just reached there when I re ceived a second dispatch from McClernand, stating positively and une quivocally that he was in possession of and still held two of the enemy s forts, that the American flag then waved over them, and asking me to have Sherman and McPherson make a diversion in his favor. This dispatch I showed to Sherman, who immediately ordered a renewal of the assault on his front. I also sent an answer to McClernand directing him to order up McArthur to his assistance, and started immediately to the position T had just left on McPherson s line, to convey to him the information from McClernand by this last dispatch, that he might make the diversion requested. Before reaching McPherson, I met a messenger with a third dispatch from McClernand, of which the following is a copy: HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH AEMT CORPS, IN THE FIELD, I NEAR VICKSBCRG, MISSISSIPPI, May 22, 1863. J GENERAL: We have gained the enemy s intrenchments at several points, but are brought to a stand. " I have sent word to McArthur to re-enforce me if he can. Would it not be best to concentrate the whole or a part of his command on this point ? JOHN A. MCCLERNAND, Major-General commanding. Major-General U. S. GRANT. P. S. I have received your dispatch. My troops are all engaged, and I cannot withdraw any to re-enforce others. 340 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. The position occupied by me during most of the time of the assault gave me a better opportunity of seeing what was going on in front of the Thirteenth Army Corps than I believed it possible for the commander of it to have. I could not see his possession of forts, nor necessity for re-enforcements, as represented in his dispatches, up to the time I left it, which was between twelve M. and one P. M., and I expressed doubts of their correctness, which doubts the facts subsequently, but too late, confirmed. At the time I could not disregard his reiterated statements, for they might possibly be true; and that no possible opportunity of carrying the enemy s stronghold should be allowed to escape through fault of mine, I ordered Quimby s division, which was all of McPher- son s corps then present but four brigades, to report to McClernand, and notified him of the order. I showed his dispatches to McPherson, as I had to Sherman, to satisfy him of the necessity of an active diversion on their part to hold as much force in their fronts as possible. The diversion was promptly and vigorously made, and resulted in the increase of our mortality list fall fifty per cent., without advancing our position or giving us other advantages. About half-past three P. M. I received McClernand s fourth dispatch, as follows : HEAD-QUARTERS THIRTEENTH ARMY CORPS, I May 22, 1863. . GENERAL : I have received your dispatch in regard to General Quiin- by s division and General Me Arthur s division. As soon as they arrive I will press the enemy with all possible speed, and doubt not I will force my way through. I have lost no ground. My men are in two of the enemy s forts, but they are commanded by rifle-pits in the rear. Several prisoners have been taken, who intimate that the rear is strong. At this moment I am hard pressed. JOHN A. McCLERNAND, Major-General commanding. Major-General U. S. GRANT, Department of the Tennessee. The assault of this day proved the quality of the soldiers of this army. Without entire success, and with a heavy loss, there was no murmuring or complaining, no falling back, nor other evidence of demoralization. After the failure of the 22d, I determined upon a regular siege. The troops, now being fully awake to the necessity of this, worked diligently and cheerfully. The work progressed rapidly and satisfactorily until the 3d of July, when all was about ready for a final assault. There was a great scarcity of engineer officers in the beginning, but under the skillful superintendence of Captain F. E. Prime, of the Engineer Corps, Lieutenant-Colonel Wilson, of my staff, and Captain 0. B. Coin- stock, of the Engineer Corps, who joined this command during the siege. such practical experience was gained as would enable any division of this army hereafter to conduct a siege with considerable skill in the absence of regular engineer officers. GENEEAL GRANT S REPORT. 341 On the afternoon of the 3d of July, a letter was received from Lieuten ant-General Pemberton, commanding the Confederate forces at Vicksburg, proposing an armistice and the appointment of commissioners to arrange terms for the capitulation of the place. The correspondence, copies of which are herewith transmitted, resulted in the surrender of the city and garrison of Vicksburg, at ten o clock A. M., July 4, 1863, on the following terms : The entire garrison, officers and men, were to be paroled, not to take up arms against the United States until exchanged by the proper authorities ; officers and men each to be furnished with a parole signed by himself ; officers to be allowed their side arms and private baggage, and the field, staff, and cavalry officers one horse each ; the rank and file to be allowed all their clothing, but no other property ; rations from their own stores sufficient to last them beyond our lines; the necessary cooking uten sils for preparing their food, and thirty wagons to transport such articles as could not well be carried. These terms I regard more favorable to the Government than an unconditional surrender. It saved us the trans portation of them North, which at that time would have been very dim- cult, owing to the limited amount of river transportation on hand, and the expense of subsisting them. It left our army free to operate against John ston, who was threatening us from the direction of Jackson, and our river transportation to be used for the movement of troops to any point the exigency of the service might require. I deem it proper to state here, in order that the correspondence may be fully understood, that, after my answer to General Pernberton s letter of the morning of the 3d, we had" a personal interview on the subject of the capitulation. The particulars and incidents of the siege will be contained in the re ports of division and corps commanders, which will forwarded as soon as received. I brought forward, during the siege, in addition to Lauman s division, and four regiments previously ordered from Memphis, Smith s and Kim- ball s divisions, of the Sixteenth Army Corps, and assigned Major-General C. C. Washburne to command the same. On the llth of June, Major- General F. J. Herron s division from the Department of the Missouri arrived, and on the 14th two divisions of the Ninth Army Corps, Major- General J. G. Parke commanding, arrived. This increase in my force enabled me to make the investment most complete, and at the same time left me a large reserve to watch the movements of Johnston. Ilerron s division was put into position on the extreme Ifcft, south of the city, and Lauman s division was placed between Herron and McClernand. Smith s and KimbalFs divisions and Parke s corps were sent to Haines s Bluff. This place I had fortified to the land side, and every preparation made to resist a heavy force. Johnston crossed Big Black River with a portion of his force, and every thing indicated that he would make an attack about the 25th of June. Our position in front of Vicksburg having been made as strong against a sortie from the enemy as his works were against an assault, I placed Major-General Sherman in command of all the troops 342 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. designated to look after Johnston. The force intended to operate against Johnston, in addition to that at Raines s Bluff, was one division from each of the Thirteenth, Fifteenth, and Seventeenth Army Corps, and Lauman s division. Johnston, however, not attacking, I determined to attack him the moment Vicksburg was in our possession, and accord ingly notified Sherman that I should again make an assault on Vicks burg at daylight on the 6th, and for him to have up supplies of all descriptions ready to move upon receipt of orders, if the assault should prove a success. His preparations were immediately made, and when the place surrendered on the 4th, two days earlier than I had fixed for the attack, Sherman was found ready, and moved at once with a force increased by the remainder of both the Thirteenth and Fifteenth Army Corps, and is at present investing Jackson, where Johnston has made a stand. In the march from Bruinsburg to Vicksburg, covering a period of twenty days, before supplies could be obtained from government stores, only five days rations were issued, and three days of these were taken in haversacks at the start, and were soon exhausted. All other subsistence was obtained from the country through which we passed. The march was commenced without wagons, except such as could be picked up through the country. The country was abundantly supplied with corn, bacon, beef, and mutton. The troops enjoyed excellent health, and no army ever appeared in better spirit or felt more confident of success. In accordance with previous instructions, Major-General S. A. Hurl- but started Colonel (now Brigadier-General) B. H. Grierson with a cav alry force from La Grange, Tennessee, to make a raid through the central portion of the State . of Mississippi, to destroy railroads and other public property, for the purpose of creating a diversion in favor of the army moving to the attack on Vicksburg. On the 17th of April this expedi tion started, and arrived at Baton Rouge on the 2d of May, having suc cessfully traversed the whole State of Mississippi. This expedition was skillfully conducted, and reflects great credit on Colonel Grierson and all of his command. The notice given this raid by the Southern press con firms our estimate of its importance. It has been one of the most bril liant cavalry exploits of the war, and will be handed down in history as an example to be imitated. Colonel Grierson s report is herewith trans mitted. I cannot close this report without an expression of thankfulness for my good fortune in being placed in co-operation with an officer of the navy, who accords, to every move that seems for the interest and success of our arms, his hearty and energetic support. Admiral Porter, and the very efficient officers under him, have ever shown their greatest readi ness in their co-operation, no matter what was to be done or what risk to be taken, either by their men or their vessels. Without this prompt and cordial support, my movements would have been much embarrassed, if not wholly defeated. Captain J. U. Shirk, commanding the Tuscumbia, was especially activo GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 343 and deserving of the highest commendation for his personal attention to the repairing of the damage done our transports by the Vicksburg bat teries. The result of this campaign has been the defeat of the enemy in five battles outside of Vicksburg ; the occupation of Jackson, the capital of the State of Mississippi, and the capture of Vicksburg and its garrison and munitions of war; a loss to the enemy of thirty-seven thousand (37,000) prisoners, among whom were fifteen general officers ; at least ten thousand killed and wounded, and among the killed Generals Tracy, Tilghman, and Green, and hundreds and perhaps thousands of stragglers, who can never be collected and reorganized. Arms and munitions of war for an army of sixty thousand men have fallen into our hands, besides a large amount of other public property, consisting of railroads, locomotives, cars, steamboats, cotton, &c., and much was destroyed to prevent our capturing it. Our loss in the series of battles may be summed up as follows : Killed. Wounded. Missing. Port Gibson 130 718 5 Fourteen-Mile Creek (skirmish) 4 24 Raymond 69 341 32 Jackson 40 240 6 Champion s Hill 429 1,842 189 Big Black railroad bridge 29 242 2 Vicksburg 545 3,688 303 Of the wounded, many were but slightly wounded, and continued on duty ; many more required but a few days or weeks for their recovery. Not more than one-half of the wounded were permanently disabled. My personal staffs and chiefs of departments have, in all cases, rendered prompt and efficient service. In all former reports I have failed to make mention of Company A, Fourth Regiment Illinois Cavalry Volunteers, Captain S. D. Osband com manding. This company has been on duty with me ns an escort company since November, 1861, and in every engagement I have been in since that time rendered valuable service, attracting general attention for their exem plary conduct, soldierly bearing, and promptness. It would not be over stating the merits of this company to say that many of them would fill with credit any position in a cavalry regiment. For the brilliant achievements recounted in this report, the Army of the Tennessee, their comrades of the Ninth Army Corps, Herron s division of the Army of the Frontier, and the navy co-operating with them, deservo the highest honors their country can award. I have the honor to be, colonel, very respectfully, your obedient ser vant, U. S. GKANT, Major-General U. S. A. commanding. Colonel J. C. KELTON, A. A.-G., Washington, D. 0. 344 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Halleck, in his report, gives to the chief the honor of a campaign, emphatically his own for not a subordinate general counseled the venture of crossing the hostile territory : "When we consider the character of the country in which the army operated, the formidable obstacles to be overcome, the number of forces and the strength of the enemy s works, we cannot fail to admire the courage and endurance of the troops, and the skill and daring of their commander. No more brilliant exploit can be found in military history. It has been alleged, and the allegation has been widely circulated by the press, that General Grant, in the conduct of his campaign, positively dis obeyed the instructions of his superiors. It is hardly necessary to remark that General Grant never disobeyed an order or instruction, but always carried out to the best of his ability every wish or suggestion made to him by the Government. Moreover, he has never complained that the Government did not furnish him all the means and assistance in its power, to facilitate the execution of any plan he saw lit to adopt." When the news of this glorious victory officially reached the President, he sent an autograph letter to General Grant, of which document the following is a copy : EXECUTIVE MAXBION, WASHINGTON, July 13, 1863. To Major-General GRANT : MY DEAE GENERAL : I do not remember that you and I ever met per sonally. I write this now as a grateful acknowledgment for the almost inestimable service you have done the country. I wish to say a word fur ther. When you first reached the vicinity of Vicksburg, I thought you should do what you finally did march the troops across the neek, run the batteries with the transports, and thus go below; and I never had any faith, except a general hope that you knew better than 1, that the Yazoo Pass expedition and the like could succeed. When you got below, und took Port Gibson, Grand Gulf, and vicinity, I thought you should go down the river and join General Banks ; and when you turned northward, east of the Big Black, I feared it was a mistake. I now wish to mako a personal acknowledgment, that you were right and I was wrong. Yours, very truly, A. LINCOLN. THE PRESIDENT ON GENERAL GRANT S HABITS. 345 Several gentlemen were near the President at the time he received the news of Grant s success, some of whom had "been complaining of the rumors of his habit of using intoxicating drinks to excess. "So I understand Grant drinks whisky to excess?" interrogatively remarked the President. " Yes," was the reply. "What whisky does he drink?" inquired Mr. Lin coln. " What whisky ?" doubtfully queried his hearers. "Yes. Is it Bourbon or Monongahela ?" "Why do you ask, Mr. President?" "Because if it makes him win victories like this at Vicksburg, I will send a demijohn of the same kind to every general in the army." His visitors saw the point, although at their own cost. 346 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GKANT. CHAPTER XVII. SIEGE OF JACKSON. GENERAL GRANT S TOUR. ,, i . Johnston Alarmed. Retires to his Defenses at Jackson. Addresses his Troops. Investment of the City by Sherman. Raids. Incidents of tho Siege. - General Grant Relaxes the Sternness of Military Rule. His Caro of tho Negroes. He makes a Tour of Observation. Festival at Memphis. Visits General Banks at New Orleans. Grand Review. Meets with an Accident. Resumes Active Command. BUT what, meanwhile, has Johnston "been doing, whom we left hovering in the distance around Vicksburg, im patient to help the beleaguered army? Foiled in his designs by the sleepless vigilance of General Grant, he had chafed like a caged lion in the toils, quite as thor oughly besieged in the open field as his fellow traitors were within the city. And now General Sherman, by General Grant s order, moved toward him, animated by the recent victories. The rebel general, on rinding the Union troops had been sent in pursuit of his forces, fell back within the defenses of the Mississippi State capital, where he issued the following proclamation to his troops : HEAD-QUARTERS ON THE FIELD, July 9, 1863. FELLOW- SOLDIEES : An insolent foe, flushed with hope by his recent success at Vicksburg, confronts you, threatening the people, whose. homes and liberty you are here to protect, with plunder and conquest. Their guns may eveu now be heard as they advance. The enemy it is at once the duty and the mission of you, brave men, to chastise and expel from the soil of Mississippi. The commanding general confidently relies on you to sustain his pledge, which he makes in advance, and he will be with you in the good work, even unto the end. The vice of "straggling" he begs you to shun, and to frown on. If needs be, it will be checked by even the most summary remedies. The telegraph has already announced a glorious victory over the foe, won by your noble comrades of the Virginia army on Federal soil : may ho not, with redoubled hopes, count on you, while defending your firesides and GENERAL SHERMAN MOVES ON JACKSON. 347 household gods, to emulate the proud example of your brothers in the East? The country expects in this, the great crisis of its destiny, that every man will do his duty. JOSEPH E. JOHNSTON, General commanding. The army under General Sherman had advanced steadily, and was now gradually encircling the city. On the 12th of July he had invested the city from Pearl River, on the north of Jackson, to the same stream south of the place. The Pearl River runs directly through the city. By this means, General Sherman succeeded in cutting off many hundred cars from the Confederacy. While invest ing the city, General Sherman on the llth of July sent a company of cavalry on a foraging expedition, and during the trip the command ascertained that the extensive li brary, formerly belonging to the rebel President, was secreted in a house near by. The cavalry at once pro ceeded to the house, and there found thousands of volumes of books, and several bushels of private and political papers belonging to Davis, written by persons North and South, who had^been engaged in the plot of inciting the rebellion. Some of the papers were carried into camp, and served as novel literature for the officers and men. In addition to these, valuable gold-headed walking- canes were found, one of them presented to Davis by Franklin Pierce. On another one was the inscription, "From a Soldier to a Soldier s Friend. " In many of the letters the subject of secession was warmly discussed. Some of them date back as far as 1852. Many of the more prominent writers accepted the separa tion of the North and South as a foregone conclusion, but only disagreed how and when it should be done. Davis was alluded to as the political Moses. On the morning of July 12th, General Sherman sent a battalion of cavalry on an expedition about lifteen miles east of Jackson, to destroy the railroad bridges, culverts, rolling stock, and whatever aided the war of rebellion. During the greater part of the preceding night the in vesting forces made arrangements for a cannonade of the enemy s works. A premature movement of a portion of 348 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the line nearly caused a failure of the expedition, but prompt action on the part of the commanding general remedied the evil. On the 13th of July the rebels made a sortie from their works and advanced a brigade of infantry and several bat teries of artillery against the right of the line, to break it. It was sudden and made under the cover of a heavy fog-; but was met with a determined resistance. In a short time after the enemy had opened the attack, the whole of the right wing was in line of battle, ready for any emergency. On the night of June 16th, General Joseph E. Johnston with a portion of his army evacuated Jackson and re treated in great haste toward the east. Had he not made his retreat that night, the whole garrison would probably have been captured the next day by a complete invest ment of the city. General Grant had remained at Vicksburg when Gen eral Sherman advanced, but he was not idle. He held constant communication with his various commands, and organized expeditions, the more effectually to clear the department of all vestige of rebel rule. A dispatch affords a glimpse of his work : VICKSBUBG, MISSISSIPPI, July 12, 1868. Major-General HALLECK, Geueral-in-chief : General Sherman has Jackson invested from Pearl River on the north to the River on the south. This has cut off many hundred cars from the Confederacy. Sherman says he has forces enough, and feels no apprehen sion about the result. Finding that Yazoo city was being fortified, I sent General Herron there with his division. He captured several hundred prisoners and one steam boat. Five pieces of heavy artillery and all the public stores fell into our hands. The enemy burned three steamboats on the approach of the gun boats. The De Kail was blown up and sunk in fifteen feet of water by the explosion of a torpedo. Finding that the enemy were crossing cattle for the rebel army at Natchez, and were said to have several thousand there, I have sent steam boats and troops to collect them, and destroy all boats, and means for mak ing more. U. S. GRANT, Major-General. General Grant telegraphed : GENERAL GRANT S DISPATCH. 349 VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI, July 13, 1S63. Major-General H. W. HALLECK, General-in-chief : Joe Johnston evacuated Jackson on the night of the 16th instant. He is now in full retreat east. Sherman says most of Johnston s army must perish from heat, lack of water, and general discouragement. The army paroled here have to a great extent deserted, and are scattered over the country in every direction. Learning that Yazoo city was being fortified, I sent General Herron there. Five guns were captured, many stores, and about three hundred prisoners. General Ransom was sent to Natchez to stop the crossing of cattle for the Eastern army. On arrival he found that large numbers had been driven out of the city to be pastured : also that munitions of war had recently been crossed over to wait for Kirby Smith. He mounted about two hundred of his men and sent them in both directions. They captured a number of prisoners and five thousand head of Texas cattle, two thousand head of which were sent to General Banks. The balance have been or will be brought here. In Louisiana they captured more prisoners, and a number of teams loaded with* ammunition. Over two million rounds of ammunition were brought back to Natchez with the teams captured, and two hundred and sixty-eight thousand rounds, besides artillery ammunition, were destroyed. U. S. GRANT, Major-General commanding. These dispatches tell the story of a closing campaign, unsurpassed in the greatness of its conception and its results. A major in the rebel army had formerly served in the same regiment of the United States army with Grant, "but was then his prisoner. Grant treated him kindly, invited him to his private apartment, and, after he left, gave a sketch of the rebel s former life to the members of his staff. He said that, when the rebel major was in his room and he was talking to him about the Confederate service, the latter replied, " Grant, I tell you, I ain t much of a rebel, after all, and when I am paroled, -I will let the cl d service go to the mischief." While General Grant s head-quarters were at Vicks- burg, several interesting scenes enlivened the interlude of exhausting toil. The President nominated him to the office of Major-General, and the commission was issued, bearing date of July 4, 1863. The officers who had served under him, with appropriate ceremonies, presented him a 350 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. splendid sword. The blade was of finest steel, the scab bard of solid silver, elegantly finished, the handle richly carved with the figure of a young giant crushing the hydra, rebellion ; and the box, on whose lid, inside, was wrought his name with crimson silk, was made of rosewood, bound with ivory, and lined with velvet. General Grant relaxed the severity of his orders the moment it was safe to enlarge the liberty of his soldiers : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE. | ViCKSutTKG, MISSISSIPPI, July 20, 1SG3. In pursuance of Section 32, of an Act entitled " An Act for enrolling and calling out the National forces, and for other purposes," approved March 3, 1863, furloughs may be granted for a period not exceeding thirty days at one time, to five per centum of the non-commissioned officers and privates of each regiment, battery, independent company, and detachment, present with their respective commands in this department, for good con duct in their line of duty, by their immediate commanding officers, ap proved by intermediate and army corps commanders. Furloughs thus granted are intended for the benefit of well men, and the sick who have become so from fatigue or exposure in the line of duty.. Under no circumstances will furloughs be given to men who have shirked duty, or straggled on. the march, or from camps. Such men must be made to perform extra fatigue duty by their immediate commanding officers, and in cases where this is not regarded as sufficient punishment, they will be fined in an amount not beyond that which a regimental court- martial is authorized to impose. The amount of such fine will be entered on the proper muster and pay rolls, opposite their respective names, and the cause for which it is imposed stated. By order of Major-General IT. S. GRANT. The open rebel sympathizers, although despising the United States Government, and constantly giving practical aid to its enemies, were ever ready to send their negroes to be fed by the military authorities. General Grant was determined to put a stop to this proceeding, and issued the following order : HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, VICKSBITRG, MISSISSIPPI, July 21, 1863. 1. Hereafter no issues of provisions will be made for contrabands, except those serving in regiments or in contraband camps. 2. Issues of provisions will not be made to citizens, except on certifi cates that they are destitute, and have no means of purchasing the necessary supplies for their families. These certificates must state the number of the GENERAL GRANT ON REBEL TRADE. 351 family, and the time for which they draw, which shall not exceed ten days at any one time. 8. In making issues to citizens, only articles of prime necessity will be given, i. e., bread and meat, and these at the rate of one pound of flour, one half pound of salt meat, or one pound of fresh beef, to the ration. By order of Major-General U. S. GEANT. The matter of trade with the rebels had always been a source of trouble to General Grant, as he found that per sons so engaged were far more ready to secure to them selves the profits of illicit speculation than to care for the success of the Union armies. The following letter to the Honorable Secretary of the Treasury clearly sets forth his feelings upon this matter, and explains his objections to the plan of " Trade following the Flag" : HEAD-QtJARTEUa DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, VICKSBUKO, MISSISSIPPI, July 21, 1863. ) SIE: Your letter of the 4th instant to me, inclosing a copy of a letter of same date to Mr. Mellen, special agent of the Treasury, is just received. My Assistant Adjutant-General, by whom I shall send this letter, is about starting for Washington ; hence I shall be very short in my reply. My experience in West Tennessee has convinced me that any trade whatever with the rebellious States is weakening to us of at least thirty- three per cent, of our force. No matter what the restrictions thrown around trade, if any whatever is allowed it will be made the means of supplying the enemy what they want. Restrictions, if lived up to, make, trade unprofitable, and hence none but dishonest men go into it. I will venture to say that no honest man has made money in West Tennessee in the last year, while many fortunes have been made there during the time. The people in the Mississippi valley are now nearly subjugated. Keep trade out for a few months, and I doubt not but that the work of subju gation will be so complete, that trade can be opened freely with the States of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi; that the people of these States will be more anxious for the enforcement and protection of our laws than the people of the loyal States. They have experienced the misfortune of being without them, and are now in a most happy condition to appreciate their blessings. No theory of my own will ever stand in the way of my executing, in good faith, any order I may receive from those in authority over me ; but my position has given me an opportunity of seeing what would not be known by persons away from the scene of war ; and I venture, therefore, to suggest great caution in opening trade with rebels. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Major-GeneraL Hon. S. P. CHASE, Secretary of the Treasury. 352 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. It is clear by the last paragraph, that General Grant never allowed his private feelings to interfere with duty, and was always ready to render a cheerful obedience to authority. By the end of July, 1863, he had perfected a complete system of mounted patrols between Vicksburg and New Orleans, who, with the gunboats, aiforded ample protection to vessels. Every thing soon became quiet, and there were no signs of rebels on either shore. He ordered all sick soldiers in hospital, able. to bear the journey, to be sent home on thirty days furlough, and all those permanently disabled to be immediately discharged or recommended for membership in the invalid corps. The following indicates General Grant s care for the soldiers under his command, and his determination that they should not be imposed upon by the cormorants that generally hang upon the trail of an army : When General Grant issued his order, No. 45, granting furloughs to the soldiers, he also issued a special order for bidding steamboat men to charge more than five dollars to enlisted men, and seven dollars to officers, as fare between Vicksburg and Cairo. Immediately after Vicksburg had fallen, a large number of steamboats cleared from Northern ports for that place, and were in the habit of charging soldiers, going home on furlough, from fifteen to thirty dollars fare to Cairo. One day, the steamer Hope touched at Vicksburg. The decks were covered with the brave volunteers, homeward bound from the late hard service, on a brief furlough. There were twelve hundred bronzed heroes, of whom nearly a quarter were officers. General Grant was in formed that the captain had charged them from ton to twenty-five dollars each. Calling an officer, he said : "Take a guard, and order that captain to refund to en listed men the excess of five dollars, and of seven dollars to the officers ; or he ll be arrested, and his boat con fiscated." The captain listened, and looked with amazement. The armed guard convinced him it was useless to resist. He put on an air of injured innocence in the extortion, and THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF REGULATES FARE. 353 out with liis pocket-book. The money was counted and paid over, amid the shouts of the troops huzzaing for Grant, the soldier s friend. He remarked to those about him : "I will teach them, if they need the lesson, that the men who have periled their lives, to open the Mississippi River for their benefit, cannot be imposed upon with impunity." This considerate regard to the interests of the abused soldiers is one of the most pleasing, attractive features of General Grant s character. It won confidence from the humblest volunteer in his command. The General is no politician, if that word means more than a loyal citizen. Like all conspicuous men, especially in the civil war of our country, in which politics by which is understood party success and office-seeking have been a deadly poison, corrupting and threaten ing the very life of the nation, he was not unfrequently approached on the subject by the wire-pullers." A good story or two went abroad from his head- quarters at Vicks- burg. Professed political friends paid him a visit, and, after a short time spent in compliments, they touched upon the never-ending subject of politics. One of the party was in the midst of a very flowery speech, using all his rhetorical powers to induce the General, if possible, to view matters in the same light as himself, when he was suddenly stopped by General Grant : "There is no use of talking politics to me. I know nothing about them ; and, furthermore, I do not know of any person among my acquaintances who does. But," con tinued he, "there is one subject with which I am perfectly acquainted ; talk of that, and I am your man." "What is that, General?" asked the politicians, in great surprise. " Tanning leather," was the reply. The subject was immediately changed. The magnanimity of General Grant shone finely in his- unambitious award of honor to his officers. July 23d, he wrote to the proper authorities : "I would respectfully, but urgently, recommend the- 23 354 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. promotion of Major-General W. T. Sherman, now com manding the Fifteenth Army Corps, to the position of Brigadier- General in the regular army. 4 To General Sherman I was greatly indebted for his promptness in forwarding to me, during the siege of Fort Donelson, re-enforcements and supplies from Paducah. At the "battle of Shiloh, on the first day, he held with raw troops the keypoint to the landing. To his individual efforts I am indebted for the success of that battle. Twice hit, and several (I think three) horses shot under him on that day, he maintained his position with raw troops. It is no disparagement to any other officer to say that I do not believe there was another division commander on the field who had the skill and experience to have done it. His services as division commander in the advance on Corinth, I will venture to say, were appreciated by the now General-in-Chief beyond those of any other division commander. " General Sherman s arrangement as commander of troops in the attack on Chickasaw Bluffs, last December, was admirable ; seeing the ground from the opposite side from the attack, I saw the impossibility of making it suc cessful. The conception of the attack on Arkansas Post was General Sherman s. His part of the execution, no one denies, was as good as it possibly could have been. His demonstration at Haines s Bluff, in April, to hold the enemy about Vicksburg, while the army was securing a foothold east of the Mississippi ; his rapid marches to join the army afterward ; his management at Jackson, Missis sippi, in the first attack; his almost unequaled march from Jackson to Bridgeport, and passage of Black River ; his securing AValnut Hills on the 18th of May, and thus opening communications with our supplies, all attest his great merit as a soldier. The siege of Vicksburg and last capture of Jackson and dispersion of Johnston s army en title General Sherman to more credit than usually falls to the lot of one man to earn. The promotion of such men as Sherman always adds strength to our arms." On the same day that he recommended the promotion of General Sherman, he also requested the same honor for GENIAL GRANT ON GENERAL McPHERSON. 355 General McPlierson, and wrote to the General-in-Chief concerning him as follows : " General McPhersou lias been with me in every battle since the commencement of the rebellion, except Belmont. At Forts Henry, Donelson, Shiloh, and the siege of Corinth, as a staff officer and engineer, his services were con spicuous and highly meritorious. At the second battle of Corinth his skill as a soldier was displayed in successfully carrying re-enforcements to the besieged garrison, when the enemy was between him and the point to be reached. "In the advance through Central Mississippi last No vember and December, General McPherson commanded one wing of the army with all the ability possible to show, he having the lead in the advance and the rear returning. i In the campaign and siege terminating with the fall of Yicksburg, General McPherson has filled a conspicuous part at the battle of Port Gibson. It was under his direc tion that the enemy was driven, late in the afternoon, from a position they had succeeded in holding all day against an obstinate attack. His corps, the advance, always under his immediate eye, were the pioneers in the movement from Port Gibson to Hawkinson s Ferry. From the north fork of the Bayou Pierre to Black River it was a constant skirmish, the whole skillfully managed. The enemy was so closely pressed as to be unable to destroy their bridge of boats after them. From Hawkinson s Ferry to Jackson, the Seventeenth Army Corps marched roads not traveled by other troops, fighting the entire battle of Raymond alone, and the bulk of Johnston s army was fought by this corps, entirely under the management of General McPher son. "At Thompson s Hill, the Seventeenth Corps and Gen eral McPherson were conspicuous ; all that could be termed a battle there was fought by the divisions of General McPherson s corps, and Hovey s division of the Thirteenth Corps. In the assault of the 22d of May, on the fortifications of Yicksburg, and during the entire siege, General McPherson and his command took unfading laurels. He is one of our ablest engineers and most skillful generals. 356 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GliANT. The commander-in- chief was in earnest in liis purpose to eradicate from his department all bands of marauders, guerrillas, and irregular troopers, who, under the disguise of citizens, committed depredations within the Union lines. Neither would he allow plundering by his own soldiers. He therefore issued the following important order to that effect : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE, ) VIOKSBURG. MISSISSIPPI, August 1, 1863. i I. All regularly organized bodies of the enemy having been driven from those parts of Kentucky and Tennessee west of the Tennessee River, and from all of Mississippi west of the Mississippi Central Railroad, and it being to the interest of those districts not to invite the presence of armed bodies of men among them, it is announced that the most rigorous penalties will hereafter be inflicted upon the following classes of prisoners, to wit: All irregular bodies of cavalry not mustered and paid by the Confederate authorities; all persons engaged in conscripting, enforcing the conscription, or apprehending deserters, whether regular or irregular; all citizens en couraging or aiding the same ; and all persons detected in firing upon unarmed transports. It is not contemplated that this order shall affect the treatment due to prisoners of war captured within the districts named, when they are mem bers of legally organized companies, and when their acts are in accordance with the usages of civilized warfare. II. The citizens of Mississippi within the limits above described are called upon to pursue their peaceful avocations, in obedience to the laws of the United States. While doing so in good faith, all United States forces are prohibited from molesting them in any way. It is earnestly recom mended that the freedom of negroes be acknowledged, and that, instead of compulsory labor, contracts on fair terms be entered into between tho former masters and servants, or between the latter and other persons who may be willing to give them employment. Such a system as this, honestly followed, will result in substantial advantages to all parties. All private property will be respected, except when the use of it is neces sary for the Government, in which case it must be taken under the direc tion of a corps commander, and by a proper detail under charge of a commissioned officer, with specific instructions to seize certain property and wo other. A staff-officer of the quartermaster s or subsistence department will, in each instance, be designated to receipt for such property as may be seized, the property to be paid for at the end of the war on proof of loyalty, or on proper adjustment of the claim, under such regulations or laws as may hereafter be established. All property seized under this order must be taken up on returns by the officers giving receipts, and disposed of in accordance with existing regulations. III. Persons having cotton, or other produce not required by the army NO PLUNDER ALLOWED BY THE ARMY. 35? will be allowed to bring the same to any military post within the State <>>f Mississippi, and abandon it to the agent of the Treasury Department at said post, to be disposed of in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may establish. At posts where there is no such agent, the post quartermaster will receive all such property, and, nt the option of the owner, hold it till the arrival of the agent, or send it to Memphis, directed to Captain A. R. Eddy, Acting Quartermaster, who will turn it over to the properly authorized agent at that place. IV. Within the county of Warren, laid waste by the long presence of contending armies, the following rules, to prevent suffering, will be ob served : Major-General Sherman, commanding the Fifteenth Army Corps, and Major-General McPherson, commanding the Seventeenth Army Corps, will each designate a commissary of subsistence, who will issue articles of prime necessity to all destitute families calling for them, under such restrictions for the protection of the Government as they may deem necessary. Fami lies who are able to pay for the provisions drawn will in all cases be required to do so. V. Conduct disgraceful to the American name lias been frequently re ported to the Major-General commanding, particularly on the part of portions of the cavalry. Hereafter, if the guilty parties cannot be reached, the commanders of regiments and detachments will be held responsible, and those who prove themselves unequal to the task of preserving discipline in their commands will be promptly reported to the War Department for 44 muster out." Summary punishment must be inflicted upon all officers and soldiers apprehended in acts of violence or lawlessness. By order of Major-General TJ. S. GKANT. The negroes in the department having all become free by virtue of President Lincoln s proclamation and the occupation of the country by the United States authorities, General Grant issued the following order for the care and disposition of such as were without protection or employ ment : HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THK TENNESSEE, | VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI, August 10, 1868. I. At all military posts in States within this department, where slavery has been abolished by the proclamation of the President of the United States, camps will be established for such freed people of color as are out of employment. II. Commanders of posts or districts will detail suitable officers from the army as superintendents of such camps. It will be the duty of such super intendents to see that suitable rations are drawn from the Subsistence Department for such people as are confided to their care. III. All such persons supported by the Government will be employed in every practicable way, so as to avoid, as far as possible, their becoming a 358 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. harden upon the Government. They may be hired to planters or other citizens, on proper assurance that the negroes so hired will not be run off beyond the military jurisdiction of the United States ; they may be employed on any public works, in gathering crops from abandoned plantations, and generally in any manner local commanders may deem for the best interests of the Government, in compliance with law and the policy of the Adminis tration. IV. It will be the duty of the provost-marshal at every military post to sue that every negro, within the jurisdiction of the military authority, is employed by some white person, or is sent to the camps provided for freed people. V. Citizens may make contracts with freed persons of color for their labor, giving wages per month in money, or employ families of them by the year on plantations, &c., feeding, clothing and supporting the infirm as well as able-bodied, and giving a portion, not less than one-twentieth of the commercial part of their crops, in payment for such services. VI. Where negroes are employed under this authority, the parties employing will register with the provost-marshal their names, occupation, and residence, and the number of negroes so employed. They will enter into such bonds as the provost-marshal, with the approval of the local commander, may require, for the kind treatment and proper care of those employed, and as security against their being carried beyond the employe s jurisdiction. VII. Nothing of this order is to be construed to embarrass the em ployment of such colored persons as may be required by the Govern ment. By order of Major-General TJ. S. GRANT. But now we turn to a domestic view of the warrior s life. His excellent wife, who had patiently waited in the distance for a victorious pause in his stormy career, em braced the moments of comparative rest, and left her home for his camp. With a devoted wife s just pride, she desired not only to see him, but the stronghold which had immortalized his name. Reaching St. Louis, it soon became known that she was there. A fine band gathered to the hotel, and sere naded the lady, who sought the public applause no more than her husband. When the music died away, three cheers rang out for General Grant, followed by as many more for her. Leaning on the arm of Brigadier- General Strong, he responded to repeated calls for a speech, as follows : " GENTLEMEN : T am requested by Mrs. Grant to A SPEECH FOR MRS. GRANT. 359 express her acknowledgments for the honor you have done her on this occasion. I know well that, in tendering her thanks, I express your sentiments, when I say the compli ment through her to her noble husband is one merited by a brave and great man, who has made his name forever honored and immortal, in the history of America s illustri ous patriots, living or dead. Mrs. Grant does not desire, in the testimony you have offered, that you should forget the brave and gallant officers and soldiers who have so largely assisted in bringing about the glorious result which has recently caused the big heart of our nation to leap with joy. She asks you also to stop and drop a pensive tear over the graves of the noble dead, who have fallen in the struggle, that you and I, and all of us, might enjoy the fruits of their patriotic devotion to a country second to none on the earth. We trust that the Mississippi forever will be under the control of our glorious country. Mrs. Grant is now on the way to join her husband, who, since the commencement of the war, has not asked for one day s absence. He has not found time to be sick. With these remarks she bids you good-night, and begs that you accept her thousand thanks." We cannot enter the seclusion of the house in the con quered city, and hear all the words of devotion and con gratulation there, which came in like seolian harmony during the pauses of a tempest, to the experience of the great commander. Leaving the youthful but gifted McPherson to com mand the District of Vicksburg, General Grant began a tour of observation among the important posts of his ex tensive military rule. The first important place of a formal visit was Memphis, in the southwestern corner of Tennessee, nearly north of Vicksburg, which he reached on the 25th of August, and where he was received with great honor by the inhabitants of that city, although he arrived late in the evening. At ten o clock the next morning a committee of citizens waited upon the General to tender him the hospitalities of the city, and to present to him a series of resolutions passed at a meeting of the residents of Memphis, held on the day 360 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. of his arrival. At the close of the address, an invitation was proffered to General Grant to be present at a dinner to be given in his honor that evening. The General re ceived the committee cordially, but without further words than the thanking of the gentlemen, arid through them the citizens of Memphis, for the great courtesy conferred upon him. He afterward forwarded the following modest and pleasant letter of acceptance : MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, August 26, 1868. GENTLEMEN: I received a copy of the resolutions passed by the "loyal citizens of Memphis, at a meeting held at the rooms of the Chamber of Commerce, August 25th, 1863," tendering me a public reception. In accepting this testimonial, which I do at a great sacrifice of my per sonal feelings, I simply desire to pay a tribute to the first public exhibition in Memphis of loyalty to the Government which I represent in the Depart ment of the Tennessee. I should dislike to refuse, for considerations of per sonal convenience, to acknowledge, anywhere or in any form, the existence of sentiments which I have so long and so ardently desired to see manifested in this department. The stability of this Government and the unity of this nation depend solely on the cordial support and the earnest loyalty of the people. While, therefore, I thank you sincerely for the kind expressions you have used toward myself, I am profoundly gratified at this public recog nition, in the city of Memphis, of the power and authority of the Government of the United States. I thank you, too, in the name of the noble army which I have the honor to command. It is composed of men whose loyalty is proved by their deeds of heroism and their willing sacrifices of life and health. They will rejoice with me that the miserable adherents of the rebellion, whom their bayonets have driven from this fair land, are being replaced by men who acknowledge human liberty as the only true foundation of human government. May your efforts to restore your city to the cause of the Union be as successful as have been theirs to reclaim it from the despotic rule of the leaders of the rebel lion. I have the honor to be, gentlemen, Your very obedient servant, U. S. GIJANT, Major-General. Messrs. R. HOTJGH and others, Committee, Memphis. At precisely nine o clock, the band struck up one of the national airs, the doors of the reception room flew open, and General Grant made his appearance. There was a great rush on the part of the enthusiastic and impatient to grasp the hero s hand. An hour, at least, though it seemed less, was thus consumed in hand-shaking and congratula- THE GRANT FESTIVAL AT ST. LOUIS. 361 tions. After the lapse of this time, the "band again sent forth its melody in the shape of a march. The whole as semblage then formed in two ranks, headed by General Grant. This done, the entire party marched into the dining-room, made the complete round of the tables, ex amining the preparations, and then seated themselves. The repast was followed by the toasts : "The United States of America They have one Con stitution and Government. May they have one grand des tiny while human institutions endure." Eesponded to by Honorable Charles Kortrecht. "The Army and Navy Their deeds and heroism in this war will be the noble theme of poet and historian in all future time." Eesponded to by Adjutant- General Lo renzo Thomas. " General Grant The guest of the city." This was the signal for the wildest applause, and it was some minutes before order could be restored. It was ex pected that General Grant would be brought to his feet by this ; but the company were disappointed, upon perceiving that, instead, his place was taken by his staff surgeon, Dr. Hewitt, who remarked : "I am instructed by General Grant to say, that, as he has never been given to public speaking, you will have to excuse him on this occasion ; and, as I am the only mem ber of his staff present, I therefore feel it my duty to thank you for this manifestation of your good-will, as also the numerous other kindnesses of which he has been the recipi ent ever since his arrival among you. General Grant be lieves that, in all he has done, he has no more than accom plished a duty, and one, too, for which no particular honor is due. But the world, as you do, will accord otherwise." The Doctor then proposed, at General Grant s request : "The officers of the different staffs, and the non-com missioned officers and privates of the Army of the Ten nessee." " The Federal Union It must and will be preserved." Eesponded to by Major-General S. A. Huiibut. " The Old Flag May its extinguished stars, rekindled by the sacred flame of human liberty, continue to shine 362 LIFE A CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. forever undiminished in number, and undimmed in splen dor." Brigadier-General Veatch. "The President of the United States He must "be sus tained." Colonel J. W. Fuller. "The Star-spangled Banner" was here sung, the whole party joining in the chorus. "The loyal men of Tennessee Their devotion to the Union, the cause of republican government, and constitu tional liberty, is like gold tried seven times by fire." Mr. J. M. Tomony. The remainder of the toasts were of a local character, with the exception of the closing one, which was as fol lows : i i General Grant Your Grant and my Grant. Having granted us victories, grant us the restoration of the Old Flag ; grant us supplies, so that we may grant to our friends the grant to us." Dr. Morris read the following lines composed in honor of General Grant : DE SOTO, FULTON, GRANT. The daring Spaniard, when his eyes beheld, For the first time, yon noble river roll And sparkle in the sunbeams, as it bore Its mighty current onward to the sea, Fell upon bended knee and worshiped God Aloud, for that his painful task was done. The secret of the ages he had solved The Mississippi, sire of floods, stood forth, Embanked in verdure, bordered by a soil Richer than Egypt s Delta, Science and commerce winged their pinions there, And wrote his name, De Soto, on their scrolls. Ages rolled by, the tawny savage fled The white innn launched his boat upon the flood, The forest fell, the fertile soil gave back Unto the sower s hand a hundred-fold. Then rose the genius Fulton, and he taught To stem the unconquered flood, to push the weight Of mightiest keels against the heaving mass That untold centuries had crowned with power ; He sent his messengers in smoke and flame THE OPENING OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 363 Up to the Mississippi s very fount ; And by the Spaniard s name he wrote his own Fulton, the nation s benefactor. Yon sire of floods was the great bond that joined These waters into one : his bosom bore In precious freightage all that nature yields From furthest North down to a torrid clime ; Its channel was the highway of the West : Science had made his heaving mass her own ; Pleasure danced revelry upon its floods ; Beauty and love dwelt by him all secure ; Fraternal hands joined hands along his banks; His very waters made us all akin. Then spoke an enemy and on his banks Armed men appeared, and cannon-shot proclaimed The Mississippi closed that mighty stream Found by De Soto, and by Fulton won! One thought to chain him ! ignominious thought! But then the grand old monarch shook his locks And burst his fetters like a Samson freed ! The heights were crowned with ramparts sheltering those Whose treason knew no bounds : the frowning forts Belched lightnings, and the morning gun A thousand miles told mournfully the tale, The Mississippi closed. Not long ; from the Lord God of Hosts was sent A leader who with patient vigil planned A great deliverance : height by height was gained, Island and hill and woody bank and cliff. Month followed month, till on our natal day The last great barrier fell, and never more The sire of waters shall obstruction know! Now with De Soto s name, and Fulton s, see The greater name of Grant ! Our children s children, noble Grant, shall sing That great deliverance ! On the floods of spring Thy name shall sparkle, smiling commerce tell Thy great achievement which restores the chain, Never again to break, which makes us one. General Grant immediately turned his steps southward again, visiting Natchez and other points in the department. 364 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. He proceeded to New Orleans to confer with General Banks on the question of re-opening trade between the North and South. He arrived there on the 2d of Sep tember, within one week from the time he left Memphis, and the next day it was announced that the trade of the city of New Orleans with Cairo, St. Louis and the cities and towns of the Upper Mississippi, the Missouri and Ohio Rivers, was declared free from any military restriction whatever. The trade of the Mississippi within the Depart ment of the Gulf was held subject only to such limitations as might prove necessary to prevent the supply of provi sions and munitions of war to the enemies of the country. On the morning of the 4th of September, 1863, General Grant held a grand review of the Thirteenth Army Corps, which had been under his command at Vicksburg, but was afterward transferred to that of General Banks. General Banks, accompanied by a numerous staff, was at the St. Charles Hotel as early as eight o clock, and at nine o clock both generals left for Carrolton, where the review took place. The street was crowded to witness the departure of these officers, all present being desirous of seeing General Grant. He was in undress uniform, with out sword, sash, or belt ; coat unbuttoned, a low-crowned black felt hat, without any mark upon it of military rank ; a pair of kid gloves, and a cigar in his mouth. It must be known, however, that he is never without the latter, ex cept when asleep. During the review, General Grant, although a good horseman, being mounted on a strange horse, was sud denly thrown from his seat, and severely injured. At this particular time the mishap was of serious consequence with regard to the campaigns in the Southwest, as may be judged from the annual report of the general-in-chief. It appears, in the following extract from that document, that it was intended that General Grant should take com mand in September, 1863, of the Union forces moving tow ard northwestern Georgia ; but his accident prevented : " As three separate armies those of the Ohio, Cumber land, arid Tennessee were now to operate in the same field, it seemed necessary to have a single commander, in THE GENERAL-IN-CHIEF S REPORT. 305 order to secure a more perfect co-operation than had been obtained with the separate commands of Burnside and Rosecrans. General Grant, by his distinguished services and superior rank to all the other generals in the West, seemed entitled to this general command. But, unfortu nately, he was at this time in New Orleans, unable to take the field. Moreover, there was no telegraphic communi cation with him, and the dispatches of September 13th, directed to him and General Sherman, did not reach them until some days after their dates, thus delaying the movement of General Grant s forces from Vicksburg. General Hurlbut, however, had moved the troops of his own corps, then in West Tennessee, with commendable promptness. These were to be replaced by re-enforce ments from Steele s corps, in Arkansas, which also formed part of General Grant s army. Hearing nothing from Gen eral Grant s or General Sherman s corps at Vicksburg, it was determined, on the 23d, to detach the Eleventh and Twelfth Corps from the Army of the Potomac, and send them by rail, under the command of General Hooker, to protect General Rosecrans s line of communication from Bridgeport to Nashville. It was known that these troops could not go immediately to the front. To send more men to Chattanooga, when those already there could not be fully supplied, would only increase the embarrassment, and probably cause the evacuation of that place. In other words, Hooker s command was temporarily perform- ing the duties previously assigned to the re-enforcements ordered from Grant s army." General Grant s injuries were of so serious a nature that it was feared he would never be able to take the Held again. He was carried from Carrolton, on a litter, to the steamer FranJclin, which took him up the river; his breastbone was said to have been crushed, three ribs broken, and one side paralyzed ; and his brain was thought to be affected from the concussion of the fall from his horse. Fortunately for the country, by the aid of a good surgeon, he was enabled, after over a month s ill ness, to take the position destined for him, as chief com mander in the West. 3C6 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTEE XVIII. A NEW CAMPAIGN. CHATTANOOGA. Chickamauga. Rosecrans defeated there. Preparations for a new Campaign. General Grant moves up the Mississippi. Again at Yicksburg, caring for his Command. A Board and Medal of Honor. General Sherman on the March for Chattanooga. General Grant meets the Secretary of "War. Enlarged Com mand. The. Enemy alarmed. Affected Mirth. Chattanooga Relieved. Prep arations for Decisive Battle. The Bloody Contest. General O Meara. IN southeastern Tennessee, on the Western and At lantic Railroad, eighteen miles apart, are Chickamauga and Chattanooga. The Tennessee River flows near, and railways run among the wild summits which guard glori ous valleys, and make some of the finest scenery in the world. The history of this battleground, forever asso ciated with the names of Grant, Sherman, and Thomas, is peculiar and interesting. This was the Cherokee s favorite hunting-ground. Over it the State of Georgia extended her laws, and im prisoned the missionaries who refused to take the oath of allegiance to them. While General Grant was a suffering invalid, Septem ber 19th, General Rosecrans, at the head of the Army of the Cumberland, met General Bragg at Chickamauga, and, after a desperate conflict, was glad to retreat to Chatta nooga, unpursued by his successful enemy. As soon as he was able to move, the chief began his voyage up the Mississippi River. He stopped at the principal depots of his troops, and arranged for their de parture eastward, at such times as would enable them to form a combination with the forces at Chattanooga. While at Yicksburg, he was determined that his men should be paid, and issued his order accordingly. It was also necessary to make a tariff of rates to prevent imposi tions upon the war- ruined people of the Southwest. The AN ORDER REGULATING AFFAIRS ON THE RIVER. 367 exorbitant prices of passage on the Mississippi River called fortli from department head- quarters the last para graph of the following order in relation to riyer matters :-~ HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF TTTE TETTTTESSEE, J VICKSBTTRG, MISSISSIPPI, September 29, 1863. I. All enlisted men on detached service, in army corps other than that in which their regiments, detachments, or companies are serving, except those detailed by orders from department head-quarters, as nurses in gen eral hospitals and hospital steamers, and clerks in staff departments, are hereby relieved from such detached service, and will report to their respect ive commands for duty. Army corps commanders will see that this order is carried into imme diate execution. II. Company and regimental commanders will furnish to the officer in charge of men of their respective commands, absent in hospitals or at parole camps, proper descriptive lists and accounts of pay and clothing, to enable them to draw their pay. Such descriptive lists must contain the name, rank, description, where born, occupation, when, where, and by whom enrolled or enlisted, when, where, by whom, and for what period mustered, by what paymaster, and to what time last paid, the bounty paid and amount still due, and the amount due, to or from him, for clothing, with the proper remarks showing his military history, &c. Descriptive lists showing less than this are valueless. Hereafter, no enlisted man will be sent from his company or regiment without such descriptive list as is herein required being furnished to the proper officer in charge, and any neglect to comply with this order will subject the offender to trial by court- martial and dismissal from the service. It will be the duty of all officers of the Inspector-General s Department to properly inspect and report any neglect of duty in this particular. III. Army corps commanders will announce in general orders the acting assistant inspectors-general of districts, divisions, and brigades within their respective corps, and will authorize them to make inspections and recommend the disposal of unserviceable property, in accordance with army .regulations and orders. So much of paragraph third of General Orders, No. 30, current series, from these head-quarters, as requires the acting assistant inspectors-general of districts, divisions, and brigades, to report direct to the Assistant In spector-General at department head-quarters, is revoked, and all reports required by army regulations and existing orders will be forwarded through the proper military channels. IV. So much of General Orders, No. 49, current series, from these head-quarters, as establishes the rates of transportation and subsistence of commissioned officers traveling on steamboats within this department, is hereby revoked, and in lieu thereof is substituted the rates of military trans portation and subsistence established by Colonel Lewis B. Parsons, Assist- 368 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ant-Quartermaster and General Superintendent of Transportation at St. Louis, Missouri, August 1, 1863, viz. : TO OK FROM ST. LOUIS TO THE FOLLOWING PLACES. Cairo to Columbus . . $4 Yicksburg $16 Memphis 10 Port Hudson ... 18 Helena 12 New Orleans .... 20 And to or from all intermediate points at like rates in proportion to distance transported. Enlisted men will be entitled to travel as cabin passengers, when they desire it, at same rates. By order of Major-General U. S. GEANT. Before he left the Department of the Tennessee, he regulated the military jurisdiction over the conquered region around Vicksburg. The administration of the city was excellent, and the numerous secessionists still remaining there were kept on their good "behavior in dread of " exile," as they consid ered the operation of sending them to their friends within the rebel lines. The following officers composed the mili tary command : District Commander, Major-General Jas. B. McPherson ; Post Commander, Major-General John A. Logan ; District Provost-Marshal, Lieutenant-Colonel James Wilson : Post Provost-Marshal, Lieutenant-Colonel Waddell. As a reward for special bravery, General Grant instituted the "Insignia of Honor" for the Seventeenth Corps. The design of the medals was a blending of the crescent, a star, and a shield ; the base being formed of the crescent, to the two extremities of which was fixed the star, while pendant from its lower point was suspended a shield. Upon the crescent, the words * ; Yicksburg, July 4, 1863." The object in the presentation of these badges was, to reward the meritorious members of the Seven teenth Corps for conspicuous valor on the field of battle or endurance in the march. This famous corps, since its or ganization, had been foremost in duty and deeds of glory throughout the entire campaign against Vicksburg, and no better method could have been adopted to continue in the future the same excellent spirit of emulation for which MOVEMENTS TOWARD CHATTANOOGA. 369 it had always been celebrated, both on the part of officers and men. After the repulse of the forces at Chickamauga in front of Chattanooga, important movements of troops com menced from General Grant s department toward that place. All of General Sherman s Fifteenth Army Corps, excepting General Tuttle s division, was transported from Vicksburg to the line of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. On Saturday, October 10th, General Oster- haus s division entered luka. No considerable body of rebels was encountered anywhere on the march between luka and Corinth. The rebel cavalry were seen hovering on the Union flank and front continually, although they gave but little trouble or uneasiness. A reconnoissance was made on October llth by two regiments of infantry, a section of artillery, and one company of cavalry, and re vealed a battalion of cavalry at the crossing of Bear Creek, five miles east of luka. In the mean time, it was known by the rebels that Gen eral Sherman was at Memphis, and intended to pass over the Memphis and Charleston Railroad to Chattanooga. A body of rebel cavalry and infantry therefore concentrated at Wyeth, a small village on the Tallahatchie, where were located the head-quarters of Colonel Chalmers. This force was further increased by the addition of a number of con scripts. Having thus gathered all the numbers they could in the country, Chalmers found himself at the head of about four thousand men of all kinds and five pieces of artillery. With this command he moved north, and on the morning of October llth made his appearance upon the railroad, several miles beyond Colliersville. The regu lar passenger train, though in his power, the enemy allowed to pass, but as soon as that had run by, working parties were thrown upon the track, which was torn up in several places, and the ties stacked upon the road and fired. These fires proved a fortunate circumstance, as, soon after, General Sherman and staff, accompanied by his body guard, a battalion of the Thirteenth Regulars, ap proached the place on an extra train. Discovering the fires, the troops on board prepared for an attack, though 24 370 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. they did not disembark, and the entire party ran up to the station. As they were passing a certain point, as was ex pected, the enemy fired upon the train, particularly into the passenger car, wounding several persons. Having run to the stockade, the enemy closed in upon the Union troops, and commenced a fire from all directions. In order to cover the transit of the United States troops from the train to the stockade, the regulars made a charge out of the cars and directly upon the enemy, who fled in all directions in a perfect panic. The entire force then suc ceeded in taking refuge within the stockade, and acted en tirely on the defensive. Before General Sherman arrived, the garrison had en gaged the enemy in a desperate conflict, and at the time of his appearance they had been overwhelmed and driven within the fortifications of the place. The fight continued but a short time after the opportune arrival of the regu lars, though, while it did, the General took an active part among the men. His presence fired their enthusiasm and stimulated their courage. Immediately upon the receipt of information that the enemy was in this neighborhood, a strong body of infan try re-enforcements was ordered from Memphis to the scene of operations. At the same time the cavalry, en camped at Germantown, were ordered to mount and move out. A force also demonstrated from the east. On October 21st, the Union forces moving eastward from Corinth met with resistance near Cherokee Station, eighty-nine miles from Tuscumbia. General Osterhaus was in the advance, and had not moved far when he encountered two brigades of rebel cavalry, estimated at from four to six thousand. The fight lasted an hour, when the rebels were defeated. General Sherman, finding that to advance along the railroad would only lead to continual fighting and delay, kept a small force moving by that direction, while he marched the main body north of the Tennessee Biver, and thus reached Chattanooga without any serious opposition, as the rebels had concentrated their forces to resist his advance by the route south of that stream. GENERAL GRANT S ENLARGED COMMAND. 371 General Grant moved up the Mississippi to Cairo, making a short visit to the military posts along that river. He telegraphed his arrival at each of these places to the head-quarters of the General-in-Chief at Washington, and the Secretary of War started to meet him on the route. When General Grant arrived at Indianapolis, he found that a telegram was there awaiting him at the depot, re questing him to delay his further journey until the arrival of that official. It was not long before they met, and as soon as the Secretary of War and the General had passed the usual compliments between gentlemen on their first personal acquaintance, the former handed the latter the following order : WAB DEPARTMENT, ADJUTANT-GENERAL S OFFICE, 1 WASHINGTON, October 16, 1863. By direction of the President of the United States, the Departments of the Ohio, of the Cumberland, and of the Tennessee will constitute the Mili tary Division of the Mississippi. Major-General U. S. Grant, United States army, is placed in command of the Military Division of the Mississippi, with his head-quarters in the field. Major-General W. S. Rosecrans, U. S. Volunteers, is relieved from the command of the Department and Army of the Cumberland. Major-Generai G. H. Thomas is hereby assigned to that command. By order of the Secretary of War. E. D. TOWNSEND, A. A.-G. The party then proceeded, with their special attend ants, to Louisville, where their arrival created intense ex citement. They found a wondering crowd gathered in the hall of the Gait House to catch a glimpse of the hero of Vicksburg. Numerous were the exclamations of wonder as General Grant made his appearance. There seemed to have been an impression that the General was above the ordinary stature of men. " I thought he was a large man," said a native. " He would be considered a small chance of a fighter if he lived in Kentucky." The medium- sized frame of the General formed a strange contrast to the huge figures of the Kentuckians who swarmed to behold him. 372 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. During the afternoon, he indulged in a ride on horse back around the town. He was still unable to walk with out his cane and crutch. The condition of the region of country over which General Grant was now to exercise superintendence was such as to require immediate action ; and he at once as sumed his new command, and announced it in a very un pretending order : HEAD-QTTATITERS, MILITARY DIVISION OP THE MISSISSIPPI, f LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, October 18, 1863. ) In compliance with General Orders, No. 33T, of date "Washington, D. C.. October 16, 1863, the undersigned hereby assumes command of the "Mili tary Division of the Mississippi, embracing the Departments of the Ohio, of the Cumberland, and of the Tennessee." The head-quarters of the Military Division of the Mississippi will be in the field, where all reports and returns required by army regulations and existing orders will be made. U. S. GRANT, Major-Geheral. The new command was one of the most stupendous ever held by a general, below the grade of a general-in- chief, in this or any other nation. It covered a larger area, and controlled a greater number of troops, than had previously been held and massed under one man. The military division of the Mississippi embraced the central zone of operations, and the nature of the territory belonging thereto rendered it absolutely essential that one mind should direct its movements. The necessity for proper co-opera tion alone made this imperative. General Grant now had under his direction four of the largest armies in the field. His own army, with which he won the victories in and around Vicksburg, and through out Mississippi; the " Army of the Cumberland;" the " Army of the Ohio," and General Hooker s Grand Divi sion. Under him was a perfect galaxy of Marshals. His army commanders were Generals Sherman, Thomas, Burn- side, and Hooker. (General Foster s column was after ward added.) His corps commanders were as follows : The Fourth Army Corps, General Granger ; the Ninth Army Corps, General Potter ; the Eleventh Army Corps, General Howard ; the Twelfth Army Corps, General Slo- THE OFFICERS AND THE FIELD. 373 cum ; the Fourteenth Army Corps, General Palmer ; the Fifteenth Army Corps, General J. A. Logan ; the Sixteenth Army Corps, General Hurlbut ; the Seventeenth Army Corps, General McPherson ; and the Twenty-third Army Corps, General Manson. His division and brigade leaders were not inferior, while the regiments were of the "best fighting material in the world. The country embraced within the limits of this new command included the States of Michigan, Illinois, Indi ana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Northern Alabama, and Northwestern Georgia. One glance at the map will therefore show what comprised General Grant s Military Division of the Mississippi. The opposing forces were not less grand in their consti tution. General Bragg s army embraced his own veteran troops, and to that army were added Longstreet s and Hill s Corps from the Virginia rebel army. General Pemberton s army, which were said to be exchanged, were with Bragg. Joe Johnston had a co-operating force of thirty thousand men, in addition to which there was a small rebel force in Mississippi, consisting of one brigade of infantry at Newton Station, on the Southern Road, and a cavalry division of from five thousand to six thousand, operating between Jackson and the Big Black, under General S. D. Lee. The position of affairs will be seen at a glance. It must, however, not be forgotten that General Grant had under him the troops that had been sorely defeated at Chickamauga, and were at that time shut up in Chatta nooga by a besieging force of the rebels. The enemy believed that they had this force securely in a trap, and when they heard of the change in the command they began to make light of it. One of their journalists remarked that the Union authorities had removed a hero (Rosecrans). and placed two fools (Grant and Thomas) in command. The President is reported to have said, that "if one fool like Grant can do as much work, and win as profitable victories as he, he had no objection to two of them, as they would surely wipe out the rebellion." 374 LEFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Grant arrived in Nashville on the morning of October 21st. He was during the same evening introduced to the people by the Military Governor, but refused to make a speech. Having secured his communications, and ordered the regauging of the railroads, so that one continu ous line of communication should exist between the Ohio River and Chattanooga, General Grant took his departure for that place, where he arrived on October 23d. The sad state of things in Chattanooga, after the new command, did not last long. General Grant, soon after his arrival, was riding with Quartermaster- General Meigs along the highways, border ed with carcasses and skeletons, when they passed the de caying body of a gigantic mule. "Ah, General," said Grant, with affected sadness, there lies a dead soldier of the Quartermaster s Department." u Yes, General," re sponded Meigs, with equal gravity ; "in him you see the ruling passion strong in death exemplified ; for the old veteran has already assumed the offensive" Thus, like moonlight across black storm-clouds, break the humor and wit of great minds upon the grim aspect of war. After thfe battles of Chickamauga, the post on Lookout Mountain was abandoned by the Union troops, and was immediately taken possession of by the rebels. From this point they were enabled to shell the supply trains moving along the valley route toward Chattanooga from Bridge port, compelling our army to take supplies along the mountain roads. To reopen the valley route was General Grant s pri mary and most important design. He, therefore, while at Nashville, communicated his plans to General Hooker, and when he arrived at Chattanooga, with the assistance of his chief-engineer, Brigadier- General W. F. Smith, at once set about the work. A letter, written October 26th, communicated the gratifying result : "The reoccupation of Lookout and the reopening of the Southern line to Bridgeport have for some time been the chief aim of strategists in this department. A move- JEFF. DAVIS ON LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 375 ment of Major-General Hooker s troops from opposite Bridgeport, along the south bank of the Tennessee, through Shellmound and Whiteside, commenced a week ago. A large additional force, under Major-General Palmer spared from the army without weakening our lines joined Hooker on the march up Lookout Valley, and the combined forces effected a junction with Brigadier-Gen eral Hazen s command last night near the foot of Look out. The valley route to Bridgeport is now ours, and I am led to believe that movements in progress will give us possession of the mountain itself, and perhaps force an evacuation by Bragg s whole army ere many weeks are gone." About this time, Jeff. Davis visited the fortress on the lofty summit, which seemed to defy attack. His vulture eye swept the circle of the magnificent view, covering a part of four States. And we may believe, with something like the exultation of Satan when he showed the Messiah the kingdoms of the earth, he remarked to General Pem- berton, when his gaze came back to General Grant s arai}^ in the distance, working like beavers on their fortifica tions : " I have them now, in just the trap I set for them." To which Lieutenant-General Pemberton, who was sit ting on horseback beside him, replied, "Mr. Davis, you are commander-in-chief, and you are here. You think the enemy are in a trap, and can be captured by vigorous assault. I have been blamed for not having ordered a general attack on the enemy when they were drawing around me their lines of circumvallation at Yicksburg. Do you now order an attack upon those troops down there below us, arid I will set you my life that not one man of the attacking column will ever come back across that valley, except as a prisoner." The brilliant success of these operations relieved Chat tanooga of the prospective danger of starvation, and General Grant found time to prepare for his movements upon the enemy in his front. Stores of all kinds began to make their way into storehouse, and daily parades and drills took place in front of the works, within view of the 376 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. rebel pickets and sentries. Every thing had settled down into its quiet routine, and even the generals appeared at their ease. General Grant, who had almost recovered his strength, occupied a delightful Chattanooga residence, and, with his briar-wood pipe, walked to and fro up the streets of the town, unattended, many times unobserved, but at all times observing. Quartermaster- General Meigs had taken to a wall tent, from a regard for the fitness of things. His head-quarters were in the field, and soldiers in the field inhabit tents. Generals Thomas and Gordon Granger were workers, preparing their grand machine for the next campaign, their consultations often extending far into the night. But in the midst of this quiet lay a slumbering vol cano. General Grant had determined he would have no ene mies around him to report his movements to the rebels or to interfere with his plans ; therefore, previous to his making any advance upon the rebel positions, he issued the following order : HEAD -QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OP THE MISSISSIPPI, > IN THE FIELD, CHATTANOOGA, TENN., Nov. 5, 1863. I The habit of raiding parties of rebel cavalry visiting towns, villages, and farms where there are no Federal forces, and pillaging Union families, having become prevalent, department commanders will take immediate steps to stop the evil, or make the loss by such raids fall upon secessionists and secession sympathizers in the neighborhood where such acts are committed. For every act of violence to the person of an unarmed Union citizen, a secessionist will be arrested and held as hostage for the delivery of the of fender. For every dollar s worth of property taken from such citizens, or destroyed by raiders, an assessment will be made upon secessionists of the neighborhood, and collected by the nearest military forces, under the supervision of the commander thereof, and the amount thus collected paid over to the sufferers. When such assessments cannot be collected in money, property useful to the Government maybe taken at a fair valuation, and the amount paid in money by a disbursing officer of the Government, who will take such property upon his returns. Wealthy secession citizens will be assessed in money and provisions for the support of Union refugees who have been and may be driven from their homes and into our lines by the acts of those with whom secession citizens are in sympathy. All col lections and payments under this order will be made through disbursing OPERATIONS AT CHATTANOOGA. 377 officers of the Government, whose accounts must show all money and prop erty received under it, aod how disposed of. By order of Major-General U. S. .GRANT. This order he carried out to the letter when the op portunity offered. About the middle of November the head of General Sherman s column arrived at Chattanooga and formed a junction with the forces under General Thomas, on the right of the main army. Shortly before the time that General Sherman joined General Grant, the rebel General Longstreet made several attempts to flank the Union position several miles to the eastward of Chattanooga, with the intention of advancing into Tennessee and capturing Knoxville. The advanced forces of the Army of Eastern Tennessee had heretofore resisted Longstreet s movement at the crossing of the Little Tennessee River ; but after General Burnside had com municated with General Grant, Longstreet was allowed to advance upon Knoxville, the Union troops impeding his march as much as possible, and drawing him on with a show of resistance. The feint was well planned and finely carried out. On the 14th of November, General Longstreet, after crossing the Little Tennessee River, was attacked by a force of General Burnside s troops, who drove the rebel advance guard back upon their reserves, which were sta tioned at about a mile north of the river bank. They then retreated, while the rebels crossed their whole force and moved toward Marysville. Our forces then fell back upon Lenoir, as if to hold the railroad at that place. Three times the rebels assaulted that position on Novem ber 15th without success ; but the next morning the Union troops evacuated it and retreated to Campbell s Station. Here they again made a stand, and a fight ensued, lasting from before noon until dark. This detention of the rebels enabled us to secure our trains, which were sent within the defenses of Knoxville. Our troops once more fell back, stopped and repeated their resistance to the enemy, and after a fight again retreated in good order, until, on 378 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the 19th of November, Longstreet s forces were before the city of Knoxville, which they began to invest Burnside being safely within the works. General Grant was advised of the position of affairs, and, with his " we have them now where we want them," he prepared to move on the enemy.- A plan was formed, by the commanding General, to raise the siege of Chattanooga and get possession of Look out Mountain. This plan was submitted to his general officers, and finally adopted. An examination of the enemy s line showed that he had deliberately exposed himself to great danger. He had allowed a large portion of his army to go into East Tennessee, and he extended the remainder of his forces into lines almost as thin as a spider s thread. His exterior line upon Mission Eidgo was nearly seven miles in extent, while his inner lines of riile-pits and similar defenses running through the valleys were not less than five miles long. There were upon the line two points of importance to him ; the first, Missionary Ridge, being the key to his position, and Lookout Moun tain, an elevation valuable to Bragg as a barrier to the Union troops. It was supposed the enemy would defend the former with vigor, as the latter could be held by a small force. General Qrant was of the opinion, that, by attacking his flanks vigorously, forcing him to keep his line lengthened, and thus weakened, it would give a favorable opportunity to test the strength of the center. It was therefore decided that General Sherman, with three divisions of his own army, General Davis, of Palmer s corps, should move north of the river, to a point opposite the mouth of the Chickamauga, and at an early hour on the following morning throw a pontoon bridge across the Tennessee, and, under cover of artillery, cross and carry the heights of Missionary Ridge as far, at least, as Tunnel Hill. On the left rebel flank, General Hooker was to oper ate with three divisions, his primary object being to hold the rebels there, but authorized, in case of an opportunity presenting itself, to take possession of Lookout Mountain. In the center, General Thomas was ordered to hold Granger and Palmer s corps well in hand, to await an op- .: J. S.A PLAN OF OPERATIONS DELAYED. 379 portunity to strike at the center, whenever in the opinion of General Grant the auspicious moment presented itself. General 0. O. Howard s corps was to be moved to the north side of the river, so as to aid either Sherman or the center. But subsequently, at the suggestion of General Thomas, Howard was crossed into Chattanooga, and his corps held as a movable column in reserve. Such was the general plan of operations, subject, of course, to such modifications as the movements of the enemy might neces sitate. This plan was to have been put in execution on Satur day, November 21st, almost immediately after General Grant had ascertained that Longstreet was before Knox- ville ; but General Sherman failed to get into position on Friday, his delay being caused by heavy rains, and the partial destruction of the pontoon bridges by rafts floated down the river by the rebels. Indeed, he was prevented from getting up until the night of Monday, and only re ported himself ready for work on Tuesday morning. The 23d of November came. It was Monday morning. The previous day, prayer and praise had been heard in camp. The chaplains, and other Christian workers for the spiritual good of the soldiers, had kindly spoken to them of the glorious "Captain of our salvation." The faces of brave men had been wet with tears, as they thought of home and the loved ones there. Many letters had been written with the feeling that they might be the last messages of affection from the field of conflict. The orders passed from General Grant s head-quarters to advance toward the Ridge, alive with vigilant enemies. The pre-eminent strategy of the Leader was apparent in the very method of opening the struggle. The columns marched from their works as if on parade. Banners were borne, and bands played, and the whole aspect of the em battled host was that of ordinary review. The deceived foe looked down with comparative indifference, from hights five hundred feet above. But onward toward the rifle- pits, and to an advanced position, our forces pressed, till too late for the enemy to send to their camps for re-en forcements. 380 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Tuesday morning, November 24th, was gloomy, threat ening rain, and until quite late our forces remained inactive. On the center, Granger s and Palmer s corps maintained the silence of the night just past, and only a few guns from Port Wood disturbed the rebel center. The day was chosen for operations on the flanks, and for that purpose Hooker and Sherman began to move quite early. General Wood s splendid recormoissance to learn the enemy s movements and exact position, and the occupation of Orchard Knob, was the principal work of the day. Before sundown General Sherman had possession of three hills in semicircular form around Tunnel Hill, the end of Mission Ridge, between which and his position the railroad runs in a narrow valley. The enemy were in trenched on Tunnel Hill. During all this day General Hooker s columns had been engaged. The hero s work was to move upon the rocky sides of old Lookout Mountain, bristling with the arms of the foe. The rebels occupied the west slope and the front or spur of the moun tain, whose top is formed of perpendicular rocks about thirty feet high. By two paths the dizzy hight could be reached. One of these was through a gap, south of the river, held by the enemy ; the other by the Summertown Road, winding up the east side of the mountain, scaling the palisades by a steep and narrow cut. To get this road was General Hooker s bold design. At eight o clock in the morning his columns disappeared from the valley into the forests at the summit s base. Soon the head of the column pressed against the palisades stretching down the slope. He immediately formed in three parallel lines and ad vanced upon the enemy s rear. The surprise was com plete and bewildering. The rebels escaping upward were met with a fire from our skirmishers, who had already made the ascent. Met in flank and rear, they at length gave way, and retired to their breastworks on the east side of the mountain. It was now that the fruits of the strange movement of Hooker began to develop themselves. The Union line had moved around the spur of the mountain and on the east side with such rapidity, that the enemy stationed at GENERAL HOOKER S MOVEMENT. 381 the foot of the hill and along the river had no time to escape, and our troops began to secure them by hundreds. Every jutting rock, every thicket of undergrowth, and many a hollow tree, on examination, disclosed their secrets in the shape of prisoners. Each regiment engaged seemed to have secured enough to have filled its ranks, and the. provost-marshal, who appeared to take charge of them, soon found his hands full. The number thus captured, General Hooker estimated on the spot at two thousand, but on counting them it was found the exact number secured was only one thousand three hundred and sixty. Sending two regiments to hold the road which crosses the spur of the mountain from the east, General Hooker advanced the rest of his forces to the front line. It was no place to maneuver columns. Each man and company fought upon his and its "own hook." From Chattanooga nothing was visible save the misty smoke which enveloped and hid the mountain. But beneath this the combatants saw each other, and here they continued to fight with desperation until four o clock, when there came a tide in Hooker s fortune which he did not fail to take at the flood. The skirmish line was enabled, under cover of the trees which grew along that part of the ridge, to advance much nearer the rebel line than those in the immediate front of the enemy and the open field. It was also upon the flank of the position ; and the weakness of the enemy having compelled him to contract his left, a lodgment was found very near their rifle-pits. General Hooker, upon being informed of this, at four o clock ordered a charge of the line, and through a heavy and rapid fire, kept up for five long minutes and minutes are sometimes very long the men dashed forward upon, over, and into the aban doned pits. The enemy had seen the long line of steel that glittered even amid the rain which was pouring upon them, and they couldn t stand that. They also saw troops upon their left flank, and, filled with that holy horror which old soldiers have for "flank movements," they couldn t stand that. They fell back, abandoning works, artillery, and position, but still holding the important Summertown Koad. 382 MFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. But the enemy, though flanked and overpowered, did not appear disposed to leave us in quiet possession of his works and guns. He hastily re-formed his lines and prepared to assault in turn; The Unionists had hardly occupied the captured position, or been able to remove the captured guns, before the enemy returned to the attack. He pressed forward with great vigor, and gained ground very rapidly at first, but found in his way the same obstacle of the open field, while he did not have the ad vantage of superior numbers. As soon as it came to close work, his rapidly advancing lines were halted very suddenly by the terrible fire which was now poured in upon him. He continued, however, to fire rapidly, and with some execution upon our line, but would have been ultimately repulsed without other assistance, had not a very serious obstacle presented itself. Men in line of battle very soon expend their ammuni tion. In a skirmishing engagement, like that they were then having, they dispose of it even more rapidly. We were nearly out of ammunition, and the commanding officer had serious fears he would have to relinquish pos session of the works if his cartridge-boxes were not soon replenished. General Hooker, anticipating this, had sent for ammunition at an early hour after getting possession of the road across the spur of the mountain ; but the difficul ties of the uncertain pontoon bridges had prevented his getting any. He again asked for it, and this time it came, and at the opportune moment. The men were beginning to fall out of line occasionally, entirely out of ammunition ; for when a man puts his hand behind him, and into his cartridge-box, to find no cartridges there, a good deal of his confidence, if not courage, oozes out at the ends of his fingers, with which he thought to grasp the death-dealing messenger. The line was beginning to be thinned by men who had fired their sixty rounds, when the ammunition which General Thomas had sent sprang across Chattanooga Creek. The enemy had begun to perceive his advantage and to push forward, when this ammunition marched up the hill. The enemy had even ventured upon a shout of assured victory, when this ammunition deployed into line THE ENEMY REPULSED. 383 and double-quicked -across the open field, and sprang into the vacated places. There were one hundred and twenty thousand rounds of it, strapped upon the backs of as good men as had stayed with Thomas at Chickamauga, and in ten minutes after it reached the works it had repulsed the enemy ! The re-enforcements which so opportunely arrived consisted of a brigade of the Fourteenth Corps, and upon it devolved the remainder of the labor of the day. It was dark by the time the enemy were repulsed, and those who stayed in Chattanooga describe this fight as the most magnificent view of the grand panorama of war which we have just witnessed. It was just beginning to be dark enough to see the flash of the muskets, and still light enough to distinguish the general outline of the con tending masses. The mountain was lit up by the fires of the men in the second line, and the flash of musketry and artillery. An unearthly noise rose from the mountain, as if the old monster were groaning with the punishment the pigmy combatants inflicted upon him as well as upon each other. And during it all, the great guns on the summit continued, as in rage, to bellow defiance at the smaller guns of Moccasin Point, which, with lighter tone, and more rapidly, .as if mocking the imbecility of their giant enemy, continued to lire till the day roared itself into darkness. The enemy fell back after his repulse to a point covering the Summertown ascent to the summit of the mountain, and for the remainder of the night confined him self to the defense of that defile and to the evacuation of the mountain. Subsequently, about midnight, the enemy, to cover his retreat, made an assault upon the Union lines, but, though they did some execution, they were handsomely repulsed. General Hooker made a great reputation by this attack with the men of the Army of the Cumberland. As his lines would advance after night, the men could see his fires springing up and locating his new line. As each line became developed by these fires, those on the mountain could plainly distinguish the cheers of their comrades below. One of the expressions used by a private who 384 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. was watching the fires from Orchard Knob has already grown into the dignity of a camp proverb. On seeing the line of camp-fires advanced to Carlin s house, and beyond the rifle-pits of the enemy, a soldier in General Wood s command sprang up from his reclining position on Orchard Knob, and exclaimed : "Look at old Hooker ! Don t he fight for < keeps f" The sequel of the fight the morning s handsome epi logue to the night s drama is already known. Hooker found the enemy gone, and the assault of Lookout Moun tain had not been in vain. The following is General Grant s modest dispatch with regard to the operations of the second day : CHATTANOOGA, November 24 6 p. M. Major-General H. W. HALLECK, General-in-Chief, Washington, D. C. The fighting to-day progressed favorably. General Sherman carried the end of Missionary Ridge, and his right is now at the tunnel, and his left at Chickamauga Creek. The troops from Lookout Valley carried the point of the mountain, and now hold the eastern slope and point high up. I cannot yet tell the amount of casualties, but our loss is not heavy. General Hooker reports two thousand prisoners taken, besides which a small number have fallen into our hands from Missionary Ridge. U. S. GRANT, Major-General. General Grant says nothing about himself in the struggle, although, notwithstanding his crippled condition, he kept the field under his eye almost constantly, within cannon shot of the enemy. We add the rebel dispatch concerning the contest : MISSION KIDGE, November 24, 1863. To General S. COOPER : We have had a prolonged struggle for Lookout Mountain to-day, and sustained considerable loss in one division. Elsewhere the enemy has only maneuvered for position. BRAXTON BRAGG, General. The third day brought a repetition of the varying for tunes and awfully sublime scenes of warfare, unrivaled in the annals of the past. Near Fort Buckner, the Union Brigade, under a rocky ridge which protected them from bullets, met a shower of stones hurled upon them from above. CtflON AND REBEL DISPATCHES. 385 Notwithstanding General Grant s accident at Carroll- ton, no better horseman drew the rein in either army. It was a common thing on this bloody field of Chattanooga, to see his steed, touched with the spur, dash off at a pace that left his staff stringing along behind, "like the tail of a kite." He went with the speed of the wind from one part of the hail- swept plain to another. When our victorious- troops had fairly routed the as tonished Bragg on Missionary Ridge, a lady, whose resi dence was within his lines, in a] arm said to him : "What are you going to do with me, general^" Eeplied the bragging rebel : c Lord, madam ! the Yankees will never dare to come up here." Relating the incident to our "boys," she added, blub bering : And it was not fifteen minutes before you were all around here." The sweep of General Hooker s column around the spur of Lookout, surprising the enemy, till he reached the dizzy hights and fought above the clouds of the misty day, was a day of heroism which alone would have made the struggle and his name immortal. You have here the brief dispatches of the opposing generals : CHATTANOOGA, November 25, 1863 7.15 p. M. Major-General H. W. HALLEOK, General-in-Chief: Although the battle lasted from early dawn till dark this evening, I believe I am not premature in announcing a complete victory over Bragg. Lookout Mountain top, all the rifle-pits in Chattanooga Valley, and Missionary Ridge entire, have been carried, and are now held by us. U. S. GRANT, Major-General. CHICKAMAUGA, November 25, 1863. General S. COOPER, Adjutant and Inspector-General : After several unsuccessful assaults on our lines to-day, the enemy car ried the left center about four o clock. The whole left soon gave way in considerable disorder. The right maintained its ground, and repelled every attack. I am withdrawing all to this point. BRAXTON BRAGG. Wrote Quartermaster-General Meigs to Secretary Stanton : " Bragg s remaining troops left early in the night, and the battle of Chattanooga, after days of maneuvering and 25 386 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. fighting, was won. The strength of the rebellion in the center is broken. Burnside is relieved from danger in East Tennessee. Kentucky and Tennessee are rescued. Georgia and the Southeast are threatened in the rear, and another victory is added to the chapter of Unconditional Surrender Grant. "To-night the estimate of captures is several thousand prisoners and thirty pieces of artillery. " Our loss for so great a victory is not severe. " Bragg is firing the railroad as he retreats toward Dai- ton. Sherman is in hot pursuit. 1 To-day I viewed the battle-field, which extends for six miles along Missionary Ridge, and for several miles on Lookout Mountain. " Probably not so well-directed, so well-ordered a battle has taken place during the war. But one assault was re pulsed ; but that assault, by calling to that point the rebel reserves, prevented them repulsing any of the others. " A few days since, Bragg sent to General Grant a flag of truce, advising him that it would be prudent to remove any non-combatants who might be still in Chattanooga. No reply has been returned : but the* combatants having removed from the vicinity, it is probable that non-combat ants can remain without imprudence." It is related of General Scott, the old veteran and hero of the last war with England (which, we fear, will not long be the last), that in conversation with a gentleman in office at Washington, about the victories, he expressed his surprise at General Grant s success. He remarked : " General Grant has shown more military skill than any other general on our side. And I am the more sur prised, as I can only remember him in the Mexican war as a young lieutenant of undoubted courage, but giving no promise whatever of any thing beyond ordinary abilities." Among the heroes who fell at Chattanooga, was Col onel O Meara, of the Irish Legion. When General Grant heard that the body was coffined for its homeward jour ney, he hastened to the spot where it lay. Standing beside it, he said : REPORT OF BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 337 "Lift the coffin-lid, that I may take a last look at the gallant colonel of the Irish Legion." 4 He was touched at the sight of one whom lie had honored and publicly thanked before he had been two months in the Army of the Tennessee. O Meara s defense of the trestlework, a few miles north of Holly Springs, Miss., when Van Dorn made a raid there in December, 1862, and which saved Grant s army from starvation, was never forgotten by the General. The spectators were moved at the sad and touching farewell of the Commander of the Department of the Mississippi from the corpse of a young [rish soldier., who had forfeited his life to the belief that 4 the highest and best duty of all, native or foreign born, was to stand by the flag which is the hope of the exile, the emblem of philanthropy, and the ensign of the American people. Of the great battles which took place in the vicinity of Chattanooga, no better account could be given than that which is to be found in the following official report of the Commanding General ; HE AD -QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF THE MISSISSIPPI, i IN FIELD, CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE, December 23, 1803. } Colonel J. G. KELTON, Assistant Adjutant- General, Washington, D. C. : COLONEL : In pursuance of General Orders No. 837, War Department, of date, Washington, October 16, 1863, delivered to me by the Secretary of War, at Louisville, Kentucky, on the 18th of the same month, I assumed command of the "Military Division of the Mississippi," comprising the Departments of the Ohio, the Cumberland, and the Tennessee, and tele graphed the order assuming command, together with the order of the War Department referred to, to Major-General A. E. Burnside, at Knoxville, and Major-General W. S. Rosecrans, at Chattanooga. My action in telegraphing these orders to Chattanooga, in advance of my arrival there, was induced by information furnished me by the Secre tary of War of the difficulties with which the Army of the Cumberland had to contend, in supplying itself over a long, mountainous, and almost im passable road, from Stephenson, Alabama, to Chattanooga, Tennessee, and his fears that General Rosecrans would fall back to the north side of the Tennessee River. To guard further against the possibility of the Secretary s fears, I also telegraphed to Major-General Thomas on the 19th of October, from Louisville, to hold Chattanooga at all hazards, and that I would be there as soon as possible. To which he replied on the same date, " I will hold the town till we starve." 388 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Proceeding directly to Chattanooga, I arrived there on the 28d of Octo ber, and found that General Thomas had, immediately on being placed in command of the Department of the Cumberland, ordered the concentra tion of Major-General Hooker s command at Bridgeport, preparatory to securing the river and main wagon-road between that place and Brown s Ferry, immediately below Lookout Mountain. The next morning after ray arrival at Chattanooga, in company with Thomas and Brigadier-General W. F. Smith, Chief Engineer, I made a reconnoissance of Brown s Ferry, and the hills on the south side of the river and at the inouth of Lookout Valley. After the reconnoissance, the plan agreed upon was for Hooker to cross at Bridgeport to the south side of the river, with all the force that could be spared from the railroad, and move on the main wagon-road, by way of "Whitesides, to Wauhatchie, in Lookout Valley. Major-General J. M. Palmer was to proceed, by the only practicable route north of the river, from his position opposite Chattanooga to a point on the north bank of the Tennessee River and opposite Whitesides, then to cross to the south side, to hold the road passed over by Hooker. In the mean time, and before the enemy could be apprised of our intention, a force under the direction of Brigadier-General W. F. Smith, Chief Engineer, was to be thrown across the river at or near Brown s Ferry, to seize the range of hills at the month of Lookout Valley, covering the Brown s Ferry road, and orders were given accordingly. It was known that the enemy held the north end of Lookout Valley with a brigade of troops, and the road leading around the foot of the moun tain from their main camps in Chattanooga Valley to Lookout Valley. Holding these advantages, he would have had but little difficulty in con centrating a sufficient force to have defeated or driven Hooker back. To remedy this, the seizure of the range of hills at the mouth of Lookout Val ley, and covering the Brown s Ferry road, was deemed of the highest importance. This, by the use of pontoon bridges at Chattanooga and Brown s Ferry, would secure to us, by the north bank of the river, across Moccasin Point, a shorter line by which to re-enforce our troops in Look out Valley, than the narrow and tortuous road around the foot of Lookout Mountain afforded the enemy for re-enforcing his. The force detailed for the expedition consisted of four thousand men, under command of General Smith, Chief Engineer ; eighteen hundred of which, under Brigadier-General W. B. Hazen, in sixty pontoon boats, con taining thirty armed men each, floated quietly from Chattanooga, past the enemy s pickets, to the foot of Lookout Mountain, on the night of the 27th of October, landed on the south side of the river at Brown s Ferry, sur prised the enemy s pickets stationed there, and seized the hills covering the ferry, without the loss of a man killed, and but four or five wounded. The remainder of the force, together with the materials for a bridge, was moved by the north bank of the river across Moccasin Point to Brown s Ferry without attracting the attention of the enemy, and before day dawn ed the whole force was ferried to tho south bank of the river, and the almost inaccessible hights, rising from Lookout Valley at its outlet to the REPORT OF BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 389 river and below the mouth of Lookout Creek, were secured. By ten o clock A. M. an excellent pontoon bridge was laid across the river at Brown s Ferry, thus securing to us the end of the desired road nearest the enemy s forces, and a shorter line over which to pass troops, if a battle became inevitable. Positions were taken up by our troops from which they could not have been driven except by vastly superior forces, and then only with great loss to the enemy. Our artillery was placed in such a position as to completely command the roads leading from the enemy s main camps in Chattanooga Valley to Lookout Valley. On the 28th, Hooker emerged into Lookout Valley at TVauhatchie, by the direct road from Bridgeport, by way of Whitesides to Chattanooga, with the Eleventh Army Corps, under Major-General Howard, and Geary s division of the Twelfth Army Corps, and proceeded to take up positions for the defense of the road from Whitesides, over which he had marched, and also the road leading from Brown s Ferry to Kelly s Ferry, throwing the left of Howard s corps forward to Brown s Ferry. The division that start- eel, under command of Palmer, for Whitesides, reached its destination, and took up the position intended in the original plan of this movement. These movements, so successfully executed, secured to us two comparatively good lines by which to obtain supplies from the terminus of the railroad at Bridgeport, namely: the main wagon-road by way of Whitesides, Wauhat- chie, and Brown s Ferry, distant but twenty-eight miles, and the Kelly s Ferry and Brown s Ferry roads, which, by the use of the river from Bridge port to Kelly s Ferry, reduced the distance for wagoning to but eight miles. Up to this period our forces at Chattanooga were practically invested, the enemy s lines extending from the Tennessee River above Chattanooga to the river at and below the point of Lookout Mountain below Chatta nooga, with the south bank of the river picketed to near Bridgeport, his m;iin force being fortified in Chattanooga Valley, at the foot of and on Mis sion Ridge and Lookout Mountain, and a brigade in Lookout Valley. True, we held possession of the country north of the river, but it was from sixty to seventy miles over the most impracticable roads to carry supplies. The artillery horses and mules had become so reduced by starvation that they could not have been relied on for moving any thing. An attempt .at retreat must have been with men alone, and with only such supplies as they could carry. A retreat would have been almost certain annihilation, for the enemy, occupying positions within gunshot of and overlooking our very fortifications, would unquestionably have pursued our retreating forces. Already more than ten thousand animals had perished in supplying half rations to the troops by the long and tedious route from Stevenson and Bridgeport to Chattanooga, over Waldron s Ridge. They could not have been supplied another week. The enemy was evidently fully apprised of our condition in Chattanooga, and of the necessity of our establishing a new and shorter lino by which to obtain supplies, if we would maintain our position ; and so fully was he impressed with the importance of keeping from us theso lines lost to him by surprise, and in a manner he little dreamed of that, in order to regain 390 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. possession of them, a night attack was made by a portion of Longstreet s forces on a portion of Hooker s troops (Geary s division of the Twelfth Corps), the first night after Hooker s arrival in the valley. This attack failed, however, and Howard s corps, which was moving to the assistance of Geary, finding that it was not required hy him, carried the remaining hights held by the enemy west of Lookout Creek. This gave us quiet possession of the lines of communication heretofore described, south of the Tennessee River. Of these operations I cannot speak more particularly, the sub-reports having been sent to Washington without passing through my hands. By the use of two steamboats, one of which had been left at Chatta nooga by the enemy, and fell into our hands, and one that had been built by us at Bridgeport and Kelly s Ferry, we were enabled to obtain supplies with but eight miles of wagoning. The capacity of the railroad and steam boats was not sufficient, however, to supply all the wants of the army, but actual suffering was prevented. Ascertaining from scouts and deserters that Bragg was detaching Long- street from the front, and moving him in the direction of Knoxville, Ten nessee, evidently to attack Burn side, and feeling strongly the necessity of some move that would compel him to retain all his forces and recall those he had detached, directions were given for a movement against Mission Ridge, with a view to carrying it, and threatening the enemy s communica tion with Longstreet, of which I informed Burnside by telegraph on the 7th of November. After a thorough reconnoissance of the ground, how ever, it was deemed utterly impracticable to make the move until Sherman could got up, because of the inadequacy of our force, and the condition of the animals then at Chattanooga ; and I was forced to leave Burnside for the present to contend against superior forces of the enemy until the arri val of Sherman, with his men and means of transportation. In the mean time, reconnoissances were made and plans matured for operations. Dis patches were sent to Sherman, informing him of the movement of Long- street, and the necessity of his immediate presence at Chattanooga. On the 14th of November, 1863, I telegraphed to J3urnside as fol lows : u Your dispatch and Dana s just received. Being there, you can tell better how to resist Longstreet s attack than I can direct. With your showing, you had better give up Kingston at the last moment, and save the most productive part of your possessions. Every arrangement is now mado to throw Sherman s force across the river, just at and below the mouth of Chickamauga Creek. As soon as it arrives, Thomas will attack on his left at the same time, and together it is expected to carry Mission Ridge, and from there push a force on to the railroad, between Cleveland and Dalton. Hooker will at the same time attack, and, if he can, carry Lookout Moun tain. The enemy now seems to be looking for an attack on his left flank. This favors us. To further confirm this, Sherman s advance division will march direct from Whitesides to Trenton. Tho remainder of his force will over a new road just made from Whitesides to Kelly s Ferry, this REPORT OF BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 3D1 being concealed from the enemy, and leave him to suppose the whole force is going up Lookout Valley. Sherman s advance has only just reached Bridgeport-. The rear will only reach there on the 16th. This will bring it to the 19th as the earliest day for making the combined movement, as desired. Inform me if you think you can sustain yourself until that time. I can hardly conceive of the enemy breaking through at Kingston, and pushing for Kentucky. If they should, however, a new problem would be left, for solution. Thomas has ordered a division of cavalry to the vicinity of Sparta. I will ascertain if they have started, and inform you. It will be entirely out of the question to send you ten thousand men ; not because they cannot be spared, but how could they be fed after they got one day east of here? U. S. GRANT, Major-General. u To Major-General A. E. BURNSIDE." On the 15th, having received from the General-in-chief a dispatch of date the 14th, in reference to Burnside s position, the danger of his abandonment of East Tennessee, unless immediate relief was afforded, and the terrible mis fortune such a result would be to our arms, and also dispatches from Mr. 0. A. Dana, Assistant Secretary of War, and Colonel Wilson of my staff, sent at the instance of General Burnside, informing me more fully of the condition of affairs, as detailed to them" by him, I telegraphed him as fol lows : "CHATTANOOGA, November 15, 1863. "I do not know how to impress on you the necessity of holding on to East Tennessee in strong enough terms. According to the dispatches of Mr. Dana and Colonel Wilson, it would seem that you should, if pressed to do it, hold on to Knoxville and that portion of the valley you will neces sarily possess, holding to that point. Should Longstreet move his whole force across the Little Tennessee, an effort should be made to cut his pon toons on that stream, even if it sacrificed half the cavalry of the Ohio Army. By holding on, and placing Longstreet between the Little Tennes see and Knoxville, he should not be allowed to escape with an army capa ble of doing any thing this winter. I can hardly conceive the necessity of retreating from East Tennessee. If I did at all, it would be after losing most of the army, and then the necessity would suggest the route. I will not attempt to lay out a line of retreat. Kingston, looking at the map, I thought of more importance than any one point in East Tennessee. But, my attc-ntion being called more closely to it, I can see that it might be passed by, and Knoxville and the rich valley about it possessed, ignoring that place entirely. I should not think it advisable to concentrate a force near Little Tennessee to resist the crossing, if it would be in danger of cap ture, but I would harass and embarrass progress in every way possible, reflecting on the fact that the Army of the Ohio is not the only army to resist the onward progress of the enemy. "U. S. GBANT, Major-General. "To Major-General A. E. BUENSIDE." 392 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Previous reconnoissances, made first by Brigadier-General "VY. F. Smith, Chief Engineer, and afterward by Generals Thomas, Sherman, and myself, in company with him, of the country opposite Chattanooga and north of the Tennessee River, extending as far east as the mouth of the South Chickamauga and the north end of Mission Ridge, so far as the same could be made from the north bank of the river without exciting suspicious on the part of the enemy, showed good roads from Brown s Ferry up the river and back of the first range of hills opposite Chattanooga, and out of view of the enemy s positions. Troops crossing the bridge at Brown s Ferry could bo seen, and their numbers estimated by the enemy; but not seeing any thing further of them as they passed up in rear of these hills, he would necessarily be at a loss to know whether they Avere moving to Knoxville, or held on the north side of the river for future operations at Chattanooga. It also showed that the north end of Mission Ridge was imperfectly guarded, and that the banks of the river, from the mouth of South Chicka mauga Creek westward to his main line in front of Chattanooga, were watched only by a small cavalry picket. This determined the plan of operations indicated in my dispatch of the 14th to Burnside. Upon further consideration the great object being to mass all the forces possible against one given point, namely, Mission Ridge, converging toward the north end of it it was deemed best to change the original plan, so far as it contemplated Hooker s attack on Lookout Mountain, which would give us Howard s corps of his command to aid in this pur pose ; and on the 18th the following instructions were given Thomas : "All preparations should be made for attacking the enemy s position on Mission Ridge by Saturday at daylight. Not being provided with a map giving names of roads, spurs of the mountain, and other places, such definite instructions can not be given as might be desirable. However, the general plan, you understand, is for Sherman, with the force brought with him strengthened by a division from your command, to effect a crossing of the Tennessee River just below the mouth of Chickamauga his crossing to be protected by artillery from the bights on the north bank of the river (to be located by your Chief of Artillery), and to secure the hights from the northern extremity to about the railroad tunnel, before the enemy can concentrate against him. You will co-operate with Sherman. The troops in Chattanooga Valley should be well concentrated on your left flank, leaving only the necessary force to defend the fortifications on the right and center, and a movable column of one division in readiness to move wherever ordered. This division should show itself as threateningly as possible on the most practicable line for making an attack up the valley. Your effort then will be to form a junction with Sherman, making your advance well toward the northern end of Mission Ridge, and moving as near simultaneously with him as possible. The junction once formed, and the Ridge carried, communications will be at once established between the two armies, by roads on the south bank of the river. Further movements will then depend on those of the enemy. Lookout Valley, I think, will be easily held by Geary s division, and what troops you may still have then REPORT OP BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 393 belonging to the old Army of the Cumberland. Howard s corps can then be held in readiness to act either with you at Chattanooga or with Sher man. It should be marched on Friday night to a position on the north side of the river, not lower down than the first pontoon bridge, and then held in readiness for such orders as may become necessary. All these troops will be provided with two days cooked rations in haversacks, and one hundred rounds of ammunition on the person of each infantry soldier. Special care should be taken by all officers to see that ammunition is not Avasted or unnecessarily fired away. You will call on the Engineer Department for such preparations as you may deem necessary for carrying your infantry and artillery over the creek. "TJ. S. GRANT, Major -General. "To Major-General GEORGE II. THOMAS/ A copy of these instructions was furnished Sherman, with the following communication : "Inclosed herewith I send you a copy of instructions to Major-General Thomas. You having been over the ground in person, and having heard the whole mailer discussed, further instructions will not be necessary for you. It is particularly desirable that a force should be got through to the railroad between Cleveland and Dalton, and Longstreet thus cut off from communication with the South ; but, being confronted by a large force here, strongly located, it is not easy to tell how this is to be effected, until the result of our first effort is known. I will add, however, Avhat is not shown in my instructions to Thomas, that a brigade of cavalry has been ordered here, which, if it arrives in time, will be thrown across the Ten nessee above Chickamauga, and .may be able to make the trip to Cleveland, or thereabouts. "IT. S. GRANT, Major-General. " To Major-General W. T. SHERMAN." Sherman s forces were moved from Bridgeport by way of Whitesides one division threatening the enemy s left flank, in the direction of Trenton crossing at Brown s Ferry, up the north bank of the Tennessee, to near the mouth of South Chickamauga, where they were kept concealed from the enemy until they were ready to force a crossing. Pontoons for throw ing a bridge across the -river were built and placed in North Chickamauga, near its mouth, a few miles farther up, without attracting the attention of the enemy. It was expected we would be able to effect the crossing on the 21st of November; but, owing to heavy rains, Sherman was unable to get up until the afternoon of the 23d, and then only with General Morgan L. Smith s, John E. Smith s, and Hugh Ewing s divisions of the Fifteenth Corps, under command of Major-General Frank P. Blair, of his army. The pontoon bridge at Brown s Ferry having been broken by the drift conse quent upon the rise in the river, and rafts sent down by the enemy, the other division Osterhaus s was detained on the south side, and was, on the night of the 23d, ordered, unless it could get across by 8 o clock the 394 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. next morning, to report to Hooker, who was instructed, in this event, to attack Lookout Mountain, as contemplated in the original plan. A deserter from the rebel army, who came into our lines on the night of the 22d of November, reported Bragg falling hack. The following letter from Bragg, received by flag of truce, on the 20th, tended to confirm this report : " HEAD-QITAKTEKS ARMY OF TENNESSEE, i " IN THE FIELD, November 20, 1863. j "Major-General U. S. GRANT, commanding United States Forces at Chattanooga : " General : As there may be still some non-combatants in Chattanooga, I deem it proper to notify you that prudence would dictate their early with drawal. " I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, " BEAXTON BRAGG, General commanding. Not being willing that he should get his army off in good order. Thomas was directed, early on the morning of the 28d, to ascertain the truth or falsity of this report, by driving in his pickets, and making him develop his lines. This he did with the troops stationed at Chattanooga, and Howard s corps (which had been brought into Chattanooga because of the apprehended danger to our pontoon bridges from the rise in the river, and the enemy s rafts), in the most gallant style, driving the enemy from his first line, securing to us what is known as "Indian Hill," or "Orchard Knoll," and the low range of hills south of it. These points were fortified during the night, and artillery put in position on them. Tho report of this deserter was evidently not intended to deceive, but he had mistaken Bragg s movements. It was afterward ascertained that one division of Buckner s corps had gone to join Longstreet, and a second division of the same corps had started, but w.as brought back in conse quence of our attack. On the night of the 23d of November, Sherman, with three divisions of his army, strengthened by Davis s division of Thomas s, which had been stationed along the north bank of the river, convenient to where the cross ing was to be effected, was ready for operations. At an hour sufficiently early to secure the south bank of the river, just below the mouth of South Chickamauga, by dawn of day, the pontoons in North Chickamaiigo. were loaded with thirty armed men each, who floated quietly past tho enemy s pickets, landed, and captured all but one of the guard, twenty in number, before the enemy was aware of the presence of a foe. The steamboat Duiibar, with a barge in tow, after having finished ferrying across the river the horses procured from Sherman, with which to move Thomas s artillery, was sent up from Chattanooga to aid in crossing artil lery and troops, and by daylight of the morning of the 26th of November eight thousand men were on the south side of the Tennessee, and fortified in rifle-trenches. By 12 o clock M., the pontoon bridges across the Tennessee and Chickamauga were laid, and the remainder of Sherman s force crossed REPORT OF BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 393 over ; and at half-past 3 P. M. the whole of the northern extremity of Mission Ridge, near the railroad tunnel, was in Sherman s possession. During the night he fortified the position thus secured, making it equal, if not superior in strength, to that held by the enemy. By three o clock of the same day, Colonel Long, with his brigade of cavalry, of Thomas s army, crossed to the south side of the Tennessee, and to the north of South Chickamauga Creek, and made a raid on the enemy s lines of communication. He burned Tyner s Station, with many stores, cut the railroad at Cleveland, captured near a hundred wagons and over two hundred prisoners. His own loss was small. Hooker carried out the part assigned to him for this day equal to the most sanguine expectations. "With Geary s division (Twelfth Corps), and two brigades of Stanley s division (Fourth Corps) of Thomas s army, and Osterhaus s division (Fifteenth Corps) of Sherman s army, he scaled the western slope of Lookout Mountain, drove the enemy from his rifle-pits OD the northern extremity and slope of the mountain, capturing many prison ers, without serious loss. Thomas having done on the 23d, with his troops in Chattanooga, what was intended for the 24th, bettered and strengthened his advanced posi tions during the day, and pushed the Eleventh Corps forward along the south bank of the Tennessee River across Citico Creek, one brigade of which, with Howard in person, reached Sherman just as he had completed the crossing of the river. When Hooker emerged in sight of the northern extremity of Lookout Mountain, Carlin s brigade, of the Fourteenth Corps, was ordered to cross Chattanooga Creek, and form a junction with him. This was effected late in the evening, and after considerable fighting. Thus, on the night of the 24th, our force maintained an unbroken line, with open communications from the north end of Lookout Mountain through Chattanooga Valley to the north end of Mission Ridge. On the morning of the 25th, Hooker took possession of the mountain- top with a small force, and with the remainder of his command, in pursu ance of orders, swept across Chattanooga Valley, now abandoned by the enemy, to Rossville. In this march he was detained four hours building a bridge across Chattanooga Creek. From Rossville he ascended Mission Ridge, and moved southward toward the center of that now shortened line. Sherman s attack upon the enemy s most northern and most vital point was vigorously kept up all day. The assaulting column advanced to the very rifle-pits of the enemy, and held their position firmly and without wavering. The right of the assaulting column being exposed to the danger of being turned, two brigades were sent to its support. These advanced in tho most gallant manner over an open field on the mountain-side to near the works of the enemy, and lay there partially covered from fire for some time. The right of these two brigades rested near the head of a ravine or gorge in the mountain-side, which the enemy took advantage of, and sent troops covered from view below them, and to their right rear. Being 396 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. unexpectedly fired into from this direction, they fell back across the open field below them, and re-formed in good order in the edge of the timber. The column which attacked them was speedily driven, to its intrenchments by the assaulting column proper. Early on the morning of the 25th, the remainder of Howard s corps reported to Sherman, and constituted a part of his forces during that day s battle, the pursuit and subsequent advance for the relief of Knoxville. Sherman s position riot only threatened the right flank of the enemy, but from his occupying a line across the mountain, and to the railroad bridge across Chickamauga Creek his rear and stores at Chickamauga Station. This caused the enemy to mass heavily against him. This move ment of his being plainly seen from the position I occupied on Orchard Knoll, Baird s division of the Fourteenth Corps was ordered to Sherman s support ; but, receiving a note from Sherman informing me that he had all the force necessary, Baird was put in position on Thomas s left. The appearance of Hooker s column was at this time anxiously looked for and momentarily expected, moving north of the Ridge, with his left in Chattanooga Valley, and his right east of the Ridge. His approach was intended as the signal for storming the Ridge in the center with strong columns; but the time necessarily consumed in the construction of the bridge near Chattanooga Creek detained him to a later hour than was ex pected. Being satisfied from the latest information from him that he must by this time be on his way from Rossville, though not yet in sight, and dis covering that the enemy, in his desperation to defeat or resist the progress of Sherman, was weakening his center on Mission Ridge, determined me to order the advance at once. Thomas was accordingly directed to move for ward his troops, constituting our center Baird s division (Fourteenth Corps), Wood s and Sheridan s divisions (Fourth Corps), and Johnson s division (Fourteenth Corps), with a double line of skirmishers thrown out, followed in easy supporting distance by the whole force and carry the rifle-pits at the foot of Mission Ridge, and, when carried, to re-form his lines in the rifle-pits and advance to the top of the Ridge. These troops moved forward and drove the enemy from the rifle-pits at the base of the Ridge like bees from a hive stopped but a moment until the whole were in line, and commenced the ascent of the mountain from right to left almost simultaneously, following closely the retreating enemy without further orders. They encountered a fearful volley of grape and canister from nearly thirty pieces of artillery, and musketry from well-filled rifle- pits on the summit of the Ridge. Not a waver, however, was seen in all that long line of brave men. Their progress was steadily onward until the summit was in their possession. In this charge the casualties were remark ably few for the fire encountered. I can account for this only on the theory that the enemy s surprise at the audacity of such a charge caused confusion, and purposeless aiming of their pieces. The nearness of night, and the enemy still resisting the advance of Thomas s left, prevented a general pursuit that night, but Sheridan pushed forward to Mission Mills. REPORT OF BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 397 The resistance on Thomas s left being overcome, the enemy abandoned his position near the railroad tunnel in front of Sherman, and by 12 o clock at night was in full retreat ; and the whole of his strong positions on Look out Mountain, Chattanooga Valley, and Mission Ridge were in our possession, together with a large number of prisoners, artillery, and small arms. Thomas was directed to get Granger, with his corps, and detachments enough from other commands, including the force available at Kingston, to make 20,000 men, in readiness to go to the relief of Knoxville, upon the termination of the battle of Chattanooga ; these troops to take with them four days rations, and a steamboat, loaded with rations, to follow up the river. On the evening of the 25th of November, orders were given to both Thomas and Sherman to pursue the enemy early the next morning with all their available force, except that under Granger, intended for the relief of Knoxville. On the morning of the 26th, Sherman advanced by way of Chicka- mauga Station, and Thomas s forces, under Hooker and Palmer, moved on the Rossville road toward Grayville and Ringgold. The advance of Thomas s forces reached Hinggold on the morning of the 27th, when they found the enemy in strong position in the gorge and on the crest of Taylor s Ridge, from which they dislodged him after a severe .fight, in which we lost heavily in valuable office-rs and men, and continued the pursuit that day until near Tunnel Hill, a distance of twenty miles from Chattanooga. Davis s division (Fourteenth Corps) of Sherman s column reached Ringgold about noon of the same day. Howard s corps was sent by Sher man to Red Clay, to destroy the railroad between Dalton and Cleveland, and thus cut off Bragg s communication with Longstreet, which was suc cessfully accomplished. Had it not been for the imperative necessity of relieving Burnside, I would have pursued the broken and demoralized retreating enemy as long- as supplies could have been found in the country. But my advices were that Burnside s supplies could only last until the 3d of December. It was already getting late to afford the necessary relief. I determined, therefore, to pursue no farther. Hooker was directed to hold the position he then occupied until the night of the 30th, but to go no farther south at the ex pense of a fiirht. Sherman was directed to march to the railroad crossing of the Iliawassee, to protect Granger s flank until he was across that stream, and to prevent further re-enforcements being sent by that route into East Tennessee. Returning from the front on the 28th, I found that Granger had not yet got off, nor would he have the number of men I had directed. Besides, he moved with reluctance and complaint. I therefore determined, not withstanding the fact that two divisions of Sherman s forces had marched from Memphis, and had gone into battle immediately on their arrival at Chattanooga, to send him with his command ; and orders in accordance therewith were sent him at Calhoun, to assume command of the troops 398 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. with Granger, in addition to those with him, and proceed with all possible dispatch to the relief of Burnside. General Elliott had been ordered by Thomas, on the 26th of Novem ber, to proceed from Alexandria, Tennessee, to Knoxville, with his cavalry- division, to aid in the relief of that place. The approach of Sherman caused Longstreet to raise the siege of Knoxville and retreat eastward on the night of the 6th of December. Sherman succeeded in throwing his cavalry into Knoxville on the night of the 3d. Sherman arrived in person at Knoxville on the 5th, and after a con ference with Burnside in reference to "organizing a pursuing force large enough to overtake the enemy, and beat him or drive him out of the State," Burnside was of the opinion that the corps of Granger, in conjunc tion with his own command, was sufficient for that purpose, and on the 7th addressed to Sherman the following communication : " KNOXVILLE, December 7, 1863. 44 To Major-General SHERMAN : 44 1 desire to express to you and to your command my most hearty thanks and gratitude for your promptness in coming to our relief during the siege of Knoxville, and I am satisfied that your approach served to raise the siege. The emergency having passed, I do not deem, for the present, any other portion of your command but the corps of General Granger necessary for operation in this section; and inasmuch as General Grant has weakened the forces immediately with him in order to relieve us, thereby rendering portions of General Thomas s less secure, I deem it advisable that all the troops now here, except those commanded by Gen eral Granger, should return at once to within supporting distance of the forces operating against Bragg s army. In behalf of my command, I again desire to thank you and your command for the kindness you have done us. 44 A. E. BURXSIDE, Major-General." Leaving Granger s command at Knoxville, Sherman with the remain der of his forces returned by slow marches to Chattanooga. I have not spoken more particularly of the result of the pursuit of the enemy, because the more detailed reports accompanying this do the subject justice. For the same reason I have not particularized the part taken by corps and division commanders. To Brigadier-General "W. F. Smith, Chief Engineer, I feel under more than ordinary obligations for the masterly manner in which he discharged the duties of his position, and desire that his services be fully appreciated by higher authorities. The members of my staff discharged faithfully their respective duties, for which they have my warmest thanks. Our losses in these battles were 757 killed, 4,529 wounded, and 330 missing; total, 5,610. The loss of the enemy in killed and wounded was probably less than ours, owing to the fact that he was protected by his intrenchments, while our moil were without cover. At Knoxville, how- REPORT OF BATTLES NEAR CHATTANOOGA. 399 ever, his loss was many times greater than ours, making his entire loss at the two places equal to, if not exceeding, ours. We captured 6,142 pris oners, of whom 239 were commissioned officers; 40 pieces of artillery, 69 artillery carriages and caissons, and 7,000 stand of small arms. The Armies of the Cumberland and the Tennessee, for their energy and unsurpassed bravery in the three days battle of Chattanooga and the pursuit of the enemy, their patient endurance in marching to the relief of Knoxville ; and the Army of the Ohio, for its masterly defense of Knox- ville, and repeated repulses of Longstreet s assaults upon that place, are deserving of the gratitude of their country. I have the honor to be, Colonel, very respectfully, your obedient ser vant, u. S. GRANT, Major-General U. S. Army. General Grant, to visit the outposts of his department, left Chattanooga for Nashville December 18th. 400 LIFE AMD CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL C&&NT. CHAPTER XIX. THE ENEMY RETREATING. GENERAL GRANT RECEIVES THE RANK AND COMMAND OF LIEUTENANT-GENERAL. The Pursuit of the Enemy. Reprisals and Skirmishes. Battle at Ringgold. Longstreet at Knoxville. His Retreat. Congratulations by the President. Thanksgiving. General Hardee succeeds Bragg. General Grant s Health. General Scott s Opinion of him. Expressions of Popular Regard. The Pro position and Discussion in Congress of the Rank of Lieutenant-General. Mr Washburne s Speech. The Bill Passed. General Grant Appointed to the Com mand. THE great struggle was over the siege of Chattanooga was raised ; but still the beaten rebels must not be allowed to gather their remnants together within any long day s march of the battle-field. A pursuit of their flying col umns was ordered, and to Generals Sherman, Hooker, and Palmer was assigned the task of completing the rebel discomfiture. The pursuing forces went forward in the clear morning of a splendid day, animated by the great victories of the recent conflict, falling upon the flank of the flying columns. At ten o clock, Chickamauga Depot was reached, and found in flames. Although fifty thousand dollars worth of property was destroyed, the amount of commissary stores which fell into our hands was large. For three days the chase was marked with skirmishes, and picking up stragglers. At Pigeon Ridge the rebels made a stand, and opened their artillery. Our columns emerged from the woods into the open fields with flying banners, presenting a beautiful spectacle in the cloudless rays of the noon -day sun with no enemy in sight. Charg ing up the hights, they soon sent the rebels on their path of retreat. General Sherman was in command. Friday, November 27th, Hooker s column advanced along the Eossville road toward Ringgold, a small town of twenty -five hundred inhabitants, the county seat of RETEEAT OF THE ENEMY. 401 Catoosa county, Georgia, and is situated in front of King- gold Gap, at the foot of White Oak Mountain Eidge. It is in the midst of wildly romantic scenery, although itself a dingy, dilapidated place in general appearance. The decisive moment came at last. The grand move ment was made. Slowly our men advanced, and slowly the rebels retired toward the gap and up the mountain slope. Our artillery, too, kept up a steady fire, almost immediately silencing that of the enemy. Osterhaus s division occupied the center, one brigade of Geary s was on the extreme left, and the other two on the extreme right. After much patient effort, we outflanked the rebels on the right and left of the hills, gained these, and drove the remaining rebels from the Gap, and held the latter position. In the final movements the rebels retreated in the most disorderly manner. We took about three hun dred prisoners. After the enemy were driven through and from the Gap, we established our lines in the next valley beyond. The enemy fell back to Tunnel Gap, situated in the suc ceeding ridge to that of White Oak. After Sherman made a junction with Palmer, on Friday morning, the Eleventh Army Corps, under command of Major-General Howard, was sent off to the left to take Parker s Gap, this being situated on the enemy s right, and the second gap from Ringgold Gap in the same ridge. The position was taken and occupied without opposition, the enemy s scouting parties falling back without firing. During the battle of Ringgold, the Eleventh Corps was in a position almost in the enemy s rear, and we could at any time have turned their right flank. A portion of the Eleventh Corps pressed on to the line of the Dalton and Cleveland Railroad, reaching Red Clay Station about dark. The object in destroying the railroad line at Red Clay was to prevent Longstreet from using it to make a junction with Bragg. Another point was, that if the cav alry failed of accomplishing its object at Cleveland, we would cany out the design at Red Clay. General Grant had his head-quarters in tlie town 402 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. of Ringgold on November 28. The General was much pleased with the success of his plans, spoke freely on the subject, and was of opinion that this campaign had been successful to an almost extraordinary degree, and had been fruitful in results of the most unqualifiedly gratifying char acter. It was decided not to pursue the enemy farther, as more important operations were afoot. The rebels retreated as far as Dalton, Georgia, and find ing the Union troops did not pursue farther than King- gold, there turned and made a stand. General Grant, by taking possession of Red Clay, Cleveland, and Chattanooga, thus breaking the rebel rail road triangle, the corners of which rest on Dalton, Cleve land, and Chattanooga, compressed the principal artery of the heart of the rebel Confederacy, and smote it in its most vital part. General Longstreet learned the reason why he was allowed to besiege Knoxville. The news of Hooker s mountain climbing, and of Yankee flags on Missionary Ridge, dispelled his dream of success. The proud rebel was exasperated, and determined to save his name from sharing the disgrace of Chattanooga. He therefore, on November 29, 1863, made an assault upon Fort Sanders and the other works around Knoxville. The assault proved a failure, and, long before he could recover from the effects of the repulse, he found our columns were gathering around him, and, if he did not soon withdraw, he would be encircled by them. General Foster s column was advancing from the north, and General Granger s, with other forces under General Sherman, from Chattanooga. This movement caused the withdrawal of troops from the pursuit of the rebels beyond Ringgold, Georgia. General Sherman s cavalry arrived at Knoxville on December 3, and on the next night General Longstreet raised the siege of that place, retreating eastward toward Virginia, pursued by both Foster s and Sherman s cav alry. December 7, it was telegraphed to Washington that Knoxville had been relieved and re-enforced by Granger s THE PRESIDENT AND THE VICTORIES. 403 corps, and that Longstreet was retreating. On the same day President Lincoln issued the following proclamation of thanksgiving : EXECUTIVE MANSION, J WASHINGTON, D. C., December 7, 1863. Reliable information being received that the insurgent force is retreat ing from East Tennessee, under circumstances rendering it probable that the Union forces cannot hereafter be dislodged from that important posi tion, and esteeming this to be of high national consequence, I recommend that all loyal people do, on receipt of this information, assemble at their places of worship, and render special homage and gratitude to Almighty God for this great advancement of the national cause. A. LINCOLN. The President also sent a dispatch to Major- General Grant : WASHINGTON, December 8. Major-General GRANT: Understanding that your lodgment at Chattanooga and Knoxville is now secure, I wish to tender you and all under your command my more than thanks my profoundest gratitude for the skill, courage, and perse verance with which you and they, over so great difficulties, have effected that important object. God bless you all ! A. LINCOLN. The above was embodied in an order by General Grant, and so read to every regiment in his command. In reference to this brief but decisive campaign, Gen eral Halleck added the following supplementary remarks to his annual report : HKAD-QITARTKRS OK THE ARMY, i WASHINGTON, D. C., December 6, 1S63. J In compliance with your instructions, I submit the following summary of the operations of General Grant s army since my report of the 15th ultimo : It appears from the official reports which have been received here, that our loss in the operations of the 27th, 28th, and 29th of October, in re opening communications on the south side of the Tennessee River, from Chattanooga to Bridgeport, was seventy-six killed, three hundred and thirty-nine wounded, and twenty-two missing; total, four hundred and thirty-seven. The estimated loss of the enemy was over fifteen hundred. As soon as General Grant could get up his supplies, he prepared to advance upon the enemy, who had become weakened by the detachment of Longstreet s command against Knoxville. General Sherman s army moved up the north side of the Tennessee River, and during the nights of 404 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the 23d and 24th of November established pontoon bridges, and crossed to the south side, between Citico Creek and Chickamauga. On the afternoon of the 23d, General Thomas s forces attacked the enemy s rifle-pits between Ohatfcanooga and Citico Creek. The battle was renewed on the 24th along the whole line. Sherman carried the eastern end of Missionary Ridge up to the tunnel, and Thomas repelled every attempt of the enemy to regain the position which he had lost at the center; while Hooker s force rn Lookout Valley crossed the mountain and drove the enemy from its northern slope. On the 25th, the whole of Mission Ridge, from Rossville to the Chicka mauga, was, after a desperate struggle, most gallantly carried by our troops, and the enemy was completely routed. Considering the strength of the rebel position, and the difficulty of storming his intrenchments, the battle of Chattanooga must be considered the most remarkable in history. Not only did the officers and men exhibit great skill and daring in their operations on the field, but the highest praise is due to the commanding general, for his admirable dispositions for dis lodging the enemy from a position apparently impregnable. Moreover, by turning his right flank, and throwing him back upon Ringgold and Dalton, Sherman s forces were interposed between Bragg and Longstreet so as to prevent any possibility of their forming a junction. Our loss, in killed, wounded, and missing, is reported at about four thousand. We captured over six thousand prisoners, besides the wounded left in our hands, forty pieces of artillery, five or six thousand small arms, and a large train. The enemy s loss in killed and wounded is not known. While Generals Thomas arid Hooker pushed Bragg s army back into Georgia, General Sherman, with his own and General Granger s forces, was sent into East Tennessee, to prevent the return of Longstreet, and to relieve General Burnside, who was then besieged in Knoxville. We have reliable information that General Sherman has successfully accomplished his object, and that Longstreet is in full retreat toward Virginia. But no details have been received with regard to Sherman s operations since he crossed the Hiwassee, nor of Burnside s defense of Knoxville. It is only known that every attack of the enemy on that place was successfully repulsed. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, H. W. HALLECK, General-in-Chief. Honorable E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War. On December 5, 1863, General Burnside, the com mander at Knoxville, issued a congratulatory order to his troops in reference to the raising of the siege, which had lasted about three weeks. While Washington was all excitement over the mag nificent results of Grant s campaign, General Scott said to an official, with whom the old veteran fell into a very unreserved talk, that General Grant s operations displayed GENERAL HARDEE SUCCEEDS GENERAL BRAGG. 4Q5 more military skill than any other general had exhibited on our side ; and he was the more surprised and mystified at it, as he could only remember him in the Mexican war as a young lieutenant of undoubted courage, but giving no promise whatever of any thing beyond ordinary abilities. The providential men for the hour of trial were not those who first attracted the popular admiration, nor was the course of mighty events according to the order of human wisdom. General Bragg was removed from his command for his defeat at Chattanooga, and was succeeded by General Hardee. When this change* was announced at General Grant s head-quarters, he quietly remarked: " He is my choice." He was still suffering so seriously from his fall at New Orleans, at this time, that his thin and stooping form awakened fears for his recovery ; while he gave no other signs of weakness or weariness. It was reported from Chattanooga on December 7th, that General Grant had captured, from the commencement of the war up to that date, no less than four hundred and seventy-two cannon and ninety thousand prisoners, with, small arms innumerable. The following remarks are reported to have been writ ten by Colonel Ely S. Parker Indian Sachem and Chief of the Tona \vanda tribe and Seneca Nation of Indians, and who became a member of General Grant s staff in relation to the conduct of the commanding general during the bat tles around Chattanooga : " I need not describe to you the recent battle of Chatta nooga. The papers have given every possible detail con cerning it. I may only say that I saw it all, and was in the five days fight. Of General Grant s staff only one was wounded, a Lieutenant Towner, Assistant Chief of Artillery, whose parents formerly lived at Batavia, New York, but now of Chicago. It has been a matter of universal wonder in this army that General Grant himself was not killed, and that no more accidents occurred to his staff, for the General was always in the front (his staff with him, of course), and perfectly heedless of the storm of hissing bullets and screaming shell flying around him. 406 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. His apparent want of sensibility does not arise from heed- lessness, heartlessness, or vain military affectation, but from a sense of the responsibility resting upon him when in battle. When at Binggold, we rode for half a mile in the face of the enemy, under an incessant fire of cannon and musketry ; nor did we ride fast, but upon an ordinary trot ; and not once do I believe did it enter the General s mind that he was in danger. I was by his side and watched him closely. In riding that distance we were going to the front, and I could see that he was studying the positions of the two armies, and, of course, planning how to defeat the enemy, who was here making a most desperate stand, and was slaughtering our men fearfully. After defeating and driving the enemy here, we returned to Chattanooga. "Another feature in General Grant s personal move ments is, that he requires no escort beyond his staff, so regardless of danger is he. Koads are almost useless to him, for he takes short cuts through fields and woods, and will swim his horse through almost any stream that ob structs his way. Nor does it make any difference to him whether he has daylight for his movements, for he will ride from breakfast until two o clock in the morning, and that too without eating. The next day he will repeat it, until he finishes his work. Now, such things come hard upon the staff, but they have learned how to bear it." The intelligence of General Grant s victorious mountain campaign in Tennessee and Georgia was announced in Washington on the day of the first assembling of the United States Congress for 1863-4. Mr. Washburne, the representative for Galena, in the House, immediately gave notice of the introduction of two bills, one "to revive the grade of Lieutenant- General of the army," and the other "to provide that a medal be struck for General Grant, and that a vote of thanks be given him and the officers of his army." It did not require either any very acute mental penetra tion, or a knowledge of the intimate relations of Congress man Washburne with General Grant, to understand the meaning and bearing of the above bill for the revival of THANKS OF CONGRESS. 407 tlie grade of Lieutenant- General. The object was, the elevation of Major-General Grant to that position. It was not the intention of those who desired the further promotion of General Grant to take him away from his command, and substitute him for the General-in-Chief. It was their conviction that he would be most useful in the field, but exercise, at the same time, from the field, the functions of a General-in-Chief. Mr. Washburne s motion relative to the joint thanks of Congress and the gold medal did not require long de liberation. The members of both Houses felt that General Grant deserved the thanks of the nation ; and when that resolution was brought up, it was passed by both Con gress and Senate without opposition, and received the President s signature within ten days of its introduction. It then became the first, law of the session of 1863-4. The following is a copy of the official document : LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES. Passed at the First Session of the Thirty -eighth Congress. [PUBLIC RESOLUTION No. 1.] JOINT RESOLUTION of thanks to Major-General Ulysses S. Grant and the officers and soldiers who have fought under his command during this rebellion ; and providing that the President of the United States shall cause a medal to be struck, to be presented to Major-General Grant in the name of the people of the United States of America. Be it resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of .the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the thanks of Congress be and they hereby are presented to Major-General Ulysses S. Grant, and through him to the officers and soldiers who have fought under his command during this rebellion, for their gallantry and good conduct in the battles in which they have been engaged ; and that the President of the United States be requested to cause a gold medal to be struck, with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be presented to Major- General Grant. SEC. 2. And be it further resolved, That, when the said medal shall have been struck, the President shall cause a copy of this joint resolution to be engrossed on parchment, and shall transmit the same, together with the said medal, to Major-General Grant, to be presented to him in the name of the people of the United States of America. SEC. 3. And be it further resolved, That a sufficient sum of money to 408 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. carry this resolution into effect is hereby appropriated out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated. ScnUYLER COLFAX, Speaker of the House of Representatives. H. HAMLIN, Vice-President of the United States and President of the Senate. Approved December 17, 1863. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. The designs were at once made for the medal. The one by Leutze was selected Iby the committee having the matter in charge: "The obverse of the medal was to consist of a profile likeness of the hero, surrounded by a wreath of laurels ; his name and the year of his victories inscribed upon it, and the whole surrounded by a galaxy of stars. The design for the reverse- was original, ap propriate, and beautiful. It was the figure of Fame seated in a graceful attitude on the American eagle, which, with outspread wings, seems preparing for flight. In her right hand she held the symbolical trump, and in her left a scroll, on which were inscribed the names of the gallant chiefs various battles, viz. : Corinth, Vicksburg, Missis sippi River, and Chattanooga. On her head was a helmet, ornamented in Indian fashion, with feathers radiating from it. In front of the eagle, its breast resting against it, was the emblematical shield of the United States. Just under neath this group, their stems crossing each other, were single sprigs of the pine and the palm, typical of the North and South. Above the figure of Fame, in a curved line, the motto, Proclaim Liberty throughout the Land. The edge was surrounded, like the obverse, with a circle of stars, of a style peculiar to the Byzantine period, and rarely seen except in illuminated MSS. of that age. These stars were more in number than the existing States of course, including those of the South thereby suggesting further additions in the future to the Union." Other honors were paid him by societies electing him honorary life member. We select a few instances of this hearty appreciation. At the anniversary of the Missionary Society of the Cincinnati Conference, held in 1863, that body elected TESTIMONIALS OF GRATEFUL REGARD. 409 General Grant an honorary member. Rev. J. F. Marlay communicated the fact to the General, and the following is his reply : CHATTANOOGA, December 7, 1868. Rev. F. MARLAY, Secretary of Society : DEAR SIR : Through you permit me to express my thanks to the society of which you are the honored secretary, for the compliment they have seen fit to pay me by electing me one of its members. I accept the election as a token of earnest support, by members of the Methodist Missionary Society of the Cincinnati Conference, to the cause of our country in this hour of trial. I have the honor to be, very truly, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Major-General U. S. A. The following interesting correspondence explains itself: MORKISTOWN, December 9, 1863. To Major-General TJ. S. GRANT : DEAR SIR : I have the pleasure of informing you that the church of which I am pastor, the Methodist Episcopal Church of this town, highly appreciating your services for your country, and rejoicing in the victories which God has wrought out through you and your noble army, and pray ing that you may be spared to see the end of this accursed rebellion, have contributed one hundred and fifty dollars ($150) to constitute you a life director of the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Will you please direct where we shall send your Certificate? May God Almighty bless and keep you, and continue to crown your arms with vic tory and triumph ! With sincere admiration and respect, I am, dear General, yours truly, LEWIS R. DUNN, Pastor of the M. E. Church, Morristown, 1ST. J. HEAD-QUARTERS MIL. DIST. OF TUB Miss., j CHATTANOOGA, TENN., December, 1C, 18C3. j To the Rev. LEWIS R. DUNN, Pastor of M. E. Church, Morristown, 1ST. J. : SIR : In reply to your letter of December 19th, to Major-General U. S. Grant, he directs me to express his gratitude to the Christian people of Morristown, for their prayerful remembrance of him before the throne of the Most High, and to thank them, through you, for the honor conferred upon him. Be good enough to send his Certificate of Membership to Mrs. U. S. Grant, Louisville, Kentucky. Very respectfully, your ob t serv t, J. H. WILSON, Brigadier-General. On the thirteenth day of January, 1864, the following 410 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. resolution, moved by Mr. Reed, was adopted Tby the Legis lature of the State of New York : Resolved, That the thanks of the people of this State be tendered to General Grant and his Army for their glorious victories in the valley of the Mississippi, and the still more glorious victory at Mission Ridge and Lookout Mountain, and that a certified copy of this resolution be forwarded to General Grant. The Legislature of the State of Ohio also presented him with a vote of thanks. A handsome pair of revolvers from Colt s arm manu facturing establishment was presented to General Grant : The handles are of black horn, beautifully polished, and the barrels, magazines, and other steel parts are elab orately inlaid with pure gold, which is beaten into a design previously cut out of the steel. The other ornaments, guard, &c., are of solid gold. The pair are inclosed in a handsome rosewood box, lined with velvet, and accompa nied ~by all the tools, &c., belonging to them the cartridge- boxes, &c., being manufactured of silver. These pistols equal any pair that has ever left the establishment. The bill introduced by Mr. Washburne for the revival of the grade of Lieutenant- General of the United States Army, having in the due course of business been read and referred to the Military Committee of the House of Con gress, was slightly amended, and came up on February 1st, 1864, for final action of that portion of the law-mak ing power. The amended bill introduced was thus worded : Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa tives of the United States of America in Congress assem bled, That the grade of Lieutenant-General be, and the same is hereby, revived in the Army of the United States of America ; and the President is hereby authorized, when ever he shall deem it expedient, to appoint, by and with the advice arid consent of the Senate, a commander of the army, to be selected, during war, from among those officers in the military service of the United States, not below the grade of Major- General, most distinguished for courage, skill, and ability ; and who, being commissioned REVIVING -THE RANK OF LIEUTENANT-GENERAL. 411 as Lieutenant-General, shall be authorized, under the direction of the President, to command the armies of the United States. SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the Lieutenant- General appointed as hereinbefore provided shall be entitled to the pay, allowances, and staff specified in the fifth section of the act approved May 28th, 1798 ; and also the allowances described in the sixth section of the act approved August 23d, 1842, granting additional rations to certain officers : Provided, That nothing in this bill con tained shall be construed in any way to affect the rank, pay, or allowances of Winfield Scott, lieutenant-general by brevet, now on the retired list of the army. Mr. Farnsworth opened the debate by a recommenda tion that the bill should be passed that morning. Mr. Garfield, formerly chief of staff to General Bose- crans, having opposed the motion, Mr. Farnsworth addressed the House as follows : Mr. Speaker, the argument of my colleague of the Com mittee on Military Affairs, who has just taken his seat, is a twofold argument. I understand his first argument to be, that the war has not progressed far enough, and that we have not given our generals in the field a sufficient term of trial, to enable the President to select with proper judgment a man upon whom to confer the rank of lieutenant-general. His second argument is, that the General toward whom this legislation is directed is so great and so successful a general, that it would be dangerous to take him from the field and put him in command of the entire Army of the United States. In answer to the first branch of the gentleman s argu ment, I have only this to say : we are now very near to the close of the third year of this war, and while it is true that many generals in the army may be up to-day and down to-morrow, and that their fortunes fluctuate, it is not true of the general to whom this legislation applies. His star has been steadily rising. He has been growing greater and greater day by day, rising from an obscure position, scarcely known out of the county in which he resided. By his masterly ability he now stands, without saying any 412 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. thing to the disparagement of other generals, head and shoulders over every other general in the Army of the United States. He has been tried, tried long enough ; and if his star were to go down to-morrow, he has still done enough to entitle him to this prize. After some further debate, Mr. Ross submitted the fol lowing amendment, to be added to the act : And that we respectfully recommend the appointment of Major-General U. S. Grant for the position of lieutenant- general. On this amendment a spirited debate ensued in favor of General Grant, when Mr. Washburne took the floor and made an eloquent speech in commendation of General Grant, and in favor of the bill. After a few brief remarks from other members, Mr. Ross s amendment was carried, by 117 votes against 19. The bill so amended was finally passed, and sent to the Senate for their action. Owing to some disagreements in the Senate, the bill went to a committee of conference, in which it was amended, making the appointment of Lieu tenant- General to be dur ing the pleasure of the President, and on the 1st of March, 1864, President Lincoln approved the bill, and on the next day sent in to the Senate his message, appointing, as Lieu tenant- General of the armies of the United States, Major-General Ulysses S. Grant. The nomination was unanimously confirmed by the Senate. Shortly after the battles of Chattanooga, General Grant was sitting in his head-quarters at Nashville, with his feet comfortably stretched before the fire, while he enjoyed himself with puffing and chewing his cigar, with that com pleteness of repose which strangers to his habits have called a dullness of facial expression. Quartermaster- General Meigs sat near him, while General W. F. Smith, who had but a short time before made himself quite a rep utation with Grant, by the skillful operations in Lookout Valley, in October, 1863, paced the floor, apparently ab sorbed in thought. Meigs, noticing this, broke the silence, which had lasted for several minutes, by asking : " What are you thinking about, Baldy ?" A SCENE IN CAMP. 413 On receiving no reply from the absorbed officer, he turned to Grant, and remarked with a laugh : " Baldy is studying strategy." Grant removed his cigar from his lips, and said, with a serious air: " I don t believe in strategy, in the popular understanding of the term. I use it to get up just as close to the enemy as practicable, with as little loss as possible. " " And what then?" asked Meigs. " Then? Up, Guards, and at em ! " replied the Gen eral, with more than usual spirit ; then again lapsing into his accustomed taciturnity. 414 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER XX. A NEW CAMPAIGN. NEW HONORS. A new Campaign, Congressional Action. Deserters from the Enemy. Loyal Citi zens protected. Army Supplies received. General Grant inspects his Depart ment at St Louis. Popular Demonstrations of Admiration. Characteristics. General Grant is notified of his appointment to the Rank of Lieutenant-General. Interesting Correspondence with Sherman on the subject. His Tour of Inspec tion. Enters upon his new Duties. WHILE these scenes were transpiring in Congress, and "all was quiet on the. Potomac," General Grant was maturing plans for a more brilliant campaign. He for warded to Washington his views of the mode of conduct ing it, to insure the earliest and most complete suppression of the rebellion. The recommendation of a concerted movement of all our armies under one policy, and, so far as practicable, under one direction, was the principal fea ture of General Grant s project. Congress was ready to forward General Grant s plans, and Senator Howe, of Wisconsin, offered the following joint resolution on the 7th of January, 1864, under the plea of releasing the prisoners within the rebel lines : Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives in Congress assembled : SEC. 1. That the President of the United States is here by authorized and requested to call out and arm one million of volunteers, to serve for the period of ninety days unless sooner discharged, and to be employed to carry food and freedom to every captive held in rebel prisons, and to plant the flag of the United States upon every prison they occupy. SEC. 2. That the President be requested to assign Major-General Ulysses S. Grant to the command of the forces raised under this call, together with such of the forces now in the field as may be joined with them ; and he REBEL DESERTIONS. 415 is hereby authorized to detail for the subordinate com mands, in the forces to be raised under the authority of these resolutions, such officers or privates now in the field as he may deem best qualified therefor ; or he may assign to such commands any person or persons who may volun teer under the same authority ; provided, however, that any officer or private, now in the military service of the United States, who may be detailed to any such command by authority hereby, shall receive no additional pay for such substituted service ; and no volunteer, under the same authority, who shall be detailed to any such com mand, shall receive more pay than the pay of a private. Many of the rebel troops, despairing of the establish ment of a Southern Confeneracy, and seeing that whenever General Grant moved, victory was his constant attendant, began to desert from their ranks and come within the Union lines. To prevent them from being retaken and summarily punished by the rebel authorities, the Com manding General issued an order for their disposition and protection. HEAD-QTTARTEES MILITARY DIVISION OF THE MISSISSIPPI, i IN THB FIELD, CHATTANOOGA, TENN., December 12, 1863. To obtain uniformity in the disposition of deserters from the Confeder- rato armies coming within this military division, the following order is published" : I. All deserters from the enemy coming within our lines will be con ducted to the commander of division or detached brigade who shall be nearest the place of surrender. II. If such commander is satisfied that the deserters desire to quit the Confederate service, he may permit them to go to their homes, if within our lines, on taking the following oath : THE OATH. " I do solemnly swear, in the presence of the Almighty God, that I will henceforth faithfully support, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and the Union of States thereunder ; and that I will in like aanner abide by and faithfully support all acts of Congress passed during the existing rebellion with reference to slaves, so long and so far as not yet repealed, modified, or held void by Congress or by decision of the Supreme Court ; and that I will in like manner abide by and faithfully support all proclamations of the President made during the existing rebellion having 416 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. reference to slaves, so long and so far as not modified or declared void by decision of the Supreme Court: so help me God. " Sworn and subscribed to before me at , this day of , 186~. III. Deserters from the enemy will at once be disarmed, and their arms turned over to the nearest Ordnance Officer, who will account for them. IV. Passes and rations may be given to deserters to carry them to their homes, and free passes over military railroads and on steamboats in Govern ment employ. V. Employment at fair wages will, when practicable, be given to de serters by officers of the Quartermaster and Engineer Departments. To avoid the danger of re-capture of such deserters by the enemy, they will be exempt from the military service in the armies of the United States. By order of Major- General U. S. GKANT. He also ordered that "no encouragement will be given to traders or army followers, who have left their homes to avoid enrollment or the draft, and to speculate upon the soldiers pay ; and this class of persons will not be tolerated in the armies of the Military Division of the Mississippi." Protection was extended to the property of loyal citi zens residing within the rebellious States, and provision made for the proper seizure of the effects of rebels for feited to the United States under the special act of Congress passed for that purpose. HEAD-QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF THE MISSISSIPPI, IN THE FIELD, CHATTANOOGA, TENN., December 13, 1863. f All Quartermasters within the Military Division of the Mississippi who now have, or may hereafter receive, moneys for rents accruing from aban doned property, or property known to belong to secessionists within this Mili tary Division, are hereby directed to pay such moneys into the hands of the nearest Treasury Agent, taking his receipt therefor, excepting such sums out of said moneys so collected as may be requisite to pay the necessary expenses of collection, and the taxes due the United States upon the same. Any property now held by any Quartermaster, and upon which rents are collected by him, shall, when satisfactorily proven to belong to loyal citizens, be restored to the possession of the owners, together with all moneys collected for rents upon the same, excepting only such sums as may be required to pay the necessary expenses of collection, and the taxes due to the United States upon the same. Department and Corps Commanders and Commandants of Military Posts and Stations within this Military Division are hereby required and LOYAL AND DISLOYAL CITIZENS. 417 directed, whenever called upon by proper authority, to promptly afford all necessary assistance in enforcing the collection of the taxes due upon all property within this command. Corps Commanders within this Military Division are directed to im mediately seize, or cause to be seized, all County Records and documents showing titles und claims to property within the revolted States in their respective districts, and hold the same until they can be delivered to an authorized Tax Commissioner of the United States. Where property is used by the Government without paying rent, the collection of taxes on it will be suspended until further orders. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. This was followed by another : HEAD-QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OP THE MISSISSIPPI, I IN THE FIELD, CHATTANOOGA, TENN., December 16, 1863. > 1. All seizures of private buildings will be made by the Quartermaster s Department, on the order of the commanding officer. The buildings of disloyal persons alone will be taken to- furnish officers with quarters, and the need for public offices and storehouses must be supplied in preference. 2. When the urgent exigencies of the service require it, the buildings of loyal persons may be taken for storehouses and offices, but only after all suitable buildings belonging to disloyal persons have been seized. 3. In the seizure of buildings, the owner will be allowed to retgin all movables except the means of heating. 4. All officers will remain in the immediate vicinity of their commands, and if having a less command than a division or a post, when the com mand is in tents they will occupy tents themselves. 5. Commanding officers are prohibited from quartering troops in houses without the special written authority of the General commanding the Corps or Department to which they belong. 6. In furnishing quarters to officers not serving with troops, the Quartermaster s Department will be governed by existing regulations. 7. Ten days after the receipt and distribution of this order, Corps Com manders will cause an inspection of their commands to be made by their Assistant Inspectors-General, and will arrest and prefer charges against every officer who may be occupying quarters not assigned to him by the Quartermaster s Department, or in violation of paragraph 4 of this order. By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT. Grant s thoughtful care of the troops was expressed in a brief notice, sent December 22, 1863, from the office of the Chief Quartermaster at Louisville, Kentucky, to get the supplies for his army : 27 418 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. All requisitions made by Captain J. A. Potter, Assistant Quartermaster United States Army, for military supplies, will be immediately and promptly filled. In case of delay or refusal on the part of any railroad, Captain Pot ter is authorized to take such means as may be necessary to enforce compliance. By order of Major-General TJ. S. GRANT. We find a letter from General Grant to the wife of Gen eral I. F. Quinby, which we quote : CHATTANOOGA, TENN., December 13, 1868 MY DEAR MADAM : The letter of my old friend and classmate, your husband, requesting a lock of my hair, if the article is not growing scarce from age I presume he means to be put in an ornament (by the most delicate of hands no doubt), and sold at the bazaar, for the benefit of dis abled soldiers and their families is just received. I am glad to say that the stock is yet abundant as ever, though time or other cause is beginning to intersperse here and there a reminder that winters have passed. The object for which this little requisite is made is so praiseworthy that I cannot refuse it, even though I do, by granting it, expose the fact to the ladies of Rochester, that I am no longer a boy. Hoping that the citizens of your city may spend a happy week, commencing to-morrow, and that this fair may remunerate most abundantly, I remain, very truly yours, U. S. GRANT, Major-General. General Grant, to visit the outposts of his department, left Chattanooga for Nashville. He embarked, December 18th, on the noble and fast-sailing Government steam- packet Point Rode, for Nashville and Louisville. Gen- ral Sherman accompanied him. The commander stayed no longer at Nashville than was necessary to secure active work on the railroad communi cations with Chattanooga, and in a few days his departure was announced for Knoxville. He had heard that the communications with that post had been much cut up and endangered, and, after a brief stay, left the State capital for that city. Desirous of ascertaining the condition of the roads be tween that place and Louisville, by way of Cumberland Gap, he resolved to make a personal examination of that line of travel. A TOILSOME AND COURAGEOUS ADVENTURE. 410 A dispatch will indicate the hardships endured and Ms reception along the route : " General U. S. Grant arrived January llth at Louis ville, having just completed a six days campaign against Jack Frost. He and his staff left Knoxville on the 0th in stant, and crossed the country by way of Cumberland Gap, Barboursville, Big Hill, Richmond, and Lexington, to this city, having to encounter the coldest weather and deepest snow known there for thirty years. The trip was a most terrible one the officers having to walk a great part of the way, driving their nearly frozen animals before them. The descent of the Gap and of Big Hill is represented to have been not only difficult but dangerous, and had an army been compelled at this time to cross those mountains, the task would not have been much less terrible than Mac- donald s passage of the Spleigen. General Grant had a much easier and shorter route to Nashville by way of Chattanooga ; but he chose this difficult and dangerous one solely from a desire to see for himself the capabilities of the country and route for supplying General Foster s army. It is this personal attention to important details and his aggressive style of warfare which is the secret of General Grant s great success. This difficult journey, undertaken at this time, is indicative of the indomitable energy of the man. "At Lexington, Kentucky, General Grant met with a spontaneous reception from the citizens. The town was crowded with the country visitors, and nothing would satisfy them but a speech. The General, however, con tented himself with making his appearance. The people insisted on his getting upon a chair that he might be seen to better advantage, and, half pushed by General Leslie Coombs, General Grant mounted the improvised rostrum. General Coombs then introduced him in a neat little speech, in which he said that i General Grant had told him in con fidence and he would not repeat it that he never had made a speech, knew nothing about speech-making, and had no disposition to learn. After satisfying the curiosity of the people, but without ever having opened his mouth, General Grant dismounted from his chair and retired, amid the cheers of the assemblage. 420 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. "His arrival at the Gait House was not generally known, and few, who had not looked at the books, sus pected that the little man in faded blue overcoat, with heavy red whiskers, and keen bright eyes, the hero of the two rebel Gibraltar s of Vicksburg and Chattanooga, stood before them. This people have been so used to and sur feited with brilliantly dressed and cleanly shaven staff officers, with every pretense star or double star that has flitted across this horizon, that they never dreamed of re cognizing in the blue overcoated men who figured in the scene with him the admirable and hard-working staff offi cers who have aided in no little degree to General Grant s success. General Grant was accompanied by General Wilson, Colonel Duff, Colonel T. S. Bowers, and others of his staff. The party are to leave in the morning train for Nashville, where General Grant establishes his head-quar ters for the present." On the 12th of January, 1864, a telegram announced that railroad communication was opened between Louis ville and Chattanooga. A private letter from Chattanooga states that when the first train of cars from Bridgeport arrived at the military post, the fact caused the greatest rejoicing throughout the whole army, and that our sol diers, who had for so many months been on short rations, were soon reveling in plenty. " Only those thoroughly informed of the vast amount of labor required to get the road in order will appreciate the victory won by our soldiers and mechanics. The heavy force that was employed in building the bridge over the Tennessee River and Falling Waters was next used to put the road in perfect order from Nashville to Bridgeport. This road had been in a wretched condition. The track had been constantly giving way, and the trains have been badty damaged by accidents. The utmost energy was dis played to make this road first-class, and equip it so that not only can our army at Chattanooga be thoroughly sup plied, but provisions and ammunition, pork, bread, salt, cartridges, clothing the necessaries of life for a great army be accumulated for the spring s campaign. The road swarmed with laborers from end to end, until this SUCCESSFUL MILITARY RULE. 421 was accomplished. With a good road, the furloughed sol diers can be sent home promptly, and the trains returned ponderous with military indispensables. It was no less important to General Grant than the reorganization and re- enforcement of his army, that the railroad should be effi cient. It would be vain to gather the manly strength of the nation at Chattanooga, if we could not send to that point that which is needed to provide the men for the present, f and give them a depot of supplies for the future. There fore, we regard the construction of the road to Chattanooga as a significant victory. It meant as much in the direction of overcoming the rebellion, as if we had gained another battle in East Tennessee or Northern Georgia." On the 13th of January General Grant was in Nashville, having made the circuit of his department in the most in clement season of the year. A Washington correspondent sent the following para graph to a prominent daily paper during February, 1864 : " An officer just in from General Grant s head-quarters states that all through the country to the rear of the Union lines a Union officer, in his uniform, can ride unmolested to any portions of Mississippi, Tennessee, and Alabama, halting at farm-houses along the road for such refresh ments and shelter as he may desire." What evidence of the superiority of management of the department is set forth in the short paragraph. General Grant appears to have been acting from the beginning of his first campaign upon a fixed principle to take away from the rebels whatever they declare themselves least able to spare. In January, 1862, it was rumored that the rebel capital would presently be removed to Nashville. Grant determined to be beforehand with Davis, moved upon the works of Fort Donelson, and after very unhand somely capturing the garrison, with General Buckner, took possession of Nashville. Next, Mr. Davis announced to all the world that the fate of the Confederacy depended upon the fate of Vicksburg. Hereupon Grant moved down and captured that place. East Tennessee was next declared to be absolutely 422 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. necessary to the safety of the rebel cause. The untiring Grant no sooner heard this than he sent Sherman to Knox- ville to drive off Longstreet, and leisurely drove Bragg away from Chattanooga, At Memphis, January 25th, General Sherman said : "I was at West Point with General Grant. The General is not a man of remarkable learning, but he is one of the bravest I ever saw. He smokes his cigar with coolness in the midst of flying shot. He has no fear, because he is an honest man. I like Grant. I do not say he is a hero ; I do not believe in heroes ; but I know he is a gentleman, and a good man." The last days of January saw the chief on a new and touching journey. A child lay sick at St. Louis, and the warrior was lost in the father. His family attracted the interest of his manly heart and his steps. His arrival in that city was discovered by visitors, who saw the book of the hotel where he had put up. The entry was simply as follows : "U. S. GRANT, CHATTANOOGA. " That entry, modest and simple as it was, spoke vol umes ; for, hidden under those seven letters that composed his name and initials, lay unseen the titles of " Major-Gen eral of the United States Army," " Conqueror of Vicks- burg and Chattanooga," " Grand Commander of the Mili tary Division of the Mississippi." It did not require to be written, for it was all embraced in "U. S. Grant." As soon as it became known that General Grant was really in St. Louis it had been doubted by many that so great a general could have entered their city without a brilliant escort, or his advent being heralded by a flourish of trumpets and rolling of drums the citizens prepared to give him a reception worthy of his deeds. No occasion had occurred since the commencement of the war in which St. Louis had more cheerfully united to do honor to one worthy of the gratitude of all. An invitation to a public dinner was tendered to Gen eral Grant by the citizens of St. Louis. PUBLIC HONORS. 423 General Grant accepted the invitation, and forwarded a characteristic reply : < ST. Loiris, MISSOITRI, January 27, 1864. Colonel JOHN O FALLON, Hon. JOHN How, and citizens of St. Louis : GENTLEMEN : Your highly complimentary invitation " to meet old acquaintances and make new ones," at a dinner to be given by citizens of St. Louis, is just received. I will state that I have only visited St. Louis on this occasion to see a sick child. Finding, however, that he has passed the crisis of his disease, and is pronounced out of danger by his physicians, I accept the invitation. My stay in this city will be short probably not beyond the 1st proximo. On to-morrow I shall be engaged. Any other day of my stay here, and any place selected by the citizens of St. Louis, it will be agreeable for mo to meet them. I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GEANT, Major-General U. 8. A. During that day (January 27) General Grant paid a visit to the City University, where he passed some two hours in reviewing the arrangements and listening to the recitation of the students of this institution. The same evening he* attended * the St. Louis theater with his family, and was the cynosure of the eyes of all around him during the whole of the performance. After the fall of the curtain upon the play of Kichelieu, cheers were proposed and heartily given for the " famous mili tary chieftain." The General rose from his box, bowing his acknowledgments, and in response to calls was under stood to say that he had never made a speech in his life, and never expected to. Asking to be excused, he resumed his seat amid a shower of cheers. The orchestra struck up "Hail Columbia," followed by "Yankee Doodle," and altogether the incident was a very pleasant one. On Friday evening the old friends of the modest Lieu tenant Grant of former times, the neighbors of Farmer Grant, the cordwood dealer of Carondelet, and the admir ers of General Grant, the redeemer of the Mississippi Val ley, sat down in the dining-hall of the Lindell Hotel, St. Louis, to a grand dinner given in his honor. A stranger, unacquainted with the object of the gathering, entering the dining-hall during the dinner, would never have selected, 424 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. from the guests there assembled, the quiet, modest, unas suming man at the upper end of the room as the victorious hero of the Southwest. A St. Louis journal said of the reception and appear ance of General Grant on this occasion : " The guests assembled in the corridors and parlors of the hotel at half-past six o clock. Much curiosity was exhibited to see General Grant ; and when he made his appearance, arm-in-arm with Judge Treat, all were eager to go forward and be presented to him. He went through the protracted ceremony of shaking hands with the crowd, and passing a word or two with each, with far less of pre tentious and pompous deportment than many of those who sought his acquaintance. He is a small man, about five feet eight inches high, with a well-knit frame, brown hair and whiskers, both cropped close, and a manner as utterly destitute of style as could be conceived. His sharp nose, heavy lower jaw, and firm-set lips, are the only features wherein one would suspect lurked the qualities that drove the Western armies like a resistless avalanche down the Mississippi and over the Southwest, in that career of con secutive victories that broke the power of rebellion, even while it was boasting of triumphs at the East. u The curiosity of the company centered mainly upon General Grant, to honor whom the demonstration was specially intended. As he lodged in the hotel, any thing like an ostentatious arrival or reception was, of course, out of the question. General Grant had a visibly mild, mod est manner, and received the cordial greetings tendered him with evident embarrassment. The lady inmates of the house took possession of an adjoining parlor, through the open door of which they could see the General ; and several of his most ardent admirers among the fair spec tators took the opportunity of his near proximity to. the door in question to obtain an introduction." There were three elegant tables spread lengthwise in the hall, provided abundantly from the larder of the hotel. In the center of the one on the north side were seated the president of the committee of citizens, Judge Samuel Treat, with General Grant next on his right, followed by General A BRILLIANT FESTIVAL. 425 Schofield, Colonel Leighton, Colonel Marcy, and Lieuten ant-Governor Hall. Next on his left sat General Rose- crans, General Osterhaus, and Mr. F. Dent, father-in-law of the guest of the evening. Mr. Dent is a white-haired, florid, fine-looking gentleman, about sixty-five years old. He resided in St. Louis County, on the Gravois road. Immediately opposite Judge Treat, at the same table, sat Judge Lord, of the Land Court, flanked on the left by Major Dunn, C. B. Hubbell, Colonel Merrill, and G. Hoe- ber ; and on the right by Colonel Callender, Colonel Myers, Colonel Haines, and Major C. P. E. Johnson. At the center of the south table were seated Honorable Wayman Crow, with General McNeil, General Fisk, Gen eral Brown, General Totten, and General Gray. The re maining guests, to the number of two hundred, occupied the other seats at the tables. The hall, superb in the ceil ing and wall colorings which embellished it, was further decorated by the spirited drapings of the national flag from each of the arched windows, and presented a magni ficent appearance. Atthetoast of " Our distinguished guest, Major-General Grant," the band played with great spirit the air " Hail to the Chief." General Grant arose, amid a perfect storm of applause ; but, true to his resolution never to make a speech, he simply said : u Gentlemen : In response, it will be impossible for me to do more than to thank you." At the toast of " The City of St. Louis," the following preamble and resolutions, passed by the City Council, an hour or two before the time fixed for the dinner, were read : COUNCIL CHAMBER, CITY OP ST. Lowis, January 29, 1864. Whereas, Major- General U. S. Grant has, since our last meeting, sud denly and unexpectedly arrived among us, and the opportunity not having presented itself, whereby the city authorities and this body could testify their great esteem, regard, and indebtedness due his modest, unswerving energies, swayed neither by the mighty successes which have crowned his genius and efforts in behalf of the Government, nor the machinations of politicians evidences of the true patriot and soldier ; therefore, be it Resolved, That the thanks of the Common Council of the city of St. 426 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Louis are eminently due, and are hereby respectfully tendered, to Major- General U. S. Grant, in behalf of the city of St. Louis. Resolved, That his Honor the Mayor be respectfully requested to give his official approval to this preamble and resolutions, and cause the seal of the city to be affixed, and the same presented to Major-General U. S. Grant. Shortly before the dinner-party broke up, this punning sentiment was given : " Major-General Grant he is emphatically U. S. Grant, for he has given US and the U. S. an earnest of those vic tories which will finally rescue this nation from the rebel lion and its cause American slavery." Loud applause greeted the reading of the pleasant allusion. During the same evening, the General was honored by the enthusiastic populace with a serenade. His appearance on the balcony was greeted with the most flattering ap plause. In response to calls for a speech, he took off his hat, and, amid profound silence, he said : " Gentlemen: I thank you for this honor. I cannot make a speech. It is something I have never done, and never intend to do, and I beg you will excuse me." Loud cheers followed this brief address, at the conclu sion of which the General replaced his hat, took a cigar from his pocket, lit it, and stood on the balcony in the presence of the crowd, puffing his Havana, and watching the rockets as they ascended and burst in the air. " Speech! speech!" vociferated the multitude, and several gentlemen near him urged the General to say something to satisfy the people, but he declined. Judge Lord, of the Land Court, appeared very enthusiastic, and, placing his hand on General Grant s shoulder, said : "Tell them you can fight for them, but can t talk to them do tell them that !" " I must get some one else to say that for me," replied the General; but the. multitude continuing to cry out, "Speech! speech!" he leaned over the railing, blew a wreath of smoke from his lips, and said : " Gentlemen : Making speeches is not my business. I never did it in my life, and never will. I thank you, how- GEN. GRANT AND THE SANITAEY COMMISSION. 427 ever, for your attendance here." And with that the Gen eral retired. At the request of a number of ladies, the noted visitor agreed to stay in the city until the end of the month, as the citizens of St. Louis were organizing a Great West ern Sanitary Commission Fair. A letter from him was read at a meeting held on Monday evening, February 1, 1864 : ST. Lotns, MISSOURI, January 31, 1864. Dr. W. G. ELIOT, GEORGE PARTRIDGE, and others, Western Sanitary Com mission : GENTLEMEN : Your letter of yesterday, requesting my presence at a general meeting of the loyal citizens of St. Louis on Monday evening, to make preparations for a " Grand Mississippi Valley Fair," for the benefit of the sick and wounded soldiers of the Western Army, is before me. I regret that my already protracted stay in the city will prevent any longer delay from my public duties. I regret this, as it would afford me the greatest pleasure to advance, in any manner, the interests of a commis sion that has already done so much for the suffering soldiers of our West ern armies. The gratuitous offerings of our loyal citizens at home, through the agency of sanitary commissions, to our brave soldiers in the field, have been to them the most encouraging and gratifying evidence that, while they are risking life and health for the suppression of this most wicked rebellion, their friends, who cannot assist them with musket and sword, are with them in sympathy and heart. The Western Sanitary Commission have distributed many tons of stores to the armies under my command. Their voluntary offerings have made glad the hearts of many thousands of wounded and sick soldiers, who otherwise would have been subjected to severe privations. Knowing the benefits already conferred on the army by the Western Sanitary Commission, I hope for them a full and enthusi astic meeting to-night, and a fair to follow which will bring together many old friends who have been kept apart for the last three years, and unite them again in one common cause that of their country and peace. I am, gentlemen, with great respect, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Major-General U. S. A. Before the close of the meeting the General was elected an honorary member of the Commission. The unassuming and unselfish nature of General Grant, like that of Washington and Lincoln, is the crowning and most attractive aspect of the chieftain s character. It was expressed in every act. When at this period his name was mentioned in connection with the next Presidential 428 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GEANT. campaign, he said, emphatically, "Let us first settle the war, and it will be time enough then to talk upon that subject!" Again, when rallied upon the apparent de termination of a prominent paper to bring him into the arena, he quietly remarked: " I aspire only to one politi cal office. When this war is over, I mean to ran for mayor of Galena ; and, if elected, I intend to haye the side- walk fixed up between my house and the depot." The appointment of General Grant to the Lieutenant- Generalship of the United States Armies, instead of elating, only gave a new occasion for the development of his nobility of character. On the 4th of March, at Nashville, Major- General Grant received telegraphic orders to report in person at Washington. Congress had passed an act authorizing the appointment of a Lieutenant- General to command the Armies of the United States, and the President had nom inated General Grant for the appointment. Before starting on his journey, Grant seized his pen, and in the very moment of his greatest elevation, filled with generosity toward those others to whose exertions he modestly chose to ascribe his own deserved reward, hastily wrote these touching lines : DEAR SHERMAN : The bill reviving the grade of Lieutenant-General in the army has become a law, and my name has been sent to the Senate for the place. I now receive orders to report to Washington immediately in person, which indicates a confirmation, or a likelihood of confirmation. I start in the morning to comply with the order. Whilst I have been eminently successful in this war, in at least gaining the confidence, of the public, no one feels more than I how much of this success is due to the energy, skill, and the harmonious putting forth of that energy and skill, of those whom it has been my good fortune to have occupying subordinate positions under me. There are many officers to whom these remarks are applicable to a greater or less degree, proportionate to their ability as soldiers ; but what I want is to express my thanks to you and McPherson, as the men to whom, above all others, I feel indebted for whatever I have had of success. How far your advice and assistance have been of help to me, you know. How far your execution of whatever has been given you to do entitles you to the reward I am receiving, you cannot know as well as I. GENERAL GRANT AND GENERAL SHERMAN". 4g I feel all the gratitude this letter would express, giving it the most flattering construction. The word you I use in the plural, intending it for McPherson also. I should write to him, and will some day; but, starting in the morning, I do not know that I will find time just now. Your friend, U. S. GRANT, Major-General. Sherman received this letter near Memphis, on the 10th of March, and immediately replied : DEAP. GEXEEAL : I have your more than kind and characteristic letter of the 4th instant. I will send a copy to General McPherson at once. You do yourself injustice and us too much honor in assigning to us too large a share of the merits which have led to your high advancement. I know you approve the friendship I have ever professed to you, and will permit me to continue, as heretofore, to manifest it on all proper occasions. You are now Washington s legitimate successor, and occupy a position of almost dangerous elevation ; but if you can continue, as heretofore, to bo yourself, simple, honest, and unpretending, you will enjoy through life the respect and love of friends, and the homage of millions of human beings, that will award you a large share in securing to them and their descendants a government of law and stability. I repeat, you do General McPherson and myself too much honor. At Belmont you manifested your traits neither of us being near. At Donol- son, also, you illustrated your whole character. I was not near, and Gen eral McPherson in too subordinate a capacity to influence you. Until you had won Donelson, I confess I was almost cowed by the terrible array of anarchical elements that presented themselves at every point; but that admitted a ray of light I have followed since. I believe you are as brave, patriotic, and just as the great prototype, Washington as unselfish, kind-hearted, and honest as a man should be but the chief characteristic is the simple faith in success you have always manifested, which I can liken to nothing else than the faith a Christian has in the Saviour. This faith gave you victory at Shiloh and Vicksburg. Also, when you have completed your preparations, you go into battle without hesitation, as at Chattanooga no doubts no reverses ; and I tell you, it was this that made us act with confidence. I knew, wherever I was, that you thought of me, and if I got in a tight place you would help me out, if alive. My only point of doubts was in your knowledge of grand strategy, and of books of science and history; but, I confess, your common sense ssems to have supplied all these. Now, as to the future. Don t stay in Washington. Come West ; take to yourself the whole Mississippi Valley. Let us make it dead sure and I 430 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tell you the Atlantic slopes and the Pacific shores will follow its destiny, as sure as the limbs of a tree live or die with the main trunk. We have done much, but still much remains. Time and time s influences are with us. We could almost afford to sit still and let these influences work. Here lies the seat of the coming empire ; and from the West, when our task is done, we will make short work of Charleston and Richmond, and the impoverished coast of the Atlantic. Your sincere friend. On the 6th of March, 1864, he visited the departmental offices at Louisville, Kentucky, to see that every thing was in working order ; and then started East, taking with him his son, a lad thirteen years of age. He arrived at Cincinnati the next morning, where he paid a flying visit to his father, Jesse R. Grant, Esq., residing at Co- vington, opposite that city, after which he proceeded to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Leaving on the morning of March 8th, he arrived at Baltimore about noon, where he was met at the depot of the Northern Central Railroad by soldiers and citizens. The General, as usual, plainly clad, seemed anxious to avoid parade. Many, however, on seeing him, pressed up to shake hands, and gave vent to their feelings by enthusiastic shouts of welcome. To this greeting he remarked that, " beyond all things, he was de termined to avoid political demonstrations ; his business was with war, while it existed, and his duty was to crush the spirit of treason and save the nation from destruction. When these things were accomplished, as he hoped and believed they surely would be, then it would be time enough for those whose tastes were toward partisanship to indulge themselves." General Grant left Baltimore by the next train, and arrived in Washington at about five o clock on the even ing of March 8, 1864. He at once proceeded to Willard s Hotel, and went to his room. A little later, unattended by either staff or escort, he quietly walked into the long dining-room of the hotel, and took his seat. There were several hundred persons present, and the ranking officer of the whole United States Army sat down in the midst of them in his rusty uniform, attracting but little notice. His quietude was but short-lived ; he had but half finished his dinner, when one of the visitors at the table inquired of a GENEKAL GRANT IN WASHINGTON. 431 neighbor who the strange major-general was. Looking up, the party questioned recognized the newly arrived officer, whom he had known in Galena, and answered : " Why, that is Lieutenant- General Grant." The magic name was quickly whispered about, and a battery of ladies eyes was speedily opened upon him. He betrayed embarrassment, when suddenly a member of Congress arose and announced that "the hero of Vicks- burg was among them," and proposed his health. In stantly all the guests were on their feet, and the response was deafening cheers. More embarrassed than before, the General merely bowed and resumed his seat ; but his dinner was constantly interrupted by the rush of the guests to gain an introduction to him. Late in the evening, General Grant visited the White House, where the President was holding a public recep tion. He entered the reception-room unannounced- He was recognized and greeted by Mr. Lincoln with great cordiality. The noted visitor then became the principal figure, and, attended by the Secretaries of War and State, modestly received the congratulations of the crowd, after which he escorted Mrs. Lincoln round the East Room, and retired. He afterward remarked, it was his warmest campaign during the whole war." The City Councils of Washington also tendered him the hospitalities and freedom of the city, together with a cordial welcome. This was embodied in a series of resolu tions, handsomely written, and presented to him by the Mayor. At one o clock in the afternoon of March 9, 1864, Gen eral Grant was formally presented by President Lincoln with his commission as Lieutenant-General. The ceremony took place in the presence of the Cabinet, the General-in- Chief, the members of General Grant s staff, that officer s son, the President s private secretary, and Representative Lovejoy. When the General entered the room the Presi dent rose and said : " GENERAL GRANT : The nation s appreciation of what you have done, and its reliance upon you for what still remains to be accomplished in the existing great struggle, 432 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. are now presented with this commission, constituting you Lieutenant- General in the Army of the United States. With this high honor devolves upon you, also, a cor responding responsibility. As the country herein trusts you, so, under God, it will sustain you. I scarcely need to add, that with what I here speak for the nation, goes my own hearty personal concurrence." To which General Grant replied as follows : "MR. PRESIDENT : I accept the commission, with gra titude for the high honor conferred. With the aid of the noble armies that have fought on so many fields for our common country, it will be my earnest endeavor not to disappoint your expectations. I feel the full weight of the responsibilities now devolving on me, and I know that if they are met, it will be due to those armies, and, above all, to the favor of that Providence which leads both nations and men." At the conclusion of these brief speeches, the President introduced the General to all the members of the Cabinet ; after which the company were seated, and about half an hour was spent in pleasant social conversation. General Grant, the next day, visited the Army of the Potomac, in company with General Meade, and, on his return to the national capital, immediately made prepara tions for his departure. He left Washington, with his staff, on the evening of March llth, for the West. The day after, the following order was promulgated : WAR DEPARTMENT, ADJUTANT-GENERAL S OFFICE, I WASHINGTON, March 12, 1864. The President of the United States orders as follows : I. Major-General Halleck is, at his own request, relieved from duty as General-in-Chief of the Army, and Lieutenant-General U. S. Grant is assigned to the command of the Armies of the United States. The head quarters of the Army will be in Washington, and also with Lieutenant- General Grant in the field. II. Major-General Halleck is assigned to duty in Washington, as Chief of Staff of the Army, under the direction of the Secretary of War and the Lieutenant-General commanding. His orders will be obeyed and respected accordingly. III. Major-General W. T. Sherman is assigned to the command of the military division of the Mississippi, composed of the Departments of the Ohio, the Cumberland, the Tennessee, and the Arkansas. MAJ. GEJY GEO. G-. "kr: THE ORDER FOR A NEW PROGRAMME OF WAR. 433 IV. Major-General J. B. McPherson is assigned to the command of tho Department and Army of the Tennessee. V. In relieving Major-General Halleck from duty as General-in-Chief, the President desires to express his approbation and thanks for the zealous manner in which the arduous and responsible duties of that position have been performed. By order of the Secretary of War. E. D. TOWNSEND, Assistant Adjutant- General. No military order of this war was more satisfactory than this, appointing Lieutenant-General Grant to the com mand of the Armies of the United States. Not the least agreeable feature of it was the announcement of head quarters in Washington with General Grant in the field. He was still to lead in person, and the name which was the omen of success to his soldiers was still to be their rallying cry in battle. 434 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER XXI. GENERAL GRANT AND THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC. ITS LEADING GENERALS. A Ball-room on the Battle-field. General Grant s idea of such "Warlike Prepara tions. A Fancy Officer. The Pause and Crisis. The Opening Campaign and its Field. Incidents. Sketch of Major-General George Gordon Meade. Major- General Philip Henry Sheridan. A FEW days before the anniversary of Washington s "birthday, near General Warren s head- quarters, an im mense ball-room, erected at no small expense, had been thronged with dancers. We shall not soon lose the im pression the unfinished building made on our mind, when, a few weeks before, for the first time we saw it. A ball room on a battle-field ! But the ladies from a distance were delighted with the soldierly frolic, and approached General Grant on the subject, expressing the hope that there would be another in the Army of the Potomac. He coolly listened, and then assured them that, if an other were attempted, he should stop it by special order. It was no time or place for music and dancing, excepting the martial airs and firm step of the warriors, many of whom were soon to fall in the strife. The same day the ball came off, the President had issued an order for preparations in every department of the army for an early advance. For this grand action General Grant was ready. It suited his ideas of carrying on the war. He soon revealed his purpose to move on Richmond. It was not the capital mainly he wanted ; but to crush or fatally cripple the well-disciplined, formidable army under the splendid leadership of General Lee, was the serious work he resolved to undertake. Notwithstanding the repeated failures before, the losses and retreats of the noble Army of the Potomac, the victor of the West was willing to try his strength against the accomplished commander of "the flower of Southern chivalry " in the East. But one condi- THE FANCY OFFICER AND GENERAL GRANT. 435 tion was demanded by Mm, and granted the entire con trol of the army for one hundred days. That is, for that period the campaign should be his own ; he would assume the high responsibility of its success, with no interference from Washington, however well or wisely intended. This arrangement gave unity of plan and harmony in action. He soon visited the able and gallant General Meade, the hero of Gettysburg, at his head- quarters, and inspired new confidence and hope in officers and troops. Strict disci pline was enforced. The speculators and hangers-on in the field began to disappear. Fancy soldiering was made contemptible, as it ought to be. A pleasant story related of General Grant illustrates his course in regard to it. While he was looking over his new field, near Culpep. per Court-House, his head-quarters, in a drizzling rain, attended only by his orderly, a carriage approached him. It was drawn by a pair of fine horses, and attendants escorted it. When near him, the driver reined up, the door was opened, and out sprang a dashing officer. He inquired if that dripping, unostentatious man was General Grant, The latter replied in the affirmative. The officer added, that he wished to see the General on business. "Come, walk with me," answered General Grant. There was no other way to do. Into the mud went the polished boots ; and, unprotected from the rain, the gay uniform was worn, till, like a peacock after a tempest has beaten down its plumage and besprinkled it with dirt, the officer stole back to the carriage with soaked, saturated .apparel, and drooping feather. The parting counsel of his commander, to set an example of a more becoming style of living, was thus enforced by a baptism into the new order of things which he was not likely to forget. The nation, inspirited by the grand successes of the Lieutenant- General, held breath in view of the great and decisive crisis reached. Three years of bloody war, which it was supposed tliree months would close, had left their mournful record. The strain to supply ; i the sinews of war" had been increasing every year. Men and money had been given lavishly. Great victories had been won. Still, the army which we first confronted on the " sacred 436 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. soil of Virginia," and the capital of the growingly desper ate " Confederacy," were apparently stronger than ever. It was no vainglorious nor ordinary act to step forth into such a condition of affairs, the master-spirit of the vast and momentous issue. But the time of renewed and costly activity had come. God s finger had, it seemed, designated the man for the hour and the work. We find another good story, which sounds like the General. A visitor to the army called upon him, one morning, and found the General sitting in his tent, smoking and talking to one of his staff officers. The stranger ap proached the chieftain, and inquired of him as follows : " General, if you flank Lee, and get between him and Richmond, will you not uncover Washington, and leave it a prey to the enemy ?" General Grant, discharging a cloud of smoke from his mouth, indifferently replied : "Yes, I reckon so." The stranger, encouraged Iby a reply, propounded ques tion No. 2 : "General, do you not think Lee can detach sufficient force from his army to re-enforce Beauregard and overwhelm Butler?" " Not a doubt of it," replied the General. Becoming fortified by his success, the stranger pro pounded question No. 8, as follows: "General, is there not danger that General Johnston may come up and re- enforce Lee, so that the latter will swing round and cut off your communications, and seize your supplies V "Very likely," was the cool reply of the General, and he knocked the ashes from the end of his cigar. The stranger, horrified at the awful fate about to befall General Grant and his army, made his exit, and hastened to Washington to communicate the news. A Galena neighbor, who visited New York about this time, seemed utterly confounded with the sudden growth of his neighbor the tanner. He couldn t account for it, for lie was not a marked man in his home, and nobody sup posed him a great man. He seldom talked, asked no ad vice, gave none to any one, but always did what he agreed to, and at the time. RICHMOND AND ITS DEFENSES. 437 A hundred and seventeen miles from Washington lay Richmond, the capital of the " Old Dominion," and of the new Confederacy of slaveholders. Its population, ordina rily, did not exceed sixty thousand. The situation is pleasant., on the James River. As a war center, it became a great hospital and Sodom. The sick and wounded in "body, and the corrupt in heart, were the ruling majority in the high place of treason, second only to Charleston in this distinction. Under the accomplished engineer, Beauregard, who, since the first year of the conflict, had multiplied de fences, exhausting his skill and resources, it presents circles and angles of fortifications perhaps unsurpassed by any city in the world. Below Richmond was Fort Darling ; and on the same side, to guard an approach, was Peters burg, also strongly fortified and garrisoned. Between the National capital and Richmond, Lee s veteran army was waiting for Generals Grant and Meade to move. The for mer had the general direction of the grand campaign, while General Meade was commander of the Potomac Army. Culpepper Court-House, ten miles north of the Rapidan, between it and the Rappahannock, and about seventy-five miles from Washington, was the head-quarters of General Grant. Ten miles on the other or south side of the river, at Orange Court-House, was the Confederate host. The two vast armies were, therefore, twenty miles apart. Their pickets came to the banks of the stream, and sometimes joked across it, and passed papers and tobacco to each other. General Lee for several months had been anticipating another attempt to cut the way to Richmond, whose Libby prison worse than death to our captive heroes had awakened the strongest indignation at the North. " And why had we failed f was a not unfrequent question ; and Congress took up the refrain. Jealousy, rivalry, and in ordinate ambition doubtless had much to do with our mis fortunes ; but the great fault did not lie there. It was mainly in the peculiar geographical and topographical configuration of the country. A military writer, whose attention was attracted to this subject at this time, wrote: "Two armies of equal numbers, and commanded with 438 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. equal ability, being opposed to each other, their move ments and achievements must be entirely determined by the nature of the theater of operations. Perhaps never in the history of warfare has the character of the ground ex erted more influence on campaigns than that of the portion of Virginia which lies between Washington and Richmond. On the right of our army are chains of mountains, which enable the rebels to conceal any flanking movement they may undertake ; while the valleys afford to them the means for an easy and uninterrupted passage to the Potomac above Washington, and one almost entirely secure from attacks in their rear. On our front is a succession of rivers, presenting great natural obstacles to our advance, and at the same time easily defensible ; to make flanking move ments by ascending them is to open our rear to attacks from Fredericksburg, and to cross below the rebel army leaves the railroad a prey to guerrillas. The country is, moreover, masked in every direction by dense forests, rendering any thing like a surprise in force impracticable. A few rebel scouts may at all times easily detect and thwart such a movement. Such are the natural features of the country." On the 24th of March, 1864, a reorganization of the Army of the Potomac was effected. The number of army corps was reduced to three ; the Second, under command of Ma jor-General Winfield S. Hancock ; the Fifth, under com mand of Major-General G. W. Warren ; and the sixth, under command of General Sedgwick. On the 4th of April, 1864, Major-General Sheridan was placed in command of the cavalry corps. Division officers were also reassigned. A partial reorganization was also effected in the Army of the Southwest. By direction of the President, under date of April 4th, 1864, the Eleventh and Twelfth corps were consolidated arid placed under command of Major- General Hooker, and the new corps was called the Twen tieth. The Lieutenant- General, accompanied by several of his staff officers, made a tour of survey of all our forces in Virginia, General W. F. Smith accompanying him in his visit to Butler s command. PREPARATIONS FOR THE GRAND CAMPAIGN. 439 The month of April was one of general preparation for the grandest military campaign of modern times. Through out the loyal North the notes of mustering for the decisive conflict were heard. Recruits poured into the Potomac Army, of which General Grant said to General Ogilby : "This is a very fine army ; and these men, I am told, have fought with great courage and bravery. I think, however, that the Army of the Potomac has never fought its battles through " words of wisdom soon to be verified under his leadership. And of the first commander he added, on another occasion : " General McClellan failed not so much from a lack of milita^ ability as from a species of intoxi cation, resulting from his too rapid promotion and the flat tery of politicians. He degenerated from a leader into a follower." General Grant did not propose to hurl his battalions against those of Lee, protected by strong intrenchments, but move round to the eastward, to get past the right wing, between the enemy and Richmond, compelling the rebel chief either to come out of his own den and try to stop his adversary, or fall back on his capital. The Lieutenant- General went from the secret cabinet councils at Washington to the military posts, to inspect them, and secure a readiness complete as possible for the advance toward Richmond. Blooming May found General Sherman initiating opera tions on a large scale against Johnston in Northern Georgia, General Banks had been ordered to protect the gunboats on the Red River ; General Steele was taking care of Price in Arkansas ; and General Butler was securely intrenched on the right bank of the James River, at Bermuda Hun dred, ready to strike when and where he was least ex pected. Over all, from the Atlantic coast at Chesapeake Bay to the Gulf of Mexico, and westward to the haunts of the Indians, extended the rule and tremendous responsibility of General Grant. The entire confidence existing between the President and General Grant will appear in these additional let ters : 440 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. EXECUTIVE MANSION, WASHINGTON, April 30, 1SC1. Lieutenant-General GRANT : Not expecting to see you before the spring campaign opens, I wish to express, in this way, my entire satisfaction with what you have done up to this time, so far as I understand it. The particulars of your plans I neither know nor seek to know. You are vigilant and self-reliant ; and, pleased with this, I wish not to obtrude any restraints or constraints upon you. While I am very anxious that any great disaster or capture of our men in great numbers shall be avoided, I know that these points are less likely to escape your attention than they would be mine. If there be any thing wanting which is within my power to give, do not fail to let me know it. And now, with a brave army and a just cause, may God sustain you. Yours very truly, A. LINCOLN. HEAD-QUARTERS ARMIES UNITED STATES, i CULPEPPES C. H., VIRGINIA, May 1, 18G4. The PRESIDENT : Your very kind letter of yesterday is just received. The confidence you express for the future, and satisfaction for the past, in my military ad ministration, is acknowledged with pride. It shall be my earnest endeavor that you and the country shall not be disappointed. From my first entrance into the voluntary service of the country to the present day, I have never had cause of complaint, have never expressed or implied a complaint against the Administration or the Secretary of War, for throw ing any embarrassment in the way of my vigorously prosecuting what appeared to be my duty. Indeed, since the promotion which placed me in command of all the armies, and in view of the great responsibility and im portance of success, I have been astonished at the readiness with which every thing asked for has been yielded, without even an explanation being asked. Should my success be less than I desire and expect, the least I can say is, the fault is not with you. Very truly, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. At this momentous pause in the "battle- work of the armies, it will lend interest to the great campaigns which succeeded it, to glance at the personal and public history of the leading chieftains in command of the battalions. Next to General Grant, the leader of the Potomac Army, stood MAJOR-GENERAL GEORGE GORDON MEADE. He was born at Cadiz, Spain, where his father, Richard Warsaw Meade, was Consul and Navy Agent at the time, on the 31st of December, 1815. EARLY LIFE OF GENERAL MEADE. 441 While yet an infant, his parents removed to Philadel phia. In early boyhood he was sent to Georgetown, D. C., to be the pupil of Mr. Salmon P. Chase, since Secretary of the Treasury, but then a successful teacher. A few years later he entered the Military Academy at Mount Airy, near Philadelphia, from which he went to West Point as a Cadet in September, 1831. Graduating July 1st, 1835, he entered the army, brevet second lieutenant of the Third Artillery, and was ordered to Florida. lie was a brave, successful young soldier, and escaped the memorable " Bade Massacre " in conse quence of an attack of illness at the time of the terrible tragedy. In December, 1835, he was created full second lieuten ant, and less than a year later resigned his commission to engage in the duties of civil engineer. His excellent quali fications for the profession were called for in the survey of the Northeastern Boundary Line, under the charge of Colonel James D. Graham. May 19th, 1842, he received the appointment of second lieutenant of the topographical engineers. When war was declared with Mexico, he entered the service with a new interest, and became a member of Gen eral Taylor 1 s staff, winning the highest commendations from superior officers for his gallantry at Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey r and Saltillo. In the remarkable siege of Monterey he was brevetted first lieutenant. After the declaration of peace, he was actively em ployed on river and harbor improvements, and in the con struction of light-houses, principally in Delaware Bay ; but upon hostilities being again threatened in Florida, he relin quished these peaceable pursuits and again took the field with his old commander, General Zachary Taylor. He re mained in Florida about six months. After the close of the Florida war, he superintended the building of light-houses in Delaware Bay, and off the coast of Florida. August, 1851, he was made first lieutenant, and five years from May of that year was promoted to the captaincy, and ordered to Detroit, Michigan, to engage in the national 442 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. survey of the great chain of Northwestern lakes ; and soon after was in command of the important enterprise. Esteemed and flattered by the people of the city at which he made his head-quarters, the fruits of his skillful services Which remain, in charts and reports, and received the warmest approval at Washington, commemorate perma nently his able and honorable career in the West. Here the Eebellion found him in 1861. Ordered to the National capital in August, he was com missioned brigadier-general of volunteers on the 31st of that month, and assigned to the command of the Second Brigade of Pennsylvania Reserve Corps the splendid organization furnished by the wise forecast of the Keystone State, and commanded by General McCall. He entered on his new duties September, 1861, drilling Ms troops for the stern work before them. He led them to Manassas the next spring, and, after the battle of Hanover Court-House, joined the host of McClel- lan on the Peninsula. June 19th, 1862, he was promoted to the rank of Major in the regular army. General Meade steadily won the admiration of the army and the people for his unquestioned bravery and military accomplishments. He did well, and all that a chief could do, at Mechanics ville and Games s Mills. In the evening after the latter battle the Reserves crossed the Chickahoininy, advancing the next night to White Oak Creek, and thence to New Market Cross-roads, where the rebels came upon the supply-trains, whose im mense caravan was moving toward James River. General Meade, whose brigade was. on the right, was in the thickest of the fight like Grant, lighting his cigar in a tempest of shot and shell. Amid the terrible slaughter, General Meade was pierced by two balls, one entering his arm and the other his hip. The wounds were not mortal, as at iirst believed to be, and after spending a month at his home in Philadelphia, he returned to the army at Harrison s Landing, August 13th, 1862, and, after the evacuation of the Peninsula, joined General Pope. Then followed the heroic work of both BRAVERY OF GENERAL MEADE. 443 commander and troops in the Pope campaign, in the fight at South Mountain, and at Antietam. General Meade received a slight contusion from a spent grape-shot, and had two horses killed under him. After General Hooker was wounded, General Meade was placed temporarily in command of his corps, which position he held until the return of General Reynolds from Pennsylvania, when he reassumed command of the Reserve Corps. When the Army of the Potomac again crossed the Poto mac, in the latter part of October, 1862, General Meade accompanied it, and on the 29th of the following month (November) was rewarded for his repeated acts of gallant ry by an appointment as major-general of volunteers, an honorable promotion for which lie had been earnestly recommended by General Hooker. General Meade s force was among the first to cross the river in the battle of Fredericksburg, and carried the colors of the Republic into the very intrenchments of the enemy, taking back, when compelled for want of re-en- forcemerits to retire, several hundred prisoners. December 25, 1862, he was appointed to the command of the Fifth Army Corps, and feelingly bade farewell to his noble Reserves. When General Hooker succeeded General Burnside, January, 1863, General Meade led his Fifth Corps grandly in the desperate struggle of Chancellorsville, covering the retreat where the commander of the Potomac Army order ed it. Before the dawn of Sunday, June 28, General Meade was aroused in his tent, at Frederick, Maryland, by a messenger from General Halleck, with the commis sion to succeed General Hooker in the command of the Potomac Army. Rising from his bed, he soon had the following order written, a perfect one of the kind : HEAD-QUARTERS OF THIS ARMY OP THK POTOMAC, June 28, 1863. By direction of the President of the United States, I do hereby assume command of the Army of the Potomac. As a soldier, in obeying this order an order totally unexpected and unsolicited I have no promises or pledges to make. The country looks to this army to relieve it from tho devastation and disgrace of a hostile invasion. Whatever fatigues and sac- 444 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. rifices we may be called upon to undergo, let us liavo in view constantly the magnitude of the interests involved, and let each man determine to do his duty, leaving to an all-controlling Providence the decision of the con test. It is withjust diffidence that I relieve in the command of this army an eminent and accomplished soldier, whose name must ever appear con spicuous in the history of its achievements ; but I rely upon the hearty support of my companions in arms to assist me in the discharge of the duties of the important trust which has been confided to me. GEORGE G. MEADE, Major-General commanding. S. F. BARSTOW, Assistant Adjutant-General. Two days later the following circular was issued : HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, June 30, 1S63. The commanding General requests that, previous to the engagement eoon expected with the enemy, corps and all other commanding officers address their troops, explaining to them the immense issues involved in the struggle. The enemy is now on our soil. The whole country looks anx iously to this army to deliver it from the presence of the foe. Our failure to do so will leave us no such welcome as the swelling of millions of hearts with pride and joy at our success would give to every soldier of the army. Homes, firesides, and domestic altars are involved. The army has fought well heretofore. It is believed that it will fight more desperately and bravely thaiv ever, if it is addressed in fitting terms. Corps and other commanders are authorized to order the instant death Qf any soldier who fails to do his duty at this hour. By command of Major-General MEADE. S. WILLIAMS, Assistant Adjutant-General. Then came the fearfully dark days of General Lee s invasion of Pennsylvania, and bloody, glorious Gettys burg, July 1st, 2d, and 3d. Pennsylvania was rescued from the invader, and Baltimore and the Federal capital were saved ; and to the brave defenders, with their skill ful leader, who, under the direction of the God of battles, had accomplished these results, were accorded the thanks and laudations of a rescued people. He realized to the fullest extent the magnitude and importance of the task imposed upon him, and the suc cessful issue of the three days conflict at Gettysburg proved the wisdom of the selection, and the superior abil ity of the brave man who planned and fought the battle." General Lee s escape with his army, under the circum stancesthe strength of the foe, the want of a just estimate of it, and the opinion of the subordinate commanders beinp- A FITTING TESTIMONIAL. 445 adverse to immediate pursuit exonerates General Meade from all blame, in the regretted flight of the routed legions of treason, to fight again. August 28, 1863, an interesting scene illustrated the popularity of the hero of Gettysburg. The officers of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps presented him with a splen did sword and a pair of golden spurs. On the scabbard of the former was this inscription : " Mechanicsville, Games s Hill, Newmarket Cross roads, Malvern Hill, Bull Run (second), South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg. 7 Near the hilt, inlaid in blue enamel and gold, with precious diamonds, were the initials of General Meade, " G. G. M.," and the handle of the weapon was encircled with a row of opals, amethysts, rubies, and other precious jewels. Invitations were extended to Governor Curtin of Pennsylvania, and a number of gentlemen prominent in civil and military life, who were also present. General S. Wylie Crawford, the gallant commander of the Reserves, was designated as the* most suitable person to present the well-deserved tribute, and ably fulfilled the pleasant duty in the following words : "GENEKAL : I stand before you to-day, sir, the repre sentative of the officers of that division who once called , you its chief. " Impelled by a desire to perpetuate the memory of your connection with them ; desirous, too, to manifest to you the affection and esteem they bear you, they ask the acceptance, to-day, of this testimonial, which shall mark it forever. Accept it, sir, from them, and here, in the pres ence of him who conceived the idea of this division and who, I trust, a faithful people will return to the position he so worthily occupies not as a reward, not as a recom pense for your care for them, but as the exponent of those feelings of their hearts whose value cannot be expressed in words. Transmit it to those who bear your name, and let it ever express to you and them that devoted attachment and regard that the officers of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps shall never cease to feel for you. 7 General Meade replied in a speech of considerable 446 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. length, reviewing the brilliant history of the Reserves, amid the repeated cheers of the enthusiastic assemblage. October 9th, the opposing armies confronted each other along the banks of the Rapidan, and a battle was fought at Bristoe Station, Warren leading the Second Corps bravely, and beating back Lee from his attempt to seize the Eights of Centerville, and also fall on the flank of the Potomac Army. In early November there were successful engagements on the Rappahannock, and later in the month the affairs at Locust Grove and Mine Run, in all of which General Meade maintained his character as a leader of the first rank in the vast operations of the Union army. January, 1864, he visited Philadelphia, and was wel comed with every demonstration of admiring gratitude by his fellow- citizens. Congress added tlie expression of na tional thanks for his heroism and high achievements. February 29th, he was appointed brigadier-general in the regular army, dating July 3d, 1863 the great day of victory at Gettysburg. The grand campaign under Lieutenant-General Grant followed, during which General Meade held both his com mand and his hold upon the confidence of the nation. This will appear in the history of the presiding genius of the triumphant year which gave the country the rebel capital. The excellent wife of the brave general is the daughter of Honorable John Sergeant, of Philadelphia, the present home of the nation s defender in its greatest hour of peril. PHILIP HENRY SHERIDAN Was born in Massachusetts, in 1836, according to the records in the War Department at Washington. His father removed to Perry County, Ohio, when " Phil was a child ; a region then almost a wilderness. He early showed a fondness for horses. At five years of age, he was playing near his home, when some lads came along and amused themselves with the wide-awake boy. A horse was feeding quietly in an adjacent lot. "Phil, would you like a ride?" they said to him. SHERIDAN S EARLIEST RIDE. 447 " Yes, give me one." In a few moments the boy was on the animal s "back. The sudden and unceremonious mounting of the young rider started the steed, and away he ran. " Whoa ! whoa ! " sang out the mischievous lads, but in vain. Over the fence he sprang, and once on the highway, it was a Gilpin ride. " Phil " clung to the mane, while the sobered authors of the race turned pale with the apprehension of a tragical end to it, expecting to see him dashed to the earth and killed. But out of sight horse and rider vanished, and miles soon lay between the two parties, when the horse suddenly turned into the shed of a tavern where its owner had frequently stopped in his travel. Men came out, and recognizing the horse, ques tioned the boy. One of the curious company, after secur ing the foaming animal, without saddle or bridle, and the unterriiied "Phil," inquired: " Who learned you to ride ?" " Nobody," answered the boy. " Did no one teach you how to sit on a horse 1" asked another. "Oh, yes! Bill Seymour told me to hold on with my knees, and I did." " Wasn t you frightened " " Nary a bit ; I wanted to go on further, but the horse wouldn t go." " Ain t you sore, boy V "Kinder, but I ll be better to-morrow, and then I ll ride back home." "That boy," said the questioner, " has pluck enough to make an Indian hunter." The following morning "Phil" was lame and sore: still, he wanted to go home. The surprised and interested people kept the little fellow to nurse him before he under took the return trip. Meanwhile the owner of the horse, on his account and in behalf of the family, made his ap pearance. He had learned along the way the course of the young Gilpin. He expressed astonishment that he was not thrown, as the horse was vicious, and had unsaddled excellent horsemen. 448 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Soon as lie was old enough to earn a livelihood, he went to Zanesville, Ohio, and for a time drove a water-cart. Through the influence of a brother, and the kindly interest which the bright, independent boy awakened in the Con gressman of the District, he was appointed cadet in the Uni ted States Military Academy at West Point, and was admit ted therein July, 1848. He graduated in the summer of 1853, having suffered somewhat in his standing from that com- bat-iveness which, as was remarked by one of the profes sors, was not the worst quality in the character of a soldier. McPherson, Schofield, Hood, and others of distinction, on both sides in the great Kebellion, were his classmates. He, immediately after graduation, was ordered to Fort Duncan, Texas, where his regiment was stationed. He had various adventures with the Indians, and some hair breadth escapes, one of which was in a most daring per sonal combat with an Apache chief, and so annoyed his commander, since a rebel general, that he sought and ob tained an assignment with a full second lieutenancy in the Fourth Infantry Regiment, then in Oregon. He subsequently returned to JSTew York, to accompany recruits to the Pacific coast. While waiting for these, he spent a few months in the command of Fort Wood, New York harbor. In July, 1855, Lieutenant Sheridan s troops were ready to move, and he sailed with them for California. He had scarcely touched the Pacific coast before he was chosen to command an escort for Lieutenant Williamson s expedition to a branch of the Columbia, whose object it was to survey the proposed route of a branch railroad of the great Pa cific railway, connecting San Francisco with the Columbia River. In the early autumn of that year, Lieutenant Sheridan was at Fort Vancouver, Washington Territory. Here Major Rains, since a general in the rebel army, planned an expedition against the Yokima (or, as it is also spelled, Yakima) Indians, who were troublesome to our people, and secured Lieutenant Sheridan s services. The danger of the enterprise just suited the energy and enthusiasm of the young officer. Turn to the map again, and you will LIEUTENANT SHERIDAN AT THE WEST. 440 find Fort Vancouver, so named after the celebrated captain and discoverer, on the Columbia Eiver, not far from Co lumbia City, and Yokima Kiver north of it, flowing south easterly into that father of Western waters. April 28, 1856, occurred one of the severest encounters of the troops at the Cascades, on the Columbia, not very far from Fort Vancouver. The savages fought bravely, and Lieutenant Sheridan displayed that dashing and fear less courage which has so distinguished him in his more recent and splendid achievements. His gallantry attracted the special notice of his superior officer, and was mentioned flatteringly in general orders. The savages were defeated, and the threatened outbreak soon entirely suppressed. Not only for his bravery, but his kindly intercourse, was Sheridan admired by the Indians, and gained a powerful influence over them, unlike many officers, who have left only scorn and hate behind them upon the quick and un- forgetful minds of the aborigines. To the Yokimas, after their submission to Major Rains, was given a beautiful valley in the coast range of moun tains, to be the "Yokima Reservation" and share, before the future tide of emigration rolling in upon the Pacific shores, the fate of all similar compromises with a doomed people. Lieutenant Sheridan was appointed to the com mand of this Indian domain, and won the confidence of his wild subjects, administering their affairs to their satis-, faction and that of the Government. Lieutenant- General Scott made special mention of his meritorious conduct in the settlement of difficulties with the turbulent Yokimaa. During that same year, 1857, he created a new military post at Yamhill, southwest of Fort Vancouver. Then followed three years of incessant inarches, skirmishing, and forest encampment among the Indians of the mountains. Amid the grand and exciting scenery and scenes of Oregon he also suffered great deprivation, sometimes reduced to the diet of grasshoppers^ caught in the open plains. He was passing through discipline for noble service of which he little dreamed in the future of his country. While there, the Rebellion opened its fearful storm upon the Republic. He repaired, according to orders, iit 29 450. LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tlie spring of 1861, to Washington, with a first lieutenant s commission, and, May 14th, was created captain in the Thirteenth Regiment of Regular Infantry. With the ad vent of autumn, he joined his regiment at Jefferson Bar racks, Missouri, and was appointed president of the board selected to audit the claims which arose under the admin istration of General Fremont in the West, a practical busi ness affair, in which he maintained his characteristic urbanity, and showed ability for any service. This official position was followed by a call to more difficult responsi bilities. He was appointed chief quartermaster and com missary of the army forming at the moment for operations in Southwestern Missouri. In March, 1862, Captain Sheridan was appointed chief quartermaster of the Western Department, comprising the sixteen divisions of General Halleck s department, with the rank of major. The call for good cavalry officers was so great that he was soon transferred to that service, as colonel of the Second Regiment of Michigan Volunteer Cavalry, and ordered to the field around Corinth, and attached to Elliott s force. June 6th, he led a reconnoissance below Donaldson s Cross-roads. Here the well-known Forrest met Sheridan s troops, and a sharp engagement followed, in which he was victorious again over the desperate foe. On the 8th, com manding two regiments, he pursued the enemy through Baldwin, captured it, met the enemy and defeated him, and then, in accordance with orders, returned to Corinth. A few days later, June 12th, his command was formally enlarged to that of a brigade, consisting of the Second Iowa Cavalry in addition to his own regiment. He was prepared and impatient to make an onset upon the foe, equal in magnitude to the strength of his army. The coveted opportunity was at hand. He was ordered to Booneville, twenty miles in front of the main army, to cover its advance, and watch carefully the enemy before him. July 1st, General Chalmers, leading nine regiments, in all six thousand men, attacked Colonel Sheridan with his two regiments. THE PERIL AND THE ESCAPE, 451 Skirmishing became the order of the day, until the gal lant colonel fell back upon his camp. It lay upon the margin of a dense swamp, where to flank him would "be a difficult undertaking, and directly confronting his power ful foe with an inferior force, he could keep him at "bay. The overwhelming numbers of the enemy began to threaten the Union brigade with isolation, by extending their lines around it. The peril suggested a fine stroke of strategy. Selecting ninety men, he sent them, armed with revolving carbines and sabers, along a curve of four miles around the enemy, with orders to fall on the rear at a given time, while he would attack the front at the same moment. The bold, shrewd plan succeeded. While the Confeder ates were dreaming of coming victory, suddenly the crack of carbines startled u the rear-guard," and then another volley, till the revolving weapons had gone their rounds, when the bugle sounded a charge ; and, fearlessly as a host of ten thousand, the ninety troopers dashed upon the six thousand. Entirely ignorant of the numbers advancing, the rebels were panic- smitten, and before a correction of the mistake was possible, Sheridan made his onset in front with his usual impetuosity, sweeping down upon the op posing ranks with the fury of a tornado from the forest Houted and terrified, the foe fled in confusion. General Sheridan pursued him with rapid pace, over a track bor dered with guns, knapsacks, coats, and whatever impeded his flight. This wild chase was kept up for twenty miles. The success was complete and brilliant. General Grant appreciated the deed of valor, and in his report to the War Department expressed his admiration, commending Colonel Sheridan for promotion. Accord ingly, a brigadier-general s commission, dated July 1st, 1862, was forwarded to the heroic officer. You will recol lect that General Sheridan s head- quarters were at Boone- ville, Tisliemingo County, Mississippi, bordering on Tea- nessee, and southerly from Corinth. Twenty-Mile Creek ran between him and the enemy, and to it the animals of the rebel army were sent for watering. This afforded Sheridan a chance for a cavalry dash now and then, cap turing as many as three hundred of them at a time. 452 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. A few weeks afterward, in August, General Sheridan performed another of his daring movements. Attacked "by Colonel Faulkner, not far from the town of Blenzi, a short and desperate struggle terminated in victory to the Union troopers, Sheridan pursuing the fugitives almost to the main column of the hostile force, and safely retracing his steps, with no small part of the attacking troops prisoners. And now we come to grander scenes in the arena of conflict. Early in September, 1862, Grant learned that the rebel forces of the Southwest were making a general ad vance, under General Bragg, upon the Union positions in that region, having the Ohio River for the goal of mad am bition. It became necessary to re-enforce the Army of Ohio, then under the command of General Buell. Among the troops ordered to join him was General Sheridan s command, the Second Michigan Cavalry, which was at once enlarged by General Buell to that of the Third Divi sion of the Army of the Ohio, in accordance with General Grant s expectation when he assigned to him the valiant officer. September 20th, Bragg was near Louisville, Ken tucky, which was poorly prepared for an attack. It was General Sheridan s duty to defend the city. With prompt energy he took the hours of night for digging rifle-pits stretching from the railroad depot toward Portland, form ing a strong defense against the enemy s approach, by securing the town against surprise. Here General Buell found Sheridan, September 25th, when he arrived there to organize the Army of the Ohio, to which heavy re-en forcements had been added. This new order of things placed General Sheridan at the head of the Eleventh Division, October 1st. The Union forces entered upon offensive warfare, bear ing steadily down upon the rebels, who, finding themselves thus confronted, began to retreat. The decisive hour of a great conflict had come. Toward this clash of arms, the fierce and awful collision of mighty armies, their movements for weeks had been tending. Along the banks of Stone River the final preparation for deadly encounter went forward the last days of December. An army in battle array has its center or body, and its GENERAL SHERIDAN AT STONE RIVER. 453 wings stretching out on either side. General Sheridan s position was next to the center, in the right wing, or on its extreme left, where the first onslaught of the enemy would be made. In the terrible battle of Stone River, Sheridan s posi tion was on the extreme left of the right wing, joining the center. Of his valor, General Rosecrans spoke in the highest terms ; his troops sustaining four successive shocks and repulsing the enemy four times, losing in the san guinary strife the gallant Sill and Roberts. When Sheridan had extricated his command from the forest, and got in line with the reserves, he rode up to Rosecrans, and, pointing to the remnant of his division, said, Here is all that is left of us, General. Our cart ridge-boxes contain nothing, and our guns are empty." In his report of the struggle, General Rosecrans says : 44 He ought to be made a major-general for his services, and also for the good of the service." The recommendation to higher duty and honors was heartily responded to by our noble President. The nom ination of General Sheridan to a major-generalship was made and confirmed by the Senate the last day of the eventful year 1862. In March, 1863, General Sheridan led a scouting expedi tion, reconnoitering the rebel position, and defeating them in several skirmishes. The month of May was distinguished for two impor tant results in the movements of the armies the defeat of General Hooker at Chancel! orsville, and the successful arrival of General Grant s army at Vicksburg, investing that stronghold of rebellion in the southwest. June 23d, General Rosecrans set the army -front toward Chattanooga. His rendezvous, you recollect, was at Mur freesboro, and his grand object directly in view was to drive the rebels from Middle Tennessee. Their main base of supplies was at Chattanooga, which you will see by the map lies southeast of Murfreesboro, and near the Georgia boundary. Bragg s army lay intrenched north of Duck River, from Shelby ville to War trace, McMinnsviile, Colum bia, and Spring Hill. Between Murfreesboro and his lines 454 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. were rocky liights, through which were passes for the routes of travel, called Hoover s Gap, Liberty Gay, and Guy s Gap, all held by the rebels. Sheridan was in General McCook s corps, which moved along the Shelby ville road, and was to advance on Liberty Gap, " one of the keys to the rebel position." He was successful in his enterprise, and soon was in possession of Shelby ville. General Sheridan, as announced by his chief, was con spicuous in the movements and the battles which removed the head-quarters of the army to Winchester, Tennessee. Flushed with the successes at Liberty Gap and Winches ter, General Sheridan s troops, in view of an impending struggle, engaged with enthusiasm in the more prosy busi ness of getting the whole army forward toward the Ten nessee River progress being retarded by rebuilding rail roads and securing the necessary supplies. In the fore part of September, the Army of the Cumber land crossed the Tennessee at different points. General Sheridan s division passed safely over the river on their own bridge, August 31, and swept on toward Trenton, in Dade County, Georgia, and on the 5th of Sep tember encamped a few miles from that village. The fol lowing day the march was resumed. The rebels, finding that the cavalry were approaching, Sheridan having reach ed Stearns s Mills, on their flank, evacuated Chattanooga. With great sacrifice of life, through the dauntless hero ism of such men as Thomas, McCook, and Sheridan, Chat tanooga was saved to the Union cause. It is startling to think how near we came to a complete and disastrous de feat. Major-General McCook, General Sheridan s corps commander, gives prominence to his heroic part in the terrible fight. General Sheridan s next advancement was an enlarged command in General Granger s corps, under General Grant, to whom, October 17, General Halleck gave the " Departments of the Ohio, of the Cumberland, and of the Tennessee, constituting the Military Division of the Mis sissippi." To the threats of General Bragg to bombard Chatta- GENERAL SHERIDAN AT CHATTANOOGA. 4^5 nooga, General Grant s reply was a general attack upon his enemy, weakened by the loss of twenty thousand men, led by Longstreet into East Tennessee to conquer it, November 23. In the great conflict and victory, General Sheridan bore himself splendidly. Stung with the breaking of his division at Chickamauga, Sheridan shouts : " Show the Fourth Corps that the men of the Old Twentieth are still alive, and can fight ! Ke- member Chickamauga !" And they did fight. In the thickest of the battle, he took a flask from an aid, and, filling a pewter cup, raised his cap to a rebel battery, saying, "How are you ?" as he drank. Six guns were aimed at the daring horseman, but in vain. Soon after, his horse was killed under him. In February he was again sent into East Tennessee, and drove out the rebels with great daring and heroic endu rance. In March, 1864, following the election of General Grant to the rank of lieutenant-general, General Sheridan was appointed to the command of the cavalry corps of the Po tomac Army. His first work was to protect the flanks of that army, when its grand advance was made, early in May, 1864. On the 9th, he entered upon the perilous expedition to the rear of General. Lee s army, cutting his way when his command were surrounded by the rebels. After opening communication with Yorktown, and thence to Washington, he co-operated with the columns of the gallant Meade and his superior officer, in the move ment toward the Chickahominy. June 8, he started on his second cavalry expedition into the " heart of the rebel country." It was one of the most heroic, difficult, and successful enterprises of the kind in the annals of war. During the month of July, he was engaged in cutting the railroads around Petersburg. With August, the rebels pushed out again for the rich fields of the Shenandoah Val ley making the third invasion of Maryland. The skirmishes and battles, of which the marvelous 456 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. turning of defeat into victory at Winchester stands con spicuous in all the annals of warfare, that make up the history of Early s defeat and of the final triumph of the Union army, have a larger place in the record of the great Commander of the whole arena of national conflict for ex istence. General Sheridan s great forte in command is the fiery enthusiasm with which he inspires the men making them, like himself, insensible to danger, and resistless in valor. Grant, Sherman, and Thomas are great in strategy, and calm in execution. Sheridan has never failed in his plans, but has won his victories chiefly through this sublime heroism, on fire with martial daring and glory. The fidelity of the staff-oflicer s sketch of the personal appearance and habits of General Sheridan is confirmed by all who knew him well : "In person (at least in repose) General Sheridan would not be called a handsome man. Sheridan is barely five feet six inches in hight. His body is stout, his lower limbs rather short. Deep and broad in the chest, compact and firm in muscle, active and vigorous in motion, there was not a pound of superfluous flesh on his body at the time we write. His face and head showed his Celtic origin. Head long, well balanced in shape, and covered with a full crop of close, curling, dark hair. His forehead moderately high, but quite broad ; perceptives well developed, high cheek-bones, dark beard, closely covering a square lower jaw, and firm-lined mouth, clear dark eyes, which were of a most kindly character, com pleted the tout ensemble memory gives at the call. Al ways neat in person, and generally dressed in uniform, Captain Sheridan looked, as he was, a quiet, unassuming, but determined officer and gentleman, whose modesty would always have been a barrier to great renown, had not the golden gates of opportunity been unbarred for his passage." SKETCHES OF LEADING UNION GENERALS. 457 CHAPTEE XXII. THE LEADING GENERALS IN THE CAMPAIGN. Sketches of Major-General William Tecutnseh Sherman. Major-General George H. Thomas. Major-General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick. Major-General Oliver 0. Howard. Major-General James Birdseye McPherson. NEXT in extent of command, and its importance in the vast field of strife, was the Department of the Mississippi, under the command of that gifted and splendid officer, Major-General Sherman, in whose rare company of sub ordinate chiefs were Thomas, Howard, Schofield, McPher son, and Kilpatrick. Brief biographies of these brave men, at this period of rest and yet of preparation for the decisive campaign of the war, will gratify a rational curiosity, and add a personal interest to the narrative of the momentous times. WILLIAM TECUMSEI-I SHERMAJST, Whose ancestors came from England and settled in Strat ford, Connecticut, in 1634, was born in Lancaster, Ohio, February 8, 1820. His father, an eminent jurist of that State, died in 1848, leaving the widow, an intelligent and devout woman, with eleven children. Honorable John Sherman, of the United States Senate, is a younger brother of William Tecumseh, whose Indian name was given him by his father, because he knew and admired the celebrated warrior after whom he called his son. The Honorable Thomas Ewing, a resident of Lancaster, knew that his gifted and departed friend had not left the large family a fortune. It would therefore be no easy task to educate and start them in the world. And his errand then was to ask the mother to commit one of the boys to his home and care. He said, with a playful earnestness, "I must have the 458 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. smartest of the lot ; I will take no other, and you must select him for me." After a short consultation between the mother and eldest daughter, the choice fell upon "Cump." So it was decided that Mr. Ewing should take him to his house and educate him with his own chil dren. At the age of sixteen, Mr. Ewing, in his official posi tion, had at his disposal the appointment of a cadet to the Military Academy at West Point, and determined to offer it to his "protege" Tecumseh had a taste for military life, and gladly accepted the honor, entering the institu tion June, 1836. In a letter, dated February 17, 1839, lie writes : " Bill is very much elated at the idea of getting free of West Point next June. He does not intend remaining in the army more than one year, then to resign, and study law, probably. No doubt you admire his choice ; but, to speak plainly and candidly, I would rather be a black smith. Indeed, the nearer we come to that dreadful epoch, graduation-day, the higher opinion I conceive of the duties and life of an officer of the United States Army, and the more confirmed in the wish of spending my life in the service of my country." He graduated fifth in his class, June 30, 1840. The rebel General Beauregard was a classmate. Created second lieutenant in the Third Artillery, he repaired to Florida in the service of the regular army. When Lieutenant Sherman reached the peninsula, the war therewith the " exiles" and Seininoles had been in progress about five years. In March, 1841, he went with his company to Fort Morgan, at the entrance of Mobile Bay. Young Sherman was promoted to a first-lieutenancy November, 1841, and soon after, the war closed, followed by the removal of the "exiles" to the country beyond the State of Arkansas, where they joined the Creeks. Lieutenant Sherman was next ordered to Fort Moultrie, on Sullivan s Island, in Charleston harbor. In this fort ress he had an unexciting round of duty. In 1845, he was for a time stationed at the arsenal in LIEUTENANT SHERMAN IN CALIFORNIA. Augusta, Georgia ; and later, was member of a court-mar tial at Wilmington, North Carolina. When war followed the dispute between the United States and the Mexican Government about the dividing line, in 1846, it was necessary to have troops in California. Lieutenant Sherman was dispatched with these to that thinly- settled Territory. The war closed in the winter of 1848, and the treaty of peace was signed in February of that year. The life of a "regular" in the army became monotonous. Garrisons and surveys occupied the troops. Captain Sherman was for a period connected with the commissary department of the army. Tired of the quiet and tameness of the service, in 1853 he resigned his com mission, and retired to private life. That well-known and wealthy citizen of St. Louis, Mr. Lucas, proposed to estab lish a banking-house in San Francisco, under the name of 4t Lucas, Turner & Co.," at the head of which was placed Captain Sherman. He was not unsuccessful in the banking-office ; but it was not suited to his culture and taste, and he was without large capital. It is not strange, therefore, that when, in 1860, he was offered the presidency of the Louisiana State Military Academy at Alexandria, on a salary of five thou sand dollars per annum, he should accept the honorable position. Here the professor was directing his genius and attain ments to carry out the wishes of the founders of the school, when the first ominous sounds of rebellion followed the election of Abraham Lincoln. He knew the Southern feeling well. The intercourse with the people of the Cotton States, from the association at West Point with their sons to that hour, convinced him of what we at the North were slow to believe, that they were determined to have their own way or fight. His clear judgment and forecast caught the signal of revolution in the stormy councils and secession resolutions which suc ceeded the political revolution. The evil spirit of rebellion was in the very atmosphere about him. There was hot blood, even in the recitation-rooms of the Academy. The 460 LEFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. year 1860 closed over a purpose which had slowly "but steadily matured, to leave the institution in which he had just begun to feel at home, and was fully qualified to manage. It had cost him anxious thought. But far in advance, as he has been ever since, in his views of the true issue the men and the measures we must meet he was sure a sanguinary struggle was at hand. It saddened his heart, but nerved his strong hand to grasp the starry banner and enter the arena of carnage and victory. Thus decided in his convictions and loyalty, he did not wait for the thunder of cannon around Fort Sumter. He wrote the following manly, strong, and patriotic letter, which tells its own glorious story : January 8, 1861. Governor THOMAS 0. MOORE, Baton Rouge, Louisiana : SIR: As I occupy a ywowt-railitary position under this State, I deem it proper to acquaint yon that I accepted such position when Louisiana was a State in the Union, and when the motto of the seminary was inserted in marble over the main door, "By the liberality of the General Government of the United States. The Union: JSttto Perpetua." Recent events foreshadow a great change, and it becomes all men to choose. If Louisiana withdraws from the Federal Union, I prefer to main tain my allegiance to the old Constitution as long as a fragment of it survives, and my longer stay here would be wrong in every sense of the word. In that event, I beg you will send or appoint some authorized agent to take charge of the arms and munitions of war here belonging to the State, or direct me what disposition should be made of them. And furthermore, as President of the Board of Supervisors, I beg you to take immediate steps to relieve me as superintendent the moment the State determines to secede ; for on no earthly account will I do any act, or think any thought, hostile to or in defiance of the old Government of the United States. With great respect, &c., (Signed) W. T. SHERMAN. The resignation was accepted. The professor turned his. back upon his cadets and upon Louisiana, till he should return under the torn and blackened flag of conquest. Repairing to St. Louis, he had no employment for his brain or hands. But he was ready for any honest work. Mr. Lucas, one of the millionaires of the city, offered him the office of superintendent of a street railroad, on a salary of two thousand dollars a year. He at once entered upon SHERMAN AND THE GOVERNMENT. 461 its duties, without a regret that he had abandoned the halls of military science and a larger reward for his labor. With the next spring came the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Our railroad superintendent at St. Louis thought that all observant people must see that a terrible conflict had begun, and, like Grant in Galena, left his office to offer his services to the Government, and his life, if that should be the sacrifice, included in their acceptance. He hastened to the nation s capital. Soon after reaching Washington he called on Secretary Cameron. "Mr. Secretary, civil war is imminent, and we are un prepared for it. I have come to offer my services to the country in the struggle before us." "I think," replied Mr. Cameron, "the ebullition of feel ing will soon subside, we shall not need many troops." Indeed, the Secretary was quite surprised, if not an noyed, at the earnestness of Captain Sherman. He next sought an interview with the President, and made a simi lar statement and offer to him. The good President was inclined to take the whole thing as a joke. After listening to the serious enthusiasm expressed in the strong appeal, he replied, pleasantly: "We shall not need many more like you ; the whole affair will soon blow over." He left the Chief Magistrate of a republic whose very existence he knew was assailed, with a shadow of disap pointment on his brave, loyal spirit not for himself, but for the cause near his heart. Friends then advised him to go to Ohio and superintend the organization of three- months men there. He declared "it would be as wise to undertake to extinguish the flames of a burning building with a squirt gun, as to put down the rebellion with three- months troops." To talk of any thing less than a gigantic war was to him absurd. But he was then nearly alone in his just estimate of the struggle. The appointment of Captain Sherman to an important command was discussed and urged by those who knew him best. Said the gallant Sherman: "I do not wish a prominent place ; this is to be a long and bloody v/ar." 462 UFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. June 13th, 1861, General McDowell, who appreciated Sherman, appointed him Colonel of the Thirteenth In fantry of the regular army, to date from May 14th of that year. July 21st was fought the bloody battle of Bull Run. Writes Colonel Bowman, the friend of Colonel Sherman : " Sherman led his brigade directly up the Warrenton road, and held his ground till the general order canie to retreat. " * It was Sherman s brigade, says Burnside, that ar rived at about twelve and a half o clock, and by a most deadly fire assisted in breaking the enemy s lines. So much for soldierly promptness and strict obedience to orders. From the vigor with which Sherman fought his brigade, the loss in his four regiments was one hundred and five killed, two hundred and two wounded, two hundred and ninety-three wounded or missing, with six killed and three wounded in the battery, making a total of six hundred and nine, the whole division losing eight hundred and fifty-nine. The loss of the army, excluding prisoners and stragglers, was computed thus : killed, four hundred and seventy-nine ; wounded, eleven hundred and eleven; total killed and wounded, fifteen hundred and ninety. When the conduct of Sherman had become known, the Ohio delegation in Congress unanimously urged his immediate promotion. This was easily effected, and on the 3d of August, 1861, he was confirmed a briga dier-general of volunteers," Colonel Sherman s brigade was the only one which re tired from the field in order, making a stand at the bridge on the track to Washington, to dispute bravely "the right of way," should the enemy pursue our panic-stricken forces toward the capital. General Buckner was at Bowling Green, looking to ward Louisville, where he said he should pass the winter. General Sherman was sent to join General Anderson, and moved his force to Muldraugh s Hills. Buckner had burned the bridge ; the Home Guards were withdrawn ; and the enemy s troops numbered twenty-five thousand. To retire to Elizabethtown with the five thousand GEN. SHERMAN SUCCEEDS GEN. ANDEESON. 463 Union soldiers was the best that General Sherman could do. At this crisis General Anderson resigned his command on account of ill health, and the mantle of authority fell on General Sherman ; no very desirable honor at that time, for "most of the fighting young men of Kentucky had gone to join the rebels. The non-combatants were divided in sentiment, and most of them far from friendly. He lacked men, and most of those he had were poorly armed. He lacked, also, means of transportation and munitions of war ; and if the rebel generals had known his actual con dition, they could have captured or driven his forces across the Ohio in less than ten days. He applied earn estly and persistently for re-enforcements, and, at the same time, took every possible precaution to conceal his weak ness from the enemy, as well as from the loyal public. At that time newspaper reporters were not always discreet, and often obtained and published the very facts that should have been concealed. He issued a stringent or der excluding all reporters and correspondents from his lines. This brought down upon him the indignation of the press. More unfortunately still, he failed to impress the Secretary of War with the necessities of his position and the importance of holding it. On the 3d of November he telegraphed to General McClellan the condition of affairs, with the number of his several forces, showing them to be everywhere, except at one single point, out numbered, and concluded his dispatch with the emphatic remark, Our forces are too small to do good, and too large to be sacrificed. In reply, General McClellan asks, " How long could McCook keep Buckner out of Louisville, holding the rail road, with power to destroy it inch by inch ? ; giving no hint of a purpose to send re-enforcements, but looking to the probable abandonment of Kentucky. Previous to this, General Sherman had had an interview with Secre tary Cameron, in presence of Adjutant- General Thomas, at Lexington, Kentucky, and fully explained to him the situa tion of his command, and also of the armies opposed to him ; and, on being asked what force was necessary for a 464 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. successful forward movement in his department, answered, "Two hundred thousand men." By the 1st of November, Adjutant- General Thomas s official report of this conver sation, .in all its details, was published in most of the newspapers of the country, giving the enemy full knowl edge of many important facts relating to General Sherman s department. He was too weak to defend his lines ; and the enemy knew it. He had no hope of re-enforcements, and, withal, was evidently in discredit with the War De partment, as being too apprehensive of the power, strength, and resources of the enemy. He, therefore, felt he could not successfully conduct the campaign, and asked to be relieved. He was succeeded by General Buell, who was at once re-enforced, and enabled to hold his defensive positions until Grant, the following spring, should advance down the Mississippi and up the Cumberland. General Sherman was now set down as " crazy," and quietly retired to the command of Benton Barracks, near St. Louis. The evidence of his insanity was his answer to the Secretary of War that to make a successful advance against the enemy, then strongly posted at all strategic points from the Mississippi to Cumberland Gap, would require an army two hundred thousand strong ! The answer was the inspiration or the judgment of a military genius ; but to the mind of Mr. Secretary Cameron it was the prophecy of a false wizard. Meantime, General Halleck succeeded to the command of the Department of the West, and General Sherman was not long allowed to remain in charge of a recruiting-ren dezvous at St. Louis. When General Grant moved on Fort Donelson, Sherman was intrusted with the forwarding to him of re-enforcements and supplies from Paducah. General Grant subsequently acknowledged himself "greatly indebted for his promptness" in discharging that duty. After the capture of that stronghold, General Sherman was put in command of the fifth division of Grant s army at Pitts burg Landing. Then followed the battle of Shiloh, the occupation of Corinth and of Vicksburg, which have been already given in detail. GENERAL SHERMAN S EXPEDITION TO MERIDIAN. 465 General Sherman could not be idle when there was a chance to strike the foe. More than a hundred miles from Vicksburg, his head- quarters after its surrender, was the town of Meridian, where important railroads have their junction, and around which lay rich corn and cotton- fields. To this town General Sherman determined to lead his battalions. To do it, he must cut loose from his base of supplies, and traverse an enemy s country one of his first experiments in this kind of warfare. It was a most daring adventure, but just like the brave commander who conceived it. Comprehending the gigan tic revolt, and the vital points of the Confederacy, he has had but one view of the means to suppress the infamous rebellion. Had his plan been adopted, the war might have been ended now. Large armies, bold and rapid move ments into the home of secession, sparing nothing that affords it any nourishment, has been the war-creed of Gen eral Sherman. February found the campaign complete in preparation. On the 3d, the commander left the streets of Vicksburg, reining his steed toward Meridian. Two days before, General W. S. Smith was to leave Memphis, Tennessee, with eight thousand cavalry, and join him at Meridian.. The course of march was in part along the track in which the troops advanced on Vicks burg. The cavalcade of twenty thousand men, followed by miles of supply- wagons, crossed the Big Black Eiver, moved along by Champion Hills and Clinton to Jackson. Here General McPherson, with the Sixteenth Corps, and General Huiibut, with the Seventeenth Corps, who had taken different routes, met General Sherman, and were united to his army. At Line Creek, resistance was offered, a short battle followed, and again the host moved forward, taking the towns of Quitmari and Enterprise, on every hand spreading alarm. February 13 he reached the Big Chunkey River. Me ridian was the next point to be gained, when, with all his forces, he could push on, getting between General Johnston and Mobile, where Commodore Farragut was thundering 30 466 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. with his naval ordnance, and perhaps interfere very much with General Folk s army. Meanwhile military depots would disappear before the torch, and other havoc with supplies distract and cripple the foe. With such suc cesses, it would not be difficult to hasten over the interven ing ground, and hurl his legions against the city from the land side, thus finishing the work Commodore Farragut had so well commenced. At Meridian, February 13, one hundred and fifty miles from Vicksburg, he congratulated his troops in these words : " The General commanding conveys his congratulations and thanks to the officers and men composing this com mand, for their most successful accomplishment of one of the great problems of the war. Meridian, the great rail way center of the Southwest, is now in our possession, and, by industry and hard work, can be rendered useless to the enemy, and deprive him of the chief source of sup ply to his armies. Secrecy in plan and rapidity of execu tion accomplish the best results of war ; and the General commanding assures all, that, by following their leaders fearlessly and with confidence, they will in time reap the reward so dear to us all a peace that will never again be disturbed in our country by a discontented minority." But as General Grant s delay at Holly Springs, on ac count of its cowardly surrender, turned the first attack upon Vicksburg into a defeat, so, by the failure of General Smith to start from Memphis till the 13th of February, the further success of the expedition was made impossible. Still, the affair was a magnificent raid into the heart of "rebeldom," which spread terror along its way, and left the ruins of railroads, bridges, and storehouses behind, while securing animals and various material for the use of the Union army. The great commander was now compelled to turn his column toward Vicksburg again, which he entered three weeks after his departure, having led his troops safely across hostile soil more than two hundred and fifty miles, surrounded by large armies. March 2d, General Sherman reached New Orleans in the gunboat Diana, and, when referring to his expedition, termed it "a big raid only." THE MILITARY POSITION. 467 Before he had rested his heroic men, a law which had been before Congress while he was marching was passed, creat ing the office of lieutenant-general, the President confer ring the honor of it upon Major- General Grant. The same order of March 12th gave to General Sherman the com mand before held by the hero of Vicksburg, called the De partment of the Mississippi, and including the smaller De partments of the Ohio, the Cumberland, and the Ten nessee, with the Arkansas. Around him were to stand Generals McPherson, Hooker, Thomas, Hurlbut, Logan, Schofield, and Howard, the " Havelock of the army." The grandest and most decisive campaigns of the war were now planned. The Army of the Potomac, command ed by General Meade, was again to start for Richmond, under the eyes of the Lieutenant-General ; and the divi sions of General Sherman were to take Atlanta, the former the " head, the latter the heart of the Confederacy." It was a sublime crisis in the struggle. The two great heroes of the conflict had in their hands enterprises worthy of their genius, and which would hold the interest of the nation and of the world. For, if either of the bold move ments succeeded, the other, it would seem, must ; because, beyond the single victory were the vast results of the co operating armies on the coast, from the mouth of the James River to Savannah. Immediately on receiving the notice of his appointment, in the middle of March, General Sher man began a tour of inspection, visiting Athens, Decatur, Huntsville, Chattanooga, Knoxville, and other places of military importance, carefully acquainting himself with the extent and resources of the new field of his command. The remainder of the great chieftain s work will be re corded in its proper place from his own pen. MAJOR-GENERAL GEORGE H. THOMAS. Conspicuous among the loyal men of southern birth and associations, and pre-eminent in the field of successful heroism, has been General Thomas. He was born in Southampton County, Virginia, of a wealthy and influential family, July 31, 1816. His father, 468 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. John Thomas, was of Welsh descent, and his mother, Elisabeth Kochelle, from an old Huguenot family. After attendance upon the best schools in that portion of the Old Dominion around his home, he was awhile dep uty clerk for his uncle, James Rochelle, succeeding him as county clerk, and student at law. In the spring of 1836, he was appointed cadet in the United States Military Academy at West Point, and en tered the following June. In 1840 he graduated twelfth in his class of forty-five, and on the 1st of the following month, July, was made second lieutenant in the Third Artillery. He joined his regiment in Florida in November, during the war with the Indians there; and, for "gallant conduct," was brevetted first lieutenant. In January, 1842, he was ordered to the New Orleans Barracks, from which, the next June, he was transferred with his regiment to Fort Moultrie, in Charleston Harbor. Company C was sent, in December, to Fort McIIenry, Maryland. Lieutenant Thomas went with them. Six months later, he was pro moted to a full lieutenancy, and the next year again at Fort Moultrie. When the war with Mexico was anticipated, Lieuten ant Thomas was ordered with Company E to Texas, July, 1845, reporting to General Zachary Taylor. He was with the Third and Fourth Regiments of infantry the first United States troops that occupied the soil of Texas. After marching to the Rio Grande, he was with the garrison at Fort Brown ; and when, on the 2d of May, the Mexicans invested it, heroically assisted in its defense, until the enemy retired on the 8th. Subsequently, he served in the advance-guard at Reynosa and Camargo. He distinguish ed himself in the fiercely-fought battle at Buena Vista, receiving the brevet rank of major, two days afterward, February 23. Among the first to enter, he was with the last to leave the Mexican territory, having under his charge, September, 1848, a commissary depot at Brazos Santiago. After six months leave of absence, in June, 1849, he rejoined his company at Fort Adams, Newport, Rhode Island, and on the 31st of July was brevetted cap tain of a company of the Third Artillery. The September CAPTAIN THOMAS AT WEST POINT. 469 succeeding, he was ordered to Florida again, to aid in suppressing an outbreak there. December, 1850, he started for Texas ; but orders were countermanded at New Orleans, sending him to Fort Inde pendence, Boston Harbor. From this fortress, March 28th, 1851, he removed to West Point, appointed by the Government Instructor of Artillery and Cavalry. He remained at the academy three years, when, in December, 1853, he was promoted to a full captaincy. Soon he was on his way to California with a battalion assigned to Fort Yuma. The next year, Congress having authorized four new regiments, Captain Thomas was appointed junior major in the Second Cavalry, and joined the regiment at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, in the summer of 1855. May, 1856, he was again in Texas, and remained there four years, commanding the regiment ; and in August, 1859, accompanied the Texas Reserve Indians to their new home in the Indian Territory. During the autumn of 1859 and the summer of 1860, he was examining the head waters of the Canadian and Red Rivers, having one severe and victorious encounter with the Indians, in which he was wounded in the face. In November, 1860, he had his second leave of absence in twenty years. When the Rebellion startled the country, Colonel Tho mas was ordered, in April, 1861, u to Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, to remount his regiment, which had been betrayed and robbed of its outfit and equipment by Twiggs, in his infamous surrender of the entire department under his command, after he had received orders relieving him, and with indecent haste to anticipate the hourly expected arrival of his successor. In May, 1861, he took command of a brigade in the Department of Pennsylvania, under Major-General Patterson, afterwards the Department of the Shenandoah, under Major-General Banks, and continued to hold that position until the e*nd of August. On the 17th of August he was appointed a brigadier-general of volun teers, and shortly afterward ordered to Kentucky to re port to Brigadier-General Anderson, who gave him the 470 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. command of Camp Dick Robinson, with a~bout six thou sand new troops. On the 26th of October, a brigade sent out by him under Brigadier- General Schoepf defeated the enemy under Zollicoffer, in the battle of Wildcat. On the 18th of January, after a march of nineteen days, over nearly impassable roads, with part of the First Division of the Army of the Ohio, to which General Buell assigned him, he met the fierce attack of Zollicoffer, near Mill Spring, Kentucky, repulsed it, attacked in his turn, broke the enemy and pursued the disordered remnants to the Cumberland River, which they crossed during the night, abandoning all their artillery and baggage. In March, Thomas with his division, now forming the reserve of Buell s army, occupied Nashville, and in April joined the rest of that army after the battle of Shiloh, and moved with it and Grant s army on to Corinth. On the 25th of April, 1862, he was promoted to be a major-general of volunteers, and on the 1st of May his own division was transferred to the Army of the Tennessee, and he was as signed by General Halleck to command the five divisions, including Sherman s, constituting the right wing of the forces before Corinth. After the evacuation of that place, by Beauregard, Thomas returned to the Army of the Ohio, and was placed on duty as second in command of that army, during Bragg s invasion and the remarkable series of movements by which Buell maneuvered it out of Ten nessee, through Kentucky back to Louisville. On the 1st of October, he was assigned to the command of the right wing of that army, and in that capacity took part in Buell s nominal pursuit of Bragg. On the 5th of November, 1862, he was assigned by General Rosecrans, who had just re lieved Buell, to the command of a corps comprising his own Third Division, now under Rousseau, and Negley s division. At Stone River, on the 31st of December, 1863, when Bragg impetuously hurled his entire army against Rosecrans s right, and routed it, Thomas, with Rousseau s division unbroken, stood firm, held his ground, and aided in the selection of the new line, whose strength enabled Rosecrans to turn back the enemy s second attack on the following day. On the 20th of September, 1863, at the GENERAL THOMAS AT CHICKAMAUGA. 47] battle of Chickamauga, when McCook and Crittenden on either flank yielded to the fury of the enemy s assault, and streamed back in such utter rout to Chattanooga, that even Eosecrans gave up the day as lost, and hastened thither in person to prepare a new line of defense, Thomas, with his corps, somewhat later augmented by Granger s division, stood like a lion at bay, and, resting his flanks upon the sides of the mountain gap, resisted and severely punished eve^ attempt of Bragg, either to force his position in front, or to turn his flanks. Falling back in the night three miles, to a better position, he again formed line of battle, and waited all the day of the 21st for Bragg s expected attack, which never came. Having alone saved the Army of the Cum berland from destruction, Thomas was very justly selected as the successor of General Rosecrans, when, on the 19th of October, it was determined to relieve the latter. On the 27th of the same month, he was made a brigadier-general in the regular army. Faithful over all things, and free from all petty desires, when Sherman, his junior in years, in experience, in commission, and at no remote period his subordinate, was elevated to the command of the Military Division of the Mississippi, Thomas yielded a ready ac quiescence in the selection, and a thorough, efficient, and essential co-operation in all the plans of his new superior. It is characteristic of Thomas that, in the twenty-five years that have elapsed since his graduation, he has had but two short leaves of absence, one in 1848, and one in 1860, and has never been on favored duty of any kind. In his most marked traits, Thomas is the antithesis of Sherman, his habitual repose of mind and temper being, perhaps, only less strongly marked than Sherman s electric restless ness." The fame of General Thomas, like the fair solidity of a finished column of granite, will attract the admiring but calm and untiring interest of mankind a genuine, digni fied, and abiding greatness. MAJOR- GENERAL HUGH JUDSON KILPATKICK Was born in the home of an enterprising farmer in north- 472 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ern New Jersey, in 1838. His mother was one of those women whose intellectual force and moral power indelibly impress and decidedly mould the character of her children. Writes his friend and admirer, Surgeon Moore, of the Ninth Pennsylvania Cavalry : " As the child of their old age, his parents made every effort to afford him those advantages for an education which, at such a period, are so important ; his brother and two sisters were already grown up. In person he was, in youth, small, but active, and fond of athletic sports. Providence tenderly watched .over his early years, as if designing him to work out some important end in the ser vice of his country. The boy is the man in miniature ; so, early he manifested a disposition for a military life, and love of the bubble reputation. His pulse quickened at the sound of martial music and the gleam of glancing arms. "In his seventeenth year he took part in public meet ings, became immersed in politics, was chosen a delegate to the State Convention, and proved himself one of the first orators in his native State, and indeed was found to possess those gifts to such a degree that, with a mind well culti vated and full of energy, great hopes might be entertained of his usefulness to the nation. Soon after this period, in 1855, having found that his congressional district was entitled to a representative at the Military Academy, he determined to secure the appointment. The person who had the power to grant this was the Hon. George Yail, Member of Congress from his district. This gentleman s term in Congress was near expiring, and his friends and party desired and intended to use great efforts for his re election. " The young subject of this memoir, with many others, was selected to make speeches throughout the district, and he spoke in every town and hamlet, and finally attracted the attention of his member of Congress, who, after the election, which was carried, conferred on Kilpatrick the much-coveted appointment. He entered the Academy June 20, 1856. " The class numbered one hundred and four ; of these, fifty graduated, and he the fifteenth in that number. CADET KILPATRICK WHEN THE WAR BEGAN. 473 "He graduated at that important period when the South fired a hostile shot at the Stars and Stripes, long venerated and loved by a free nation. "Kilpatrick was sitting in his room when this news reached the Point, creating the liveliest sensation. The in fluence of this young man, ardent, patriotic, and eloquent, was of great benefit to the country ; inasmuch as by it a request was made, on the part of thirty -seven of the class out of fifty, to be permitted to graduate at once, and take the field, " Kilpatrick and his friend and classmate, the late lamented Colonel Kingsbury, who afterward fell at Antie- tam, and Beaumont, a room-mate, drew up his petition, addressed to the President, and sent it to Washington. The request was granted and the class graduated. It was a great day at West Point. The acquaintances of the young men were there, proud to see their success, and happy too. " The young graduate and the lady Alice, to whom he was engaged, were standing together at the hotel, when a classmate remarked : Kil. is going to the field, and may not return. Better get married now. The advice was taken ; the chaplain was at hand admiring friends around ; the mystic knot was tied, and the happy pair started for Washington that evening, with the prayers of all for their welfare." From Fortress Monroe, where he was serving with Duryea s Zouaves as Captain, he led the advance with a part of these troops to the field of Big Bethel, where, June 11th, he was wounded by a grapeshot in the thigh, at the head of his braves ; but, bathed in his own blood, he con tinued to charge upon the enemy till exhaustion compelled him to leave the field. This was his first battle, and gave promise of his subsequent career. In the autumn of the same year he obtained the com mission of Lieutenant-Colonel of the Second Regiment of New York Cavalry, or Harris Light Cavalry. The next spring he was with the Army of the Potomac, in its march on Manassas ; and when General Pope assumed the com mand, he swept down upon Stonewall Jackson s communi- 474 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. cations with Richmond. Under General Hooker the cavalry was first thoroughly organized, and began to change the scorn of the Southern chivalry, at our ineffi ciency in this arm of the service, to fear for the laurels of their own troopers. At Brandy Station, May 9th, 1863, Kilpatrick behaved splendidly, charging like the incarnation of valor, his clear voice ringing over the tumult, and rallying his overborne troops when the day seemed lost ; snatching victory from apparent defeat. For his daring and success, he was made Brigadier- General. Under General Meade he was placed in command of Stahl s division of General Pleasanton s cavalry corps. The ill-considered raid for the relief of the Union pris oners, with which the the lamented Colonel Dahlgren was also connected, was marked by the same dash and good fortune that had distinguished his adventures before. When General Sherman was planning his great cam paign through Georgia, he selected Kilpatrick, whose fine qualities he appreciated, for his cavalry leader ; of whom he said in a letter to the yet youthful chief: "The fact that to j^ou, in a great measure, we owe the march of four strong infantry columns, with heavy trains and wagons, over three hundred miles through an enemy s country, without the loss of a single wagon, arid without the annoy ance of cavalry dashes on our flanks, is honor enough for any cavalry commander." His brilliant and entirely satisfactory management of the cavalry of General Sherman s army will appear more in detail, in his " story of the march." MAJOR-GENERAL OLIVER 0. HOWARD Was a native of Leeds, Me., where he saw the light on November 8th, 1830. After the usual course of preparation for college, during which he displayed both the intellectual force and man liness of character which, with Christian principle, have entitled him to the high distinction he has attained, of being the "Havelock of the American armv," he entered Bow- COLONEL HOWARD IN THE OPENING CONFLICT. 475 doin College in 1846. After his graduation in 1850, lie en tered the United States Military Academy at West Point. When, in 1854, he completed his course of discipline there, the fourth in his class, he was assigned to the Ordnance Department, and ordered to Florida. Subsequently, he was at Watervliet and Augusta Arse nals, in the same service. For several years before the re bellion, he was Assistant Professor of Mathematics in the Academy at West Point. When hostilities commenced, he requested of the Wai- Department leave to command a regiment from his own State, but was denied the privilege. He then tendered his resignation, which was accepted. But Maine wanted and soon called for her gifted son. Appointed to the command of the Third Maine Volunteers, he hastened to Washington, and shared in the first great battle of the Republic, at Bull Run. His heroism and unpretending worth made him conspicuous on that earliest occasion for the exhibition of great qualities on the bloody field, insuring for him a Brig adier s promotion, and the command of a brigade in Gen eral Casey s Provisional Division, then taking care of Washington. December, 1861, he was assigned to General Summer s command, making it the First Brigade of the distinguished division known as the First of the Second Army Corps, and accompanied General McClellan to the Peninsula. At Fair Oaks, while leading in splendid style a charge, on the 1st of June, which broke and held in check the enemy, he lost his right arm. We shall quote from the record of one who knew him in the field, and intelligently appreciated him : Weak and fainting from hemorrhage, and the severe shoqk which his system had sustained, the next day he started for his home in Maine. He remained there only about two months, during which time he was not idle. Visiting various localities in his native State, he made patriotic appeals to the people to come forward and sustain the Government. Pale, emaciated, and with one sleeve ten- antless, he stood up before them, the embodiment of all that is good, and true, and noble in manhood. He talked to 476 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. them as only one truly loyal can talk as one largely endowed with that patriotism which is a heritage of New England blood. Modesty, sincerity, and earnestness char acterized his addresses, and his fervent appeals drew hun dreds of recruits around the National standard. " Before he had recovered from his wound, and against the advice of his surgeon, he returned to the field, and took part in the second battle of Bull Run, command ing a brigade in the second division of the Second Corps. His own brigade was at this time temporarily commanded by General Cad well. At the battle of Antietanij General Howard was still in command of the same brigade until General Sedgwick was wounded, when he assumed com mand of it at the battle of Fredericksburg, in December, 1862. In this sanguinary action, the troops of Howard s division were the first to effect a lodgment in the town, and the last to leave it." November 29th, 1862, General Howard was commis sioned major-general of volunteers, but remained at the head of the Second Division until the following April, when he was transferred to the command of the Eleventh Corps. A month later was fought the battle of Chancellorsville, The corps failed to do the part expected from it, because of the inharmonious elements in subordinate commands, and so far as General Howard s responsibility was con cerned, it arose from his brief acquaintance with them, and the necessity of leading the forces into the contest before he could possibly reorganize them under his own authority. Both he and his troops felt the dishonor, and determined to retrieve it when the occasion came. But the reproach was forgotten in the glory they won on the battle- days of Gettysburg. One noble heart was not disappoint ed in this result Abraham Lincoln s confidence had never for a moment been shaken. He had said when a change in the command of the corps was urged, " Howard will bring it up to the work, only give him time." After the victo rious straggle at Gettysburg, the President sent him an autograph letter of warmest thanks and Congress passed a vote of similar import. In September after the disastrous MAJ.vTfvN.u.CXHOW GENERAL HOWARD AND SHERMAN. 477 battle of Chickamauga, in command of the Eleventh Corps, General Howard, with Slocum commanding the Twelfth, marched toward Chattanooga with General Hooker. In all the operations of the army which followed, Gen eral Howard was conspicuous for able generalship and pure and lofty heroism. Wrote the friend whose words have already been quoted : 4 It was here that Generals Sherman and Howard first met. Sherman s greeting was characteristic of the man frank, cordial, and blunt; Howard s was quiet, modest, and dignified. Temperaments so widely contrasted could not but fraternize, so prone are men to be attracted by those qualities wherein others differ from themselves. From that day they became warm friends, and the confi dence bestowed by Sherman on his more youthful Lieute nant increased to the end of the war. "Immediately after these successes, Howard s corps accompanied Sherman to Knoxville, to relieve Burnside from perils similar to those which had environed Rose- crans at Chattanooga. It was a long march, in the month of December, and the troops suffered greatly from hard ships endured. "The siege of Knoxville being raised and Longstreet forced to retire, General Howard, with his corps, returned with Sherman to Chattanooga. "When, early in the spring following, General Sher man organized his army for the grand campaign that had for its object the taking of Atlanta, the Eleventh and Twelfth Corps were consolidated, under Hooker, and be came the Twentieth Corps. Howard was then assigned to the Fourth Corps, which he commanded with signal ability during the long and arduous campaign succeeding. Fight ing was well-nigh continuous, during a period of one hun dred days, embracing the entire summer months. " The fidelity and Christian fortitude of General Howard were most conspicuous in this campaign. He prayed with his command, and fought with them, alternately. His unostentatious piety commanded the respect of all. Men 478 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. loved him because of his humility as a Christian and bravery as a soldier. His higher trust was in God, with whom he was wont to commune daily in the seclusion of his temporary quarters in the forest : <**** Pure Sincerity Delights to kneel in solitude, and feels God s presence most where none but God upholds. " Profanity closed its lips in his presence, and gambling and drunkenness were abashed, and turned away to hide themselves at his approach. "On one occasion, a wagon-master, whose teams were floundering through the bottomless mud of a Georgia swamp, became exasperated at the unavoidable delay, and indulged in such a torrent of profanity as can only be heard in the army or men of his class. General Howard quietly approached, unperceived by the offender, and was an un willing listener to the blasphemous words. The wagon- master, on turning around, saw his general in close prox imity, and made haste to apologize for his profane outburst, by saying : Excuse me, General, I did not know you were here. The General, looking a reprimand, replied : I would prefer that you abstain from swearing from a higher and better motive than because of my presence. u The perils and fatigues of the campaign from Chatta nooga to Atlanta have never yet been written. During the heat of summer, in a semi-tropical climate, and through an all-bounding forest, but recently surrendered to civilization by the Cherokees, the army fought its way step by step- against a force nearly equal, for a distance of one hundred and thirty miles. There was abundant need of Christian fortitude, and faith in God and the right. Many thousands who left Chattanooga with that patriot army, and penetrat ed the undeveloped region, now sleep in obscure graves in these pine solitudes. But God was there, as everywhere, and such as called on him prayerfully were heard arid answered with sustaining power. " These were among the dark days of the country days when good men had need to pray as well as fight GENERAL HOWARD PROMOTED. 479 days when peace with a Union preserved seemed a long way off. But * the night is long that never finds the day. On the 2d of September, 1864, Hood s army having been defeated and put to rout, the Union forces under Sherman entered Atlanta in triumph. " During a severe battle before Atlanta, on the 22d of July, the lamented General McPherson was killed. By his death, the command of the army of the Tennessee be came vacant, and General Howard was by Sherman appointed to the position. It was a marked honor to con fer upon one of the youngest major-generals in the service, and besides, it was setting at nought the prejudices of the Western men, by placing over them a general from the Potomac army. There were other generals in Sherman s command technically entitled to precedence over Howard, but their claims were ignored by the commander-in-chief for reasons satisfactory to himself. The Army of the Ten nessee was composed exclusively of Western troops, with whom Howard had not been immediately identified ; and the writer of this remembers with what anxiety the friends of General Howard contemplated the result of this appa rent innovation. But, it may be said that the rank and file of the Union army have generally fought well under any leader, and when it has been otherwise, it has usually been owing to incompetency of officers placed over them. " On the evening of July 27th, General Howard joined his new command, and on the morning of the 28th he formed them hastily in position, to repel an attack of the combined rebel army, led on by Hood in person. For eight hours, in full view of the spires and house-tops of Atlanta, the battle raged with impetuous fury. The rebel commander, finding it impossible to break through How ard s lines, withdrew within the fortifications of the city. After the battle had ceased, our newly-appointed army commander, small of stature and bereft of an arm, rode along his lines to congratulate his men on their stubborn and successful resistance of the attack. His officers and soldiers, elated by their victory, greeted him with un bounded enthusiasm and applause. " During the twelve hours he had been in command, 480 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. he had secured their entire confidence. They had tried him and were satisfied." The confidence and love won by General Howard in creased to the last moment of service in the field ; and his elevated Christian character, when the army disbanded, secured his appointment to the responsible post of chief in the Freedmen s Bureau. His clear, well-poised intellect, purity of character, his kindness and godliness, invest him with a peculiar and al most solitary distinction in the annals of the war. We shall never forget our first meeting with him, upon a Sabbath-school celebration, his first public appearance after his arm was amputated. He addressed the children in his own earnest, happy manner ; the unhealed slump vainly attempting to respond, as of "old, to the glowing thoughts, with its appropriate gesture. His noble purpose toward the South is expressed in his own language : "We must do what we can to overcome prejudice and opposition, by carrying with us the spirit of Christ, into every nook and corner of the South, rejoicing over every foot of ground gained, and being never discouraged at con tumacy and failure/ Such a man is worthy of all honor and as Washington and Lincoln will be forever associated together so will be Howard and Havelock among the less conspicuous Chris tian heroes of the world. MAJOR-GENERAL JAMES BIRDSEYE McPnERSoN Was a native of Sandusky County, Ohio. He was born November 14th, 1828, and entered the Military Academy at West Point, in June, 1849. He graduated at the head of the same class, with General Schofield, July 1st, 1853, brevet second lieutenant, and was assigned to the Corps of Engineers. At the close of his graduating furlough, lie returned to West Point, and was a year assistant-instruc tor of practical engineering. In December, 1854, he was made first-lieutenant, and about the same time detailed as assistant-engineer of the defenses of New York harbor. The first half of the year 1857, he had in charge the JAMES BIRDSEYE MoPHERSON. 481 building. of Fort Delaware, on the Delaware River, and in December went to California, to superintend the con struction of fortifications on Alcatras Island, in the bay of San Francisco. The August following the commencement of the civil war, he was put in charge of the defenses of Boston Harbor, and on the 6th of that month promoted to a captaincy. The twelfth of the November succeeding, by the re quest of General Halleck, Captain McPherson was made aid-de-camp, with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. He was ordered to report at St. Louis, where he was assigned to engineer duty on the staff of the commander. Later, he was chief -engineer on the staff of General Grant in the victorious movements against Forts Henry and Donelson. His bravery won for him the rank of brevet-major in the regular army, and, when the terrific battle of Shiloh was fought, gained additional promotion to a lieutenant-colonelcy in the regular service. In the siege of Corinth, he was chief of engineers on General Hal- leek s staff, with the rank of colonel. After the evacua tion of that place, he was created brigadier-general, the ap pointment dating from November 15th, 1862. He was general superintendent of railroads in the De partment of Tennessee, and on General Grant s staff at the battle of luka. He led troops in the fight, for the first time, while the rebel general Price was investing Corinth ; cutting his way through their lines, he relieved the garrison, and rejoined the main force pursuing the enemy. So clearly shone the martial genius of the youthful offi cer, that General Grant asked for a major-general s rank, which was conferred, October 8th, 1862. The next De cember, he was assigned to the command of the Seven teenth Army Corps. The fall of Vicksburg, in which General McPherson sustained his growing reputation for ability and heroism, was followed by his promotion to the rank of brigadier-general, United States Army, and the command of the conquered city. His part in the battles connected with this grand achieve ment will appear in the future record of the Potomac army. 31 482 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. His exposure to the rebel guns, near Atlanta, and his untimely death, as it seems to us, the nation will never cease to regret and mourn. The touching and fitting tribute of grateful love from General Grant is given in the correspondence of the chief with the grandmother of the slain hero, in another place. Writes a military friend of the departed : 4 c He was tall in person, being over six feet in height, well proportioned, and erect, easy, and agreeable in his manners, frank in conversation, accessible to all ; gallant and dashing in action ; regardless of danger ; strictly honorable in all his dealings with men and with the Gov ernment. " Schofield, young but matured, well poised, thor oughly scientific by education, thoroughly practical by contact with men, habituated to command ; McPherson, in the full llower of his life, bold and enthusiastic, just emerging from a complete mastery of the science of de fensive war into the wider field of the offensive, trained to command under the eye and by the example of Grant and Sherman ; Thomas, the ripe growth of years and experi ence, of balanced and crystalized mind, strong and patient, steadfast and prudent, a true soldier, no genius, but a master of his profession ; exhaustive in preparation, de liberate in action, ponderous and irresistible in execution. Such were the men upon whom, under the leadership of Sherman, the destiny of the campaign was to rest." General McPherson was unquestionably among the great military characters brought out by the war. No one can tell us what he might have been ; for his life went out in the storm of battle before it bloomed into ripest man hood one of the heroes whose promise was the greatest, when the sword dropped from his gallant and dying hand. Nor will the names of Logan, Hooker, Hancock, Slocum, Rosecrans, Burnside, Schofield, Hazen, Warren, McCler- nand, Terry, Sigel, and Sedgwick, the lion-hearted, be for gotten by a grateful country a constellation around the central double stars, Grant and Sherman without rival splendor in the firmament of fame arching the field of national confiict and victory. THE GRAND MILITARY FIELD. 483 History does not furnish a sublimer war-field for con templation, than now lay before these great captains. Calmly, almost silently, the strong intellect and brave heart of the chief surveyed the vast territory, the em battled hosts confronting each other, and, without con fusion of thought, or a shadow of doubt respecting the issue, laid his gigantic plans, and looked upward for the divine benediction upon them. 484 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTEK XXIII. THE ARMY IN THE WILDERNESS. The Order to March. The Grand Advance. The Wilderness. The Meeting in Battle of the Hostile Armies. The Fighting of Thursday, Friday, and Satur day. The Midnight March. The Enthusiastic Welcome of the Lieutenant-Gen eral by the troops. Sabbath, May 7th. The Death of Generals Sedgwick and Hays. A Splendid Charge by Hancock s Troops. Coolness of General Grant. A Pause in the Race for Richmond. Telegrams from the Seat of War. The Struggle Renewed. Severe Battle. The Field. The Fortunes of the Day. THE order to march was issued to the Army of the Potomac, from General Meade s head- quarters, on the morning of May 3d, and by two o clock P. M. was read to the whole army. The myriad tents disappeared like frost work before the sun ; the knapsacks were packed, the horses caparisoned, and the trains in motion. General Gregg s cavalry division, accompanied by a portion of the canvas pontoon train, moved in the after noon toward Richardsville, and were engaged until late at night repairing the roads to Ely s Ford. Soon after mid night that division moved to the ford named, to establish a crossing. About midnight the Third Cavalry Division, with another portion of the canvas pontoon train, left for Germania Ford, five or six miles above, there to establish another crossing ; both efforts were successful. The advance of the Second Corps, Major- General Han cock commanding, broke camp at midnight and moved down the Stevensburg and Richardsville road toward Ely s Ford. The entire corps were on the march before three o clock in the morning, in the same direction, and effected a crossing soon after daylight. The Fifth Corps, under Major-General Warren, com menced moving at midnight. The advance, consisting of two divisions of infantry and a portion of the artillery, passed through Stevensburg, closely followed by the THE ADVANCE TOWARD RICHMOND. 485 remainder of the corps ; all marching toward Germania Ford. The Fifth Corps was closely succeeded by the Sixth, under General Sedgwick, which quitted its camp at four o clock, A. M. Both the Fifth and Sixth Corps crossed the Rapidan at Germania Ford. General Sheridan, commanding the cavalry, encoun tered Stuart s rebel cavalry, and, after heavy fighting, drove the enemy back on Orange Court-House. General Lee prepared during the night of the 4th for battle on the ensuing day. On Thursday, May 5th, 1864, the Fifth and Sixth Corps were early in motion, and at about eight o clock, A. M., the center of the Fifth Corps had reached the intersection of the pike and plank road leading from Fredericksburg to Orange Court-House, marked on the maps as "Wilder ness." This desolate tract of land, about a dozen miles long, and five in width, is in Spottsylvania County, Vir ginia. It is an exceedingly broken table-land, irregular in its conformation, and so densely covered with dwarf timber and undergrowth as to render progress through it very difficult and laborious off the few roads and paths that penetrate it. This timber was so effectually an ally of the rebels for they had taken care to take position near its edge, leaving us an open country at our back that a whole division drawn up in line of battle might be in visible a few hundred feet off. The knotty character of the ground, in conjunction with this timber, also prevented us almost entirely from using our artillery, depriving us of our undoubted superiority in that arm. At the Wilder ness, is the crossing or intersection of the pike and plank roads from Fredericksburg to Orange Court-House, in a general southwest direction. These roads are here reached by the roads from Culpepper and Brandy Station, via Germania Ford ; and at Chancellorsville, four miles and a half eastward of the Wilderness, the pike is crossed exactly at a right angle by the road from Ely s Ford to Spottsylvania Court-House. Thursday morning, the army in column was along the road to Germania Ford and the pike. The hours wore away, 486 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and the battalions, wondering at the pause, sought such di versions to beguile the time of suspense as were within their reach and suited to their tastes. Officers unrolled maps, and consulted together over them. There were no sounds nor signals of battle. Suddenly, aids from General Sheridan s horsemen, who had been pushing southeastward, come back with dis patches. General Meade, a tall, thin man, a litle stooping in the shoulders, breaks the seal, and reads. The next moment he turns to General Grant, remarking : "They say that Lee intends to fight us here." " Very well," coolly replies General Grant. Then they step aside and talk. The Lieutenant- General smokes, and whittles in musing mood while he converses. He now changes the direction of the cutting from him, and with quicker motion. He has matured his plan. Ac tion will swiftly follow. Like the collision of rushing engines will be the shock. Lee is determined to crush through, and break the equally resolute ranks of our unshrinking " boys." Warren s column moved Coward a hill near the Wil derness Tavern, and soon its summit was the head-quarters of the army. Then came the falling shot, the rattle of picket-firing-, and the louder report of the skirmish, followed in a brief period by the opening of general battle. The rebels knew the ground, and suddenly charging upon a brigade of Griffin s division before it was fairly formed, captured two guns. After noon, the lion-hearted Sedgwick s battalions met the rebel tide of battle, and grandly checked its threatening progress. On the left, the brave Hancock took charge of Long- street, and showed how "Yankee hirelings" could fight. It was a day of blood, whoso descending sun fell on un numbered gaping wounds, and upon many glazing eyes, which were bright in the splendor of his rising. General Grant was in the field, silent, cool, and confi dent of ultimate success. . Friday renewed the awful carnage, whose fiercest work was done by Hancock s corps. Back the superior forces THE CARNAGE OF FRIDAY. 487 of Longstreet pressed him to his breastworks, then like the "billow returning from the unyielding shore, the enemy were compelled to fall back, wasted by the unsuccessful onset. The rebel and the Union dead were piled together. Next, Sedgwick entered the arena of unsurpassed valor and death. The twilight hour lulled the tumult of the fray, and nature seemed to breathe calmly again, relieved from the horrors of the human struggle for victory. But the deep ening stillness was broken by unexpected volleys of mus ketry, followed by the yells rebels could only raise and our right was turned Generals Seymour and Slater were overborne, and the day seemed lost. Providentially, Sedgwick was at hand, and, when the force of the first charge was spent, re-formed his corps, and beat the enemy backward from his breast works. The terrors of the scene were hightened by a stampede of straggling soldiers, extending to the teamsters, until the wildest confusion spread for half an hour before order could be restored. An hour before midnight, another desperate assault was made on Warren s corps, before which heroism itself was forced to give way. Meanwhile, the trains uninterruptedly moved onward, and by the dawn nearly all had passed to the left of the right center. The wounded were also removed in the same direction. Disaster, but not defeat, was the record of the memor able 6th of May. The enemy, determined at the outset not to let General Grant get through the Wilderness, was defeated in his design, and in every battle failed to crush or fatally cripple the Union army. The general result, in its bearing on future success, was a victory to the cause of the Republic. In this day s engagement, Brigadier-General James S. Wadsworth, of New York, an able and noble officer, fell mortally wounded into the hands of the enemy ; and, a few hours later, Brigadier-General Alexander Hays was killed. The entire Union loss for the two days fighting, in killed, 488 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. wounded and missing, was fifteen thousand, and the rebel sacrifice certainly equal in number. The rebel columns had turned the right flank of the Union army, and the fighting, with any prospect of success, was over there. G-ermania Ford was within the enemy s grasp, and, with the fearful slaughter, the gain upon his right seemed a small purchase with so much bloodshed. Still, it was a great fact, that the Potomac Army was not thrown backward from its grand object ; nor had the onsets of the hostile battalions broken its lines. General Grant s faith in the righteous cause, and its hast ening success, was unshaken by the indecisive results ; and during the night he calmly carried forward his flanking movement on Lee s position, by contracting his lines on the right, and extending his left to the south, threatening the enemy s communication with Richmond. A change of base was made to the Rappahannock and Fredericksburg. By these skillful movements, General Lee was unable to profit by his success on our right, while General Grant se cured a similar, yet bloodless, victory over his antagonist. The great rebel chieftain, though foiled and chagrined, " promptly accepted the gage of battle thus thrown down," and hastened to a strong position which had been prepar ed for . the emergency, near Spottsylvania Court-House. Both armies were at this time so far out of the Wilderness that artillery could be employed with effect. Saturday dawned, and General Grant was ready to fight ; but no signs of conflict appeared along the rebel lines, beyond a little skirmishing during the morning ; when, assured of the advance of the Confederate columns, he pre pared for the chase. Anticipating the dodge, Grant had sent Sheridan with his cavalry on the road through Spott sylvania Court-House, to Granger s Station and Hanover Court-House, encountering Fitzhugh Lee, who offered a fierce resistance. Before night, Stuart s cavalry corps protected the right flank of General Lee s army, which General Grant hoped to turn. The preparation now went forward to put the entire army in motion along the irreg ular line of flanking toward Richmond. It was the pur pose of the Chief to make time by forced marches, and in- PREPARATIONS FOR ANOTHER ADVANCE. 489 terior lines, with a bold front pressing vigorously upon the enemy when necessary, to reach Richmond before General Lee ; or, if compelled to meet him in decisive bat tle, defeat him, and then, with comparative ease, capture the rebel capital. The setting sun of Saturday night, May 6th, was reflected from the arms of the infantry on the march, to anticipate, if possible, the foe, by turning his right flank. The Ninth Army Corps led in the cavalcade a short dis tance, then halted to let General Warren pass with the Fifth. This movement opened one of the most romantic and impressive scenes in the inarches of a vast army. From that sunset hour till midnight, the columns of the Potomac Army were getting into marching order the ranks quietly emerging like spectral processions from their entrenchments and the cavalry wheeling into position to protect the flank, as the Sixth and Second Corps formed the rear. At eight o clock, General Grant and staff left head quarters, and dashed along the lines of the corps nearest the enemy. Startled by the rattle of musketry, he halted at General Hancock s head-quarters to send out scouts, who soon learned that it was only picket-firing, provoked by the shouts of the rebels, which were raised in reply to those of our own troops. Then the Lieutenant- General hurried on through forest paths, and along by-roads, to avoid the moving columns, and almost interminable wagon trains, his escort trailing be hind him, in the shadowy distance, as at Chattanooga, like the " tail of a kite," on the air of a night disturbed only by the grim pageantry of Mars. The early Sabbath solitude was broken by the tramp of myriad feet, the clatter of hoofs, and the rumble of numberless wheels. The magnifi cent engine of war, whose living soul was still inspired with the old and awakening watchward, " On to Rich mond !" was again moving down upon the front and heart of rebellion. Whenever the Chief galloped by a body of troops, if in the darkness it was discovered that he was passing, a shout of wildest enthusiasm rang along the columns, and died away upon his ear only when distance 490 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. made the welcome of loyal hearts inaudible. He reached Todd s Tavern soon after midnight, and established his head-quarters there. Near the old battle-field of Chancellorsville, the wagon train, covering an immense area, encamped the indispens able, yet peaceable, caravan of a moving army. When the Sabbath sun was above the horizon, General Warren s corps was two and a half miles from Spottsyl- vania Court-House, having passed Todd s Tavern during the night. This fine corps at once relieved the cavalry, while the rebel General Longstreet performed the same service for the enemy s cavalry under Stuart. The Fifth Corps, although tired with the night s march, went into action on the double-quick, General Robinson s division leading the charge in the resistless onset upon the enemy. For three miles the rebels yielded the ground to the resolute columns of Warren. The heroic Robinson was wounded, and the entire Union losses that day reached about one thousand three hundred. The charge was so impetuous that the troops found themselves outflanked on the left, and fell back to re-form their lines. Man}" of the men, exhausted, retired, but soon our artillery forced the enemy from the position he had gained. The Fifth Corps was terribly cut up, scarcely a divi sion being left in fighting condition. The army had ad vanced to within two and a half miles of Spottsylvania Court-House, but another desperate struggle must come between it and that point, before the place could be ours. The Sabbath dawned, and over the vast field of war, through the sacred hours, were scenes of touching interest. There were tents of prayer dying victims and words of Christian hope and cheer spoken to the thousands pre paring for battle again. Men are thoughtful in the pauses, and on the eve of the deadly conflict. When the sun sank to the golden gate of the West, in the softened light, the silent, thoughtful leader of freedom s legions, rode off to the front to get one more view of. the exact position, and to inspire his troops with enthusiasm for the impending struggle for the capital of treason. Be- CONTEST AT SPOTTSYLVAFIA COURT-HOUSE. 491 fore he reached the left flank, the sudden, sharp rattle of musketry, and the staggering "backward of wounded men told the story of opening strife. About seven o clock a shout rang out of the woods as our columns emerged from the concealment, led "by Gen eral Wright s division. In half an hour the steady roar of the contest, rising from the gloom of the pine forest, began to fluctuate, and then died away. The foe had given way, but night still protected the rebel occupation of Spottsylvania Court House. Monday found the rations low. The caravan of supply wagons arrived at the moment of need. The hours flew, and an onset was made upon divisions of our forces, with no result besides sacrifice of human life. Look off to that conspicuous spot in the line of conflict. There, among the artillery of his corps, stands the cool, intrepid, accom plished Sedgwick. He is directing the gun-mounting. The bullets of the sharpshooters whistle around him. The artillerymen involuntarily dodge. General Sedgwick smiles, and says: " Don t duck, men. They couldn t hit an elephant that distance." The words scarcely escape his lips, before a well-directed ball pierces his head. He falls into the arms of his adjutant ; the bloody foam wreathes those lips ; a smile follows, and all is over. One of the bravest and noblest of the army ; after three years of successful service, has yielded up his manly life. Now, with advancing night, several divisions of Grant s troops crossed the branches of the Mattapony, and the struggle was renewed. Every step of progress was stained with blood. Like a half moon lay the white tents and the battle array of the rebel host around Spottsylvania Court-House. Over against them, with broader curve, was the Union army ; both waiting and yet preparing for another general combat. A train of ambulances, containing thirteen thousand wounded, while on the way to Ely s Ford, was attacked and compelled to return ; but at length reached Fredericks- burg, whose dwellings immediately became hospitals for the bleeding heroes. 492 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Tuesday was a clay of slaughter. A part of the Fifth Corps was sent to dislodge the rebels from a copse on its right ; and bravely they went in advancing by brigades. Oh ! what a battle-storm raged, till the darkness cur tained the Golgotha, and stilled the roar of the cannonade that rolled over it ! On Wednesday morning General Grant sent his first dispatch to Washington, which reveals his full apprecia tion of the deadly havoc made in his ranks, and also his unyielding courage and hope : HEAD-QtTAKTERS IN THE FlBLD, May 11, 18C4 8 A. M. We have now ended the sixth day of very heavy fighting. The result, to this time, is much in our favor. Our losses have been heavy as well as those of the enemy. I think the loss of the enemy must be greater. We have taken over five thousand prisoners by battle, whilst he has taken from us but few, except stragglers. I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer. U. S. GKANT, Lieutenant-General Commanding the Armies of the United States. Among the killed, was the Christian hero, Brigadier- General Bice. He sent to his wife, before he fell, the patriotic words, " I have been true to my country." When his life was ebbing away, he desired to have his face turned toward the enemy. And better still, an expression of character, when asked by a delegate of the Christian Commission how the great Captain of our salvation ap peared then, he replied, " Oh ! Jesus is very near !" Such was one of many scenes lighting up the horrors of this tremendous war. General Lee sent a flag of truce, asking for a cessation of hostilities for forty-eight hours, to give him time to bury his dead. General Grant replied that he had not time to inter his own dead, but should advance without delay. The woods, where the enemy s center had been, were shelled, eliciting no response. More than four thousand rebel bodies, ghastly with every form of war s mortality, lay in winrows and heaps upon the soil over which the living tide of loyalty had surged, sweeping before it the hosts of rebellion, and leav- A SPLENDID CHARGE. 493 ing a large company of the slain sons of the Republic in its wake. That night the Second Corps was once more ordered to the left, taking position between the Sixth and Ninth Corps. Another flanking movement was arranged, to force the rebels from their works at Spottsylvania Court- House ; and its direction, as before, was to be by the left flank, the brave Hancock s corps doing the work. May 12th was one of the great war s greatest days in the heart of the Old Dominion. Amid the silence and darkness that preceded its dawn, the Second Corps had left their position, and, stealing with hushed footfall over the field, had reached the line of in- trenchments in front, held by Ewell s corps. The flush of day reflected the glitter of their arms almost blending with that of the hostile bayonets. Soon after, the bugle- note of the charge rang out upon the vernal air. A shout rose to the smiling heavens, and, before the slumbering foes knew what the outcry meant, Hancock s braves were pouring over the intrerichments, and floiirishing the butts of their muskets around the heads of the startled rebels. The firing was the least important part of the attack, in the rapid movement. Before the inmates of the shelter- tents, near the works, could fly from them, our troops were there, surrounding and holding them till they sur rendered, without further resistance bewildered, helpless prisoners of war. The ordnance of the foe stood unlim- bered and undischarged in the hands of the Union troops ; and the commanders, Stewart and Johnson, with thirty pieces of ordnance, were taken. The rebel chiefs were escorted to General Grant s head-quarters at seven o clock in the morning. Johnson was received courteously and conversed freely with the Union commanders, alluding to the former years of association of hostile leaders with them at West Point. At nine o clock, on Hancock s right, the artillery fire was fearful. The glory of the night s success, already recorded, was heightened by the advance of this stormy morning. Onward the columns pressed, and backward slowly retired the rebels. 494 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. An incident occurred during the morning that illus trates the coolness and self-possession of the Commander- in-chief of the Armies of the United States. While the heaviest artillery firing was in progress, General Grant was standing, in company with General Meade, near a fire, talking and endeavoring to keep themselves dry, when a rebel shell struck within a few feet of the twain. A dis position to move was manifested on the part of a number of officers standing around, when General Grant, looking slowly around, and fixing his eye on the spot where the shell struck, asked at once for a pocket compass, which, being furnished, he examined the course of the shell, found out the location of the battery, and it was not long before shells were thick among the men working said bat tery. In the afternoon, General Meade advanced on the left of Lee, flanking his right, and pouring into the ranks of his desperate men an incessant fire of the artillery. The terrific carnage rose in its havoc and fell by turns, till the evening darkened over the ensanguined field. Learning that the Union troops were holding in check re-enforcements on their right, and moving down upon their right, the rebels made haste to assault our left. For fourteen hours the awful strife went on, till ten thousand on each side were slain or wounded. General Grant sent Ms second message to Washington : SPOTTSYLYANIA C. H., May 12, 1865. The eighth day of battle closes, leaving between three and four thou sand prisoners in our hands for the day s work, including two general officers and over thirty pieces of artillery. The enemy is obstinate, and seems to have found the last ditch. Wo have lost no organization, not even a company, while we have destroyed and captured one division, one brigade, and one regiment entire of tho enemy. U. S. GKANT, Lieuten ant-General. In the night, General Lee advanced on the right, and southwardly, followed by his watchful adversary on Fri day. A dismal storm set in, drenching the living and the dead. The telegrams which went over the wires at this DISPATCHES FROM THE BATTLE-FIELD. 495 crisis of military affairs will afford an outline view of the work accomplished in the field, of which Richmond was the grand prize of combat : WASHINGTON, May 144 r. M. To Major-General CADWALADEK: Dispatches from General Grant, dated yesterday evening, at six o clock, have reached this Department. The advance of Hancock yesterday devel oped that the enemy had fallen back four miles, where they remained in position. There was no engagement yesterday. We have no account of any general officers being killed in the battle of the preceding day. Colonel Carroll was severely wounded. A dispatch has just been received from General Sherman, dated near Resaca, May 14. It states that, by the flank movement on Resaca, John ston had been forced to evacuate Dalton, and our forces were in his rear and flank. The weather was fine, and the troops in fine order, all working well, and as fast as possible. No intelligence has been received from General Butler. Guerrillas have broken the telegraph lines between Williamsburg and Old Jamestown. This is believed to be the reason why no report has been received from him. Dispatches from General Sigel report him to be at Woodstock. The rumor that he had broken the railroad between Lynchburg and Charlottes- ville is not true. Our wounded are coming in from Belle Plain as fast as the transports can bring them. Grant s army is well supplied. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. General Meade has issued the following congratulatory address to his troops : HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OK THE ^OTOMAC, May 19, 1864. SOLDIERS : The moment has arrived when your commanding general feels authorized to address you in terms of congratulation. For eight days and nights, almost without intermission, in rain and sun shine, you have been gallantly fighting a desperate foe, in positions natu rally strong, and rendered doubly so by intrenchments. You have compelled him to abandon his fortifications on the Rapidan, to retire and attempt to stop your onward progress, and now he has aban doned the last intrenched position so tenaciously held, suffering a loss in all of eighteen guns, twenty-two colors, and eight thousand prisoners, including two general officers. Your heroic deeds and noble endurance of fatigue and privations will ever be memorable. Lot us return thanks to God for the mercy thus shown us, and ask earnestly for its continuation. Soldiers ! your work is not yet over. The enemy must be pursued, and, 496 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. if possible, overcome. The courage and fortitude you have displayed ren der your commanding general confident your future efforts will result in success. While we mourn the loss of many gallant comrades, let us remember the enemy must have suffered equal, if not greater, losses. We shall soon receive re-enforcements, which he cannot expect. Let us determine to continue vigorously the work so well begun, and, under God s blessing, in a short time the object of our labors will be accom plished. GEORGE G. MEADE, Major-General commanding. Official S. WILLIAMS, A. A.-G. (Approved) U. S. GEANT, Lieutenant-General commanding the Armies of the United States. WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, May 14, 1864. Major-General Dix : The folio wing telegrams have just reached this Department from Gen eral Butler. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War HALF-WAY HOUSE, May 14 3 A. M. To Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War : We are still before the base of the enemy s works at Drury Bluff, Fort Darling. The enemy are still here in force. General Gillmore, by a flank movement, with a portion of his corps and a brigade of the Eighteenth Corps, assaulted and took the enemy s works on their right at dusk last evening. It was gallantly done. The troops behaved finely. We held our lines during the night, and shall move this morning again. (Signed) BENJ. F. BUTLER, Major-General. HEAD-QUARTERS, HALF-WAY HOUSE, May 14 10 A. M. To Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War : General Smith carried the enemy s first line on the right, this morning, at eight o clock. The loss was small. The enemy have retired into three square redoubts, upon which we are now bringing our artillery to bear with effect. (Signed) BENJ. F. BUTLER, Major-General commanding. " Cavalry Sheridan" does well his part : WASHINGTON, May 14 midnigJU. To Major-General CADWALADER : An official dispatch from General Sheridan, dated Bottom Bridge, via Fortress Monroe, May 13th, states that on the 9th instant he marched around the enemy s right flank, and on the evening of that day reached SECRETARY STANTON S REPORT OF AFFAIRS. 497 the North Anna River without serious opposition. During that night ho destroyed the enemy s depdt at Beaver Dam, ,threo large trains of cars, and one hundred cars, two fine locomotives, two hundred thousand pounds of bacon, and other stores, amounting in all to a million and a half of rebel rations ; also, the telegraph and railroad track for about ten miles, embrac ing several culverts, and recaptured three hundred and seventy-eight of our men, including two colonels, one major, and several other officers. On the morning of the 10th, he resumed operations, crossing the South Anna at Grand Squirrel Bridge, and went into camp about daylight. On the llth he captured Ashland Station. At this point he destroyed one locomotive and a train of cars, an engine-house, and two or three gov ernment buildings, containing a large amount of stores. He also destroyed six miles of railroad, embracing six culverts, two trestle bridges, and the telegraph wires. About seven o clock, A. M., of the llth, he resumed tho march on Richmond. He found the rebel Stuart with his cavalry concen trated at Yellow Tavern, and immediately attacked him. After an obsti nate contest, he gained possession of the Brockle Turnpike, capturing two pieces of artillery, and driving the energy s forces back toward Ashland and across the north fork of the Chickahominy a distance of four miles At the same time a party charged down the Brock road and captured the first line of the enemy s works around Richmond. During the night he marched the whole of his command between the first and second line of the enemy s works, on the bluffs overlooking the line of the Virginia Cen tral Railroad and the Mechanicsville Turnpike. After demonstrating against the works and finding them very strong, he gave up the intention of assanlting, and determined to recross the Chickahominy at Meadow Bridge* It had been partially destroyed by the enemy, but was repaired in about three hours, under a heavy artillery fire from a rebel battery. General Merritt made the crossing, attacked the enemy, and drove him off hand somely, the pursuit continuing as far as Gaines s Mill. The enemy, observ ing the recrossing of the Chickahominy, came out from his second line of works. A brigade of infantry and a large number of dismounted cavalry attacked the divisions of Generals Gregg and Wilson; but, after a severe contest, were repulsed arid driven behind their works. Gregg and Wil son s divisions, after collecting the wounded, recrossed the Chickahominy on the afternoon of the 12th. The corps encamped at Walnut Grove and Gaines s Mill. At nine o clock, A. M., of the 13th, the march was resumed, and our forces encamped at Bottom Bridge. The command is in fine spirits. The loss of horses will not exceed one hundred. All the wounded were brought off except about thirty cases of mortally wounded, and these were well cared for in the farm-houses of the country. The wounded will not exceed two hundred and fifty, and the total loss not over three hundred and fifty. The Virginia Central Railroad bridges over the Chickahominy, and other trestle-bridges, one sixty feet in length, one thirty feet, and one twenty feet, and the railroad for a long distance south of the Chickahominy, were destroyed. Great praise is given the division commanders, Generals 32 498 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Gregg, Wilson, and Merritt, Generals Ouster, and Davies, and Colonels Gregg, Divine, Chapman, Mclntosh, and Gibbs, brigade commanders. All the officers and men behaved splendidly. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. Such was the posture of affairs when the Secretary re- received over the wires, trembling to the messages of a nation s struggle for life, "at noon of night," the words of cheer from the heroes of the battle-field. Friday, May 14th, the opposing armies again met in the shock of battle. The corps of Burnside and Hancock ad vanced upon Lee s right wing, covering Spottsylvania Court-House. Over a broken, hilly, piny wilderness, where no man could walk erect, and crowded with rifle-pits, with unfal tering steps the "boys" moved forward, pushing the enemy backward to his main line of intrenchments. There were deeds of unrivaled valor before the sun of Friday set. Three regiments of Hartrauft s brigade were flanked on the left, and nearly surrounded ; but upon the demand to surrender, refused, and fought hand-to-hand for their colors, until resistance was in vain, and a part of the troops were taken prisoners. Three thousand Union troops had fallen in this engagement. Saturday was a pause after the strife of eight long hours, while General Grant s sleepless watch of his great antagonist made the comparative quiet most valuable to him in the modification of his plans, to meet the changed aspect of the field. Both armies were busy burying those who had fought their last battle, and heeded not the war of elements which drenched but could not cleanse the crimsoned soil. In trenchments were thrown up, and, excepting a little skir mishing, the embattled hosts rested from the harvest of death. AKKIVAL OF RE-ENFORCEMENTS. 499 CHAPTER XXIV THE DEEPENING CONFLICT. The Struggle renewed. General Grant s skillful Movements of his Army. Cold Harbor. The grand March to the James River. Assault on Petersburg.- Incidents. Burnside s Mines. Naval Victories. General Grant and the Grand mother of General McPherson. General Sherman and Affairs in the South west, THE interlude of quiet had its own unwritten history of sad and cheerful scenes the erection and marking of head boards to many graves ; the painful transmission of the fate of the killed, wounded, and captured, to the scattered homes they left in the strength of manhood ; the messages of love from the uninjured ; the chapel- tent scenes of prayer and praise all filled up the soldier s leisure moments. The 18th of May broke the rest of the great armies. General Grant had prepared, during the previous night, for an attack upon his unyielding antagonist, by massing his forces on Lee s left, to break it, if possible, and turn it a bold movement, the more hopeful because unexpected from that quarter by the foe, who supposed that portion of the line to have been quite abandoned for any decisive work. On this early spring morning the assault began ; but the enemy was not unprepared for it. The rifle-pits cap tured on the 12th were retaken, and then came the stern resistance which opened again the sanguinary contest. General "Wright s Sixth Corps was on the right, and next the Second Corps, and, further to the left, a portion of Burnside s corps. The useless havoc of the attempt to scale the works in the fire of the rifle-pits was abandoned, and a few days of rest followed, during which twenty-five thousand fresh and excellent troops were added to the Army of the Potomac. May 20th, the army was once more in motion. The 500 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. unequaled flanker was again upon his enemy, and soon forced him out of Spottsylvania Court-House, making a retreat toward his capital behind North Anna River. Our pursuit was close, and attended by an attack resulting in "but little loss to us, and a repulse to the rebels. Lee, finding he was fairly flanked again, retired to the South Anna, where he was protected by strong fortifica tions. Avoiding collisions by another flank movement, in the direction of Hanover Junction, the thwarted chief was compelled to evacuate his stronghold. The 27th, General Sheridan, with two divisions of cavalry, seized Hanover Ferry and Hanovertown, the crossing-places on Pamunkey River. Two days later, the whole army was over the stream, and in position three miles from its banks. Thus was an other of General Grant s brilliant and daring maneuvers crowned with complete success. On Sunday, the 29th, his army was encamped in a fertile country, within fifteen miles of Richmond. By this admirable movement, he not only turned Lee s works on the Little River and the South Anna, and avoided the hazard of crossing those two strongly defended rivers, but made himself master of the situation with regard to his new base of supplies. He was furthermore left entirely free as to the route by which he would attack Richmond, and be in full communication and co-operation with the column under General Butler. All this was accomplished within twenty-four days from the day when he struck tents at Culpepper Court-House. What enormous strides he made toward the heart of the rebellion within that brief period, and all by disembar rassing his movements of the necessity of looking back to one inflexible line of communications and one unchanging base of supplies. This was his simple strategy, though the execution of it was as brave and brilliant as its con ception was bold and original. It was this same strategy that made the march from Bruinsburg to Vicksburg one unbroken scries of victories. He was master of the Peninsula without having uncov ered Washington for a single hour, and without having created the necessity of leaving one-fourth of his army be- THE CONDITION AT THE END OF MAY. 601 Mnd for the defense of that city. He had uncontrolled choice of a line of attack on Richmond on every side but one. His cavalry had traversed the whole county and knew all the roads and all the topography. He had com munication with General Butler s force, and could unite the two armies whenever the occasion demanded. And finally he could supply his troops by the Pamunkey or the James at his own option. These results were the achieve ments of a master hand in the art of war. This removal of the seat of war from the Orange and Alexandria Railroad to the very walls of Richmond com pleted a cycle of two years in the history of the rebellion. Hanover, White House, Cold Harbor, Shady Grove Church, are names with which we were familiar on the 31st of May, 1862. Then, however, every stream, every swamp, every line of rifle-pits brought our forces to a halt, until days ran into weeks, and weeks into weary months of waiting. But now the great column moved irresistibly on, for at its head there was a skillful and active soldier, a man who knew no such word as halt after he once was in motion, and was appalled by no obstructions, and least of all by phantoms. Such was the posture of the contending armies at the close of the great battle-month of May. General Leo s anticipated path of march for General Grant was undisturbed by the tramp of the legions of the Republic, and the Napoleon of the rebellion was compelled to see his visions of victory fade before the humiliation of a new and more doubtful field of contest, nearer than ever the Avails of Richmond. During the month of sanguinary progress by the Poto mac Army, General Sherman s splendid columns had been sweeping clown upon Atlanta, in the Southwest, making Buzzard s Roost, Dalton, and Resaca, historical names by the victories and the strategy of the resistless advance toward the Georgia stronghold. With June came the fiercely -fought battles of Cold Harbor. On the 4th, General Grant telegraphed to the War Department the following statement : "About seven P. M., of Friday, June 3d, the enemy suddenly attacked 502 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Smith s brigade of Gibbons s division. The battle lasted with great fury for half an hour, and the* attack was unwaveringly repulsed. At six P. M., Wilson, with his cavalry, fell upon the rear of a brigade of Heth s division, which Lee had ordered around to his left, apparently with the intention of enveloping Burnside. After a sharp but short conflict, Wilson drove them from their rifle-pits in confusion. He took a few prisoners. He had previously fought with and routed Gordon s brigade of rebel cavalry. During these fights he lost several officers, among them Colonel Preston, First Vermont Cavalry, killed ; Colonel Benjamin, Eighth New York Cavalry, seriously wounded. General Stannard, serving in the Eighteenth Corps, was also severely wounded. Our entire loss in killed, wound ed and missing during the three days operations around Cold Harbor did not exceed, according to the Adjutant- General s Report, seven thousand live hundred. This morning (Saturday, June 4th), the enemy s left wing, in front of Burnside, was found to have been drawn in during the night." The bristling fortifications that guarded the Chickahomi- ny, whose passage had been so desperately and successful ly resisted, and the earthworks extending to Richmond, convinced General Grant that to get to the rebel capital in that direction would be impossible. For ten days the disappointed, maddened foe beat at intervals against our lines, but was repulsed with every desperate attempt to break the coil closing around them. General Grant, with a comprehensive and daring strate gy, is determined to swing his whole army around on the south side of the capital, and make James River the base of supplies. In that part of the grand field of operations, there had been bold movements. General Butler had sent an expedition up York River to West Point, to make the enemy believe he was going across the peninsula to Rich mond. Butler, however, dropped down again, and up James River, landing at City Point, fifteen miles from Richmond. His object was, to cut the railroads, and pre vent Beauregard from helping Lee, and take Fort Darling THE MOVEMENT TO THE JAMES. 503 also. But the enemy came out of the fort, and beat him back again to his intrenchments. General Sheridan, meanwhile, with the cavalry, had swept around the right flank of the enemy, and, crossing the North Anna River, went into the outer defenses of Richmond, destroying railways, &c. General Sigel, in Western Virginia, had been defeated. In the night of June 12th, General Grant removed his troops from Lee s front to Cold Harbor and Games s Mills. General W. F. Smith s corps, after marching to the White House, embarked on transports and went down the Pa- munkey and York Rivers, and up the James. The Sixth and Ninth crossed the Chickahominy at Jones s Bridge, and the Second and Fifth at Long Bridge, thence reaching James River, crossed at Powhattan Point. The grand movement was a perfect success. The army of Lee, on the morning of June 13th, waked up to find no menacing foe, but one safely beyond pursuit, and in more threatening re lation to the rebel cause than ever before ; and the whole accomplished in about thirty- six hours. Some of the greatest work of war is the least noisy. The grandest results in nature and in life are secured in silence. General Grant s safe removal, almost in the ene my s face, of his vast army, across rivers, and an enemy s country, to James River, was one of these rare and splen did achievements. It astonished General Lee, and came near costing him the great stronghold lying between the new base and Richmond. But re-enforcements reaching the city, our troops were forced to yeld in the struggle for the prize. While this stupendous game of the war chieftains -was in progress, a gentleman of high editorial position called on Mrs. Grant, when she was in New York "a plain, sensible, quiet woman, who takes the world as a mat ter of course." He alluded to the high position of her husband, and appealed to her ambition to see how much vanity lurked under the unassuming surface. She listened; then, with no perceptible change in manner, replied : " Mr. Grant (so she always calls him) had succeeded 504 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. below, and, when lie was called to this position, he thought it was Ms duty to try what he could do. "We then expressed a hope that he would succeed, and that he would take Richmond. " Well, I don t know. I think he may. Mr. Grant always was a very obstinate man. The following conversation was had with another gen tleman : " If General Grant succeeds, he may want to be Presi dent. " But he is Lieutenant-General. " Yes ; but when a man can be elected President, it must be a strong temptation. " I don t know. There have never been but two lieu tenant-generals of the United States General Washington and General Scott. There have been a number of Presi dents ; for instance, such men as Frank Pierce and James Buchanan! " No, it would hardly be ambition which would lead a lieutenant-general to wish to be President. Truly, "Mrs. Grant, you are a sensible woman, and Mr. Grant is an obstinate man. About this time, the citizens of Jo Daviess County, Illi nois, presented General Grant a sword, whose record gives a "bird s-eye" view of his military career to the beginning of June : Palo Alto, May 8th, 1846 ; Resaca de la Palma, May 9th, 1846 ; Monterey, September 19th, 20th, 21st, 1846 ; Vera Cruz, April 18th, 1847 ; Molino del Rey, Sep tember 8th, 1847 ; City of Mexico, September 14th, 1847 ; Belmont, November 7th, 1861 ; Fort Henry, February 6th and 7th, 1862 ; Fort Donelson, February 13th, 14th, 15th, and 16th, 1862 ; Shiloh, April 6th and 7th, 1862 ; Corinth siege, April 22d to May 20th, 1862 ; luka, September 19th, 1862 ; Hatchie, October 5th, 1862 ; Tallahatchie, December 1st, 1862 ; Port Gibson, May 12th, 1863 ; Black River Bridge, May 7th, 1863 ; Champion Hill, May 14th, 1863 ; Black River, May 17th, 1863 ; Yicksburg, July 4th, 1863 ; Chattanooga, November 23d, 24th, 25th, and 26th, 1863 ; Battles for Richmond, May 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, llth, and 12th, 1864. ASSAULT ON PETERSBURG. 505 On the 15tli of June, General Smith led his "battalions against Petersburg. The impression being general among our officers that there were but few troops in the forts, the design was to take the city before General Lee could re-en force them. The assault carried the first line of intrench- ments, but the rebels immediately called a large force from General Butler s front, while Lee hurried up additional columns from Richmond. The Second and Ninth Corps, during Thursday and Friday, took several redoubts, and the investing lines were drawn more closely around the beleaguered city, in nearly the form of a quarter of a circle. General Butler s Tenth and Eighteenth Corps were on the north of the Appomattox, looking toward Petersburg, on the eastward side, and the Potomac Army extended from that river across the Petersburg and Suffolk road, the left resting on Poo Creek. The siege of Richmond was fairly commenced. General Wilson, with a force of six thousand cavalry, was sent, June 22d, to destroy railroad communications, south of Petersburg and Richmond ; and the Sixth Corps moved on the Weldon Railroad. An incident related of General Grant, while the move ments against the rebel capital were going forward, is cer tainly characteristic. He was walking around the docks at City Point, when he stopped to see some negroes roll a barrel of bacon on board of a boat. The negroes were un able to move it, when a crusty lieutenant, who stood near, dressed in his fine blue clothes, shouted: "You niggers, push harder, or go get another man to help you ! " With out saying a word, General Grant pulled up his sleeves, and helped the negroes roll the barrel on the boat ; then he drew his silk handkerchief from his pocket, and wiped his hands, and moved quickly away. You may imagine how that second lieutenant felt, when he was told that the stevedore was no less than the Commander-in- Chief of the United States armies. The general was dressed in coarse homespun, with his hat drawn over his eyes, and one of the most unpretending-looking personages one could imagine. As if to cheer us in the quiet of our armies at home, June 14th, 1864, occurred a naval engagement, which sent 506 LIFE AXD CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. a thrill of wild exultation over the land. The famous and victorious pirate Alabama, which had been ordered by the French government to leave the port of Cherbourg, met the United States steamer Kearsarge, about seven miles from the harbor. The noble vessel was named after a lordly summit among the White Hills one of the "body guards of Mount Washington. It is pronounced there as if it were spelled Keer-sarge. The combat was terrible. Balls and shell flew until the thunder of the ordnance shook the ships, and the smoke of the conflict hung darkly over the sea. After an hour of lightning and hail from ship toward ship, the dark, bloody leviathan of treason began to reel before the blows of the Kearsarge. A few moments later, and the waters closed over the pipes from which the breath of the monster 3 s fiery heart had escaped. The captain the guilty Semmes and his crew were saved from a watery grave, by the English yacht Deer- Tiound, commanded by Captain Lancaster. Another evi dence of English sympathy with the rebels, which has been mainly felt by the aristocratic classes there and elsewhere in Europe. Week after week passed, with no important change in the aspect of the impending struggle. A rebel view of this suspense is interesting. The Constitutionalist, of Augusta, Georgia, frankly writes of General Grant s strong position, in an amusing way. It is an estimate of him, and a prophecy of the result of his siege : The second danger is of the siege of Eichmond. Some of our cotemporaiies, and the most of our correspondents, laugh at tliis ; and yet Grant has it in his power to besiege the capital, or force an attack on himself, or force an evacu ation of llichmond. Kot that he has his choice of these three things, but can force that choice upon us. In Grant s moving upon the south of Eichmond, and threatening James Elver near the city, General Lee has choice of two evils. If he keeps ahead of Grant, and holds the Peters burg line inviolate, that flanker necessarily gets between him and Eichmond, and walks into the city at his leisure. REBEL VIEW OF THE SITUATION. 507 If Lee keeps between Richmond and Grant, the latter, of course, gets between Mm and the Southern States commu nication, and cuts off the only source of supplies now left, as the valley of Virginia is in the hands of the enemy. If Lee wants to save Petersburg and Richmond both, he will have to attack Grant in one of his craw-fish move ments, and will have to attack the position and intrench- ments which the grand spade-and-pick army never exists an hour without. "In our judgment, the plan of the campaign is at last developed. Western Virginia, the valley and its resources are, by the movement on Staunton and Lexington, to be rendered unavailing for provisions. Grant is to throw his army into fortifications across the railroads from Richmond south, and so cut off our army supplies. Thus the starva tion of a siege will be as effectually secured as if an army could be found large enough to surround the legions of Lee, as Grant did General Pemberton ; provided, of course, that the Danville road shares the fate that the Weldon road probably will. If General Lee chooses to stop the game by a fight, he has to put his finger on the slippery Grant, and stop his flea-like fiankings ; and, having found him and stopped him for a fight, will have to charge the hills Grant will occupy and the trenches Grant will dig. We lose Richmond if we hold the Weldon and Danville Railroads ; we lose the railroads if we save Rich mond ; or we attack Grant in his mighty trenches if we try to save both. It is true that General Beauregard could still keep south of Grant, and prevent raids into South Carolina, but could not keep him from stopping the roads south, unless he has enough men to attack Grant in re verse, and place him between two fires. We hope Grant thinks he has. This is a game with no possible hindrance, perfectly plain to even such unmilitary comprehension as our own, and we respectfully submit that there is no fun in it." To General Lee it was plain enough that something must be done to frighten, and, if possible, weaken General Grant. The confederates attempted, for the third time, the invasion of Maryland, making the Shenandoah Valley the 508 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. grand highway of the advance. The insurgent tide dashed proudly along, surprising Chamber sburg, Pennsylvania, and leaving it desolate, then occupying Hagerstown and Frederick, Maryland, till General Ewell approached the city of Baltimore, sending alarm to every home and heart. The design of the bold and terror-awakening movement was to call troops from General Grant s army, and, if pos sible, relax his hold upon Lee and Richmond. But Mr. Grant is a very obstinate man," as Mrs. Grant said, and nothing could decoy or frighten him from his watching the prey, worthy of his eagle eye. He sent a single corps, the Sixth, which he could spare, to aid in protecting the nation s capital. With this contribution to her defense, General Grant determined to leave the trembling North to such help as the Department of the Gulf, and the loyal, troops, including militia scattered through Virginia, Mary land, and Pennsylvania, could furnish. They were suffi cient, if marshaled under able commanders, instead of remaining in four distinct military departments, whose leaders were unharmonious in feeling and counsel. The comprehensive genius of Grant at once saw the remedy. Of the Department of Washington, including the Capito 1 and Baltimore, with the region around ; the Department of the Susquehanna, comprising Eastern and Central Penn sylvania and Eastern Maryland ; the Department of West ern Virginia, and of Northwest Virginia and Western Pennsylvania ; and of the Middle Department, composed of the Shenandoah country and the region eastward to the Bull Run Mountains ; the lieutenant-general proposed to make a military division to be called the Middle Military Division, and was subsequently known as the Military Division of the Shenandoah. To this unrivaled command, in extent and importance, General Grant assigned General P. H. f Sheridan a choice whose wisdom the future of his career brilliantly illustrated. The youngest major-general, he had no superior ; he knew pre-eminently how to in spire with martial ardor and effectively handle large bodies of troops. His command of this magnificent field was dated July 7, 1864. On that day he removed his head-quarters to THE ENEMY IN MARYLAND. 509 Harper s Ferry. Meanwhile General Early had moved up the Shenandoah valley laden with plunder, and rejoicing in the prospect of a holiday march through the garden of Virginia toward freedom s soil. Sheridan at once prepared to contest the right to such pastime at the expense of the dear cause of the Republic. Onward the rebels swept to ward Maryland, burning and pillaging as they went. This was early in July. On the 3d, the President issued a call for three-months troops to repel invasion. On the 8th, the rebels attacked Hagerstown, Maryland, and sacked the city. On Saturday, the 9th, a battle took place between the forces under General Wallace and the rebels at Monocacy, commencing at nine o clock in the morning, and continuing until five in the afternoon, when, overpowered by the su perior numbers of the enemy, our forces were obliged to retreat in disorder, with severe loss. The fighting on both sides was desperate, much of it being hand to hand in an open field. The enemy advanced in three lines of battle, covered by their batteries, but were for hours kept at bay by our artillery. Our loss was probably one thousand in killed, wounded, and missing. General Tyler was cap tured, and several officers were killed. No guns or flags were lost. The strength of the enemy was some fifteen thousand, while that of General Wallace was only five thousand. The intelligence of General Wallace s defeat occasioned the greatest excitement in Baltimore. The bells were rung, the citizens mustered for service in the defenses, and every possible precaution taken for the protection of the city. At midnight on Saturday, Governor Bradford and Mayor Chadman issued a proclamation, declaring the city to be in imminent danger, and calling on every loyal citizen to prepare at once to avert the peril. During the whole of Sunday the city was under arms, and the work of erecting additional defenses went vigorously forward. At one time a report reached the city that the rebels were but seven miles distant ; but later accounts do not soein to confirm the statement. A proclamation was also issued on Sunday 510 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. by Governor Curtin, of Pennsylvania, appealing to the people to come forward for the defense of their State. On Sunday morning, a force of four or five hundred rebel cavalry dashed into Rockville, Maryland, sixteen miles from Washington, and, after plundering the stores and stealing all the cattle and horses they could find, left in the direction of Frederick ; but, before they left, they sent to the Virginia side all their plunder. Persons who came from the upper fords reported that the rebels were conveying large numbers of cattle, horses, hogs, and sheep, stolen from the farmers along the river, across into Vir ginia, and that every ford was held by small rebel cavalry forces and sections of batteries. They carried off several thousand head of cattle, and from eight hundred to one thousand valuable horses. The Northern Central Railroad, running from Baltimore to Harrisburg, was cut near Cockeysville, twelve miles north of Baltimore. On Monday the rebels made rapid progress toward Baltimore and Washington, being within seven miles of the former city, and six miles of the capital. On their approach to Baltimore, they burned the resi dence of Governor Bradford, three miles from that city, completely to the ground, stating that they had orders to do so from General Bradley Johnson, in retaliation for the destruction of Governor Letcher s house in Virginia, by General Hunter. Telegraphic communication between Washington and Baltimore was cut, leaving the States north in awful sus pense respecting the result of the bold invasion. On the evening of July 12th, a charge was made upon the enemy in front of Fort Stevens, and our line was ad vanced beyond the house of F. P. Blair, sen., thus driving the rebels from their position. In this charge we had three hundred killed and wounded, and the rebel loss exceeded ours. The arrival of (General Burnside s) veteran troops at the capital was timely, and the enemy retired across the Po tomac during the night. The only success of their invasion of Maryland was CAPTURE OF GENERAL FRANKLIN. 511 the acquisition of supplies of all kinds, which they took off in large quantities. While in the possession of Fred erick, the. rebels levied a fine of two hundred thousand dollars, which was paid to save the city from destruction. They swept the surrounding country of horses, cattle, sheep, and hogs, driving large herds toward the Potomac. The President remarked one day, during the attack upon Fort Stevens, to a friend who was somewhat alarmed at the tardiness of General Grant in forwarding troops to the capital : * General Grant lias as much at stake as any man in the country in the management of the campaign. He knows very well, if the rebels should capture Washington, that not even the fall of Richmond would compensate for the national calamity and disgrace. He would lose his repu tation as a general. He knows it ; and I shall trust him." General Franklin was captured in the cars near Balti more. He was taken to a rebel encampment, and put in charge of guards. He lay down, tired with the hard and rapid travel, and feigned sleep. He listened, and took- a peep, now and then, to see if they slept. One after another, supposing he was in deep slumber, they gave themselves up to repose. General Franklin then stole cautiously away, making noise enough to be sure the guards were not deceiving him, till he was over a fence not far off ; then, he assures us and we may believe him he ran for his life and lib erty. In the daytime he hid in the bushes, and could hear the enemy near. At length hunger and fatigue compelled him to show himself. Soon he saw a man in the woods carrying hay. He walked up boldly and asked him what he was doing with that hay. " Oh, I am trying to conceal it from the rebs., who are leaving nothing they can take away." This answer gave him hope. Making himself known, he was cared for by the Union farmer, and escorted into Baltimore. July 26th, General Grant made another movement of his army, which displayed the strategy of the great flanker. 512 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. A part of his liost were ordered to the north of James River; pressing thus upon the enemy gradually, but surely, with his anaconda-like coil. The next day, a line of outer mtrenchments and four cannon were captured. The 29th was a dark day for Chamber sburg, Pennsyl vania. A cavalry raid of the rebels laid the beautiful town in ruins. Many of the people, who, just before, were in the midst of plenty, had not a meal left nor a change of ap parel. July 30th, early in the morning, there was an unusual stir at the head-quarters of General Burnside. Unknown to all excepting the engineers and a few officers, General Grant had been successfully mining one of the enemy s main batteries. It was in General Burnside s front. At half-past three the fuse was fired. But it burned slowly in the long, damp entrance. Soon after four o clock a loud report startled the enemy. Another moment, and the air was filled with earth, and timbers, and men. Successive shocks, like those of an earthquake, shook the land. Then opened a terrific cannonading. A hundred guns thundered along the lines, and toward the breach, forty rods in width, rushed our heroic " boys." Colonel Marshall, of the Fourteenth New York Heavy Artillery, promptly led the two brigades of the first divis ion, the second, followed by the first, under the command of Brigadier-General Bartlett, of Massachusetts ; the troops springing over the breastworks of our main line, and has tening toward the breach. The advancing columns found the abatis and other outside defenses remaining to obstruct their progress. The battery was destroyed, and in its place a frightful chaos of broken guns, equipage?, and human bodies, was seen. Meanwhile opened an enfilading fire upon our troops, compelling them to pause in the resolute attempt to ad vance. At six o clock, General Ferero moved to the right of the other divisions for Seminary Hill. The inarch was steady, until the men were in line with those who had pre ceded them, when under a wasting fire they turned to the left, and mingled with the rest of the troops. A thousand SURRENDER OF GENERAL BARTLETT. 513 of the colored soldiers went tumbling over the parapet into the crater, alread}^ thronged, formed by the explosion. The enemy now prepared to meet the attack by massing all their available force. Those of our own troops who at tempted to regain the main line found the open ground over which they passed swept by the enemy s fire. When our batteries grew silent at nine o clock, the rebels came from their intrenchments and charged upon the position we had gained, and finally succeeded. An hour later a second charge was made, and General Bartlett was com pelled, at length, to surrender. It is quite evident that only to veteran troops should have been entrusted such an enterprise, and wherever the fault of a failure to capture the strongly fortified place may be laid by different writers, it is evident, from their losses in that breach of death, the " slaughter pen " it became, tlie negroes were no cowards. Their losses are very heavy, particularly in officers, as will be seen by the following figures : TWENTY-THIRD U. S. COLORED. Fifteen officers killed and wounded ; four hundred men, including the missing. TWENTY-EIGHTH U. S. COLORED. Eleven officers, and about one hundred and fifty men killed, wounded, and missing. TWENTY-SEVENTH U. S. COLORED. Six officers and about one hundred and fifty men killed, wounded, and missing. TWENTY-NINTH U. S. COLORED. Eight officers, and about two hundred and seventy-five men killed, wound ed, and missing. THIRTY-FIRST U. S. COLORED. Seven officers, and about two hundred men killed, wounded, and missing. FORTY-THIRD U. S. COLORED. Six officers, and a large number of men killed, wounded, and missing. THIRTY-NINTH U. S. COLORED. Several officers, and about two hundred and fifty men killed, wounded, and missing. The loss in the Second Division of the Ninth Corps v 33 514 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Ledlie commanding, was very severe, and is esti mated at from one thousand to twelve hundred, while many make the figure larger. Among the missing, was the name of General Bartlett. He succeeded in reaching the fort with his command, but, having accidentally broken his cork leg, he was unable to get off the field. He, however, held possession of the ground for several hours, and only surrendered when all hope of escape was gone. Some two hundred men, both black and white, were with him at the time, a few of whom managed to get back to our lines amid a storm of bullets. The high hope of a great victory which was kindled with the first telegram that flew over the North was quenched by the next tidings of a repulse. The rebels had, to some extent, prepared for such an at tack. From their works they were able to pour an en filading fire upon our troops, before which they could not stand. The golden opportunity that followed the terror of the explosion which laid open the works to our army was lost. Why, was the unanswered question. But no one suspected General Grant of any blame in this great failure, which prolonged the terrible war. Oh, what a sad sight was that, after the fruitless slaught er ! Wrote one who was there : " After the battle of Saturday, General Burnside sent a flag of truce to the enemy with a view to recovering the wounded and burying the dead lying between the lines, and whom it had been impossible to approach owing to the continued firing. After some little signaling, the re bels acknowledged and came forward to meet it. The com munication was received and forwarded by them to the authority with whom the power rests. Our officers sought permission to succor the wounded while waiting, and it was granted. Accordingly, the poor fellows, who had been lying on the ground nearly twenty-four hours a por tion of the time in the blazing sun were given each a drink of brandy and water. The crater of the mined fort was plainly in view ; but the rebels refused to allow any approach to it, and the wounded near it were supplied by THE DEAD AFTER THE EXPLOSION. the rebels themselves. The agonies of the wounded were awful. Unable to move, not daring to make even a signal, lest it would attract an unfriendly bullet, they had lain twenty-four hours without food or water. The two past days had been the warmest, as yet, of this summer, and they were subjected to the merciless rays of a scorching sun. The dead presented a sickening sight. There were both white men and negroes ; but now it is difficult to dis tinguish them apart. Their bodies were swollen and bloated, and their faces blackened by the sun. " Although the rebels refused a flag of truce on Sunday, to enable us to bury the dead and remove the wounded, from five to nine o clock on Monday was granted for this purpose. Very few were found alive not more than a dozen ; and but a few of these are expected to recover. The ground in front of the crater was thickly covered with the dead bodies, the colored soldiers being in the proportion of four to one of the white, the colored troops having experienced the heaviest fire at this place. The work of burying the dead was finished about half-past ten, and firing was com menced by the rebels ten minutes afterwards." A week later, General Lee tried the underground work, to see what he could accomplish. General Grant was too wide awake for the wary chieftain. He had sunk a shaft, which our men thought was a well for General Warren s corps, which went right into one of the enemy s passages. This discovery, with poor engineering by the rebels, which failed to estimate rightly the distance, spoiled their plot. The cannon suddenly opened the dust and smoke rose outside of our works, and that was all ! On the 4th day of August, the following noble order was read to the army : HE AD -QUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, August 3, 1864. To-morro\v, the 4th inst., having been set apart by the President of the United States as a day of National fasting, humiliation, and prayer, the Mfijor-General commanding calls upon his fellow-soldiers to observe the day with the solemnities due to the occasion ; and he recommends that, wherever practicable, religious services be held in the several camps by the chaplains serving with the army; and he commands that all operations that are not matters of military necessity be suspended during the day. By command of Major-General MEADE. 516 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. The very next day, Admiral Farragut, or "Old Sala mander, entered Mobile Bay in triumph, having conquer ed the relbel fleet and silenced the forts at its entrance, after a brilliant engagement. The 18th brought a decisive change in the movements of the Potomac Army. General Grant threw his troops across the Weldon Railroad a very important path of sup plies toward the South. The enemy fought hard to dis lodge our brave fellows, but General Warren beat him back in gallant style. The chivalrous Hancock, the incarnation of heroism, who was helping to destroy the railroad, on the 25th had a terrible battle ; but as he always does held his ground, and slaughtered the rebels. During these scenes on the Potomac, the splendid chief tain Sherman was coiling his great army around Atlanta, Georgia, another important center of rebel supplies and munitions of war. Just before his death, which occurred in battle, near that stronghold, July 22d, the brave and brilliant General McPherson, who was familiarly acquainted with both the Lieutenant- General and Sherman, wrote to a friend respect ing these great commanders. " Lieutenant- General U. S. Grant I regard as one of the most remarkable men of our country. Without aspiring to be a genius, or possessing those characteristics which im press one forcibly at first sight, his sterling good sense, calm judgment, and persistency of purpose, more than compen sate for those dashing, brilliant qualities which are apt to captivate at a first glance. To know and appreciate Gen eral Grant fully, one ought to be a member of his military family. " Though possessing a remarkable reticence as far as military operations are concerned, he is frank and affable, converses well, and has a peculiarly retentive memory. When not oppressed with the cares of his position, he is very fond of talking, telling anecdotes, &c. " His purity of character is unimpeachable, and his patri otism of the most exalted kind. He is generous to a fault, humane and true, and a steadfast friend to those whom he INTERESTING CORRESPONDENCE. 517 deems worthy of his confidence, and can always "be relied upon in case of emergency. " Major- General W. T. Sherman is what might "be call ed a brilliant man, possessing a broad and comprehensive intellect. A rapid thinker and ready writer, fertile in his resources and untiring in his exertions, he possesses those characteristics which forcibly impress you at first sight. He has mingled largely with the world, and has tried various professions ; has read and reflected much, and, having a remarkably retentive memory, is well informed on most subjects which come within the scope of human thought. He is of a much more excitable temperament than General Grant, and more apt to be swayed by im pulses, though his judgment is not so cool and reliable. In other words, though a more brilliant man, he does not pos sess that sterling good common sense which pre-eminently distinguishes General Grant. "He is, however, a most brave and generous man, thoroughly in earnest, and ready to sacrifice every thing for the good of his country. He is a true friend, and thor oughly unselfish ; and there are no better men or few, at least than General Sherman." How touchingly beautiful, in connection with this high testimony, is the correspondence which follows : CLYDE, Oino, August 3, 1864. To GENERAL GRANT : DEAR SIR: I hope you will pardon me for troubling you with the pe rusal of these few lines from the trembling hand of the aged grandma of our beloved General James B. McPherson, who fell in battle. When it was an nounced at his funeral, from the public print, that when General Grant heard of hia death he went into his tent and wept like a child, my heart went out in thanks to you for the interest you manifested in him while he was with you. I have watched his progress from infancy up. In child hood he was obedient and kind; in manhood, interesting, noble, and per severing, looking to the wants of others. Since he entered the war, others can appreciate his worth more than I can. When it was announced to us by telegraph that our loved one had fallen, our hearts were almost rent asunder; but when we heard the Commander-in-Chief could weep with us too, we felt, sir, that you have been as a father to him, and this whole na tion is mourning his early death. I wish to inform you that his remains were conducted by a kind guard to the very parlor where he spent a cheerful evening in 1861 with his widowed mother, two brothers, an only 518 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. sister, and his aged grandmother, who is now trying to write. In the morning he took his leave at six o clock, little dreaming he should fall by a ball from tho enemy. His funeral services were attended in his mother s orchard, where his youthful feet had often pressed the soil to gather tho falling fruit ; and his remains are resting in the silent grave scarce half a mile from the place of his birth. His grave is on an eminence but a few rods from where the funeral services were attended, and near the grave of his father. The grave, no doubt, will be marked, so that passers by will often stop and drop a tear over the dear departed. And now, dear friend, a few lines from you would be gratefully received by the afflicted friends. I pray that the God of battles may be with you, and go forth with your arms till rebellion shall cease, the Union be restored, and the old flag wave over our entire land. With much respect, I remain your friend, LYDIA SLOCTJM, Aged 87 years and 4 months. GENERAL GRANT S REPLY. HEAD-QUARTERS ARMIES OF THB U. S., ) CITY POINT, VA., Aug. 10, 1864 > MBS. LYDIA SLOOUM : MY DEAR MADAM : Your very welcome letter of the 3d instant has reached me. I am glad to know that the relatives of the lamented Major- General McPherson are aware of the more than friendship existing be tween him and myself. A nation grieves at the loss of one so dear to our nation s cause. It is a selfish grief, because the nation had more to expect from him than from almost any one living. I join in this selfish grief, and add the grief of personal love for the departed. He formed, for some time, one of my military family. I knew him well ; to know him was to love. It may be some consolation to you, his aged grandmother, to know that every officer and every soldier who served under your grandson felt the highest reverence for his patriotism, his zeal, his great, almost unequaled ability, his amiability, and all the manly virtues that can adorn a command- er. Your bereavement is great, but cannot exceed mine. Yours truly, U. S. GRANT. The exact posture of affairs then was clearly expressed in the subjoined letter to the Hon. Mr. Waskburne, of Il linois : HEAD-QUARTERS ARMIES or THE IT. S., I CITY POINT, VA., Aug. 10, 1864. DEAR SIR : I state to all citizens who visit me, that all we want now to insure an early restoration of the Union is a determined unity of sentiment North. The rebels have now in their ranks their last man. The little boys and old men are guarding prisoners, guarding railroad bridges, and forming a good part of their garrisons or intrenched positions. A man lost by them GENERAL GRANT AT GETTYSBURG. 519 cannot be replaced. They have robbed the cradle and the grave equally to get their present force. Besides what they lose in frequent skirmishes and battles, they are now losing from desertions and other causes at least ono regiment per day. With this drain upon them, the end is not far distant, if we will only be true to ourselves. Their only hope now is in a divided North. This might give them re-enforcements from Tennessee, Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri, while it would weaken us. With the draft quietly enforced, the enemy would become despondent, and would make but little resistance. I have no doubt but the enemy are exceedingly anxious to hold out until after the Presidential election. They have many hopes from its effects. They hope a counter-revolution. They hope the election of the peace candidate. In fact, like Micawber, they hope for something to " turn up." Our peace friends, if they expect peace from separation, are much mistaken. It would be but the beginning of war, with thousands of North ern men joining the South because of our disgrace in allowing separation. To have " peace on any terms," the South would demand the restoration of their slaves already freed ; they would demand indemnity for losses sus tained, and they would demand a treaty which would make the North slave hunters for the South ; they would demand pay for, or the restoration of, every slave escaped to the North. Yours truly, U. S. GRANT. At the dedication of the National Cemetery, July 4th, 1863, General Grant was among the mourners before the terraces of graves, which reminded none more impres sively than himself of the sacrifice which had been made for the life of the nation ; for he had seen the battle-fields strewn with dead heroes, and knew not when his own body would be added to the silent host of freedom s slain warriors. During this month of July, closing in the Potomac Army with the affair of the Petersburg mine, General Sherman had been " inarching along " in grand style. At the end of June, he had driven Johnston from Allatoona Pass, Pine, Kenesaw, and Lost Mountains, compelling, after a fierce and fruitless battle, by the skillful maneuver of a movement of General McPherson s whole corps to ward the Chattahoochie, the evacuation of Marietta on the 2d of July. The enemy was strongly intrenched on the west bank of the river. Another of Sherman s flanking victories forced him across the Chattahoochie to the east side, where, 520 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. on the 7th, General Schofield found him, and, by the sur prise of the rebel commander, captured a gun, and bridged the stream. Johnston had to leave General Sherman in possession of the river, and fall back upon Atlanta. General Sherman now sent a cavalry force to cut John ston s railroad communication with Southern Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi ; and then commenced the for ward march of the army. General Hood succeeded Johnston on the 17th, and as saulted suddenly and desperately the Union lines, but after a bloody struggle had to leave the field for his in- trenchments. Then came the repeated blows of Hood s columns upon those of Sherman, until his men lay by thousands beneath the smoke of battle. General Stone- man s failure in his cavalry raid toward Lovejoy s Station and Andersonville, and McCook s gallant escape from cap ture with Stoneman, brought the record of General Sher man s columns to July 28th. General Hood threw himself upon General Logan s corps, again determined to break the threatening circle of Union troops narrowing about him. This was followed by the masterly movement of Gen eral Sherman upon West Point Railroad, and thence to the Macon Road, deceiving his antagonist, who supposed the siege of Atlanta was raised, and General Sherman trying to save his own communications between Allatoona and Chattanooga, and resulting in the abandonment of At lanta, to save the rebel chief s own lines of connection with supplies. GENERAL SHERIDAN S VICTORIES. CHAPTER XXV. THE CLOSING SCENES OP THE WAR. The vast Combinations of the Lieutenant-General unfolding. The Hollowness of the Confederacy. General Sheridan s Successes. General Thomas. General Sherman s startling Campaign. The Beginning of the New Year. General Lee. Fort Steadman. The closing Battles and Scenes of the Rebellion. General Lee s Flight. The Pursuit. The Surrender. Sherman and Johnston. Johnston surrenders. The remaining Rebel Forces follow. THE great net-work of armies General Grant was gathering around Iris foe, and wlrich would soon be felt wherever he turned for escape, "began to appear. The magnificent Thomas was waiting his hour to strike in Ten nessee; General Sherman fixing his stern vision on the sea "beyond Georgia ; General Sheridan taking care of Early ; and the Commander-in- Chief confronting confidently and calmly the rebel leader. The great work in the extensive field during September and October was done in the Valley of the Shenandoah. The 19th of each of those months is among the forever- memorable days of the war. The first, because General Sheridan won fairly a splen did victory over the boastful Early at Opequan Creek, followed by another not less brilliant at Fisher s Hill ; the latter on account of the solitary glory of conquest snatched from defeat by the power of the chieftain s single re-en forcement the inspiration of his return to the scene of disaster. The deeds of "Cavalry Sheridan" thrilled the popular heart afresh, and placed the victor s name next to that of the Lieutenant-General in the great arena of strife directly under Iris control. The President sent his letter of con gratulation to General Sheridan ; and, jSTovember 14th, upon General McClellan s resignation of his command, the hero of the Shenandoah Valley succeeded him to the 622 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. major-generalship in the Regular army, the appointment dating from the 8th of the same month. This was a high and substantial compliment to heroism and ability, whose last and unrivaled work was the triumph with a routed army on the 18th of October. General Early s chagrin over his defeat was betrayed in an order to his troops, in which he bitterly reproaches them for their "misconduct." In view of all these tokens of divine favor upon our arms, our Christian President issued the following call, and the first since the war opened, to national praise for Jehovah s blessing upon the national cause : It has pleased Almighty God to prolong our national life another year, defending us with His guardian care against unfriendly designs from abroad, and vouchsafing to us in His mercy many and signal victories over the enemy, who is of our own household. It has also pleased our Heavenly Father to favor as well our citizens in their homes as our soldiers in their camps, and our sailors on the rivers and seas, with unusual health. He has largely augmented our free population by emancipation and by immigra tion, while He ha s opened to us new sources of wealth, and has crowned the labor of our workingmen in every department of industry with abun dant rewards. Moreover He has been pleased to animate and inspire our minds and hearts with fortitude, courage, and resolution sufficient for the great trial of civil war into which we have been brought by our adherence as a nation to the cause of freedom and humanity, and to afford to us reasonable hopes of an ultimate and happy deliverance from all our dangers and afflictions. Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do hereby appoint and set apart the last Thursday of November next as a day which I desire to be observed by all my fellow-citizens, wherever they may be, as a day of thanksgiving and praise to Almighty God, the beneficent Creator and Rnler of the universe. And I do further recommend to rny fellow-citizens aforesaid, that on that occasion they do reverently humble themselves in the dust, and from thence offer up penitent and fervent prayers and supplications to the Great Disposer of events for a return of the inestimable blessings of peace, union, and harmony, throughout the land which it has pleased Him to assign as a dwelling-place for ourselves and for our posterity throughout all generations. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. The remaining weeks of the year 1864 were spent by the armies in the Shenandoah Valley in watching each other and skirmishing. Torbert s Cavalry had encounters SHERIDAN IN THE VALLEY OF THE SHENANDOAH. 523 with the troops of Rosser and Lomax, sometimes of severi ty, which, on a smaller field of arms than our Kepublic, would have been called battles. But we soon learned to regard as unworthy that distinction any thing less than the meeting, in deadly conflict, several thousands of the half million of troops, and the slaughter of hundreds, at least, of the combatants. General Early moved 4 uneasily up and down the Val ley," seeking reprisals, an assailable point in the Union lines, or rest, and finding neither. His promenade- ground extended from New Market, situated a mile east of the north fork of the Shenandoah, near the southwest border of the county which bears the name of the stream, and Fisher s Hill. He did not venture near enough to the ever-ready "Phil." to turn the trooper s steed toward his depleted force. And then poor Lee, held by the inflexible Grant, and chafing in the grasp, must have all the avail able aid, and called for a portion of Early s troops in December. Meanwhile tidings came to Sheridan that the guerrillas were infesting the beautiful valley of the Blue Ridge, and their bullets flying wherever a Unionist showed himself the unpitied target of the murderous bandits. The indig nant chieftain decided to ~burn out the beasts of prey, as he had done before. So he summoned his troopers to the work ; arid dashing away to the fearful duty of retribution, you might have followed them afar off by the columns of smoke by day, under which at night blazed a hundred fires of wrath upon the skulking homicides of treason. Two expeditions resulted in the destruction or capture of property valued at more than seven millions of dollars. The droves of cattle, horses, mules, sheep, and swine, were almost endless, and seemed quite so when they moved along the forest paths. The guerrillas fled to the Upper Potomac, and other points more or less remote. During the last month of the year the Sixth Corps was sent back to re-enforce the Army of the Potomac. Until late in February, the Army of the Shenandoah had but little fighting to do, but rested and kept a vigilant eye on the movements of the adversary. At this moment the war 524 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GPwANT. was reaching a decisive crisis. General Sherman was marching triumphantly through the Carolinas. Truly " Sherman, Schofield, and Sheridan seemed to "be the three S s of the hour." Meanwhile, there had been important movements in the Army of the Potomac. General Ord had crossed the James, October 29th, and carried the enemy s works at Chapin s Farm ; and General Birney, advancing to Deep Bottom, took the New Market Road ; while General Kautz made a cavalry reconnoissance within two miles of Rich mond. The next day General Meade stormed the rebel line of intrenchments at Poplar Springs Church. Dark ness settled with the fading glories of autumn upon the Confederacy, in every part of the horizon. Upon its last days, the Napoleonic Sherman "broke camp," and set his army-front toward the distant sea. His army consisted of four corps of infantry, two divisions of cavalry, four brigades of artillery, and two horse-batteries. Brevet Major-General Jeff. C. Davis com manded the Fourteenth Corps ; Brevet Major-General Osterhaus the Fifteenth Corps ; Major-Gen eral Frank Blair the Seventeenth Corps ; and Major-General Slocum the Twentieth Corps. Major-General Kilpatrick was in com mand of the cavalry. General Thomas was left "to entice Hood westward and fight him, if he would fight in the neighborhood of Nashville." The disastrous defeat of Hood at Franklin, November 30th, succeeded by the greater one at Nash ville December 15th, finished the valiant successor of Johnston. The whole North was startled and half bewildered, when General Sherman s colors entered the Georgia forests, "pointing south," with the sublimely awful torchlight of burning Atlanta lighting his path, whose walls he had left November 16th, in company with the Fourteenth Corps. General Howard commanded the right wing, which was accompanied by Kilpatrick s cavalry, and reached Jackson on the 17th, and Gordon s Woods on the 23d. General Slocum led the left wing to the vicinity of Milledgeville on the 21st of November. Along the paths THE LOST ARMY. 525 of the army, railways had "been destroyed, and forage in abundance taken to supply the columns. He now ordered General Howard to strike eastward from Gordonsville, tearing up the iron track toward Mil- len, as far as Tennille Station ; General Slocum to march by two roads on Sanderson ville, four miles north of the former place ; and General Kilpatrick to move from Gordon to Milledgeville, and eastward, breaking up the railroad between Millen and Augusta, and, falling upon Millen, rescue, if possible, the Union prisoners starving there. But the poor victims of rebel hate were hurried away at the approach of their friends. General Sherman took up his head-quarters with the Twentieth Corps, and the imposing cavalcades, stretching for scores of miles across the soil of Georgia, cut loose from the anxious North, to which they became for weeks, emphatically, "THE LOST AEMY." Into funereal cypress swamps, and primeval pine woods, whispering to fancy s ear of war 7 s desolations, and the tearful watchers at home through cold rivers, and treacherous quicksands ; then over sunny fields and by elegant mansions, around which were clustered slave cabins, whose humble tenants, when they dared to do so, hailed the " Yankee" army the veteran and cheerful battalions of the peerless Sherman marched toward the sea. Leaving the record of the martial aspect of the un rivaled campaign to the pen of the daring leader, whose record will be given its fitting connection, we shall here chronicle some of the romantic incidents of the wonderful march. The diary of Aid-de-camp Nichols, on General Sher man s staff, is full of both amusing and touching incidents of the inarch. He writes : "The most pathetic scenes occur upon our line of march daily and hourly. Thousands of negro women join the column, some carrying household truck ; others, and many of them there are, who bear the burden of children in their arms, while older boys and girls plod by their sides. All these women and children are ordered back, 526 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. heart-rending though it may "be to refuse them liberty. They won t go. One "begs that she may go to see her husband and children at Savannah. Long years ago she was forced from them and sold. Another has heard that her boy was in Macon, and she is i done gone with grief goin on four years. " The other day a woman with a child in her arms was working her way along amongst the teams and crowds of cattle and horsemen. An officer called to her kindly : * Where are you going, aunty ? i She looked up into his face with a hopeful, beseech ing look, arid replied : " I se gwine whar you se gwine, massa. " At a house a few miles from Milledgeville we halted for an hour. In an old hut I found a negro and his wife, both of them over sixty years old. In the talk which ensued, nothing was said which led me to suppose that either of them was anxious to leave their mistress, who, by the way, was a sullen, cruel-looking woman, when all at once the old negress straightened herself up, and her face, which a moment before was almost stupid in its expres sion, assumed a fierce, almost devilish, aspect. "Pointing her shining black finger at the old man, crouched in the corner of the fire-place, she hissed out: 4 What for you sit dar ? you spose I wait sixty years for mitten? Don t yer see de door open? I se follow my child ; I not stay. Yes, nodder day I goes long wid dese people ; yes sar, I walks till I drops in my tracks. A more terrible sight I never beheld. I can think of nothing to compare with it, except Charlotte Cushrnan s Meg Mer- rilies. Rembrandt only could have painted the scene, with its dramatic surroundings. "It was near this place that several factories were burned. It was odd to see the delight of the negroes at the destruction of places known only to them as task- houses, where they had groaned under the lash. Pointing to the Atlanta and Augusta Railroad, which had been destroyed, the question was asked, It took a longer time to build this railroad than it does to destroy it ? " I would think it did, massa; in dat ar woods over SCENES ALONG THE MAKOH. 527 dar is "buried ever so many "black men who were killed, sar, yes, killed, a working on dat road whipped to deth. I seed em, sar. " Does the man live here who "beat them? " Oh no, sar, he s dun gone long time. "I have seen blind and lame mules festooned with infants in bags, and led by fond parents so aged and weak they could hardly totter along. ; Mars r Sherman was a great man, but dis am de work ob de Lord, they said." The swampy borders were belted with "corduroy," and their heavy fogs hung over the halting columns. At evening the spectacle was weird-like in its wild romance. "A novel and vivid sight was it to see the fires of pitch- pine flaring up into the mist and darkness, the figures of men and horses looming out of the dense shadows in gigantic proportions. Torchlights are blinking and flash ing away off in the forests, while the still air echoed and re-echoed with the cries of teamsters and the wild shouts of the soldiers. A long line of the troops marched across the foot-bridge, each soldier bearing a torch, their light reflected in quivering lines in the swift-running stream. Soon the fog, which settles like a blanket over the swamps and forests of the river bottoms, shut down upon the scene, and so dense and dark was it that torches were of but little use, and men were directed here and there by the voice." Not far from this spot the troops encountered a singular character. He had been depot-master before the railroad was destroyed a shrewd, intelligent old man, so far as the war is concerned. He said to the soldiers: "They say you are retreating, but it is the strangest sort of retreat I ever saw. Why, the newspapers have been lying in this way all along. They allers are whipping the Federal armies, and they allers fall back after the battle is over. It was that ar idee that first opened my eyes. Our army was allers whipping the Feds., and we allers fell back. I allers told em it was a humbug, and now I know it, for here you are right on old John Wells s place; hogs, potatoes, corn, and fences all gone. I don t find any fault. I expected it all. 528 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. " Jeff. Davis and the rest, he continued, talk about splitting the Union. Why, if South Carolina had gone out "by herself, she would have been split in four pieces by this time. Splitting the Union. Why, the State of Georgia is being split right through from end to end. It is these rich fellows who are making the war, and keeping their precious bodies out of harm s way. There s John Franklin went through here the other day running away from your army. I could have played dominoes on his coat tails. There s my poor brother, sick with small-pox at Macon, working for eleven dollars a month, and hasn t got a cent of the stuff for a year. Eleven dollars a month, and eleven thousand bullets a minute. I don t believe in it, sir. " My wife came from Canada, and I kind o thought! would some time go there to live, but was allers afraid of the ice and cold ; but I can tell you this country is getting too hot for me. Look at my fence rails burning there. I think I can stand the cold better. " I heard as how they cut down the trees across your road up country and burn the bridges ; why, one of your Yankees can take up a tree and carry it off, tops and all ; and there s that bridge you put across the river in less than two hours they might as well try to stop the Ogee- chee as you Yankees. " The rascals who burnt this yere bridge thought they did a big thing ; a natural born fool would have more sense than any of them. " To bring back the good old time, he said, it 11 take the help of Divine Providence, a heap of rain, and a deal of hard work, to fix things up again. While the sun of December 21st was ascending to the zenith, General Sherman rode at the head of his enthusi astic columns, with music and banners enlivening the mag nificent scene, into the broad, quiet streets of Savannah, followed by his wing-commanders, the gallant Howard and Slocum. Hour after hour the tramp of Union soldiers echoes on the pavements, until at length, in mansions, public buildings, and tents, the exultant host settled down into comparative repose. The next day the wires of the TESTIMONIAL TO GENERAL SHERMAN. 529 telegraph transmitted to the President this laconic mes sage : SAVAXNAH, GA., December 22, 1864. His Excellency President LINCOLN : I beg to present you, as a Christmas gift, the city of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty heavy guns and plenty of ammunition, and also about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton. W. T. SHERMAN, Major- General. A few days later, the friends of General Sherman, in Columbus, Ohio, called a public meeting to mature a plan for raising a sufficient sum to present him with a substan tial testimonial of gratitude and regard. The object is given in a letter from the Lieu tenant- General to the com mittee, worthy of him and his greatest general : DEAR SIRS : I have just this moment received your printed letter in relation to your proposed movement in acknowledgment t)f one of Ohio s greatest sons. I wrote only yesterday to my father, who resides in Cov- ington, Kentucky, on the same subject, and asked him to inaugurate a sub scription to present Mrs. Sherman with a house in the city of Cincinnati. General Sherman is eminently entitled to this mark of consideration, and I directed my father to head the subscription with five hundred dollars for me, and half that amount- from General Ingalls, chief quartermaster of this army, who is equally alive with myself to the eminent services of General Sherman. Whatever direction this enterprise in favor of General Sherman may take, you may set me down for the amount named. I cannot say a word too highly in praise of General Sherman s services from the beginning of the rebellion to the present day, and will therefore abstain from flattery of him. Suffice it to say, the world s history gives no record of his superiors, and but few equals. I am truly glad for the movement you have set on foot, and of the opportunity of adding my mite in testimony of so good and great a man. Yours, truly, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. The dying year left Hood s army, which was to inarch through Indiana and Ohio, scattered like autumn leaves ; Price routed in Missouri; " Breckinridge checkmated in East Tennessee ;" General Canby preparing to take Mo bile ; while General Grant held Lee firmly in his grasp. The heavens were blackening above u rebeldom," and the last red bolts ready to fall upon the fabric of treason. Still the civil leader and his military chief fanned expiring 34 530 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. hope among the people, with the breath of new promise of near success. The year 1865 brought fresh victories. General Terry redeemed General Butler s failure at Fort Fisher, and " Wilmington was no longer the artery to feed the heart of the rebellion. Sherman was on his second irresistible march. He was penetrating South Carolina. Charleston had dropped into our arms without the loss of a man,, and the invincible army of the West was moving by rapid marches toward North Carolina and Virginia. Lee fore saw the end, "but he was powerless. He did not dare to detach any large force from in front of Grant. That Gen eral was watching for such a movement on the part of his adversary, and such a movement would insure the fall of Richmond. Lee was helpless. Grant was his master, and the rebel chief tacitly acknowledged it. The spring cam paign was at hand, and Sherman rapidly approached through North Carolina, driving Johnston, his old oppo nent in Georgia, back at every step. Rebel affairs daily became more critical, yet what could Lee do but wait? When Grant saw proper to open the ball, then Lee might be able to decide as to his course not before. His army was composed of the best lighting material, and it numbered fully sixty thousand men, and was pro tected by a line of fortifications of the most formidable nature." General Lee hoped that his antagonist would order an assault on these intrenchments, but soon found that the man who had outgeneraled him, from the moment the Rich mond game was opened, would not attempt so great a risk, to hurry the approaching catastrophe of the Con federacy. Lee must do something to break the dreadful spell of suspense and dread, to escape from which his troops were deserting in companies. January 24th, he surprised our forces with a , naval movement that was really no mean plot, but threatened to us serious disaster. Three iron clads, accompanied by as many wooden vessels, and tor pedo-boats, floated down the James River, steering for City Point. Could they pass the batteries and seize that THE ASSAULT ON FORT STEADMAN. 531 place, our supplies would be cut off, and the programme of General Grant s ripening plans be deranged, perhaps broken up entirely. The absence of our gunboats, which were with Commodore Porter, favored success. But, pro videntially, the iron-clads got aground, and ended the spasmodic effort of the dying monster of secession to renew its life, by drawing afresh the blood of the Republic. March, 1865, all our armies were in motion. Canby was operating with* a powerful force against Mobile, aided by the fleet ; General Wilson, with ten thousand picked cavalry, moved from Eastport on an expedition through Alabama ; Sherman and Schofield were Hearing the borders of Virginia from the South. Conscious of his peril, Lee resolved to take the initiative, and, by a bold stroke, drive Grant from his works. On the 25th, therefore, ,the Confederate Chief made an assault on Fort Steadman. His General, Gordon, led three divisions in a sudden dash upon the works, which were so near their own that it was easy to rush upon them before the design could be discovered, and overpower the garrison. In a few moments three of the. five batteries were turned against the Union troops. The next day dawned upon the burnished steel of General Hartranft s reserves, whose heroic charge reversed the order of things speedily, and placed in his hands nearly three thousand prisoners. And now opened the work of slaughter among the rebels. Across the field over which they were compelled to move in their return to their own works, the guns of our adjacent forts were pointed, and mowed down the flying ranks like grain before the blade of the reaper. Hardly had the first thunder of the massive hail gone over the plain before three thousand of the enemy were piled upon it, ghastly, bleeding, dead, and dying. Lee learned dearly that vigilance and readiness for any emergency, as far as possible in any of the chances of war, were characteristic of his sleepless foe, and abandoned further attempts to dislodge him. The withdrawal of Gordon s men for this attack had weakened the extreme left at Hatcher s Run, and General Grant ordered an advance in that direction, gaining and 532 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. holding strong positions, and extending our lines toward the Southside Railroad. The loss to the Union Army at Hatcher s Run was six hundred and ninety ; and that of the enemy, according to the estimate of the Lieutenant- General, sixteen hundred. The Second Corps, which was near the center, was ordered to improve on the rebel defeat at Fort Steadman, and pushed forward "before Fort Fisher, taking the in trenched picket line of the rebel army, whose right rested on the Weldon road. Our Ninth Corps confronted Peters burg ; between which and the Second lay the Sixth and Twenty-fourth. Beyond the latter was the Fifth, with Sheridan s cavalry to look after the enemy s right, and, if possible, sweep around it, and fall on the flank and rear of the enemy. While these events were transpiring, President Lincoln reached General Grant s head- quarters, and received just such a welcome as a great and magnanimous mind would extend to another whose ability and goodness were the admiration of the world, and between whom and himself existed the most perfect sympathy in the mighty work committed so largely to their hands. On Saturday, the 25th, after the battle already recorded, with Generals Grant and Meade, he visited the field, and remarked, while his eye glanced over the arena of conquest, referring to a display which it was designed should honor his com ing, " This is better than a review." On Tuesday, the 28th, President Lincoln, Generals Grant, Meade, Sherman, Sheridan, and Ord, held a coun cil of war on board the steamer Itiver Queen, at City Point. At its close, General Sherman hastened back to his marching columns. The concentration of troops now went forward, to close around the tottering fortunes of the rebellion, and hasten their downfall. The Second Corps advanced along the Yaughan road, and the Fifth, over by-roads, took a position farther on, striking the same road. Skirmishing followed near Gravelly Run, succeeded by a brisk fight, ending by the enemy s retiring with the loss of one hundred prisoners. THE PRESIDENT ON THE BATTLE-FIELD. 533 Sheridan was on the extreme left, at Dinwiddie Court- House, and beyond it. Thursday the rain flooded every thing, and the advance was difficult, and comparatively small. But on Friday, the 31st, and the two following days, General Grant s whole line was in the light again, and his telegrams reported its progress to the President at City Point, whose messages to the War Department, while in constant communication with his Lieutenant, are a simple and comprehensive account of the momentous issues of the deepening and decisive struggle of the spring campaign. CITY POINT, VA., March 31, 18658:30 P. M. Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War : At 12 : 30 p. m., to-day, General Grant telegraphed me as follows : "There has been much hard fighting this morning. The enemy drove our left from near Dabney s House back, well toward the Boydtown plank- road. We are now about to take the offensive at that point, and I hope will more than recover the lost ground." Later he telegraphed again as follows: "Our troops, after being driven back on to the Boydtown plank-road, turned round and drove the enemy in turn, and took the White Oak road, which we now have. This gives us the ground occupied by the enemy this morning. I will send you a rebel flag captured by our troops in driving the enemy back. There have been four flags captured to-day." Judging by the two points from which General Grant telegraphs, I infer that he has moved his head-quarters about one mile since he sent the first of the two dispatches. A. LINCOLN-. WASHINGTON, April 1 11 p. u. Major-General J. A. Dix, New York : The following letter from the President, received to-night, shows the desperate struggle between our forces and the enemy continues undecided, although the advantage appears to be on our side. EDWIX M. STANTOX, Secretary of War. " CITY POINT, YA., April 15: 30 p. M. "Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War: " A dispatch just received shows that Sheridan, aided by Warren, had at two o clock p. rn. pushed the enemy back so as to retake the Five Forks, and to bring his own head-quarters up to Boissua. The Five Forks was barricaded by the enemy, and was carried by Devin s division of cavalry. This part of the enemy seems to be working along the White Oak road to join the main forces in the front of Grant, while Sheridan and Warren are pressing them as closely as possible. " A. LINCOLN." 534 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. WASHINGTON, April 26 A. M. Major-General Dix, New York : A dispatch just received from General Grant s Adjutant-General, at City Point, announces the triumphant success of our armies, after three days of hard fighting, during which the forces on both sides exhibited unsurpassed valor. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. "OiTY POINT, April 25:30 A. M. u EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War : " A dispatch from General Grant states that Sheridan s cavalry and infantry have carried all before them, capturing three brigades of infantry, a wagon train, and several batteries of artillery. The prisoners captured will amount to several thousand. "T. 0. BOWERS, A. A.-G." WASHINGTON, April 211 A, M. Major-General Dix, New York : The following telegram from the President, dated at 8:30 this morning, gives the latest intelligence from the front, where a furious battle was rag ing, with continued success to the Union arms. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. " CITT POINT, VA., April 23 : 30 A. M. "Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War: "Last night General Grant telegraphed that General Sheridan, with his cavalry, .and the Fifth Corps, had captured three brigades of infantry, a train of wagons, several batteries, and several thousand prisoners. This morning General Grant, having ordered an attack along the whole line, telegraphs as follows : Both Wright and Parke got through the enemy s lines. The battle now rages furiously. Sheridan, with his cavalry, and the Fifth Corps, and Miles s division of the Second Corps, which was sent to him since one o clock this morning, is now sweeping down from the west. All now looks highly favorable. General Ord is engaged, but I have not yet heard the result in his front. "A. LINCOLN." WASHINGTON, April 212 : 30 p. M. Major-General Dix, New York : The President, in the subjoined telegram, gives the latest IICAVS from tho front. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. "Crrr POINT, VA., April 211 A. M. 14 Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War : "Dispatches come in frequently. All is going on finely. Generals Parke, Wright, and Ord, extending from the Appomattox to Hatcher s Run, have all broken through the enemy s intrenched lines, taking some forts, guns, and prisoners. Sheridan, with his cavalry, Fifth Corps, and part of the Second, is coming in from the west, on the enemy s flank, and Wright is already tearing up the South Side Railroad. " A. LINCOLN." TELEGRAMS OF VICTORY. 535 WASHINGTON, April 2. Major-General Dix, New York : The following telegrams from the President report the condition, of affairs at half-past four o clock this afternoon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. "Crnr POINT, VA., April 22 p. M. 44 To Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War := 41 At 10 : 45 a. m., General Grant telegraphs as follows : Everything has been carried from the left of the Ninth Corps. The Sixth Corps alone captured more than three thousand prisoners. The Second and Twenty- fourth Corps both captured forts, guns, and prisoners from the enemy. I cannot tell the number. 4k4 We are now closing around the works of the line immediately enveloping Petersburg. All looks remarkably well. I have not yet heard from Sheridan. His head-quarters have been moved up to T. Banks s house, near the Boydtown road, about three miles southwest of Petersburg. " A. LINCOLN." "CiTY POINT, VA., April 2, 18658:30. 44 Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of "War : 44 At 4: 30 p. m., to-day, General Grant telegraphs as follows: u 4 We are now up, and have a continuous line of troops, and in a few hours will be intrenched from the Appomattox below Petersburg to the river above. 41 4 The whole captures since we started out will not amount to less than twelve thousand men, and probably fifty pieces of artillery. 44 4 1 dc not know the number of men and guns accurately, however. 44 4 A portion of Foster s division of the Twenty-fourth Corps made a most gallant charge this afternoon, and captured a very important fort from the enemy, with its entire garrison. 44 4 A11 seems well with us, and every thing is quiet just now. 44 A. LINCOLN." All Saturday night the cannonading thundered on, and in its dread music councils were held over the final acts of the national tragedy. There was evidently a weaken- ing all along the bristling lines which for a year had guarded the fortunes of the rebellious South. The only question was, where to strike the yielding barrier to free dom s march. For, should General Lee mass his forces at any point during the night, and our advancing columns meet him there, a repulse might throw them back again from the unbroken lines. To prevent such a miscarriage, it was arranged to assault with the Ninth Corps in front of Peters- 536 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. burg, to draw Lee s forces that way, and leave it more open to an assault by the Sixth, Twenty-fourth, and Second Corps. So thoroughly did our taciturn leader deceive those who were watching his movements, that newspaper cor respondents reported a projected raid to Burkesville by Sheridan; an attempt to reach the Southside road, and other plans which had no place in the Chieftain s brain. His purpose was, within the circuit of a day, to lay before the nation s eye the hopelessly severed army of the rebellion. At four o clock in the morning of Sunday, April 2d, the Ninth Corps reflected, from bayonets which had been often stained with the blood of victory, the early beams of day, the herald glow of greater triumphs near. General Parke was close to Petersburg, having Wilcox on his right resting upon the Appomattox; Hartranft in the center, and Potter with the Second Division on the left. Accord ing to the plan of attack, General Wilcox, to make a feint, crept along to the very walls of the fort, and, at the word of command, the First Division broke the morning still ness with their old shout, and dashed forward ; in fifteen minutes they were within the works, and the bewildered garrison of fifty men with their four guns captured. Hart ranft and Potter followed with a similar onset under cover of the darkness, and,, without firing a gun cut the rebel line, seizing four forts, twenty-seven guns, and several hundred prisoners. The next moment the ordnance were playing upon the ranks of the fugitive foe. The Sixth Corps, iinder General Wright, advanced at the same time, and, when the signal was given to storm, Seymour, Wheaton, and Getty repeated in their front the deeds of the gallant Ninth. The sun of that Sabbath rose upon a glorious beginning of the end of rebellion. Two hours later, the Second and Twenty-fourth Corps, commanded by Generals Ord and Gibbon, moved across the rough and guMied ground, and over the rebel lines. The Second Corps, on the opposite side of Hatcher s Run also pressed forward through the well-nigh impassable slashing, and up the declivity a march seldom surpassed in its difficulties and success in spite of them all. AFFAIRS BEFORE PETERSBURG. 537 The First Rhode Island Artillery also did their work grandly, and by eight o clock the rebel line, from Appo- raattox to Burgess s Mill was completely crushed in, and the Sixth Corps had swung around to the west of the doomed city. The Twenty-fourth Corps was on the march from Hatcher s Hun, within the enemy s line, and the Second Corps moving the same way on the Boydtown road. At this triumphant crisis, General Grant left his head quarters at Dabney s Mills, and rode past his exultant columns, whose repeated cheers and wild hurrahs rang over the tranquil but rejoicing leader, as he surveyed the field, to comprehend fully its unfinished work. Nine o clock brought with its vernal splendor some of the grandest scenes of the struggle. The battle-tides dashed fiercely against each other, hour after hour rebel, batteries pouring death into our ranks, suddenly turned upon their own until across the first of the enemy s in terior lines there was a pause. The Twenty-fourth Corps now entered the arena from the left, to participate in the thickening strife of the day which was sealing the fate of the rebellion. Nev<er did war present a sublimer and yet a sadder spectacle than during this brief lull in the contest. Treason s lion-like leader was driven within his last nar row limits, around which were floating the Union banners, and over these, eclipsing the light of the sun, lay, as far as the eye could see, the blue clouds of battle- smoke, while the more graceful columns from burning mansions rose all over the landscape, and were drifted away on the balmy breath of Spring. During the pause, General Grant had matured his de sign for prosecuting the day s great work. The bugle notes rang over the field and reopened again the onset of Grant s waiting battalions, moving in three columns upon each selected fort. Over the intrenchments rushed the boys in blue, some of their number constantly returning with their captives in butternut ; not unfrequently a single man leading a dozen or more to the rear. On the right, the Ninth Corps were bravely resisting the enemy, who 538 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. were apparently determined to recover the ground they had lost, but whose object was to get as safely and soon as possible from Petersburg. General Potter was mortal ly wounded. Here was a closely contested position ; but with the loss of one fort the enemy was beaten back. " Be fore noon, in plain view and easy range of the third interior line of Lee, we were moving in column, as if on a gala- day parade ; and so in truth it was ; the Army of the Union in joyful attendance on the funeral of the rebellion. At this hour not a sound came from the field, not a gun was speaking anywhere, not a shout heard on all the line. The rebel lines were as hushed as our own. Their guns looked down frowningly upon us from the huge forts in which they were encased ; but not one of them spoke ; not a horse neighed, not a drum or bugle sounded. Not one of the ammunition- wagons moving hither ever the sandy soil of the undulating landscape gave forth a sound. The whole field was stilled as if in death. Suddenly one of the guns upon the fort, on the rebel left, belched forth a dull report. A wreath of rising smoke, the bursting of a shell, and all was still again. The next moment another, then another, then three guns opened in a continuous roar. They were attempting to retard the march of three of our brigades gaining the shelter of a small skirt of timber upon their left, from which to assault them. Vain hope ! The columns move on, paying them not even the compliment of a moment s pause, or of a gun in reply. Poor Lee ! struggling like a child in the hand of a giant determined to destroy him. It soon became evident that Lee was retreating across the Appomattox. Our sentinels from their signal-towers saw the up-springing fiame in the city fired by rebel hands, and the departing columns darkening the pontoon bridges above the city. In anticipation of this, to cut off the rebel chief s retreat, the Second and Fifth Corps had been sent to the Appomattox. At two o clock in the afternoon, the bugles again sounded the storming of the remaining forts. Within two hours General Meade had a highway cleared to the city. On the right, the fort taken from us was again captured by RETREAT OF GENERAL LEE. 539 General Collis s brigade. Before four o clock, the fortunes of the day were decided. After all his unwearied watch fulness, General Lee had been suddenly overwhelmed ; his fifteen well-mounted forts were gone, and all the evi dences of an unexpectedly hasty farewell to Petersburg were left in the wake of his retreating columns. Generals Grant and Meade took up head-quarters three miles west of the city, which was now a worthless relic of a long siege. Then followed the terrible explosion of the rebel rams Virginia and Rappahannock, shaking the ground for miles around like the wave of an earthquake, signal ing the last deeds of self-destruction. General Ord, when called to Petersburg, left, on the north side of the James, General Weitzel, with a division of the Twenty -fourth Corps and two divisions of the Twenty-fifth, which were not employed in active service during Sunday s battle. That night there was great activity among the rebels till darkness concealed them, and their regimental bands filled the air with music. General Weitzel s troops gave a simi lar concert till the hour of midnight, when silence settled upon the contending armies. The thunder of the explod ing rams came to Weitzel s ear with no doubtful meaning. He said to himself, "Lee is evacuating Richmond." He looked away toward the proud capital, and saw the heav ens flushed with the suicidal fires kindled by the maddened leaders of revolt, from whose grasp it had been wrung. Having orders to push on whenever assured that a way was opened to the city, he impatiently waited for the morn ing to light a reconnoissance to its walls. The Fifth Mas sachusetts Cavalry dashed forward as soon as their arms could reflect the beams of day, and soon returned to report deserted camps and a flying foe. Jeff. Davis had learned the impending fate of his capi tal, while at church on the Sabbath, and, rising, hastened to gather his personal effects and make his escape. The way to Richmond was open. Southwest of Petersburg had been found the key that had unlocked its stubborn gates, and Weitzel was instantly on the road. Let his own dispatch tell the story : 540 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CITY POINT, VIRGINIA, April 811 A. M. General Weitzel telegraphs as follows : "We took Richmond at 8:15 this morning. I captured many guns. The enemy left in great haste. " The city is on fire in one place. We are making every effort to put it out. " The people received us with enthusiastic expressions of joy. " G-eneral Grant started early this morning, with the army, toward the Danville road, to cut off Lee s retreating army, if possible." President Lincoln has gone to the front. (Signed) T. S. BOWERS, Assistant Adjutant-General. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War. And so Richmond fell ! Richmond, the capital of the so-called Confederacy ; the city which for four years "baffled all efforts for its reduction. Thanks to the genius of Grant and a favoring Providence, the rebellion was now in the last throes of dissolution. Right and justice were again vindicated, and the long, weary, and bloody war for the Union, the Constitution, and the perpetuity of American liberty was rapidly drawing to a close. The chief of the rebellion was a fugitive, his main army was broken and flying, and there remained now no hope in his mind, or those of his followers, that the Union could ever be overthrown, and a Southern Confederacy established." " On Sabbath morning, April 2d, 1865, amidst the roar of artillery, and the crash, and flame, and smoke of burning houses, the great rebellion died. Richmond and Petersburg were captured. Hundreds of guns, and thousands of pris oners taken. Lee s army shattered, broken, and scattered to the four winds ! This is the history of the day. The turning point of the magnificent movement was the battle fought by Sheridan at Five Forks Saturday afternoon, with his cavalry and the Fifth Corps. The battle was, practically, Long- street s ruin. Fifty-seven hundred prisoners and three batteries of artillery were the material trophies of the victory, but the moral results were of far greater impor tance. Our loss in the battle was severe. The only gene ral officer lost was Brevet Brigadier-General Wintlirop, commanding the First Brigade of General Ayers s division of the Fifth Corps ; one of those chivalrous soldiers New England sent into the war. THE FALL OF THE REBEL CAPITAL. 541 " The battle was fought and won in Sheridan s accus tomed style. Ouster, Devins, and Davis, of the cavalry corps, Griffin, Ayers, Crawford, and Bartlett, of the Fifth Corps, won new laurels in the fight, and the enemy was driven pell-mell from his last Virginia battle-field, with heavy loss in killed and wounded. " Longstreet, after his defeat, fled, first north and the A westward, probably with the hope to effect a junction with Johnston in North Carolina. " Going from their right to left, the three divisions of Hill s corps were holding the line from the Boydtown road below Burgess s Mill, to opposite the centre of the Sixth Corps, where it joined with Gordon, who held from that point around Petersburg to the Appomattox River. " Time now became the essential element of the situation, and, to fully comprehend the rapid changes that followed, it is necessary to bear in mind not days, but hours and minutes." The prompt and vigorous pursuit of General Lee s flying and broken ranks is seen in General Grant s dis patch of April 4th : Wn.sox 8 STATION, VIBGIIOA, April 4, 1865. Hon. E. M. ST ANTON, Secretary of War : The array is pushing forward, in the hope of overtaking or dispersing the remainder of Lee s army. Sheridan, with his cavalry and the Fifth Corps, is between this and the Appomattox, General Meade, with the Second and Sixth, following; Gen eral Ord following the line of the South Side Railroad. All of the enemy that retain any thing like organization have gone north of the Appomat tox, and are apparently heading for Lynchburg, their losses having been very heavy. The houses through the, country are nearly all used as hospitals for wounded men. In every direction I hear of rebel soldiers pushing for home, some in large and some in small squads, and generally without arms. The cavalry have pursued so closely that the enemy have been forced to destroy probably the greater part of their transportation, caissons, and munitions of war. The number of prisoners captured yesterday will exceed two thousand. From the 28th of March to the present time, our loss, in killed, wounded, and captured, will probably not reach seven thousand, of whom from fifteen hundred to two thousand are captured, and many but slightly wounded. I shall continue the pursuit as long as there appears to be any use in it. U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. What a war-race was that of which this telegram was a 542 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. signal along the way S General Lee hurried on, keeping the north side of the Appomattox, and General Grant the opposite side, both having for the immediate goal Burke s Station, fifty-three miles from Petersburg, where the South Side and Danville Railways have their junction. General Ouster s Third Division was in the cavalry advance. On the troops swept toward Namozine Church, where two roads meet, one leading to Lynchburg, the other across the Appomattox to Amelia Court- House, skir mishing, and passing emptied caissons surrounded by fire to explode them, wagons, ambulances, cartridges, and the wrecks of a routed army, with wounded horses and mules adding their ghastly and mute suffering to the dismal scene. Wells s second brigade of Ouster s troops came up with Barrenger s rebel cavalry, which turned to fire on the ]S r ew York Eighth, while without a pause he charged and scattered the hostile horsemen. The other brigades did a similar exciting service, the men in high glee, because chasing the fugitive Confederacy to its "last ditch." Barrenger s brigade were on the left of the Appomattox, and tried at each ford to cross and rejoin Lee s main army. J^ight brought to rest the column, whose pursuit for twen ty miles had been uninterrupted, and rewarded with three hundred and fifty prisoners, two flags, and four cannon. April 4th, McKenzie s division took the advance, fol lowed by the First Division, with Ouster s in the rear. Near midnight of that day, the cavalry were aroused, General Ouster leading, and marched all night, reaching Jettersville, where the Fifth Corps was lying across the Danville road, fifty-four miles southwest of Richmond. Here the tidings of General Lee s progress to Amelia Court-House were received. On the 5th of April, General Ouster s division, with artillery, was on the left of the Fifth Corps. General Sheridan dispatched Davies s brigade, of Gen eral Crook s division, to seize the junction at Burkesville, and disperse any rebel force he might find there. At Fame s Cross-roads the enemy was encountered, and lost five handsome Armstrong guns, and other material of war, with battle-flags, and several hundred prisoners. The gal lant Colonel Jancey was killed. SHERIDAN CORNERS LEE. 543 At three o clock General Sheridan heard of the news, and sent this original and significant dispatch to Genera Grant : . JKTTEEBVILLE, April 5, 18653 p. M. To Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT : GENERAL : I send you the inclosed letter, which will give you an idea of the condition of the enemy and their whereabouts. I sent General Davics s brigade this morning around on my left flank. He captured at Fame s Gross five pieces of artillery, about two hundred wagons, and eight or nine battle-flags, and a number of prisoners. The Second Army Corps is now coining up. I wish you were here yourself. I feel confident of cap turing the Army of Northern Virginia, if we exert ourselves. I see no escape for Lee. I will send all my cavalry out on our left flank, except McKenzie, who is now on the right. Signed, P. II. SHERIDAN, Major- General. "AMELIA COURT-HOUSE, April 5, 1865. "DEAR BRAMMIA : Our army is ruined, I fear. We are all safe as yet. Theodore left us sick. John Taylor is well ; saw him yesterday. We are in line of battle this evening. General Robert Lee is in the field near us. My trust is still in the justice of our cause. General Hill is killed. I saw Murray a few moments since. Bernard Perry, he said, was taken prisoner, but may get out. I send this by a negro I see passing up the railroad to Michlenburgh. Love to all. Your devoted son, "W. B. TAYLOR, Colonel." The Second Corps had come up, and went into posi tion. Sheridan had written to Grant: "I see no escape for Lee. I will put all my cavalry out on our left flank, except McKenzie. who is now on the right." This he pro ceeded to do. Slight skirmishing in the afternoon now foretold the attack of the morrow. But we must trace the progress of the infantry to the new field of "battle. The Fifth was in pursuit Monday morning, the 3d, shortly after the cavalry, and at two o clock was in sight of the Appomattox. Indications of hasty flight were everywhere visible, the contrabands having the country to themselves, and joining, with lively demonstrations of joy, the Union army. This day s march was sixteen miles, and that of the next, twenty, terminating at Jettersville, where earth works were thrown up, but no fires kindled, that the enemy, only from five to ten miles distant, might not guess the proximity of the pursuers. 544 LIFE A CAMPAIGNS OF GENEBAL GRANT. Behind the Fifth, marched the Second ; and next to it> the Sixth ; the latter two corps moving under the direc tion of General Meade. Foraging supplied the exhausted rations, in striking contrast with the retreats of the Peninsular campaign, when rebel food was guarded ; and, at two o clock on the 4th, all those corps reached Jettersville. General Sheridan posted the troops to meet an attack from Lee, but none was made. General Ord s column of the Army of the James, with which General Grant also moved, marched on the Cox road, which runs direct to Burkesville. Nine miles from Burkesville a halt was contemplated, "but General Sheri dan s dispatch reached General Grant, and the Twenty- fourth Corps was hurried forward, at eleven o clock camp ing at Burkesville Junction. General Grant was already there. The Ninth had charge of the army trains, and on the 6th was ten miles from Burkesville, with one brigade of the Second Division thrown forward to the Junction. On the 6th of April, occurred the decisive victory of Deatonsville. On the night previous, the army lay in line of battle, stretching across three or four miles of country and facing substantially northward. Custer s di vision of cavalry lay on the right flank and McKenzie s on the left flank. The infantry line was formed with the Sixth Corps on the right, the Fifth in the center, and the Second on the left. Next morning began our maneuvers. The Sixth Corps was transferred from the right to the left. The whole army had before n0on marched about five miles on the road to Deatonsville. six miles distant from Jettersville. The enemy was retreating towards Painesville, which was the next town westerly from Amelia Court-House to Lynch - burg. Our cavalry, however, was there before him. The battle at Deatonsville and Painesville left nothing for Lee to do but to surrender. This he did, and on the 9th of April, 1865, the whole Army of Northern Virginia passed into the record of things that were. We add the correspondence which passed between General Grant and General Lee : THE SURRENDER OF GENERAL LEE. 545 WAR DEPARTMENT, ) WASHINGTON, April 9, 18659 o clock p. M. I To Major-General Dix, New York: This Department has received the official report of the surrender, this day, of General Lee and his army to Lieutenant-General Grant, on the terms proposed by General Grant. Details will be given as speedily as possible. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. "HEAD-QUARTERS ARMIES OF THE UNITED STATES, I April 94:30 p. M. J * Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War : " General Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia this afternoon upon the terms proposed by myself. The accompanying additional corre spondence will show the conditions fully. U U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General." THANKS TO GENERAL GRANT AND TOE ARMY. WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, D. C., ) April 99:30 p. M. I Lieutenant-General GRANT: Thanks be to Almighty God for the great victory with which ho has this day crowned you and the gallant armies under your command. The thanks of this Department, and of the Government, and of the peo ple of the United States their reverence and honor have been deserved will be rendered to you and the brave and gallant officers and soldiers of your array for all time. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. 8ALTTTES ORDERED. WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, D. C., I April 910 o clock p. M. > Ordered : That a salute of two hundred guns be fired at the head-quar ters of every army and department, and at every post and arsenal in the United States, and at the Military Academy at West Point, on the day of the receipt of this order, in commemoration of the surrender of General R. E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia to Lieutenant-General Grant, and the army under his command ; report of the receipt and execution of this order to be made to the Adjutant-General, Washington. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. THE CORRESPONDENCE. CLIFTON HOUSE, VA., April 9, 18C Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War : The following correspondence has taken place between General Leo andfc myself. There has been no relaxation in the pursuit during its- pendency. U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. 35 546 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. GENERAL GRANT TO GENERAL LER. April 1, 1865. General R. E. LEE, Commander C. S. A. : GENERAL: The result of tho last week must convince you of the hope lessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia in this struggle. I feel that it is so, and regard it as my duty to shift from myse)f the responsibility of any further effusion of blood, by asking of yoa the surrender of that portion of the C. S. army known as the Army of Northern Virginia. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General Commanding Annies of the United States. GENERAL LEE TO GENERAL GR.ANT. April 7, 1865. GENERAL : I have received your note of this date. Though not entire ly of the opinion you express of the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia, I reciprocate your desire to avoid useless effusion of blood, and therefore, before considering your proposition, ask the terms you will offer, on condition of its surrender. R. E. LEE, General. To Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT, Commanding Armies of the United States. GENERAL GRANT TO GENERAL LEE. April 8, 1865. To General R. E. LEE, Commanding Confederate States Army : GENERAL : Your note of last evening, in reply to mine of same date, asking the conditions on which I will accept the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia is just received. In reply, I would say that peace being my first desire, there is but one condition that I insist upon, viz. : That the men surrendered shall be disqualified for taking up arras against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged. I will meet you, or designate officers to meet any officers you may name for the same purpose, at any point agreeable to you, for the purpose of arranging definitely the terms upon which the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia will be received. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General Commanding Armies of the United States. GENERAL LEE TO GENERAL GRANT. April 8, 1865. GENERAL : I received at a late hour your note of to-day in answer to mine of yesterday. I did not intend to propose the surrender of the Army of Northern Vir- DISCUSSION OF THE SITUATIONS. 547 ginia, but to ask the terms of your proposition. To be frank, I do not think the emergency has arisen to call for the surrender. But, as the restoration of peace should be the sole object of all, I desire to know whether your proposals would tend to that end. I cannot, therefore; meet you with a view to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia, but, so far as your proposition may affect the Confede rate States forces under my command, and lead to the restoration of peace, I should be pleased to meet you at ten A. M.. to-morrow, on the old stago- road to Richmond, between the picket lines of the two armies. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General Confederate States Armies. To Lieutenant-General GBANT, Commanding Armies of the United States. GENERAL GRANT TO GENERAL LEE. April 9, 180% General R. E. LEE, Commanding C. S. A. : GENERAL: Your note of yesterday is received. As I have no authori ty to treat on the subject of peace, the meeting proposed for ten A. M., to day, could lead to no good. I will state, however, General, thut I am equally anxious for peace with yourself; and the whole North entertain the same feeling. The terms upon which peace can be had are well under stood. By the South laying down their arms they will hasten that most desirable event, save thousands of human lives, and hundreds of millions of property not yet destroyed. Sincerely hoping that all our difficulties may be settled without the loss of another life, I subscribe myself, Very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General U. S. A. GENERAL LEE TO GENERAL GRANT. April 9, 1865. GENERAL: I received your note of this morning on the picket line, whither I had come to meet you and ascertain definitely what terms were embraced in your proposition of yesterday with reference to the surrender of this army. I now request an interview in accordance with the offer contained in your letter of yesterday for that purpose- Very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General. To Lieutenant-General GRANT, Commanding United States Armies. GENERAL GRANT TO GENERAL LEE. April 9, 1865. General R. E. LEE, Commanding Confederate States Armies: Your note of this date is but this moment (11:50 A. M.) received. In consequence of my having passed from the Richmond and Lynchburg road to the Farmville and Lynchburg road, I am at this writing about four 548 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. miles west of Walter s Church, and will push forward to the front for the purpose of meeting you. Notice sent to me on this road where you wish the interview to take place will meet me. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GBANT, Lieutenant-General. THE TEEMS. APPOMATTOX Cotnvr-HotrsE, April 9, 1S65. General R. E. LEE, Commanding C. S. A. : In accordance with the substance of my letter to you of the 8th instant, I propose to receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia on the following terms, to wit : Rolls of all the officers and men to be made in duplicate, one copy to bo given to an officer designated by me, the other to be retained by such offi cers as you may designate. The officers to give their individual paroles not to take arms against the United States until properly exchanged, and each company or regimen tal commander sign a like parole for the men of their commands. The arms, artillery and public property to be packed and stacked, and turned over to the officers appointed by me to receive them. This will not embrace the side arms of the officers, nor their private horses or baggage. This done, each officer and man will be allowed to return to their homes, not to be disturbed by United States authority so long as they ob serve their parole and the laws in force where they may reside. Very respectfully, U. S. GBANT, Lieutenant-General. HEAD-QtTABTERS Ar.AtY OF NOBTOBKH VIRGINIA, ( April 9, 1865. Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT, Commanding U. S. A. : GENERAL : I have received your letter of this date, containing the terms of surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, as proposed by you ; as they are substantially the same as those expressed in your letter of the 8th instant, they are accepted. I will proceed to designate the proper officers to carry the stipulations into effect. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General. April 9, 1865 ! Proud and memorable day ! Its de clining sun shone upon an impressive scene at Appomattox Court-House, in Virginia. There the able and haughty chieftain of the rebellion surrendered, to our unpretending, noble Grant, the whole Army of Northern Virginia the last hope of the seceded States. THE FORM OF PERSONAL PAROLE. 549 General Lee s losses, in the battles around Petersburg and in the pursuit, were over ten thousand men in killed and wounded, and twenty thousand men in prisoners and deserters, including those taken in battle, and those picked up in pursuit ; including all arms of the service, teamsters, hospital force, &c., from sixteen to eighteen thousand men were surrendered. There were only fifteen thousand mus kets and about thirty pieces of artillery, consequently the available fighting force could not have reached much above fifteen or twenty thousand men. Our total captures of artillery during the battles and pursuit, and at the sur render, amounted to about one hundred and seventy guns. Three or four hundred wagons were also surrendered. In the agreement for surrender, the officers gave their own paroles, and each officer gave his parole for the men within his command. The following is the form of the per sonal parole of officers, copied from the original document given by Lee and a portion of his staff : We, the undersigned, prisoners of war belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, having been this day surrendered by General R. E. Lee, commanding said army, to Lieutenant-General Grant, commanding the armies of the United States, do hereby give our solemn parole of honor that we will not hereafter serve in the armies of the Confederate States, or in any inilitar} 7 capacity whatever, against the United States of America, or render aid to the enemies of the latter, until properly exchanged in such manner as shall be mutually approved by the respective authorities. R. E. LEE, General. W. H. TAYLOR, Lieutenant-Colonel and A. A.-G. GIIAS. S. VENABLE, Lieutenant-Colonel and A. A.-G. CIIAS. MARSHALL, Lieutenant-Colonel and A. A.-G. H. E. PRATOX, Lieutenant-Colonel and Ins. -General. GILES BOOKE, Major and A. A. Surgeon-General. H. S. YOUNG, A. A.-General. Done at Appomattox Court House, Va., this ninth (9th) day of April, 1865. The parole is the same given by all officers, and is coun tersigned as follows : The above-named officers will not be disturbed by United States authori ties as long as they observe their parole, and the laws in force where they may reside. GEORGE H. SHARP, General Assistant Provost-Marshal. 560 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. The obligation of officers for the subdivisions under their command is in form as follows : I, the undersigned, commanding officer of , do, for the within- named prisoners of war, belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, who have been this day surrendered by General Robert E. Lee, Confederate States Army, commanding said army, to Lieutenant-General Grant, com manding armies of the United States, hereby give my solemn parole of honor that the within-named shall not hereafter serve in the armies of the Confederate States, or in military or any capacity whatever against the United States of America, or render aid to the enemies of the latter, until properly exchanged in such manner as shall bo mutually approved by the respective authorities. Done at Appomattox Court-House, Va., this 9th day of April, 1865. The within-named will not be disturbed by the United States authori ties so long as they observe their parole and the laws in force where they reside. The surrender of Lee was followed by that of the troops in the Shenandoah Valley voluntarily, with few excep tions. Among the commanders were Generals Moseby and Rosser ; the latter, you will recollect, tried his gen eralship on the rear of Sheridan s army, near Fisher s Hill. Oh ! how the tidings, flying on lightning wing, set the bells ringing at midnight of that Sabbath ! Men wept and shouted for joy even before the dawn of the morning. Then came the marches of glad processions, with music and banners, and the crowded sanctuaries with prayer and praise. Never, perhaps, before did such a tide of grateful, jubilant gladness sweep over a nation, half of whose fami lies were in mourning for the slain heroes. A Christian Republic was exultant, but giving God the glory ! Mean while, the peerless Sherman, after a brief rest in his Southern marches, April 10th, the day after General Lee s surrender, started after his old antagonist, Johnston. Kil- patrick, on that day, moved his cavalry out on the road to Raleigh, and next day, the llth, the infantry started in very light marching order. The march was, however, quite deliberate and easy, as the railroad, broken up by the enemy between Raleigh and Goldsboro , was to be re paired. On the 13th, Raleigh was reached, and occupied with only a slight skirmish on the outskirts, Johnston fall- 1 iiiiiii GENERAL GRANT HASTENS TO WASHINGTON. 551 ing back toward Hillsboro . The enemy had destroyed his small navy-yard at Halifax, on the Roanoke, in conse quence of the surrender of Lee. A ram and a gunboat, partially completed, were burned. On the 15th, news came to the same place that Governor Vance was captured by our cavalry between Hillsboro and Raleigh, on the 13th instant. After the terms of the surrender were arranged, General Grant immediately left the army for Washington, without stopping to visit the fallen Capital, or pausing longer by the way than was requisite for refreshment. On the 13th of April, 1865, he reached Washington, established his head-quarters, and went to the War Department, where he met the President and Secretary Stanton. He assured them that the rebellion was virtually at an end, and that the Government might at once cut down its expenses. That evening the Secretary telegraphed the following im portant dispatch northward, the first that bore to the nation the welcome news that peace was at hand : WAE DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, I April 136 P. u. J To Major-General Dix, New York: The Department, after mature consideration and consultation with tho Lieutenant-General upon the results of the recent campaign, has come to the following determinations, which will be carried into effect by appropri ate orders to be immediately issued. First. To stop all drafting and recruiting in the loyal States. , Second.- To curtail purchases for arms, ammunition, quartermaster and commissary supplies, and reduce the military establishment in its several branchesv Third. To reduce the number of general and staff officers to the actual necessities of the service. Fourth. To remove all military restrictions upon trade and commerce, BO far as may be consistent with public safety. As soon as these measures can be put in operation, it will be mado known by public order. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. General Grant remained at the Capital, to assist the Government in reducing the expenses of the military departments. To gratify the multitude, and enjoy needed relaxation, 552 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the President attended Ford s Theater on the evening of April 14th. He was no patron of dissipation, or of amuse ments which are represented by the corrupt modern stage. He said, when hesitating about going that night, " If 1 do not go, the people will be disappointed. He went, and the telegrams which flew over the land told the result. WAE DEPABTMENT, WASHINGTON^ ( April 151:30 A. M. Major-General Dix, New York: This evening, at about 9:30 p. M., at Ford s Theatre, the President, while sitting in his private box with Mrs. Lincoln, Miss Harris, and Major Rathburn, was shot by an assassin, who suddenly entered the box and ap proached behind the President. The assassin then leaped upon the stage, brandishing a large dagger or knife, and made his escape in the rear of the theatre. The pistol ball entered the back of the President s head and pene trated nearly through the head. The wound is mortal. The President has been insensible ever since it was inflicted, and is now dying. About the same hour, an assassin, whether the same or not, entered Mr. Seward s apartments, and, under pretense of having a prescription was shown to the Secretary s sick chamber. The assassin immediately rushed to the bed and inflicted two or three stabs on the throat and two on the face. It is hoped the wounds may not be mortal. My apprehension is that they will prove fatal. The nurse alarmed Mr. Frederick Seward, who was in an adjoining room, and he hastened to the door of his father s room, when he met the assassin, who inflicted upon him one or more dangerous wounds. The recovery of Frederick Seward is doubtful. It is not proba ble that the President will live through the night. General Grant and wife were advertised to be at the theatre last even ing, but he started to Burlington at six o clock. At a Cabinet meeting, at which General Grant was present, the subject of the state of the country and the prospect of a speedy peace were discussed. The President was very cheerful and hopeful, and spoke very kindly of General Lee and others of the Confederacy, and of the establish ment of government in Virginia. All the members of the Cabinet, except Mr. Seward, are now in at tendance upon the President. I have seen Mr. Seward, but he and Frede rick were both unconscious. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. WAS DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, ( April 1& Major-General Dix : - Abraham Lincoln died this morning at twenty-two minuios after seven o clock. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. The nation was stunned ; then broken-hearted. Such SURRENDER OF GENERAL JOHNSTON. 553 demonstrations of grief have no parallel in the world s his tory so manifold, profound, and general, attending the tidings even in distant lands. The funeral ceremonies on the 19th were of the most impressive character. The evidence adduced at the trial of Payne and his associate conspirators clearly proved that it was their de sign to murder General Grant during the evening. The dagger which Booth flourished was undoubtedly intended for him. Providence did not permit the additional crime, and General Grant was spared to his country. On learn ing of the assassination of President Lincoln, he returned to Washington, attended the funeral of his noble friend, and was one of the mourners who followed the remains to the Capitol. During these scenes, General Sherman had opened ne gotiations with General Johnston for the formal surrender of his army. But the terms, which, without the assassin s exhibition of the animus of the rebellion, would have been deemed too liberal, though undesignedly so by the brave Sherman, were rejected by the Government, in the hands of the new President, with feelings of horror and grief, awakened by the terrible tragedy. General Grant was ordered to take the field, and on April 26th followed the surrender of General Johnston to General Sherman, on the same conditions as those accorded to Lee. The transaction finely illustrated the magnanimity of General Grant s char acter, and his high opinion of the gifted hero of the Georgia campaign. The Lieutenant-General in a few modest words, on April 26th, recounted the last great capitulation : " Johnston surrendered the forces in his command, embrac ing all from here to Chattahoochie, to General Sherman, on the basis agreed upon between Lee and myself for the Army of Northern Virginia." The victorious leader then returned to Washington, and two days after the date of his dispatch, under his direction, was issued the subjoined order, along with another, direct ing the corps f the Potomac Army to march by way of Richmond to Washington for a grand review, to be fol lowed by the disbanding of the troops. 554 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ORDER FOR REDUCING THE EXPENSES OF THE MILITARY DEPARTMENT. WAR DEPARTMENT, ADJUTANT-GENERAL S OFFICE, } WASHINGTON, April 28, 1865. j Ordered, First. That the chiefs of the respective bureaus of this depart ment proceed immediately to reduce the expenses of their respective departments to what is absolutely necessary, in view of an immediate reduction of the forces in the field and garrisons, and the speedy termina tion of hostilities, and that they severally make out statements of the reductions they deem practicable. Second. That the Quartermaster-General discharge all ocean transports not required to bring home troops in remote departments. All river and inland transportation will bo discharged, except that required for the necessary supplies of troops in the field. Purchases of horses, mules, wagons, and other land transportation will be stopped ; also purchases of forage, except what is required for immediate consumption. Air purchases for railroad construction and transportation will also be stopped. Third. That the Commissary General of Subsistence stop the pur chase of supplies in his department for such as may, with what is on hand, be required for the forces in the field on the 1st of June next. Fourth. That the Chief of Ordnance stop all purchase of arms, ammu nition and material therefor, and reduce the manufacturing of arms and ordnance stores in Government arsenals, as rapidly as can be done without injury to the service. Fifth. That the Chief of Engineers stop work on all field fortifications, arid other works, except those for which specific appropriations have been made by Congress for completion, or that may be required for the proper protection of works in progress. Sixth. That all soldiers in hospitals, who require no further medical treatment, be honorably discharged from service, with immediate payment. All officers and enlisted men who have been prisoners of war and are now on furlough or at parole camps, and all recruits in rendezvous, except those for the regular army, will be likewise honorably discharged. Officers, whose duty it is under the regulations of the service to make out rolls and other final papers connected with the final discharge and payment of sol diers, arc directed to make payment without delay, so that the order may be carried into effect immediately. Seventh. The Adjutant-General of the army will cause immediate returns to be made by all commanders in the field, garrisons, detachments and forts, of ther respective forces, with a view to their immediate reduc tion. Eighth. The Quartermasters of Subsistence, Ordnance, Engineers, and Provost-Marshal General s Departments, will reduce the number of clerks and employes to that absolutely required for closing the business of their GENERAL KIEBY SMITH BROUGHT TO TERMS. 555 respective Departments, and will, without delay, report to the Secretary of "War the number required of each class or grade. The Surgeon-General will make a similar reduction of surgeons, nurses, and attendants in his bureau. Ninth. The chiefs of the respective bureaus will immediately cause proper returns to be made out of public property in their charge, and a statement of property in each that may be sold upon advertisement and public sale, without prejudice to the service. Tenth. That the Commissary of Prisoners will have rolls made out of the name, residence, time and place of capture, and occupation of all prisoners of war who will take the oath of allegiance to the United States, to the end that such as are disposed to become good and loyal citizens of the United States, and who are proper objects of Executive clemency, may be relieved, upon terms that the President shall deem fit and consistent with the public safety. By order of the Secretary of War. W. A. NICHOLS, A. A.-G Official Tnos. M. VINCENT, A. A.-G. On the 4th of May, 1865, General Richard Taylor, com manding the rebel forces in Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana, surrendered to Major- General Canby, and this closed the conflict east of the Mississippi river. Beyond it, Kirby Smith showed a determination to hold out to the last arid prolong the war. General Grant re solved to bring him also to terms, and a powerful expedi tion was fitted out at Fortress Monroe, under the command of Major-General Philip Sheridan. He proceeded by way of the Mississippi river to New Orleans, but, before reach ing that point, Smith had heard of the surrender of Lee, Johnston, and Taylor, and he, too, accepted the terms granted to Lee. and surrendered the forces under his com mand. 556 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. CHAPTER XXVI. GENERAL GRANT S MOVEMENTS AFTER THE SURRENDER. General Grant visits Burlington and Philadelphia. A munificent Gift. General Grant s Acceptance of it. Returns to Washington. Capture of Jeff. Davis. The Grand Review. General Grant makes a Tour to New York and New England. Goes to the British Provinces. Incidents at Quebec. Journey to the West. Scenes along the Route. At President Lincoln s Tomb. Among his Old Friends. General Grant s Character. MAY 2d, General Grant visited his home in Burlington, New Jersey, which had been the residence of his family since he entered upon his eastern campaign, returning to Philadelphia on the 3d, to take possession of the elegantly furnished and tasteful mansion on West Chestnut street, presented to him by the citizens. He then repaired to Washington, and was present at the grand review of our returning legions a spectacle, in grandeur and impressive associations, never approached before on this continent. June 8th, General Grant was in New York. The Astor House was his temporary home. The Sixty -first Massachu setts, returning from the battle-field, passed the hotel, and were told that the chief those brave troops had followed was there. Then went up such a shout as never before rang over that resort of distinguished men ; for strong, brave hearts, which had beat calmly in battle, were making an effort to express the fullness and intensity of their devotion to him Avho had led them to victory. At the Union League Rooms he was importuned again for a speech, and responded with his accustomed brevity : Gentlemen, I bid you good-night. lam much obliged to you for this reception." In August, the Lieutenant- General started on a tour to New York, Canada, and the West. At Albany, the capi tal of the Empire State, the excited crowd followed his very shadow. GENERAL GRANT EN ROUTE FOR BOSTON. 557 From Boston, Governor Andrew dispatched Adjutant- General Schouler to Albany, with a letter of invitation, in the name of the commonwealth, to visit Massachusetts. The commander-in-chief was already en route for Boston. General Grant left Saratoga at seven o clock on Satur day morning, July 29th, reaching Albany just before ten o clock A. M. The following persons constituted his party : Lieutenant-General U. S. Grant and Mrs. Julia Grant ; Masters Frederick Grant and U. S. Grant, Jun. ; Misses Ellen W. Grant and Jessie E. Grant ; two servants ; Colo nel O. E. Babcock ; Colonel Hiram Porter ; Colonel Adam Badeau, Military Secretary ; Colonel E. L. Parker. At Albany an elegant saloon car had been fitted up for the party by Superintendent Gray, of the Western Road, sup plied with furniture from Mr. Gray s own residence in Springfield. The car was neatly draped with American flags, and furnished with rich arm chairs. At either end a stuffed eagle, with wings outspread, and a fine portrait of the General formed graceful and significant adornments. The engine was decorated with bunting and floral wreaths, and upon it two silk flags, bearing the names of " Lincoln" and "Grant." At Chatham Corners, Pittsfield, Springfield, and Wor cester, and other towns along the route, spontaneous ex pressions of grateful admiration by the people were enthusiastic, and unsurpassed since the days of Washing ton. The crowd at the depot in Boston was immense, and so wild with excitement that it was extremely difficult for the police to clear a passage to the carriages waiting to re ceive the distinguished visitors. It was said by a journal ist, who was on the ground, that on the appearance of the party at the entrance of the station, " such cheers rent the air as were never heard in the greeting of any man before. A welcome so ardent and enthusiastic has not been given to any other guest in this city, and in no other we are told has it been equaled." As the cortege moved through Washington and Tremont streets, toward the Revere House, "the streets were thronged ; cheer upon cheer rose from the crowds upon the sidewalks, on the balconies, and at the windows. The glorious old flag was displayed at 658 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. numerous points, and, as the procession passed the Com mon, a national salute was fired "by a section of Captain French s battery." After supper, at which the Governor presided, Gilmore s full band serenaded the Chief, and, in response to repeated calls for a speech, the Governor said : " GENTLEMEN : The General desires me to say, that he highly appreciates the honor of your call this evening, and that he will be happy to meet his friends and take them by the hand Monday at twelve o clock." General Grant and suite attended the Old South Church, of Revolutionary memory, on the following day, and lis tened to a prayer by the venerable Dr. Jenks, becoming the temple and worship of God, breathing devout patriot ism, and to an excellent discourse by the Reverend Mr. Manning, from Matthew xi. 29. After the reception at Faneuil Hall on Monday, and visiting various places of interest, he left the city for Quebec by way of Portland. From that city he attended commencement at Bowdoin College, Brunswick, whose faculty conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. The reception and the whole occasion was one of the live liest interest, and memorable in the history of that excel lent institution. General Grant also visited Augusta, the. capital of Maine, where the demonstrations were similar to those which had everywhere greeted him. And after he had crossed the boundary of the Republic, the subjects of the English queen seemed to forget British sympathy with the rebel cause, and vied with their American cousins in the homage paid to the greatest living captain. One of the company on board the steamer Europa, which conveyed General Grant and his party from Quebec to Montreal, relates several interesting incidents. When tourists at Quebec learned that General Grant was to go up the river by boat, there was a rush for tick ets. Every state- room and berth was speedily engaged. There was a crowd on board, and the steward was trans forming the saloon tables into bedsteads. The passengers improved the occasion to stare ad libitum at the Lieu- tenant-General. Many were introduced ; many intro- GENERAL GRANT IN CANADA. 559 duced themselves. His uniform courtesy to all was the theme of remark. His departure from Quebec was marked by the same enthusiasm which greeted him on his arrival. The wharf was packed with people, who cheered vocifer ously. Records one of the party : " Among those who called upon him was Sir James Hope, Admiral, commanding her Majesty s navy in America. He drove up to the hotel this afternoon, with three of the offi cers of his fleet in full dress. A second carriage contained his valet and boxes, enough to freight one of Adams & Co. s express-wagons. The contrast between the two men was very great. The Admiral is taller than General Grant, and older by fifteen or twenty years, with iron-gray hair, white whiskers trimly brushed, a gray eye, florid face, quick and vigorous in his actions, and a good-natured countenance. General Grant is so well known that I need not give a description of his personal appearance. "Sir James found a plain man in plain clothes. The Admiral and his officers were gorgeous in gold lace, bright buttons, crimson sashes, chapeaux, nodding plumes, epau lets, and stars. After the call, the Admiral sat down with General Grant and enjo} 7 ed a cigar. He gave free expres sion to his admiration of General Grant. He said that he was surprised to see a man so unostentatious. He is not at all like our officers, he said. The Admiral laid aside his coat, chapeau, and plumes, and appeared in naval undress of white pants, blue coat, and plain cap. " It is interesting to hear the comments. There is a large, stout, white-haired man, dressed in Canada gray, accompanied by his wife and daughter on a trip, " I intended to spend another day in Quebec, said he, but, when I found General Grant was going up river, I thought I would go in the same boat, and so secured tickets. My wife feels bad not to see Montmorenci, but then she can see General Grant. " How does lie impress you ? I asked " Oh, he is a gentleman. He is a plain man, and the more I see of him the better I like him. He isn t stuck up at all, but wears his honors quietly, was the reply. " On the sofa opposite to me is a young snob, dressed 560 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. in a short gray roundabout. He has red whiskers, of the shoebrush pattern, and is quizzing the General through his eye-glasses. " Aw, I don t see any thing remarkable about him, he says to a fellow of the same breed, who sits beside him. "If the subject of their remarks was exceedingly digni fied, and wore full military dress, with epaulets, stars, gold lace and gilt buttons, if he looked haughtily upon every body present, if he was proud enough not to see any one who was not presented with formality and dignity, doubt less those fellows would see something remarkable in him. They have not sense enough to know that his unostenta tious manners, his urbane treatment of all who approach him, is so very remarkable that the people recognize it at once. " I stood upon the guard when the boat left the wharf at Quebec, and listened to the crowd. " He s a brick, said one. " That is the man who licked the rebs., said another who stood by his side. " I had a brother who fit under him, said a third. c Walking around the citadel, I fell into conversation with the soldier who conducted our party. He belongs to the Kifles. * I had a brother who was under Grant, said he. He was wounded in front of Petersburg, and has got his discharge. " What does he say of General Grant f I asked. " Oh, he says he is a bully boy. i Then he began to talk about the fortifications. " These are no good. I reckon your guns which you have got would knock these walls to pieces mighty quick. Then looking across the river, he pointed out the place where the new fortifications are to be erected at Point Levi, and said : What good will they do when completed ? They may keep a vessel from coming up the river ; but if we had war with you, Grant would come up from Maine, and take us on the land side. " There was more practical wisdom in what he said than in the whole Board of Admiralty, or whatever board of the home government sat upon the Canadian defense ques- AN ATTEMPT TO INJURE GENERAL GRANT. 561 tion. Canada can t be defended any more than the Con federacy could be defended. Are the English lords and admirals bats, that they don t see it f From the Canadas, General Grant extended his tour to the West, the home of his childhood, and also of his riper years. At every stopping-place there was only the varia tion in the welcome, which the people and circumstances would naturally give to the expression of adulation. Chicago, the great business mart and metropolis of the West, received the Lieutenant-General with the whole- souled enthusiasm characteristic of her enterprising peo ple. Indeed, he had a series of magnificent receptions all the way from Chicago to Galena, his home. An in cident occurred at Elgin, which seems to be a repetition of a ]ike one, on several occasions, during General Grant s recent excursi9ii from Washington to Maine, and through Canada. At Elgin, while the Lieutenant-General was receiving the salutations of the people, standing on the rear platform of the car, a ruffian approached him in the garb of a farmer, seized him violently by the hand, and attempted to jerk him from the platform. Colonel Bab- cock, who was standing on the lower step of the platform, to protect the General, saw the movement, and struck the ruffian a blow with his cane, and at the same time seized him by the throat and compelled him to loose his vice-like gripe. The General was more excited by the occurrence than he was ever known to be before. Some pleasant things were related on the occasion of General Grant s visit to the places of his early residence by citizens who had known the Grant family. The Com.- mander s horsemanship is proverbial ; being regarded as the best rider in the army. There is a hill west of the village of Georgetown that separates the town from the bottom-lands of White Oak Creek. Before the pike was finished, the road went up and over the backbone of the hill, one side of which was frightfully precipitate, the other more gentle and sloping. The old folk named these Judgment and Mercy, re spectively ; as whoever went over on the perpendicular side might be sure of broken bones, and fortunate if he 36 562 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEPwAL GRANT. escaped without a broken neck. It was over this hill that the villagers hauled their sand and boulders for building and street purposes, from the creek below. Teamsters with stout four-horse teams often got stalled hereabouts, and I suspect were not mindfu.1 of the injunctions against pro fanity in their perplexity. Young Grant, then a lad of ten or eleven years, provided with a two-horse team, passed a good deal of time at this laborious work ; but such was his success, that he managed to make two horses do as much work as the four of o.ther men, and never stalled his team. Eemarking this, one of the teamsters asked the lad how it happened that he never got stalled, and his reply was, 4 1 never got stalled myself, and so my horses never get stalled either ; w T hich some might take to be an indication of that determination and resolute purpose which illustrate the career of the General as a soldier." General Grant stopped for a day at Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio, where he passed several years of his early life. The people poured out from their houses to see him, and he was constrained to make the following speech the longest he was ever known to deliver : LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF BROWN COUNTY : You are all aware that I am not in the habit of making speeches. I am glad that I never learned to make speeches when I was young, and now that I am old I have no de sire to begin. I had rather start out in any thing else than in making a speech. And now, ladies and gentlemen, I can only say to you that it affords me very much pleasure to get back to Brown County, where my boyhood was spent. A Union meeting was held in the afternoon on the Fair Grounds, at which the General s father made the following "nubby" speech: It gives me a great deal of pleasure to look so many of my old friends in the face again, and have the privilege of saying farewell, for I never expect to sec you again. We have just passed through a severe conflict a gigantic rebellion, a cruel, bloody, savage, and wicked civil war a war that is a disgrace to civilization. But how did you get out? When the country was assailed by rebels, its flag fired upon, your friends set forth ; they sacrificed the com forts of domestic life, the happiness of their firesides ; they put on the army blue, took the death-dealing musket, and slung the knapsack and blanket, SPEECH OF ME. JESSE GRANT. 563 and went forth determined to crush the rebels and put down the rebellion. They did put them down crushed the rebellion, and subdued the traitors to the Union ; and now they are on their marrow-bones seeking pardon, and your friends have returned home to your hearths and hearts. Now there is a great duty resting upon you. The fight is transferred to the ballot. It is your duty now to vote down this miserable Copperhead faction. It is said we have conquered a peace. This is true ; it is not a petty, patched-up Copperhead-Democratic peace ; it is one obtained by the sword, and the youngest child is not living who will see the sword again raised against the Government. It is your duty, as patriotic citizens of Brown County, not to allow this old locofoco, Copperhead, Lecompton fac tion to be galvanized into life, on the pretense that it is the only party that can save the country. I don t know how that could be, unless on the prin ciple that the Ijair of the dog is good for the bite. The venerable and worthy Jesse R. Grant appeared hale and intelligent. . His education was limited, having no schooling when a boy, excepting that enjoyed in the family of David Todd, father of the late Governor of Ohio, of which he said : " And that, as I had to chop wood for two fires, and do other chores, was very little." It was while living on the Reserve that the news came of the death of General Washington. Jesse, then five years of age, observing his mother weeping, asked her what was the matter. " General Washington is dead!" she replied. " Was he any relation of yours ?" inquired the wondering child. "And that," said the veteran, "was the first I knew of the Father of his Country." General Grant visited the tomb of Abraham Lincoln. The burial-place, Oak Ridge, is about two miles from the city, and consists of a tract of land of about eighty-eight acres, which is in future to be considered as the Springfield Burial-ground proper. The remains are still unburied, and lie in the reception-house, just as they came from Washington, watered by the tears of the nation. A guard- tent is pitched opposite to this house of the dead, on a rising knoll, surrounded by trees. Three sentries guard the sacred remains night and day, and the stone dours are kept open, so that the air may circulate freely through the place. An iron gate protects the remains from a close in trusion, although one can see the two coffins those of the father and of the little son, who was carried here from Washington with him, to their final resting-place. 564 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. The scene was deeply impressive, when the great Cap tain silently stood within the narrow abode of the mortal remains of him from whom he had received his highest honors, and who had repose"d implicit and loving confi dence in the military leader of the Republic. While the train was waiting at a station, an old, weather- beaten soldier put his head out of the window, and asked which was General Grant s carriage. " I want to see his dear old face again," he said. " I have served under him two years, and lost this," pointing to the right- arm sleeve of his coat, " for him and the country." The carriage was pointed out to him, and he went off from one car to another to see, as -he said, that "dear old face again." The General recognized him and shook hands with- him. It made him feel as happy as if that right arm were not rotting on the mud-banks before Richmond. As the train whirled past Virden, a "beautiful bouquet, most tastefully arranged, and with a floral cryptic in it, which is deciphered perhaps by this time, was cleverly thrown into the carriage. It fortunately alighted upon the arm of the Hon. Charles Wilson, of the Journal, and was thus saved. Mr. Wilson handed it over to General Grant, who, on examining it, found this inscription on it: To General Grant, with the best regards of the ladies of Vir- den. This was made secure by a piece of ribbon, and both the General and his lady expressed themselves highly delighted with it. Mrs. Grant carefully wrapt up the in scription and put it into her pocket. Galena, General Grant s last place of business, spared no endeavor to assure him of the appreciation of his fellow- citizens, among whom he lived, a " thoughtful, reflective, large-minded man the soul of honor." All business was suspended, and flags fluttered in the air, like unnumbered wings of red, white, and blue. In the windows of the Be Soto Hotel alone were one hundred and eighty of these national emblems. On one side of a triumphal arch was inscribed : Welcome to our Citizen. Weldon Railroad, Richmond, Petersburg, Wilderness, Fair Oaks, Five Forks. GENERAL GRANT AT GALENA. 565 On the other side : Hail to the Chief who in triumph advances. Belmont, Corinth, Vicksburg, Donelson, Lookout Mountain, Appomattox 0. H. Shiloh, Chattanooga, The whole was decorated with flags, streamers, and ever greens in the most beautiful manner. This arch is but a few doors from the store where the General used to sell leather. He was welcomed by the Hon. E. B. Washburne, who said : Permit me to say here, General, that as you were the first general officer from our city intrusted with important commands and engaged in active military operations, your loyal fellow-citizens watched your career with unflagging interest, and followed your fortunes with a faith that never faltered. When calumny and detraction swept over you, your friends and neighbors breasted the wave, and your laurels were never withered by any of the soldiers of Jo Daviess, who followed your victorious banners. And when you poured your leaden hail into the rebels, it is no wonder they thought you hailed from the u Galena Lead Mines," where the people sell that product in time of peace, but give it away in time of war. We welcome you not only to your Galena home but to your own noble and gallant State, which has made a record during the war which makes the hearts of all her loyal sons swell with pride. The blood of her soldiers moistens every battle-field of the Republic. It is in our State where repose the ashes of Lincoln and Douglas. Lincoln, the martyred President, struck down by the assassin hand of slavery, and who illustrated in his life the purest patriotism, the sublimest courage, and the most elevated devotion to the cause of his country and of Iibert3 r . Douglas, the illustrious Senator, the gifted statesman, the champion of popular rights, falling, alas! too soon ! but with love of country in his heart, and w r ords of patriotism on his lips. The empire of the Northwest, with its teeming millions of patriotic hearts, is everywhere vocal with its cordial reception, and in the name of our regenerated and disenthralled country, in the name of our restored Union, in the sacred name of liberty, all, all bid you welcome. General Grant stepped forward and made his second public speech, as follows : GENTLEMEN AND FELLOW- CITIZENS : The Rev. Mr. Vincent, who has come out on the train from Chicago, has kindly consented to return my thanks for this hearty welcome, which you have given me. The reverend gentleman named, who is of the Trinity 566 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Methodist Episcopal Church, Chicago, and who was Gen eral Grant s former pastor at Galena, then made a speech for the General. On a hill, about an eighth of a mile from the town, and overlooking the river and a vast country, including most of the town, is a beautiful residence which the citizens have mirchased for the General. I give a description of it, aanded me by one who has dared to stand up alone in the cause of freedom, when it cost something to do so. The house is on an acre of ground, the highest and most sightly around the city. The loyal citizens did not wait for a Copperhead city government to build sidewalks, but built them themselves from the depot to the house, which cost eleven thousand five hundred dollars, and the furniture four thousand five hundred dollars, purchased by a few of the friends and neighbors of the Lieutenant-General. Cannons roared, bands played, and the crowds cheered. Carriages were ready, and a procession was formed. After a short march, the stand was reached, and Mr. Washburne welcomed General Grant home. On first coming to the stand, General Grant acknowledged the cheers by bowing and giving a pleasant and modest smile. At the conclu sion he spoke a few words, simply thanking the people, as on other occasions. It was expected he would make a speech here at least. The Rev. J. H. Vincent, of Chicago, spoke for him in a few eloquent words. After this, General Grant and his family were driven to the new house on the hill. As they were about to enter, the 1 bells in the churches on the hills and in the valleys began to ring. After visiting his father s house, in Covington, Ken tucky, and Point Pleasant, Clermont County, Ohio, where he was born, he- returned to Washington. November 10th, the City of New York gave the Gen eral a reception rarely equaled even in that demonstrative metropolis. The description of his arrival at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, where a magnificent banquet was prepared, and generals, admirals, statesmen, divines, and millionaires were assembled, reminds one of the scene at Erfurth, when Napoleon entered the crowded saloon where Europe s kings RECEPTION AT FIFTH AVENUE HOTEL. 567 were waiting for him, and the famous Talma dared not be gin his entertainment till the conqueror came. At half-past eight o clock, cheers from the outside crowd announced the arrival of General Grant at the hotel. There was a waving of the glittering throng, a hushed murmur of 4 Here he comes," and a general upraising of heads. Two minutes more, and the Lieutenant-General enters, accom panied by his little son, arid leaning upon the arm of Gen eral Prosper M. Wetmore. Every eye is bent upon the distinguished soldier ; every movement indicates a heart felt enthusiasm for the man, while a general clapping of hands gives outward demonstration of the feelings of all. The parlor intended for the General was not quite ready, and the committee conducted him to their own apartment. On entering, General Grant met General Heintzelman, with whom he shook hands cordially. The throng of ladies and gentlemen followed into the apartment, forming a circle around General Grant, who on entering took a seat. His little son stood in front, on whom the General smiled pater nally several times. After a few minutes delay, General Hooker arrived, and, shaking hands with his distinguished superior, took a seat beside him. Mr. A. T. Stewart then came in and conducted General Grant to the room prepared for his occupation. He to whom the proud ovation of the evening was paid, though all eyes were attracted to him and steadily bent on him, was perhaps the least affected person in that brilliant assemblage. Indeed, he looked as if he would have pre ferred to vacate the place which the etiquette of the occa sion required him to take, and mingle with the throng that anxiously awaited the moment of presentation, that they might do him "reverence meet." The General was dressed in full uniform, but without sword or belt. The three silver stars on either shoulder denoted his rank of Lieutenant-General of the armies of the United States, while on his breast he carried the insignia of the various corps of the late armies, handsomely and artistically com bined. He looked exceedingly well, and his features bore the pleasing smile habitual to him. For a little he allowed his eye to wander over the rich decorations, the banners, 568 LI FE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the vases of flowers that seemed to have been called from every land where flowers are fairest and rarest, over the rich mirrors upon the walls, the flags and streamers, and all the evidence that a people s heart must be in the act of which all this display was but the natural outward acces sory and prerequisite. And his heart must have throbbed as that thought presented itself, and then "Proudly kindled the chieftain s eye, Well pleased, I ween, to see The land assemble all its wealth Of grace and chivalry," to do him honor an assurance in that, with the first great saviour .of the republic, he will also stand as first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his country men. About eleven o clock, the hero sat down to a select banquet in one of the elegant dining apartments of the palatial home for travelers. A. T. Stewart, Esq., the chairman of the committee, presided at the head of the table, and Judge Bonney at the end. On the right of the President sat Mrs. Grant, while General Grant occupied a seat on the left. The number of guests in this room was limited to forty, and among them we observed Senator Morgan, Generals Wool, Dix, Ingalls, Barlow, V iele, John Van Buren, Ad miral Bell, W. E. Dodge, Peter Cooper, Jonathan Sturges, Mr. Detmold, Bishop Potter, Archbishop McCloskey, Reverends Henry Ward Beecher, Drs. Adams and Thomp son, and the Wives of these gentlemen. After the guests had partaken of the choice viands, during which a band, which was stationed outside the hall, discoursed choice music, the company engaged in an animated conversation for some moments. The guest of the evening sat in silence, pondering, no doubt, upon the brilliant spectacle which passed before him. If some would be disposed to call him a conqueror, it might be then said of him "He conquered not for fame, but for free dom ; not for ambition, but for country." The man whom the people delighted to honor by this distinguished mark SPEECHES AT THE BANQUET. 569 of their approbation was looked upon as the preserver of the nation, and by his valorous deeds he won The nation s love a priceless gem ; Who wins it needs no diadem. The chairman said : I shall propose the health to you of one whom you delight to honor, as we all know that we are indebted to our distinguished guest more than to any other man living for the blessings that we now en joy. It is not in my line precisely to make a speech to you. I therefore will propose to you the health, happiness, and long life of General Grant. General Grant, after a silence of a few minutes, rose and said : I am greatly indebted to the citizens, ladies, and gentlemen of New York City, for the great kindness that I have received during the ten days that I have been with them. You know it is not my habit to make speeches, and I hope you will excuse me from saying any more ; but I do thank them from the bottom of my heart. Eevererid Dr. Thompson was called upon, and responded as follows : I obey the summons which was brought to me at this instant as emanating from martial law. I am bound to yield obedience to the powers that be, especially when I see them sustained by that military power which has secured to us the permanence of good government, of freedom, and under that government* of education and religion, of home and school, of all that wo value for ourselves, and that we cherish for our posterity. I will sim ply say in one word, that, in addition to all that I owe in common with the multitude of my fellow-citizens to our distinguished guest, I recognize a special obligation, as a Christian man, in connection with that work which is my calling, for the interpretation of two grand ideas the power of pa tience and the power of faith. While the General sat waiting before Pe tersburg and Richmond, silent as to his plans, yet in his own mind com prehending all the future, waiting the accomplishment and the develop ment of schemes known only to himself and his coadjutors, he was giving to this nation a lesson in the moral virtue of patience which we shall never forget, and which we, as a people, especially need. At the same time as he sat there thus silent, but ever watchful, he was interpreting to us the workings of .Divine Providence noiseless but sure seeing the end from the beginning, and marching steadily onward to the accomplishment of that end without prematurely unveiling the plan, but when the work is accom plished unfolding all in its beauty and perfection. I derive, sir, from our illustrious guest lessons in these particulars that shall not only last me through life for iny personal comfort and guidance, but shall inspire me in the work to which I am specially devoted. I have learned to-night a little of what that virtue of patience must have been on the battle-field in those long watches and endurances, before the consummation, as I have seen the General so calmly enduring the persistent besieging of his ad miring friends. Reverend Henry Ward Beecher was loudly called for, and responded 570 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. in a few happy remarks. He said : We are gathered together this evening to pay our more than respects, our affectionate respects, to one whom this country is proud of; but not altogether either to him, except as he repre sents the officers and the men of our whole army, for that honor which we bestow upon General Grant we know will pass through him to them, who admire him as all his countrymen do. I am sure, also, that we can say sincerely that we are not gathered together on such a festive occasion as this to triumph over anybody^. We are gathered to triumph for principles established. We are glad and triumph because we have a better future and a real country, united as every country must be that is to stand per manently united in sympathy and sentiment, and at the bottom on com mon laws and common principles. I am glad with those that are glad here. I cannot, however, forbear to think that there are thousands and thousands who have made an awful mistake, and yet were sincere and earnest men, over whom we should all be the last to triumph, who can have no victories, nothing but disaster, nothing but sorrow and mourning; the past full of storm and darkness and sadness, while to us the past now grows more and more luminous in proportion as it was dark at the time, and the future is abundantly radiant. These scenes can but faintly express, I think, to our honored guest, what is the place he occupies in the hearts of this great people. His name will be lisped by our children as they come up ; it will pass into our schools; it will be in our cottages and farm-houses. lam sure he is of such a make as to be more proud to be remembered and loved in the houses of the common people than in the palaces of the loftiest in the land. His work thus far has been most nobly done, but it is not en tirely finished. He is to illustrate another American trait he and his brother officers and soldiers. It was asked of me in England, u What will hecome of your army when your war is over ? What will you do with them ?" My reply was, "What do you do in March with your snow-wreaths? * They melt and no man has any trouble about them, and out of them come the very juices and herbage that is to cover the ground with spring and summer; and has it not been so? When the soldiers were needed, they came as avalanches come, and when they were no longer needed they melt ed as snow in summer. Doctor E. Vanghan, editor of the magazine, writes in the last number of the British Quarterly Review : " In Washington I had the privilege of an introduction to General Grant. The eminent man was in his official department, much the sort of room in which a London attorney might be imagined giving audience to his clients. The General was not in uniform, and plainly dressed. The portraits of him are faithful representations of his square and spacious fore head, and of the settled and regular, but not strongly marked, features beiow. A military officer was in attendance upon him, who was of old Indian descent, a person somewhat above the ordinary height, whose com plexion and features bespoke his origin, but whose civilized experiences GENERAL GRANT S MILITARY ABILITY. 571 had given him a little more flesh than would seem to have been common among his ancestors. "This stately descendant from the sons of the old wilderness gave me a cordial grasp of the hand on our being introduced. The manner of the General was simple and quiet. I soon saw he was a man of few words, and had reason to think that his words were usually well chosen. After a few commonplaces had passed, he began to speak freely on public affairs. The tone of the English press concerning the military action of the North seemed to have impressed him unfavorably. If your newspapers are to be believed, said the soldier, who is second to none of his time, we never went into the field but to be beaten. I have been in more engagements than any other man in the service, and have not been beaten yet. On the conti nent of Europe, too, the disposition, it appears, has been to harp on the same string. Friends who have visited your country and France tell me that, go into what circle they might, the talk about America all went one way. "In reply, I mentioned some facts which seemed to warrant a some what different conclusion. These facts were frankly admitted as tending to show that in England there must after all have been a considerable breadth of sympathy with the North. Say what you will, said the Gen eral, this war has been the biggest job of its sort that has been done in this world ; and it will be a chapter to itself in the history of war nothing like it has gone before. " When about to take my leave, I Avas pleased to hear the General say, Well, I think I shall corne to England some day ; but it must not be until I can spare something like a twelvemonth for that part of the world. I did not fail to express my conviction^ that if he came among us he would find not a few capable of appreciating what he had done, and of doing so generously. Of Lee, the General spoke honorably, describing him as an able man who had made a great mistake. This mistake, I presume, was in committing himself against the Northern cause the cause, the final success of which the General himself had never doubted." The military ability of General Grant is variously esti mated by even his friends. Some deny that he has genius, and affirm that he succeeded rather by persistence in a chosen line of warfare, .and favoring circumstances. Others declare that he planned campaigns "with not less of originality that that displayed by Sherman, but they have always been executed with the deliberation and persistence which are such prominent characteristics of Thomas. Sher man has given us several splendid illustrations of strategy and logistics ; as witness his marches in Mississippi, Georgia, and the Carolinas ; but his battles will never be quoted as brilliant examples of grand tactics. Thomas has displayed his abilities chiefly in the tactics of the bat- 572 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tie-field, and has given us at Mill Spring and Nashville two splendid illustrations of the offensive, and at Chicka- mauga a magnificent example of defensive "battle ; but his marches, which are always slow and labored, are never likely to become famous. Grant has excelled in both these important branches of the art of war, and has given us brilliant examples of each ; and, though he has shown no extraordinary engineering ability in constructing defenses, he has done better in reducing those of the rebels. He uses the strategy of Sherman to reach his chosen battle field, and then employs the grand tactics of Thomas to win the victory. Writes another popular biographer, " it is more difficult to analyze the mental than the moral character of Grant. Indeed, he seems to have no peculiarly striking qualities, so evenly balanced is his whole character. He is a man of great military talent, doing things not so much in a different way from other generals, as with different power." But that power J is difference enough to stamp him an extra ordinary man and general. When, without the approving counsel of a single sub ordinate officer, he cut loose from Grand Gulf, and led his vast army straight into a hostile country toward impreg nable Yicksburg, he displaj^ed intellect sufficiently broad to comprehend any ^military situation ; and a heart so strong, brave, and calm, that it could bear modestly any pressure of official responsibility. Then again, his combinations, when his elevation to the control of the United States armies gave him the opportu nity to grasp the entire work before the nation, and his wise selection of officers to co-operate with him, will place his name in the ultimate verdict of history with that of Napo leon, Wellington, and Washington. MAJOR-GENERAL MEADE S REPORT. 573 CHAPTER XXVII. REPORTS OP GENERALS MEABE, SHERIDAN, SHERMAN, AND GRANT. General Meade s Report of the Potomac Army. General Sheridan s account of his Splendid Achievements. The Story of the Unrivaled Sherman s Great March. General Grant s Final and Great Report of the closing Campaign of the War. GENERAL MEADE S Report of the part taken by his .troops in the closing events of the War is a condensed and carefully written history of the Potomac Army under his command : THE FINAL OPERATIONS OF THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC. BEPORT OF MAJOR-GENERAL MEADE. HEAD-QtTABTEKS ARMT OF THE POTOMAC, J April 30, 1865. f COLONEL : I have the honor to submit herewith a succinct report of the operations of this Army in the recent campaign, resulting in the evacuation of Richmond and Petersburg, and terminating in the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. On the 29th ultimo, in pursuance of orders received from the Lieuten- ant-General commanding, the Second and Fifth Corps were moved across Hatcher s Run, the former by the Vaughan Road, the latter by the old stage road crossing at Perkins s. The Second Corps, holding the extreme left of the line before Petersburg prior to moving, was relieved by Major-General Gibbon, commanding two divisions of the Twenty-fourth Corps. Major-General Humphreys, commanding Second Corps, was directed, after crossing Hatcher s Run, to take position with his right resting on Hatcher s Run and his left extending to the Quaker road. Major-General Warren, commanding Fifth Corps, was directed at first to take position at the intersection of the Vaughan and Quaker roads, and subsequently, about noon of the 29th, he was ordered to move up the Quaker road beyond Gravelly Run. These orders were duly executed, and by evening Major-General Hum phreys was in position, his right resting near Dabney s Mill, and his left near Gravelly Meeting-House on the Quaker road. In taking this position^ Major-General Humphreys encountered but little opposition, meeting only a small force in a line of rifle-pits, who were quickly driven out. Major- 574 WFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Warren was delayed in his movement, by having to rebuild the bridge over Gravelly Run. The advance of his column, Brigadier-General Griffin s division, was attacked about 4 p. JL, when about a mile and a half beyond Gravelly Run, by Bushrod Johnson s division. A spirited engage ment ensued, in which Griffin handsomely repulsed and drove the enemy, capturing over one hundred prisoners. On the 30th, Major-General Humphreys again advanced, driving the enemy into his main line of works, and by night occupying a line from the Crow House, on Hatcher s Run, to the intersection of the Dabney s Mill and Boydtown plank-road. Major-General Warren, during this day, advanced on the Quaker road to its intersection with the Boydtown plank, and pushed Ayres s division in a northwesterly direction over to the White Oak road. No fighting of any consequence occurred this day, except picket skirmishing and exchange of artillery shots from the respective lines, now close to each other. During the night of the 30th, Major-General Humphreys, who had intrenched his line, was directed to relieve Griffin s division, Fifth Corps, by Miles s division, and Major-General Warren was ordered to move both Crawford and Griffin within supporting distance of Ayres, whose position on the extreme left was considered likely to invite attack. On the 31st, about 10 A. M., Ayres, under General Warren s orders, advanced to dislodge the enemy in position on the White Oak road. Ayres s attack was unsuccessful, and was followed by such a vigorous attack of the enemy that Ayres was compelled to foil back upon Crawford, who, in turn, was so strongly pressed by the enemy as to force both divisions back, in considerable disorder, to the position occupied by Griffin, when the pur suit of the enemy ceased. Immediately on ascertaining the condition of affairs, Major-General Humphreys was ordered to move to Warren s sup- po rt, and that officer promptly sent Miles s division to attack in flank the force operating against Warren. This movement was handsomely executed by Miles, who, attacking the enemy vigorously, drove him back to his former position on the White Oak road, capturing several colors and many prisoners. In the mean time Warren advanced with Griffin s division, supported by such portions of .Ayres s and Crawford s divisions as could be rallied, and regaining the position held by Ayres in the morning, Griffin attacked with Chamberlain s brigade, driving the enemy and securing a lodgment on the White Oak road. These operations over, hearing heavy firing to the left and rear, which was presumed to be the cavalry moving up from Dinwiddie Court-House, Warren was directed to send a brigade down the White Oak road to co-op- crate with the cavalry. This brigade by night reached the crossing of Gravelly Run, by the road leading through J. Boisseau s, where, not meet ing any enemy, it bivouacked. During the night, having been directed to send support to Major-Gene ral Sheridan, at Dinwiddie Court-IIouse, Major-General Warren was ordered to move with his whole corps, two divisions by the White Oak MAJOR-GENERAL MEADE S REPORT. 575 road and one by the Boydtown plank-road. Major-General Humphreys "was ordered to extend his left as far as practicable, consistent with its security. During the foregoing operations, the Sixth and Ninth Corps remained in the lines in front of Petersburg, with orders to watch the enemy closely > and, in the event of the lines in their front being weakened, to attack. On April 1st, after consultation with the Lieut.-General commanding, believing from the operations on his right that the enemy s lines" on his left must be thinly held, orders were sent to Major-Generals Wright and Parke to attack the next morning at 4 A. M. About 7 P. M., intelligence having been received of the brilliant success of the cavalry and Fifth Corps at Five Forks, orders were sent to Generals Parke and Wright to open their batteries and press the enemy s picket-line. At the same time, Miles s division, Second Corps, was detached to the support of Major-General Sheridan, and Major-General Humphreys advised of the intended attacks of the Twenty-fourth, Sixth and Fifth Corps, and directed to hold his two remaining divisions ready to co-operate in the same, should they prove suc cessful. On the 2d of April, Major-General Wright attacked at 4 p. M., carrying every thing before him, taking possession of the enemy s strong line of works, and capturing many guns and prisoners. After carrying the ene my s lines in his front, and reaching the Boydtown plank-road, Major-Gene ral Wright turned to his left and swept down the enemy s line of intrench- rnents till near Hatcher s Run, where, meeting the head of the Twenty- fourth Corps, Gen. Wright retraced his steps and advanced on the Boydtown plank-road toward Petersburg, encountering the enemy in an inner line of works iminediatel} r around the city. Major-General Wright deployed his corps confronting their works in conjunction with the Twenty-fourth and part of the Second Corps. Major-General Parke s attack, at 4 A. M., was also successful, carrying the enemy s lines, capturing guns and prisoners; but the position of the N-inth Corps, confronting that position of the enemy s line the longest held and most strongly fortified, it was found he held a second and inner line which Major-General Parke was unable to carry. Receiving a dispatch during the morning from Major-General Parke, reporting his being pressed by the enemy, the troops left in City Point defenses, under Brigadier-General Benham and Brevet Brigadier-General Collis, were ordered up to General Parke s support ; their prompt arrival enabling them to render material assistance to General Parke in holding his lines. So soon as Major-General Wright s success was reported, Major-General Humphreys was ordered to advance with the remaining divisions of his corps ; Hays, on the right, advanced and captured a redoubt in front of the Crow House, taking a gun and over one hundred prisoners. Mott, on the left, on advancing on the Boydtown plank-road, found the enemy s line evacuated. Hays and Mott pushed forward and joined the Sixth Corps confronting the enemy. Early in the morning, Miles, reporting his return to his position on the White Oak road, was ordered to advance on the Clai- 576 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. borne road simultaneously with Mott and Hays. Miles, perceiving the enemy was moving to his right, pursued and overtook him at Sutherland s Station, where a sharp engagement took place, Miles handling his single division with great skill and gallantry, capturing several guns and many prisoners. On receiving intelligence of Miles being engaged, Hays was sent to his support, but did not reach the field till the action was over. At 3 A. M., of the 2d of April, Major-Generals Parke and Wright reported no enemy in their front, when, on advancing, it was ascertained Petersburg was evacuated. Wilcox s division, Ninth Corps, was ordered to occupy the town, and the Second, Sixth and Ninth Corps immediately moved up the river, reach ing that night the vicinity of Sutherland s Station. The next three days, the 3d> 4th and 5th, the pursuit was continued along the river and Namozine roads, the Fifth Corps following the cavalry, and the Second and Sixth following the Fifth, the Ninth having been detached to guard the Southside Railroad. The progress of the troops was greatly impeded by the bad character of the road, the presence of the sup ply trains of the Fifth Corps, and cavalry, and by the frequent changes of position of the cavalry, to whom the right of way was given. On the night of the 4th, receiving a dispatch from Major-General Sheridan that his army was in position at Amelia Court-House, immediate orders were given for the resumption of the inarch by the troops of the Second and Sixth Corps, reaching Jettersville between 4 and 5 P. M., where the Fifth Corps was found intrenched, expecting an attack. No attack being made, on the morning of the 6th of April the three corps were moved in the direction of Amelia Court-House, with the intention of attacking the enemy if found there ; but soon after moving, intelligence was received that Lee had moved from Amelia Court-House toward Farmville. The directions of the corps were changed, and the Sixth Corps moved from the right to the left. The Second Corps was ordered to move on Deatonsville, and the Fifth and Sixth Corps to move in parallel direction on the right and left, respectively. The Second Corps soon came up with the enemy and commenced a rear-guard fight, which continued all day till evening, when the enemy was so crowded in attempting to cross Sailor s Creek that he had to abandon a large train. Guns, colors, and prisoners were taken in these successful operations of the Second Corps. The Sixth Corps, on the left of the Second, came up with the onemj posted on Sailor s Creek. Major-General Wright attacked with two divisions, and completely routed the enemy. In this attack the cavalry, under Major-General Sheridan, was operating on the left of the Sixth Cor[)s, while Humphreys was pressing on the right. The result of the combined operations was the capture of Lieutenant-General Ewell and four other general officers, with most of Swell s corps. The next day, the 7th of April, the Fifth Corps was moved to the left toward Prince Edward Court-House. The Second Corps resumed the direct pursuit of the enemy, coming up with him at High Bridge over the MAJOR GENERAL MEADE S REPORT. 577 Appomattox. Here the enemy made a feeble stand with his rear-guard, attempting to burn the railroad and common bridge. Being driven off by Humphreys, he succeeded in burning three spans of the railroad bridge, but the common bridge was saved, which Humphreys immediately crossed in pursuit, the enemy abandoning eighteen guns at this point. Humphreys came up with the enemy at the intersection of the High Bridge and Farmville roads, where he was found intrenched behind rail breast-works, evidently making a stand to cover the withdrawal of his trains. Before reaching this point. Humphreys had detached Barlow s division to the left toward Farmville. Near Farmville, Barlow found the enemy, who was about evacuating the place, which operation was hastened by a successful attack of Barlow s. When Humphreys ascertained the position of the enemy, Barlow was recalled, but did not reach Humphreys till evening, and after an unsuccess ful assault had been made by part of Miles s division. The Sixth Corps moved early in the morning toward Farmville, but finding the road occupied, first by the cavalry and subsequently by the Twenty-fourth Corps, it was too late in the afternoon before it reached that place, where it was found the enemy had destroyed the bridge. On learning the position of Humphreys, orders were sent to Wright to cross and attack in support. By great exertions a bridge for infantry was con structed, over which Wright crossed, but it was nightfall before this could be effected. The next day, April 8th, the pursuit was continued on the Lynchburg stage road. On the 9th, at 12 M., the head of the Second Corps, when within three miles of Appomattox Court-House, came up with the enemy. At the same time I received a letter from General Lee, asking for a suspen sion of hostilities, pending negotiations for surrender. Soon after receiv ing this letter, Brigadier-General Forsyth, of General Sheridan s staff, came through the enemy s lines and notified me that a truce had been made by Major-General Ord, commanding the troops on the other side of Appo mattox Court-House. In consequence of this, I replied to General Lee that I should suspend hostilities for two hours. At the expiration of that time, I received the instructions of the Lieutenant-General commanding to continue the armistice till further orders, and about 4 p. M. I received the welcome intelligence of the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia,. It has been impossible, in the foregoing brief outline of operations, to> do full justice to the several corps engaged ; for this purpose, reference- must be had to the reports of corps and division commanders, which will be forwarded as soon as received. At the same time I would call attention to the handsome repulse of the enemy by Griffin s division, Fifth Corps, on the 29th ultimo ; to the important part taken by the Fifth Corps in the- battle of Five Forks ; to the gallant assault, on the 2d inst., by the Sixth Corps, in my judgment the decisive movement of the campaign ; to the successful attack of the Sixth Corps in the battle of Sailor s Creek ; to the- gallant assault, on the 2d inst., of the Ninth Corps, and the firmness and. tenacity with which the advantages then gained were held against all? 37 578 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. assaults of the enemy ; to the brilliant attack of Miles s division, Second Corps, at Sutherland s Station ; to the energetic pursuit and attack of the enemy by the Second Corps, on the 6th inst., terminating in the battle of Sailor s Creek; and to the prompt pursuit the next day, with Barlow s and Miles s attacks, as all evincing the fact that this army, officers and men, all nobly did their duty, and deserve the thanks of the country. Nothing could exceed the cheerfulness with which all submitted to fatigue arid pri vations to secure the coveted prize the capture of the Army of Northern Virginia. The absence of official reports precludes my forwarding any statement of casualties, or lists of the captures of guns, colors, and prisoners. To my staff, general and personal, I am indebted, as I have ever been, for tho most zealous and faithful discharge of their duties. Respectfully yours, GEORGE G. MEADE, Major-General U. S. A., commanding. Colonel T. S. BOWERS, Assistant Adjutant-General. General Sheridan relates well the achievements of the cavalry : OPERATIONS OF THE CAVALRY. REPORT OF MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN. CAVALRY HEAD-QUARTERS, May 16, 1865. GENEEAJL: I have the honor to submit the following narrative of the operations of my command during the recent campaign in front of Peters burg and Richmond, terminating with the surrender of the rebel army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court-House, Virginia, on April 9th, 18G5. On March 26th, my command, consisting of the First and Third Cavalry Divisions, under the immediate command of Brevet Major-General "Wesley Morritt, crossed the James River by the bridge at Jones s Landing, having marched from Winchester, in the Shenandoah Valley, via White House, on the Pamunkey River. On March 27th this command went into camp at Hancock Station, on the military railroad in front of Petersburg, and on the same day the Second Cavalry Division, which had been serving with tho Army of the Potomac, reported to me under the command of Major-General George Crook. The effective force of these divisions was as follows : General Merritt s command, First and Third Divisions 5,700 General Crook s command, Second Division 3,300 Total effective force 9,000 MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN S REPORT. 579 With this force I moved out on the 29th of March, in conjunction with the armies operating against Richmond, and in the subsequent operations I was under the immediate orders of the Lieutenant-General commanding. I moved by the way of Reams s Station, on the Weldon Railroad, and Malon s Crossing, on the Rowanty Creek, where we were obliged to con struct a bridge. At this point our advance encountered a small picket of the rebel cavalry, and drove it to the left, across Stony Creek, capturing a few prisoners, from whom, and from my scouts, I learned that the enemy s cavalry was at or near Stony Creek Depot, on the Weldon Railroad, on onr left flank and rear. Believing that it would not attack me, and that by pushing on to Dinwiddie Court-House I could force it to make a wide detour, we continued the march, reaching the Court-House about five o clock P. M., encountering only a small picket of the enemy, which was driven away by our advance. It was found necessary to order General Ouster s division, which was marching in rear, to remain near Malon s Crossing, on the Rowanty Creek, to assist and protect our trains, which were greatly retarded by the almost impassable roads of that miry section. The First and Second Divisions went into camp, covering the Vaughan, Flat Foot, Boydtown plank and Five Forks roads, which all intersect at Dinwiddie Court-House, rendering this an important point, and from which I was expected to make a cavalry raid on the Southside Railroad, and thence join General Sherman or return to Petersburg, as circumstances might dictate. However, during the night the Lieutenant-General sent me instructions to abandon the contemplated raid and act in concert with the infantry under his immediate command, and turn the right flank of Lee s army, if possible. Early on the morning of the 30th of March, I directed General Merritt to send the First Division, Brigadier-General Devin commanding, to gain possession of tbe Five Forks, on White Oak road, and directed General Crook to send General Davies s brigade of his division to the support of General Deviii. Gregg s brigade, of Crook s division, was held on the Boydtown plank- road, and guarded the crossing of Stony Creek, forcing the enemy s cavalry that was moving from Stony Creek Depot to form a connection with the right of their army, to make a wide detour, as I had anticipated, on the south side of Stony Creek, and west of Chamberlain s Bed a very fatigu ing march, in the bad condition of the roads. A very heavy rain fell dur ing this day, aggravating the swampy nature of the ground, and rendering the movements of troops almost impossible. General Merritt s reconnoia- sance developed the enemy in strong force on the White Oak road, in the vicinity of the Five Forks, and there was some heavy skirmishing through out the day. Next morning, March 31st, General Merritt advanced toward the Five Forks with the First Division, and meeting with considerable opposition, General Devin s brigade, of Crook s division, was ordered to join him, while General Crook, advancing on the left with the two other brigades of his division, encountered the enemy at Chamberlain s Creek, 580 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. at a point a little west of Dinwiddie, making demonstrations to cross. Smith s brigade was ordered to hold -them in check, and Gregg s brigade to a position on his right. The advance of the First Division got posses sion of the Five Forks, bnt in the mean time the Fifth Army Corps, which had advanced toward the White Oak road from the Yaughan road, was attacked and driven back, and, withdrawing from that point, this force of the enemy marched rapidly from the front of the Fifth Corps to the Five Forks, driving in our cavalry advance, and, moving down on roads west of Chamberlain s Creek, attacked General Smith s brigade, but were unable to force his position. Abandoning the attempt to cross in his front, this force of the enemy s infantry succeeded in effecting a crossing higher up the creek, striking General Davies s brigade, of the Second Division, which, after a gallant fight, was forced back upon the lift flank of the First Division, thus partially isolating all this force from my main line covering Dinvviddie Court-House. Orders were at once given to General Merritt to Cross this detached force over to the Boydtown plank-road, and march down to Dinwiddie Court-House and come into the line of battle. The enemy, deceived by this movement, followed it up rapidly, making a left wheel, and presenting his rear to my line of battle. When his line was nearly parallel to mine, General Gibbs s brigade of the First Division and General Irvine Gregg s brigade of the Second Division were ordered to attack at once, and Gene ral Custer was directed to bring up two of his brigades rapidly, leaving one brigade of his division with the trains that had not yet reached Din widdie Court-House. In the gallant attack made by Gibbs and Gregg, the enemy s wounded fell into our hands, and he was forced to face by the rear rank and give up his movement, which, if continued, would have taken in flank and rear the infantry line of the Army of the Potomac. When tho enemy had faced to meet this attack a very obstinate and handsomely con tested battle ensued, in which, with all his cavalry and two divisions of infantry, the enemy was unable to drive five divisions of our cavalry, dis mounted, from an open plain in front of Dinwiddie Court-House. The brunt of their cavalry attack was borne by General Smith s brigade, which had so gallantly held the crossing of Chamberlain s Creek in the morning. His command again held the enemy in check with determined bravery, but the heavy force brought against his right flank finally compelled him to abandon his position on the creek, and fall back to the main line immedi ately in front of Dinvviddie Court-House. As tho enemy s infantry advanced to the attack, our cavalry threw up slight breastworks of rails at some points along our lines, and when the enemy attempted to force this position, they were handsomely repulsed, and gave up the attempt to gain possession of the Court-House. It was after dark when the firing ceased, and the enemy lay on their arms that night not more than one hundred yards in front of our lines. The commands of Generals Devin and Da vies reached Dinwiddie Court-House without opposition by way of the Boyd town plank-road, but did not participate in the final action of the day. In this well-contested battle, the most obstinate gallantry was displayed by my MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN S REPORT. 581 entire command. The brigades commanded by General Gibbs and Colo nels Stagg and Fitzhugh, in the First Division ; Generals Davies, Gregg, and Smith, in the Second Division ; Colonels Pennington and Capehart, in the Third Division, vied with each other in their determined efforts to hold in check the superior force of the enemy : and the skillful arrange ment of their troops in this peculiarly difficult country entitles the brigade- commanders to the highest commendation. Generals Crook, Merritt, Custer, and Devin, by their courage and ability, sustained their commands, and executed the rapid movements of the day with promptness and without confusion. During the night of the 31st of March my head-quarters were at Din- widdie Court-House, and the Lieutenant-General notified me that the Fifth Corps would report to me, and should reach me by midnight. This corps had been offered to me on the 30th instant ; but very much desiring the Sixth Corps, which had been with me in the Shenaudoah Valley, I asked for it, but, on account of the delay which would occur in moving that corps from its position in the lines in front of Petersburg, it could not be sent to inc. I respectfully submit herewith my brief accounts of the operations of the day, the response to which was the ordering of the Fifth Corps to my support and my command, as also the dispatch of the Lieutenant-General notifying me of his action. I understood that the Fifth Corps, when ordered to report to me, was in position near S. Dabney s house, in the angle between the Boydtown road and the Five Forks road. Had General Warren moved according to the expectations of the Lieu tenant-General, there would appear to have been but little chance for the escape of the enemy s infantry in front of Dinwiddie Court-House. Ayres s division moved down the Boydtown plank-road during the night, and in the morning moved west, via R. Boisseau s house, striking the Five Forks road about two and a half miles north of Dinwiddie Court-House. General Warren, with Griffin s and Crawford s divisions, moved down the road by Crump s house, coming into the Five Forks road near J. Boisseau s house, between seven and eight o clock on the morning of the 1st of April. Meantime I moved my cavalry force at daylight against the enemy s lines in front, which gave way rapidly, moving off by the right flank and cross ing Chamberlain s Creek. This hasty movement was accelerated by the discovery that two divisions of the Fifth Corps were in their rear, and that one division was moving toward their left and rear. The following were the instructions sent to General Warren: "CAVALKY HEAD-QUARTERS, J DINWIDDIK CODEX-HOUSE, April 1, 18G5 3 A. M. > "To Major-General WAEBEN, commanding Fifth Army Corps: 44 1 am holding in front of Dinwiddie Court-IIouse, on the road leading to Five Forks, for three quarters of a mile, with General Ouster s division. The enemy are in his immediate front, lying so as to cover the road just this side of A. Adams s house, which leads out across Chamberlain s Bed or Run. I understand you have a division at J. Boisseau s; if so, you are in 582 LIFE AND, CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. rear of the enemy s line, and almost on his flanks. I will hold on here. Possibly they may attack Ouster at daylight ; if so, attack instantly and in full force. Attack at daylight, anyhow, and I will make nn effort to get the road this side of Adams s house, and if I do, you can capture the whole of them. Any force moving down the road I am holding, or on the White Oak road, will be in the enemy s rear, and in all probability get any force that may escape you by a flank attack. Do not fear my leaving here. If the enemy remains, I shall fight at daylight. "P. H. SHERIDAN, Major-General." As they fell back, the enemy were rapidly followed by General Merritt s two divisions, General Devin. on the right and General Ouster on the left; General Crook in the rear. During the remainder of the day, General Crook s division held the extreme left and rear, and was not seriously engaged. ,1 then determined that I would drive the enemy, with the cavalry, to the Five Forks, press them inside of their works, and make a feint to turn their right flank, and meanwhile quietly move up the Fifth Corps with a view to attacking their left flank, crush the whole force, if possible, and drive westward those who might escape, thus isolating them from their army at Petersburg. Happily, this conception was successfully executed. About this time, General McKenzie s division of cavalry, from the Army of the Jiimes, reported to me, and consisted of about one thousand effective men. I directed General Warren to hold fast at J. Boisseau s house, refresh his men, and bo ready to move to the front when required ; and General McKenzie was ordered to rest in front of Dinwiddio Court-House until further orders. Meantime General Merritt s command continued to press the enemy, and by impetuous charges drove them from two lines of temporary works ; General Cuater guiding his advance on the widow Gillian s house, and General Devin on the main Five Forks road. The courage displayed by the cavalry officers and men was superb, and about two o clock the enemy was behind his works on the White Oak road, and his skirmish line drawn in. I then ordered up the Fifth Corps on the main road, and sent Brevet- Major Giliespie, of the engineers, to turn the head of the column off on tho Gravelly Church road, and put the corps in position on this road obliquely to and at a point but a short distance from the White Oak road, and about one mile from the Five Forks. Two divisions of the corps were to form the front line, and one division was to be held in reserve in column of regiments opposite the center. I then directed General Merrifct to demonstrate as though ho was at tempting to turn the enemy s right flank, and notified him that the Fifth Corps would strike the enemy s left flank, and ordered that the cavalry should assault the enemy s works, as soon as the Fifth Corps became en gaged, and that would be determined by the volleys of musketry. I then rode over to where the Fifth Corps was going into position, and found them coining up very slowly. I was exceedingly anxious to attack at once, MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN S REPORT. 583 for the sun was getting low, and we had to fight or go back. It was no place to intrench, and it would have been shameful to have gone back with no results to compensate for the loss of the brave men who had fallen during the day. In this connection, I will say that General Warren did not exert himself to get up his corps as rapidly as he might have done, and his manner gave me the impression that he wished the sun to go down be fore dispositions for the attack could be completed. As soon as the corps was in position, I ordered an advance in the following formation : Ayres s division on the left in double lines, Crawford s division on the right in double lines, and Griffin s division in reserve, behind Crawford ; and the White Oak road was reached without opposition. While General Warren was getting into position, I learned that the left of the Second Corps of the Army of the Potomac, on my right, had been swung around from the direction of its line of battle until it fronted on the Boydtown road, and parallel to it, which oifered an opportunity to the enemy to march down the White Oak road and attack me in right and rear. General McKenzie was therefore sent up the Camp road, with directions to gain the White Oak road if possible, but to attack at all hazards any enemy found, and if successful, then march down the road and join me. General McKenzie executed this with courage and skill, attacking a force of the enemy on the White Oak road, and driving it toward Petersburg. He then countermarched, and joined me oh the White Oak road just as the Fifth Corps advanced to the attack, and I directed him to swing round with the right of the infantry and gain possession of the Ford road at the crossing of Hatcher s Run. The Fifth Corps, on reaching the White Oak road, made a left wheel, and burst on the enemy s left flank and rear like a tornado, and pushed rapidly on, orders having been given that if the ene my was routed there should be no halt to re-form broken lines. As stated before, the firing of the Fifth Corps was the signal to General Merritt to assault, which was promptly responded to, and the works of the enemy were soon carried at several points by our brave cavalrymen. The enemy were driven from their strong line of works and completely routed, the Fifth Corps doubling up their left flank in confusion, and the cavalry of General Merritt dashing on to the White Oak road, capturing their artillery and turning it upon them and riding into their broken ranks, so demoral ized them, that they made no serious stand after their line was carried, but took to flight in disorder. Between 5,000 and 6,000 prisoners fell into our hands, arid the fugitives were driven westward, and were pursued until long after dark, by Merritt s and McKenzie s cavalry, for a distance of six miles. During this attack I again became dissatisfied with General Warren. During the engagement, portions of his line gave way when not exposed to a heavy fire, and simply for want of confidence on the part of the troops, which General Warren did not exert himself to inspire. I therefore relieved him from the command of the Fifth Corps, authority for this action having been sent to me before the battle, unsolicited. When the pursuit was given up, I directed General Griffin, who had been ordered to assume com- 584 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. mand of the Fifth Corps, to collect his troops at once, march two divisions back to Gravelly Church, and put them into position at right angles to the White Oak road, facing toward Petersburg, while Bartlett s division, Griffin s old, covered the Ford road to Hatcher s Run. General Merritt s cavalry went into camp on the widow Gilliam s plantation, and General McKenzie took position on the Ford road, at the crossing of Hatcher s. Run. I cannot speak too highly of the conduct of the troops in this battle, and of the gallantry of their commanding officers, who appeared to realize that the success of the campaign and fate of Lee s army depended upon it. They merit the thanks of the country, and reward of the Government. To Generals Griffin, Ayres, Bartlett, and Crawford, of the Fifth Corps, and to Generals Merritt, Ouster, Devin, and McKenzie, of the cavalry, great credit is due; and to their subordinate commanders they will undoubtedly award the praise which is due to them for the hearty co-operation, bravery, and ability, which were everywhere displayed. At daylight on the morning of April 2d, General Miles s division of the Second Corps reported to me, coming over from the Boydtovvn plank-road. I ordered it to move up the White Oak road, toward Petersburg, and attack the enemy at the intersection of that with the Claiborne road, Avhere he was in position in heavy force, and I followed General Miles immediately, with two divisions of the Fifth Corps. Miles forced the enemy from this position, and pursued with great zeal, pushing him across Hatcher s Run, and following him upon the road to Sutherland s Depot. On the north side of the Run I overtook Miles, who was anxious to attack, and had a very fine and spirited division. I gave him permission ; but about this time General Humphreys came up, and receiving notice from General Meade that Gene ral Humphreys would take command of Miles s division, I relinquished it at once, and facing the Fifth Corps by the rear. I afterward regretted giving up this division, as I believe the enemy could at that time have been crushed at Sutherland s Depot. I returned to Five Forks, and marched out on the Ford road, toward Hatcher s Run. The cavalry had in the mean time been sent westward to cross Hatch er s Run, and break up the enemy s cavalry, which had collected in con siderable force north of that stream, but they would not stand to fight, and our cavalry pursued them in a direction due north, to the Namozine road. Crossing Hatcher s Run with the Fifth Corps, the Southside Railroad was struck at Ford s Depot, meeting no opposition, and the Fifth Corps inarched rapidly toward Sutherland s Depot, in flank and rear of the enemy oppos ing Miles. As he approached that point, the force of the enemy lied before the Fifth Corps could reach them, retreating along the main road by the Appomattox River, the cavalry and Crawford s division of the Fifth Corps engaging them slightly about dusk. On the morning of the 3d our cavalry took up the pursuit, routing the enemy s cavalry, and capturing many prisoners. The enemy s infantry was encountered at Deep Creek, where a severe fight took place. The Fifth Corps followed up the cavalry rapidly, picking up many prisoners, five pieces of abandoned artillery, and a number of wagons. The Fifth Corps, with Crook s division of cavalry, MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN S REPORT. 585 encamped that night (the 4th) at Deep Creek, on the Namozine road, neither of these commands having been engaged during the day. On the morning of the 4th, General Crook was ordered to strike the Danville Railroad, between Jettersville and Burk s Station, and then move up toward Jettersville. The Fifth Corps moved rapidly to that point, as I had learned from my scouts that the enemy were at Amelia Court-House, and everything indicated that they were collecting at that point. On arriving at Jettersville, about 5 o clock p. in., I learned without doubt that Lee and his whole army were at Amelia Court-House. The Fifth Corps was at once ordered to intrench, with a view of hold ing Jettersville until the main army could come up. It seems to me that this was the only chance the Army of Northern Virginia had to save itself, which might have been done had General Lee promptly attacked and driven back the comparatively small force opposed to him, and pursued his march to Burkesville Junction. A dispatch from General Lee s chief com missary at Danville and Lynchburgh, requiring 200,000 rations to be sent to meet the army at Burkesville, was here intercepted. So soon as I found that the entire army of the enemy was concentrated at Amelia Court- House, I forwarded promptly all the information I had obtained to General Meado and the Lieutenant-General. On the morning of April 5th, General Crook was directed to send General Davies s brigade to make a recon- noissance to Paine s Cross-roads on our left and front, and ascertain if the enemy were making any movement toward that flank to escape. General Davies struck a train of one hundred and eighty wagons, escorted by a considerable force of the enemy s cavalry, which he defeated, capturing live pieces of artillery. He destroyed the wagons, and brought in a largo number of prisoners. Gregg s and Smith s brigades of the Second Divi sion were sent out to support Davies, and some heavy lighting ensued the enemy having sent a strong force of infantry to attack and cut off Davies s brigade, which attempt was unsuccessful. During the afternoon, and after the arrival of the Second Corps at Jettersville, which General Meade requested me to put in position, he being 511, the enemy demonstrated strongly in front of Jettersville against Smith s and Gregg s divisions of Crook s cavalry, but no serious attack was made. Early on the morning of April 6th, General Crook was ordered to move to the left to Deatonsville followed by Custer s and Devin s divisions of General Merritt s command. The Fifth Corps had been returned to the command of General Meade, at his request. I afterward regretted giving up the corps. When near Deatonsville, the enemy s trains were discovered moving in the direction of Burkesville or Farmville, escorted by heavy masses of infantry and cavalry, and it soon became evident that the whole of Lee s army was attempting to make its escape. Crook was at once ordered to attack the trains, and, if the enemy was too strong, one of the divisions would pass him while he held fast and pressed the enemy, and attack a point further on, and this division was ordered to do the same, and so on, alternating, and this system of attack would enable us finally to strike some weak point. This result was obtained just south of Sailor s Creek, 586 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and on the high ground over that stream. Ouster took the road, and, Crook and Devin coming up to his support, sixteen pieces of artillery were captured, and about four hundred wagons destroyed, and many prisoners were taken, and three divisions of the enemy s infantry were cut off from the line of retreat. Meantime Colonel Stagg, commanding the Michigan Brigade of the First Division, was held at a point about two and a half miles south of Deatonsville, and with this force a section of Miller s bat tery, which shelled the trains with excellent effect, while Colonel Stagg demonstrated to attack them, thus keeping a large force of the enemy from moving against the rest of the cavalry, and holding them until the arrival of the Sixth Corps, which was marching to report to me. I felt so strongly the necessity of holding this large force of the enemy, that I gave permission to General Merritt to order Colonel Stagg s brigade to make a mounted charge against their lines, which was most gallantly done, the men leaving many of their horses dead almost up to the enemy s works. On the arrival of the head of the Sixth Corps, the enemy commenced withdrawing, Major-General Wright was ordered to put Seymour s division into position at ouce and advance and carry the road, which was done at a point about two miles or two miles and a half from Deatonsville. As soon as the road was in our possession, Wright was directed to push General Seymour on, the enemy falling back, skirmishing briskly. Their resistance growing stubborn, a halt was called to get up Wheaton s division of the Sixth Corps, which went into position on the left of the road, Seymour being on the right. Wheaton was ordered to guide right, with his right connecting with Seymour s left, and resting on the road. I still felt the great importance of pushing the enemy, and was unwilling to wait for the First Division of the Sixth Corps to get up. I therefore ordered an advance, sending word to General Humphreys, who was on the road to our right, and requesting him to push on, as I felt confident we could break up the enemy. It was apparent, from the absence of artillery fire, and the manner in which they gave way when pressed, that the force of the enemy opposed to us was a heavy rear-guard. The enemy was driven until our lines reached Sailor s Creek, and from the north bank I could see our cavalry on the high ground above the creek and south of it, and the long line of smoke from the burning wagons. A cavalryman, who in a charge cleared the enemy s works and came through their lines, reported to me what was in their front. I regret that I have forgotten the name of this gallant young soldier. As soon as General Wright could get his artil lery into position, I ordered the attack to be made on the left, and sent Colonel Stagg s brigade of cavalry to strike and flank the extreme right of the enemy s line. The attack by the infantry was not executed exactly as I had directed, and a portion of our line in tho open gronnd was broken by the terrible fire of the enemy, who were in position on commanding ground south of the creek. This attack by Wheaton s and Seymour s divisions was splendid, but no more than I had reason to expect from the gallant Sixth Corps. The cav- MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN S REPORT. 587 airy in rear of the enemy attacked simultaneously, and the enemy, after a gallant resistance, were completely surrounded, and nearly all threw down their arms and surrendered. General Ewell, commanding the enemy s forces, and a number of other general officers, fell into our hands, and a very large number of prisoners. I have never ascertained exactly how many prisoners were taken in this battle. Most of them fell into the hands of the cavalry, but they are no more entitled to claim them than the Sixth Corps, to which command equal credit is due for the good results of this engagement." Both the cavalry and the Sixth Corps encamped south of Sailor s Creek that night, having followed up the small remnant of the enemy s forces for several miles. In reference to the participation of the Sixth Corps in this action, I desire to add that the Lieutenant-General had notified me that this corps would report to me. Major McClellan and Lieutenant-Colonel Franklin, of General Wright s staff, had successively been sent forward to report the progress of the corps in coming up, and on the arrival of Major-General Wright he reported his corps to me, and from that time until after the battle received my orders and obeyed them ; but after the engagement was over, and General Meade had communicated with General Wright, the latter declined to make his report to me until ordered to do so by the Lieuteriant-General. On the 7th instant, the pursuit was continued early in the morning by the cavalry, General Crook in the advance. It was discovered that the enemy had not been cut off by the Army of the James, and under the belief that he would attempt to escape on the Danville road, through Prince Edward Court-House, General Merritt was ordered to move his two divisions to that point, passing around the left of the Army of the James. General Crook continued the direct pursuit, encountering the main body of the enemy at Farmville, and again on the north side of the Appomat tox, when the enemy s trains were attacked by General Gregg, and a sharp fight with the enemy s infantry ensued, in which General Gregg was unfor tunately captured. On arriving at Prince Edward Court-House, I found General McKenzie, with his division of cavalry from the Army of the James, and ordered him to cross the bridge on the Buffalo River, and make a reconnoissance to Prospect Station, on the Lynchburgh Railroad, and ascertain if the enemy were moving past that point. Meantime I heard from General Crook that the enemy had crossed to the north side of the Appomattox, and General Merritt was then moved on and encamped at Buffalo Creek, and General Crook was ordered to recross the Appomattox and encamp at Prospect Station. On the morning of the 8th Merritt and McKenzie continued the march to Prospect Station, and Merritt s and Crook s commands then moving on to Appomattox Depot, a point on the Lynchburgh Railroad, five miles south of Appomattox Conrt-IIouse. Shortly after the march com menced, Sergeant White, one of my scouts, notified me that there were four trains of cars at Appomattox Depot, loaded with supplies for General Lee s army. Generals Merritt and Crook were at once notified, and tho 588 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. command pushed on briskly for twenty-eight miles. General Ouster had the advance, and, on nearing the depot, skillfully threw a force in rear of the trains and captured them. Without halting a moment he pushed on, driving the enemy (who had reached the depot about the same time as our cavalry) in the direction of Appomattox Court-House, capturing many prisoners and twenty-five pieces of artillery, a hospital train, and a large park of wagons. General Devin coining up, went in on the right of Ous ter. The fighting continued till after dark, and the enemy being driven to Appomattox Court-House, I at once notified the Lieutenant-General, and sent word to Generals Ord and Gibbon, of the Army of the James, and General Griffin, commanding the Fifth Corps, who were in the rear, that, if they pressed on, there was now no means of escape for the enemy, who had reached " the last ditch." During the night, although we knew that the remnant of Lee s army was in our front, we held fast with the cavalry to what we had gained, and ran the captured trains back along the railroad to a point where they would be protected by our infantry that was coming up. The Twenty-fourth and Fifth Corps, and one division of the Twenty -fifth Corps, arrived about daylight on the 9th at Appomattox Depot. After consulting with General Ord, who was in command of these corps, I rode to the front, near Appomattox Court-House. and just as the enemy in heavy force was attacking the cavalry with the intention of breaking through our lines, I directed the cavalry, which was dismounted, to fall back, gradually resisting the enemy, so as to give time for the infantry to form its lines and march to the attack, and, when this was done, to move off to the right flank and mount. This was done, and the enemy discontinued his attack as soon as he caught sight of our infantry. I moved briskly around the left of the enemy s line of battle, which was falling back rapidly (heavily pressed by the advance of the infantry), and was about to charge the trains and the confused masses of the enemy when a white flag was presented to General Ouster, who had the advance, and who sen-t the information to me at once that the enemy desired to sur render. Biding over to the left at Appomattox Court-House, I met Major-Gen eral Gordon, of the rebel service, and Major-General "Wilcox. General Gordon requested a suspension of hostilities, pending negotiations for a surrender, then being held between Lieutenant-General Grant and General Lee. I notified him that I desired to prevent the unnecessary effusion of blood, but as there was nothing definitely settled in the correspondence, and as an attack had been made on my lines with the view to escape, under the impression our force was only cavalry, I must have some assurance of an intended surrender. This General Gordon gave by saying that there was no doubt of the surrender of General Lee s army. I then separated from him, with an agreement to meet these officers again, in half an hour, at Appomattox Court-House. At the specified time, in company with General Ord, who commanded the infantry, I again met this officer, and also Lieutenant-General Longstreet, and received from them the same MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 589 assurance, and hostilities ceased until the arrival of Lieutenant-General Grant. I am, Sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, P. H. SHEBIDAN, Major-General. Brevet Major-General JOHN A. RAWLINS, Chief of Staff. We add General Sherman s own story of his great march through Georgia and the Carolinas. FROM CHATTANOOGA TO ATLANTA. HEAD-QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION or THE MISSISSIPPI, ) ATLANTA, GA., September 15, 1864. ) GENERAL: I have heretofore, from day to day, by telegraph, kept the War Department and the General-in-Chief advised of the progress of events; but now it becomes necessary to review the whole campaign which has resulted in the capture and occupation of the city of Atlanta. On the 14th day of March, 1864, at Memphis, Tennessee, I received notice from General Grant, at Nashville, that he had been commissioned Lieuten- ant-General, and Commander-in-Chief of the armies of the United States, which would compel him to go east, and that I had been appointed to suc ceed him as commander of the Division of the Mississippi, He summoned me to Nashville for a conference, and I took my departure the same day, and reached Nashville, via Cairo, on the 17th, and accompanied him on his journey eastward as far as Cincinnati. We had a full and complete understanding of the policy and plans for the ensuing campaign, covering a vast area of country, my part of which extended from Chattanooga to Vicksburg. I returned to Nashville, and on the 25th began a tour of inspection, visiting Athens, Decatur, Hnntsville, and Larkin s Ferry^ Alabama ; Chattanooga, London, and Knoxville, Tennessee. During this visit I had interviews with Major-General McPherson, commanding the Army of the Tennessee, at Huntsville ; Major-General Thomas, commanding the Army of the Cumberland, at Chattanooga; and Major-General Scho- field, commanding the Army of the Ohio, at Knoxville. We arranged in general terms the lines of communication to be guarded, the strength of the several columns and garrisons, and fixed the 1st day of May as the time when all things should be ready. Leaving these officers to complete the details of organization and preparation, I returned to Nashville on tho 2d of April, and gave my personal attention to the question of supplies. I found the depots at Nashville abundantly supplied, and the railroads in very fair order, and that steps had already been taken to supply cars and locomotives to fill the new and increased demands of the service ; but the impoverished condition of the inhabitants of East Tennessee, more especially in the region round about Chattanooga, had forced the com manding officers of posts to issue food to the people. I was compelled to stop this, for a simple calculation showed that ft single railroad could not 590 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. feed the armies and the people too, and of course the army had the prefer ence; but I endeavored to point the people to new channels of supply. At first my orders operated very hardly, but the prolific soil soon afforded early vegetation, and ox-wagons hauled meat and bread from Kentucky, so that no actual suffering resulted; and I trust that those who clamored at the cruelty and hardships of the day have already seen in the result a per fect justification of my course. At once the storehouses at Chattanooga began to fill, so that by the 1st of May a very respectable quantity of food and forage had been accumulated there, and from that day to this stores have been brought forward in wonderful abundance, with a surplus that has enabled me to feed the army well during^ the whole period of time, although the enemy has succeeded more than once in breaking our road for many miles at different points. During the month of April I received from Lieutenant-General Grant a map, with a letter of instructions, which is now at Nashville, but a copy will be procured, and made part of this report. Subsequently I received from him notice that he would move from his camps about Culpepper, Virginia, on the 5th of May, and he wanted me to do the same from Chattanooga. My troops were still dispersed, and the cavalry, so necessary to our success, was yet collecting horses at Nicholasville, Kentucky, and Columbus, Tennessee. On the 27th of April I put all the troops in motion toward Chattanooga, and on the next day went there in person. My aim and purpose was to make the Army of the Cumberland fifty thousand men, that of the Tennessee thirty-five thousand, and that of the Ohio fifteen thousand. These figures were approximated, but never reached, the Army of the Tennessee failing to receive certain divisions that were still kept on the Mississippi, resulting from the unfavorable issue of the Red River expedition. But on the 1st of May the effective strength of the several armies for offensive purposes was about as follows: ARMY OF THE CUMBERLAND MAJOR-GENERAL THOMAS COMMANDING. Infantry 54,568 Artillery 2,377 Cavalry 3,828 Total 60,773 Guns 130 ARMY OF THE TENNESSEE MAJOR-GENERAL McPHERSON COMMANDING. Infantry 22,437 Artillery 1,404 Cavalry 624 Total 24,465 Guns . . 96 MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 591 ARMY OF THE OHIO MAJOR-GENERAL SCHOFIELD COM MANDING. Infantry 11,183 Artillery 679 Cavalry. 1,697 Total 13,559 Guns.. 28 Grand aggregate number of troops 98,797 Guns 254 About these figures have been maintained during the campaign, the number of men joining from furlough and hospitals about compensating for the loss in battle, and from sickness. These armies were grouped on the morning of May 6th as follows: That of the Cumberland at and near Ringgold ; that of the Tennessee at Gordon s Mill, on the Chickamauga ; ^nd that of the Ohio near Red Clay, on the Georgia line, north of Dalton. The enemy lay in and about Dalton, superior to me in cavalry (Wheeler s), and with three corps of infantry and artillery, viz. : Ilardee s, Hood s, and Folk s, the whole commanded by General Joseph Johnston, of the Confederate army. I estimated the cavalry under Wheeler at about ten thousand, and the infantry and artillery at about forty-five thousand or fifty thousand men. To strike Dalton in front was impracticable, as it was covered by an inaccessible ridge known as the Rocky Face, through which was a pass between Tunnel Hill and Dalton, known as the Buzzard Roost, through which lay the railroad and wagon-road. It was narrow, well obstructed by abatis, and flooded by water caused by dams across Mill Creek. Bat teries also commanded it in its whole length, from the spurs on either side, and more especially from a ridge at the further end, like a traverse, directly across its debouche. It was therefore necessary to turn it. On its north front the enemy had a strong line of works behind Mill Creek, so that my attention was at once directed to the south. In that direction I found Snake Creek Gap, affording me a practicable way to reach Resaca, a point on the enemy s railroad line of communication, eighteen (18) miles below Dalton. Accordingly I ordered General McPherson to move rapidly from his position at Gordon s Mill, via Ship s Gap, Villanow, and Snake Creek Gap, directly on Resaca, or the railroad at any point below Dalton, and to make a bold attack. After breaking the railroad well, he was ordered to fall back to a strong defensive position near Snake Creek, and stand ready to fall upon the enemy s flank when he retreated, as I judged he would. During the movement, General Thomas was to make a strong feint of attack in front, while General SchoHeld pressed down from the north. General Thomas moved from Ringgold on the 7th, occupying Tunnel Hill facing the Buzzard Roost Gap, meeting with little opposition, and pushing the enemy s cavalry well through the Gap ; General McPhersou 592 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. reached Snake Creek Gap on the 8th, completely surprising a brigade of cavalry, which was coming to watch and hold it; and on the 9th General Schofield pushed down close on Dalton from the north, Avhilst General Thomas renewed his demonstration against Buzzard Roost and Rocky Faced Ridge, pushing it almost to a battle. One division, General New ton s of the Fourth Corps, General Howard s, carried the Ridge, and, turn ing south towards Dalton, found the crest too narrow, and too well pro tected by rock epaulments, to enable him to reach the gorge or pass. Another division, General Geary s, of the Twentieth Corps, General Hooker s, also made a bold push for the summit, to the south of the pass, but the narrow road as it approached the summit was too strongly held by the enemy to be carried. This, however, was only designed as a demon stration, and worked well, for General McPherson was thereby enabled to march within a mile of Resaca almost unopposed. He found Resaca too strong to be carried by assault, and although there were many good roads leading from north to south, endangering his left flank from the direction of Dalton, he could find no road by which he could rapidly cross over to the railroad, and accordingly he fell back and took strong position near the west end of Snake Creek Gap. I was somewhat disappointed at the result, still appreciated the advantage gained, and on the 10th ordered General Thomas to send General Hooker s corps to Snake Creek Gap in support of General McPherson, and to follow with another corps, the Fourteenth, General Palmer s, leaving General Howard with the Fourth Corps to continue to threaten Dalton in front, whilst the rest of the army moved rapidly through Snake Creek Gap. On the same day General Schofield was ordered to follow by the same route, and on the llth the whole army, excepting General Howard s corps, and some cavalry left to watch Dalton, was in motion on the west side of Rocky Faced Ridge for Snake Creek Gap and Resaca. The next day, we moved against Resaca, General McPherson on the direct road, preceded by General Kilpatrick s cavalry ; General Thomas to come up on his left, and General Schofield on his. General Kilpatrick met and drove the enemy s cavalry from a cross-road within two miles of Re saca, but received a wound which disabled him and gave the command of his brigade to Colonel Murray, who, according to his orders, wheeled out* of the road, leaving General McPherson to pass. General McPherson struck the enemy s infantry pickets near Resaca, and drove them within their for tified lines and occupied a ridge of " bald " hills, his right on the Oostanaula, about two miles below the railroad bridge, and his left abreast the town. General Thomas came up on his left, facing Camp Creek, and General Scho field broke his way through the dense forest to General Thomas s left. Johnston had left Dalton, and General Howard entered it and pressed his rear. Nothing saved Johnston s army at Resaca but the impracticable na ture of the country, which made the passage of troops across the Valley almost impossible. This fact enabled his army to reach Resaca from Dal ton, along the comparatively good roads constructed beforehand, partly from the topographical nature of the country, and partly from the foresight MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 593 of the rebel chief. At all events, on 14th of May we found the rebel avmy in a strong position behind Gamp Creek, occupying the forts at Resaca, and his right on some high chestnut hills to the north of the town. I at once ordered a pontoon bridge to be laid across the Oostanaula, at Lay s Ferry, in the direction of Calhoun ; a division of the Sixteenth Corps, commanded by General Sweeney, to cross and threaten Calhoun ; also, the cavalry di vision of General Garrard to move from its position at Villanow down toward Rome, to cross the Oostanaula and break the railroad below Cal houn and above Kingston, if possible; and with the main army I pressed against Resaca at all points. General McPherson got across Cauip Creek near its mouth, and made a lodgment close up to the enemy s works, on hills that commanded, with short-range artillery, the railroad and trestle bridges; and General Thomas, pressing close along Camp Creek Valley, threw General Hooker s corps across the head of the creek to the main Dalton road, and down to it close on Resaca. General Schofield came up close on his left, and a heavy battle ensued during the afternoon and evening of the 15th, during which General Hooker drove the enemy from several strong hills, captured a four-gun battery and many prisoners. That night, Johnston escaped, retreating south across the Oostanaula, and the next morning we entered the town in time to save the road bridge, but the railroad bridge was burned. The whole army started in pursuit, General Thomas directly on his heels, General McPherson by Lay s Ferry, and General Schofield by obscure roads to the left. We found in Resaca another four-gun battery and a good lot of stores. General McPherson, during the 16th, got across at Lay s Ferry. Gene ral Thomas had to make some additional bridges at Resaca, but General Schofield had more trouble, and made a wide circuit to the left by Fue s and Field s Ferries across the Connasauga and Coosawattee Rivers, which form the Oostanaala. On the 17th, all the armies moved south by as many different roads as we could find, and General Thomas had sent, by my or ders, a division, General Jeif. C. Davis, along the west bank of Oostanuula, to Rome. Near Adairsville, we again found signs of the rebel army, and of a purpose to fight, and, about sunset of that day, General Newton s division, in the advance, had a pretty sharp encounter with his rear-guard ; but the next morning he was gone, and we pushed on through Kingston to a point four miles beyond, where we found him again in force, on ground compara tively open, and well adapted to a grand battle. We made the proper dis positions General Schofield approaching Cassville from the north, to which point General Thomas had also directed General Hooker s corps; and I had drawn General McPherson s army from Woodland to Kingston, to be in close support. On the 19th, the enemy was in force about Cassville, with strong forts, but, as our troops converged on him, again he retreated in the night-time across the Etowah River, burning the road and railroad bridges near Car- tersville, but leaving us in complete possession of the most valuable country above the Etowah River. 38 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Holding General Thomas s army about Cassville, General McPhei sun s about Kingston, and General Schofield s at Cassville depot and toward tho Etowah bridge, I gave the army a few days 1 rest, and also time to bring for ward supplies for the next stage of the campaign. In the mean time, Gene ral Jeff. C. Davis had got possession of Rome, with its forts, some eight or ten guns of heavy caliber, and its valuable mills and foundries. We also secured possession of two good bridges across the Etowah River, near Kingston, giving us the means of crossing toward the south. Satisfied that the enemy could and would hold us in check at the Allatoona Pass, I re solved, without even attempting it in front, to turn it by a circuit to tho right, and having supplied our wagons for twenty days absence from our railroad, I left a garrison at Rome and Kingston, and, on the 23d, put tho army in motion for "Dallas." General McPherson crossed the Etowah at the mouth of Conasene Creek, near Kingston, and moved for his position to the south of Dallas, via Van Wert. General Davis s division moved directly from Rome for Dallas by Van Wert. General Thomas took the road via Euharlee and Burnt Hickory, while General Schofield moved by other roads more to the east, aiming to come up on General Thomas s left. General Thomas s head of column skirmished with the enemy s cavalry about Burnt Hickory, and captured a courier with a letter of General John ston s, showing that he had detected the move, and was preparing to meet us about Dallas. The country was very rugged, mountainous, and densely wooded, with few and obscure roads. On the 25th of May, General Thomas was moving from Burnt Hickory for Dallas, his troops on three roads, General Hooker having the advance. When he approached the Pumpkin Vine Creek, on the main Dallas road, he found a respectable force of the enemy s cavalry at a bridge to his left. He rapidly pushed them across the creek, saving the bridge, though on fire, and followed out eastward about two miles, where he first .encountered infantry, whose pickets he drove some distance, until he encountered the enemy s line of battle, and his leading division, General Geary s, had a severe en counter. General Hooker s other two divisions were on other roads, and. he ordered them in, although the road he was then following, by reason of the presence of the enemy, led him north of Dallas about four miles. It was near four o clock, p. M., before General Hooker got his whole corps well in hand, when he deployed two divisions, and, by my order, made a bold push to secure possession of a point known as the "New Hope" Church, where three roads meet from Ack worth, Marietta, and Dallas. Here a hard battle was fought, and the enemy was driven back to New Hope Church ; but, having hastily thrown up some parapets, and a stormy, dark night having set in. General Hooker was unable to drive the enemy from those roads. By the next morning, we found the enemy well intrenched, substantially in front of the road lending from Dallas to Marietta. We were, consequently, compelled to make dispositions on a larger scale. General McPherson was moved up to Dallas, General Thomas was deployed against New Hope Church, and General Schofield was directed toward our left, 80 MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 595 as to strike and turn the enemy s right. General Garrard s cavalry operated with General McPherson, and General Stoneman with General Schofield. General McCook looked to our rear. Owing to the difficult nature of the ground and dense forests, it took us several days to deploy close to the enemy, when I resolved gradually to work toward our left, and, when all things were ready, to push for the railroad east of AHatoona. In making our development before the enemy about New Hope, many severe, sharp encounters occurred between parts of the army, details of which will be given at length in the reports of subor dinate commanders. On the 28th, General McPherson was on the point of closing to his left on General Thomas, in front of New Hope Church, to enable me with the rest of the army to extend still more to the left and to envelop the enemy s right, when suddenly the enemy made a bold and dar ing assault on him at Dallas. Fortunately our men had erected good breastworks, and gave the enemy a terrible and bloody repulse. After a few days delay, for effect, I renewed my orders to General McPherson to move to his left about five miles, and occupy General Thomas s position in front of New Hope Church, and Gene rals Thomas and Schofield were ordered to move a corresponding distance to their left. This move was effected with ease and safety on the 1st of June, and, by pushing our left well around, we occupied all the roads lead ing back to AHatoona and Ackworth ; after which, I pushed General Stone- man s cavalry rapidly into Allatoona, at the east end of the Pass, and Gene ral Garrard s cavalry around by the rear to the west end of the Pass. Both of these commands reached the points designated without trouble, and we thereby accomplished our real purpose of turning the Allatoona Pass. Ordering the railroad bridge across the Etowah to be at once rebuilt, I continued working by the left, and on the 4th of June had resolved to leave Johnston in his intrenched position at New Hope Church, and move to tho railroad about Ackworth, when he abandoned his intrenchments, after which we moved readily to Ackworth, and reached the railroad on the 6th of June, i at once examined in person the Allatoona Pass and found it admirably adapted to our use as a secondary base, and gave the necessary orders for its defense and garrison, and, as soon as the railroad bridge was finished across the Etowah, our stores came forward to our camps by rail. At Ackworth, General Blair overtook us on the 8th of June with two divisions of. the Seventeenth Corps that had been on furlough, and one brigade of cavalry, Colonel Long s, of General Garrard s division, which had been awaiting horses at Columbia. This accession of force about com pensated for our losses in battle and the detachment left at Resaca, Rome, Kingston, and Allatoona. On the 9th of June, our communications in the rear being secure and supplies ample, we moved forward to Big Shanty. Kenesaw, the bold and striking Twin Mountain, lay before us, with a high range of chestnut hills trending off to the northeast, terminating to our view in another peak called Brushy Mountain. To our right was the smaller hill called Pine Mountain, and beyond it in the distance Lost Moun- 596 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tain. All these, though links in a continuous chain, present a sharp coni cal appearance, prominent in the vast landscape that presents itself from any of the hills that abound in that region. Kenesaw, Pine Mountain, and Lost Mountain form a triangle, Pine Mountain the apex, and Kenesaw and Lost Mountain the base, covering perfectly the town of Marietta and the railroad back to the Chattahoochie. On each of these peaks the enemy had his signal-stations. The summits were covered with batteries, and the spurs were alive with men, busy in felling trees, digging pita, and preparing for the grand struggle impending. The scene was enchanting too beautiful to be disturbed by the harsh clamors of war ; but the Chattahoochie lay beyond, and I had to reach it. On approaching close to the enemy, I found him occupying a line full two miles long, more than he could hold with his force. General McPherson was ordered to move toward Marietta, his right on the railroad, General Thomas on Kenesaw and Pine Mountain, and General Schofield off toward Lost Mountain ; General Garrard s cavalry on the left, General Stoneman s on the right, and General McCook looking to our rear and communications*, Our depot was at Big Shanty. By the llth of June our lines were close up, and we made dispositions to break the line between Kenesaw and Pine Mountains. General Hooker was on its right and front, General Howard on its left and front, and General Palmer between it and the railroad. During n sharp cannon ading from General Howard s right or General Hooker s left, General Polk was killed on the 14th, and on the morning of the 15th Pine Moun tain was found abandoned by the enemy. Generals Thomas and Scho field advanced, and found him again strongly intrenched along the line of rugged hills connecting Kenesaw and Lost Mountains. At the same time General McPherson advanced his line, gaining substantial advantage on the left. Pushing our operations on the center as vigorously as the nature of the ground would permit, I had again ordered an assault on the center, when, on the 17th, the enemy abandoned Lost Mountain and the long line of admirable breastworks connecting it with Kenesaw. We continued to press at all points, skirmishing in dense forests of timber and across most difficult ravines, until we found him again strongly posted and intrenched, with Kenesaw as his salient, his right wing thrown back to cover Marietta, and his left behind Nose s Creek, covering his railroad back to the Chatta hoochie. This enabled him to contract his lines and strengthen them ac cordingly. From Kenesaw he could look down upon our camps and observe every movement, and his batteries thundered away, but did us little harm, on account of the extreme hight, the shot and shell passing harmlessly over our heads as we lay close up against his mountain town. During our operations about Kenesaw the weather was villainously bad, and the rain fell almost continuously for three weeks, rendering our narrow wooded roads mere mud gulleys, so that a general movement would have been impossible ; but our men daily worked closer and closer to the in trenched foo, and kept up an incessant picket firing, galling to him. Every MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 597 opportunity was taken to advance our general lines closer and closer to the enemy. General McPherson watching the enemy on Kenesaw and working hia left forward, General Thomas swinging as it were on a grand left wheel, his left on Kenesaw connecting with General McPherson, and General Scho- field all the time working to the south and east along the old Sandtown road. On the 22d General Hooker had advanced his line, with General Schofield on his right, the enemy, Hood s corps, with detachments from the others, suddenly sallied and attacked. The blow fell mostly on General "Williams s division of General Hooker s corps, and a brigade of General Hascall s division of General Schofield s army. The ground was comparatively open, and although the enemy drove in the skirmish lines an advanced regiment of General Scholield, sent out purposely to hold him in check until some preparations could be completed for his reception yet when he reached our line of battle he received a ter rible repulse, leaving his dead, wounded, and many prisoners in our hands. This is known as the affair of the "Kulp House." Although inviting the enemy at all times to commit such mistakes, I could not hope for him to repeat them after the examples of Dallas and the "Kulp House," and upon studying the ground I had no alternative in my turn but to assault his lines or turn his position. Either course had its difficulties and dangers. And I perceived that the enemy and our own officers had settled down into a conviction that I would not assault fortified lines. All looked to me to " outflank." An army to be efficient must not set tle down to one single mode of offense, but must be prepared to execute any plan which promises success. I waited, therefore, for the moral effect, to make a successful assault against the enemy behind his breast works, and resolved to attempt it at that point where success would give the largest fruits of victory. The general point selected was the left center ; because, if I could thrust a strong head of column through at that point, by pushing it boldly and rapidly two and one-half miles, it would reach the railroad below Marietta, cut off the enemy s right and center from its line of retreat, and then, by turning on either part, it could be overwhelmed and destroyed. Therefore, on the 24th of June, I ordered that an assault should be made at two points south of Kenesaw on the 27th, giving three days notice for preparation and reconnoissance ; one to be made near Little Kenesaw by General McPherson s troops, and the other about a mile further south by General Thomas s troops. The hour was fi^ed, and all the details given in Field Orders, No. 28, of June 24. On the 27th of June the two assaults were made at the time and in the manner prescribed, and both failed, costing us many valuable lives, among them those of Generals Ilarker and McCook ; Colonel Rice and others badly wounded. Our aggregate loss was near three thousand, while we inflicted compa ratively little loss on the enemy, who lay behind his well-formed breast works. Failure as it was, and for which I assume the entire responsibility, I yet claim it produced good fruits, as it demonstrated to General Johns ton that I would assault, and that boldly, and we also gained and held 598 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. ground so close to the enemy s parapets that he could not show a head above them. It would not do to rest long under the influence of a mistake or failure, and accordingly General Schofield was working strong on the enemy s left; and on the 1st of July I ordered General McPherson to be relieved by General Garrard s cavalry in front of Kenesaw, and to rapidly throw his whole army by the right down to and threaten Nickajack Creek and Tur ner s Ferry across the Chattahoochie, and I also pushed Stonernari s cavalry to the river below Turner s. General McPherson commenced his movement the night of July 2d, and the effect was instantaneous. The next morning Kenesaw was aban doned, and with the first dawn of day I saw our skirmishers appear on the mountain-top. General Thomas s whole line was then moved forward to the railroad and turned south in pursuit toward the Chattahoochie. In person I entered Marietta at half-past eight in the morning, just as the enemy s cavalry vacated the place. General Logan s corps of General McPherson s army, which had not moved far, was ordered back into Marietta by the main road, and General McPherson and General Schofield were instructed to cross Nickajack and attack the enemy in flank and rear, and, if possible, to catch him in the confusion of crossing the Chatta hoochie ; but Johnston had foreseen and provided against all this, and had covered his movement we ll. He had intrenched a strong tete-du-pont at the Chattahoochie, with an advanced intrenched lino across the road at Smyrna camp-meeting ground, five miles from Marietta. Here General Thomas found him, his front covered by a good parapet, and his flanks behind the Nickajack and Rottenwood Creeks. Ordering a garrison for Marietta, and General Logan to join his own army near the mouth of Nickajack, I overtook General Thomas at Smyrna. On the 4th of July we pushed a strong skirmish line down the main road, capturing the entire line of the enemy s pits, and made strong demonstrations along Nickajack Creek and about Turner s Ferry. This had the desired effect, and the next morning the enemy was gone, and the army moved to the Chattahoochie, General Thomas s left flank resting on it near Paice s Ferry, General McPherson s right at the mouth of Nickajack, and General Schofield in reserve ; the enemy lay behind a line of unusual strength, covering the railroad and pontoon bridges and beyond the Chattahoochie. Heavy skirmishing along our whole front during the 5th demonstrated the strength of the enemy s position, which could alone be turned by crossing the main Chattahoochie River, a rapid and deep stream, only passable at that stage by means of bridges, except at one or two very difficult fords. To accomplish this result, I judged it would be more easy of execution before the enemy had made more thorough preparation or regained full confidence, and accordingly I ordered General Schofield across from his position on the Sandtown road to Smyrna camp-ground, and next to the Chattahoochie, near the mouth of Soap s Creek, and effect a lodgment on the east bank. This was most successfully and skillfully accomplished on 4;he 7th of July, General Schofield capturing a gun, completely surprising MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 599 the guard, laying a good pontoon-bridge and a trestle-bridge, and effecting a strong lodgment on high and commanding ground, with good roads lead ing to the east. At the same time, General Garrard moved rapidly on Roswell and destroyed the factories which had supplied the rebel armios with cloth for years. Over one of these, the woolen-factory, the nominal owner displayed the French flag, which was not respected, of course. A neutral, surely, is no better than one of our own citizens, and wo do not permit our own citizens to fabricate cloth for hostile uses. General Garrard was then ordered to secure the shallow ford at Ros well, and hold it until he could be relieved by infantry ; arid as I contem plated transferring the Army of the Tennessee from the extreme right to the left, I ordered General Thomas to send a division of his infantry, that was nearest up to Roswell, to hold the ford until General McPherson could send up a corps from the neighborhood of Nickajack. General Newton s division was sent, and held the ford until the arrival of General Dodge s corps, which was soon followed by General McPherson s whole army. About the same time General Howard had also built a bridge at Powers s Ferry ; two miles below, General Schofield had crossed over and taken a position on his right. Thus during the 9th we had secured three good and safe points of passage over the Chattahoochie, above the enemy, with good roads leading to Atlanta, and Johnston abandoned his tete-du-pont, burned his bridges, and left us undisputed masters north and west of the Chatta hoochie, at daylight of the 10th of July. This was one, if not the chief, object of the campaign, viz. : the advance ment of our lines from the Tennessee to the Chattahoochie ; but Atlanta lay before us only eight miles distant, and was too important a place in tho hands of an enemy to be left undisturbed with its magazines, stores, arsenals, workshops, foundries, &c., arid more especially its railroads, which converge there from the four great cardinal points. But the men had worked hard and needed rest, and we accordingly took a short spell. But, in anticipation of this contingency, I had collected a well-appointed force of cavalry, about two thousand strong, at Decatur, Alabama, with orders, on receiving notice by telegraph, to push rapidly south, cross the Coosa at the railroad bridge or the Ten Islands, and thence by the most direct routo to Opelika. There is but one stem of finished railroad connecting tho channels of trade and travel between Georgia and Alabama, and Missis sippi, which runs from Montgomery to Opelika, and my purpose was to break it up effectually, and thereby cut off Johnston s army from that source of supply and re-enforcement. General Rousseau, commanding the District of Tennessee, asked permis sion to command the expedition, and received it. As soon as Johnston was well across the Chattahoochie, and as I had begun to maneuver on Atlanta, I gave the requisite notice, and General Rousseau started punc tually on the 10th of July, lie fulfilled his orders and instructions to tho very letter, whipping the rebel General Clariton en route; ho passed through Talladega, and reached the railroad on the 16th, about twenty-five miles west of Opelika, and broke it well up to that place. Also three LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. miles of the branch toward Columbus and two toward West Point. Ho then turned north and brought his command safely to Marietta, arriving on the 22d, having sustained a trifling loss, not to exceed thirty men. The main armies remained quiet in their camps, on the Chattahoochie, until the 16th of July, but the time was employed in collecting stores at Allatoona. Marietta, and Vining s Station, strengthening the railroad guards and garrisons, and improving the piers, bridges, and roads leading across the river. General Stoneman s and McCook s cavalry had scouted well down the river to draw attention in that direction, and all things being ready for a general advance, I ordered it to commence on the 17th ; General Thomas to cross at Powers s and Paice s Ferry bridges, and to march by Buckhead; General Scholield was already across at the mouth of Soap s Creek, and to march by Cross Keys, and General McPherson to direct his course from Roswell straight against the Augusta road, at some point east of Decatur, near Stone Mountain. General Garrard s cavalry acted with General McPherson, and Generals Stoneman and McCook watched the river and roads below the railroad. On the 17th, the whole army advanced from their camps and formed a general line along the old Peach-tree road. Continuing on a general right-wheel, General McPherson reached the Augusta Railroad on the 18th, at a point seven miles east of Decatur, and, with General Garrard s cavalry and General Morgan L. Smith s infantry division of the Fifteenth Corps, broke up a section of about four miles, and General Schofield reached the town of Decatur. On the 19th, General McPherson turned along the railroad into Decatur, and General Schofield followed a road toward Atlanta, leading by Colonel Howard s house and the distillery, and General Thomas crossed Peach-tree Creek in force by numerous bridges in the face of the enemy s intrenched lines. All found the enemy in more or less force, and skirmished heavily. On the 20th, all the armies had closed in, converging toward Atlanta, but, as a gap existed between Generals Schofield and Thomas, two divisions of General Howard s corps of General Thomas s army were moved to the left to connect with General Schofield, leaving General Newton s division of the same corps on the Buckhead road. During the afternoon of the 20th, about four p. M., the enemy sallied from his works in force, and fell in line of battle against our right center, composed of General Newton s division of General Howard s corps, on the main Buckhead road ; of Gen eral Hooker s corps next south, and General Johnson s division of General Palmer s corps. The blow was sudden and somewhat unexpected, but General Newton had hastily covered his front by a line of rail-piles, which enabled him to meet and repulse the attack on him. General Hooker s whole corps was uncovered, and had to light on comparatively open ground, and it, too, after a very severe battle, drove the enemy back to his intrench- mcr.ts, and the action in front of General Johnston was comparatively light, that division being well intrenched. The enemy left on the field over five hundred dead, abont one thousand wounded, severely, seven stands of colors, and many prisoners. His loss could not have fallen short of five fihousand, whereas ours was covered by one thousand five hundred killed, MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 601 wounded, and missing ; the greater loss fell on General Hooker s corps, from its exposed condition. On the 21st, we felt the enemy in his intrenched position, which was found to crown the higlits overlooking the comparatively open ground of the valley of Peach-tree Creek, his right beyond the Augusta road to the east, and his left well toward Turner s Ferry on the Chattahoochie, at a general distance from Atlanta of about four miles. On the morning of the 22d, somewhat to my surprise, this whole line was found abandoned, and I confess I thought the enemy had resolved to give us Atlanta without further contest ; but General Johnston had been relieved of his command, and General Hood substituted. A new policy seemed resolved on, of which the bold attack on our right was the index. Our advancing ranks swept across the strong and well-finished parapet of the enemy, and closed in upon Atlanta, until we occupied a line in the form of a general circle of about two miles radius, when we again found him occupying in force a line of finished redoubts, which had been prepared for more than a year, covering all the roads leading into Atlanta; and we found him also busy in connecting those redoubts with curtains strength ened by rifle trenches, abatis, and chevaux-de-frise. General McPlierson, who had advanced from Decatur, continued to follow substantially the railroad, with the Fifteenth Corps, General Logan ; the Seventeenth, General Blair, on its left, and the Sixteenth, General Dodge, on its right; but as the general advance of all the armies con tracted the circle, the Sixteenth Corps, General Dodge, was thrown out of line by the Fifteenth connecting on the right with General Schofield, near the Howard House. General McPherson, the night before, had gained a high hill to the south and east of tl.io railroad, where the Seventeenth Corps had, after a severe fight, driven the enemy, and it gave him a most com manding position within easy view of the very heart of the city. He had thrown out working-parties to it, and was making preparations to occupy it in strength with batteries. The Sixteenth Corps, General Dodge, was ordered from right to left to occupy this position, arid make it a strong general left flank. General Dodge was moving by a diagonal path or wagon-track leading from tho Decatur road ,in the direction of General Blair s left flank. About ten A. M., I was in person with General Schofield examining the appearance of the enemy s lines opposite the distillery, where we attracted enough of the enemy s fire of artillery and musketry to - satisfy me the enemy was in Atlanta in force, and meant to fight, and had gone to a large dwelling close by, known as the Howard House, where General McPherson joined me. He described the condition of things on his flank, and the dis position of his troops. I explained to him that if we met serious resist ance in Atlanta, as present appearances indicated, instead of operating against it by the left, I would extend to the right, and that I did not want him to gain much distance to the left. He then described the hill occupied by General Leggett s division of General Blair s corps as essential to the occu pation of any ground to the east and south of tho Augusta Railroad, on 602 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. account of its commanding nature. I therefore ratified liis disposition of troops, and modified a previous order I had sent him in writing to use Gene ral Dodge s corps, thrown somewhat in reserve by the closing up of our line, to break up railroad, and I sanctioned its going, as already ordered by General McPherson, to his left, to hold and fortify that position. The general remained with me until near noon, when some reports reaching us that indicated a movement of the enemy on that flank, he mounted and rode away with his staff. I must here also state, that the day before I had detached General Garrard s cavalry to go to Covington, on the Augusta road, forty-two miles east of Atlanta, and from that point to send detach ments to break the two important bridges across the Yellow and Ulcofau- hatchee Rivers, tributaries of the Ocmulgee ; and General McPherson had also left his wagon -train at Decatur, under a guard of three regiments, commanded by Colonel (now General) Sprague. Soon after General Mc Pherson left me at the Howard House, as before described, I heard the sounds of musketry to our left rear ; at first mere pattering shots, but soon they grew in volume, accompanied with artillery, and about the same time the sound of guns was heard in the direction of Decatur. No doubt could longer be entertained of the enemy s plan of action, which was to throw a superior force on our left flank, while he held us with his forts in front, the only question being as to the amount of force he could employ at that point. I hastily transmitted orders to all points of our center and right to press forward and give full employment to all the enemy in his lines, and for General Schofield to hold as large a force in reserve as possible, awaiting developments. Not more than half an hour after General McPherson had left me, viz., about half-past twelve o clock p. M., of the 22d, his adjutant- general, Lieutenant-Colonel Clark, rode up and reported that General Mc Pherson was either dead or a prisoner; that he had ridden from me to General Dodge s column, moving as heretofore described, and had sent off nearly all his staff and orderlies on various errands, and himself had passed into a narrow path or road that led to the left and rear of General Giles A. Smith s division, which was General Blair s extreme left ; thit a few minutes after he had entered the woods a sharp volley was heard in that direction, and his horse had come out riderless, having two wounds. The- suddenness of this terrible calamity would have overwhelmed me with grief, but the living demanded my whole thoughts. I instantly dispatched a staff-officer to General John A. Logan, commanding the Fifteenth Corps, to tell him what had happened ; that he must assume command of the Army of the Tennessee, and hold stubbornly the ground already chosen, more especially the hill gained by General Leggett the night before. Already the whole line was engaged in battle. Hardee s corps had sal lied from Atlanta, and by a wide circuit to the east had struck General Blair s left flank, enveloped it, and his right had swung around until it hit General Dodge in motion. General Blair s line was substantially along the old line of the rebel trench, but it was fashioned to fight outward. A space of wooded ground of near half a mile intervened between the head of General Dodge s column and General Blair s line, through which the enemv had MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 603 poured, but the last order ever given by General McPherson was to hurry a brigade (Colonel Wangelin s) of the Fifteenth Corps across from the rail road to occupy this gap. It came across on the double-quick and checked the enemy. While Hardee attacked in flank, Stewart s corps was to attack in front, directly out from the main works, but fortunately their attack 8 were not simultaneous. The enemy swept across the hill which our men were then fortifying, and captured the pioneer company, its tools, and almost the entire working-party, and bore down on our left until he en countered General Giles A. Smith s division of the Seventeenth Corps, who was somewhat "in air," and forced to fight first from one side of the old rifle-parapet and then from the other, gradually withdrawing regiment by regiment, so as to form a flank to General Leggett s division, which held the apex of the hill, which was the only part that was deemed essential to our future plans. General Dodge had caught and held well in check the enemy s right, and punished him severely, capturing many prisoners. Smith (General Giles A.) had gradually given up the extremity of his line and formed a new one, whose right connected with General Leggett, and his left refused, facing southeast. On this ground, and in this order, tho men fought well and desperately for near four hours, checking and repuls ing all the enemy s attacks. The execution on the enemy s ranks at tho angle was terrible, and great credit is due both Generals Leggett and Giles A. Smith, and their men, for their hard and stubborn fighting. The enemy made no further progress on that flank, and by four o clock P. M. had almost given up the attempt. In the mean time Wheeler s cavalry, unopposed (for General Garrard was absent at Covington by my order), had reached Decatur, and attempted to capture the wagon-trains, but Colonel (now General,) Spraguo covered them v/ith great skill and success, sending them to the rear of Generals Schofield and Thomas, and not drawing back from Decatur till every wagon was safe, except three which the teamsters had left, carrying off the mules. On our extreme left the enemy had taken a complete battery of six guns, with its horses (Murray s), of the regular army, as it was moving along unsupported and unapprehensive of danger, in a narrow wooded road in that unguarded space between the head of General Dodge s column and the line-of-battle on the ridge above, but most of the men escaped to the bushes. He also got two other guns on the ex treme left flank, that were left on the ground as General Gile sA. Smith drew off his men in the manner heretofore described. About four o clock p. M. there was quite a lull, during which the enemy felt forward on tho railroad and main Decatur road, and suddenly assailed a regiment which, with a section of guns, had been thrown forward as a kind of picket, and captured the two guns ; he then advanced rapidly, and broke through our lines at that point, which had been materially weakened by the withdrawal of Colonel Martin s brigade, sent by General Logan s order to the extreme left. The other brigade, General Lightburn, which held this part of the line, fell back in some disorder about four hundred yards, to a position held by it the night before, leaving the enemy for a time in possession of two batteries, one of which, a twenty-pounder Parrott battery of four guns, 604 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. was most valuable to us, and separating General Woods s and General Har row s divisions of the Fifteenth Corps, that were on the right and left of the railroad. Being in person close by the spot, and appreciating the vast importance of the connection at that point, I ordered certain batteries of General Schoficld to be moved to a position somewhat commanding, by a left-flank fire, and ordered an incessant fire of shells on the enemy within sight, and the woods beyond, to prevent his re-enforcing. I also sent or ders to General Logan, which he had already anticipated, to make the Fif teenth Corps regain its lost ground at any cost, and instructed General Woods, supported by General Schofield, to use his division and sweep the parapet down from where he held it until he saved the batteries and re covered the lost ground. The whole was executed in superb style, at times our men and the enemy fighting across the narrow parapet; but at last the enemy gave way, and the Fifteenth Corps regained its position, and all the guns, except the two advanced ones, which were out of view, and had been removed by the enemy within his main work. With this terminated the battle of the 22d, which cost us three thousand seven hundred and twenty-two killed, wounded, and prisoners. But among the dead was Major-General McPherson, whose body was recovered and brought to me in the heat of battle, and I had sent it in charge of his personal staff back to Marietta, on its way to his Northern home. He was a noble youth, of striking personal appearance, of the highest professional capacity, and with a heart abounding in kindness, that drew to him the affections of all men. His sudden death devolved the command of the Army of the Tennessee on the no less brave and gallant General Logan, who nobly sustained his reputation and that of his veteran army, and avenged the death of his comrade and commander. The enemy left on the field his dead and wounded, and about a thousand well prison ers. His dead alone arc computed by General Logan at three thousand two hundred and forty, of which number two thousand two hundred were from actual count, and of these he delivered to the enemy, under a flag of truce bent in by him (the enemy), eight hundred bodies. I entertain no doubt that in the battle of July 22d the enemy sustained an aggregate loss of full eight thousand men. The next day General Garrard returned from Co- vington, having succeeded perfectly in his mission, and destroyed the bridges at Ulcofauhatchee and Yellow Rivers, besides burning a train of cars, a large quantity of cotton (two thousand bales), and the depots of Btorcs at Covington and Conyer s Station, and bringing in two hundred prisoners and some good horses, losing but two men, one of whom was killed by accident. Having, therefore, sufficiently crippled the Augusta road, and rendered it useless to the enemy, I then addressed myself to the task of reaching tho Macon road, over which, of necessity, came the stores and ammunition that alone maintained the rebel army in Atlanta. Generals Schoficld and Thomas had closed well up, holding the enemy behind his inner intrenchments. I first ordered the Army of the Tennessee to prepare to vacate its line, and to shift by the right below Proctor s Creek, and General Schoficld to extend up to the Augusta road. About MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 605 the same time General Rousseau had arrived from his expedition to Opelika, bringing me about two thousand good cavalry, but of course fatigued with its long and rapid march ; and, ordering it to relieve General Stoneman at the river about Sandtown, I shifted General Stoneman to our left flank, and ordered all my cavalry to prepare for a blow at the Macon road, simultaneous with the movement of the Army of the Tennessee toward East Point. To accomplish this, I gave General Stoneman .the command of his own and General Garrard s cavalry, making an effective force of full five thousand men; and to General McCook I gave his own and the new cavalry brought by General Rousseau, which was commanded by Colonel Harrison, of the Eighth Indiana Cavalry, in the aggregate about four thousand. These two well-appointed bodies were to move in concert, the former by the left around Atlanta to McDonongh, and the lat ter by the right on Fayetteville, and on a certain night, viz., July 28th, they were to meet on the Macon road, near Lovejoy s, and destroy it in the most effectual manner. I estimated this joint cavalry could whip all Wheeler s cavalry, and could otherwise fully accomplish its task, and I think so still. I had the officers in command to meet me, and explained the movement perfectly, and they entertained not a doubt of perfect suc cess. At the very moment almost of starting, General Stoneman addressed me a note asking permission, after fulfilling his orders and breaking the road, to be allowed, with his command proper, to proceed to Macon and Andersonville, and release our prisoners of war confined at those points. There was something most captivating in the idea, and the execution was within the bounds of probability of success. I consented that, after the defeat of Wheeler s cavalry, which was embraced in his orders, and break ing the road, he might attempt it with his cavalry proper, sending that of General Garrard back to its proper flank of the army. Both cavalry expe ditions started at the time appointed. I have as yet no report from Gene ral Stoneman, who is a prisoner of war at Macon, but I know that he dispatched General Garrard s cavalry to Flat Rock, for the purpose of covering his own movement to McDonough, but for some reason unknown to me he went off toward Covington, and did not again communicate with General Garrard at Flat Rock. General Garrard remained there until the 29th, skirmishing heavily with a part of Wheeler s cavalry, and occupying their attention; but hearing nothing from General Stoneman, he moved back to Conyer s, where, learning that General Stoneman had gone to Covington and south on the east side of the Ocmulgee, he returned and resumed his position on our left. It is known that General Stoneman kept . to the east of the Ocmulgeo to Clinton, sending detachments off to the east, which did a large amount of damage to the railroad, burning tho bridges of Walnut Creek and Oconee, and destroying a large number of cars and locomotives, and with his main force appeared before Macon. lie did not succeed in crossing the Ocmulgee at Macon, or in approaching Andersonville, but retired in the direction whence he came, followed by various detachments of mounted men, under a General Iverson. Ho seems to have become hemmed in, and gave consent to two-thirds of his force to 606 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. escape back, whilst lie bold the enemy in check with the remainder, about seven hundred men, and a section of light guns. One brigade, Colonel Adams, came in almost intact. Another, commanded by Colonel Capron, was surprised on the way back, and scattered ; many were cap tured and killed, and the balance got in mostly unarmed and afoot, and the general himself surrendered his small command, and is now a prisoner at Macon. His mistake was in not making the first concentration with Gene rals McCook and Garrard, near Lovejoy s, according to his orders, which is yet unexplained. General McCook, in the execution of his part, went down the west bank of the Chattahoochie to near Rivertown, where he laid a pontoon bridge, with which he was provided, crossed his command, and moved rapidly on Palmetto Station of the West Point road, where he tore up a section of tra-ck, leaving a regiment to create a diversion toward Campbelltown, which regiment fulfilled its duty, and returned to camp by way of, and escorting back, the pontoon-bridge train. General McCook then rapidly moved to Fayetteville, where he found a large number of the wagons belonging to the rebel army in Atlanta. These lie burned to the number of five hundred, killing eight hundred mules, and carrying along others, and taking two hundred and fifty prisoners, mostly quartermasters and men belonging to the trains. He then pushed for the railroad, reaching it at Lovejoy s Station at the time appointed. He burned the depot, tore up a section of the road, and continued to work until forced to leave off to defend himself against an accumulating force of the enemy. He could hear nothing of General Stoneman, and finding his progress east too strongly opposed, he moved south and west, and reached Newman, on the West Point road, where he encountered an infantry force coming from Mississippi to Atlanta, which had been stopped by the break he had made at Palmetto. This force, with the pursuing cavalry, hemmed him in, and forced him to fight. He was compelled to drop his prisoners and captures, and cut his way out, losing some five hundred officers and men. Among them a most valuable officer. Colonel Harrison, who, when fighting his men as skirmishers on foot, was overcome and made prisoner, and is now at Macon. He cut his way out, reached the Chattahoochie, crossed, and got to Marietta without further loss. General McCook is entitled to much credit for thus saving his command, which was endangered by the failure of General Stoneman to reach Lovejoy s. But, on the whole, the cavalry raid is not deemed a suc cess, for the real purpose was to break the enemy s communications, which, though done, was on so limited a scale that I knew the damages would soon be repaired. Pursuant to the general plan, the Army of the Tennessee drew out of its lines near the Decatur road during the night of July 2Cth, and on the 27th moved behind the rest of the army to Proctor s Creek, and south, to prolong our line due south, facing east. On that day, by appointment of the President of the United States, Major-General Howard assumed corn- maud of the Army of the Tennessee, and had the general supervision of MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 607 the movement, which was made en ec7idon General Dodge s corps, Six teenth, on the left, nearest the enemy ; General Blair s corps, Seventeenth, next to come up on its right, and General Logan s corps, Fifteenth, to come up on its right and refused as a flank, the whole to gain as much ground, due south from the flank already established on Proctor s Creek, as was consistent with a proper strength. General Dodge s men got into line in the evening of the 27th, and General Blair s came into line on his right early on the morning of the 28th, his right reaching an old meeting-house called Ezra Church, near some large open fields by the Poor-house, on a road known as the Bell s Ferry, or Lickskiilet, road. Here the Fifteenth Corps, General Logan s, joined on and refused along a ridge Avell wooded, which partially commanded a view over the same fields. About ten a. m., all the army was in position, and the men were busy in throwing up the accustomed piles of rails and logs, which, after a while, assumed the form of a parapet. The skill and rapidity with which our men construct them is wonderful, and is something new in the art of war. I rode along his whole line about that time, and as I approached Ezra Church there was considerable artillery firing enfilading the road in which I was riding, kill ing an orderly s horse just behind my staff. I struck across an open field to where General Howard was standing, in the rear of the Fifteenth Corps, and walked up to the ridge with General Morgan L. Smith, to see if the battery which enfiladed the main road arid line of rail-piles could not be disposed of, and heard General Smith give the necessary orders for the deployment of one regiment forward, and another to make a circuit to the right, when I returned to where General Howard was, and remained there until twelve o clock. During this time there was nothing to indi cate serious battle, save the shelling > by one, or at most two batteries from beyond the large field in front of the Fifteenth Corps. Wishing to be well prepared to defeat the enemy if he repeated his game of the 22(1, I had the night before ordered General Davis s division of General Palmer s corps, which, by the movement of the Army of the Tennessee, had been left, as it were, in reserve, to move down to Turner s Ferry, and thence toward Whitehall or East Point, aiming to reach the flank of General Howard s new line, hoping that, in case of an attack, this division would in turn catch the attacking force, in flank or rear, at an unexpected moment. I explained it to General Howard, and bade him expect the arrival of such a force in case of battle. Indeed, I expected to hear the fire of its skirmishers by noon. General Davis was sick that day, and Brigadier-General Morgan commanded the division which had marched early for Turner s Ferry ; but many of the roads laid down on our maps did not exist at all, and General Morgan was delayed thereby. I rode back to make more particular inquiries as to this division, and had just reached General Davis s head-quarters, at Proctor s Creek, when I heard musketry open heavily on the right. The enemy had come out of Atlanta by the Bell s Ferry road, aud formed his masses in the open fields behind a swell of ground, and, after the artillery firing I have described, advanced in parallel lines directly against the Fifteenth Corps, expecting to catch 608 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. that flank in air. His advance was magnificent, but founded in an error that cost him sadly, for our men coolly and deliberately cut down his men, and, spite of the efforts of the rebel officers, his ranks broke and fled. But they were rallied again and again, as often as six times at some points, and a few of the rebel officers and men reached our lines of rail-piles only to be killed or hauled over as prisoners. These assaults occurred from noon until about four p. M., when the enemy disappeared, leaving his dead and wounded in our hands. As many as six hundred and forty-two dead were counted and buried, and still others are known to have been buried which were not counted by the regularly detailed burial-parties. General Logan on this occasion was conspicuous as on the 22d, his corps being chiefly engaged; but General Howard had drawn from the other corps, Sixteenth and Seventeenth, certain reserves which were near at hand, but not used. Our entire loss is reported less than six hundred, whereas that of the enemy, in killed and wounded, not less than five thousand. Had General Davis s division come up on the Bell s Ferry road, as I calculated, at any time before four o clock, what was simply a com plete repulse would have been a disastrous rout to the enemy. But I can not attribute the failure to want of energy or intelligence, and must charge it, like many other things in this campaign, to the peculiar tangled nature of the forests and absence of roads that would admit the rapid movement of troops. This affair terminated all efforts of the enemy to check our extensions by the flank, which afterward proceeded with comparative ease; but he met our extensions to the south by rapid and well-constructed forts and rifle-pits, built between us and the railroad to and below East Point, re maining perfectly on the defensive. Finding that the right flank of the Army of the Tennessee did not reach, I was forced to shift General Schofield to that flank also, and afterward General Palmer s corps of General Thomas s army. General Schofield moved from the left on the 1st of August, and General Palmer s corps followed at once, taking a line below Utoy Creek, and General Schofield prolonged it to a point near East Point. The enemy made no offensive opposition, but watched our movements, and extended his .lines and para pets accordingly. About this " time several changes in important commands occurred, which should be noted. General Hooker, offended that General Howard was preferred to him as the successor of General McPherson, resigned his command of the Twentieth Corps, to which General Slocum was ap pointed ; but he was at Vicksburg, and, until he joined, the command of the corps devolved on General II. S. Williams, who handled it admirably. General Palmer also resigned the command of the Fourteenth Corps, and General Jeff. C. Davis was appointed to his place. Major-General D. S. Stanley had succeeded General Howard in the command of the fourth Corps. From the 2d to the 5th we continued to extend to the right, demon- MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 609 strating strongly on the left and along our whole line. General Reilley s brigade of General Cox s division, General Schofield s army, on the 5th tried to break through the enemy s line about a mile below Utoy Creek, but failed to carry the position, losing about four hundred men, who were caught in the entanglements and abatis ; but the next day the position was turned by General Hascall, and General Schofield advanced his, whole line close up to and facing the enemy below Utoy Creek, Still he did not gain the desired foothold on either the West Point or Macon Railroad. The enemy s line at that time must have been near fifteen miles long, extending from near Decatur to below East Point. This he was enabled to do by the use of a large force of State militia, and his position was so masked by the shape of the ground that we were unable to discover the weak parts. I had become satisfied that to reach the Macon road, and thereby con trol the supplies for Atlanta, I would have to move the whole army ; but, before beginning, I ordered down from Chattanooga four four-and-a-half- inch rifled guns, to try their effect. These arrived on the 10th, and were put to work night and day, and did execution on the city, causing frequent fires, and creating confusion ; yet the enemy seemed determined to hold his forts, even if the city were destroyed. On the 10th of August I made my orders, No. 57, prescribing the mode and manner of executing the grand movement by the right flank, to begin on the 18th. This movement con templated the Withdrawal of the Twentieth Corps, General Williams, to the intrenched position at the Chattahoochie Bridge, and the march of the main army to the West Point Railroad, near Fairborn, and afterward to the Ma con road, at or near Jonesboro , with our wagons loaded with provisions for fifteen days. About the time of the publication of these orders, I learned that Wheeler, with a large mounted force of the enemy, variously estimated from six thousand to ten thousand men, had passed around by the east and north, and had made his appearance on our lines of communication near Adairsville, and had succeeded in capturing nine hundred of our beef-cattle, and had made a break of the railroad near Calhoun. I could not have asked any thing better, for I had provided well against such a contingency, and this detachment left me superior to the enemy in cavalry. I suspended the execution of my orders for the time being, and ordered General Kilpat- rick to make up a well-appointed force of about five thousand cavalry, and to move from his camp about Sandtown, during the night of the 18th, to the West Point road, and break it good near Fairborn ; then to proceed across to the Macon road, and tear it up thoroughly ; to avoid as far as possible the enemy s infantry, but to attack any cavalry he could find. I though4 this cavalry would save the necessity of moving the main array across, an$ that, in case of his success, it would leave me in better position to take full advantage of the result. General Kilpatrick got off at the time appointed, and broku the West road, and afterward reached the Macon road at Jonesboro , where h whipped Ross s cavalry and got possession of the railroad, which he IteUl for five hours, damaging it considerably. But a brigade of the enemy s ist- 39 010 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. fantry, which had been dispatched below Joneaboro in cars, was run back and disembarked, and, with Jackson s rebel cavalry, made it impossible for him to continue his work. He drew off to the east, and made a circuit, and struck the railroad about Lovejoy s Station, but was again threatened by the enemy, who moved on shorter lines, when he charged through their caval ry, taking many prisoners, of which he brought in seventy, and captured a four-gun battery, which he destroyed, except one gun, which he brought in. He estimated the damage done to the road as enough to interrupt its use for ten days ; after which he returned by a circuit north and east, reaching Decatur on the 22d. After an interview with General Kilpatrick, I was satisfied that whatever damage he had done would not produce the result desired, and I renewed my orders for the movement of the whole army. This involved the necessity of raising the siege of Atlanta, taking the field with our main force, and using it against the communications of Atlanta instead of against its intrenchinents. All the army commanders were at once notified to send their surplus wagons, incumbrances of all kinds, and sick, back to our intrenched position at the bridge, and that the movement would begin during the night of the 25th. Accordingly, all things being ready, the Fourth Corps, General Stanley, drew out of its lines on our extreme left, and inarched to a position below Proctor s Creek. The Twentieth Corps, General Williams, moved back to the Chattahoochie, This movement was made without loss, save a few things left in our camps by thoughtless officers or men. The night of the 26th the-movement con tinued, the Army of the Tennessee drawing out and moving rapidly by a circuit well toward Sandtown and across Camp Creek, the Army of the Cumberland below Utoy Creek, General Schofield, remaining in position. This was effected with the loss of but a single man in the Army of the Tennessee, wounded by a shell from the enemy. The third movement brought the Army of the Tennessee on the West Point Railroad, above Fairborn, the Army of the Cumberland about Red Oak, and General Scho field closed in near Digs and Mins. I then ordered one day s work to be expended in destroying that road, and it was done with a will. Twelve and one-half miles were destroyed, the ties burned, and the iron rails heated and tortured by the utmost ingenuity of old hands at the work. Several cuts were filled up with the trunks of trees, with logs, rock, and earth in termingled with loaded shells, prepared as torpedoes, to explode in case of an attempt to clear them out. Having personally inspected this work, and satisfied with its execution, I ordered the whole army to move the next day eastward by several roads: General Howard on the right, toward Jonesboro ; General Thomas, the center, by Shoal Creek church to Couch s, on the Decatur and Fayetteville road ; and General Schofield on the left, about Morrow s mills. An inspection of the map will show the strategic advantages of this position. The railroad from Atlanta to Macon follows substantially the ridge or "divide" between the waters of Flint and Oc- mulgee Rivers, and from East Point to Jonesboro makes a wide bend to the east. Therefore the position I have described, which had been well studied on paper, was my first "objective." It gave me "interior lines," some- MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMANS REPORT. OH tiring our enemy had enjoyed too long, and I was anxious for once to get the. inside track, and therefore ray haste and desire to secure it. The several columns moved punctually on the morning of the -29th. General Thomas, on the center, encountered little opposition or difficulty, save what resulted from the narrow roads, and reached his position at Couch s early in the afternoon; General Schofield being closer to the enemy, who still clung to East Point, moved cautiously on a small circle around that point, and came into position toward Rough-and-Ready ; and General Howard, having the- outer circle, had a greater distance to move, lie encountered cavalry, which he drove rapidly to the crossing of Shoal Creek, where the enemy also had artillery. Here a short delay occurred, and some cannonading and skirmishing ; but General Howard started them again, and kept them moving, passed the Renfro place on the Decatur road, which was the point indicated for him in the orders of that day; but he wisely and well kept on, and pushed on toward Jonesboro , saved the bridge across Flint River, and did not halt until darkne-ss compelled him, within half a mile of Jonesboro . Here he rested for the night, and on the morning of- August 31st, finding himself in the presence of a heavy force of the enemy, he deployed the Fifteenth Corps, and disposed the Sixteenth and Seventeenth on its Hanks. The men covered their front with the usual parapet, and were soon prepared to act offensively or defensively, as the case called for. I was that night with General Thomas at Conch s, and as soon as I learned that General Howard had passed Reufr-o s, I directed General Thomas to send to that place a division of General Jeff. C. Davis s corps, to move General Stanley s corps, in connection with General Schofield s, toward Rough-and-Ready, and then to send forward due east a strong detachment of General Davis s corps, to feel for the railroad. General Schofield was also ordered to move boldly forward and strike the railroad near Rough-and-Ready. These movements were progressing dur ing the 81st, when the enemy came out of his works at Jonesboro , and attacked General Howard in position described. General Howard was admirably situated to receive him, and repulse the attack thoroughly. The enemy attacked with Lee s and Hardee s corps, and after a contest of over two hours withdrew, leaving over four hundred dead on the ground ; and his wounded, of which about three hundred were left in Jonesboro , could not have been less than two thousand five hundred. Hearing the sounds of battle at Jonesboro about noon, orders were renewed to push the other movements on the left and center, and about four p. m. the reports arrived simultaneously that General Howard had thoroughly repulsed the enemy at Jonesboro ; that General Schofield had reached the railroad a mile below Rough-and-Ready, and was working up the road, breaking it as he went ; that General Stanley, of General Thonlas s army, had also got the road below General Schofield, and was destroying its working south ; and that General Baird, of General Davis s corps, had struck it still lower down, within four miles of Jonesboro. Orders were at once given for all the army to turn on Jonesboro , Gone- ral Howard to keep the enemy busy whilst General Thomas should move 012 LIFE ASTD CAMPAIGNS OF GEFF.RAL GBANT. down from the north, with General Schofield on his left. I also ordered the troops, as they moved down, to continue the thorough destruction of the railroad, because we had it then, and I did not know but that events might divert our attention. General Garrard s cavalry was directed to watch the roads to our rear, the north. General Kalpatrick was sent south, down the west bank of Flint, with instructions to attack or threaten the railroad below Jonesboro . I expected the whole army would close down on Jonesboro by noon of the 1st of September. General Davis a corps, having a shorter distance to travel, was on time and deployed, facing south, his right in connection with General Howard, and his left on the railroad. General Stanley and General Schofield were coming down along the Rough-and-Ready road, and along the railroad, breaking it as they came. When General Davis joined to General Howard, General Blair s corps on General Howard s left was thrown in reserve, and was immedi ately sent well to the right below Jonesboro , to act against the flank along with General Kilpatrick s cavalry. About four p. m. General Davis was all ready, and assaulted the enemy s lines across open fields, carrying them very handsomely, and taking as prisoners the greater part of Govan s brigade, including its commander, with two four-gun batteries. Repeated orders were sent to Generals Stanley and Schofield to hurry up, but tho difficult nature of the country and the absence of roads are the reasons assigned why these troops did not get well into position for attack before night rendered further operations impossible. Of course, the next morn ing the enemy was gone, and had retreated south. About two o clock that night, the sounds of heavy explosions were heard in the direction of Atlanta, distance about twenty miles, with a succession of minor explo sions, and what seemed like the rapid firing of cannon and musketry. These continued for about an hour, and again, about four a. m., occurred another series of similar discharges, apparently nearer us, and these sounds could be accounted for on no other hypothesis than of a night attack on Atlanta by General Slocurn, or the blowing up of the enemy s magazines. Nevertheless, at daybreak, on finding the enemy gone from his lines at Jonesboro , I ordered a general pursuit south, General Thomas following to the left of the railroad, General Howard on his right, and General Scho field keeping off about two miles to the east. We overtook the enemy again, near Lovejoy s Station, in a strong intrenched position, with his flanks well protected behind a branch of "Walnut Creek, to the right, and a confluent of the Flint River to his left. We pushed close up and recon- noitered the ground, and found he had evidently halted to cover his coni- mnnication with the McDonough and Fayetteville road. Rumors began to arrive, through prisoners captured, that Atlanta had been abandoned during the night of September 1st, that Hood had blown up his ammunition trains, which accounted for the sounds so plainly heard by us, and which were yet unexplained; that Stewart s corps was then retreating toward McDonough, and that the militia had gone off toward Covington. It was then too late to interpose and prevent their escape, and I was satisfied with the substantial success already gained. Accordingly, I MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 613 ordered the work of destroying railroad to cease, and the troops to be held in hand ready for any movement that further information from Atlanta might warrant. General Jeff. C. Davis s corps had been left above Jonesboro , and General Garrard s cavalry was still further back, and the latter was ordered to send back to Atlanta and ascertain the exact truth and the real situation of affairs. But the same night, viz., of September 4th, a courier arrived from General Slocum reporting the fact that the enemy had evacuated Atlanta, blown up seven trains* of cars, and had retreated on the McDon- ough road. General Slocum had entered and taken possession on the 2d of September. The object of my movement against the railroad was therefore already reached and concluded, and as it was idle to pursue our enemy in that wooded country, with a view to his capture, I gave orders on the 4th for the army to prepare to move back slowly to Atlanta. On the 5th we drew back to the vicinity of Jonesboro , five miles, where we remained a day. On the Yth we moved to Rough-arid-Ready, seven miles, and the next day to the camps selected, viz. : the Army of the Cumberland group ed around about Atlanta, the Army of the Tennessee about East Point, and that of the Ohio at Decatur, where the men now occupy clean and healthy camps. I have not yet received full or satisfactory accounts of Wheeler s opera tions to our rear, further than that he broke the road about Calhoun, and then made his appearance at Dalton, where Colonel Laibold held him in check until General Steedman arrived from Chattanooga and drove him off. lie then passed up into East Tennessee, and made quite a stay at Athens; but, on the first show of pursuit, he kept on north across the Little Ten nessee ; and, crossing the Holston near Strawberry Plains, reached the Clinch near Clinton, and passed over toward Sequatchee and McMinnville. Thence he seems to have gone to Murfreesboro and Lebanon, and across to Franklin. He may have committed damage to the property of citizens, but has injured us but little, the railroads being repaired about as fast as he broke them. From Franklin he has been pursued toward Florence, and out of the State by Generals Rousseau, Steedman, and Granger ; but what amount of execution they have done to him is not yet reported. Our roads and telegraph are all repaired, and the cars run with regularity and speed. It is proper to remark in this place, that, during the operations of this cam paign, expeditions were sent out from Memphis and Vicksburg to check any movements of the enemy s forces in Mississippi upon our communica tions. The manner in which this object was accomplished reflects credit upon Generals A. J. Smith, Washburne, Slocum, and Mower ; and although General Sturgis s expedition was less successful than the others, it assisted us in the main object to be accomplished. I must bear full and liberal testimony to the energetic and successful management of our railroads during the campaign. No matter when or where a break has been made, the repair-train seemed on the spot, and the damage was repaired generally bafore I knew of the break. Bridges have 614 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. been built with surprising rapidity, and the locomotive whistle was heard in our advanced camps almost before the echoes of the skirmish fire had ceased. Some of these bridges those of the Oostanaula, the Etowah, and Ghattahoochie are fine, substantial structures, and were built in incon ceivably short time, almost out of material improvised on the spot. Colonel W. W. Wright, who has charge of the "construction and re pairs," is not only a most skillful, but a wonderfully ingenious, industrious, and zealous officer, and I can hardly do him justice. In like manner the officers charged with running the trains have succeeded to my entire satis faction, and have worked in perfect harmony with the quartermasters and commissaries, bringing forward abundant supplies with such regularity that at no one time have we wanted for provisions, forage, ammunition, or stores of any essential kind. Colonel L. C. Easton, chief quartermaster, and Colonel A. Beckwith, chief commissary, have also succeeded, in a manner surprising to all of us, in getting forward supplies. I doubt if ever an army was better supplied than this, and I commend them most highly for it, because I know that more solicitude was felt by the Lieutenant-General commanding, and by the military vrorld at large, on this than on any other one problem involved in the success of the campaign. Captain T. G. Baylor, chief ordnance officer, has in like manner kept the army well supplied at all times with every kind of ammunition. To Captain 0. M. Poe, chief engineer, I am more than ordinarily indebted for keeping me supplied with maps and information of roads, and topography, as well as in the more important branch of his duties in selecting lines and military positions. My own personal staff has been small, but select. Brigadier-General W. F. Barry, an officer of enlarged capacity and great experience, has filled the office of chief of artillery to perfection ; and Lieutenant-Colonel E. D. Kitto, chief medical inspector, has done every thing possible to give proper aid and direction to the operations of that important department. I have never seen the wounded removed from the fields of battle, cared for, and afterward sent to proper hospitals in the rear, with more promptness, system, care, and success, than during this whole campaign, covering over one hundred days of actual battle and skirmish. My aides-de-camp, Major J. C. McCoy, Captain L. M. Dayton, and Cap tain J. D. Audenried, have been ever zealous and most efficient, carrying my orders day and night to distant points of our extended lines, with an intelligence and zeal that insured the perfect working of machinery, cover ing from ten to twenty-five miles of ground, when the least error in the de livery and explanation of an order would have produced confusion ; where as in great measure, owing to the intelligence of these officers, orders have been made so clear that these vast armies have moved side by side, sometimes crossing each other s tracks through a difficult country of over a hundred and thirty-eight miles in length, without confusion or trouble. Captain Dayton has also fulfilled the duties of my adjutant-general, making all orders and currying on the official correspondence. MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 615 Three inspectors- gen oral completed my staff : Brigadier-General J. M. Corse, who has since been assigned the command of a division of the Six teenth Corps, at the request of General Dodge; Lieutenant-Colonel W. Warner, of the Seventy-sixth Ohio, and Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Ewing, inspector-general of the Fifteenth Corps and captain Thirteenth United States Regulars. These officers, of singular energy and intelligence, have been of im mense assistance to me in handling these large armies. My three " armies in the field " were commanded by able officers, my equals in rank and experience: Major-General George H. Thomas, Major- General J. M. Schofield, and Major-General O. O. Howard. With such commanders, I had only to indicate the object desired, and they accom plished it. I can not over-estimate their services to the country, and must express my deep and heart-felt thanks that, coming together from different fields, with different interests, they have co-operated with a harmony that has been productive of the greatest amount of success and good feeling. A more harmonious army does not exist. I now inclose their reports, and those of the corps, division, and brigade commanders, a perusal of which will fill up the sketch which I have endeavored to make. I also submit tabular statements of our losses in battle by wounds and sickness ; also, lists of prisoners captured, sent to the rear, and exchanged ; also, of the guns and materials of war captured, besides the important country, towns, and arsenals of the enemy that wo now "occupy and hold." All of which is respectfully submitted, W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General Commanding. Major-General II. W. HALLECK, Chief of Staff, Washington, D. 0. General Sherman issued an order, September 4th, to the effect that the city of Atlanta being exclusively required for warlike purposes, all citizens must remove from it; and, to expedite such removal, he entered into a truce with General Hood, and made arrangements with him for forwarding the citizens and their effects beyond the Federal lines. In connection with this event, the following correspondence took place between the authorities of Atlanta and General Sherman: ATLANTA, GA., Sept. 11, 1864. MAJOR-GENERAL W. T. SHERMAN SIR : The undersigned, Mayor and two members of Council for the city of Atlanta, for the time being the only legal organ of the people of said city to express their wants and wishes, ask leave most earnestly, but respectfully, to petition you to reconsider tho order requiring them to leave Atlanta. At first view it struck us that the measure would involve extraordinary hardship and loss, but since wo havo seen the practical execution of it, so far as it has progressed, r.nd tho indi vidual condition of many of the people, and heard the statements as to the 616 LIFE AND CA_MPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. inconveniences, loss, and suffering attending it, we are satisfied that the amount of it will involve in the aggregate consequences appalling and heart-rending. Many poor women are in an advanced- state of pregnancy; others having young children, whose husbands, for the greater part, are either in the army, prisoners, or dead. Some say : " I have such a one sick at my house; who will wait on them when I am gone ?" Others say: "What are we to do ? we have no houses to go to, and no means, to buy, build, or rent any ; no parents, relatives, or friends to go to." Another says : " I will try and take this or that article of property ; but such and such things I must leave behind, though I need them much." We reply to them: "General Sherman will carry your property to Rough-and Ready, and then General Hood will take it thence on." And they will reply to that : " But I want to leave the railroad at such a place, and can not get conveyance from thence on." We only refer to a few facts, to illustrate, in part, how this -measure will operate in practice. As you advanced, the people north of us fell back, and before your arrival here a large portion of the people had retired south ; BO that the country south of this is already crowded, and without sufficient houses to accommodate the people, and we are informed that many are now staying in churches and other outbuildings. This being so, how is it possi ble for the people still here (mostly women and children) to find shelter, and how can they live through the winter in the woods no shelter or subsist encein the midst of strangers who know them not, and without the power to assist them much if they were willing to do so ? This is but a feeble picture of the consequences of this measure. You know the woe, the horror, and the suffering can not be described by words. Imagination can only conceive of it, and we ask you to take these things into consideration. We know your mind and time are continually occupied with the duties of your command, which almost deters us from asking your attention to the matter, but thought it might be that you had not considered the subject in all of its awful consequences, and that, on reflection, you, we hope, would not make this people an exception to all mankind, for we know of no such instance ever having occurred surely not in the United States. And what has this helpless people done that they should be driven from their homes, to wander as strangers, outcasts, and exiles, and to subsist on charity ? We do not know as yet the number of people still here. Of those who are here, a respectable number, if allowed to remain at home, could subsist for several months without assistance ; and a respectable number for a much longer time, and who might not need assistance at any time. In conclusion, we most earnestly and solemnly petition you to recon sider this order, or modify it, and suffer this unfortunate people to remain at home and enjoy what little means they have. Respectfully submitted, JAMES M. CAHTOUST,. Mayor. K, E. RAWSON, S. C. WELLS, Councilmen. MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 617 HEAD-QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OP THE MISSISSIPPI, | Ix THE FIELD, ATLANTA, GA., September 12, 1S64. f JAMES M. CALHOUN, Mayor, E. E. RAWSON, and S. 0. WELLS, representing City Council of Atlanta: GENTLEMEN: I have your letter of the llth, in the nature of a petition to revoke my orders removing all the inhabitants from Atlanta. I have read it carefully, and give full credit to your statements of the distress that will be occasioned by it, and yet shall not revoke my order, simply because my orders are not designed to meet the humanities of the case, but to pre pare for the future struggles in which millions, yea hundreds of millions, of good people outside of Atlanta have a deep interest. We must have Peace, not only at Atlanta, but in all America. To secure this, we must stop the war that now desolates our once happy and favored country. To stop war, we must defeat the rebel armies that are arrayed against the laws and Constitution which all must respect and obey. To defeat these armies, we must prepare the way to reach them in their recesses, provided with the arms and instruments which enable us to accomplish our purpose. Now, I know the vindictive nature of our enemy, and that we may have many years of military operations from this quarter, and therefore deem it wise and prudent to prepare in time. The use of Atlanta for war like purposes is inconsistent with its character as a home for families. There will be no manufactures, commerce or agriculture here for the main tenance of families, and sooner or later want will compel the inhabitants to go. Why not go now, when all the arrangements are completed for the transfer, instead of waiting till the plunging shot of contending armies will renew the scene of the past month? Of course I do not apprehend any such thing at this moment, but you do not suppose that this army will be here till the war is over. I can not discuss this subject with you fairly, because I can not impart to you what I propose to do, but I assert that ray military plans make it necessary for the inhabitants to go away, and I can only renew my offer of services to make their exodus in any direction as easy and comfortable as possible. You can not qualify war in harsher terms than I will. War is cruelty, and you can not refine it; and those who brought war on the country deserve all the curses and maledictions a people can pour out. I know I had no hand in making this war, and I know I will mako more sacrifices to-day than any of you to secure peace. But you can not have peace and a division of our country. If the United States submits to a division now, it will not stop, but will go on till we reap the fate of Mexico, which is eternal war. The United States does and must assert its authority wherever it lias power ; if it relaxes one bit to pressure, it is gone, and I know that such is not the national feeling. This feeling assumes various shapes, but always comes back to that of Union. Onco admit the Union, once more acknowledge the authority of the National Government, and instead of devoting your houses, and streets, and roads, to the dread uses of war, I, and this army, become at once your protectors 618 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and supporters, shielding you from danger, let it come from what quarter it may. I know that a few individuals can not resist a torrent of error and passion such as has swept the South into rebellion ; but you can point out, so that we may know those who desire a government and those who insist on war and its desolation. You might as well appeal against the thunder-storm as against these terrible hardships of war. They are inevitable, and the only way the people of Atlanta can hope once more to live in peace and quiet at home is to stop this war, which can alone be done by admitting that it began in error and is perpetuated in pride. We don t want your negroes or your horses, or your houses or your land, or any thing you have ; but we do want and will have a just obedience to the laws of the United States. That we will have, and if it involves the destruction of your improvements, we can not help it. You have heretofore read public sentiment in your newspapers, that live by falsehood and excitement, and the quicker you seek for truth in other quarters the better for you. I repeat, then, that, by the original compact of the Government, the United States had certain rights in Georgia which have never been relin quished, and never will be ; that the South began war by seizing forts, arsenals, mints, custom-houses, &c., &c., long before Mr. Lincoln was installed, and before the South had one jot or tittle of provocation. I, myself, have seen in Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi, hun dreds and thousands of women and children fleeing from your armies and desperadoes, hungry and with bleeding feet. In Memphis, Yicksburg, and Mississippi, we fed thousands upon thousands of the families of rebel sol diers left on our hands, and whom we could not see starve. Now that Avar comes home to you, you feel very different you deprecate its horrors, but did riot feel them when you sent car-loads of soldiers, and ammunition, and moulded shell and shot to carry war into Kentucky and Tennessee, und desolate the homes of hundreds and thousands of good people, who only asked to live in peace at their old homes, and under the Government of their inheritance. But these comparisons are idle. I want peace, and believe it can only be reached through Union and war, and I will ever conduct war purely with a view to perfect and early success. But, my dear sirs, when that peace does come, you may call on me for any thing. Then will I share with you the last cracker, and watch with you to shield your homes and families against dangers from every quarter. Now you must go, and take with you the old and feeble; feed and nurse them, and build for them in more quiet places proper habitations to shield them against the weather, until the mad passions of men cool down, and allow the Union und peace once more to settle on your old homes at Atlanta. Yours, in haste, W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General. ATLANTA, GA., September 20, 1864. On leaving Atlanta, I should return my thanks to General Sherman, General Slocuin, General Ward, -Colonel Colburn, Major Peck, Captain MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 619 Mott, Captain Stewart, Captain Flagg, and all the other officers with whom I have had business transactions in carrying out the order of General Sherman for the removal of the citizens, and in transacting my private business, for their kindness and their patience in answering the many inquiries I had to make on the duration of the delicate and arduous duties devolving on me as Mayor of this city. Respectfully, JAS. M. CALHOTTN. FROM ATLANTA TO SAVANNAH, THROUGH THE HEART OF GEORGIA. HEAD -QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF THE MISSISSIPPI, J IN THE FIELD, SAVANNAH, GA., January 1, 1865. f Major-General H. W. EALLECK, Chief of Staff, Washington City, D. C. : GEXEBAL : I have the honor to offer my report of the operations of the armies under my command since the occupation of Atlanta, in the early part of September last, up to the present date. As heretofore reported, in the month of September, the Army of the Cumberland, Major-General Thomas commanding, held the city of Atlanta; the Army of the Tennessee, Major-General Howard commanding, was grouped about East Point ; and the Army of the Ohio, Major-General Schoiield commanding, held Decatur. Many changes occurred in the com position of those armies, in consequence of the expiration of the time of service of many of the regiments. The opportunity was given to us to consolidate the fragments, reclothc and equip the men, and make prepara tions for the future campaign. I also availed myself of the occasion to strengthen the garrisons to our rear, to make our communications more secure, arid sent Wagner s division of the Fourth Corps and Morgan s divi sion of the Fourteenth Corps back to Chattanooga, and Corse s division of the Fifteenth Corps to Rome. Also a thorough reconnoissance was made of Atlanta, and a new line of works begun, which required a small garrison to hold. During this month the enemy, whom we had left at Lovejoy s Station, moved westward toward the Chattahoochie, taking position facing us, and covering the West Point Railroad, about Palmetto Station. He also threw a pontoon bridge across the Chattahoochie, and sent cavalry detachments to the west, in the directionof Carrolton and Powder Springs. About the same time President Davis visited Mucon and his army at Palmetto, and made harangues referring to an active campaign against us. Hood still remained in command of the Confederate forces, with C heath am, S. D. Lee, and Stewart, commanding his three corps, and Wheeler in command of his cavalry, which had been largely re-enforced. My cavalry consisted of two divisions. One was stationed at Decatur, under command of Brigadier-General Garrard ; the other, commanded by Brigadier-General Kilpatrick, was posted near Sandtown, with a pontoon 620 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. bridge over the Chattahooclrie, from which he could watch any movement of the enemy toward the west. As soon as I became convinced that the enemy intended to assume the offensive, namely, September 28, I sent Major-General Thoma s, second in command, to Nashville, to organize the new troops expected to arrive, and to make preliminary preparations to meet such an event. About the 1st of October some of the enemy s cavalry made their ap pearance on the west of the Chattahoochie, and one of his infantry corps was reported near Powder Springs, and I received authentic intelligence that the rest of his infantry was crossing to the west of the Chattahoochie. I at once made my orders that Atlanta and the Chattahoochie railroad- bridge should be held by the Twentieth Corps, Major-General Slocum ; and on the 4th of October put in motion the Fifteenth and Seventeenth Corps, and the Fourth, Fourteenth, and Twenty-third Corps to Smyrna camp-ground, and on the 5th moved to the strong position about Kene-saw. The enemy s cavalry had, by a rapid movement, got upon our railroad at Big Shanty, and broken the line of telegraph and railroad, and, with a division of infantry (French s) had moved against Allatoona, where were stored about a million of rations. Its redoubts were garrisoned by three small regiments under Colonel Tourtellotte, Fourth Minnesota. I had anticipated this movement, and had, by signal and telegraph, ordered General Corse to re-enforce that post from Rome. General Corse had reached Allatoona with a brigade during the night of the 4th, just in time to meet the attack by French s division on the morning of the 5th. In person I reached Kenesaw Mountain, about 10 A. M., of the 5th, and could see the smoke of battle, and hear the faint sounds of artillery. The distance, eighteen miles, was too great for me to make in time to share in the battle, but I directed the Twenty-third Corps, Brigadier-General Cox commanding, to move rapidly from the base of Kenesaw, due west, aiming to reach the road from Allatoona to Dallas, threatening the rear of the forces attacking Allatoona. I succeeded in getting a signal message to General Corse during his fight, notifying him of my presence. The defense of Allatoona by General Corse was admirably conducted, and the enemy repulsed with heavy slaughter. His description of the defense is so graphic that it leaves nothing for me to add ; and the movement of General Cox had the desired effect of causing the withdrawal of French s division rapidly in the direction of Dallas. On the Gth and Vth I pushed my cavalry well toward Burnt Hickory and Dallas, and discovered that the enemy had moved westward, and inferred that he would attempt to break our railroad again in the neighbor hood of Kingston. Accordingly, on the morning of the 8th, I put the army in motion through Allatoona Pass to Kingston, reaching that point on the 10th. There I learned that the enemy had feigned on Rome, and was passing the Coosa River on a pontoon bridge, about eleven miles below Rome. I therefore, on the llth, moved to Rome, and pushed Gar- rard s cavalry and the Twenty-third Corps, under Genercl Cox, across the Oostenaula, to threaten the flanks of the enemy passing north. Garrard s MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 621 cavalry drove a cavalry brigade of the enemy to and beyond the Narrows, leading into the valley of the Chattooga, capturing two field-pieces. The enemy had moved with great rapidity, and made his appearance at Resaca^ and Hood had in person demanded its surrender. I had from Kingston re-enforced Resaca by two regiments of the army of the Tennessee. I at first intended to move the army into the Chattooga Valley, to interpose between the enemy and his line of retreat down the Ooosa, but feared that General Hood would in that event turn eastward by Spring Place, and down the Federal road, and therefore moved against him at Resaca. Colonel Weaver, at Resaca, afterward re-enforced by General liaum s brigade, had repulsed the enemy from Resaca ; but he had succeeded in breaking the railroad from Filton to Dalton, and as far north as the tunnel. Arriving at Resaca on the evening of the 14th, I deter mined to strike Hood in flank, or force him to battle, and directed the Army of the Tennessee, General Howard, to move to Snake Creek Gap, which was held by the enemy, while General Stanley, with the Fourth and Fourteenth Corps, moved by Tilton across the mountains to the rear of Snake Creek Gap, in the neighborhood of Villanow. The Army of the Tennessee found the enemy occupying our old lines in Snake Creek Gap, and on the 15th skirmished for the purpose of hold ing him there until Stanley could get to his rear. But the enemy gave way about noon, and was followed through the Gap, escaping before General Stanley had reached the further end of the pass. The next day (the 16th) the armies moved directly toward Lafayette, with a view to cut off Hood s retreat. We found him intrenched in Ship s Gap, but the leading division (Wood s) of the Fifteenth Corps rapidly carried the advanced posts held by two companies of a South Carolina regiment, making them prisoners. The remaining eight companies escaped to the main body near Lafayette. The next morning we passed over into the valley of the Chattooga, the Army of the Tennessee moving in pursuit by Lafayette and Alpine, toward Bine Pond, the Army of the Cumberland by Summerville and Melville Post-ofiice to Gaylesville, and the army of the Ohio and Gar- rard s cavalry from Villanow, Dirttown, and Gover s Gap, to Gaylesville. Hood, however, was little incurnbered with trains, and marched with great rapidity, and had succeeded in getting into the narrow gorge formed by the Lookout range abutting against the Coosa River in the neighbor hood of Gadsden. He evidently wanted to avoid a fight. On the 19th all the armies were grouped about Gaylesville, in the rich valley of the Chattooga, abounding in corn and meat, and I determined to pause in my pursuit of the enemy, to watch his movements and live on the country. I hoped that Hood would turn toward Guntersville and Bridge port. The Army of the Tennessee was posted near Little River, with instructions to feel forward in support of the cavalry, which was ordered to watch Hood in the neighborhood of Will s Valley, and to give me the earliest notice possible of his turning northward. The Array of the Ohio was posted at Cedar Bluff, with orders to lay a pontoon across the Coosa, and to feel forward to Centre, and down in the direction of Blue Moun- 622 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tain. The Army of the Cumberland was held in reserve at Gaylesville, and all the troops were instructed to draw heavily for supplies from the surrounding country. In the mean time communications were opened to Rome, and a heavy force set to work in repairing the damages done to our railroads. Atlanta was abundantly supplied with provisions, but forage was scarce, and General Slocum was instructed to send strong foraging parties out in the direction of South River, and collect all the corn and fodder possible, and to put his own trains in good condition for further service. Hood s movements and strategy had demonstrated that he had an army capable of endangering at all times my communications, but unable to meet me in open fight. To follow him would simply amount to being decoyed away from Georgia, with little prospect of overtaking and over whelming him. To remain on the defensive would have been bad policy for an army of so great value as the one I then commanded, and I was forced to adopt a course more fruitful in results than the naked one of fol lowing him to the Southwest. I had previously submitted to the Com mander-in-chief a general plan, which amounted substantially to the de struction of Atlanta, and the railroad back to Chattanooga, and sallying forth from Atlanta, through the heart of Georgia, to capture one or more of the great Atlantic seaports. This I renewed from Gaylesville, modified somewhat by the change of events. On the 2Gth of October, satisfied that Hood had moved westward from Gadsden across Sand Mountain, I detached the Fourth Corps, Major- General Stanley, and ordered him to proceed to Chattanooga, and report to Major- General Thomas, at Nashville. Subsequently, on the 30th of October, I also detached the Twenty-third Corps, Major-General Schofield, with the same destination, and delegated to Major-General Thomas full power over all the troops subject to my command, except the four corps with which 1 designed to move into Georgia. This gave him the t\vo divi sions under A. J. Smith, then in Missouri, but en route for Tennessee; the two corps named, and all the garrisons in Tennessee, as also all the cavalry of my military division, except one division under Brigadier-General Kil- patrick. which was ordered to rendezvous at Marietta. Brevet Major- General Wilson had arrived from the Army of the Potomac, to assume command of the cavalry of my army, and I dispatched him back to Nash ville, with all dismounted detachments, and orders as rapidly as possible to collect the cavalry serving in Kentucky and Tennessee, to mount, organize, and equip them, arid report to Major-General Thomas for duty. These forces I judged would enable General Thomas to defend the railroad from Chattanooga back, including Nashville and Decatur, and give him an army with which lie could successfully cope with Hood, should the latter cross the Tennessee northward. By the 1st of November, Hood s army had moved from Gadsden, and made its appearance in the neighborhood of Decatur, where a feint was made ; he then passed on to Tuscurnbia and laid a pontoon bridge opposite Florence. I then began my preparations for the march through Georgia, MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 623 having received the sanction of the Commander-in-Chief for carrying into effect my plan, tho details of which were explained to all rny corps com manders and heads of staff departments, with strict injunctions of secrecy. I had also communicated full details to General Thomas, and had informed him I would not leave the neighborhood of Kingston until he felt perfectly confident that he was entirely prepared to cope with Hood, should he carry into effect his threatened invasion of Tennessee and Kentucky. I estimated Hood s force at thirty-five thousand infantry and ten thousand cavalry. I moved the Army of the Tennessee by slow and easy marches, on the south of the Coosa, hack to the neighborhood of Smyrna camp-ground, and the Fourteenth Corps, General Jeff. 0. Davis, to Kingston, whither I repaired in person oil the 2d of November. From that point I directed all surplus artillery, all baggage not needed for my contemplated march, all the sick and wounded, refugees, etc., to be sent back to Chattanooga ; and the four corps above mentioned, with Kilpatrick s cavalry, were put in the most efficient condition possible for a long and difficult march. This ope ration consumed the time until the llth of November, when, every thing being ready, I ordered General Corse, who still remained at Rome, to destroy the bridges there, all foundries, mills, shops, warehouses, or other property that could be useful to an enemy, and to move to Kingston. At the same time the railroad in and about Atlanta, and between the Etowah and the Chattahoochie, was ordered to be utterly destroyed. The garrisons from Kingston northward were also ordered to draw back to Chattanooga, taking with them all public property and all railroad stock, and to take up the rails from Resaca back, saving them, ready to be replaced whenever future interests should demand. The railroad between the Etowah and the Oostenaula was left untouched, because I thought it more than probable we would find it necessary to reoccupy the country as far forward as the line of the Etowah. Atlanta itself is only of strate gic value as long as it is a railroad center ; and as all the railroads leading to it are destroyed, as well as all its foundries, machine-shops, warehouses, depots, etc., it is of no. more value than any other point in North Georgia; whereas the line of the Etowah, by reason of its rivers and natural fea tures, possesses an importance which will always continue. From it all parts of Georgia and Alabama can be reached by armies marching with trains down the Coosa or the Chattahoochie valleys. On the 12th of November my army stood detached and cut off from all communication with the rear. It was composed of four corps, the Fif teenth and Seventeenth, constituting the right wing, under MajorrGeneral O. O. Howard; the Fourteenth and Twentieth Corps, constituting the left wing, under Major-General II. W. Slo cum of an aggregate strength of sixty thousand infantry ; one cavalry division, in aggregate strength five thousand five hundred, under Brigadier-General Judson Kilpatrick, and the artillery reduced to the minimum of one gun per thousand men. The whole force moved rapidly and grouped about Atlanta on the 14th of November. In the mean time Captain O. M. Poe had thoroughly destroyed 624 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Atlanta, save its mere dwelling-houses and churches, and the right wing, with General Kilpatrick s cavalry, was put in motion in the direction of Jonesboro and McDonough, with orders to make a strong feint on Macon, to cross the Ocmulgee above Planters s Mills, and rendezvous in the neigh borhood of Gordon in seven days, exclusive of the day of march. On the same day General Slocum moved with the Twentieth Corps by Decatnr and Stone Mountain, with orders to tear up the railroad from Social Circle to Madison, to burn the large and important railroad-bridge across the Oconee, east of Madison, and turn south and reach Milledgeville on the seventh day, exclusive of the day of march. In person I left Atlanta on the 16th, in company with the Fourteenth Corps, brevet Major-General Jeff. 0. Davis, by Lithonia, Covington, and Shady Dale, directly on Milledgeville. All the troops were provided with good wagon-trains, loaded with ammunition, and supplies approximating twenty days bread, forty days sugar and coffee, a double allowance of salt for forty days, and beef-cattle equal to forty days supplies. The wagons were also supplied with about three days forage in grain. x\ll were instructed, by a judicious system of foraging, to maintain this order of things as long as possible, living chiefly, if not solely, upon the country, which I knew to abound in corn, sweet potatoes, and meats. My first object was, of course, to place my army in the very heart of Georgia, interposing between Macon and Augusta, and obliging the -enemy to divide his forces to defend not only those points, but Millen, Savannah, and Charleston. All my calculations were fully realized. During the 22d General Kilpatrick made a good feint on Macon, driving the enemy within his intrenchments, and theu drew back to Griswoldsville, where "Walcott s brigade of infantry joined him to cover that flank, while Howard s trains were closing up, and his men scattered, breaking up railroads. The enemy came out of Macon and attacked Walcott in position, but was so roughly handled that he never repeated the experiment. On the eighth day after leaving Atlanta, namely, on the 23d, General Slocum occupied Milledgeville and the important bridge across the Oconee there ; and Generals Howard and Kilpatrick were in and about Gordon. General Howard was then ordered to move eastward, destroying the railroad thoroughly in his progress as far as Tennille Station, opposite Sandersville, and General Slocum to move to Sandersville by two roads. General Kilpatrick was ordered to Milledgeville, and thence move rapidly eastward, to break the railroad which leads from Millen to Augusta, then to turn upon Millen and rescue our prisoners of war supposed to be con fined at that place. I accompanied the Twentieth Corps from Milledgeville to Sandersville, approaching which place, on the 25th, we found the bridges across Buffalo Creek burned, which delayed us three hours. The next day we entered Sandersville, skirmishing with Wheeler s cavalry, which offered little opposition to the advance of the Twentieth and Four teenth Corps, entering the pla.ce almost at the same moment. General Slocum was then ordered to tear, up and destroy the Georgia Central Railroad, from Station No. 13 (Tennille) to Station No. 10, near MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 625 the crossing of Ogeecheo; one of his corps substantially following the rail road, the other by way of Louisville, in support of Kilpatrick s cavalry. In person I shifted to the right wing, and accompanied the Seventeenth Corps, General Blair, on the south of the railroad, till abreast of Station No. 9^ (Barton); General Howard, in person, with the Fifteenth Corps, keeping further to the right, and about one day s march ahead, ready to turn against the flank of any enemy who should oppose our progress. At Barton I learned that Kilpatrick s cavalry had reached the Augusta Railroad about Waynesborough, where he ascertained that our prisoners had been removed from Millen, and therefore the purpose of rescuing thorn, upon which we had set our hearts, was an impossibility. But as Wheeler s cavalry had hung around him, and as he had retired to Louisville to m^et our infantry, in pursuance of my instructions not to risk a battle unless at great advantage, I ordered him to leave his wagons and all incumbrauces with the left wing, and moving in the direction of Augusta, if Wheeler gave him the opportunity, to indulge him with all the fighting he wanted. General Kilpatrick, supported by Baird s division of infantry of the Four teenth Corps, again moved in the direction of Waynesborough, and en countering Wheeler in the neighborhood of Thomas s Station, attacked him in position, driving him from three successive lines of barricades handsomely through Waynesborough and across Brier Creek, the bridges over which he burned; and then, with Baird s division, rejoined the left wing, which in the mean time had been marching by easy stages of ten miles a day in the direction of Lumpkin s Station and Jacksonboro . The Seventeenth Corps took up the destruction of the railroad at the Ogeechee, near Station No. 10, and continued it to Millen; the enemy offering little or no opposition, although preparation had seemingly -been made at Millen. On the 3d of December the Seventeenth Corps, which I accompanied, was at Millen ; the Fifteenth Corps, General Howard, was south of the Ogeechee, opposite Station No. 7 (Scarboro ) ; the Twentieth Corps, Gene ral Slocurn, on the Augusta Railroad, about four miles north of Millen, near Buckhead Church ; and the Fourteenth Corps, General JcfF. C. Davis, in the neighborhood of Lumpkin s Station, on the Augusta Railroad. All were ordered to march in the direction of Savannah the Fifteenth Corps to continue south of the Ogeechee, the Seventeenth to destroy the railroad as far as Ogeechee Church and four days were allowed to reach the lino from Ogeechee Church to the neighborhood of Halley s Ferry, on the Savannah River. All the columns reached their destinations in time, and continued to march on their several roads General Davis following tho Savannah River road, General Slocura the middle road by way of Spring field, General Blair the railroad, and General Howard still south and west of the Ogeechee, with orders to cross to tho east bank opposite "Eden Station," or Station No. 2. As we approached Savannah the country became more marshy and diffi cult, and more obstructions were met, in the way of felled trees, where the roads crossed the creek, swamps, or narrow causeways; but our pioneer 40 626 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. companies were well organized, and removed the obstructions in an in credibly short time. No opposition from the enemy worth speaking of was encountered until the heads of columns were within fifteen miles of Savannah, where all the roads leading to the city were obstructed more or less by felled timber, with earthworks and artillery. But these were easily turned, and the enemy driven away, so that by the 10th of December the enemy was driven within his lines at Savannah. These followed substan tially a swampy creek which empties into the Savannah River about three miles above the city, across to the head of a corresponding stream which empties into the Little Ogeechee. These streams were singularly favorable to the enemy as a cover, being very marshy, and bordered by rice-fields, which were flooded either by the tide-water or by inland ponds, the gates to which were controlled and covered by his heavy artillery. The only approaches to the city were by five narrow causeways, namely, the two railroads, and the Augusta, the Louisville, and the Ogee chee dirt-roads; all of which were commanded by heavy ordnance, too strong for us to fight with our light field-guns. To assault an enemy of unknown strength, at such a disadvantage, appeared to me unwise, espe cially as I had so successfully brought my army, almost unscathed, so great a distance, and could surely attain the same result by the operation of time. I therefore instructed my army commanders to closely invest the city from the north and west, and to reconnoiter well the ground in their fronts, respectively, while I gave my personal attention to opening com munications with our fleet, which I knew was waiting for us in Tybee, Wassaw, and Ossabaw Sounds. In approaching Savannah, General Slocum struck the Charleston Rail road near the bridge, and occupied the river-bank as his left flank, where he had captured two of the enemy 1 s river-boats, and had prevented two others (gunboats) from coming down the river to communicate with the city ; while General Howard, by his right flank, had broken the Gulf Rail road at Fleming s and way stations, and occupied the railroad itself down to the Little Ogeechee, near u Station No. 1 ; " so that no supplies could reach Savannah by any of its accustomed channels. We, on the contrary, possessed large herds of cattle, which, we had brought along or gathered in the country, and our wagons still contained a reasonable amount of bread- stuffs and other necessaries, and the fine rice-crops of the Savannah and Ogeechee Rivers furnished to our men and animals a large amount of rice and rice-straw. We also held the country to the south and west of the Ogeechee as foraging-ground. Still, communication with the fleet was of vital importance, and I directed General Kilpatrick to cross the Ogeecheo by a pontoon-bridge, to reconnoiter Fort McAllister, and to proceed to Catherine s Sound, in the direction of S anbury or Kilkenny Bluff, and open communication with the fleet. General Howard had previously, by my direction, sent one of his best scouts down the Ogeechee in a canoe for a like purpose. But more than this was necessary. We wanted the vessels and their contents ; and the Ogeechee River, a navigable stream, close to the rear of our camps, was the proper avenue of supply. MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 627 The enemy had burned the road-bridge across the Ogeechee, just below the mouth of the Canoochee, known as "King s Bridge." This was re constructed in an incredibly short time, in the most substantial manner, by the Fifty-eighth Indiana, Colonel Buel, under the direction of Captain Reese, of the Engineers Corps, and on the 13th of December the second division of the Fifteenth Corps, under command of Brigadier-General Hazen, crossed the bridge to the west bank of the Ogeechee, and marched down with orders to carry by assault Fort McAllister, a strong inclosed redoubt, manned by two companies of artillery and three of infantry, in all about two hundred men, and mounting twenty-three guns en barfiette, and one mortar. General Hazen reached the vicinity of Fort McAllister about one P. M., deployed his division about that place, with both flanks rest ing upon the river; posted his skirmishers judiciously behind the trunks of trees whose branches had been used for abatis, and about five P. M. assaulted the place with nine regiments at three points ; all of them successfully. I witnessed the assault from a rice-mill on the opposite bank of the river, and can bear testimony to the handsome manner in which it was accomplished. Up to this time we had not communicated with our fleet. From the signal station at the rice-mill our officers had looked for two days over the rice-fields and salt marsh in the direction of Ossabaw Sound, but could see nothing of it ; but while watching the preparations for the assault on Fort McAllister, we discovered in the distance what seemed to be the smoke-stack of a steamer, which became more and more distinct, until, about the very moment of the assault, she was plainly visible below the fort, and our signal was answered. As soon as I saw our colors fairly planted upon the walls of Fort McAllister, in company with General Howard, I went in a small boat down to the fort and met General Hazen, who had not yet communicated with the gunboat below, as it was shut out to him by a point of timber. Determined to communicate that night, I got another small boat and a crew, and pulled down the river till I found the tug Dandelion, Captain Williamson, United States Navy, who informed me that Captain Duncan, who had been sent by General Howard, had succeeded in reaching Admiral Dahlgren and General Foster, and that he was expecting them hourly in Ossabaw Sound. After making communica tions to those officers, and a short communication to the War Department, I returned to Fort McAllister that night, and before daylight was overtaken by Major Strong, of General Foster s staff, advising me that General Foster had arrived in the Ogeechee, near Fort McAllister, and was very anxious to meet me on board his boat. I accordingly returned with him, and met General Foster on board the steamer Nemalia ; and, after consultation, determined to proceed with him down the Sound, in hopes to meet Admiral Dahlgren. But we did not meet him until we reached Wassaw Sound, about noon. I there went on board the admiral s flagship, the Harvest Moon, after having arranged with General Foster to send us from Hilton Head some siege ordnance and some boats suitable for navigating the Ogeechee River. Admiral Dahlgren very kindly furnished me with all LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. th<3 data concerning his fleet and tbo numerous forts that guarded tho inland channels between tho sea and Savannah. I explained to him how completely Savannah was invested at all points, save only the plank-road on the South Carolina shore, known as the "Union Causeway/ which I thought I could reach from my left flank across the Savannah River. I explained to him that if he would simply engage the attention of the forts along Wilmington Channel, at Beaulieu and Rosedew, I thought I could carry the defenses of Savannah by assault as soon as the heavy ord nance arrived from Hilton Head. On the 15th the admiral carried me back to Fort McAllister, whence I returned to our lines in the rear of Savannah. Having received and carefully considered all the reports of division commanders, I determined to assault the lines of the enemy as soon as my heavy ordnance carne from Port Royal, first making a formal demand for surrender. On the 17th, a number of thirty-pounder Parrott guns having reached King s Bridge, I proceeded in person to the head-quarters of Major-General Slocum, on the Augusta road, and dispatched thence into Savannah, by flag of truce, a formal demand for the surrender of the place, and on the following day received an answer from General Hardee refusing to surrender. In the mean time further reconnoissances from our left flank had demonstrated that it was impracticable or unwise to push any considerable force across the Savannah River, for the enemy held the river opposite the city with iron-clad gunboats, and could destroy any pontoons laid down by us between Hutchinson s Island and the South Carolina shore, which would isolate any force sent over from that flank. I therefore ordered General Slocum to get into position the siege guns, and make all tho prep arations necessary to assault, and report to me the earliest moment when he could be ready, while I should proceed rapidly round by the right, and make arrangements to occupy the Union Causeway from the direction of Port Royal. General Foster had already established a division of troops on the peninsula or neck between the Coosawhatchie and Tullifinnoy Rivers, at the head of Broad River, from which position ho could reach the rail road with bis artillery. I went to Port Royal in person, and made arrangements to re-enforce that command by one or more divisions, under a proper officer, to assault and carry the railroad, and thence turn toward Savannah, until it occupied the causeway in question. I went on board the admiral s flag-ship, the Harvest Moon, which put out to sea the night of tho 20th. But the wind was high, and increased during the night, so that the pilot judged Ossabaw Bar impassable, and ran into the Tybee, whence we proceeded through tho inland channels into Wassaw Sound, and thence through Romncy Marsh. But the ebb-tide caught the Harvest Moon, and she was unable to make the passage. Admiral Dablgren took me in his barge, and pulling in tho direction of Vernoii River, we met the army-tug Red Legs, bearing a message from my adjutant, Captain .Dayton, of that morning, the 21st, to tho effect that our troops were in possession of the enemy s lines, and wero MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 629 advancing without opposition into Savannah, the enemy having evacuated the place during the previous night. Admiral Dahlgren proceeded up the Vernon River in his barge, while I transferred to the tug, in which I proceeded to Fort McAllister, and thence to the rice-mill, and on the morning of the 22d rode into the city of Savannah, already occupied by our troops. I was very much disappointed that Hardee had escaped with his garri son, and had to content myself with the material fruits of victory without the cost of life which would have attended a general assault. The substan tial results will be more clearly set forth in the tabular statements of heavy ordnance and other public property acquired, and it will suffice hero to state that the important city of Savannah, with its valuable harbor and river, was the chief object of the campaign. With it we acquire all the forts and heavy ordnance in its vicinity, with large stores of ammunition, shot and shells, cotton, rice, and other valuable products of the country. We also gain locomotives and cars, which, though of little use to us in the present condition of the railroads, are a serious loss to the enemy ; as well as four steamboats gained, and the loss to the enemy of the iron-clad Savannah, one ram. and three transports, blown up or burned by them the night before. Formal demand having been made for the surrender, and having been refused, I contend that every thing within the line of intrenchmenta belongs to the United States; and I shall not hesitate. to use it, if neces sary, for public purposes. But inasmuch as the inhabitants generally have manifested a friendly disposition, I shall disturb them as little as possible, consistently with the military rights of present and future military commanders, without remitting in the least our just rights as captors. After having made the necessary orders for the disposition of the troops in and about Savannah, 1 ordered Captain O. M. Poe, chief engineer, to make a thorough examination of the enemy s works in and about Savan nah, with a view to making it conform to our future uses. New lines of defenses will be built, embracing the city proper, Forts Jackson, Thunder bolt, and Pulaski retained, with slight modifications in their armament and rear defenses. All the rest of the enemy s forts will be dismantled and destroyed, and their heavy ordnance transferred to Hilton Head, where it can be more easily guarded. Our base of supplies will be established in Savannah, as soon as the very difficult obstructions placed in the river can be partially removed. These obstructions at present offer a very serious impediment to the commerce of Savannah, consisting of crib-work of logs and timber heavily bolted together, and filled with the cobble-stones which formerly paved the streets of Savannah. All the channels below the city were found more or less filled with torpedoes,- which have been removed by order of Admiral Dahlgren, so that Savannah already fulfills the im portant part it was designed in our plans for the future. In thus sketching the course of events connected with this campaign, I have purposely passed Fghtly over the march from Atlanta tojfche sea-shore, LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. because it was made in four or more columns,, sometimes at a distance of fifteen or twenty miles from each other, and it was impossible for mo to attend but one. Therefore, I have left it to the army and corps com manders to describe in their own language the events which attended the march of their respective columns. /These reports are herewith submitted, and I beg to refer to them for further details. I would merely sum up tho advantages which I conceive have accrued to us by this march. Our former labors in North Georgia had demonstrated the truth that no large army, carrying with it the necessary stores and baggage, can overtake and capture an inferior force of the enemy in his own country. Therefore, no alternative was left me but tho one I adopted, namely, to divide my forces, and with one part act offensively against the enemy s resources, while with the other I should act defensively, and invite the enemy to attack, risking the chances of battle. In this conclusion I have been singularly sustained by the results. General Hood, who, as I have heretofore described, had moved to the westward near Tuscumbia, with a view to decoy me away from Georgia, finding himself mistaken, was forced to choose, either to pursue me or to act offensively against the other part left in Tennessee. He adopted the latter course ; and General Thomas has wisely and well fulfilled his part in the grand scheme, in draAving Hood well up into Tennessee, until he could concentrate all his own troops and then turn upon Hood, as he has done, and destroy or fatally cripple bis army. That part of my army is so far removed from me, that I leave, with perfect confidence, its management and history to General Thomas. I was thereby left with a well-appointed army to sever tho enemy s only remaining railroad communications eastward and westward, for over one hundred miles, namely, the Georgia State Railroad, which is broken up from Fairburn Station to Madison and the Oconee, and the Central Rail road from Gordon clear to Savannah, with numerous breaks on the4atter road from Gordon to Eatonton, and from Millen to Augusta, and the Sa vannah and Gulf Railroad. We have also consumed the corn, and fodder in the region of country thirty miles on oither side of a line from Atlanta to Savannah ; as also the sweet potatoes, cattle, hogs, sheep, and poultry, and have carried away more than ten thousand horses and mules, as well as a countless number of their slaves. I estimate the damage done to the State of Georgia and its military resources at one hundred million dollars, at least twenty millions of which have inured to our advantage, and the remainder is simple waste and destruction. This may seem a hard species of warfare, but it brings the sad realities of war home to those who bavo been directly or indirectly instrumental in involving us in its attendant calamities. This campaign has also placed this branch of my army in a position from which other great military results may be attempted, besides leaving tn Tennessee and North Alabama a force which is amply sufficient to meet all the chances of war in that region of our country. Since the ^capture of Atlanta, my staff is unchanged, save that General MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 631 Barry, chief of artillery, has been absent sick since our leaving Kingston. Surgeon Moore, United States Army, is chief medical director, in place of Surgeon Kittoe, relieved to resume his proper duties as a medical inspector. Major Hitchcock, A. A.-G., has also been added to my staff, and has been of great assistance in the field and office. Captain Dayton still remains as my adjutant-general. All have, as formerly, fulfilled their parts to my entire satisfaction. In the body of my army I feel a just pride. Generals Howard and Slocum are gentlemen of singular capacity and intelligence, thorough soldiers and patriots, working day and night, not for themselves, but for their country and their men. General Kilpatrick, who commanded the cavalry of this arrny, has handled it with spirit and dash, to my entire satisfaction, and kept a superior force of the enemy s cavalry from even approaching our infantry columns or wagon-trains. His report is full and graphic. All the division and brigade commanders merit my personal and official thanks, and I shall spare no efforts to secure them commissions equal to the rank they have exercised so well. As to the rank and file, they seem so full of confidence in themselves, that I doubt if they want a compliment from me ; but I must do them the justice to say that, whether called on to fight, to march, to wade streams, to make roads, clear out obstructions, build bridges, make "corduroy," or tear up railroads, they have done it with alacrity and a degree of cheerfulness unsurpassed. A little loose in foraging, they " did some things they ought not to have done," yet, on the whole, they have supplied the wants of the army with as little violence as could be expected, and as little loss as I calculated. Some of these foraging parties had encounters with the enemy, which would, in ordinary times, rank as respectable battles. The behavior of our troops in Savannah has been so manly, so quiet, so perfect, that I take it as the best evidence of discipline and true courage. Never was a hostile city, filled with women and children, occupied by a large army with less disorder, or more system, order, and good government. The same general and generous spirit of confidence and good feeling pervades the array, which it has ever afforded me special pleasure to report on former occa sions. I avail myself of this occasion to express my heart-felt thanks to Ad miral Dahlgren, and the officers and men of his fleet, as also to General Foster and his command, for the hearty welcome given us on our arrival at the coast, and for their steady and prompt co-operation in all measures tending to the result accomplished. I send herewith a map of the country through which we have passed ; reports from General Howard, General Slocum, and General Kilpatrick, and their subordinates respectively ; with the usual lists of captured prop erty, killed, wounded, and missing, prisoners of war taken and rescued ; as also copies of all papers illustrating the campaign. All of which are respectfully submitted by Your obedient servant, W. T. SHERMAN, Major- General. 632 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. FROM SAVANNAH TO GOLDSBORO , THROUGH THE CAROLINAS. HEAD-QUARTERS MILITARY DinsiON OP THE MISSISSIPPI, I GOLDSBOBO , N. 0., April 4, 1865. GENERAL : I must now endeavor to group the events of the past three months connected with the armies under my command, in order that you may have as clear an understanding of the late campaign as the case admits of. The reports of the subordinate commanders will enable you to fill up the picture. 1 have heretofore explained, how, in the progress of our arms, I was enabled to leave in the West an army under Major-General George II. Thomas, of sufficient strength to meet emergencies in that quarter, while in person I conducted another army, composed of the Fourteenth, Fifteenth, Seventeenth, and Twentieth Corps, and Kilpatrick s division of cavalry, to the Atlantic slope, aiming to approach the grand theater of war in Vir ginia, by the time the season would admit of military operations in that latitude. The first lodgment on the coast was made at Savannah, strongly fortified and armed, and valuable to us as a good seaport, with its navigable stream inland. Near a month was consumed there in refitting the army, and in making the proper disposition of captured property, and other local matters; but by the 15th of January I was all ready to resume the march. Preliminary to this, General Howard, commanding the right wing, was ordered to embark his command at Thunderbolt, transport it to Beaufort, South Carolina, and thence, by the 15th of January, make a lodgment on the Charleston Railroad, at or near Pocotaligo. This was accomplished punctually, at little cost, by the Seventeenth Corps, Major-General Blair, and a depot for supplies was established near the mouth of Pocotaligo Creek, with easy water communication back to Hilton Head. The left wing, Major-General Slocum, and the cavalry, Major-General Kilpatrick, were ordered to rendezvous about the same time near Robei;ts- ville and Coosawhatchie, South Carolina, with a depot of supplies at Purcys- burg or Sister s Ferry, on the Savannah River. General Slocum had a good pontoon bridge constructed opposite the city, and the "Union Cause way," leading through the low rice-fields opposite Savannah, was repaired and "corduroyed." But, before the time appointed to start, the heavy rains of January had swelled the river, broken the pontoon bridge, and overflowed the whole "bottom," so that the causeway was four feet under water, and General Slocum was compelled to look higher up for a passage over the Savannah River. He moved up to Sister s Ferry, but even there the river, with its overflowed bottoms, was near three miles wide, and ho did not succeed in getting his whole wing across until during the first week of February. In the mean time, General Grant had sent me Grover s division of the Nineteenth Corps to garrison Savannah, and had drawn the Twenty-third Corps, Major-General Schofield, from Tennessee, and sent it to re- enforce MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 633 the commands of Major-Generals Terry and Palmer, operating on the coast of North Carolina, to prepare the way for my coming. On the 18th of January I transferred the forts and city of Savannah to Major-General Foster, commanding the Department of the South, imparted to him my plans of operation, and instructed him how to follow my move ments inland, hy occupying in succession the city of Charleston and such other points along the seacoast as would be of any military value to us. The combined naval and land forces under Admiral Porter and General Terry had, on the 15th of January, captured Fort Fisher and the rebel forts at the mouth of Cape Fear River, giving me an additional point of security on the seacoast. But I bad already resolved in my own mind, and had so advised General Grant, that I would undertake at one stride to make Goldsboro , and open communication with the sea by the Newbern Rail road, and had ordered Colonel W. W. Wright, superintendent of military railroads, to proceed in advance to Newbern, and to be prepared to extend the railroad out from Newbern to Goldsboro by the loth of March. On the 1 9th of January all preparations were complete, and the orders of march given. My chief quartermaster and commissary, Generals Easton and Beckwith, were ordered to complete the supplies at Sister s Ferry and Pocotaligo, arid then to follow our movement coastwise, looking for my arrival at Goldsboro , North Carolina, about March 15th, and opening com munication with me from Morehead City. On the 22d of January I embarked at Savannah for Hilton Head, where I held a conference with Admiral Pahlgren, United States Navy, and Major-General Foster, commanding the Department of the South, and next day proceeded to Beaufort, riding out thence on the 24th to Pocotaligo, where the Seventeenth Corps, Major-General Blair was encamped. The Fifteenth Corps was somewhat scattered Wood s and Hazen s divisions at Beaufort, John E. Smith marching from Savannah by the coast road, and Corse still at Savannah, cut off by the storms -and freshet in the river. On the 25th a demonstration was made against the Cornbahee Ferry and rail road-bridge across the Salkehatchie, merely to amuse the enemy, who had evidently adopted that river as his defensive line against our supposed ob- jectwe, the city of Charleston. I reconnoitered the line in person, and saw that the heavy rains had swollen the river so that water stood in the swainps, for a breadth of more than a mile, at a depth of from one to twen ty feet. Not having the remotest intention of approaching Charleston, a comparatively small force was able, by seeming preparations to cross over, to keep in their front a considerable force of the enemy disposed to contest our advance on Charleston. On the 27th I rode to the camp of General Hatch s division of Foster s command, on the Tullifinney and Coosawhat- chie Rivers, and directed those places to be evacuated, as no longer of any use to us. That division was then moved to Pocotaligo to keep up the feints already begun, until we should with the right wing move higher up and cross the Salkehatchie about Rivera s, or Broxton s Bridge. On the 29th I learned that the roads back of Savannah had at last become sufficiently free of the flood to admit of General Slocum putting his wing in motion, 634 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and that he was already approaching Sister s Ferry, whither a gunboat, the Pontiac, Captain Luce, kindly furnished by Admiral Dahlgren, had pre ceded him to cover the crossing. In the mean time, three divisions of the Fifteenth Corps had closed up at Pocotaligo, and the right wing had loaded its wagons and was ready to start. I therefore directed General Howard to move one corps, the Seventeenth, along the Salkehatcliie, as high up as Rivers s Bridge, and the other, the Fifteenth, by Hickory Hill, Lopers Cross-roads, Anglesey Post-office, and Beaufort s Bridge. Hatch s division was ordered to remain at Pocotaligo, feigning at the Salkehatcbie railroad- bridge and ferry, until our movement turned the enemy s position and forced him to fall behind the Edisto. The Seventeenth and Fifteenth Corps drew out of camp on the 31st of January, but the real march began on the 1st of February. All the roads northward had for weeks been held by Wheeler s cavalry, who had by de tails of negro laborers felled trees, burned bridges, and made obstructions to impede our march. But so well organized were our pioneer battalions, and so strong and intelligent our men, that obstructions seemed only to quicken their progress. Felled trees were removed and bridges rebuilt by the heads of columns before the rear could close up. On the 2d of Febru ary the Fifteenth Corps reached Loper s Cross-roads, and the Seventeenth was at Rivers s Bridge. From Loper s Cross-roads I communicated with General Slocum, still struggling with the floods of the Savannah River at Sister s Ferry. lie had two divisions of the Twentieth Corps, General Williams, -on the cast bank, and was enabled to cross over on his pontoons the cavalry of Kilpatrick. General Williams was ordered to Beaufort s Bridge, by way of Lawtonville and Allendale, Kilpatrick to Blackville via Barnwell, arid General Slocum to hurry the crossing at Sister s Ferry as much as possible, and overtake the right wing on the South Carolina Rail road. General Howard, with the right wing, was directed to cross the Salkehatchie and push rapidly for the South Carolina Railroad, at or near Midway. The enemy held the line of the Salkehatchie in force, having in fantry and artillery intrenched at Rivers s and Beaufort s" Bridges. The Seventeenth Corps was ordered to carry Rivers s Bridge, and the Fifteenth Corps Beaufort s Bridge. The former position was carried promptly and skillfully by Mower s and Giles A. Smith s division of the Seventeenth Corps, on the 3d of February, by crossing the swamp, nearly three miles wide, with water varying from knee to shoulder deep. The weather was bitter cold, and Generals Mower and Smith led their divisions in person, on foot, waded the swamp, made a lodgment below the bridge, and turned on the rebel brigade which guarded it, driving it in confusion and disorder toward Branchv.ille. Our casualties were one officer and seventeen men killed, and seventy men wounded, who were sent to Pocotaligo. The line of the Salkehatchie being thus broken, the enemy retreated at once behind the Edisto, at Branch ville, and the whole army was pushed rapidly to the South Carolina Railroad at Midway, Barnberg (or Lowry s Station), and Graham s Station. The Seventeenth Corps by threatening Branchville, forced the enemy to burn the railroad bridge, and Walker s Bridge below. MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 635 across the Edisto. AJ1 hands were at once set to work to destroy railroad track. From the 7th to the 10th of February this work was thoroughly prosecuted by the Seventeenth Corps from the Edisto up to Bamberg, and by the Fifteenth Corps from Bamberg up to Blackville. In the mean time General Kilpatrick had brought his cavalry rapidly by Barnwell to Black ville, and had turned toward Aiken, with orders to threaten Augusta, but not to be drawn needlessly into a serious battle. This he skillfully ac complished, skirmishing heavily with "Wheeler s cavalry, first at Blackville, and afterward at Williston and Aiken. General Williams, with two divi sions of the Twentieth Corps, marched to the South Carolina Railroad at Graham s Station, on the 8th, and General Slocum reached Blackville on the 10th. The destruction of the railroad was continued by the left wing from Blackville up to Windsor. By the llth of February all the army was on the railroad from Midway to Johnson s Station, thereby dividing the enemy s forces, which still remained at Branchville and Charleston on the one hand, Aiken and Augusta on the other. We then began the movement on Orangeburg. The Seventeenth Corps crossed the South Fork of Edisto River at Binnaker s Bridge, and moved straight for Orangeburg, while the Fifteenth Corps crossed at Holman s Bridge and moved to Poplar Springs in support. The left wing and cavalry were still at work on the railroad, with orders to cross the South Edisto at New and Guignard s Bridges, move to the Orangeburg and Edgefield road, and there await the result of the attack ore Orangeburg. On the 12th tho Seventeenth Corps found the enemy intrenched in front of the Orangeburg Bridge, but swept him away by a dash, and followed him, forcing him across the bridge, which was partially burned. Behind the bridge was a battery in position, covered by a cotton and earth parapet, with wings as far as could be seen. General Blair held one division (Giles A. Smith s) close up to the Edisto, and moved the other two to a point about two miles below, where he crossed Force s division by a pontoon bridge, holding Mower s in support. As soon as Force emerged from the swamp, tho enemy gave ground, and Giles Smith s division gained the bridge, crossed over, and occupied the enemy s parapet. He soon repaired the bridge, and by four p. M. tho whole corps was in Orangeburg, and had begun the work of destruction on the railroad. Blair was ordered to destroy this railroad effectually up to Lewisville, and to push the enemy across the Congaree, and force him to burn tho bridges, which he did on the 14th ; and without wasting time or labor on Branchville or Charleston, which I knew the enemy could no longer hold, I turned all the columns straight on Columbia. The Seventeenth Corps followed the State road, and tho Fifteenth crossed the North Edisto from Poplar Springs at Schilling s Bridge, above the mouth of " Cawcaw Swamp " Creek, and took a country road which camo into the State road at Zeigler s. On the 15th, the Fifteenth Corps found the enemy in a strong position at Little Oongareo Bridge (across Congaree Creek), with a tete-de-pont on the south side, and a well-constructed fort on the north side, commanding the bridge with artillery. The ground in front was very bad, level, and clear, with a fresh deposit of raud from a re- 636 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. cent overflow. General Charles R. Woods, who commanded the leading division, succeeded, however, in turning the flank of the tete-de~pont, by sending Stone s brigade through a cypress swamp to the left ; and following up the retreating enemy promptly, lie got possession of the bridge and the fort beyond. The bridge had been partially damaged by fire, and had to be repaired for the passage of artillery, so that night closed in before the head of the column reached the bridge across Congaree River in front of Colum bia. That night the enemy shelled our camps from a battery on the east side of the Congaree above Granby. Early next morning (February 16th) the head of the column reached the bank of the Congaree, opposite Colum bia, but too late to save the fine bridge which spanned the river at that point. It was burned by the enemy. While waiting for the pontoons to come to the front, we could see people running about the streets of Columbia, and occasionally small bodies of cavalry, but no masses. A single gun of Captain De Grass s battery was firing at their cavalry squads, but I checked his firing, limiting him to a few shots at the unfinished State-House walls, and a few shells at the railroad depdt to scatter the people who were seen carrying away sacks of corn and meal that we needed. There was no white flag or manifestations of surrender. I directed General Howard not to cross directly in front of Columbia, but to cross the Saluda at the Fac tory, three miles above, and afterward Broad River, so as to approach Columbia from the north. Within an hour of the arrival of General How ard s head of column at the rive* opposite Columbia, the head of column of the left wing also appeared, and I directed General Slocum to cross the Sa luda at Zion Church, and thence to take roads direct for Winrisboro^ breaking up en route the railroad and bridges about Alston. General Howard effected a crossing of the Saluda, near the Factory, on the 16th, skirmishing with cavalry, and the same night made a flying bridge across Broad River, about three miles above Columbia, by which he crossed over Stone s brigade, of Wood s division, Fifteenth Corps. Under cover of this brigade, a pontoon bridge was laid on the morning of the 17th. I was in person at this bridge, and at eleven A. M., learned that the mayor of Columbia had come out in a carriage, and made a formal surrender of the city to Colonel Stone, Twe nty-fifth Iowa infantry, commanding third brigade, first division, Fifteenth Corps. About the same time a small party of the Seventeenth Corps had crossed the Congaree in a skiff, and entered Colum bia from a point immediately west. In anticipation of the occupation of the city, I had made written orders to General Howard touching the con duct of the troops. These were, to destroy absolutely all arsenals and pub lic property not needed for our own use, as well as all railroads, depots, and machinery useful in war to an enemy, but to spare all dwellings, col leges, schools, asylums, and harmless private property. I was the first to cross the pontoon bridge, and in company with General Howard rode into the city. The day was clear, but a perfect tempest of wind was raging. The brigade of Colonel Stone was already in the city, and was properly posted. Citizens and soldiers wero on the streets, and general good order prevailed. General Wade Hampton, who commanded the Confederate MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 687 rear-guard of cavalry, had, in anticipation of. our capture of Columbia, ordered that all cotton, public and private, should be moved into the streets and fired, to prevent our making use of it. Bales were piled everywhere, the rope and bagging cut, and tufts of cotton were blown about in the wind, lodging in the trees and against houses, so as to resemble a snow-storm. Some of these piles of cotton were burning, especially one in the very heart of the city, near the Court-house, but the fire was partially subdued by the labor of our soldiers. During the day the Fifteenth Corps passed through Columbia and out on the Camden road. The Seventeenth did not enter the town at all; and, as I have before stated, the left wing and cavalry did not come within two miles of the town. Before one single public building had been fired by order, the smolder ing fires, set by Hampton s order, were rekindled by the wind, and com municated to the buildings around. About dark they began to spread, and got beyond the control of the brigade on duty within the city. The whole of Woods s division was brought in, but it was found impossible to check the flames, which, by midnight, had become unmanageable, and raged until about four o clock, A. M., when, the wind subsiding, they were got under control. I was up nearly all night, and saw Generals Howard, Logan, Woods, and others, laboring to save houses and protect families thus sud denly deprived of shelter, and of bedding and wearing apparel. I disclaim on the part of my army any agency in this fire, but, on the contrary, claim that we saved what of Columbia remains unconsumed. And, without hesi tation, I charge General Wade Hampton with having burned his own city of Columbia, not with a malicious intent, or as the manifestation of a si)ly "Roman stoicism," but from folly and want of sense in filling it with lint, cotton, and tinder. Our officers and men on duty worked well to extin guish the flames; but others not on duty, including the officers who had long been imprisoned there, rescued by us, may have assisted in spreading the fire after it had once begun, and may have indulged in unconcealed joy to see the ruin of the capital of South Carolina. During the 18th and 19th, the arsenal, railroad depots, machine shops, founderies, and other buildings, were properly destroyed by detailed working parties, and the railroad track torn up and destroyed down to Kingsville and the Wateree Bridge, and up in the direction of Winnsboro . At the same time the left wing and cavalry had crossed the Saluda and Broad Rivers, breaking up railroad about Alston, and as high up as the bridge across Broad River, on the Spartanburg road, the main body moving straight for Winnsboro , which General Slocum reached on the 21st of February, lie caused the railroad to bo destroyed up to Blackstakes Depot, and then turned to Rocky Mount, on the Catawba River. The Twentieth Corps reached Rocky Mount on the 22d, laid a pontoon bridge, and crossed over during the 23d. Kilpatrick s cavalry followed, and crossed over in a terrible rain during the night of the 23d, and moved up to Lancaster, with orders to keep up the delusion of a general movement on Charlotte, North Carolina, to which General Beauregard and all tho cavalry of the enemy had retreated from Columbia. I was also aware that 638 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Cheatham s Corps, of Hood s old army, was aiming to make a junction with Beauregavd at Charlotte, having been cut off by our rapid movement on Columbia and Winnsboro . From the 23d to the 26th we had heavy rains, swelling the rivers and making the roads almost impassable. The Twentieth Corps reached Hanging Rock on the 26th, and waited there for the Fourteenth Corps to get across the Catawba. The heavy rains had so swollen the river that the pontoon bridge broke, and General Davis had very hard work to restore it and get his command across. At last he suc ceeded, and the left wing was all put in motion for Cheraw. In the mean time the right wing had broken up the railroad to Winnsboro , and thence turned for Peay s Ferry, where it was crossed over the Catawba before the heavy rains set in, the Seventeenth Corps moving straight on Cheraw via Young s Bridge, and the Fifteenth Corps by Tiller s and Kelley s Bridges. From this latter corps, detachments were sent into Camdcn to burn the bridge over the Wateree, with the railroad depot, stores, etc. A small force of mounted men under Captain Duncan was also dispatched to make a dash and interrupt the railroad from Charleston to Florence, but it met Butler s division tff cavalry, and, after a sharp night-skirmish on Mount Elon, was compelled to return unsuccessful. Much bad road was encoun tered at Lynch s Creek, which delayed the right wing about the same length of time as the left wing had been at the Catawba. On the 2d of March, the leading division of the Twentieth Corps entered Chesterfield, skirmishing with Butler s division of cavalry, and the next day about noon the Seventeenth Corps entered Cheraw, the enemy retreating across the Pedee, and burning the bridge at that point. At Cheraw we found much ammunition and many guns, which had been brought from Charleston on the evacuation of that city. These were destroyed, as also the railroad trestles and bridges down as far as Darlington. An expedition of mounted infantry was also sent down to Florence, but it encountered both cavalry and infantry, and returned, having only broken up in part the branch road from Florence to Cheraw. Without unnecessary delay the columns were again put in motion, directed on Fayetteville, North Carolina, the right wing crossing the Pcdec at Cheraw, and the left wing and cavalry at Sneedsboro . General Kilpatrick was ordered to keep well on the left flank, and the Fourteenth Corps, moving by Love s Bridge, was given the right to enter and occupy Fayetteville first. The weather continued unfavorable and the roads bad, but the Fourteenth and Seventeenth Corps reached Fayetteville on the llth of March, skirmishing with Wade Hampton s cavalry, that covered the rear of llardee s retreating army, which, as usual, had crossed Cape Fear River, burning the bridge. During the march from Pedee, General Kilpatrick had kept his cavalry well on the left and exposed flank. During the night of the 9th of March, his three brigades were divided to picket the roads. General Hampton detecting this, rushed in at daylight and gained possession of the camp of Colonel Spencer s brigade, and the house in which General Kilpatrick arid Colonel Spencer had their quarters. The surprise was complete, but General Kilpatrick quickly succeeded in ral- MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 639 lying his men, on foot, in a swamp near by, and by a prompt attack, well followed up, regained his artillery, horses, camp, and every thing save some prisoners whom the enemy carried off, leaving their dead on the ground. The 12th, 13th, arid 14th were passed at Fayetteville, destroying abso lutely the United States arsenal and the vast amount of machinery which had formerly belonged to the Harper s Ferry United States arsenal. Every building was knocked down and burned, and every piece of machinery utterly broken up and ruined by the First Regiment Michigan Engineers, under the immediate supervision of Colonel O. M. Poe, chief engineer. Mucli valuable property of great use to the enemy was here destroyed or cast into the river. Up to this period I had perfectly succeeded in interposing my superior army between the scattered parts of the enemy. But I was then aware that the fragments that had left Columbia under Beauregard had been re- enforced by Cheatharn s corps from the West, and the garrison of Augusta, and that ample time had been given to move them to my front and flank about Raleigh. Ilardee had also succeeded in getting across Cape Fear River ahead of me, and could therefore complete the junction with the other armies of Johnston and Iloke in North Carolina. And the whole, un der the command of the skillful and experienced Joe Johnston, made up an army superior to me in cavalry, and formidable enough in artillery and in fantry to justify me in extreme caution in making the last step necessary to complete the march I had undertaken. Previous to reaching Fayetteville, I had dispatched to Wilmington from Laurel Hill Church two of our best scouts with intelligence of our position and my general plans. Both of these messengers reached Wilmington, and on the morning of the 12th of March the army-tug Davidson, Captain Ains- worth, reached Fayetteville from Wilmington, bringing me full intelligence of events from the outer world. On the sam.e day this tug carried back to General Terry, at Wilmington, and General Schofield, at Newbern, my dis patches to the effect that on Wednesday, the loth, we would move for Goldsboro 1 , feigning on Raleigh, and ordering them to march straight for Goldsboro 1 , which I expected to reach about the 20th. The same day the gunboat Eolus, Captain Young, United States Navy, also reached Fayette ville, and through her I continued to have communication with Wilming ton until the day of our actual departure. While the work of destruc tion was going on at Fayetteville, two pontoon bridges were laid across Cape Fear River, one opposite the town, and the other three miles below. General Kilpatrick was ordered to move up the plank-road to and be yond Averysboro . He was to be followed by four divisions of the left wing, with as few wagons as possible; the rest of the train, under escort of the two remaining divisions of that wing, to take a shorter and more direct road to Goldsboro . In like manner General Howard was ordered to send his trains, under good escort, well to the right, toward Faison s Depot and Goldsboro , and to hold four divisions ligtit, ready to go to the G40 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. aid of the left wing if attacked while in motion. The weather continued very had, and the roads had become mere quagmire. Almost every foot of it had to he corduroyed to admit the passage of wheels. Still, time was so important that punctually, according to order, the columns moved out from Cape Fear River on Wednesday, the 15th of March. I accompanied Gen eral Slocum, who, preceded by Kilpatrick s cavalry, moved up the river or plank-road that day to Kyle s Landing, Kilpatrick skirmishing heavily with the enemy s rear-guard about three miles beyond, near Taylor s Hole Creek. At General Kilpatrick s request, General Slocum sent forward a brigade of infantry to hold a line of barricades. Next morning the column advanced in the same order, and developed the enemy, with artillery, infantry, and cavalry, in an intrenched position in front of the point where the road . branches off toward Goldsboro through Bentonville. On an inspection of the map, it was manifest that Hardee in retreating from Fayetteville had halted in the narrow swampy neck between Cape Fear and South Rivers in the hopes to hold me, to save time for the concentration of Johnston s armies at some point to his rear namely, Raleigh, Srnithfield, or Goldsboro . Hardee s force was estimated at twenty thousand men. It was necessary to dislodge him that we might have the use of the Goldsboro road, as also to keep up the feint on Raleigh as long as possible. General Slocum was therefore ordered to press and carry the position, only difficult by reason of the nature of the ground, which was so soft that horses would sink everywhere, and even men could hardly make their way over the common pine-barren. The Twentieth Corps, General Williams, had the. lead, and Ward s divi sion the advance. This was deployed, and the skirmish line developed the position of a brigade of Charleston heavy artillery, armed as infantry (Rhett s), posted across the road behind a light parapet, with a battery of guns enfilading the approach across a cleared field. General Williams sent a brigade (Case s) by a circuit- to his left that turned this line, and by a quick charge broke the brigade, which rapidly retreated back to a second line, better built arid more strongly held. A battery of artillery (Winning- er s), well-posted under the immediate direction of Major Reynolds, chief of artillery of the Twentieth Corps, did good execution on the retreating brigade ; and, on advancing Ward s division over this ground, General Williams captured three guns and two hundred and seventeen prisoners, of which sixty-ei^ht were wounded, and left in a house near by with a rebel officer, four men, and live days rations. One hundred and eight rebel dead were buried by us. As Ward s division advanced, he developed a second and a stronger line, when Jackson s division was deployed forward on the right of Ward, and the two divisions of Jeff. C. Davis s (Fourteenth) Corps on the left, well toward the Cape Fear. At the sa/ne time Kilpatrick, who was acting in concert with General Williams, was ordered to draw back his cavalry and mass it on the extreme right, and, in concert with Jackson s right, to feel forward for the Goldsboro road. He got a brigade < n the road, but it was attacked by McLaws s rebel division furiously, and though it fought well aud hard, the brigade drew back to the flank of the MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 641 infantry. The whole fine advanced late in the afternoon, drove the enemy well within his intrenched line and pressed him so hard, that next morning he was gone, having retreated in a miserable stormy night over the worst of roads. Ward s division of infantry followed to and through Averysboro 1 , developing the fact that Ilardee had retreated, not on Raleigh, but on Smithfield. I had the night before directed Kilpatrick to cross South River at a mill-dam to our right and rear, and move up on the east sido toward Elevation. General Slocum reports his aggregate loss, in the affair known as that of Averysboro , at twelve officers and sixty-five men killed, and four hundred and seventy-seven wounded. We lost no prisoners. The enemy s loss can be inferred from his dead (one hundred and eight) left for us to bury. Leaving Ward s division to keep up a show of pursuit, Slocum s column was turned to the right, built a bridge across the swollen South River, arid took the Goldsboro 1 road, Kilpatrick crossing to thi north, in the direction of Elevation, with orders to move eastward, watch ing that flank. In, the mean time the wagon-trains and guards, as also Howard s column, were wallowing along the miry roads toward Ben- tonville and Goldsboro . The enemy s infantry, as before stated, had retreated across our front in- the same direction, burning the bridges across Mill Creek. I continued with the head of Slocum s column, and camped the night of the 18th with him on the Goldsboro road, twenty-seven miles from Goldsboro , about five miles from Bentonville, and where the road from Clinton to Smithfield crosses the Goldsboro road. Howard was at Lee s Store, only two miles south, and both columns had pickets three miles forward, to where the two roads came together and became common to Goldsboro 1 . All the signs induced me to believe that the enemy would make no fur ther opposition to our progress, and would not attempt to strike us in llarik while in motion. I therefore directed Howard to move his right wing by the new Goldsboro road, which goes by way of Falling Creek Church. I also left Slocum and joined Howard s column, with a view to open com munications with General Schofield, coining up from Newbern, and Terry, from Wilmington. I found General Howard s column well strung out, owing to the very bad roads, and did not overtake him in person till he had reached Falling Creek Church, with one regiment forward to the cross roads near Cox s Bridge across the Neuse. I had gone from General Slo cum about six miles, when I heard artillery in his direction, but was soon made easy by one of his staff officers overtaking me, explaining that his leading division (Carlin s) had encountered a division of rebel cavalry (Dibbrell s), which he was driving easily. But soon other staff-officers came up, reporting that he had developed near Bentonville the whole of the rebel army, under General Johnston himself. I sent him orders to call up the two divisions guarding his wagon-trains, and Ilazen s division of the Fifteenth Corps, still back near Lee s Store ; to fight defensively until I could draw up Blair s Corps then near Mount Olive Station, and with the remaining three divisions of the Fifteenth Corps como up on Johnston s left rear from the direction of Cox s Bridge. In the mean time- r 41 042 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. while on the road, I received couriers from both Uenerals Scbofield and Terry. The former reported himself in possession of Kinston, delayed somewhat hy want of provisions, but able to inarch so as to make Golds- boro on the 21st; and Terry was at or nearFaison s Depot. Orders were at once dispatched to Schoiield to push for Goldsboro , and to make dispo sitions to cross Little River in the direction of Smithfield as far as Millard; to General Terry to move to Cox s Bridge, lay a pontoon bridge, and estab lish a crossing; and to Blair to make a night inarch to Falling Creek Church ; and at daylight the right wing, General Howard, less the neces sary wagon guards, was put in rapid motion on Bentonville. By subse quent reports I learned that General Slocum s head of column had advanced from its camp of March 18, and first encountered Dibbrell s cavalry, but soon found his progress impeded by infantry and artillery. The enemy attacked his head of column, gaining a temporary advantage, and took three guns and caissons of General Carlin s division, driving the two lead ing brigades back on the main body. As soon as General Slocnm realized that he had in his front the whole Confederate army, he promptly deployed the two divisions of the Fourteenth Corps, General Davis, and rapidly brought up on their left the two divisions of the Twentieth Corps, General Williams. These he arranged on the defensive, and hastily prepared a line of barricades. General Kilpatrick also came up at the sound of artillery and massed on the left. In this position the left received six distinct as saults by the combined forces of Iloke, Ilardee, and Cheatham, under the immediate command of General Johnston himself, without giving an inch of ground, and doing good execution on the enemy s ranks, especially with our artillery, the enemy having little or none. Johnston had moved by night from Smithfield with great rapidity, and without unnecessary wheels, intending to overwhelm my left flank before it could be relieved by its co-operating columns. But he u reckoned without his host." I had expected just such a movement all the way from Fayette- ville, and was prepared for it. During the night of the 19th, General Slocum got up his wagon-train with its guard of two divisions, and Hazen s division of the Fifteenth Corps, which re-enforcement enabled him to make his position impregnable. The right wing found rebel cavalry watch ing his approach, but unable to offer any serious opposition until our head of column encountered a considerable body behind a barricade at the forks of the road near Bentonville, about three miles east of the battle-field of the day before. This body of cavalry was, however, quickly dislodged, and the intersection of the roads secured. On moving forward the Fif teenth Corps, General Logan found that the enemy had thrown back his left flank, and had constructed a line of parapet connecting with that toward General Slocum, in the form of a bastion, its salient on the main Goldsboro 1 road, interposing between General Slocum on the west and General Howard on the east, while the flanks rested on Mill Creek, cover ing the road back to .Smithfield. General Howard was instructed to pro ceed with due caution until he hud made strong connection on his left with General Slocum. This he soon accomplished, and by four P. M. of the 20th a MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 543 complete and strong line of battle confronted the enemy in his intrenched position, and General Johnston, instead of catching us in detail, was on the defensive, with Mill Creek and a single bridge to his rear. Nevertheless, we had no object to accomplish by a battle, unless at an advantage, and therefore my general instructions were to press steadily with skirmishers alone, to use artillery pretty freely on the wooded space held by the enemy, and to feel pretty strongly the flanks of his position, which were as usual covered by the endless swamps of this region of country. I also ordered all empty wagons to be sent at once to Kinston for supplies, and other impediments to be grouped near the Neuse, south of Goldsboro , holding the real army in close contact with the enemy, ready to fight him if he ventured outside his parapets and swampy obstructions. Thus matters stood about Bentonville on the 21st of March. On the same day General Schofield entered Goldsboro with little or no opposition, and Genera) Terry had got possession of the Neuse River at Cox s Bridge, ten miles above, with a pontoon bridge laid and a brigade across, so that the three armies were in actual connection, and the great object of the campaign was accomplished. On the 21st a steady rain prevailed, during which General Mower s di vision of the Seventeenth Corps, on the extreme right, had worked well to the right around the enemy s flank, and had nearly reached the bridge across Mill Creek, the only line of retreat open to the enemy. Of coarse there was extreme danger that the enemy would turn on him all his re- gerves, and, it might be, let go his parapets to overwhelm Mower. Ac cordingly I ordered at once a general attack by our skirmish-line from left to right. Quite a noisy battle ensued, during which General Mower was enabled to regain his connection with his own corps by. moving to his left rear. Still he had developed a weakness in the enemy s position, of which advantage might have been taken; but that night the enemy retreated on Smithlield, leaving his pickets to fall into our hands, with many dead un- buried, and wounded in his field-hospitals. At daybreak of the 22d, pur suit was made two miles beyond Mill Creek, but checked by my order. General Johnston had utterly failed in his attempt, and we remained in full possession of the field of battle. General Slocum reports the losses of the left wing about Bentonville at nine officers and one hundred and forty-five men killed, fifty-one officers and eight hundred and sixteen men wounded, and three officers and two hundred and twenty-three men missing, taken prisoners by the enemy ; total, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven. He buried on the field one hundred and sixty-seven rebel dead, and took three hundred and thirty- eight prisoners. General Howard reports the losses of the right wing at two officers and thirty-five men killed, twelve officers and two hun dred and thirty-nine men wounded, and one officer and sixty men miss ing; total, three hundred and ninety-nine. He also buried one hundred rebel dead, and took one thousand two hundred and eighty-seven prison ers. The cavalry of Kilpatrick was held in reserve, and lost but lew, if any, of which I have no report as yet. Our aggregate loss at Bentonville was 644 LIFE AND CAMPAIG&S OP GENERAL GRANT. ono thousand six hundred and forty-three. I am well satisfied that the enemy lost heavily, especially during his assaults on the left wing during the afternoon of the 19th; but, as I have no data, save his dead and wounded left in our hands, I prefer to make no comparisons. Thus, as I have endeavored to explain, we had completed our march on the 21st, and had full possession of Goldsboro , the real " objective," with its two rail roads back to the seaports of Wilmington and Beaufort, North Carolina. These were being rapidly repaired by strong working-parties, directed by Colonel W. W. Wright, of the railroad department. A large number of supplies had already been brought forward to Kinston, to which place our wagons had been sent to receive them. I therefore directed General How ard and the cavalry to remain at Bentonville, during the 22d, to bury the dead and remove the wounded, and on the following day all the armies to move to th6 camps assigned them about Goldsboro , there to rest and re ceive the clothing and supplies of which they stood in need. In person I went on the 23d to Cox s Bridge to meet General Terry, whom I met for the first time, and on the following day rode into Goldsboro , where I found General Schofield and his army. The left wing came in during the same day and next morning, and the right wing followed on the 24th, on which day the cavalry moved to Mount Olive Station, and General Terry back to Faison s. On the 25th, the Newbern Railroad was finished, and the first train of cars came in, thus giving us the means of bringing from the dep6t at Morehead City full supplies to the army. It was all-important that I should have an interview with the general-in- chief, and presuming that he could not at this time leave City Point, I left General Schofield in chief command, and proceeded with all expedition by rail to Morehead City, and thence by steamer to City Point, reaching Gen eral Grant s head-quarters on the evening of the 27th of March. I had the good fortune to meet General Grant, the President, Generals Meade, Ord, and others of the Army of the Potomac, and soon learned the general state of the military world, from which I had in a great measure been cut oil since January. Having completed all necessary business, I re-embarked on the navy steamer Bat, Captain Barnes, which Admiral Porter placed at my command, and returned via Hatteras Inlet and Newbern, reaching my own head-quarters in Goldsboro during the night of the 30th. During my ab sence, full supplies of clothing and food had been brought to camp, arid all things were working well. I have thus rapidly sketched the progress of our columns from Savannah to Goldsboro , but for more minute details must refer to the reports of subordinate commanders and of staff-officers, which are not yet ready, but will in due season be forwarded and filed with this report. I cannot even, with any degree of precision, recapitulate the vast amount of injury done to the enemy, or the quantity of guns and ma terials of war captured and destroyed. In general terms, wo have trav ersed the country from Savannah to Goldsboro , with an average breadth of forty miles, consuming all the forage, cattle, hogs, sheep, poultry, cured meats, corn-meal, etc. The public enemy, instead of drawing supplies from that region to feed his armies, will be compelled to send provisions MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 645 from other quarters to feed the inhabitants. A map herewith, prepared by my chief engineer, Colonel Poe, with the routes of the Fourth Corps and cavalry, will show at a glance the country traversed. Of course, the abandonment to us by the enemy of the whole seacoast, from Savannah to Newbern, North Carolina, with its forts, dock-yards, gunboats, etc., was a necessary incident to our occupation and destruction of the inland routes of travel and supply. But the real object of this march was to place this army in a position easy of supply, whence it could take an appropriate part in the spring and summer campaign of 1865. This was completely accom plished on March 21st, by the junction of the three armies and occupation of Goldsboro . In conclusion, I beg to express in the most emphatic manner my entire satisfaction with the tone and temper of the whole army. Nothing seems to dampen their energy, zeal, or cheerfulness. It is impossible to conceive a march involving more labor and exposure, yet I cannot recall an instance of bad temper by the way, or hearing an expression of doubt as to our perfect success in the end. I believe that this cheerfulness and harmony of action reflects upon all concerned quite as much real honor and fame as "battles gained" or "cities won," and I therefore commend all, general Btaff, officers, and men, for these high qualities, in addition to the more Boldierly ones of obedience to orders and the alacrity they have always manifested when danger summoned them u to the front. 1 I have the honor to be your obedient servant, W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General Commanding. Major-General II. W. HALLECK, Chief of Staff, Washington, D. C. THE CLOSE OF THE CAMPAIGN, AND THE SURRENDER OP THE CONFEDERATE FORCES UNDER GENERAL JOSEPH E. JOHNSTON; WITH GENERAL SHERMAN S FAREWELL AD DRESS TO HIS ARMY. HEAD-QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF TIIR MISSISSIPPI, IN THE FIELD, CITY POINT, VA., May 9. 1865. \ GENERAL : My last official report brought the history of events, as con nected with the armies in the field subject to my immediate command, down to the 1st of April, when the Army of the Ohio, Major-General J. M. Schofield commanding, lay at Goldsboro 1 , with detachments distributed so as to secure and cover our routes of communication and supply back to the sea at Wilmington and Morehead City ; Major-General A. II. Terry, with the Tenth Corps, being at Faison s Depot. The Army of the Tennes see, Major-General O. O. Howard commanding, was encamped to the right and front of Goldsboro , and the Army of Georgia, Major-General II. W. Slocum commanding, to its left and front ; the cavalry, brevet Mjtjor-Gen- eral J. Kilpatrick commanding, at Mount Olive. All were busy in repairing LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. tlio wear and tear of our then recent and hard march from Savannah, or in replenishing clothing and stores necessary for a further progress. I had previously, by letter, and in person, notified the Lieutenant-General commanding the armies of the United States, that the 10th of April would be the earliest possible moment at which I could hope to have all things in readiness, and we were compelled to use our railroads to the very highest possible limit in order to fulfill that promise. Owing to a mistake in the railroad department, in sending locomotives and cars of the five-foot gauge, we were limited to the use of a few locomotives and cars of the four-foot eight-and-a-half-inch gauge already in North Carolina, with such of the old stock as was captured by Major-General Terry at Wilmington, and on his way up to Goldsboro. Yet such judicious use was made of these, and such industry displayed in the railroad management by Generals Eaton and Beckwith, and Colonel Wright and Mr. Van Dyne, that by the 10th of April our men were all reclad, the wagons reloaded, and a fair amount of forage accumulated ahead. In the mean time, Major-General George Stonenian, in command of a division of cavalry, operating from East Tennessee in connection with Major-General George II. Thomas, in pursuance of my orders of January 21, 1865, had reached the railroad about Greensboro , North Carolina, and had made sad havoc with it, and had pushed along it to Salisbury, destroy ing en route bridges, culverts, depots, and all kinds of rebel supplies ; and had extended the break in the railroad down to the Catawba Bridge. This was fatal to the hostile armies of Lee and Joluiston, who depended on that road for supplies and r,s their ultimate line of retreat. Major-Gen eral J. H. Wilson, also in command of the cavalry corps organized by himself, under Special Field Orders, No. , of October 24, 18G4, at Gaylesville, Alabama, had started from the neighborhood of Decatur and Florence, Alabama, and moved straight into the heart of Alabama, on a route prescribed for General Thomas after ho had defeated General Hood at Nashville, Tennessee ; but the roads being too heavy for infantry, General Thomas had devolved that duty on that most energetic young cavalry officer, General Wilson, who, imbued with the proper spirit, has struck one of the best blows of the war at the waning strength of the Confederacy. His route was one never before touched by our troops, and afforded him abundance of supplies as long as ho was in motion, viz., by Tuscaloosa, Sehna, Montgomery, Columbus, and Macon. Though in communication with him, I have not been able to receive as yet his full and detailed reports, which will in due time be published and appreciated. Lieutenant-General Grant, also in immediate command of the armies about Richmond, had taken the initiative in that magnificent campaign, which in less than ten days compelled the evacuation of Richmond, and resulted in the destruction and surrender of the entire rebel army of Vir ginia, under command of General Lee. The news of the battles about Petersburg reached me at Goldsboro 1 on the 6th of April. Up to that time my purpose was to move rapidly northward, feigning on Raleigh, and striking straight for Burkesville, thereby interposing between Johnston and MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 647 Lee. But the auspicious events in Virginia had changed the whole military problem, and, in the expressive language of Lieutonant-General Grant, tho Confederate armies of Lee and Johnston became the strategic points. Gene ral Grant was fully able to take care of the former, and my task was to capture or destroy the latter. Johnston at that time, April 0, had his army well in hand about Smithfield, interposing between me and Raleigh. I es timated his infantry and artillery at thirty-five thousand, and his cavalry from six thousand to ten thousand. He was superior to me in cavalry, so that I held General Kilpatrick in reserve at Mount Olive, with orders to recruit his horses and be ready to make a sudden and rapid march on the 10th of April. At daybreak on the day appointed, all the heads of columns were in motion straight against the enemy, Major-General II. W. Slocum taking the two direct roads for Smithfield ; Major-General O. O. Howard making a circuit by the right, and feigning up the Weldon road to disconcert the enemy s cavalry ; Generals Terry and Kilpatrick moving on the west side of the Neuse River, and aiming to reach the rear of the enemy between Smithfield and Raleigh. General Schofield followed General Sloeurn in support. All the columns met within six (G) miles of Goldsboro , raoro or less cavalry, with the usual rail-barricades, which were swept before us as chaff; and by ten A. M. of the llth, the Fourteenth Corps entered ^Smith- field, the Twentieth Corps close at hand. Johnston had rapidly retreated across the iSTease River, and, having his railroad to lighten up his trains, could retreat faster than we could pursue. The rams had also set in, making the resort to corduroy absolutely necessary to pass even ambu lances. The enemy had burned the bridge at Smitlifield, and as soon as possible Major-General Slocum got up his pontoons and crossed over a division of the Fourteenth Corps. We there heard of the surrender of Lee s army at Appomattox Court-House, Virginia, which was announced to the armies in orders, and created universal joy. Not an officer or soldier of my armies but expressed a pride and satisfaction that it fell to the lot of the armies of the Potomac and James so gloriously to overwhelm and cap ture the entire army that had held them so long in check, and their success gave new impulse to finish up our task. Without a moment s hesitation we dropped our trains, and marched rapidly in pursuit to and through Raleigh, reaching that place at half-past seven o clock. A. M. on the 13th, in a heavy rain. The next day the cavalry pushed on through the rain to Durham Station, the Fifteenth Corps follow ing as far as Morrisvillc Station, and the Seventeenth Corps to Jones s Station. On the supposition that Johnston was tied to his railroad, as a line of retreat by Ilillsboro , Greenboro , Salisbury, and Charlotte, etc., I had turned the columns across the bend in that road toward Ashboro*. (See Special Field Orders, No. 55.) The cavalry, brevet Major-General J. Kilpatrick commanding, was ordered to keep up a show of pursuit toward the "Company s Shops," in Alamance County; Major-General O. O. Howard to turn to the left by Hackney s Cross-roads, Pittsboro , St. Lawrence, and A.shboro ; Major-General II. W. Slocmn to cross Cape Fear 048 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. River at Avon s Ferry, and move rapidly by Carthage, Caledonia, and Cox s Mills. Major-General J. M. Schofield was to hold Raleigh, and the road back, and with his spare force to follow an intermediate route. By the 15th, though the rains were incessant and the roads almost im practicable, Major-General Slocuin had the Fourteenth Corps, Brevet Major- General Davis commanding, near Martha s Vineyard, with a pontoon bridge laid across Cape Fear River at Avon s Ferry, with the Twentieth Corps, Major-General Mower commanding, in support; and Major-General Howard had the Fifteenth and Seventeenth Corps stretched out on the roads toward Pittsboro ; while General Kilpatrick held Durham s Station and Chapel Hill University. Johnston s army was retreating rapidly on the roads from Hillsboro to Greensboro , he himself at Greensboro . Although out of place as to time, I here invite all military critics, who study the problems of war, to take their maps and compare the position of my army on the 15th and IGtli of April with that of General Halleck about Burkesville and Petersburg, Virginia, on the 2Gth of April, when, accord ing to his telegram to Secretary Stanton, he offered to relieve me of the task of cutting off Johnston s retreat. Major-General Stoneman at the time was at Statesville, and Johnston s only line of retreat was by Salis bury and Charlotte. It may be that General Ilalleck s troops can outmarch mine, but there is nothing in their past history to show it. Or it may be that General Halleck can inspire his troops with more energy of action. I doubt that also, save and except in this single instance, when he knew the enemy was ready to surrender or "disperse," as advised by my letter of April 18th, addressed to him when chief of staff at Washington city, and. delivered at Washington on the ?lst instant by Major Hitchcock, of my staff. Thus matters stood at the time I received General Johnston s first letter, and made my answer of April 14, copies of which were sent with all expedi tion to Lieutenaut-General Grant and the Secretary of War, with my letter of April 15. I agreed to meet General Johnston in person, at a point intermediate between our pickets, on the 17th, at noon, provided the posi tion of the troops remained in statu quo. I was both willing and anxious thus to consume a few days, as it would enable Colonel Wright to finish our railroad to Raleigh. Two bridges had to be built and twelve miles of new road made. We had no iron, except by taking up that on the branch from Goldsboro to Weldon. Instead of losing by time, I gained in every way, for every hour of delay possible was required to reconstruct the rail road to our rear, and improve the condition of our wagon-roads to tho front, FO desirable in case the negotiations failed, and we be forced to make the race of near two hundred miles to head off or catch Johnston s army, then retreating toward Charlotte. At noon, of the day appointed, I met General Johnston for the first time in my life, although we had been exchanging shots constantly since May, 1803. Our interview was frank and soldier-like, and he gave me to understand that further war on the part of the Confederate troops was folly; that the u cause" was lost, and that every life sacrificed after the surrender of Lee s army was the highest possible crime. Ho admitted MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 649 that the terms conceded to General Lee were magnanimous, and all he could ask ; but he did want some general concessions that would enable him to allay the natural fears and anxieties of his followers, and enable him to maintain his control over them until they could be got back to the neigh borhood of their homes, thereby saving the State of North Carolina the devastation inevitably to result from turning his men loose and unprovided on the spot, and our pursuit across the State. He also wanted to embrace in the same general proposition the fate of all the Confederate armies that remained in existence. I never made any concession as to his own army, or assumed to deal finally and authorita tively in regard to any other; but it did seem to me that there was pre sented a chance for peace that might be deemed valuable to the Govern ment of the United States, arid was at least worth the few days that would be consumed in reference. To push an enemy, whose commander had so frankly and honestly con fessed his inability to cope with me, were cowardly, and unworthy the brave men I led. Inasmuch as General Johnston did not feel authorized to pledge his power over the armies in Texas, we adjourned to meet the next day at noon. I returned to Raleigh, and conferred freely with all my general officers, every one of whom urged me to conclude terms that might accom plish so complete and desirable an end. All dreaded the weary and labo rious inarch after a fugitive and dissolving army back toward Georgia, almost over the very country where we had toiled so longt There was .but one opinion expressed, and if contrary ones were entertained they were with held, or indulged in only by that class who shun the fight and the march, but are loudest, bravest, and fiercest when danger is past. I again met General Johnston on the 18th, and we renewed the conver sation. He satisfied me then of his power to disband the rebel armies in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, as well as those in his imme diate command, viz. : North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Georgia. The points on which he expressed especial solicitude were lest their States were to be dismembered and denied representation in Congress, or any separate political existence whatever; and that the absolute disarming his men would leave the South powerless and exposed to depredations by wicked bands of assassins and robbers. President Lincoln s message of .1864; his amnesty proclamation ; Gen eral Grant s terms to General Lee, substantially extending the benefits of that proclamation to all officers above the rank of colonel ; the invitation to the Virginia Legislature to reassemble in Richmond, by General Wcitzel, with the approval of Mr. Lincoln and General Grant, then on the spot; a firm belief that I had been fighting to re-establish the Constitution of the United States ; and last, and not least, the general and universal desire to close a war any longer without organized resistance, were the leading facts that induced me to pen the " memorandum " of April ISth, signed by myself and General Johnston. It was designed to be, and so expressed on its face, as a mere "basis" for reference to the President of the United States and 650 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. constitutional commander-in-chief, to enable, if lie chose, at one blow to dissipate the military power of the Confederacy, which had threatened the National safety for years. It admitted of modification, alteration, and change. It had no appearance of an ultimatum, and by no false reasoning can it be construed into a usurpation of power on my part. I have my opinions on the question involved, and will stand by the memorandum. "But this forms no part of a military report." Immediately on my return to Raleigh, I dispatched one of my staff, Major Hitchcock, to Washington, enjoining him to be most prudent, and careful to avoid the spies and informers that would be sure to infest him by the way, and to say nothing to anybody until the President could make known to me his wishes and policy in the matter. The news of President Lincoln s assassination, on the 14th of April (wrongly reported to me by telegraph as having occurred on the llth), reached me on the 17th, and was announced to my command o"n the same day in Special Field Orders, No. 56. I was duly impressed with its horrible atrocity, and probable effect on the country ; but when the prop erty and interests of millions still living were involved, I saw no good reason to change my course, but thought rather to manifest real respect for his memory by following, after his death, that policy which, if living, I feel certain he would have approved, or at least not rejected with disdain. Up to that hour I had never received one word of instruction, advice, or counsel, as to the plan or policy of Government, looking to a restoration of peace on the part of the rebel States of the South. Whenever asked for an opinion on the points involved, I had always evaded the subject. My letter to the mayor of Atlanta has been published to the world, and I was not rebuked by the War Department for it. My letter to Mr. N W , at Savannah, was shown by me to Mr. Stanton, before its publication, and all that my memory retains of his answer is, that he said, like my letters generally, it was sufficiently emphatic and could not be misunderstood. But these letters asserted my belief that according to Mr. Lincoln s pro clamations and messages, when the people of the South had laid down their arms, and submitted to the lawful power of the United States, ipso facto, the war was over as to them ; and furthermore, that if any State in rebellion would conform to the Constitution of the United States, cease war, elect senators and representatives to Congress, if admitted (of which each house of Congress alone is the judge), that State becomes instanter as much in the Union as New York or Ohio. Nor was I rebuked for this expression, though it was universally known and commented on at the time. And again Mr. Stanton, in person, at Savannah, speaking of the terrific expenses of the war, and difficulty of realizing the money neces sary for the daily wants of Government, impressed me most forcibly with the necessity of bringing the war to a close as soon as possible, for finan cial reasons. On the evening of April 23d, Major Hitchcock reported his return to Morehead City with dispatches, of which fact General Johnston, at Hills- MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 651 boro, was notified, so as to be ready in the morning for an answer. At G o clock A. M., on the 24th, Major Hitchcock arrived, accompanied by Gen eral Grant, and members of his staff, who had not telegraphed the fact of his coming over our exposed road, for prudential reasons. I soon learned that the memorandum was disapproved, without reasons assigned, and I was ordered to give the forty-eight hours notice, and resume hostilities at the close of that time, governing myself by the sub stance of a dispatch then inclosed, dated March 3d, twelve M., at Washing ton, D. C., from Secretary Stanton to General Grant at City Point, but not accompanied by any part of the voluminous matter so liberally lavished on the public in the New York journals of the 24th of April. That was the first and only time I ever saw that telegram, or had one word of instruc tion on the important matters involved in it, and it does seem strange to me that every bar-room loafer in New York can read in the morning jour nals "official" matter that is withheld from a general whose command extends from Kentucky to North Carolina. Within an hour a courier was riding from Durham s Station toward Hillsborough, with notice to General Johnston of the suspension of the truce, and renewing my demand for the surrender of the armies under his immediate command (see two letters of April 24th, six A. M.), and at twelve M. 1 had the receipt of his picket officer. I therefore published my Orders No. 02 to the troops, terminating the truce at twelve M. on the 20th, and ordered ail to be in readiness to march at that hour, on the routes prescribed in Special Field Orders, No. 55, of April 14th, from the positions held April 18th. General Grant had orders from the President, through the Secretary of War, to direct military movements, and I explained to him the exact posi tion of the troops, and he approved of it most emphatically, but he did not relieve me, or express a Avish to assume command. All things were in readiness, when, on the evening of the 25th, I received another letter from General Johnston, asking another interview to renew negotiations. General Grant not only approved, but urged mo to accept, and I appointed a meeting at our former place at noon of the 20th, the very hour fixed for the renewal of hostilities. General Johnston was delayed by an accident to his train, but at two P. M. arrived. We then consulted, concluded, and signed the final terms of capitulation. These were taken by me back to Raleigh, submitted to General Grant, and met his immediate approval and signature. General Johnston was not even aware of the presence of General Grant at Raleigh at the time. Thus was surrendered to us the second great army of the so-called Con federacy ; and though undue importance has been given to the so-called ne gotiations which preceded it, and a rebuke and public disfavor cast on me wholly unwarranted by the facts, I rejoice in saying that it was accom plished without further ruin and devastation to the country ; without the loss of a single life to those gallant men who had followed me from the Mississippi to the Atlantic, and without subjecting brave men to the ungracious task of pursuing a fleeing foe that did not want to fight. As for myself, I know 052 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. my motives, and challenge the instance, during the past four years, where an armed and defiant foe stood before me, that I did not go in for a fight, and I would blush for shame if I had ever insulted or struck a fallen foe. The instant the terms of surrender were approved by General Grant, I made rny Orders, No. 65, assigning to each of my subordinate commanders his share of the work, and, with General Grant s approval, made Special Field Orders, No. 66, putting in motion my old army, no longer required in Carolina, northward for Richmond. General Grant left Raleigh at nine A. M. of the 27th, and I glory in the fact that, during his three days stay with me, I did not detect in his language or manner one particle of abatement in the confidence, respect, arid affection that have existed between us throughout all the varied events of the past war, and though we have honestly differed in opinion in other cases as, well as this, still we respected each other s honest convictions. I still adhere to my then opinions, that by a few general concessions, "glittering generalities," all of which in the end must and will be conceded to the organized States of the South, that this day there would riot be an armed battalion opposed to us within the broad area of the dominions of the United States. Robbers and assassins must, in any event, result from the disbandment of large armies, but even these should be, and could be, taken care of by the local civil authorities, without being made a charge on the national treasury. On the evening of the 28th, having concluded all business requiring my personal attention at Raleigh, and having conferred with every army com mander, and delegated to him the authority necessary for his future action, I dispatched my head-quarter wagons by land along with the Seventeenth Corps, the office in charge of General Webster, from Newbern to Alexan dria, Virginia, by sea, and in person, accompanied only by my personal staff, hastened to Savannah to- direct matters in ttie interior of South Caro lina and Georgia. I had received, across the rebel telegraph wires, cipher dispatches from General Wilson, at Macon, to the effect that lie was in receipt of my orders No. 65, and would send General Upton s division to Augusta, and General McCook s division to Tallahassee, to receive the surrender of those garri sons, take charge of the public property, and execute the paroles required by the terms of surrender. He reported a sufficiency of forage for his horses in south-west Georgia, but asked me to send him a supply of clothing, sugar, coffee, etc., by way of Augusta, Georgia, whence he could get it by rail. I therefore went rapidly to Goldsboro and Wilmington, reaching the latter city at ten A. M. of the 29th, and the same day embarked for Hilton Head, in the blockade-runner Russia, Captain A. M. Smith. I found General Q. A. Gillmore, commanding Department of the South, at Hilton Head, on the evening of April 30th, and ordered him to send to Augusta at once what clothing and small stores ho could spare for General Wilson, and open up a line of certain communication and supply with him at Macon. Within an hour the captured steamboats Jeff. Davis and Ama- son, both adapted to the shallow and crooked navigation of the Savannah MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 653 River, were being loaded, the one at Savannah and the other at Hilton Head. The former started up the river on the first of May, in charge of a very intelligent officer (whose name I cannot recall) and forty-eight men (all the boat could carry), with orders to occupy temporarily the United States Arsenal at Augusta, and open up communication with Gen eral Wilson, at Macon, in the event that General McCook s division of cav alry was not already there. The Amazon followed next day, and General Gillrnore had made the necessary orders for a brigade of infantry, to be commanded by General Molyneux, to follow by a land march to Augusta, as its permanent garrison ; another brigade of infantry was ordered to occupy Orangeburg, South Carolina the point farthest in the interior that can at present be reached by rail from the sea-coast (Charleston). On the 1st of May I went on to Savannah, where General Gillmore also joined me, and the arrangements ordered for the occupation of Augusta were consummated. At Savannah I found the city in the most admirable police, under direction of Brevet Major-General Grover, and the citizens manifested the most unqualified joy to hear that, so far as they were con cerned, the war was over. All classes, Union men as well as former rebels, did not conceal, however, the apprehensions naturally arising from a total ignorance of the political conditions to be attached to their future state. Any thing at all would be preferable to this dread uncertainty. On the evening of the 2d of May I returned to Hilton Head, and there, for the first time, received the New York papers of April 28th, containing Secretary Stanton s dispatch of nine A. M. of the 27th of April to General Dix, including General Halleck s from Richmond of nine P. M. the night before, which seems to have been rushed with extreme haste before an excited public, viz., morning of the 28th. You will observe from the dates that these dispatches were running back and forth from Richmond and Washington to New York, and there published, while General Grant and I were together in Raleigh, North Carolina, adjusting, to the best of our ability, the terms of surrender of the only remaining formidable rebel army in existence at the time east of the Mississippi River. Not one word of intimation had been sent to mo of the displeasure of the Government with my official conduct, but only the naked disapproval of a skeleton memo randum sent properly for the action of the President of the United States. * * * * During the night of May 2d, at Hilton Head, having concluded my business in the Department of the South, I began my return to meet my troops, then marching toward Richmond from Raleigh. On the morning of the 3d, wo ran into Charleston Harbor, where I had the pleasure to meet Admiral Dahlgren,- who had, in all my previous operations from Savannah northward, aided me with a courtesy and manliness that com manded my entire respect and deep affection. Also General Hatch, who, from our first interview at his Tullifinnay camp, had caught the spirit of the move from Pocotaligo northward, and had largely contributed to our joint success in taking Charleston and the Carolina coast. Any one, who is not satisfied with war, should go and see Charleston, and he will pray (554 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. . louder and deeper than ever, that the country may, in the long future, be spared any more war. Charleston and secession being synonymous terms, the city should be left as a sample, so that centuries will pass away before that false doctrine is again preached in our Union. We left Charleston on the evening of the 3d of May, and hastened with all possible speed back to Morehead City, which \ve reached at night on the 4tlu I immediately communicated by telegraph to General Schofield at Raleigh, and learned from him the pleasing fact that the Lieutenant- General commanding the Armies of the United States had reached the Chesapeake in time to countermand General Halleck s orders, and prevent his violating my truce, invading the area of my command, and driving Johnston s surrendering army into fragments. General Johnston had ful filled his agreement to the very best of his ability, and the officers, charged with issuing the paroles at Greensboro 1 , reported about thirty thousand (30,000) already made, and that the greater part of the North Carolina troops had gone home without waiting for their papers; but that all of them would, doubtless, come into some one of the military posts, the com manders of which are authorized to grant then. About eight hundred (800) of the rebel cavalry had gone south, refusing to abide the terms of the surrender, and it was supposed they would make for Mexico. I would sincerely advise that they be encouraged to go and stay. They would be a nuisance to any civilized government, whether loose or in p -ison. With the exception of some plundering on the part of Lee s and John ston s disbanded men, all else in North Carolina was quiet. When, to the number of men surrendered at Greensboro , are added those at Tallahassee, Augusta, and Macon, with the scattered squads who will come in at other military posts, I have no doubt fifty thousand (50,000) armed men will be disarmed and restored to civil pursuits, by the capitulation made near Durham s Station, North Carolina, on the 2Gth of April, and that, too, without the loss of a single life to us. On the 5th of May I received, and here subjoin, a further dispatch from General Schofield, which contains inquiries I have been unable to satisfy, similar to those made by nearly every officer in my command, whose duty brings him in contact with citizens. I leave you to do what you think expedient to provide the military remedy. "BY TfiLRGUAi K FROM RALEIGH, N. C., May 5, 1S6&, "To Major-General W. T. SHERMAN, Morehead City. " When General Grant was here, as you doubtless recollect, he said the lines had been extended to embrace this and other States south. The order, it seems, has been modified so as to include only Virginia and Ten- ricssec. I think it would be an act of wisdom to open this State to trade at once. I hope the Government will make known its policy as to the organs of State government without delay. Affairs must necessarily be in a very unsettled state until that is done. The people are now in a mood to accept almost any thing which promises a definite settlement. What is to be done with the freedmen is the question of all, and it is the all-impor- MAJOR-GENERAL SHERMAN S REPORT. 655 tant question. It requires prompt and wise action to prevent 1 the negro from becoming a huge elephant on our hands. If I am to govern this State, it is important for me to know it at once. If another is to be sent here, it cannot be done too soon, for he will probably undo the most that I shall have done. I shall be glad to hear from you fully when you have time to write. I will send your message to General Wilson at once. " J. M. SCHOFIELD, Major-General." I give this dispatch entire, to demonstrate how intermingled have be come civil matters with the military, and how almost impossible it has become for an officer in authority to act a pure military part. There arc no longer armed enemies in North Carolina, and a soldier can deal with no other sort. The marshals and sheriffs, with their posse (of which the military may become a part), are the only proper officers to deal with civil criminals and marauders. But I will not be drawn out into a discussion of this subject, but instance the case to show how difficult is the task become to military officers, when men of the rank, education, experi ence, nerve, and good sense of General Schofield feel embarrassed by them. General Schofield, at Raleigh, has a well-appointed and well-disciplined command, is in telegraphic communication with the controlling parts of his department, and the remote ones in the direction of Georgia, as well as with Washington, and lias military possession of all strategic points. In like manner, General Gillmore is well situated in all respects, except as to rapid communication with the seat of the General Government. I leave him also with every man he ever asked for, and in full and quiet possession of every strategic point in his department. And General Wilson has, in the very heart of Georgia, the strongest, best appointed, and best equipped cavalry corps that ever fell under iny command; and he has now, by .my recent action, opened to him a source and route of supply, byway of Savannah River, that simplifies his military problem ; so that I think I may, with a clear conscience, leave them, and turn my attention once more to my special command the army witL. which I have been associated through some of the most eventful scenes of this or any war. I hope and believe none of these commanders will ever have reason to reproach me for any "orders" they may have received from me. And the President of the United States may be assured that all of them are in position, ready and willing to execute to the letter, and in spirit, any orders ho may give. I shall henceforth cease to give them any orders at all, for the occasion that made them subordinate to me is past; and I shall con fine my attention to the army composed of the Fifteenth and Seventeenth, the Fourteenth and Twentieth Corps, unless the commanding general of the armies of the United States orders otherwise. * At four o clock p. M., of May 9, 1 reached Manchester, on the James River, opposite Richmond, and found that all the four corps had arrived from 656 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GEANT. Raleigh, and were engaged in replenishing their wagons for the resumption of the march toward Alexandria. I have the honor to be your obedient servant, W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General commanding. General JOHN A. RA.WUNGS, Chief of Staff, Washington, D. 0. GENERAL SHERMAN S FAREWELL ADDRESS TO HIS ARMY. SPECIAL FIELD ORDERS NO. 76. HE AD- QUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OP THE MISSISSIPPI, I IN THE FIELD, WASHINGTON, D. C., May 80, 1865. THE general commanding announces to the Armies of Tennessee and Georgia, that the time has come for us to part. Our work is done, and armed enemies no longer defy us. Some of you will be retained in service until further orders. And now that we are about to separate, to mingle with the civil world, it becomes a pleasing duty to recall to mind the situ ation of national affairs, when, but little more than a year ago, we wero gathered about the twining cliffs of Lookout Mountain, and all the future was wrapped in doubt and uncertainty. Three armies had come together from distant fields, with separate histories, yet bound by one common cause the union of our country and the perpetuation of the Government of our inheritance. There is no need to recall to your memories Tunnel Hill, with its Rocky Face Mountain, arid Buzzard Roost Gap, with the ugly forts of Dalton behind. We were in earnest, and paused not for danger and difficulty, but dashed through Snake Creek Gap, and fell on Resaca, then on to the Etowah, to Dallas, Kenesaw, and the heats of summer found us on the banks of the Chattahoochie, far from home and de pendent on a single road for supplies. Again, we were not to be held back by any obstacle, and crossed over, and fought four heavy battles for the possession of the citadel of Atlanta. That was the crisis of our history. A doubt still clouded our future ; but we solved the problem, and destroyed Atlanta, struck boldly across the State of Georgia, secured all the main arteries of life to our enemy, and Christmas found us at Savannah. Waiting there only long enough to fill our wagons, we again began a march, which for peril, labor, and results, will compare with any ever made by an organized army. The floods of the Savannah, the swamps of the Combahee and Edisto, the high hills and rocks of the Santee, the flat quagmires of the Pedee and Cape Fear Rivers, were all passed in mid winter, with its floods and rains, in the face of an accumulating enemy; and after the battles of Avtpysboro 1 and Bentonville, we once more came out of the wilderness to meet our friends at Goldsboro . Even then we paused only long enough to get new clothing, to reload our wagons, and again pushed on to Raleigh, and beyond, until we met our enemy, sueing for peace instead of war, and offering to submit to the injured laws of his LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. C57 and our country. As long as that enemy was defiant, nor mountains, nor rivers, nor swamps, nor hunger, nor cold, had checked us; but when he, who had fought us hard and persistently, offered submission, your general thought it wrong to pursue him further, and negotiations followed, which resulted, as .you all know, in his surrender. How far the operations of the army have contributed to the overthrow of the Confederacy, of tho peace which now dawns on us, must be judged by others, not by us. But that you have done all that men could do has been admitted by those in author ity ; and we have a right to join in the universal joy that fills our land, because the war is over, and our Government stands vindicated before tho world by the joint action of the volunteer armies of the United States. To such as remain in the military service, your general need only re mind you that successes -in the past are due to hard work and discipline, and that the same work and discipline are equally important in the future. To such as go home he will only say, that our favored country is so grand, so extensive, so diversified, in climate, soil, and productions, that every man may surely find a home and occupation suited to his taste; and none should yield to the natural impotence sure to result from our past life of excitement and adventure. You will be invited to seek new adventure abroad ; but do not yield to the temptation, for it will lead only to death and disappointment. Your general now bids you all farewell, with the full belief that, as in war you have been good soldiers, so in peace you will make good citizens ; and if, unfortunately, new war should arise in our country, Sherman s army would be the first to buckle on the old armor, and come forth to defend and maintain the Government of our inheritance and choice. By order of Major-General W. T. SHERMAN-. L. M. DAYTON, Assistant Adjutant-General. General Grant s great report of the campaign which closed the civil war, will have a deep and imperishable interest : OFFICIAL REPORT OF LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT. HEAD-QUARTERS ARMIES OF THE UNITED STATES, ) WASHINGTON, D. C., July 22, 1S65. ) SIR : I have the honor to submit the following report of the operations of the Armies of the United States from the date of ray appointment to command the same : NECESSITY OF A VE11Y LAEGE FORCE. From an early period in the rebellion I had been impressed with the idea that active and continuous operations of all the troops that could be 42 658 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. brought into the field, regardless of season and weather, were necessary to a speedy termination of the war. The resources of the enemy and his numerical strength were far inferior to ours; but as an offset to this, we had a vast territory, with a population hostile to the Government, to garri son, and long lines of river and railroad communications to protect, to enable us to supply the operating armies. The armies in the East and West acted independently and without con cert, like a balky team, no two ever pulling together, enabling the enemy to use to great advantage his interior lines of communication for transport ing troops from east to west, re-enforcing the army most vigorously pressed, and to furlough large numbers, during seasons of inactivity on our part, to go to their homes and do the work of producing for the support of their armies. It was a question whether our numerical strength and resources were not more than balanced by these disadvantages and the enemy s superior position. From the first, I was firm in the conviction that no peace could be had that would be stable and conducive to the happiness of the people, both North and South, until the military power of the rebellion was entirely broken. I therefore determined, first, to use the greatest number of troops prac ticable against tho armed force of the enemy; preventing him from using the same force at different seasons against first one and then another of our armies, and the possibility of repose for refitting and producing neces sary supplies for carrying on resistance. Second, to hammer continuously against the armed force of the enemy and his resources, until by mere attrition, if in no other way, there should be nothing left to him but an equal submission, with the loyal section of our common country, to the constitution and laws of the land. These views have been kept constantly in mind, and orders given, and campaigns made, to curry them out. Whether they might have been better in conception and execution is for the people, who mourn the loss of friends fallen, and who have to pay tho pecuniary cost, to say. All I can say is, that what I have done has been done conscientiously^to tho best of my ability, and in what I conceived to be for tho best interests of the whole country. THE SITUATION AT THE TIME OF HIS APPOINTMENT AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. At the date when this report begins, tho situation of the contending forces was about as follows: The Mississippi River was strongly garri soned by Federal troops from St. Louis, Mo., to its mouth. The line of tho Arkansas was also held, thus giving us armed possession of all west of tho Mississippi, north of that stream. A few points in Southern Louisiana, not remote from the river, were held by us, together with a small garrison at and near the mouth of tlje Rio Grande. All the balance of the vast terri tory of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas, was in tho almost undisputed pos- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 659 session of the enemy, with an army of probably not less than eighty thousand effective men, that could have been brought into the field had there been sufficient opposition to have brought them out. The let-alone policy had demoralized this force so that probably but little more than one-half of it was ever present in garrison at any one time. But the one- half, or forty thousand men, with the bands of guerrillas scattered through Missouri, Arkansas, and along the Mississippi River, and the disloyal char acter of much of the population, compelled the use of a large number of troops to keep navigation open on the river, and to protect the loyal people to the west of it. To the east of the Mississippi, we held substantially with the line of the Tennessee and Holston rivers, running eastward to include nearly all of the State of Tennessee. South of Chattanooga, a small foothold had been obtained in Georgia, sufficient to protect East Ten nessee from incursions from the enemy s force at Dalton, Georgia. West Virginia was substantially within our lines. Virginia, with the exception of the northern border, the Potomac River, a small area about the mouth of Jarnes River, covered by the troops at Norfolk and Fortress Monroe, and the territory covered by the Army of the Potomac, lying along the Rapi- dan, was in the possession of the enemy. Along the sea-coast, footholds had been obtained at Plymouth, Washington, and Newbern, in North Caro lina ; Beaufort, Folly and Morris Islands, Hilton Head, Fort Pulaski, and Port Royal, in South Carolina; Feruandina and St. Augustine, in Florida. Key West and Pensacola were also in our possession, while all the impor tant ports were blockaded by the navy. The accompanying map (p, copy of which was sent to General Sherman and other commanders in March, 18G4) shows by red lines the territory occupied by us at the beginning of the rebellion, and at the opening of the campaign of 1864, while those in bine are the lines which it was proposed to occupy. Behind the Union lines there were many bands of guerrillas and a large population disloyal to the Government, making it necessary to guard every foot of road or river used in supplying our armies. In the South a reign of military despotism prevailed, which made every man and boy capable of bearing arms a soldier, and those who could not bear arras in the field acted as provosts for collecting deserters and returning them. This enabled the enemy to bring almost his entire strength into the field. ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE GRAND CAMPAIGN. The enemy had concentrated the bulk of his forces east of the Missis sippi into two armies, commanded by Generals R. E. Lee and J. E. John ston, his ablest and best generals. The army commanded by Lee occupied the south bank of the Rapidan, extending from Mine Run westward, strongly intrenched, covering and defending Richmond, the rebel capital, against the Army of the Potomac. The army under Johnston occupied a strongly intrenched position at Dalton, Georgia, covering and defending Atlanta, Georgia, a place of great importance as a railroad center, against the armies under Major-General W. T. Sherman. In addition to these 660 WFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. armies, he had a large cavalry force under Forrest in northeast Mississippi; a considerable force, of all arms, in the Shenandoah Valley, and in the western part of Virginia, and extreme eastern part of Tennessee ; and also confronting our sea-coast garrisons, and holding blockaded ports where wo had no foothold upon land. These two armies, and the cities covered and defended by them, were the main objective points of the campaign. Major-General W. T. Sherman, who was appointed to the command of the Military Division of the Mississippi, embracing all the armies and ter ritory east of the Mississippi River to the Alleghanies, and the Depart ment of Arkansas, west of the Mississippi, had the immediate command of the armies operating against Johnston. Major-General George G. Meade had the immediate command of the Army of the Potomac, from where I exercised general supervision of the movements of all our armies. INSTRUCTIONS TO GENERAL SHERMAN. General Sherman was instructed to move against Johnston s army, to break it up, and to go into the interior of the enemy s country as far as he could, inflicting all the damage he could upon their war resources. If the enemy in his front showed signs of joining Lee, to follow him up to the full extent of his ability, while I would prevent the concentration of Leo upon him if it was in the power of the Army of the Potomac to do so. More specific written instructions were not given, for the reason that I had talked over with him the plans of tho campaign, and was satisfied that he understood them, and would execute them to the fullest extent possible. INSTRUCTIONS TO GENERAL BANKS. Major-General N. P. Banks, then on an expedition up Red River against Shreveport, Louisiana (which had been organized previous to my appoint ment to command), was notified by me on the 15th of March of the im portance it was that Shreveport should be taken at the earliest possible day, and that if he found that the taking of it would occupy from ten to fifteen days more tinle than General Sherman had given his troops to be absent from their command, he would send them back at the time specified by General Sherman, even if it led to the abandonment of the main object of tho Red River expedition, for this force was necessary to movements east of the Mississippi ; that, should his expedition prove successful, he would hold Shreveport and the Red River with such force as he might deem necessary, and return the balance of his troops to the neighborhood of New Orleans, commencing no t move for the further acquisition of territory, unless it was to make that then held by him more easily held ; that it might be a part of the spring campaign to move against Mobile ; that it certainly would be, if troops enough could be obtained to make it without embar rassing other movements; that New Orleans would be the point of depar- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 681 tnre for such an expedition ; also, that I had directed General Steele to make a real move from Arkansas, as suggested by him (General Banks), instead of a demonstration, as Steele thought advisable. On the 81st of March, in addition to the foregoing notification and directions, he was instructed as follows: "1. If successful in your expedition against Shreveport, that you tarn over the defense of the Red River to General Steele and the navy. "2. That you abandon Texas entirely, with the exception of your hold upon the Rio Grande. This can be held with four thousand men, if they will turn their attention^ immediately to fortifying their positions. At least one-half of the force required for this service might be taken from the colored troops. " 3. By properly fortifying on the Mississippi River, the force to guard it from Port Hudson to New Orleans can be reduced to ten thousand men, if not to a less number. Six thousand more would then hold all the rest of the territory necessary to hold until active operations can again be resumed west of the river. According to your last return, this would give you a force of over thirty thousand effective men with which to move against Mobile. To this I expect to add five thousand men from Missouri. If, how ever, you think the force here stated too small to hold the territory regard ed as necessary to hold possession of, I would say concentrate at least twenty- five thousand men of your present command for operations against Mobile. "With these and such additions as I can give you from elsewhere, lose no time in making a demonstration, to be followed by an attack upon Mobile. Two or more iron-clads will be ordered to report to Admiral Farra- gut. This gives him a strong naval fleet with which to co-operate. Yon can make your own arrangements with the Admiral for his co-operation, and select your own line of approach. My own idea of the matter is that Pascagoula shoud be your base ; but, from your long service in tho Gulf Department, you will know best about the matter. It is intended that your movements shall co-operate with movements elsewhere, and you can not now start too soon. All I would now add is, that you commence the concentration of your forces at once. Preserve a profound secresy of what you intend doing, and start at the earliest possible moment. "U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-General N. P. BANKS." INSTRUCTIONS TO GENERAL MEADE. Major-General Meade was instructed that Lee^s army would be his ob jective point ; that wherever Lee went, he would go also. For his move ment, two plans presented themselves : One to cross the Rapidan below- Lee, moving by his right flank ; the other above, moving by his left. Each presented advantages over the other, with corresponding objections. By crossing above, Lee would be cut off from all chance of ignoring Richmond, or going North on a raid ; but if we took this route, all we did would have to be done while the rations we started with held- out. Besides, it separat- 662 UFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT ed us from Butler, so that lie could not be directed how to co-operate. If wo took the other route, Brandy Station could be used as a base of sup plies until another was secured on the York or Jainea River. Of these, however, it was decided to take the lower route. INSTRUCTIONS TO GENERAL BUTLEE. The following letter of instruction was addressed to Major- Gen era! B. F. Butler : " FOKTEKSS MONROE, VIRGINIA, April 2, 186! "GKXEBA.L: In the spring campaign, which it is desirable shall com mence at as early a day as practicable, it is proposed to have co-operative action of all the armies in the field, as far as this object can be accom plished. " It will not be possible to unite our armies into two or three large ones to act as so many units, owing to the absolute necessity of holding on to the territory already taken from the enemy. But, generally speaking, con centration can be practically effected by armies moving to the interior of the enemy s country from the territory they have to guard. By such movement they interpose themselves between tho enemy and the country to be guarded, thereby reducing the number necessary to guard important points, or at least occupy the attention of a part of the enemy s force, if no greater object is gained. Lee s army and Richmond being the greater objects toward which our attention must be directed in the next campaign, it is desirable to unite all the force we can against them. The necessity of covering Washington with the Army of the Potomac, and of covering your department with your army, makes it impossible to unite these forces at tho beginning of any move. I propose, therefore, what comes nearest this of any thing that seems practicable: The Army of the Potomoc will act from its present base, Lee s army being the objective point. You will col lect all the forces from your command that can be spared from garrison duty, I should say not less than twenty thousand effective men, to operate on the south side of James River, Richmond being your objective point. To the force you already have will be added about ten thousand men from South Carolina, under Major-General Gillmore, who will command them in person. Major-General W. F. Smith is ordered to report to you, to com mand the troops sent into the field from your own department. u General Gillmore will be ordered to report to you at Fortress Monroe, with all the troops on transports, by the 18th instant, or as soon thereafter as practicable. Should you not receive notice by that time to move, you will make such disposition of them and your other forces as you may deem best calculated to deceive the enemy as to tho real move to be made. "When you are notified to move, take City Point with as much force as possible. Fortify, or rather intrench, at once, and concontrato all your troops for the field there as rapidly as you can. From City Point, direc tions cannot be given at this time for your further movements. 41 The fact that has already been stated that is, that Richmond is to bo LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 663 your objective point, and that there is to be co-operation between your force and the Array of the Potomac must be your guide. This indicates the necessity of your holding close to the south bank of the James River as you advance. Then, should the enemy be forced into his intrenchments in Richmond, the Army of the Potomac would follow, and, by means of transports, the two armies would become a unit. 14 All the minor details of your advance are left entirely to your direc tion. If, however, you think it practicable to use your cavalry south of you so as to cut the railroad about Hick s Ford about the time of the gen eral advance, it would be of immense advantage. u You will please forward for my information, at the earliest practicable day, all orders, details, and instructions you may give for the execution of this order. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General "Major-General B. F. BUTLER." On the 16th, these instructions were substantially reiterated. On tho 10th, in order to secure full co-operation between his army and that of General Meade, he was informed that I expected him tomovo from Fortress Monroe the same day that General Meade moved from Culpepper. Tho exact time I was to telegraph him as soon as it was fixed, and that it would not be earlier than the 27th of April ; that it was my intention to fight Leo between Culpepper and Richmond, if he would stand. Should he, how ever, fall back into Richmond, I would follow up and make a junction with his (General Butler s) army on the James River; that, could I bo certain he would be able to invest Richmond on the south side, so as to have his left resting on the James above the city, I would form the junction there : that circumstances might make this course advisable any how; that ho should use every exertion to secure footing as far up the south side of tho river as he could, and as soon as possible after the receipt of orders to move ; that, if he could riot carry the city, he should at least detain as large a force as possible. In co-operation with the main movements against Lee and Johnston, I was desirous of using all other troops necessarily kept in departments ro- motc from the fields of immediate operations, and also those kept in the background for the protection of our extended lines between the loyal States and the armies operating against them. THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY. A very considerable force, under command of Major-General Sigel, was so held for the protection of West Virginia and the frontiers of Maryland and Pennsylvania. Whilst these troops could not be withdrawn to distant fields without exposing the North to invasion by comparatively small bodies of the enemy, they could act directly to their front, and give better pro tection than if lying idle in garrison. By such movement they would cither compel the enemy to detach largely for the protection of his sup plies and lines of communication, or he would lose them. 064 I<IFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. General Sigel was therefore directed to organize all his available force into two expeditions, to move from Beverly and Charleston, under com mand of Generals Ord and Crook, against the East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad. Subsequently, General Ord having been relieved at his own re quest, General Sigel was instructed, at his own suggestion, to give up the expedition by Beverly, and to form two columns, one under General Crook, on the Kanavvha, numbering about ten thousand men, and one on the Shcnandoah, numbering about seven thousand men ; the one on the She- nandoah to assemble between Cumberland and the Shenandon.li, and the infantry and artillery advanced to Cedar Creek, with such cavalry as could be made available at the moment, to threaten the enemy in the Shenandoah Valley, and advance as far as possible, while General Crook would take possession of Lewisburgh with part of his force, and move down the Ten nessee Railroad, doing as much damage as he could, destroying the New River Bridge, and the salt-works at Saltville, Virginia. Owing to the weather and bad condition of the roads, operations were delayed until the 1st of May, when, every thing being in readiness, and the roads favorable, orders were given for a general movement of all the ariniea not later than the 4tfe of May. GENERAL BUTLER S ATTEMPT UPON RICHMOND. My first object being to break the military power of the rebellion, and capture the enemy s important strongholds, made me desirous that General Butler should succeed in his movement against Richmond, as that would tend more than any thing else, unless it were the capture of Lee s army, to accomplish this desired result in the East. If he failed, it was my deter mination, by hard fighting, either to compel Lee to retreat, or so to cripple him, that he could not detach a large force to go North, arid still retain enough for the defense of Richmond. It was well understood, by both Generals Butler and Meade, before starting on the campaign, that it was ray intention to put both their armies south of the James River, in case of failure to destroy Lee without it. Before giving General Butler his instructions, I visited him at Fortress Monroe, and in conversation pointed out the apparent importance of get ting possession of Petersburg, and destroying railroad communication as far south as possible. Believing, however, in the practicability of capturing Richmond, unless it was re-enforced, I made that the objective point of his operations. As the Army of the Potomac was to move simultaneously with him, Lee could not detach from his army with safety, and the enemy did not have troops elsewhere to bring to the defense of the city in time to meet a rapid movement from the north of James River. HIGH COMPLIMESTT TO GENERAL MEADE. I may here state that, commanding all the armies as I did, I tried, as far as possible, to leave General Meade in independent command of the LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 065 Army of the Potomac. My instructions for that array were all through him, and were general m their nature, leaving all the details and the exe cution to him. The campaigns that followed proved him to be the right man in the right place. His commanding always in the presence of an officer superior to him in rank has drawn from him much of that public attention that his zeal and ability entitle him to, and which he would other wise huve received. BEGINNING OF THE GKEAT MOVETMEIST AND THE RATTLES WITH LEE. The movement of the Army of the Potomac commenced early on the morning of the 4th of May, under the immediate direction and orders of Major-General Meade, pursuant to instructions. Before night the whole army was across the Rapidan (the Fifth and Sixth Corps crossing at Ger- m.nia Ford, and the Second in advance), with the greater part of its trains, numbering about four thousand wagons, meeting with but slight opposition. The average distance traveled by the troops that day was about twelve miles. This I regarded as a great success, and it removed from ray mind the most serious apprehensions I had entertained that of crossing the river in the face of an active, large, well-appointed, and ably- commanded army, and how so large a train was to be carried through a hostile country and protected. Early on the 5th, the advance corps (the Fifth, Major-General G. K. Warren commanding) met and engaged the enemy outside his intrcnchments near Mine Run. The battle raged furiously all day, the whole army being brought into the fight as fast as the corps could be got upon the field, which, considering the density of the forest and narrowness of the roads, was done with commendable promptness. General Burnside, with the Ninth Corps, was, at the time the Army of the Potomac moved, left with the -bulk of his corps at the crossing of the Rappahannock River and Alexandria Railroad, holding the road back to Bull Run, with instructions not to move until he received notice that a crossing of the Rapidan was secured, but to move promptly as soon as such notice was received. This crossing he was apprised of on the afternoon of the 4th. By six o clock of the morning of the Gth, he was leading h>s corps into action near the Wilderness Tavern, some of his troops having marched a distance of over thirty miles, crossing both the Rappahannock and Rapidan Rivers. Considering that a large portion, probably two-thirds of his command, was composed of new troops, unaccustomed to marches and carrying the accoutermcnts of a soldier, this was a remarkable march. The battle of the Wilderness was renewed by us at five o clock on the morning of the Gth, and continued with unabated fury until darkness set in, each army holding substantially the same position that they had on the evening of the 5th. After dark the enemy made a, feeble attempt" to turn our right Hank, capturing several hundred prisoners and creating consider- 666 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. able confusion. But the promptness of General Sedgwick, who was personally present and commanded that part of our line, soon re-formed it and restored order. On the morning of the 7th, reconnoissances showed that the enemy had fallen behind his intrenched lines, with pickets to the front, covering a part of the battle-field. From this it was evident to my mind that the two days fighting had satisfied him of his inability to further maintain the contest in the open field, notwithstanding his advantage of position, and that he would wait an attack behind his works. I therefore determined to push on and put my whole force between him and Rich mond; and orders were at once issued for a movement by his right flank. On the night of the 7th, the march was commenced toward Spottsylvania Court-House, the Fifth Corps moving on the most direct road. But the enemy, having become apprised of our movement, and having the shorter line, was enabled to reach there first. On the 8th, General Warren met a force of the enemy which had been sent out to oppose and delay his advance, to gain time to fortify the line taken up at Spottsylvania. This force was steadily driven back on the main force, within the recently con structed works, after considerable fighting, resulting in severe loss to both sides. On the morning of the 9th, General Sheridan started on a raid* against the enemy s lines of communication with Richmond. The 9th, 10th, and llth, were spent in maneuvering and fighting, without decisive results. Among the killed on the 9th, was that able and distinguished soldier, Major-General John Sedgwick, commanding the Sixth Army Corps. Miij or- General II. G. Wright succeeded him in command. Early on the morning of the 12th, a general attack was made on the enemy in position. The Second Corps, Major-General Hancock commanding, carried a salient of his line, capturing most of Johnson s division of Swell s corps and twenty pieces of artillery. But the resistance was so obstinate that the advantage gained did not prove decisive. The 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, and 18th, were consumed in maneuvering and awaiting the arrival of re- enforcements from Washington. Deeming it impracticable to make any further attack upon the enemy at Spottsylvania Court-House, orders were issued on the 18th, with a view to a movement to the North Anna, to com mence at twelve o clock on the night of the 19th. Late in the afternoon of the 19th, E well s corps came out of its works on our extreme right flank ; but the attack was promptly repulsed, with heavy loss. This de layed the movement to the North Anna until the night of the 21st, when it was commenced. But the enemy, again having the shorter line, and being in possession of the main roads, was enabled to reach the North Anna in advance of us, and took position behind it. The Fifth Corps reached the North Anna on the afternoon of the 23d, closely followed by the Sixth Corps. The Second and Ninth Corps got up about the same time, the Second holding the railroad bridge, and the Ninth lying between that and the Jericho Ford. General Warren effected a crossing the samo afternoon, and got a position without much opposition. Soon after get ting into position, he was violently attacked, but repulsed the enemy with great slaughter. On the 25th, General Sheridan rejoined the Army of the LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 667 Potomac from the raid on which lie started from Spottsylvania, having destroyed the depots at Beaver Dam and Ashland Stations, four trains of cars, large supplies of rations, and many miles of railroad-track ; recaptured about four hundred of our men, on their way to Richmond as prisoners of war ; met and defeated the enemy s cavalry at Yellow Tavern ; carried the first line of works around Richmond (but finding the second line too strong to be carried by assault) ; recrossed to the north bank of the Chick- ahominy at Meadow s Bridge, under heavy fire, and moved by a detour to Haxall s Landing, on the James River, where he communicated with Gen eral Butler. This raid had the effect of drawing off the whole of the enemy s cavalry force, and making it comparatively easy to guard our trains. GENERAL BUTLER S CO-OPERATION FIGHT AT DKUKY 7 S BLUFF. General Butler moved his main force up the James River, in pursuance of instructions, on the 4th of May, General Gillmore having joined him with the Tenth Corps. At the same time he sent a force of eighteen hundred cavalry, by way of West Point, to form a junction with him wherever he might get a foothold, and a force of three thousand cavalry, under General Kautz, from Suffolk, to operate against the roads south of Petersburg and Richmond. On the 5th he occupied, without opposition, both City Point and Bermuda Hundred, his movement being a complete surprise. On the Oth he was in position with his main army, and com menced intrenching. On the 7th he made a reconnoissance against the Petersburg and Richmond Railroad, destroying a portion of it after some fighting. On the Oth he telegraphed as follows : " HEAD-QUAETEKS NICAR BERMUDA LANDING, May 9, 1864. " Our operations may be summed up in a few words. With seventeen hundred cavalry we have advanced up the Peninsula, forced the Chicka- hominy, and have safely brought them to our present position. These were colored cavalry, and are now holding our advanced pickets toward Richmond. "General Kautz, with three thousand cavalry from Suffolk, on the same day with our movement up James River, forced the Blackwater, burned the railroad bridge at Stony Creek, below Petersburg, cutting in two Beau- regard s force at that point. "We have landed here, intrenched ourselves, destroyed many miles of railroad, and got a position which, with proper supplies, we can hold against the whole of Lee s army. I have ordered up the supplies. " Beauregard, with a largo portion of his force, was left south by the cutting of the railroads by Kautz. That portion which reached Peters burg, under Hill, I have whipped to-day, killing and wounding many and taking many prisoners, after a severe and well-contested fight. "General Grant will not be troubled with any further re-enforcements to Lee from Beaurcgard s force. "BENJAMIN F. BOTLEK, Major-General. " Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War." 668 FE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT On the evening of the 13th and morning of the 14th he carried a portion of the enemy s first line of defenses at Drury s Bluff, or Fort Darling, with small loss. The tirno thus consumed from the Cth lost to us the benefit of the surprise and capture of Richmond and Petersburg, enabling, as it did, Beauregard to collect his loose forces in North and South Carolina arid bring them to the defense of those places. On the IGth the enemy attacked General Butler in his position in front of Drury s Bluff. He was lorced back, or drew back, into his intrenchments between the forks of the James and Appomattox Rivers, the enemy intrenching strongly in his front, thus covering his railroads, the city, and all that was valuable to him. His army, therefore, though in a position of great security, was as completely shut off from further operations directly against Richmond as if it had been in a bottle strongly corked. It required but a comparatively small force of the enemy to hold it there. KAUTZ r S CAVALRY RAID. On the 12th, General Kautz, with his cavalry, was started on a raid against the Danville Railroad, which he struck at Coalfield, Powhatan, and Chola Stations, destroying them, the railroad track, two freight-trains, and one locomotive, together with large quantities of commissary and other stores ; thence crossing to the South Side Road, struck it at Wilson s, Wellsville, and Black and White Stations, destroying the road and station- houses; thence he proceeded to City Point, which he reached on the 18th. CAPTURE OF PLYMOUTH. On the 10th of April, and prior to the movement of General Butler, the enemy, with a land force under General Iloke, and an iron-clad rain, attacked Plymouth, North Carolina, commanded by General II. W. Wessels, and our gunboats there, and after severe fighting the place was carried by assault and the entire garrison and armament captured. The gunboat Smithfield was sunk and the Miami disabled. THE NINTH CORPS GOES TO HELP MEADE. The army sent to operate against Richmond having hermetically sealed itself up at Bermuda Hundred, the enemy was enabled to bring the most if not all the re-enforcements brought from the South by Beauregard against the Army of the Potomac, In addition to this re-enforcement, a very considerable one, probably riot less than fifteen thousand men were obtained by calling in the scattered troops under Breckinridge from the western part of Virginia. The position at Bermuda Hundred was as easy to defend as it was diffi cult to operate from against the enemy. I determined, therefore, to bring from it all available forces, leaving enough only to secure what had been gained, arid accordingly, on the 22d, I directed that they be sent forward, under command of Major-General W. F. Smith, to join the Army of the Potomac. LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 669 On the 24th of May, the Ninth Army Corps, commanded by Major- General A. E. Burnside, was assigned to the Army of the Potomac, and from this. time forward constituted a portion of Major- General Meade s command. OPERATIONS ABOVE RICHMOND. Finding the enemy s position on the North Anna stronger than either of his previous ones, I withdrew on the night of the 26th to the north hank of the North Anna, and moved via Hanovertown to turn the enemy s position by his. right. Generals Torbert s and Merritt s divisions of cavalry, under Sheridan, and the Sixth Corps, led the advance ; crossed the Pamunky River at Han overtown after considerable fighting, arid on the 28th the two divisions of cavalry had a severe but successful engagement with the enemy at Haw s shop. On the 29th and 80th we advanced, with heavy skirmishing, to the Hanover Court-House and Cold Harbor road, and developed the enemy s position north of the Chickahominy. Late on the evening of the last day the enemy came out and attacked our left, but was repulsed with very considerable loss. An attack was immediately ordered by General Meado along his whole line, which resulted in driving the enemy from apart of his intrenched skirmish line. On the 31st, General Wilson s division of cavalry destroyed the railroad bridges over the South Anna River, after defeating tho enemy s cavalry. General Sheridan, on the same day, reached Cold Harbor, and held it until relieved by the Sixth Corps and General Smith s command, which had just arrived, via White House, from General Butler s army. On the 1st day of June an attack was made at 5 p. M. by the Sixth Corps and the troops under General Smith, the other corps being held in readiness to advance on the receipt of orders. This resulted in our carry ing and holding the enemy s first line of works in front of the right of tho Sixth Corps and in front of General Smith. During the attack, the enemy made repeated assaults on each of the corps not engaged in the main attack, but was repulsed with heavy loss in every instance. That night ho made several assaults to regain what ho had lost in the day, but failed. The 2d was spent in getting troops into position for an attack on the 3d. On the 3d of June \ve again assaulted the enemy s works, in the hope of driving him from his position. In this attempt our loss was heavy, while that of the enemy, I have reason to believe, was comparatively light. It was the only general attack made from the Rapidan to the James which did not inflict upon the enemy losses to compensate for our own. I would not be understood as saying that all previous attacks resulted in victories to our arms, or accomplished as much as I had hoped from them; but they inflicted upon the enemy severe losses, which tended, in the end, to tho complete overthrow of the rebellion. From the proximity of the enemy to his defenses around Richmond, it was impossible, by any flank movement, to interpose between him and tho city. I was still in a condition to cither movo by his left flank and invest 670 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Richmond from the north side, or continue my move by his right flank to the south side of the James. While the former might have been better as a covering for Washington, yet a full survey of all the ground satisfied me that it would be impracticable to hold a line north and east of Richmond that would protect the Fredericksburg Railroad a long, vulnerable line, which would exhaust much of our strength to guard, and that would have to be protected to supply the army, and would leave open to the enemy all his lines of communication on the south side of the James. My idea, from the start, had been to beat Lee s army north of Richmond, if possible. Then, after destroying his lines of communication north of the James River, to transfer the army to the south side, and besiege Lee in Richmond, or fol low him south, if he should retreat. After the battle of the Wilderness, it was evident that the enemy deemed it of the first importance to run no risks with the army he then had. He acted purely on the defensive behind breastworks, or feebly on the offensive immediately in front of them, and where, in case of repulse, he could easily retire behind them. Without a greater sacrifice of life than I was willing to make, all could not be accom plished that I had designed north of Richmond. I therefore determined to continue to hold substantially the ground we then occupied, taking advan tage of any favorable circumstances that might present themselves, until the cavalry could be sent to Chariot tesville and Gordonsville, to effectually break up the railroad connection between Richmond and the Shenandoah Valley and Lynchburg ; and, when the cavalry got well off, to move the army to the south side of the James River, by the enemy s right flank, where I felt I could cut off all his sources of supply, except by the canal LYNCHBURG. On the 7th, two divisions of cavalry, under General Sheridan, got off on the expedition against the Virginia Central Railroad, with instructions to Hunter, whom I hoped he would meet near Charlottesville, to join his forces to Sheridan s, and, after the work laid out for them was thoroughly done, to join the Army of the Potomac, by the route laid down in Sheridan s instructions. FIRST ATTEMPTS ON PETERSBURG. On the 10th of June, General Butler sent a force of infantry, under Gen eral Gillmore, and cavalry, under General Kautz, to capture Petersburg, if possible, and destroy the railroad and common bridges across the Appomat- tox. The cavalry carried the works on the south side, and penetrated well in toward the town, but were forced to retire. General Gillmore, finding the works which he approached very strong, and deeming an assault im practicable, returned to Bermuda Hundred without attempting one. Attaching great importance to the possession of Petersburg, I sent back to Bermuda Hundred and City Point General Smith s command, by water, via the White ITonse. to reach there in advance of the Army of the Potomac. LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 671 This was for the express purpose of securing Petersburg before the enemy, becoming aware of our intention, could re-enforce the place. THE COLD HARBOR MOVEMENT. The movement from Cold Harbor commenced after dark on the evening of the 12th ; one division of -cavalry, under General Wilson, and the Fifth Corps, crossed the Chickahominy at Long Bridge, and moved out to White Oak Swamp, to cover the crossings of the other corps. The advance corps reached Jaines River, at Wilcox s Landing and Charles City Court-House, on the night of the 13th. MAGNITUDE AND DIFFICULTIES OF THE MARCH TOWARD RICHMOND. During three long years the Armies of the Potomac and Northern Vir ginia had been confronting each other. In that time they had fought more desperate battles than it probably ever before fell to the lot of two armies to fight, without materially changing the vantage-ground of either. Tho Southern press and people, with more shrewdness than was displayed in the North, finding that they had failed to capture Washington and march on to New York, as they had boasted they would do, assumed that they only defended their capital and Southern territory. Hence, Antietam, Gettysburgh, and all the other battles that had been fought, were by them set down as failures on our part, and victories for them. Their army believed this. It produced a morale which could only be overcome by desperate and continuous hard fighting. The battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna, and Cold Harbor, bloody and terrible as they were on our side, were even more damaging to the enemy, and so crippled him as to make him wary ever after of taking the offensive. His losses in men were probably not so great, owing to the fact that we were, save in the Wilderness, almost invariably the attacking party ; and when he did attack it was in the open field. The details of these battles, which, for endurance and bravery on the part of the soldiery, have rarely been sur passed, are given in the report of Major-General Meade, and the subordi nate reports accompanying it. Daring the campaign of forty-three days, from the Rapidan to James River, the army had to be supplied from an ever- shifting base, by wagons, over narrow roads, through a densely-wooded country, with a lack of wharves at each new base from which to conveniently discharge vessels. Too much credit cannot, therefore, bo awarded to the Quartermaster and Commissary Departments for the zeal and efficiency displayed by them. Under the general supervision of the Chief Quartermaster, Brigadier-Gen eral R. Ingalls, the trains were made to occupy all the available roads between the army and our water base, and but little difficulty was experi enced in protecting them. 672 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENEEAL GRANT. THE SHENANDOAH SIGEL SUPERSEDED BY HUNTER. The movement of the Kanawha and Shenandoah Valleys, under Gen eral Sigel, commenced on the 1st of May. Gen. Crook, who had the imme diate command of the Kanawha expedition, divided his forces into two columns, giving one, composed of cavalry, to General Averill. They crossed the mountains by separate routes. Averill struck the Tennessee and Virginia Railroad, near Wytheville, on the 10th, and, proceeding to New River and Christiansburg, destroyed the road, several important bridges and depots, including New River Bridge, forming a junction with Crook at Union on the 15th. General Sigel moved up the Shenandoah Valley, met the enemy at New-Market on the 15th, and, after a severe engagement, was defeated with heavy loss, and retired behind Cedar Creek. Not regarding the operations of General Sigel as satisfactory, I asked his removal from command, and Major-General Hunter was ap pointed to supersede him. His instructions were embraced in the follow ing dispatches to Major-General II. W. Halleck, Chief of Staff of the army: "NSAR SrOTTSYLVAXIA COtTRT-IIOCSE, \ T A., ) May 20, 1864. \ ********* " The enemy are evidently relying for supplies greatly on such as are brought over the branch road running through Staunton. On the whole, therefore, I think it would be better for General Hunter to move in that direction ; reach Staunton and Gordonsville, or Charlottesville, if he does not meet too much opposition. If he can hold at bay a force equal to his own, he will be doing good service. "U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-Genera* H. W. HALLECK." " JERICHO FORD, VA., May 25, 18C4. " If Hunter can possibly get to Charlottesville and Lynchburg, he should do so, living on the country. The railroads and canal should be destroyed beyond possibility of repairs for weeks. Completing this, he could find his way back to his original base, or from about Gordonsville join this army. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-General II. W. HALLECK." HUNTEK S PUSH TOWARD LYNCHBURG. General Hunter immediately took up the offensive, and, moving up the Shenandoah Valley, met the enemy on the 5th of June at Piedmont, and after a battle of ten hours routed and defeated him, capturing on the field of battle fifteen hundred men, three pieces of artillery, and three hundred stand of small-arms. On the 8th of the same month, he formed a junction with Crook and Averill at Staunton, from which place he moved direct on Lynchburg, via Lexington, which place he reached and invested on the 16th day of June. Up to this time he was very successful, and but for the diffi- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL" GRANT S REPORT. 673 culty of taking with him sufficient ordnance stores over so long a march, through a hostile country, he would no doubt have captured that, to the enemy, important point. The destruction of the enemy s supplies and manufactures was very great. To meet, this movement under General Hunter, General Lee sent a force, perhaps equal to a corps, a part of which reached Lynchbnrg a short time before Hunter. After some skirmishing on the 17th and 18th, General Hunter, owing to a want of ammunition to give battle, retired from before the place. Unfortunately, this want of am munition left him no choice of route for his return but by way of Kanawha, This lost to us the use of his troops for several weeks from the defense of the North. Had General Hunter moved by way of Charlottesville, instead of Lexing ton, as his instructions contemplated, he would have been in a position to have covered the Shenandoah Valley against the enemy, should the forco be met have seeraed to endanger it. If it did not, he would have been within easy distance of the James River Canal, on the main line of commu nication between Lynchbnrg and the force sent for its defense. I have never taken exception to the operations of General Hunter, and I am not now disposed to find fault with him, for I have no doubt he acted within what he conceived to be the spirit of his instructions, and the interests of the ser vice. The promptitude of his movements and his gallantry should entitle him to the commendation of his country. MEADE S ARMY CROSSES THE JAMES RIVER. To return to the Army of the Potomac. The Second Corps commenced crossing the James River on the morning of the 14th, by ferry-boats, at "Wilcox s Landing. The laying of the pontoon bridge was completed about midnight of the 14th, and the crossing of the balance of the army was rapidly pushed forward by both bridge and ferry. THE FIRST VICTORIES BEFORE PETERSBURG. After the crossing had commenced, I proceeded by a steamer to Ber muda Hundred to give the necessary orders for the immediate capture of Petersburg. The instructions to General Butler were verbal, and were for him to send General Smith immediately, that night, with all the troops hja could give him without sacrificing the position he then held. I told him that I would return at once to the Army of the Potomac, hasten its crossing, and; throw it forward to Petersburg by divisions as rapidly as it could be done ; that we could re-enforce our armies more rapidly there than the enemy could bring troops against us. General Smith got off as directed, and con fronted the enemy s pickets near Petersburg before daylight next morning, but for some reason, that I have never been able to satisfactorily under stand, did not get ready to assault his main lines until near sundown* Then, with a part of his command only, he made the assault, and carried.? the lines north-east of Petersburg from the Appomattox River, for a distance* 43 674 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. of over t\vo and a half miles, capturing fifteen pieces of artillery and throe hundred prisoners. This was about seven p. M. Between the line thus captured and Petersburg there were no other works, and there was no evi dence that the enemy had re-enforced Petersburg with a single brigade from any source. The night was clear the moon shining brightly and favorable to further operations. General Hancock, with two divisions of the Second Corps, reached General Smith just after dark, and offered the service of these troops as he (Smith) might wish, waiving rank to tho named commander, who he naturally supposed knew best the position of affairs, and what to do with the troops. But instead of taking these troops and pushing at once into Petersburg, he requested General Hancock to re lieve a part of his line in the captured works, which was done before midnight. By the time I arrived the next morning the enemy was in force. Ah attack was ordered to be made at six o clock that evening by the troops under Smith and the Second and Ninth Corps. It required until that time for the Ninth Corps to get up and into position. The attack was made as ordered, and the fighting continued with but little intermission until six o clock the next morning, and resulted in our carrying the advance and some of the main works of the enemy to the right (our left) of those pre viously captured by General Smith, several pieces of artillery, and over four hundred prisoners. The Fifth Corps having got up, the attacks were renewed and persisted in with great vigor on the 17th and 18th, but only resulted in forcing the enemy to an interior line from which he could not be dislodged. The advantages in position gained by us were very great. The army then pro ceeded to envelop Petersburg toward the Southside Railroad; as far as possible, without attacking fortifications. BUTLER S ATTEMPT TO CUT THE RICHMOND RAILROAD. On the 6th the enemy, to re-enforce Petersburg, withdrew from a part of his intrench ments in front of Bermuda Hundred, expecting, no doubt, to get troops from north of the James to take the place of those with drawn before we could discover it. General Butler, taking advantage of this, at once moved a force on the railroad between Petersburg and Rich mond. As soon as I was apprised of the advantage thus gained, to retain it I ordered two divisions of the Sixth Corps, General Wright command ing, that were embarking at Wilcox s Landing, under orders for City Point, to report to General Butler, at Bermuda Hundred, of which General But ler was notified, and the importance of holding a position in advance of his present line urged upon him. About two o clock in the afternoon, General Butler was forced back to the line the enemy had withdrawn from in the morning. General Wright, with his two divisions, joined General Butler in the forenoon of the 17th, the latter still holding with a strong picket line the enemy s works. But instead of putting these divisions into the enemy s works to hold them, ho LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 675 permitted them to halt and rest some distance in the rear of his own line. Between four and five o clock in the afternoon, the enemy attacked and drove in his pickets and re-occupied his old line. On the night of the 20th and morning of the 21st, a lodgment was effected by General Butler, with one brigade of infantry, on the north bank of the James, at Deep Bottom, and connected the pontoon bridge with Bermuda Hundred. RESULT OF SHERIDAN S RAID. On the 19th, General Sheridan, on his return from his expedition against the Virginia Central Railroad, arrived at the White House just as the enemy s cavalry was about to attack it, and compelled it to retire. The result of this expedition was, that General Sheridan met the enemy s cav alry near Trevillian Station on the morning of the llth of June, whom he attacked, and after an obstinate contest drove from the field in complete rout. He left his dead and nearly all his wounded in our hands, and abont four hundred prisoners and several hundred horses. On the 12th, he destroyed the railroad from Trevillian Station to Louisa Court-House. This occupied until three o clock, p. M.. when he advanced in the direction of Gor~ donsville. He found the enemy re-enforced by infantry, behind well-con-- Btructcd rifle-pits, about five miles from the latter place, and too strong to successfully assault. On the extreme right, however, his reserve brigade carried the enemy s works twice, and was twice driven therefrom by infantry. Night closed the contest. Not having sufficient ammunition to continue the engagement, and his animals being without forage (the country furnishing but inferior grazing), and hearing nothing from General Hunter, he withdrew his command to the north side of the North Anna, and com menced his return march, reaching White House at the time before stated. After breaking up the depot at that place he moved to the James River, which he reached safely after heavy fighting. He commenced crossing on the 25th, near Fort Powhatan, without further molestation, and rejoined the Army of the Potomac. THE RAID OF WILSON AND KAUTZ ON THE WELDON AND DANVILLE ROADS. On the 22d, General Wilson, with his own division of cavalry of the Army of the Potomac, and General Kautz s division of cavalry of the Army of the James, moved against the enemy s railroads south of Richmond, Striking the Weldon Railroad at Ream s Station, destroying the depot and several miles of the road, and the Southside road about fifteen miles from Petersburg, to near Nottoway Station, where he met and defeated a force of the enemy s cavalry, he reached Burkesville Station on the afternoon of the 23d, and from there destroyed the Danville Railroad to Roanoke Bridge, a distance of twenty-five miles, where he found the enemy in force, and in a position from which he could not dislodge him. lie then commenced his return inarch, and on the 28th met the enemy s cavalry in force at the Wel don Railroad crossing of Stony Creek where he had a severe, but not de- G76 LIFE AND CAMPAIGN S OF GENERAL GRANT. cisive engagement. Thence he made a detour from his left, with a view of reaching Ream s Station (supposing it to be in our possession). At thi* place, he was met by the enemy s cavalry, supported by infantry, and forced to retire, with the loss of his artillery and trains. In this last encounter, General Kautz, with a part of his command, became separated, and made his way into our lines. General Wilson, with the remainder of his force, suc ceeded in crossing the Nottoway River and coming in safely on our left and rear. The damage to the enemy in this expedition more than compensated for the losses we sustained. It severed all connection by railroad with Richmond for several weeks. OPERATIONS ON THE NORTH SIDE OF JAMES RIVER. With a view of cutting the enemy s railroad from near Richmond to the Anna River, and making him wary of the situation of his army in the She- nandoah, and, in the event of failure in this, to take advantage of his neces sary withdrawal of troops from Petersburg, to explode a mine that had been pr -pared in front of the Ninth Corps, and assault the enemy s lines at that place, on the night of the 26th of July the Second Corps and two divisions of the cavalry corps and Kautz s cavalry were crossed to the north bank of the James River and joined the force General Butler had there. On the 27th, the enemy was driven from his intrenched position, with the loss of four pieces of artillery. On the 28th, our lines were extended from Deep Bottom to New-Market Road ; but in getting this position were attacked by the enemy in heavy force. The fighting lasted for several hours, resulting in considerable loss to, both sides. The first object of this move having failed, by reason of the very large force thrown there by the enemy, I de termined to take advantage of the diversion made, by assaulting Petersburg before he could get his force back there. One division of the Second Corps was withdrawn on the night of the 28th, and moved during the night to the rear of the Eighteenth Corps, to relieve that corps in the line, that it might be foot loose in the assault to be made. The other two divisions of the Second Corps and Sheridan s cavalry were crossed over on the night of the 29th, and moved in front of Petersburg. On the morning of the 80th, between four and five o clock, the mine was sprung, blowing up a bat tery and most of a regiment, and the advance of the assaulting column, formed of the Ninth.Corps, immediately took possession of the crater made by the explosion, and the line for some distance to the right and left of it, and a detached line in front of it; but for some cause failed to advance promptly to the ridge beyond. Had they done this, I had every reason to believe that Petersburg would have fallen. Other troops were immediately pushed forward, but the time consumed in getting them up enabled the enemy to rally from his surprise (which had been complete), and get forces to this point for its defense. The captured line thus held being untenable, and of no advantage to us, the troops were withdrawn; but not without heavy loss. Thus terminated in disaster what promised to be the most successful assault of the campaign. LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 677 WEST VIRGINIA AND THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY. Immediately upon the enemy s ascertaining that General Hunter was ^treating from Lyrichburg by way of the Kanawha River, thus laying the Shenandoah Valley open for raids into Maryland and Pennsylvania, he re turned northward and moved down that valley. As soon as this movement of the enemy was ascertained, General Hunter, who had .reached the Kana wha River, was directed to move his troops without delay, by river and railroad, to Harper s Ferry; but, owing to the difficulty of navigation, by reason of low water and breaks in the railroad, great delay was expe rienced in getting there. It became necessary, therefore, to find other troops to check this movement of the enemy. For this purpose the Sixth Corps was taken from the armies operating against Richmond, to which was added the Nineteenth Corps, then fortunately beginning to arrive in Hampton Roads from the Gulf Department, under orders issued immediately after the ascertainment of the result of the Red River expedition. The garrisons of Baltimore and Washington were at this time made up of heavy artillery regiments, hundred-days men, and detachments from the Invalid Corps. One division, under command of General Rickctts, of the Sixth Corps, was sent to Baltimore, and the remaining two divisions of the Sixth Corps, under General Wright, were subsequently sent to Washington. On the 3d of July the enemy approached Martinsburg; General Sigel, who was in command of our forces there, retreated across the Potomac at Shepards- town, and General Weber, commanding at Harper s Ferry, crossed the river and occupied Maryland Heights. On he Gtli, the enemy occupied ITagerstov/n, moving a strong column toward Frederick City. General Wallace with Ricketts s division and his own command, the latter mostly new and undisciplined troops, pushed out from Baltimore with great promptness, and met the enemy in force on the Monocacy, near the cross^ ing of the railroad bridge. His force \vas not sufficient to insure success, but he fought the enemy, nevertheless, and although it resulted in a defeat to our arms, yet it detained the enemy, and thereby served to enable General Wright to reach Washington with two divisions of the Sixth Corps, and the advance of the Nineteenth Corps before him. From Mono cacy the enemy moved on Washington, his cavalry advance reaching Rock- ville on the evening of the 10th. On the 12th a reconnoissance was thrown out in front of Fort Stevens, to ascertain the enemy s position and force. A severe skirmish ensued, in which we lost about two hundred and eighty in killed and wounded. The enemy s loss was probably greater. He com menced retreating during the night. Learning the exact condition of affairs at Washington, I requested, by telegraph, at 11:45 P. M., on the 12th^ the assignment of Major-General II. G. Wright to the command of all the troops that could be made available to operate in the field against the enemy, and directed that he should get outside of the trenches with all the force he could, and push Early to the last moment. General Wright com menced the pursuit on the 13th ; on the 18th the enemy was overtaken at Snicker s Ferry, on the Shenandoah, when a sharp skirmish occurred; and 678 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. on the 20th General Averill encountered and defeated a portion of tho rebel army at Winchester, capturing four pieces of artillery and several hundred prisoners. Learning that Early was retreating south toward Lynchburg or Rich mond, I directed that the Sixth and Nineteenth Corps be got back to the armies operating against Richmond, so that they might be used in a move ment against Lee before the return of the troops sent by him into tho valley; and that Hunter should remain in the Shenandoah Valley, keeping between any force of the enemy and Washington, acting on the defensive as much as possible. I felt that, if the enemy had any notion of returning, the fact would be developed before the Sixth and Nineteenth Corps could leave Washington. Subsequently the Nineteenth Corps was excepted from the order to return to the James. EARLY s LAST RAID TOWARD MARYLAND. About the 25th it became evident that the enemy was again advancing upon Maryland and Pennsylvania, and the Sixth Corps, then at Washing ton, was ordered back to the vicinity of Harper s Ferry. The rebel force moved down the valley, and sent a raiding party into Pennsylvania, which on the 30th burned Chambersburg, and then retreated, pursued by our cavalry, toward Cumberland. They were met and defeated by General Kelly, and with diminished numbers escaped into the mountains of West Virginia. From the time of the first raid, the telegraph lines were frequently down between Washington and City Point, making it necessary to transmit messages a part of the way by boat. It took from twenty-four to thirty-six hours to get dispatches through, and return answers back ; ao that often orders would be given, and then information would be received showing a different state of facts from those on which they were based, causing a confusion, and apparent contradiction of orders, that must have considerably embarrassed those who had to execute them, and ren dered operations against the enemy less effective than they otherwise would have been. To remedy this evil, it was evident to my mind that some person should have the supreme command of all the forces in the Departments of West Virginia, Washington, Susquehanua, and the Middle Department, and I so recommended. On the 2d of August, I ordered General Sheridan to report in person to Major-General Halleck, chief of staff, at Washington, with a view to his assignment to the command of all the forces against Early. At this time, tho enemy was concentrated in the neighborhood of Winchester, whilst our forces, under General Hunter, were concentrated on the Monocacy, at the crossing of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, leaving open to the enemy Western Maryland and Southern Pennsylvania. From where I was, I hesi tated to give positive orders for the movement of our forces at Monocacy, lest by so doing I should expose Washington. Therefore, on the 4th-, I left City Point to visit Hunter s command, and determine for myself what was best to be done. On arrival there, and after consultation with General Hunter, I issued to him the following instructions: LEEtfTENANT-GENEEAL GRANT S REPORT. 679 " MoxofiAOY BRIDGE, Mo., Aug. 5, 1864 8 P. a. u GENERAL : Concentrate all your available force without delay in tha vicinity of Harper s Ferry, leaving only such railroad guards and garrisons for public property as may be necessary. Use, in this concentrating, the railroads, if by so doing time can be saved. From Harper s Ferry, if it ia found that the enemy has moved north of the Potomac in large force, push north, following him and attacking him wherever found ; follow him, if driven south of the Potomac, as long as it is safe to do so. If it is ascer tained that the enemy has but a small force north of the Potomac, then push south with the main force, detaching under a competent commander a sufliciciit force to look after the raiders, and drive them to their homes. In detaching such a force, the brigade of cavalry now en route from Wash ington via Rockwell may be taken into account. "There are now on their way to join you three other brigades of the best cavalry, numbering at least five thousand men and horses. These will be instructed, in the absence of further orders, to join you by the south Bide of the Potomac. One brigade will probably start to-morrow. In pushing up the Shenandoah Valley, where it is expected you will have to go first or last, it is desirable that nothing should be left to invite the enemy to return. Take all provisions, forage, and stock, wanted for the use of your command; such as cannot be consumed, destroy. It is not desirable that the buildings should be destroyed they should rather be protected but the people should be informed that so long as an army can subsist among them recurrences of these raids must be expected, and we are determined to stop them at all hazards. "Bear in mind the object is to drive the enemy south, and to do this you want to keep him always in sight. Be guided in your course by the course he takes. " Make your own arrangements for supplies of all kinds, giving regular vouchers for such as may be taken from loyal citizens in the coimtrj through which you march. "U. S. GKANT, Lientenant-General. "Major-General D. HUOTEK." The troops were immediately put in motion, and the advance reached Halltown that night. General Hunter having, in our conversation, expressed a willingness to be relieved from command, I telegraphed to have General Sheridan, then at Washington, sent to Harper s Ferry by the morning train, with orders to take general command of all the troops in the field, and to call on Gen eral Hunter at Monocacy, who would turn over to him my letter of instruc tions. I remained at Monocacy until General Sheridan arrived on the morning of the 6th, and, after a conference with him in relation to mili tary affairs in that vicinity, I returned to City Point by way of Wash ington. On the 7th of August, the Middle Department, and the departments of West Virginia, Washington, and Susquehanna, were constituted into the 680 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. 11 middle military division," and Major-General Sheridan was assigned to temporary command of the same. Two divisions of cavalry, commanded by Generals Torbert and "Wilson, were sent to Sheridan from the Army of the Potomac. The first readied him at Harper s Ferry, about the llth of August. His operations during the month of August and the fore part of Sep tember were both of an offensive and defensive character, resulting in many severe skirmishes, principally by the eavalry, in which we were generally successful, but no general engagement took place. The two armies lay in such a position the enemy on the west bank of the Opcquan Creek, covering Winchester, and our forces in front of Berrysvillc that either could bring on a battle at any time. Defeat to us would lay open to the enemy the States of Maryland and Pennsylvania for long distances before another army could be interposed to check him. Under these circumstances, I hesitated about allowing the initiative to/ be taken. Finally, the use of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, which were both obstructed by the enemy, became so indispensably necessary to us, and the importance of relieving Pennsyl vania and Maryland from continuously threatened invasion so great, that I determined the risk should be taken. But fearing to telegraph the order lor an attack, without knowing more than I did of General Sheridan s feelings as to what \yould be the probable result, I left City "Point on the 15th of September to visit him at his head-quarters, to decide, after con ference with him, what should be done. I met him at Charleston, and he pointed out so distinctly how each army lay, what he could do the moment he was authorized, and expressed such confidence of success, that I saw there were but two words of instructions necessary Go in! For the convenience of forage, the teams for supplying the army were kept at Harper s Ferry. I asked Lira if he could get out his teams and supplies in time to make an attack on the ensuing Tuesday morning. His reply was, that he could before daylight on Monday. He was off promptly to time, and I may here add that the result was such that I have never since deemed it necessary to visit General Sheridan before giving him orders. Early on the morning of the 19th, General Sheridan attacked General Early at the crossing on Opequan Creek, and after a most sanguinary and bloody battle, lasting until five o clock in the evening, defeated him with heavy loss, carrying his entire position from Opequan Crook to Winchester, capturing several thousand prisoners, and five pieces of artillery. Tho encfhiy rallied and made a stand in a strong position at Fisher s Hill, where he was attacked and again defeated on the 20th. Sheridan pursued him with great energy through Ilarrisonburg, Staunton, and the gaps of tho Blue Ridge. After stripping th upper valley of most of the supplies and provisions for the rebel army, he returned to Strasburg, and took position on the north side of Cedar Creek. LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 681 Having received considerable re-enforcements, General Early again re turned to the valley, and on the 9th of October his cavalry encountered ours near Strasburg, where the rebels were defeated with the loss of eleven pieces of artillery, and three hundred and fifty prisoners. On the night of the 18th, the enemy crossed the mountains which separated the branches of the Shenandoah, forded the north fork, and early on the morning of the 19th, under cover of the darkness and the fog, surprised and turned our left flank, capturing the batteries which enfiladed our whole line. Our troops fell back with heavy loss and in much confusion, but were finally rallied between Middletown and Newtown. At this juncture, General Sheri dan, who was at Winchester when the battle commenced, arrived on the field, arranged his lines just in time to repulse a heavy attack of the enemy, and, immediately assuming the offensive, ho attacked in turn with great vigor. The enemy was defeated with great slaughter, and the loss of most of his artillery and trains, and the trophies he had captured in the morning. The wreck of his army escaped during the night, and fled in the direction of Stannton and Lynchburg. Pursuit was made to Mount Jackson, Thus ended this, the enemy s, last attempt to invade the North, via the Shenan doah Valley. I was now enabled to return the Sixth Corps to the Army of the Potomac, and to send one division from Sheridan s army to the Army of the James, and another to Savannah, Georgia, to hold Sherman s new acquisitions on the sea-coast, and thus enable him to move without detaching from his force for that purpose. Reports from various sources led me to believe that the enemy had detached three divisions from Petersburg to re-enforce Early in the Shen andoah A^alley. I therefore sent the Second Corps and Gregg s division of cavalry, of the Army of the Potomac, and a force of General Butler s army, on the night of the loth of August, to threaten Richmond from the north side of the James, to prevent him from sending troops away, and; if possible, to draw back those sent. In this move we captured six pieces of artillery and several hundred prisoners, detained troops that were under marching orders, and ascertained that but one division (Kershaw s), of the three reputed detached, had gone. AFFAIRS AROUND PETERSBURG. The enemy having withdrawn heavily from Petersburg to resist this movement, the Fifth Corps, General Warren commanding, was moved out on the 18th, and took possession of the Weldon Railroad. During the day we had considerable fighting. To regain possession of the road, the enemy made repeated and desperate assaults, but was each time repulsed with great loss. On the night of the 20th, the troops on the north side of the James were withdrawn, and Hancock and Gregg returned to the front of Petersburg. On the 25th, the Second Corps and Gregg s division of cavalry, while at Ream s Station destroying the railroad, were attacked, and after desperate fighting a part of our line gave way, and five pieces of artillery fell into the hands of the enemy. 682 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. By the 12th of September a branch mil road was completed from the City Point and Petersburg Railroad to the "Wcldon Railroad, enabling us to supply, without difficulty, in all weather, the army in front of Petersburg. The extension of our lines across the Weldon Railroad compelled the enemy to so extend his that it seemed he could have but few troops north of the James, for the defense of Richmond. On the night of the 28th, the Tenth Corps, Major-General Birney, and the Eighteenth Corps, Major-Gen eral Ord commanding, of General Butler s army, were crossed to the north side cX" the James, and advanced on the morning of the 29th, carrying the very strong fortifications and intrenchrnents below Chapin s Farm, known as Fort Harrison, capturing fifteen pieces of artillery and the Newmarket Road and intrenchments. This success was followed up by a gallant assault upon Fort Gillmore, immediately in front of the Ohapiri Farm fortifications, in which we were repulsed with heavy loss. Kautz s cavalry was pushed forward on the road to the right of this, supported by infantry, and reached the enemy s inner line, but was unable to get further. The position cap tured from the enemy w r as so threatening to Richmond that I determined to hold it. The enemy made several desperate attempts to dislodge us, all of which were unsuccessful, and for which he paid dearly. On the morn ing of the 80th, General Meade sent out a reconnoissance, with a view to attacking the enemy s line, if.it was found sufficiently weakened by with drawal of troops to the north side. In this reconnoissance we captured and held the enemy s works near Poplar Spring Church. In the afternoon, troops moving to get to the left of the point gained were attacked by the enemy in heavy force, and compelled to fall back until supported by the forces holding the captured works. Our cavalry, under Gregg, was also attacked, but repulsed the enemy with great loss. On the 7th of October the enemy attacked Kautz s cavalry north of the James, and drove it back with heavy loss in killed, wounded, and prisoners, and the loss of all the artillery, eight or nine pieces. This he followed up by an attack on our intrenched infantry line, but was repulsed with severe slaughter. On the 13th, a reconnoissance was sent out by General Butler, with a view to drive the enemy from some new works he was constructing, which resulted in very heavy loss to us. On the 27th, the Army of the Potomac, leaving only sufficient men to hold its fortified line, moved by the enemy s right flank. The Second Corps, followed by two divisions of the Fifth Corps, with the cavalry in ad vance and covering our left flank, forced a passage of Hatcher s Run. and moved up the south side of it toward the Southside Railroad, until the Second Corps and part of the cavalry reached the Boydtown plank-road, where it crosses Hatcher s Run. At this point we were six miles distant from the Southside Railroad, which I had hoped by this movement to reach andhold. But finding that we had not reached the end of the enemy s forti fications, and no place presenting itself for a successful assault by which -ho might be doubled up and shortened, I determined to withdraw within our fortified line. Orders were given accordingly. Immediately upon receiv ing a report that Goneral Warren had connected with General Hancock, I LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 683 returned to my head-quarters. Soon after I left, the enemy moved out across Catcher s Run, in the gap between Generals Hancock and Warren, which was not closed as reported, and made a desperate attack on General Hancock s right and rear. General Hancock immediately faced his corps to meet it, and after a bloody combat drove the enemy within his works, and withdrew that night to his old position. In support of this movement, General Butler made a demonstration on the north side of the James, and attacked the enemy on the Williamsburg road, and also on the York River Railroad. In the former he was unsuc cessful ; in the latter he succeeded in carrying a work which was afterward abandoned, and his force withdrawn to their former positions. From this time forward the operations in front of Petersburg and Rich mond, until the Spring campaign of 1865, were confined to the defense and extension of our lines, and to offensive movements for crippling the enemy s line of communication, and to prevent his detaching any considerable force to send south. By the 7th of February our lines were extended to Hatch er s Run, and the Weldon Railroad had been destroyed to Hicksford. SHERMAN S CAMPAIGN FROM CHATTANOOGA TO ATLANTA. General Sherman moved from Chattanooga on the Gth of May, with the Armies of the Cumberland, Tennessee, and Ohio, commanded, respectively, by Generals Thomas, McPherson, and Schofield, upon Johnston s army at Dalton ; but finding the enemy s positions at Buzzard Roost, covering Dai- ton, too strong to be assaulted, General McPherson was sent through Snake Gap to turn it, while Generals Thomas and Schofield threatened it in front and on the north. This movement was successful. Johnston, finding his retreat likely to be cut off, fell back to his fortified position at Resaca, where he was attacked on the afternoon of May 15th. A heavy battle en sued. During the night the enemy retreated south. Late on the IVth, his rear-guard was overtaken near Adairsville, and heavy skirmishing followed. The next morning, however, he had again disappeared. lie was vigorous ly pursued and was overtaken at Cassville, on the 19th, but, during the en suing night, retreated across the Etowah. While these operations were going on, General Jefferson C. Davis s division of Thomas s army was sent to Rome, capturing it, with its forts and artillery and its valuable mills and founderies. General Sherman having given his army a fewdays rest at this point, again put it in motion on the 23d for Dallas, with a view of turning the difficult pass at Allatoona. On the afternoon of the 25th, the advance, under General Hooker, had a severe battle with the enemy, driving him back to New-Hope Church, near Dallas. Several sharp encounters oc curred at this point. The most important was on the 28th, when the enemy assaulted General McPherson at Dallas, but received a terrible and bloody repulse. On the 4th of June, Johnston abandoned his intrenched position at New -Hope Church and retreated to the strong positions of Kenesaw, Pine, and Lost Mountains. Ho was forced to yield the two last-named places G84 LIKE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and concentrate his army on Kcnesaw, where, on the 27th, Generals Thomas and McPherson made a determined but unsuccessful assault. Oil the night of the 2d of July, Sherman commenced moving his army by the right flank, and on the morning of the 3d found that the enemy, in conse quence of this movement, had abandoned Kenesaw and retreated across the Chattahoochie. General Sherman remained on the Chattahoochie to give his men rest, and get up stores until the 17th of July, when he resumed his operations, crossed the Chattahoochie, destroyed a large portion of the railroad to Augusta, and drove the enemy back to Atlanta. At this place General Hood succeeded General Johnston in command of the rebel army, and, assuming the offensive-defensive policy, made several severe attacks upon Sherman in the vicinity of Atlanta, the most desperate and determined of which was on the 22d of July. About one p. M. of this day, the brave, accomplished, and noble-hearted McPlierson was killed. General Logan succeeded him, and commanded the Army of the Tennessee through this desperate battle, and until he was superseded by Major-General Howard on the 26th, with the same success and ability that had characterized him in the command of a corps or division. In all these attacks the enemy was repulsed with great loss. Finding it impossible to entirely invest the place, General Sherman, after securing his line of communications across the Chattahoochie, moved his main force round by the enemy s left flank upon the Montgomery and Macon roads, to draw the enemy from his fortifications. In this he succeeded, and, after defeating the enemy near Rough-and-Ready, Jonesboro , and Lovejoy s, forcing him to retreat to the south, on the 2d of September occupied Atlanta, the objective point of his campaign. About the time of this move, the rebel cavalry, under Wheeler, attempted to cut his communications in the rear, but was repulsed at Dalton and driven into East Tennessee, whence it proceeded west to McMinnville, Murfreesboro , and Franklin, and was finally driven south of the Tennessee. The damage done by this raid was repaired in a few da} s. During the partial investment of Atlanta, General Rousseau joined General Sherman with a force of cavalry from Decatur, having made a successful raid upon the Atlanta and Montgomery Railroad, and its branches near Opelika. Cavalry raids were also made by Generals McCook, Gar- rard,.and Stoneman, to cut the remaining railroad communication with Atlanta. The first two were successful the latter disastrous. A TRIBUTE TO SHERMAN. General Sherman s movement from Chattanooga to Atlanta was prompt, skillful, arid brilliant. The history of his flank movements and battles dur ing that memorable campaign will ever be read with an interest unsurpassed by any tiling in history. His own report and those of his subordinate commanders accompany ing it give the details of that most successful campaign. LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 6Sf> Ho was dependent for the supply of his armies upon a single-track rail road from Nashville to the point where he was operating. This passed tha entire distance through a hostile country, and every foot of it had to bo protected by troops. The cavalry force of the enemy under Forrest, in northern Mississippi, was evidently waiting for Sherman to advance far enough into the mountains of Georgia to make a retreat disastrous, to get upon his line and destroy it beyond the possibility of further use. To guard against this danger, Sherman left what he supposed to be a sufficient force to operate against Forrest in West Tennessee. Ho directed General Washburn, who commanded there, to send Brigadier-General S. D. Sturgis in command of this force to attack him. On the morning of the 10th of June, General Sturgis met the enemy near Guntown, Mississippi, was badly beaten, and driven back in utter rout and confusion to Memphis, a distance of about one hundred miles, hotly pursued by the enemy. By this, how ever, the enemy was defeated in his designs upon General Sherman s line of communications. The persistency with which he followed up this suc cess exhausted him, and made a season for rest and repairs necessary. In the mean time Major-General A. J. Smith, with the troops of the Army of the Tennessee that had been sent by General Sherman to General Banks, arrived at Memphis on their return from Red River, where they had done most excellent service. He was directed by General Sherman to immedi ately take the offensive against Forrest. This he did, with the promptness and effect which have characterized his whole military career. On the 14th of July, he met the enemy at Tupelo, Mississippi, and whipped him badly. The fighting continued through three days. Our loss was small compared with that of the enemy. Having accomplished the object of his expedi tion, General Smith returned to Memphis. FORREST S ANNOYANCE IN KENTUCKY THE MASSACRE AT FORT PILLOW. During the months of March and April, this same force under Forrest annoyed us considerably. On the 24th of March, it captured Union City, Kentucky, and its garrison, and on the 24th attacked Paducah, commanded by Colonel S. G. Hicks, Fortieth Illinois Volunteers. Colonel Hicks, hav ing but a small force, withdrew to the forts near the river, from where ho repulsed the enemy and drove him from the place. On the 13th of April, part of this force, under the rebel General Buford, summoned tliQ garrison of Columbus, Kentucky, to surrender, but received for reply from Colonel Lawrence, Thirty-fourth New Jersey Volunteers, that, being placed there by his Government with adequate force to hold his post and repel all enemies from it, surrender was out of the ques tion. On the morning of the same day, Forrest attacked Fort Pillow, Tenn., garrisoned by a detachment of Tennessee cavalry and the First Regiment Alabama colored troops, commanded by Major Booth. The garrison fought bravely until about three o clock in the afternoon, when the enemy carried C3G LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the works by assault ; and, after our men threw down their arms, pro ceeded in an inhuman and merciless massacre of the garrison. On the 14th, General Buford, having failed at Columbus, appeared before Paducah, but was again driven off. Guerrillas and raiders, seemingly emboldened by Forrest s operations, were also very active in Kentucky. The most noted of these was Morgan. With a force of from two to three thousand cavalry, he entered the State through Pound Gap in the latter part of May. On the llth of June he attacked and captured Cynthiana, with its entire garrison. On the 12th lie was overtaken by General Bnrbridge, and completely routed with heavy loss, and was finally driven out of the State. This notorious guerrilla was afterward surprised and killed near Greenville, Term., and his command captured and dispersed by General Gillern. OUR REVERSES ON THE RED RIVER. In the absence of official reports at the commencement of the Red River expedition, except so far as relates to the movements of the troops sent by General Sherman, under A. J, Smith, I am unable to give the date of its starting. The troops under General Smith, comprising two divisions of the Sixteenth and a detachment of the Seventeenth Army Corps, left Vicks- burg on the 10th of March, and reached the designated point on. Red River one day earlier than that appointed by General Banks. The rebel forces at Fort de Russey, thinking to defeat him, left the fort on the 14th, to give him battle in the open field; but, while occupying the enemy with skir mishing and demonstrations, Smith pushed forward to Fort de Russey, which had been left with a weak garrison, and captured it with its garri son, about three hundred and fifty men, eleven pieces of artillery, and many small-arms. Our loss was but slight. On the 15th, he pushed forward to Alexandria, which place he reached on the 18th. On the 21st, he had an engagement with the enemy at Henderson Hill, in which he defeated him, capturing two hundred and ten prisoners and four pieces of artillery. On the 28th, he again attacked and defeated the enemy, under the rebel General Taylor, at Cane River, By the 26th, General Banks had assembled his whole army at Alexandria, and pushed forward to Grand Ecore. On the morning of April Cth, he moved from Grand Ecore. On the afternoon of the 7th, his advance engaged the enemy near Pleasant Hill, and drove him from the field. On the same afternoon the enemy made a stand eight miles beyond Pleasant Hill, but was again compelled to retreat. On the 8th, at Sabine Cross-roads and Peach Hill, the enemy attacked and de feated his advance, capturing nineteen pieces of artillery and an immense amount of transportation and stores. During the night, General Banks fell back to Pleasant Hill, where another battle was fought on the 9th, and the enemy repulsed with great loss. During the night, General Banks con tinued his retrograde movement to Grand Ecore, and thence to Alexandria, which he reached on the 27th of April. Here a serious difficulty arose in getting Admiral Porter s fleet, which accompanied the expedition, over the LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 687 rapids, the water having fallen so much since they passed up as to prevent their return. At the suggestion of Colonel (now Brigadier-General) Bailey, and under his superintendence, wing-dams were constructed, Ly which the channel was contracted so that the fleet passed down the rapids in safety. The army evacuated Alexandria on the 14th of May, after considerable skirmishing with the enemy s advance, and reached Morganzia and Point Coupee near the end of the month. The disastrous termination of this ex pedition, and the lateness of the season, rendered impracticable the carry ing out of my plan of a. movement in force sufficient to insure the capture of Mobile. On the 23d of March, Major-General Steelo left Little Rock with the Seventh Army Corps, to co-operate with General Banks s expedition on Red River, and reached Arkadelphia on the 28th. On the IGth of April, after driving the enemy before him, he was joined near Elkin s Ferry, in Washita County, by General Thayer, who had marched from Fort Smith. After several severe skirmishes, in which the enemy was defeated, General Steele reached Camden, which he occupied about the middle of April. On learning the defeat and consequent retreat of General Banks on Red River, and the loss of one of his own trains at Mark s Mill, in Dallas County, General Steele determined to fall back to the Arkansas River. He left Camden on the 26th of April, and reached Little Rock on the 2d of May. On the 30th of April the enemy attacked him while crossing the Saline River at Jenkins s Ferry, but was repulsed with considerable loss. Our loss was about six hundred in killed, wounded, arid prisoners. Major-General Canby, who had been assigned to the command of the Mili tary Division of West Mississippi, was therefore directed to send the Nine teenth Army Corps to join the armies operating against Richmond, rfnd to limit the remainder of his command to such operations as might be neces sary to hold the positions and lines of communications he then occupied. Before starting General A. J. Smith s force back to Sherman, General Canby sent a part of it to disperse a force of the enemy that was collect ing near the Mississippi River. General Smith met and defeated this force near Lake Chicot on the 6th of June. Our loss was about forty killed and seventy wounded. CAPTUPvE OF FORT MORGAN. In the latter part of July, General Canby sent Major-General Gordon Granger, with such forces as he could collect, to co-operate with Admiral Farragut against the defenses of Mobile Bay. On the 8th of August, Fort Gaines surrendered to the combined naval and land forces. Fort Powell was blown up and abandoned. On the 9th, Fort Morgan was invested, and, after a severe bombard ment, surrendered on the 23d. The total captures amounted to one thou sand four hundred and sixty-four prisoners and one hundred and four pieces of artillery. 688 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. OPERATIONS IX ARKANSAS. About the last of August, it being reported that the rebel General Price, vrith a force of about ten thousand men, had reached Jacksonport, on his way to invade Missouri, General A. J. Smith s command, then en route from Memphis to join Sherman, was ordered to Missouri. A cavalry force was also at the same time sent from Memphis, under command of Colonel Winslow. This made General Rosecrans s forces superior to those of Price, and no doubt was entertained he would be able to check Price and drive him back, while the forces under General Steele, in Arkansas, would cut off his retreat. On the 26th day of September, Price attacked Pilot Knob, and forced the garrison to retreat, and thence moved north to the Missouri River, and continued up that river toward Kansas. Gen eral Curtis, commanding Department of Kansas, immediately collected such forces as he could to repel the invasion of Kansas, while General Rosecrans s cavalry was operating in his rear. The enemy was brought to battle on the Big Blue, and defeated, \vitJi the loss of nearly all his artillery and trains, and a large number of pris oners. He made a precipitate retreat to Northern Arkansas. The im punity with which Price was enabled to roam over the State of Missouri for a long time, and the incalculable mischief done by him, shows to how little purpose a superior force may be used. There is no reason why General Rosecrans should not have concentrated his forces, and beaten and driven Price before the latter reached Pilot Knob. FORREST S ATTACK UPON ATHENS. September 20th, the enemy s cavalry, under Forrest, crossed the Tennes see near Waterloo, Alabama, and on the 23d attacked the garrison at Athens, consisting of six hundred men, which capitulated on the 24th. Soon after the surrender, two regiments of re-enforcements arrived, and, after a severe fight, were compelled to surrender. Forrest destroyed the railroad west ward, captured the garrison at Sulphur Branch trestle, skirmished with the garrison at Pulaski on the 27th, and on the same day cut the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad near Tullahoma and Dechard. On the morning of the 30th, one column of Forrest s command, under Buford, appeared before Huntsville, and summoned the surrender of the garrison. Receiving an answer in the negative, ho remained in the vicinity of the place until next morning, when he again summoned its surrender, and received the same reply as on the night before. lie withdrew in the direction of Athens, which place had been regarrisoned, and attacked it on the afternoon of tho 1st of October, but without success. On the morning of the 2d, he renewed his attack, but was handsomely repulsed. Another column, under Forrest, appeared before Columbia on the morn ing of the 1st, but did not make an attack. On the morning of the 3d, ho moved toward Mount Pleasant. While these operations were going on, every exertion was made by General Thomas to destroy tho forces under LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 689 Forrest before he could recross the Tennessee, but was unable to prevent his escape to Corinth, Mississippi. In September, an expedition, under General Burbridge, was sent to de stroy the salt-works at Saltville, A 7 irginia. He met the enemy on the 2d of October, about three and a half miles from Saltville, and drove him into his strongly intrenched position around the salt-works, from which he was unable to dislodge him. Daring the night, he withdrew his command, and returned to Kentucky. SHERMAN PREPARES FOR HIS " MARCH TO THE SEA." General Sherman, immediately after the fall of Atlanta, put his armies in camp in and about the place, and made all preparations for refitting and supplying them for future service. The great length of road from Atlanta to the Cumberland River, however, which had to be guarded, allowed the troops but little rest. During this time, Jefferson Davis made a speech in Mucon, Ga., which was reported in the papers of the South, and soon became known to the whole country, disclosing the plans of the enemy, thus enabling General Sherman to fully meet them. He exhibited the weakness of supposing that an army, that had been beaten and fearfully decimated in a vain attempt at the defensive, could successfully undertake the offensive against the army that had so often defeated it. In execution of this plan, Hood, with his army, was soon reported to the southwest of Atlanta. Moving far to Sherman s right, he succeeded in reaching the railroad about Big Shanty, and moved north on it. General Sherman, leaving a force to hold Atlanta, with the remainder of his army fell upon him and drove him to Gadsden, Alabama. Seeing the constant annoyance he would have with the roads to his rear, if we at tempted to hold Atlanta, General Sherman proposed the abandonment and destruction of that place, with all the railroads leading to it, and tele graphed me as follows : "CENTKEVILLE, GA., October 10 Noon. " Dispatch about Wilson just received. Hood is now crossing Coosa River, twelve miles below Rome, bound west. If he passes over the Mobile and Ohio road, had I not better execute the plan of my letter sent by Colonel Porter, and leave General Thomas, with the troops now in Tennessee, to defend the State ? He will have an ample force when the re-enforcements ordered reach Nashville. " W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General. " Lieutenant- General GBANT." For a full understanding of the plan referred to in this dispatch, I quote from the letter sent by Colonel Porter : " I will, therefore, give my opinion, that your army and Canby s should be re-enforced to the maximum ; that, after you get "Wilmington, you strike for Savannah and the river ; that Canby be instructed to hold the Mississippi River, and send a force to get Columbus, Georgia, either by the way of 44 690 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. the Alabama or the Appalachicola, and that I keep Hood employed, and put my army in final order for a march on Augusta, Columbia, and Charleston, to bo ready as soon as Wilmington is sealed as to commerce, and the city of Savannah is in our possession." This was in reply to a letter of mine, of date September 12, in answer to a dispatch of his containing substantially the same proposition, and in which I informed him of a proposed movement against Wilmington, and of the situation in Virginia, &c. " CITT POINT, VA., October 11, 186411 A. M. "Your dispatch of October 10 received. Does it not look as if Hood was going to attempt the invasion of Middle Tennessee, using the Mobile and Ohio and Memphis and Charleston roads to supply his base on the Tennes see River, about Florence or Decatur? If he does this, he ought to be met and prevented from getting north of the Tennessee River. If you were to cut loose, I do not believe you would meet Hood s army, but would be bushwhacked by all the old men, little boys, and such railroad guards as are still left at home. Hood would probably strike at Nashville, thinking that by going north he could inflict greater damage upon us than we could upon the rebels by going south. If there is any way of getting at Hood s army, I would prefer that ; but I must trust to your own judgment. I find I shall not be able to send a force from here to act with you on Savannah. Your movements, therefore, will be independent of mine ; at least, until the fall of Richmond takes place. I am afraid Thomas, with such lines of road as he has to protect, could not prevent Hood from going north. With Wil son turned loose, with all your cavalry, you will find the rebels put much more on the defensive than heretofore. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. ** Major-General W. T. SHERMAN." " KINGSTON, GA., October 1111 A. M. 44 Hood moved his army from Palmetto Station across by Dallas and Ce- dartown, and is now on the Coosa River, south of Rome. He threw one corps on my roa/1 at Acworth, and I was forced to follow. I hold Atlanta with the Twentieth Corps, and have strong detachments along my line. This reduces my active force to a comparatively small army. We cannot remain here on the defensive. With the twenty-five thousand men and the bold cavalry he has, he will constantly break my roads. I would infinitely prefer to make a wreck of the road, and of the country from Chattanooga to Atlan ta, including the latter city send back all my wounded, and worthless, and, with my effective army, move through Georgia, smashing things, to the sea. Hood may turn into Tennessee and Kentucky, but I believe he will be forced to follow me. Instead of my being on the defensive, I would be on the offensive ; instead of guessing at what he means to do, he would have to guess at my plans. The difference in war is fall twenty-five per cent. I can make Savannah, Charleston, or the mouth of the Chattahoochee. 44 Answer quick, as I know we will not have the telegraph long. 44 W. T. SHERMAN, Major-General. 44 Lieutenant- General GRANT." LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 691 "Cm- POINT, VA., October 11, 186411:30 p. M, "Your dispatch of to-day received. If you are satisfied the trip to the sea-coast can be made, holding the line of the Tennessee River firmly, you may make it, destroying all the railroad south of Dalton or Chattanooga, as you think best. "U. S. GRAST, Lieutenant-General. " Major-General W. T. SHEBMAN." It was the original design to hold Atlanta, and by getting through to the coast, with a garrison left on the Southern railroads leading east and west through Georgia, to effectually sever the east from the west, in other words, cut the would-be Confederacy in two again, as it had been cut once by our gaining possession of the Mississippi River. General Sherman s plan vir tually effected this object. SHERMAN BEGINS HIS GREAT MARCH. General Sherman commenced at once his preparations for his proposed movement, keeping his army in position in the mean time to watch Hood. Becoming satisfied that Hood had moved westward from Gadsden, across Sand Mountain, General Sherman sent the Fourth Corps, Major-General Stanley commanding, and the Twenty-third Corps, Major-General Scho- field commanding, back to Chattanooga to report to Major-General Thomas, at Nashville, whom he had placed in command of all the troops of his military division, save the four army corps and cavalry division he designed to move with through Georgia, With the troops thus left at his disposal, there was little doubt that General Thomas could hold the line of the Ten nessee, or, in the event Hood should force it, would be able to concentrate and beat him in battle. It was therefore readily consented to that Sher man should start for the sea-coast. Having concentrated his troops at Atlanta by the 14th of November, he commenced his march, threatening both Augusta and Macon. His coming- out point could not be definitely fixed. Having to gather his subsistence as he marched through the country, it was not impossible that a force in ferior to his own might compel him to head for such point as he could reach, instead of such as he might prefer. The blindness of the enemy, however, in ignoring his movement, and sending Hood s army, the only considerable force he had west of Richmond, and east of the Mississippi River, northward on an offensive campaign, left the whole country open,, and Sherman s route to his own choice. How that campaign was conducted, how little opposition was met with, the condition of the country through which the armies passed, the capture of Fort McAllister, on the Savannah River, and the occupation of Savannah on the 21st of December, are all clearly set forth in General Sherman ? ad mirable report. CUTTING REBEL RAILROADS IN THE SOUTH. Soon after General Sherman commenced his march from Atlanta, two expeditions, one from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and one from Vicksbnrg, 692 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Mississippi, were started by General Canby to cut the enemy s line of commu nication with Mobile and detain troops in that field. General Foster, com manding Department of the South, also sent an expedition, via Broad River, to destroy the railroad between Charleston and Savannah. The expedition from Vicksburg, under command of Brevet Brigadier-General E. D. Osband (Colonel Third United States Colored Cavalry), captured on the 27th of November and destroyed the Mississippi Central Railroad bridge and trestle-work over Big Black River, near Canton, thirty miles of the road and two locomotives, besides large amounts of stores. The expedition from Baton Rouge was without favorable results. The expedition from the De partment of the South, under the immediate command of Brigadier-General John P. Ilatch, consisting of about five thousand men of all arms, including a brigade from the navy, proceeded up Broad River and debarked at Boyd a Neck on the 29th of November, from where it moved i strike the railroad at Grahamsville. At Honey Hill, about three miles from Grahamsville, the enemy was found and attacked in a strongly-fortified position, which resulted, after severe fighting, in our repulse, with a loss of seven hundred and forty-six in killed, wounded, and missing. During the night General Hatch withdrew. On the 6th of December, General Foster obtained a position covering the Charleston and Savannah Railroad, between Coosaw- hatchie and Tullifinney rivers. THE MOVEMENTS OF IIOOD ? S ARMY. Hood, instead of following Sherman, continued his move northward, which seemed to me to be leading to his certain doom. At all events, had I had the power to command both armies, I should not have changed the orders under which he seemed to be acting. On the 24th of October, the advance of Hood s army attacked the garrison of Decatur, Alabama, but, failing to carry the place, withdrew toward Courtland, and succeeded, in the face of our cavalry, in effecting a lodgment on the north side of the Tennessee River, near Florence. On the 28th, Forrest reached the Tennessee, at Fort Hieman, and captured a gunboat and three transports. On the 2d of November, he planted batteries above and below Johnsonville, on the opposite side of the river, isolating three gunboats and eight transports. On the 4th, the enemy opened his batteries upon the place, and was replied to from the gunboats and the garrison. The gunboats, becoming disabled, were set on fire, as also were the transports, to prevent their falling into the hands of the enemy. About a million and a half dollars worth of stores and property on the levee and in storehouses was consumed by fire. On the 5th, the enemy disappeared, and crossed to the north side of the Tennessee River, above Johnsonville, moving toward Clifton, and subse quently joined Hood. On the night of the 5th, General Schofield, with the advance of the Twenty-third Corps, reached Johnsonville, but, finding the enemy gone, was ordered to Pulaski, and put in command of all the troops there, with instructions to watch the movements of Hood, and retard his advance, but not to "isk a general engagement until the arrival of General LIEUTEM ANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 693 A. J. Smith s command from Missouri, and until General Wilson, could get his cavalry remounted. On the 19th, General Hood continued his advance ; General Thomas, retarding him as mucli as possible, fell back toward Nashville, for the pur pose of concentrating his command, and gaining time for the arrival of re-enforcements. The enemy, coming up with our main force, commanded by General Schofield, at Franklin, on the 30th, assaulted our works repeat edly during the afternoon, until late at night, but were ih every instance repulsed. His loss in this battle was one thousand seven hundred and fifty killed, seven hundred and two prisoners, and three thousand eight hundred wounded. Among his losses were six general officers killed, six wounded, and one captured. Our entire loss was two thousand three hundred. This was the first serious opposition the enemy met with, and I am satisfied was the fatal blow to all his expectations. During the night, General Schofield fell back toward Nashville. This left the field to the enemy not lost by the battle, but voluntarily abandoned so that General Thomas s whole force might be brought together. The enemy followed up, and commenced the establishment of his line in front of Nashville on the 2d of December. As soon as it was ascertained that Hood was crossing the Tennessee River, and that Price was going out of Missouri, General Rosecrans was ordered to send to General Thomas the troops of General A. J. Smith * command and such other troops as he could spare. The advance of this re-enforcement reached Nashville on the 30th of November. On the morning of the 15th of December, General Thomas attacked Hood in position, and, in a battle lasting two days, defeated and drove him from the field in the utmost confusion, leaving in our hands most of his artillery and many thousand prisoners, including four general officers. GENERAL GRANT S ANXIETY ABOUT THOMAS. Before the battle of Nashville, I grew very impatient over, as it ap peared to me, the unnecessary delay. This impatience was increased upon learning that the enemy had sent a force of cavalry across the Cum berland into Kentucky. I feared Hood would cross his whole army and give us great trouble there. After urging upon General Thomas the ne cessity of immediately assuming the offensive, I started West to super intend matters there in person. Reaching Washington City, I received General Thomas s dispatch announcing his attack upon the enemy, and the results as far as the battle had progressed. I was delighted. All fears and apprehensions were dispelled. I am not yet satisfied but that General Thomas, immediately upon the appearance of Hood before Nashville, and before lie had time to fortify, should have moved out with his whole force and given him battle, instead of waiting to remount his cavalry, which de layed him until the inclemency of the weather made it impracticable to attack earlier than he did. But his final defeat of Hood was so complete, that it will be accepted as a vindication of that distinguished officer s judgment. After Hood s defeat at Nashville, he retreated, closely pursued by cavalry 694 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. and infantry, to the Tennessee River, being forced to abandon many pieces of artillery and most of his transportation. On the 28th of December, our advance forces ascertained that he had made good his escape to the south side of the river. About this time, the rains having set in heavily in Tennessee and North Alabama, making it difficult to move army transportation and artillery, General Thomas stopped the pursuit, by his main force, at the Tennessee River. & small force of cavalry, under Colonel W. J. Palmer, Fifteenth Pennsylvania Volunteers, continued to follow Hood for some distance, capturing considerable transportation and the enemy s pontoon bridge. The details of these operations will be found clearly set forth in General Thomas s report. GRIERSON ON ANOTHER RAID. A cavalry expedition, under Brevet Major-General Grierson, started from Memphis on the 21st of December. On the 25th, he surprised and captured Forrest s dismounted camp at Verona, Mississippi, on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, destroyed the railroad, sixteen cars loaded with wagons and pontoons for Hood s army, four thousand new English carbines, and large amounts of public stores. On the morning of the 28th, he at tacked and captured a force of the enemy at Egypt, and destroyed a train of fourteen cars ; thence turning to the southwest, he struck the Missis sippi Central Railroad at Winona, destroyed the factories and large amounts of stores at Bankston, and the machine-shops and public property at Grenada, arriving at Vicksburg January 5th. OPERATIONS IN EAST TENNESSEE. During these operations in Middle Tennessee, the enemy, with a force under General Breckinridge, entered East Tennessee. On the 13th of November, he attacked General Gillem, near Morristown, capturing his artillery and several hundred prisoners. Gillem. with what was left of his command, retreated to Knoxville. Following up his success, Breckin ridge moved to near Knoxville, but withdrew on the 18th. followed by General Ammen. Under the directions of General Thomas, General Stone- man concentrated the commands of Generals Burbridgo and Gillem near Bean s Station, to operate against Breckinridge, and destroy or drive him into Virginia ; destroy the salt-works at Saltville and the railroad into Virginia as far as he could go without endangering his command. On the 12th of De cember, he commenced his movement, capturing and dispersing the enemy s forces wherever he met them. On the 16th, he struck the enemy,, under Vaughn, at Marion, completely routing and pursuing him to Wytheville, capturing all his artillery, trains, and one hundred and ninety-eight prison ers, and destroyed Wytheville, with its stores and supplies, and the exten sive lead works near there. Returning to Marion, he met a force under Breckinridge, consisting, among other troops, of the garrison of Saltville, that had started in pursuit. He at once made arrangements to attack it the next morning, but morning found Breckinridge gone. He then moved di- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 695 rectly to Saltville, and destroyed the extensive salt-works at that place, a large amount of stores, and captured eight pieces of artillery. Having thus successfully executed his instructions, he returned General Burbridge to Lexington and General Gillem to Knoxville. THE FORT FISHER FAILURE GENERAL BUTLER S STRANGE CONDUCT. Wilmington, North Carolina, was the most important sea-coast port left to the enemy through which to get supplies from abroad, and send cotton and other products out by blockade-runners, besides being a place of great strategic value. The navy had been making strenuous exertions to seal tho harbor of Wilmington, but with only partial effect. The nature of the out let of Cape Fear River was such that it required watching for so great a distance, that without possession of the land north of New Inlet, or Fort Fisher, it was impossible for the navy to entirely close the harbor against the entrance of blockade-runners. To secure the possession of this land required the co-operation of a land force, which I agreed to furnish. Immediately commenced the assemblage in Hampton Roads, under Admiral D. D. Porter, of the most formidable armament ever collected for concentration upon one given point. This necessarily attracted the attention of the enemy, as well as that of the loyal North ; and through the imprudence of the public press, and very likely of officers of both branches of service, the exact object of the expedition became a subject of common discussion in the newspapers both North and South. The enemy, thus warned, prepared to meet it. This caused a postponement of the expedition until the latter part of November, when, being again called upon by Honorable G. V. Fox, Assistant Secretary of tho Navy, I agreed to furnish the men required at once, and went myself, in com pany with Major-General Butler, to Hampton Roads, where we had a con ference with Admiral Porter as to the force required and the time of start ing. A force of six thousand five hundred men was regarded as sufficient. The time of starting was not definitely arranged, but it was thought all would be ready by the 6th of December, if not before. Learning on the 30th of November that Bragg had gone to Georgia, taking with him most of the forces about Wilmington, I deemed it of the utmost importance that the expedition should reach its destination before the return of Bragg, and directed General Butler to make all arrangements for the departure of Major General Weitzel, who had been designated to command the land forces, so that the navy might not be detained one moment. Onihe 16th of December, the following instructions were given : " CITT POINT, VA., Dec. 6, 1864. " GENERAL : The first object of the expedition under General Weitzel is to close to the enemy the port of Wilmington. If successful in this, the second will be to capture Wilmington itself. There are reasonable grounds to hope for success, if advantage can be taken of the absence of the greater part of the enemy s forces now looking after Sherman in Georgia. The 696 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. directions you have given for the numbers and equipment of the expedition are all right, except in the unimportant matter of where they embark and the amount of intrenching tools to be taken. The object of the expedition will be gained by effecting a landing on the main land between Cape Fear River and the Atlantic, north of the north entrance to the river. Should such landing be effected while the enemy still holds Fort Fisher and the batteries guarding the entrance to the river, then the troops should in trench themselves, and, by co-operating with the navy, effect the reduction and capture of those places. These in our hands, the navy could enter the harbor, and the port of Wilmington would be sealed. Should Fort Fisher and the point of land on which it is built fall into the hands of our troops immediately on landing, then it will be worth the attempt to capture Wil mington by a forced march and surprise. If time is consumed in gaining the first object of the expedition, the second will become a matter of after consideration. " The details for execution are intrusted to you and the officer imme diately in command of the troops. " Should the troops under General Weitzel fail to effect a landing at or near Fort Fisher, they will be returned to the armies operating against Richmond without delay. " IT. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-General B. F. BUTLEE." General Butler commanding the army from which the troops were taken for this enterprise, and the territory in which they were to operate, military courtesy required that all orders and instructions should go through him. They were so sent ; but General Weitzel has since officially informed me that he never received the foregoing instructions, nor was he aware of their ex istence until he read General Butler s published official report of the Fort Fisher failure, with my indorsement and papers accompanying it. I had no idea of General Butler s accompanying the expedition until the evening before it got off from Bermuda Hundred, and then did not dream but that General Weitzel had received all the instructions, and would be in command. I rather formed the idea that General Butler was actuated by a desire to witness the effect of the explosion of the powder-boat. The expedition was detained several days at Hampton Roads, awaiting the loading of the pow der-boat. The importance of getting the Wilmington expedition off without any delay, with or without the powder-boat, had been urged upon General But ler, and he advised to so notify Admiral Porter. The expedition finally got off on the 13th of December, and arrived at the place of rendezvous, off New Inlet, near Fort Fisher, on the evening of the 15th. Admiral Porter arrived on the evening of the 18th, having put in at Beaufort to get ammunition for the monitors. The sea becoming rough, making it difficult to land troops, and the supply of water and coal being about exhausted, the transport fleet put back to Beaufort to re plenish. This, with the state of the weather, delayed the return to the LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 697 place of rendezvous until the 24th. The powder-boat was exploded on the morning of the 24th, before the return of General Butler from Beaufort ; but it would seem, from the notice taken of it in the Southern newspapers, that the enemy were never enlightened as to the object of the explosion, until they were informed by the Northern press. On the 25th, a landing was effected without opposition, aud a recon- uoissance, under Brevet Brigadier-General Curtis, pushed up toward the fort. But before receiving a full report of the result of this reconnaissance, General Butler, in direct violation of the instructions given, ordered the re-embarkation of the troops and the return of the expedition. The re-embarkation was accomplished by the morning of the 27th. On the return of the expedition, officers and men among them Brevet Major-General (then Brevet Brigadier-General) M. R. Curtis, First Lieu tenant G. "W. Ross, Regiment Vermont Volunteers, First Lieutenant George W. Walling, and Second Lieutenant George Simpson, One Hundred and Forty-second New York Volunteers, voluntarily reported to me that when recalled they were nearly into the fort, and, in their opinion, it could have been taken without much loss. THE SUCCESSFUL ATTACK UNDER GENERAL TERRY. Soon after the return of the expedition, I received a dispatch from the Secretary of the Navy and a letter from Admiral Porter, informing me that the fleet was still off Fort jFisher, and expressing the conviction that, under a proper leader, the place could be taken. The natural supposition with me was that, when the troops abandoned the expedition, the navy would do so also. Finding it had not, however, I answered on the 30th of December, advising Admiral Porter to hold on, and that I would send a force and make another attempt to take the place. This time I selected Brevet Major-General (now Major-General) A. II. Terry to command the expedition. The troops composing it consisted of the same that composed the former, with the addition of a small brigade, numbering about fifteen hundred, and a small siege-train. The latter it was never found necessary to land. I communicated direct to the commander of the expedition the following instructions : "CiTY POINT, VIRGINIA, January^, 1SC5. " GENERAL : The expedition intrusted to your command has been fitted out to renew the attempt to capture Fort Fisher, North Carolina, and Wilmington ultimately, if the fort falls. You will, then, proceed with as little delay as possible to the naval fleet lying off Cape Fear River, and report the arrival of yourself and command to Admiral D. D. Porter, com manding North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. " It is exceedingly desirable that the most complete understanding should exist between yourself and the naval commander. I suggest, there fore, that you consult with Admiral Porter freely, and get from him the part to be performed by each branch of the public service, so that there may be unity of action. It would be well to have the whole programme 698 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. laid down in writing. 1 Lave served with Admiral Porter, and know that you can rely on his judgment and his nerve to undertake what he pro poses. I would, therefore, defer to him as much as is consistent with your own responsibilities. The first object to be attained is to get a firm posi tion on the spit of land on which Fort Fisher is built, from which you can operate against that fort. You want to look to the practicability of receiv ing your supplies, and to defending yourself against superior forces sent against you by any of the avenues left open to the enemy. If such a posi tion can be obtained, the siege of Fort Fisher will not be abandoned until its reduction is accomplished or another plan of campaign is ordered from these head-quarters. 4i My own views are that, if you effect a landing, the navy ought to run a portion of their fleet into Cape Fear River, while the balance of it operates on the outside. Land forces cannot invest Fort Fisher, or cut it off from supplies or re-enforcements, while the river is in possession of the enemy. 41 A siege-train will be loaded on vessels and sent to Fort Monroe, in readiness to be sent to you if required. All other supplies can be drawn from Beaufort as you need them. "Keep the fleet of vessels with you until your position is assured. When you find they can be spared, order them back, or such of them as you can spare, to Fort Monroe, to report for orders. " In case of failure to effect a landing bring your command back to Beaufort, and report to these head-quarters for further orders. You will not debark at Beaufort until so directed. "General Sheridan has been ordered to send a division of troops to Baltimore, and place them on sea-going vessels. These troops will be brought to Fort Monroe and kept there on the vessels until you are heard from. Should you require them, they will be sent to you. "U. S. GEANT, Lieutenant-General. " Brevet Major-General A. H. JEEBY." Lieutenant-Colonel C. B. Comstock, Aid-de-camp (now Brevet Briga dier-General), who accompanied the former expedition, was assigned in orders as Chief-Engineer to this. It will be seen that these instructions did not differ materially from those given for the first expedition, and that in neither instance was there an order to assault Fort Fisher. This was a matter left entirely to the dis cretion of the commanding officer. The expedition sailed from Fort Monroe on the morning of the 6th, arriving at the rendezvous, off Beaufort, on the 8th, where, owing to tho difficulties of the weather, it lay until the morning of the 12th, when it got under way and reached its destination that evening. Under cover of the fleet, the disembarkation of the troops commenced on the morning of the 13th, and by three o clock, p. M., was completed without loss. On the 14th, a reconnoissance was pushed to within five hundred yards of Fort Fisher, aud a small advance work taken possession of and turned into a defensive line against any attempt that might bo made from the fort. This recon- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 699 noissance disclosed the fact that the front of the work had been seriously injured by the navy fire. In the afternoon of the 15th, the fort was assaulted, and, after most desperate fighting, was captured with its entire garrison and armament. Thus was secured, by the combined efforts of tho navy and army, one of the most important successes of the war. Our loss was : killed, one hundred and ten ; wounded, five hundred and thirty-six. On the 16th and 17th, the enemy abandoned and blew up Fort Caswell and the works on Smith s Island, which were immediately occupied by us. This gave us entire control of the mouth of the Cape Fear River. At my request, Major-General B. F. Butler was relieved, and Major- General E. O. 0. Orel assigned to the command of the department of Vir ginia and North Carolina. SCHOFIELD BROUGHT EAST TO HELP SHERMAN. The defense of the line of the Tennessee no longer requiring the force which had beaten and nearly destroyed the only army threatening it, I determined to find other fields of operations for General Thomas s surplus troops fields from which they would co-operate with other movements. General Thomas was therefore directed to collect all troops, not essential to hold his communications at Eastport, in readiness for orders. On the 7th of January, General Thomas was directed, if he was assured of the departure of Hood south from Corinth, to send General Schofield with his corps east with as little delay as possible. This direction was promptly complied with, and the advance of the corps reached Washington on tho 23d of the same month, whence it was sent to Fort Fisher and Newbern. On the 26th, he was directed to send General A. J. Smith s command and a division of cavalry to report to General Canby. By the 7th of February, the whole force was en route for its destination. The State of North Carolina was constituted into a military department, and General Schofield assigned to command, and placed under the orders of Major-General Sherman. The following instructions were given him : " CITY POINT, VA., January 31, 1865. "GENERAL: * * * Your movements are intended as co-operative with Sherman s through the States of South and North Carolina. The first point to bo attained is to secure "Wilmington. Goldsboro will then bo your objective point, moving either from Wilmington or Newbern, or both, as you deem best. Should you not be able to reach Goldsboro , you will advance on tho line or lines of railway connecting that place with the sea- coast as near to it as you can, building the road behind you. The enter prise under you has two objects : the first is to give Sherman material aid, if needed, in his march north ; the second, to open a base of supplies for him on his line of march. As soon, therefore, as you can determine which of the two points, Wilmington or Newbern, you can best use for throwing supplies from to the interior, you will commence the accumulation of twenty days , rations and forage for sixty thousand men and twenty thousand animals. You will get of these as many as you can house and 700 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. protect to such point in the interior as you may be able to occupy. I believe General Palmer has received some instructions direct from General Sherman on the subject of securing supplies for his army. You can learn what steps he has taken, and be governed in your requisitions accordingly. A supply of ordnance stores will also be necessary. " Make all requisitions upon the chiefs of their respective departments in the field with me at City Point. Communicate with me by every opportu nity, and, should you deem it necessary at any time, send a special boat to Fortress Monroe, from which point you can communicate by telegraph. "The supplies referred to in these instructions are exclusive of those required for your own command. " The movements of the enemy may justify, or even make it your imper ative duty to cut loose from your base and strike for the interior to aid Sher man. In such case, you will act on your own judgment, without waiting for instructions. You will report, however, what you purpose doing. The details for carrying out these instructions are necessarily left to you. I would urge, however, if I did not know that you are already fully alive to the importance of it, prompt action. Sherman may be looked for in the neighborhood of Goldsboro any time from the 22d to the 28th of February; this limits your time very materially. " If rolling stock is not secured in the capture of Wilmington, it can be supplied from Washington. A large force of railroad men has already been sent to Beaufort, and other mechanics will go to Fort Fisher in a day or two. On this point I have informed you by telegraph. " U. S. GBAST, Lieutenant- General. " Major-General J. M. SCHOFIELD." Previous to giving these instructions, I had visited Fort Fisher, accom panied by General Schofield, for the purpose of seeing for myself the condi tion of things, and personally conferring with General Terry and Admiral Porter as to what was best to be done. SHERMAN ORDERED TO SEND HELP TO MEADE. Anticipating the arrival of General Sherman at Savannah his army en. tircly foot-loose, Hood being then before Nashville, Tennessee, the Southern railroads destroyed, so that it would take several months to re-establish a through line from east to west, and regarding the capture of Lee s army as the most important operation toward closing the rebellion I sent orders to General Sherman, on the 6th of December, that, after establishing a base on the sea-coast, with necessary garrison, to include all his artillery and cavalry, to come by water to City Point with the balance of his command. THE ORDER COUNTERMANDED. On the 18th of December, having received information of the defeat and utter rout of Hood s army by General Thomas, and that, owing to the great LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 701 difficulty of procuring ocean transportation, it would take over two months to transport Sherman s army, and doubting whether he might not contrib ute as much toward the desired result by operating from where lie was, I wrote to him to that effect, and asked him for his views as to what would be best to do. A few days after this, I received a communication from Gen eral Sherman, of date 16th December, acknowledging receipt of my order of the 6th, and informing me of his preparations to carry it into effect as soon as he could get transportation. Also, that he had expected, upon reducing Savannah, instantly to march to Columbia, South Carolina, thenco to Raleigh, and thence to report to me; but that this would consume about six weeks time after the fall of Savannah, whereas by sea he could probably reach ino by the middle of January. The confidence he manifested in this letter of being able to march up and join me pleased me, and, without waiting for a reply to my letter of the 18th, I directed him, on the 28th of December, to make preparations to start, as he proposed, without delay, to break up the railroads in North and South Carolina, and join the armies operating against Richmond as soon as he could. On the 21st of January, I informed General Sherman that I had ordered the Twenty-third Corps, Major-General Schofield commanding, east; that it numbered about twenty-one thousand men ; that we had at Fort Fisher about eight thousand men ; at Newbern about four thousand ; that if Wil mington was captured, General Schofield would go there ; if not, he would be sent to Newbern ; that, in either event, all the surplus force at both points would move to the interior toward Goldsboro in co-operation with his move ment; that, from either point, railroad communication could be run out; and that all these troops would be subject to his orders as ho came into communication with them. THE CAPTURE OF WILMINGTON. In obedience to his instructions, General Schofield proceeded to reduce Wilmington, North Carolina, in co-operation with the navy, under Admiral Porter, moving his forces up both sides of the Cape Fear River. Fort Anderson, the enemy s main defense on the west bank of the river, was occupied on the morning of the 19th, the enemy having evacuated it after our appearance before it. After fighting on the 20th and 21st, our troops entered Wilmington on the morning of the 22d, the enemy having retreated toward Goldsboro during the night. Preparations were at once made for a movement on Goldsboro in two columns one from Wilmington and the other from Newbern and to repair the railroad leading there from each place, as well as to supply General Sherman by Cape Fear River, toward Fayetteville, if it became necessary. The column from Newbern was attacked on the 8th of March at Wise s Forks, and driven back with the loss of several hun dred prisoners. On the llth, the enemy renewed his attack upon our intrenched position, but was repulsed with severe loss, and fell back dur ing the night. On the 14-th, the JSTeuse River was crossed and Kinston occupied, and on the 21st Goldsboro was entered. The column from Wil- 702 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. inington reached Cox s Bridge, on the Neuse River, ten miles above Golds- boro , on the 22d. SHERMAN MARCHING NORTH. By the 1st of February, General Sherman s whole army was in motion from Savannah. He captured Columbia, South Carolina, on the 17th; thence moved on Goldshoro , North Carolina, via Fayetteville, reaching the latter place on the 12th of March, opening up communication with General Schofield by way of Cape Fear River. On the 15th, he resumed his march on Goldsboro . He met a force of the enemy at Averysboro , and after a severe fight defeated and compelled it to retreat. Our loss in the engagement was about six hundred. The enemy s loss was much greater. On the 18th, the combined forces of the enemy, under Joe John ston, attacked his advance at Bentonville, capturing three guns and driving it back upon the main body. General Slocura, who was in the advance, ascertaining that the whole of Johnston s army was in the front, arranged his troops on the defensive, intrenched himself, and awaited re-enforce ments, which were pushed forward. On the night of the 21st, the enemy retreated to Smith field, leaving his dead and wounded in our hands. From there Sherman continued to Goldsboro , which place had been occupied by General Schofield on the 21st (crossing the Neuse River ten miles above there, at Cox s Bridge, where General Terry had got possession and thrown a pontoon bridge, on the 22d), thus forming a junction with the columns from Newbern and Wilmington. Among the important fruits of the campaign was the fall of Charleston, South Carolina. It was evacuated by the enemy on the night of the 17th of February, and occupied by our forces on the 18th. THE EFFORT TO RELEASE OUR PRISONERS AT SALISBURY. On the morning of the 31st of January, General Thomas was directed to send a cavalry expedition under General Stonernan from East Tennessee, to penetrate South Carolina well down toward Columbia, to destroy the rail roads and military resources of the country, and return, if he was able, to East Tennessee by way of Salisbury, North Carolina, releasing our prison ers there, if possible. Of the feasibility of this latter, however, General Stoneman was to judge. Sherman s movements, I had no doubt, would attract the attention of all the force the enemy could collect, and facilitate the execution of this. General Stoneman was so late in making his start on this expedition (and Sherman having passed out of the State of South Carolina), on the 27th of February, I directed General Thomas to change his course, and ordered him to repeat his raid of last fall, destroying the railroad toward Lynchburg as far as he could. This would keep him between our garrison in East Tennessee and the enemy. I regarded it not impossible that, in the event of the enemy being driven from Richmond, he might fall back to Lynchburg, and attempt a raid north through East Tennea- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 703 see. On the 14th of February, the following communication was sent to General Thomas : "CiTT Pomr, VA., February 14, 1855. "General Canby is preparing a movement from Mobile Bay against Mobile and the interior of Alabama. His force will consist of about twenty thousand men, besides A. J. Smith s command. The cavalry you have sent to Canby will be debarked at Vicksburg. It, with the available cavalry already in that section, will move from there eastward, in co-opera tion. Hood s army has been terribly reduced by the severe punishment you gave it in Tennessee, by desertion consequent upon their defeat, and now by the withdrawal of many of them to oppose Sherman. (I take it, a large portion of the infantry has been so withdrawn. It is so* asserted in the Richmond papers, and a member of the rebel Congress said a few days since, in a speech, that one-half of it had been brought to South Caro lina to oppose Sherman.) This being true, or even if it is not true, Can- by s movement will attract all the attention of the enemy, and leave tho advance from your stand-point easy. I think it advisable, therefore, that you prepare as much of a cavalry force as you can spare, and hold, it in readiness to go south. The object would be threefold : first, to attract as much of the enemy s force as possible to insure success to Canby ; second, to destroy the enemy s line of communications and military resources; third, to destroy or capture their forces brought into the field. Tuscaloosa and Selma would probably be the points to direct the expedition against. This, however, would not be so important as the mere fact of penetrating deep into Alabama. Discretion should be left to the officer commanding the expedition to go where, according to the information he may receive, he will best secure tho objects named above. "Now that your force has been so much depleted, I do not know what number of men you can put into the field. If not more than five thousand men, however, all cavalry, I think it will be sufficient. It is not desirable that you should start this expedition until the one leaving Vicksburg has been three or four days out, or even a week. I do not know when it will start, but will inform you by telegraph as soon as I learn. If you should hear through other sources before hearing from me, you can act on the infor mation received. " To insure success, your cavalry should go with as little wagon train as possible, relying upon the country for supplies. I would also reduce the number of guns to a battery, or the number of batteries, and put the extra teams to the wagons taken. No guns or caissons should be taken with less than eight horses.. "Please inform me by telegraph, on receipt of this, what force you think yon will be able to send under these directions. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. " Major-General G. H. THOMAS." On the 15th, he was directed to start the expedition as soon after the 20th as lie could get it off. 704 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. SHERIDAN AGAIN ON THE RAILROADS. I deemed it of the utmost importance, before a general movement of the armies operating against Richmond, that all communication with the city, north of James River, should be cut off. The enemy having withdrawn the bulk of his force from the Shenandoah Valley and sent it south, or replaced troops sent from Richmond, and desiring to re-enforce Sherman, if practi cable, whose cavalry was greatly inferior in numbers to that of the enemy, I determined to make a move from the Shenandoah, which, if successful, would accomplish the first at least, and possibly the latter of these objects. I therefore telegraphed General Sheridan as follows : " CITY POINT, VA., February 20, 1SG5 1 P. M. "GENERAL : As soon as it is possible to travel, I think you will have no difficulty about reaching Lynchburg with a cavalry force alone. From there you could destroy the railroad and canal in every direction, so as to be of no further use to the rebellion. Sufficient cavalry should be left be hind to look after Mosby s gang. From Lynchburg, if information you might get there would justify it, you could strike south, heading the streams in Virginia to the westward of Danville, and push on and join General Sherman. This additional raid, with one now about starting from East Tennessee under Stoneman, numbering four or five thousand cavalry, one from Vicksburg, numbering seven or eight thousand cavalry, one from East- port, Mississippi, ten thousand cavalry, Oanby from Mobile Bay with about thirty-eight thousand mixed troops, these three latter pushing for Tuscaloo- sa, Selma, and Montgomery, and Sherman with a large army eating out the vitals of South Carolina, is all that will be wanted to leave nothing for the rebellion to stand upon. I would advise you to overcome great obstacles to accomplish this. Charleston was evacuated on Tuesday last. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-General P. II. SHERIDAN." On the 25th, I received a dispatch from General Sheridan, inquiring where Sherman was aiming for, and if I could give him definite information as to the points he might be expected to move on this side of Charlotte, North Carolina. In answer, the following telegram was sent him : " GITY POINT, VA., February 25, 1SC5. "GENERAL: Sherman s movements will depend on the amount of op position he meets with from the enemy. If strongly opposed, he may pos sibly have to fall back to Georgetown, South Carolina, and fit out for a new start. I think, however, all danger for the necessity of going to that point has passed. I believe he has passed Charlotte. He may take Fayetteville on his way to Goldsboro . If you reach Lynchburg, you will have to be guided in your after movements by the information you obtain. Before, you could possibly reach Sherman, I think you would find him moving from Goldsboro toward Raleigh, or engaging the enemy strongly posted at one LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 7Q5 or the other of these places, with railroad communications opened from his army to Wilmington or Ncwbern. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-General P. II. SHEEIDAN." EXTENT OF SHERIDAN S WORK. Gen. Sheridan moved from Winchester on the 27th of February, with two divisions of cavalry, numbering about five thousand each. On the 1st of March he secured the bridge, which the enemy attempted to destroy, across the middle fork of the Shenandoah, at Mount Crawford, and entered Staun- ton on the 2d, the enemy having retreated to Waynesboro . Thence he pushed on to Waynesboro , where he found the enemy in force in an in trenched position, under General Early. Without stopping to make a re- connoissance, an immediate attack was made, the position was carried, and one thousand six hundred prisoners, eleven pieces of artillery, with horses and caissons complete, two hundred wagons and teams loaded with subsist ence, and seventeen battle flags were captured. The prisoners, under an escort of one thousand five hundred men, were sent back to Winchester. Thence he marched on Charlottesville, destroying effectually the railroad and bridges as he went, which place he reached on the 3d. Here he remained two days, destroying the railroad toward Richmond and Lynchburg, includ ing the large iron bridges over the north and south forks of the Rivanna River, -and awaiting the arrival of his trains. This necessary delay caused him to abandon the idea of capturing Lynchburg. On the morning of the Cth, dividing his force into two columns, he sent one to Scottsville, whence it inarched up the James River Canal to New-Market, destroying every lock, and in many places the bank of the canal. From here a force was pushed out from this column to Duiguidsville, to obtain possession of the bridge across the James River at that place, but failed. The enemy burned it on our approach. The enemy also burned the bridge across the river at Hard- \vicksville. The other column moved down the railroad toward Lynch burg, destroying it as far as Amherst Court-House, sixteen miles from Lynchburg; thence across the country, uniting with the column at New- Market. The river being very high, his pontoons would not reach across it ; and the enemy having destroyed the bridges by which he had hoped to cross the river and get on the South Side Railroad about Farmville, and destroy it to Appomattox Court-House, the only thing left for him was to return to Winchester or strike a base at the White House. Fortunately, he chose the latter. From New-Market he took up his line of march, fol lowing the canal toward Richmond, destroying every lock upon it and cut ting the banks wherever practicable, to a point eight miles east of Gooch- land, concentrating the whole force at Columbia on the 10th. Here h& rested one day, and sent through by scouts information of his whereabout* and purposes, and a request for supplies to meet him at White House-, which reached me on the night of the 12th. An infantry force was imme diately sent to get possession of White House, and supplies were forwarded. Moving from Columbia in a direction to threaten Richmond, to near Ask- 45 70G LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. land Station, lie crossed the Annas, and, after having destroyed all the bridges and many miles of the railroad, proceeded down the north bank of the Pamunkey to White House, which place he reached on the 19th. Previous to this, the following communication was sent to General Thomas: " CITT POINT, VA., March 7, 1SC5~0:30 A. M. u GENERAL : I think it will be advisable now for you to repair the railroad in East Tennessee, and throw a good force up to Bull s Gap and fortify there. Supplies at Knoxville could always be got forward as required. With Bull s Gap fortified, you can occupy as outposts about all of East Tennessee, and be prepared, if it should be required of you in the Spring, to make a campaign toward Lynchburg, or into North Carolina. I do not think Stoneman should break the road untiljie gets into Virginia, unless it should be to cut off rolling stock that may be caught west of that. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-GeneraL "Major-General G. II. THOMAS." THE SITUATION IN MARCH, 1865. Thus it will be seen that in March, 1805, General Canby was moving an adequate force against Mobile and the army defending it under General Dick Taylor; Thomas was pushing out two large and well-appointed cavalry expeditions one from Middle Tennessee, under Brevet Major-Gen- eral Wilson, against the enemy s vital points in Alabama, the other from East Tennessee, under Major-General Stoneman, toward Lynchburg and assembling the remainder of his available forces, preparatory to offensive operations from East Tennessee ; General Sheridan s cavalry was at the White House; the Armies of the Potomac and James were confronting the enemy under Lee in his defenses of Richmond and Petersburg; General Sherman, with his armies, re-enforced by that of General Schofield, was at Gold,sboro ; General Pope was making preparations for a Spring campaign against the enemy under Kirby Smith and General Price, west of the Mississippi ; and General Hancock was concentrating a force in the vicinity of Winchester, Virginia, to guard against invasion or to operate offensively, as might prove necessary. After the long march by General Sheridan s cavalry over Winter roads, it was necessary to rest and refit at White House. At this time, the greatest BO a re e of uneasiness to me was, the fear that the enemy would leave his strong lines about Petersburg and Richmond for the purpose of uniting with Johnston, before he Avas driven from them by battle, or I was pre pared to make an effectual pursuit. On the 24th of March, General Sheri dan moved from White House, crossed the James River at Jones s Landing, and formed a junction with the Army of the Potomac in front of Peters burg on the 27th. During this move, General Ord sent forces over to cover the crossings of the Chickahominy. . INSTRUCTIONS FOR A GENERAL MOVEMENT. On the 24th of March, the following instructions for a general movement of the armies operating against Richmond were issued: LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 7Q7 "CITY POINT, VA., March 24, 1865. "GENERAL: On the 29th instant, the armies operating against Rich mond will be moved by our left for the double purpose of turning the enemy out of his present position around Petersburg, and to insure the success of the cavalry under General Sheridan, which will start at the same time, in its efforts to reach and destroy the South Side and Danville Rail roads. Two corps of the An - my of the Potomac will be moved at first in two columns, taking the two roads crossing Hatcher s Run nearest where the present line held by us strikes that stream, botli moving toward Din- widdie Court-IIouse. "The cavalry, under General Sheridan, joined by the division now under General Davies, will move at the same time by the Weldon road and the Jerusalem plank-road, turning west from the latter before crossing the Nottoway, and west with the whole column before reaching Stony Creek. General Sheridan will then move independently, under other instructions which will be given him. All dismounted cavalry belonging to the Army of the Potomac, and the dismounted cavalry from the Middle Military Division not required for guarding property belonging to their arm of service, will report to Brigadier-General Benham, to be added to the defenses of City Point. Major-General Parke will be left in command of all the army left for holding the lines about Petersburg and City Point, subject, of course, to orders from the commander of the Army of the Potomac. The Ninth Army Corps will be left intact, to hold the present line of works so long as the whole line no\v occupied by us is held. If, however, the troops to the left of the Ninth Corps are withdrawn, then the left of the corps may be thrown back so as to occupy the position held by the army prior to the capture of the Weldon road. All troops to the left of the Ninth Corps will be held in readiness to move at the shortest notice by such route as may be designated when the order is given. u General Ord will detach three divisions, two white and one colored, or so much of them as he can, and hold his present lines, and march for the present left of the Army of the Potomac. In the absence of further orders, or until further orders are given, the white divisions will follow the left column of the Army of the Potomac, and the colored division the right column. During the movement, Mnjor-General Weitzel will be left in com mand of all the forces remaining behind from the Army of the James. "The movement of troops from the Army of the James will commence on the night of the 27th instant. General Ord will leave behind the mini mum number of cavalry necessary for picket duty, in the absence of the main army. A cavalry expedition from General Ord s command will also be started from Suffolk, to leave thereon Saturday, the 1st of April, under Colonel Sumncr, for the purpose of cutting the railroad about Ilicksford. This, if accomplished, will have to be a surprise, and therefore from three to five hundred men will be sufficient. They should, however, be supported by all the infantry that can be spared from Norfolk and Portsmouth, as far out as to where the cavalry crosses the Blackwater. The crossing should probably be at Uniten. Should Colonel Sumner succeed in reaching the 708 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Weldon road, he will be instructed to do all the damage possible to the triangle of roads between llicksford, Weldon, and Gaston. The railroad bridge at Weldon being fitted up for the passage of carriages, it might be practicable to destroy any accumulation of supplies the enemy may have collected south of the Roanoke. All the troops will move with four days rations in haversacks, and eight days in wagons. To avoid as much haul ing as possible, and to give the Army of the James the same number of days 1 supply with the Army of the Potomac, General Ord will direct his commissary and quartermaster to have sufficient supplies delivered at tho terminus of the road to fill up in passing. Sixty rounds of ammunition per man will be taken in wagons, and as much grain as the transportation on hand will carry, after taking the specified amount of other supplies. The densely wooded country in which the army has to operate making the use of much artillery impracticable, the amount taken with the army will be reduced to six or eight guns to each division, at the option of the army commander. " All necessary preparations for carrying these directions into operation may be commenced at once. The reserves, of the Ninth Corps should bo massed as much as possible. Whilst I would not now order an uncon ditional attack on the enemy s line by them, they should be ready, and should make the attack if the enemy weakens his line in their front, with out waiting for orders. In case they carry the line, then the whole of the Ninth Corps could follow up, so as to join or co-operate with the balance of the army. To prepare for this, the Ninth Corps will have rations issued to them, same as the balance of the army. General Weitzel will keep vigilant watch upon his front, and if found at all practicable to break through at any point, he will do so. A success north of the James should be followed up with great promptness. An attack will not be feasible un less it is found that the enemy has detached largely. In that case it may bo regarded as evident that the enemy is relying upon his local reserves, principally, for the defense of Richmond. Preparations may be made for abandoning all the lino north of the James, except inclosed works only to be abandoned, however, after a break is made in the lines of the enemy. " By these instructions, a large part of the armies operating against Rich mond is left behind. The enemy, knowing this, may, as an only chance, strip his lines to the merest skeleton, in the hope of advantage not being taken of it, while he hurls every thing against the moving column, and returns. It cannot be impressed too strongly upon commanders of troops left in the trenches, not to allow this to occur without taking advantage of it. The very fact of the enemy coming out to attack, if he does so, might bo regarded as almost conclusive evidence of such a weakening of his lines. I would have it particularly enjoined upon corps commanders that, iii case of an attack from the enemy, those not attacked are not to wait for orders from the commanding officer of the army to which they belong, but that they will move promptly, and notify the commander of their action. I would also enjoin the same action on the part of division commanders, LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 709 when other parts of their corps are engaged. In like manner, I would urge the importance of following up a repulse of the enemy. "U. S. GKANT, Lieutenant-General. " Major-Generals MEADE, OED, and SHERIDAN." THE BATTLE OF THE 25TII OF MARCH. Early on the morning of the 25th, the enemy assaulted our lines in front of the Ninth Corps (which held from the Appomattox River toward our left) and carried Fort Steadman, and a part of the line to the right and left of it, established themselves, and turned the guns of the fort against us; but our troops on either flank held their ground until the reserves were brought up, when the enemy was driven back with a heavy loss in killed and wounded, and one thousand nine hundred prisoners. Our loss was sixty -eight killed, three hundred and thirty-seven wounded, and five hun dred and six missing. General Meade at once ordered the other corps to advance and feel the enemy in their respective fronts. Pushing forward, they captured and held the enemy s strongly intrenched picket line in front of the Second and Sixth Corps, and eight hundred and thirty-four prisoners. The enemy made desperate attempts to retake this line, but without suc cess. Our loss in front of these was fifty-two killed, eight hundred and sixty-four wounded, arid two hundred and seven missing. The enemy s loss in killed and wounded was far greater. SHERMAN READY TO COME TO MEADE S ASSISTANCE. General Sherman, having got his troops all quietly in camp about Golds- boro , and his preparations for furnishing supplies to them perfected, visited me at City Point, on the 27th of March, and stated that he would be ready to move, as he had previously written me, by the 10th of April, fully equipped and rationed for twenty days, if it should become necessary to bring his command to bear against Lee s army, in co-operation with OUT forces in front of Richmond and Petersburg. General Sherman proposed, in this movement, to threaten Raleigh, and then, by turning suddenly to the right, reach the Roanoke at Gaston or thereabouts, whence ho could move on to the Richmond and Danville Railroad, striking it in the vicinity of Burkesvillc, or join tho armies operating against Richmond, as might be deemed best. This plan he was directed to carry into execution,, if he re ceived no further directions in the mean time. I explained to him the movement I had ordered to commence on the 29th of March. That if it should not prove as entirely successful as I hoped, I would cut tho cavalry loose to destroy the Danville and South Side Railroads, and thus deprive the enemy of further supplies, and, also, prevent the rapid concentration of Lee s and Johnston s armies. GRANT FEARS THAT LEE WILL RUN AWAY, AND ORDERS THE GRAND MOVEMENT AT ONCE. I had spent days of anxiety lest each morning should bring the report that the enemy had retreated the night before. I was firmly convinced that 710 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. Sherman s crossing the Roanoke would be the signal for Lee to leave. With Johnston and him combined, a long, tedious, and expensive campaign, con suming most of the Summer, might become necessary. By moving out, I \rould put the army in better condition for pursuit, and would, at least, by the destruction of the Danville road, retard the concentration of the two armies of Lee and Johnston, and cause the enemy to abandon much mate rial that ho might otherwise save. I therefore determined not to delay the movement ordered. On the night of the 27th, Major-General Ord, with two divisions of the Twenty-fourth Corps, Major-General Gibbon commanding, and one division of the Twenty-fifth Corps, Brigadier-General Birney commanding, and McKenzie s cavalry, took up his line of inarch in pursuance of the foregoing instructions, and reached the position assigned him, near Hatcher s Run, on the morning of the 29th. On the 28th, the following instructions were given to General Sheridan : "Cmr POINT, VA., March 23, 1SC5. " GENERAL : The Fifth Army Corps will move by the Vaughn road at three A. M., to-morrow morning. The Second moves at about nine A. M., having but about three miles to march to reach the point designated for it to take on the right of the Fifth Corps, after the latter reaching Dinwiddie Court-llouse. Move your cavalry at as early an hour as you can, and without being con fined to any particular road or roads. You may go out by the nearest roads in rear of tho Fifth Corps, pass by its left, and, passing near to or through Dinwiddie, reach the right and rear of the enemy as soon as you can. It is not tho intention to attack the enemy in his intrenched position, but to force him out, if possible. Should he come out and attack us, or get himself where he can be attacked, move in with your entire force in your own way, and with the full reliance that the army will engage or follow, as circum stances will dictate. I shall be on the field, and will probably be able to communicate with you. Should I not do so, arid you find that the enemy keeps within his main intrenched line, you may cut loose and push for the Danville road. If you find it practicable, I would like you to cross the South Side road, between Petersburg and Burkesville, and destroy it to some extent. I would not advise much detention, however, until you reach the Danville road, which I would like you to strike as near to the Appo- mattox as possible. Make your destruction on that road as complete as possible. You can then pass on to the South Side road, west of Burkesville, and destroy that, in like manner. "After having accomplished the destruction of the two railroads, which are now tho only avenues of supply to Lee s army, you may return to this army, selecting your road further south, or you may go on into North Caro lina, and join General Sherman. Should you select the latter course, get the information to me as early as possible, so that I may send orders to meet you at Goldsboro . "U. S. GBANT, Lieutenant-General. " Major-General P. H. SHERIDAN." LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 7H BEGINNING OF THE END. On the morning of the 29th, the movement commenced. At night, the cavalry was at Dinwiddie Court-House, and the left of our infantry lino ex tended to the Quaker road, near its intersection with the Boydtown plank- road. The position of the troops from left to right was as follows : Sheridan, Warren, Humphreys, Ord, Wright, Parke. Every thing looked favorable to the defeat of the enemy, and the capture of Petersburg arid Richmond, if the proper effort was made! I therefore addressed the following communication to General Sheridan, having previ ously informed him verbally not to cut loose for the raid contemplated in his orders until he received notice from me to do so : " GUAVELLV CREEK. March 29, 1S65. " GENERAL : Our line is now unbroken from the Appomattox to Din widdie. We are all ready, however, to give up all, from the Jerusalem plank-road to Hatcher s Run, whenever the forces can be used advantage ously. After getting into line south of Hatcher s, we pushed forward to find the enemy s position. General Griffin was attacked near where the Quaker road intersects the Boydtown road, but repulsed it easily, capturing about one hundred men. Humphreys reached Dabney s Mill, and was pushing on when last heard from. " I now feel like ending the matter, if it is possible to do so, before going back. I do not want you, therefore, to cut loose and go after the enemy s roads at present. In the morning, push around the enemy, if you can, and get on to his right rear. The movements of the enemy s cavalry may, of course, modify your action. We will act all together, ns one army, here, until it is seen what can be done with the enemy. The signal officer at Cobb s Hill reported, at 1 1 : 30 A. M., that a cavalry column had passed that point from Richmond toward Petersburg, taking forty minutes to pass. " TJ. S. GKANT, Lieutenant-General. "Major-General P. H. SHEEIDAN." HEAVY BAIN- STORM AS USUAL PROGRESS OF THE WAK. From the night of the 29th to the morning of the 31st, the rain fell in Buch torrents as to make it impossible to move a wheeled vehicle, except as corduroy roads were laid in front of them. During the 30th, Sheridan advanced from Dinwiddie Court-House toward Five Forks, where he found the enemy in force. General Warren advanced and extended his line across the Boydtown plank-road to near the White Oak road, with a view of getting across the latter; but finding the enemy strong in his front and extending beyond his left, was directed to hold on where he was and fortify. General Humphreys drove the enemy from his front into his main line on the Hatcher, near Burgess s Mills. Generals Ord, Wright and Parke made examinations in their fronts to determine the feasibility of an assault on the enemy s lines. The two latter reported favorably. The enemy con fronting us, as he did at every ,point from Richmond to our extreme left, 712 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. I conceived his lines must be weakly held, and could be penetrated if my estimate of his forces was correct. I determined, therefore, to extend ray line no further, but to re-enforce General Sheridan with a corps of infantry, and thus enable him to cut loose and turn the enemy s right flank, and with the other corps assault the enemy s lines. The result of the offensive effort of the enemy the week before, when he assaulted Fort Steadman, particularly favored this. The enemy s intrenched picket line, captured by us at that time, threw the lines occupied by the belligerents so close together at some points, that it was but a moment s run from one to the other. Preparations were at once made to relieve General Humphreys^ corps, to report to General Sheridan ; but the condition of the roads pre vented immediate movement. On the morning of the 31st, General Warren reported favorably to getting possession of the White Oak road, and was directed to do so. To accomplish this, he moved with one division, instead of his whole corps, which was attacked by the enemy in superior force and driven back on the second division before it had time to form, and it, in turn, forced back upon the third division, when the enemy was checked. A division of the Second Corps was immediately sent to his support, the enemy driven back with heavy loss, and possession of White Oak road gained. Sheridan advanced, and with a portion of his cavalry got posses sion of the Five Forks, but the enemy, after the affair with the Fifth Corps, re-enforced the rebel cavalry, defending that point with infantry, and forced him back toward Dinwiddie Court-House. Here General Sheridan displayed great generalship. Instead of retreating with his whole command on the main army, to tell the story of superior forces encountered, he deployed his cavalry on foot, leaving only mounted men enough to take charge of the horses. This compelled the enemy to deploy over a vast extent of woods and broken country, and made his progress slow. At this juncture he dis patched to me what had taken place, and that he was dropping back slowly m Dinwiddie Court-House. General McKenzie s cavalry and one division of the Fifth Corps were immediately ordered to his assistance. Soon after receiving a report from General Meade that Humphreys could hold our position on the Boydtown road, and that the other two divisions of the Fifth Corps could go to Sheridan, they were so ordered at once. Thus the operations of the day necessitated the sending of Warren because of his accessibility, instead of Humphreys, as was intended, and precipitated intended movements. On the morning of the 1st of April, General Sheridan, re-enforced by General Warren, drove the enemy back on Five Forks, where, late in the evening, he assaulted and carried his strongly fortified position, capturing all his artillery and between five thousand and six thousand prisoners. About the close of this battle, Brevet Major-Gen- eral Charles Griffin relieved Major-General Warren in command of the Fifth Corps. The report of this reached me after nightfall. Some appre hensions filled my mind lest the enemy might desert his lines during tho night, and, by falling upon General Sheridan before assistance could reach him, drive him from his position, and open the way for retreat. To guard against this, General Miles s division of Humphreys corps was sent to re- LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 713 enforce him, and a bombardment was commenced and kept up until four o clock in the morning (April 2d), when an assault was ordered on the enemy s lines. General Wright penetrated the lines with his whole corps, sweeping every thing before him and to his left toward Hatcher s Run, capturing many guns and several thousand prisoners. lie was closely followed by two divisions of General Ord s command, until he met the other division of General Ord s that had succeeded in forcing the enemy s lines near Hatcher s Run. Generals Wright and Ord immediately swung to the right, and closed all the enemy on that side of them in Petersburg, while General Humphreys pushed forward with two divisions and joined General Wright on the left. General Parke succeeded in carrying the enemy s main line, capturing guns and prisoners, but was unable to carry his inner line. General Sheridan, being advised of the condition of affairs, returned General Miles to his proper command. On reaching the enemy s lines immediately surrounding Petersburg, a, portion of General Gibbon s corps, by a most gallant charge, captured two strong, inclosed works the most salient and commanding south of Petersburg thus materially shortening the line of investment necessary for taking the city. The enemy south of Hatcher s Run retreated westward to Sutherland s Station, where they were overtaken by Miles s division. A severe engagement ensued, and lasted until both his right and left flanks were threatened by the approach of General Sheridan, who was moving from Ford s Station toward Petersburg, and a division sent by General Meade from the front of Petersburg, when he broke in the utmost confusion, leaving in our hands his guns and many prisoners. This force retreated by the main road along the Appomattox River. THE FLIGHT OF LEE FROM RICHMOND. During the night of the 2d, the enerny evacuated Petersburg and Rich mond, and retreated toward Danville. On the morning of the 3d, pursuit was commenced. General Sheridan pushed for the Danville road, keeping near the Appomattox, followed by General Meade, with the Second and Sixth Corps, while General Ord moved from Burkesville, along the South Side road ; the Ninth Corps stretched along that road behind him. On the 4th, General^ Sheridan struck the Danville road, near Jettersville, where he learned that Lee was at Amelia Court-House. He immediately in trenched himself, and awaited the arrival of General Meade, who reached there the next day. General Ord reached Burkesville on the evening of the 5th. On the morning of the 5th, I addressed Major-General Sherman the following communication : u WILSON S STATION-, April 5, 1865. "GENERAL: All indications now are that Lee will attempt to reach Danville with the remnant of his force. Sheridan, who was up with him last night, reports all that is left horse, foot, and dragoons at twenty 714 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. thousand, much demoralized. We hope to reduce this number one-half. I shall push on to Burkesville, and, if a stand is made at Danville, will in a very few days go there. If you can possibly do so, push on from where you are, and let us see if we cannot finish the job with Lee s and John ston s armies. Whether it will be better for you to strike for Greensboro 1 or nearer to Danville, you will be better able to judge when you receive this. Rebel armies now are the only strategic points to strike at. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-Gerieral. " Major-General W. T. SHERMAN." On the morning of the Cth, it was found that General Lee was moving west of Jettersville, toward Danville. General Sheridan moved with his cavalry (the Fifth Corps having been returned to General Meade on his reaching Jettersville) to strike his flank, followed by the Sixth Corps, while the Second and Fifth Corps pressed hard after, forcing him to abandon several hundred wagons, and several pieces of artillery. General Ord advanced from Burkesville toward Farmville, sending two regiments of infantry, and a squadron of cavalry, under Brevet Brigadier-General Theodore Read, to reach and destroy the bridges. This advance met the head of Lee s column near Farmville, which it heroically attacked, and detained until General Read was killed, and his small force overpowered. This caused a delay in the enemy s movements, and enabled General Ord to get well up with the remainder of his force, on meeting which the enemy immediately intrenched himself. In the afternoon General Sheridan struck the enemy south of Sailor s Creek, captured sixteen pieces of artillery, and about four hundred wagons, and detained him until the Sixth Corps got up, when a general attack of infantry and cavalry was made, which resulted in the capture of six thousand or seven thousand prisoners, among whom were many general officers. The movements of the Second Corps, and General Ord s command, contributed greatly to the day s success. On the morning of the 7th, the pursuit was renewed, the cavalry, except one division, and the Fifth Corps, moving by Prince Edward s Court-House ; the Sixth Corps, General Ord s command, and one division of cavalry, on Farmville, arid the Second Corps by the High Bridge road. It was soon found that the enemy had crossed to the north side of the Appomattox; but so close was the pursuit that the Second Corps got possession of the common bridge at High Bridge before the enemy could destroy it, and immediately crossed over. The Sixth Corps and a division of cavalry crossed at Farmville to its support. NEGOTIATIONS OPENED FOB LEE 5 S SURRENDER. Feeling now that General Lee s chance of escape was utterly hope less, I addressed him the following communication from Farmville: " April 7, 1805. "GENERAL: The result of the last week must convince you of the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the army of Northern LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 715 Virginia in this struggle. I feel that it is so, and regard it as my duty to shift from myself the responsibility of any further effusion of blood, by asking of you the surrender of that portion of the Confederate States army known as the Army of Northern Virginia. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. " General R. E. LEE." Early on the morning of the 8th, before leaving, I received at Farmville the following: " GENERAL : I have received your note of this date. Though not entertaining the opinion you express on the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia, I reciprocate your desire to avoid useless effusion of blood, and therefore, before con sidering your proposition, ask the terms you will offer on condition of its surrender. "R. E. LEE, General. "Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT." To this I immediately replied: " April 8, 1865. "GENERAL: Your note of last evening, in reply to mine of the same date, asking the condition on which I will accept the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, is just received. In reply, I would say that peace being rny great desire, there is but one condition I would insist upon, namely : that the men and officers surrendered shall be disqualified for tak ing up arms again against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged. I will meet you, or will designate officers to meet any officers you may name for the same purpose, at any point agreeable to you, for the purpose of arranging definitely the terms upon which the sur render of the Army of Northern Virginia will be received. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. " General R. E. LEE." Early on the morning of the 8th, the pursuit was resumed. General Meade followed north of the Appomattox, and General Sheridan, with all the cavalry, pushed straight for Appomattox Station, followed by General Ord .s command and the Fifth Corps. During the day, Gen eral Meade s advance had considerable fighting with the enemy s rear guard, but was unable to bring on a general engagement. Late in the evening, General Sheridan struck the railroad at Appomattox Station, drove the enemy from there, and captured twenty-five pieces of artil lery, a hospital train, and four trains of cars loaded with supplies for Lee s army. During this day I accompanied General Meade s column, and about midnight received the folio wing communication from General Lee : " GENERAL : I received at a late hour your note of to-day. In mine of yesterday, I did not intend to propose the surrender of the Army of North ern. Virginia, but to ask the terms of your proposition. To be frank, I do 716 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. not think the emergency has arisen to call for the surrender of this army ; but, as the restoration of peace should be the sole object of all, I desired to know whether your proposals would lead to that end. I cannot, therefore, meet you with a view to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia, but as far as your proposal may affect the Confederate States forces under my command, and tend to the restoration of peace, I should be pleased to meet you at ten A. M. to-morrow, on the old stage road to Richmond, be tween the picket lines of the two armies. " R. E. LEE, General " Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT." Early on the morning of the 9th, I returned him an answer as follows, and immediately started to join the column south of the Appomattox : " April <X 1865. " GENERAL : Your note of yesterday is received. I have no authority to treat on the subject of peace ; the meeting proposed for ten A. M. to-day could lead to no good. I will state, however, General, that I am equally anxious for peace with yourself, and the whole North entertains the same feeling. The terms upon which peace can be had are well understood. By the South laying down their arms, they will hasten that most desirable event, save thousands of human lives, and hundreds of millions of property not yet destroyed. Seriously hoping that all our difficulties may be settled without the loss of another life, I subscribe myself, &c., "U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. " General R. E. LEE." On the morning of the 9th, General Ord s command and the Fifth Corps reached Appomattox Station just as the enemy was making a desperate effort to break through our cavalry. The infantry was at once thrown in. Soon after a white flag was received, requesting a suspension of hostilities pending negotiations of surrender. Before reaching General Sheridan s head-quarters, I received the follow ing froru General Lee : "Jp^ Z 9,1865. u GENERAL : I received your note of this morning on the picket line, whither I had come to meet you, and ascertain definitely what terms were embraced in your proposal of yesterday with reference to the surrender of this army. I now ask an interview in accordance with the offer contained in your letter of yesterday for that purpose. R. E. LEE, General. " Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT." MEETING OF GRANT AND LEE THE SURKENDR, The interview was held at Appomattox Court-House, the result of which is set forth in the following correspondence : "APPOMATTOX COURT-HOUSE, VA., April 9, 1865. " GENERAL : In accordance with the substance of my letter to you of the 8th instant, I propose to receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia on the following terms, to wit: Rolls of all the officers and men LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 717 to be made in duplicate, one copy to be given to an officer to be designated by me, the other to be retained by such officer or officers as you may desig nate. The officers to give their individual parole not to take up arms against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged ; and each company or regimental commander sign a like parole for the men of their commands. The arms, artillery, and public property to be parked and stacked and turned over to the officers appointed by me to receive them. This will not embrace the side-arms of the officers nor their private horses or baggage. This done, each officer and man will be allowed to re turn to his home, not to be disturbed by United States authority so long as they observe their paroles and the laws in force where they may reside. i; U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant- General. " General R. E. LEE." "HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, April 9, 1865. " GENERAL : I received your letter of this date containing the terms of the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia as proposed by you. As they are substantially the same as those expressed in your letter of the 8th in stant, they are accepted. I will proceed to designate the proper officers to carry the stipulations into effect. " R. E. LEE, General. " Lieutenant-General U. S. GRANT." The command of Major-General Gibbon, the Fifth Army Corps under Griffin, and McKenzie s cavalry, were designated to remain at Apporaattox Gourt-House until the paroling of the surrendered army was completed, and to take charge of the public property. The remainder of the army im mediately returned to the vicinity of Burkesville. General Lee s great influence throughout the whole South caused his example to bo followed, and to-day the result is that the armies lately under his leadership are at their homes, desiring peace and quiet, and their arms are in the hands of our ordnance officers. On the receipt of my letter of the 5th, General Sherman moved directly against Joe Johnston, who retreated rapidly on and through Raleigh, which place General Sherman occupied on the morning of the 13th. The day preceding, news of the surrender of General Lee reached him at SmitMeld. On the 14th, a correspondence was opened between General Johnston, which resulted, on the 18th, in an agreement for a suspension of hostilities, and a memorandum or basis for*peace, subject to the approval of the Pres ident. This agreement was disapproved by the President on the 21st, which disapproval, with your instructions, was communicated to General Sherman by me in person, on the morning of the 24th, at Raleigh, North Carolina, in obedience to your orders. Notice was at once given by him to General Johnston for the termination of the truce that had been entered into. On the 25th, another meeting between them was agreed upon, to 718 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. take place on the 2Gth, which terminated in the surrender and disbandment of General Johnston s array upon substantially the same terms as were given to General Lee. GENERAL STONEMAN S OPERATIONS. The expedition under General Stonernan from East Tennessee got off on the 20th of March, moving by way of Boone, North Carolina, and struck the railroad at Wythcville, Chambersburgh, and Big Lick. The force striking it at Big Lick pushed on to within a few miles of Lynehburg, destroying the important bridges, while with the main force he effectually destroyed it between New River arid Big Lick, and then turned for Greensborough on the North Carolina Railroad ; struck that road and destroyed the bridges between Danville and Greensborough, and between Greensborough and the Yadkiri, together with the depots of supplies along it, and captured four hundred prisoners. At Salisbury lie attacked and defeated a force of the enemy under General Gardner, capturing fourteen pieces of artillery and one thousand three hundred and sixty-four prisoners, and destroyed large amounts of army stores. At this place he destroyed fifteen miles of rail road and the bridges toward Charlotte. Thence he moved to Slatersville. THE CAPTURE OF MOBILE. General Canby, who had been directed in January to make preparations for a movement from Mobile Bay against Mobile and the interior of Alaba ma, commenced his movement on the 20th of March. The Sixteenth Corps, Mnjor-General A. J. Smith commanding, moved from Fort Gaincs by water to Fish River; the Thirteenth Corps, under Major-Gcneral Gordon Granger, moved from Fort Morgan and joined the Sixteenth Corps on Fish River, both moving thence on Spanish Fort, and investing it on the 27th; while Major- Gcneral Steele s command moved from Pcnsacola, cut the railroad leading from Tensas to Montgomery, -effected a junction with them, and partially invested Fort Blakely. After a severe bombardment of Spanish Fort, a part of its line was carried on the 8th of April. During the night the enemy evacuated the fort. Fort Blakely was carried by assault on the 9th, arid many prisoners captured; our loss was considerable. These successes practically opened to us the Alabama River, and enabled us to approach Mobile from the north. On the night of the llth, the city was evacuated, and was taken possession of by our forces on the morning of the 12th. WILSON S WORK IN ALABAMA. The expedition under command of Brevet Major-General Wilson, consist ing of twelve thousand five hundred mounted men, was delayed by rains until March 21, when it moved from Chickasaw, Alabama. On thc 1st of April, General Wilson encountered the enemy in force, under Forrest, near Ebe nczcr Church, drove him in confusion, captured three hundred prisoners and three guns, and destroyed the central bridge over the Cahawba River. On LIEUTENANT-GENERAL GRANT S REPORT. 719 the 2d, ho attacked and captured the fortified city of Selma, defended by For rest with seven thousand men and thirty-two guns, destroyed the arsenal, ar mory, naval foundery, machine shops, vast quantities of stores, and captured three thousand prisoners. On the 4th he captured and destroyed Tuscaloosa. On the 10th, he crossed the Alabama River, and, after sending information of his operations to General Canby, inarched on Montgomery, which place he occupied on the 14th, the enemy having* abandoned it. At this place many stores and five steamboats fell into our hands. Thence a force marched direct on Columbus, and another on West Point, both of which places were assaulted and captured on the IGth. At the former place we got fifteen hundred prisoners and fifty-two field guns, destroyed two gun boats, the navy-yard, founderies, arsenal, many factories, and much other public property. At the latter place we got three hundred prisoners, four guns, and destroyed nineteen locomotives and three hundred cars. On the 20th, lie took possession of Macon, Georgia, with sixty field guns, twelve hun dred militia and five generals surrendered by General IIowcll Cobb. General Wilson, hearing that Jeff. Davis was trying to make his escape, sent forces in pursuit, and succeeded in capturing him on the morning of May 11. DICK TAYLOR SURRENDERS KIRBY SMITH S BAD FAITH. On the 4th day of May, General Dick Taylor surrendered to General Canby all the remaining rebel forces east of the Mississippi. A force suffi cient to insure an easy triumph over the enemy under Kirby Smith, west of the Mississippi, was immediately put in motion for Texas, and Major- General Sheridan designated for its immediate command ; but, on the 20th day of May, and before they reached their destination, General Kirby Smith surrendered his entire command to Major-General Canby. This surrender did not take place, however, until after the capture of the rebel President and Vice-President, and the bad faith was exhibited of first dis banding most of his army, and permitting an indiscriminate plunder of public property. THE MEXICAN BORDER. Owing to the report that many of those lately in arms against the Government had taken refuge upon the soil of Mexico, carrying with them arms rightfully belonging to the United States, which had been surrendered to us by agreement among them some of the leaders who had surrendered in person and the disturbed condition of affairs on the Rio Grande, the orders for troops to proceed to Texas were not changed. There have been severe combats, raids, expeditions, and movements, to defeat the designs and purposes of the enemy, most of them reflecting great credit on our arms, and which contributed greatly to our final triumph^ that I have not mentioned. Many of these will be found clearly set forth in the reports herewith submitted; some in the telegrams and brief dis patches announcing them, and others, I regret to say, have not as yet been officially reported. 720 LIFE AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL GRANT. For information touching our Indian difficulties, I would respectfully refer to the reports of the commanders of departments in which they have occurred. THE VALOR OF OUR ARMIES. It has been my fortune to see the armies of both the West and the East fight battles, and from what I have seen I know there is no difference in their fighting qualities. All that it was possible for men to do in battle, they have done. The Western armies commenced their battles in the Mississippi Valley, and received the final surrender of the remnant of tho principal army opposed to them in North Carolina. The armies of the East commenced their battles on the river from which the Army of the Poto mac derived its name, and received the final surrender of their old antag onist at Appomattox Court-House, Virginia. The splendid achievements of each have nationalized our victories, removed all sectional jealousies (of which we have unfortunately experienced too much), and the cause of crimination and recrimination that might have followed had either section failed in its duty. All have a proud record, and all sections can well con gratulate themselves and each other for having done their full share in re storing the supremacy of law over every foot of territory belonging to the United States. Let them hope for perpetual peace and harmony with that enemy, whose manhood, however mistaken the cause, drew forth such herculean deeds of valor. I have the honor to be, very respectfully, Your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War. DEPARTMENT m Libra ALL BOOKS MAY BE RECALLED AFTER 7 DAYS ^TMo^T^ ADE 4 DAVS Pmo * T0 ** DUE AS STAMPED BELOW BERKELEY LIBRARIES