_Wherein Captain Galligasken follows the illustrious Soldier to the
Victory at Fort Donelson, and points out the Nature and Extent of
that splendid Achievement_.
General Grant, having reassured his men on the right, dashed off to
the left again, where Smith and his fresh troops were preparing for
the assault. On their way he and his staff gladdened the hearts of the
soldiers by declaring that the attempt of the rebels in the morning was
not an ordinary sally; that they were becoming desperate, and desired
only to cut their way through the line to a place of safety. At this
stage of the battle, when a portion of the army was discouraged and
disheartened, this was certainly a bold assumption, but it had an
inspiring effect upon the men; they re-formed their lines, and moved
towards the front.
In the midst of these preparations Grant sent a request to Commodore
Foote to have all his gunboats appear before the enemy, declaring that
a terrible conflict during his absence had demoralized a portion of his
command. He added that, if the gunboats did not appear, the fact would
encourage the enemy, and still further dishearten his own troops, and
that he was obliged to order a charge "to save appearances." The naval
commander complied with the request so far as he was able, and sent two
of his squadrons up the river, where they demonstrated a little at long
range.
McClernand and Wallace were directed to renew the attack on the right
as soon as Smith charged upon the left. The latter, who had been
accused of secession tendencies during his temporary unpopularity
at Paducah, had now an opportunity to set himself right before the
country, and to overwhelm his defamers. He formed his line, and made
one of the most impetuous and gallant charges recorded during the war.
In front of him the rebel right had been reduced in force to mass the
troops for the assault in the morning, and before the equilibrium
could be restored, Smith forced the enemy's line, and, in the face of
a galling and destructive fire, made his way up the hill, over the
intrenchments, gaining full possession of the key to the fort.
On the right the troops of McClernand and Wallace, in spite of what
they had suffered in the morning, behaved handsomely, and drove the
rebels from the ground in front of them, regaining the guns which they
had lost in the morning. But the greatest advantage derived from their
heroic conduct was in keeping the enemy engaged, and thus preventing
them from reënforcing their right, where Smith was working out the real
solution of the problem of capturing the fort.
Night closed upon the hard-fought battle-field before the day was
won; but the advantage was clearly and decidedly with the national
troops. Smith still held the position he had won, and another half hour
of daylight would have enabled him to carry the entire works. Again
the suffering soldiers bivouacked on the frozen ground, which they
had so gallantly won from the enemy, spending the night in sleepless
anxiety, for the desperate fortunes of the foe tempted him to reckless
expedients. But the light of a brilliant victory was beginning to
dawn upon them, and hope rendered the hours less heavy, the cold and
weariness more endurable. Grant, who had watched and waited through the
long hours of the preceding night, without a moment of rest, and who,
by night and by day, had been straining every nerve for a fortnight,
slept a few hours in a negro cabin on the field, but ready at any
instant to answer the summons to battle.
Within the rebel camp the results of the day's operations had carried
dismay and despair. Floyd, who was the chief in command, called
together his officers for consultation. It was agreed that the
situation was hopeless, and that escape or surrender was the only
alternative. They discussed the feasibility of cutting their way out
of the fort; but, as such a reckless movement would involve the loss
of three fourths of the command, the more humane and prudent of this
remarkable conclave decided that it should not be undertaken. The
other alternative was surrender; but Floyd, who had stolen the public
property while holding his position of trust under the United States
government, and dreaded a halter if captured, declined in his own
person to be given up. He declared his intention to escape with the
Virginia troops he had brought with him, and he turned over the command
to Pillow, the next in rank. This gentleman decided to imitate the
example of Floyd, and passed it along to Buckner. They had solved the
problem to their own satisfaction, the two highest in command deserting
their troops, and escaping by a steamer up the river. Nothing better
could have been expected of Floyd, or even of Pillow, and both of them
were consistent with their treacherous natures. Buckner was a gentleman
and a soldier. After bravely defending his position to the best of his
ability, he was obliged to surrender, and he performed the disagreeable
duty like a man.
Buckner immediately sent a messenger to Grant, asking for terms of
surrender; but, while the negotiation was in progress, he permitted
Floyd and Pillow to sneak off with about three thousand of the troops,
amid the execrations of those who remained. Grant was ready to renew
the conflict when the white flag was raised on the battlements of the
fort. Buckner proposed an armistice till noon, which seemed to suggest
a very complicated arrangement of details in regard to terms. In reply,
Grant wrote a very brief note, acknowledging the receipt of the rebel
general's communication, and adding, "No terms except unconditional and
immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon
your works."
If General Buckner had never been formally introduced to General
Grant, this little note would have been a full-length photograph of
the man. The unfortunate rebel replied, accepting the terms, though
not without taking occasion to protest against them as ungenerous and
unchivalrous, and to remind the conqueror of "the brilliant success of
the Confederate arms yesterday." Grant, with a generous regard for the
feelings of Buckner, hastened to the headquarters of the latter, at
Dover. The two generals had been companions at West Point and in the
old army, and Grant displayed a tenderness for the sensitive nature of
the defeated soldier which is highly creditable to him. He assured him
he did not wish to subject him to any unnecessary mortification, but
while all public property must be yielded up, the officers would be
permitted to retain their side arms and their personal property.
They breakfasted together and talked over the affair, thus happily
ended for one, thus disastrously ended for the other. During the
interview which followed, Buckner alluded to the inferior force of his
adversary at the commencement of the siege.
"If I had been in command, you wouldn't have reached Fort Donelson so
easily," said he, with a natural desire to explain the cause of his
misfortune.
"If you had been in command, I should have waited for reënforcements,
and marched from Fort Henry in greater strength; for I knew that Pillow
would not come out of his works to fight, and I told my staff so,
though I believed he would fight behind his works."
Grant knew not only the men upon his own side, but those on the
other. He weighed and measured both Floyd and Pillow, and made his
calculations accordingly. He did nothing in the dark, bold and daring
as his movements were. He read human character with almost infallible
accuracy, and it appears that his splendid victory at Donelson was
gained as much by his knowledge of the men whom he had to fight, as by
his sudden and wonderful seizing of an advantage. He knew nothing of
the obstinate battle which had been fought while he was on board of the
gunboat, until he was informed of the fact after he came on shore. On
the instant he ordered Smith to prepare for an assault. He saw the weak
point of the enemy, as well as the disordered state of his own right.
Here was his stroke of genius. In that he conquered, for the assault he
ordered on the moment gave Smith the key to the fortress.
In this tremendous battle he exhibited the highest qualities of a man
and a soldier, and showed that he was equal to any position to which he
might be assigned. When the news of the fall of Fort Donelson reached
Washington, Secretary Stanton immediately recommended Grant's promotion
to the rank of major-general of volunteers. President Lincoln nominated
him to the Senate on the same day, and he was instantly confirmed. The
secretary of war seized eagerly upon the brilliant qualities of the
man who had worked out this victory, and held him up to the admiration
of the country, as he deserved to be held up, adding that "the true
organization of victory, and military combination to end this war,
were declared in a few words by General Grant's message to General
Buckner: '_I propose to move immediately on your works_'" And the noble
secretary clung to the successful general during the rest of the war.
Sixty-five guns and fifteen thousand prisoners were the spoils of
war to the victor at Fort Donelson--a whole army of captives, such as
the North had not known before. On the last day of the fight, Grant
had twenty-seven thousand men, and the rebels had above twenty-one
thousand, so that the disparity in numbers between the combatants was
by no means so great as that in position, which favored the rebels.
As the steamers with the rebel prisoners were about to start for the
Ohio River, Buckner, who was very proud of his soldiers, asked Grant
to go and see his own brigade. The victorious general accepted the
invitation, and the prisoners crowded around him, respectfully but
curiously anxious to see their captor. Buckner informed them that Grant
had treated them very handsomely, and begged them, if ever the fortunes
of war reversed the circumstances, to treat him, or any of his troops,
as kindly and magnanimously as he had used them. Grant has a large
heart, which I have several times before indicated in mentioning his
relations with his friends and benefactors. It is demonstrated even
more forcibly in his generous conduct to his enemies, or, rather, the
enemies of the loyal cause; for until envy and jealousy developed them,
it does not appear that he had any others.
The country rang with Grant's praise. A new light had loomed up in the
firmament of the war, and people hailed the glorious star. His initials
now meant "Unconditional Surrender"--the only terms which he could
offer to men in arms against their own country. The victory at Donelson
was the most important and the most suggestive one which had yet
gladdened the loyal heart. It was regarded as the beginning of a new
order of things; and well do I remember the confident prediction of one
who weighed Grant well, that he would yet be President of the United
States.
General Halleck appears to have been a stumbling-block in the path of
both Grant and Sherman. There was a dirty vein in his nature, which
contrasts strongly with the generosity and magnanimity of the hero of
Fort Donelson. While McCullum, Halleck's chief of staff, congratulated
him upon the splendid result of his "brilliant leadership," and others
high in command followed his example, Halleck himself sent no letter
of commendation to the conqueror, but telegraphed to Washington that
"Smith, by his coolness and bravery, when the battle was against
us, turned the tide and carried the enemy's outworks. Make him a
major-general. You can't get a better one. Honor _him_ for this
victory, and the whole country will applaud." Thus said Halleck.
Buckner congratulated Smith on his gallant charge, after the surrender.
"Yes, it was well done," he replied, "considering the smallness of the
force that did it. No congratulations are due to me. I simply obeyed
orders." Thus said Smith himself, with the ring of honor which swells
the heart of a true soldier. The government practically decided that
the victory belonged to General Ulysses S. Grant. He was promptly
confirmed as a major-general, and "the whole country applauded."
While the people rapturously shouted forth their joy at the signal
success of our arms at Forts Henry and Donelson, they hardly
comprehended the magnificent results of these victories. The strong
positions of the rebels at Bowling Green and Columbus were flanked,
and the enemy were compelled to evacuate them. The Gibraltar of the
West, strengthened with so much labor and expense, could no longer
be held, and its garrison was transferred to Island No. 10, down the
river, leaving the Mississippi open to the northern line of Arkansas.
The Tennessee and Cumberland rivers were also open, and the dreaded
gunboats penetrated to the interior of the Confederacy. Nashville fell,
and was speedily occupied by the national troops, while the rebel
armies and the rebel legislature fled to safer localities.
At this period in Grant's eventful history, while he was beating down
the rebel stronghold, General William T. Sherman stepped prominently
upon the stage. He had rendered efficient service to Grant, as a
subordinate of Halleck, in urging forward reënforcements, and after
the victory warmly congratulated him. Grant replied in a feeling
letter, in which he made use of this sentence, so characteristic of
the man's motives: "_I care nothing for promotion so long as our arms
are successful_, and no political appointments are made." They had
been together one year at West Point, Sherman being graduated three
years earlier than Grant; but in their mutual sympathy, appreciation,
and kindness at this trying period of the war, really commenced the
friendship of these two remarkable men. Before any brilliant lustre had
been shed upon the name of either, they were united by a bond which
no circumstances could weaken, and by an association so intimate and
tender as to become the solace of each in the hour of adversity. It was
certainly a poetical friendship, faithful and genuine, by which the
nation, as well as the individuals themselves, have been benefited.