ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN, 1861-1865.
THE WAR FOR THE UNION, 1861.
Abraham Lincoln--Major Anderson's Trying Position--Jefferson
Davis--Inauguration of President Lincoln--Bombardment of Fort
Sumter--War Preparations North and South--Attack on Union Troops in
Baltimore--Situation of the Border States--Unfriendliness of England and
France--Friendship of Russia--The States that Composed the Southern
Confederacy--Union Disaster at Big Bethel--Success of the Union Campaign
in Western Virginia--General George B. McClellan--First Battle of Bull
Run--General McClellan Called to the Command of the Army of the
Potomac--Union Disaster at Ball's Bluff--Military Operations in
Missouri--Battle of Wilson's Creek--Defeat of Colonel Mulligan at
Lexington, Mo.--Supersedure of Fremont--Operations on the Coast--The
Trent Affair--Summary of the Year's Operations.
Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth President, ranks among the greatest that has
ever presided over the destinies of our country. He was born in Hardin
(now Larue) County, Kentucky, February 12, 1809, but when seven years
old his parents removed to Indiana, making their home near the present
town of Gentryville.
[Illustration: ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
(1809-1865.) Two terms (died in office), 1861-1865.]
His early life was one of extreme poverty, and his whole schooling did
not amount to more than a year; but, possessing a studious mind, he
improved every spare hour in the study of instructive books. At the age
of sixteen the tall, awkward, but powerful boy was earning a living by
managing a ferry across the Ohio. He remained for some time after
reaching manhood with his parents, who removed to Illinois in 1830, and
built a log-cabin on the north fork of the Sangamon. He was able to give
valuable help in clearing the ground and in splitting rails. With the
aid of a few friends he constructed a flat-boat, with which he took
produce to New Orleans. Selling both goods and boat, he returned to his
home and still assisted his father on the farm. In the Black Hawk War he
was elected captain of a company, but did not see active service.
By this time his ability had attracted the notice of friends, and at the
age of twenty-five he was elected to the Illinois Legislature, in which
he served for four terms. Meanwhile he had studied law as opportunity
presented, and was sent to Congress in 1846. He opposed the war with
Mexico, but, among such giants as Webster, Clay, Calhoun, Benton, and
others, he could not make any distinctive mark; but his powerful common
sense, his clear logic, his unassailable integrity, his statesmanship
and grasp of public questions, and his quaint humor, often approaching
the keenest wit, carried him rapidly to the front and made him the
leader of the newly formed Republican party. In 1858 he stumped Illinois
for United States senator against Stephen A. Douglas, his valued friend.
His speeches attracted national attention as masterpieces of eloquence,
wit, and forceful presentation of the great issues which were then
agitating the country. He was defeated by Douglas, but the remarkable
manner in which he acquitted himself made him the successful candidate
of the Republican party in the autumn of 1860.
[Illustration: FROM LOG-CABIN TO THE WHITE HOUSE.]
Lincoln was tall and ungainly, his height being six feet four inches.
His countenance was rugged and homely, his strength as great as that of
Washington, while his wit has become proverbial. His integrity, which
his bitterest opponent never questioned, won for him the name of
"Honest Abe." He was one of the most kind-hearted of men, and his rule
of life was "malice toward none and charity for all". He grew with the
demands of the tremendous responsibilities placed upon him, and the
reputation he won as patriot, statesman, and leader has been surpassed
by no previous President and becomes greater with the passing years.
MAJOR ANDERSON AND FORT SUMTER.
All eyes were turned toward Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor. It was the
strongest of the defenses. Major Robert Anderson, learning that the
Confederates intended to take possession of it, secretly removed his
garrison from Fort Moultrie on the night of December 26, 1860. Anderson
was in a trying position, for the secretary of war, Floyd, and the
adjutant-general of the army, Cooper, to whom he was obliged to report,
were secessionists, and not only refused to give him help, but threw
every obstacle in his way. President Buchanan was surrounded by
secessionists, and most of the time was bewildered as to his course of
duty. He resented, however, the demand of Secretary Floyd for the
removal of Anderson because of the change he had made from Moultrie to
Sumter. Floyd resigned and was succeeded by Joseph Holt, of Kentucky, an
uncompromising Unionist, who did all he could to hold up the President
in his tottering position of a friend of the Union. The latter grew
stronger as he noted the awakening sentiment of loyalty throughout the
North. An admirable act was the appointment of Edwin M. Stanton as
attorney-general, for he was a man of great ability and a relentless
enemy of secession.
JEFFERSON DAVIS.
[Illustration: JEFFERSON DAVIS.]
Jefferson Davis, who had been chosen President of the Southern
Confederacy that was formed at Montgomery, Alabama, early in February,
was born in Kentucky, June 3, 1808. Thus he and President Lincoln were
natives of the same State, with less than a year's difference in their
ages. Davis was graduated at West Point in 1828, and served on the
northwest frontier, in the Black Hawk War. He was also a lieutenant of
cavalry in the operations against the Comanches and Apaches. He resigned
from the army and became a cotton-planter in Mississippi, which State he
represented in Congress in 1845-46, but resigned to assume the colonelcy
of the First Mississippi regiment.
Colonel Davis displayed great gallantry at the storming of Monterey and
at the battle at Buena Vista, and on his return home was immediately
elected to the United States Senate, in which he served 1847-51 and
1857-61. From 1853 to 1857 he was secretary of war under Pierce. He was
one of the Southern leaders, and had already been mentioned as a
candidate for the presidency. He resigned his seat in the United States
Senate in January, 1861, upon the secession of his State, and, being
elected Provisional President of the Southern Confederacy February 9th,
was inaugurated February 18th. In the following year he and Stephens
were regularly elected President and Vice-President respectively, and
were inaugurated on the 18th of the month.
INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
President-elect Lincoln left his home in Springfield, Illinois, on the
11th of February for Washington. He stopped at various points on the
route, and addressed multitudes that had gathered to see and hear him. A
plot was formed to assassinate him in Baltimore, but it was defeated by
the vigilance of the officers attending Lincoln, who took him through
the city on an earlier train than was expected. General Scott had the
capital so well protected by troops that no disturbance took place
during the inauguration.
BOMBARDMENT OF FORT SUMTER.
The Confederate government sent General Beauregard to assume charge of
the defenses in Charleston harbor. Finding the fort was being furnished
with supplies, he telegraphed to his government for instructions. He was
ordered to enforce the evacuation. Beauregard demanded the surrender of
the fort, and, being refused by Major Anderson, he opened fire, early on
the morning of April 12th, from nineteen batteries. Major Anderson had a
garrison of 79 soldiers and 30 laborers who helped serve the guns. He
allowed the men to eat breakfast before replying. In a few hours the
supply of cartridges gave out, and blankets and other material were used
as substitutes. The garrison were kept within the bomb-proof galleries,
and did not serve the guns on the open parapets, two of which had been
dismounted by the fire from the Confederate batteries, which after a
time set fire to the officers' barracks. The flames were extinguished,
but broke out several times. The smoke became so smothering that the
men could breathe only by lying flat on their faces. Finally the
position became so untenable that Anderson ran up the white flag in
token of surrender. No one was killed on either side.
The news of the surrender created wild excitement North and South and
united both sections. While the free States rallied to the Union, almost
as one man, the Unionists in the South became ardent supporters of the
cause of disunion. It was now a solid North against a solid South.
[Illustration: FORT MOULTRIE, CHARLESTON, WITH FORT SUMTER IN THE
DISTANCE.]
Three days after the surrender of Fort Sumter, President Lincoln called
for 75,000 volunteers to serve for three months, and Congress was
summoned to meet on the 4th of July. Few people comprehended the
stupendous work that would be required to crush the rebellion. While the
South was hurrying its sons into the ranks, 300,000 answered the call of
President Lincoln, who on the 19th of April issued another proclamation
declaring a blockade of the Southern ports.
UNION TROOPS ATTACKED IN BALTIMORE.
Many of the Confederates demanded that an advance should be made upon
Washington, and, had it been done promptly, it could have been captured
without difficulty. Realizing its danger, the national government called
upon the States for troops and several regiments were hurried thither.
While the Seventh Pennsylvania and Sixth Massachusetts were passing
through Baltimore, they were savagely assailed by a mob. A portion of
the Sixth Massachusetts were hemmed in, and stoned and pelted with
pistol-shots. They remained cool until three of their number had been
killed and eight wounded, when they let fly with a volley which
stretched nearly a dozen rioters on the ground, besides wounding many
others. This drove the mob back, although they kept up a fusillade until
the train drew out of the city with the troops aboard.
ACTIVITY OF THE CONFEDERATES.
The Confederates in Virginia continued active. They captured Harper's
Ferry and the Norfolk Navy Yard, both of which proved very valuable to
them. Their government issued "letters of marque" which permitted
private persons to capture merchant vessels belonging to the United
States, against which the Confederate Congress declared war.
The border States were in perhaps the most trying situation of all, for,
while they wished to keep out of the war, they were forced to act the
part of buffer between the hostile States. The secessionists in
Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri made determined efforts to bring about
the secession of those States, but the Union men were too strong. The
armies on both sides received many recruits from the States named, which
in some cases suffered from guerrilla fighting between former friends
and neighbors.
Kentucky, whose governor was a secessionist, thought she could hold a
neutral position, but the majority of the citizens were Union in their
sentiments. Besides, the situation of the State was such that it was
soon invaded by armed forces from both sides, and some of the severest
battles of the war were fought on its soil.
THE WAR AS VIEWED IN EUROPE.
The prospect of the splitting apart of the United States was pleasing to
all the European powers, with the single exception of Russia. France was
especially urgent in favoring an armed intervention in favor of the
Confederacy, but England would not agree, nor would she recognize the
Confederate States as an independent nation, for, had she done so, the
United States would immediately have declared war against her. In May,
however, England declared the Confederacy a belligerent power, thereby
entitling it to make war and man war vessels, which could take refuge in
foreign ports. While this recognition was of unquestionable help, it
would not have amounted to a great deal had not England permitted the
building of swift and powerful cruisers, which were turned over to the
Confederates, and did immense damage to Northern commerce.
When June arrived, the Southern Confederacy was composed of eleven
States: South Carolina, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida,
Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas. As soon
as Virginia seceded (May 23d), the capital was removed from Montgomery
to Richmond. It was clear that Virginia would be the principal
battle-ground of the war, and the Confederate volunteers throughout the
South hurried into the State.
An intelligent knowledge of the direction from which danger was likely
to come was shown by the placing of troops in western Virginia to meet
Confederate attacks, while soldiers were moved into southern Kentucky to
defend Tennessee. In Virginia they held the line from Harper's Ferry to
Norfolk, and batteries were built along the Mississippi to stop all
navigation of that stream. The erection of forts along the Atlantic and
Gulf coasts for protection against the blockading fleets soon walled in
the Confederacy on every hand.
THE MILITARY SITUATION.
General Scott for a time held the general command of all the United
States forces. But he was old and growing weak in body and mind, and it
was evident must soon give way to a younger man. The national forces
held the eastern side of the Potomac, from Harper's Ferry to Fort
Monroe, and a small section of the western side opposite Washington.
While enlisting and drilling troops, they strove to hold also Kentucky
and Missouri, succeeding so well that their grip was never lost
throughout the war.
[Illustration: A SKIRMISHER.]
With the opposing forces face to face, continual skirmishing was kept
up. This had no effect on the war itself, but was expressive of the
martial spirit which animated both sides. General B.F. Butler, who had
great executive but slight military ability, was in command at Fort
Monroe. While there he refused to surrender a number of fugitive slaves
that had fled into his lines, declaring them "contraband of war." The
phrase was a happy one and caught the fancy of the North.
UNION DISASTER AT BIG BETHEL.
Butler fortified Newport News, which is a point of land at the junction
of the James River and Hampton Roads. Fifteen miles away was a
Confederate detachment, on the road to Yorktown, where the main body was
under the command of General J.B. Magruder, a former artillery officer
of the United States army. The Confederate position at Big Bethel was a
strong one and had a garrison of more than a thousand troops. A short
distance in front was Little Bethel, where a small detachment was under
the command of Colonel D.H. Hill, also a former member of the United
States army.
General Pierce advanced to the attack early on the morning of June 9th.
The two columns mistook each other, and not until 10 men were killed was
the sad blunder discovered. An assault quickly followed, but the
assailants were defeated with the loss of 14 killed and 49 wounded.
Among the slain was Lieutenant John T. Greble, a brilliant West Point
officer, who ought to have been in command of the brigade, with which he
doubtless would have achieved a success. The incompetency of the
political leader cost dearly, but the government was yet to learn that
full-fledged officers are not to be found among men who have made
politics their life profession.
SUCCESSFUL UNION CAMPAIGN IN WESTERN VIRGINIA.
The only place where there were any Union successes was in western
Virginia. Colonel Wallace with a detachment of Indiana Zouaves--a
favorite form of military troops at the beginning of the war--made a
forced march at night over a mountain road, from Cumberland, in
Maryland, to Romney, where the Confederates had a battery on a bluff
near the village, guarded by a number of field-pieces. By a spirited
dash, the Union troops captured the position and drove the defenders
into the woods. Unable to overtake them, Colonel Wallace returned to
Cumberland.
This incident had important results. General Jo Johnston, one of the
best commanders of the war, was at Harper's Ferry, and, fearing for his
communications, he evacuated the post, and marched up the Shenandoah
Valley to a point near Winchester.
GENERAL McCLELLAN.
The operations in western Virginia brought into prominence an officer
who was destined to play an important part in the war. He was George B.
McClellan, born in Philadelphia in 1826, and graduated at West Point in
1846. He rendered fine service in the Mexican War, after which,
resigning from the army, he was for several years engineer for the
Illinois Central Railroad and afterward a railroad president. He was
appointed a major-general at the opening of the Civil War, and, with
15,000 troops, mostly from the Western States, he advanced against the
Confederates in western Virginia under the command of General Garnett,
also a graduate and formerly an instructor at West Point. Garnett held a
position west of the principal line of the Alleghanies, which covered
the road leading from Philippi to Beverly. Colonel Pegram was placed in
charge of the hill Rich Mountain, a short distance south of Garnett.
McClellan advanced against these two positions. Colonel Rosecrans, with
four regiments and in the face of a blinding rainstorm, followed a
circuitous path through the woods, and charged up the elevation against
a strong fire. The Confederates were driven from their position and down
the other side of the hill. Colonel Pegram, finding his position turned,
retreated in the direction of Beverly. Rosecrans pursued and Garnett
turned to the north, aiming for St. George on the Cheat River. Pegram
had surrendered with 600 men, the remainder joining Garnett, who was
hard pressed by General Morris. Despite the obstructions thrown in his
path, he overtook the fugitives on the 13th of July at Carrick's Ford on
the Cheat River. There the Confederates were routed and Garnett shot
dead at the head of his troops. The remnant of his force fled in
disorder, and succeeded in reaching Monterey on the eastern side of the
mountains.
[Illustration: GENERAL GEORGE B. McCLELLAN.
(1826-1885).]
The campaign in western Virginia was a brilliant Union success. A
thousand prisoners, seven guns, 1,500 stands of arms, and twelve colors
were captured, with slight loss to the victors. All the credit of this
success was given to McClellan, and, since the North was yearning for
some leader with the halo of success attached to his name, they at once
proclaimed "Little Mac" as their idol, destined to crush secession and
re-establish the Union in all its strength and former glory.
In September General Robert E. Lee was sent into western Virginia to
regain the ground lost, but he failed and was driven out of the section
by Rosecrans, the successor of McClellan. Before this took place,
however, the opening battle of the war had been fought elsewhere.
"ON TO RICHMOND!"
The removal of the Confederate government from Montgomery to Richmond
was unbearably exasperating to the North. It may be said that the
secession flag was flaunted in sight of Washington. The New York
_Tribune_, the most influential journal of the North, raised the cry
"_On to Richmond_!" and the pressure became so clamorous and persistent
that the government, although conscious of the risk of the step, ordered
an advance against the Confederate capital. Congress, which had met July
4th, appropriated $500,000,000 for carrying on the war, and authorized
President Lincoln to call out 500,000 volunteers for crushing the
rebellion.
The Union army across the Potomac from Washington numbered about 40,000
men and was under the command of General Irvin McDowell. It was only
partly disciplined, had a few good and many incompetent officers, was
composed of fine material, but of necessity lacked the steadiness which
can only be acquired by actual campaigns and fighting.
General Beauregard, with a Confederate army not quite so numerous, held
a strong military position near Manassas Junction, some thirty miles
from Washington, and connected with Richmond by rail. General Jo
Johnston had a smaller Confederate army at Winchester, it being his duty
to hold General Patterson in check and prevent his reinforcing McDowell.
At the same time Patterson, to prevent Johnston from joining Beauregard,
planned an offensive movement against the Confederate commander at
Winchester.
THE FIRST BATTLE OF BULL RUN.
McDowell's plan was to advance to Fairfax Court-House, and then, turning
south, cut Beauregard's communications. The first movement was made on
the afternoon of July 16th. General Mansfield with 16,000 men remained
in Washington to protect the capital from surprise. The advance was
slow, occupying several days. McDowell discovered six Confederate
brigades posted along the creek known as Bull Run, and he decided to
begin his attack upon them. While General Tyler was sent across the
stone bridge to threaten the Confederate front, Hunter and Heintzelman
were directed to make a detour and attack the enemy's front and rear.
Johnston, who had hurried up from Winchester, had decided to hasten the
battle through fear of the arrival of Patterson with reinforcements for
McDowell, but the latter, moving first, Johnston was compelled to act on
the defensive.
[Illustration: FIRST BATTLE OF BULL RUN, 1861
On July 16, 1861, the first great battle of the Civil War was fought,
resulting in the complete defeat of the Union army, which fled in panic
from the field. Had the Confederates followed up the pursuit they could
easily have captured Washington city. The total loss to the Union army
in killed, wounded, captured and missing was 3,334 men; that of the
Southern army, 1,982. The Confederates gained another victory at Bull
Run in 1862.]
Tyler and Hunter were tardy in their movements, but by noon McDowell had
turned the Confederate left and uncovered the stone bridge. Instead of
using the advantage thus secured and assuming position at Manassas
depot, he kept up his pursuit of the fleeing Confederates to the woods.
There, when everything seemed to be going the way of the Union array, it
was checked by General T.J. Jackson's brigade, whose firm stand in the
face of seeming disaster won for him the soubriquet of "Stonewall"
Jackson, first uttered in compliment by General Bee, by which name the
remarkable man will always be remembered.
[Illustration: STATUE OF McCLELLAN IN CITY HALL SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA.]
The stand of Jackson enabled Johnston to rally the right and Beauregard
the left, but matters were in a critical shape, when Kirby Smith, who
had escaped Patterson in the valley, rushed across the fields from
Manassas with 15,000 fresh troops. This timely arrival turned, the
fortunes of the day. McDowell was driven from the plateau he had
occupied, and the whole Union army was thrown into a panic and rushed in
headlong flight for the defenses of Washington. Nothing could stay their
flight, and the city was overrun with the terrified fugitives, who
swarmed into the railroad trains, fled to the open fields beyond,
spreading the most frightful rumors, while many did not believe
themselves safe until at home in the North.
Had the Confederates followed up the pursuit, they could have easily
captured Washington. They failed to do so, because they did not know
how beaten and disorganized the Union forces were. The Union losses in
this first great battle of the war were: Killed, 470; wounded, 1,071;
captured and missing, 1,793; total, 3,334. The Confederate losses were:
Killed, 387; wounded, 1,582; captured and missing, 13; total, 1,982.
GENERAL McCLELLAN APPOINTED TO THE COMMAND OF THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC.
Bull Run was a bitter humiliation for the North, but it served a good
purpose. The national government understood for the first time the
formidable nature of the task before it. Its determination to subdue the
rebellion was intensified rather than lessened, but it now went about it
in the right way. Incompetent officers were weeded out, careful and
vigorous measures set on foot, and, what was the most popular movement
of all, General McClellan was called to the command of the Army of the
Potomac. He took charge August 20th, and set about organizing and
disciplining the magnificent body of men. No one could surpass him at
such work, and he had the opportunity of establishing himself as the
idol of the nation. That he failed to do so was clue to an inherent
defect of his nature. He shrank from taking chances, lacked nerve and
dash, distrusted himself, and was so slow and excessively cautious that
he wore out the patience of the government and finally of the nation
itself.
General Scott's old age and increasing infirmities compelled him in
November to give up the command of the Union armies, and all hopes
centred upon McClellan. He kept drilling the Army of the Potomac, and by
the close of the year had 150,000 well-trained soldiers under his
command. The impatience of the North began to manifest itself, but no
general advance took place, though the Confederate line was gradually
pushed back from its threatening position in front of Washington to its
first position at Bull Run. The Confederacy was also busy in recruiting
and drilling its forces. Knowing that Richmond was the objective point
of the Union advance, the city was surrounded with formidable
fortifications.
DISASTER AT BALL'S BLUFF.
On the 19th of October General McCall was ordered to occupy
Drainesville, eighteen miles northwest of Washington. At the same time,
General Stone was directed to keep watch of Leesburg, from which the
patrols afterward reported a weak Confederate force. An advance was
ordered, whereupon Colonel Evans, who had given the Confederates great
help at Bull Run, concentrated his forces on the road leading from
Leesburg to Washington, and, on the morning of the 21st, had assumed a
strong position and was ready to be attacked.
[Illustration: FORTIFYING RICHMOND.
In the foreground we see R.E. Lee and two other confederate officers
directing the work.]
The Union troops were ferried across the river in three scows, two
skiffs, and a life-boat, which combined would not carry one-fourth of
the men. When all were over they advanced to Leesburg, where no
Confederate camp was found, but the enemy in the woods attacked them.
Colonel E.D. Baker, a civilian officer from California, hurried across
the river with 1,900 men and took command. The enemy was reinforced and
drove the Unionists back. Colonel Baker was killed and the Federals
fled in a panic to the Potomac, with the Confederates upon them. The
fugitives swarmed into the boats and sank three of them; others leaped
over the bank and swam and dived for their lives, the enemy shooting and
bayoneting all who did not surrender. When the horrible affair was over,
the Union loss was fully a thousand men. This occurrence was in some
respects more disgraceful than Bull Run.
MILITARY OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI.
Claiborne F. Jackson, governor of Missouri, was a strong secessionist,
and did all he could to take the State out of the Union, but the
sentiment against him was too strong. St. Louis was also secession in
feeling, but Captain Nathaniel Lyon kept the disloyalists in subjection
so effectively that he was rewarded by being made a brigadier-general.
Governor Jackson by proclamation called out 50,000 of the State militia
to repel the "invasion" of the State by United States troops. Sterling
Price, a major-general of the State forces, was dispatched to Booneville
and Lexington, on the Missouri River.
Colonel Franz Sigel, with 1,100 Union troops, had an engagement in the
southwestern part of the State and was compelled to retreat, but he
managed his withdrawal so skillfully that he killed and wounded a large
number of his pursuers. General Lyon joined Sigel near Springfield, and
the Confederates, under General Ben McCulloch, retreated to Cowskin
Prairie, on the border of the Indian Territory.
BATTLE OF WILSON'S CREEK.
Both sides were reinforced, the Unionists being under the command of
General John C. Fremont, who had been assigned to the department of the
West, which included Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas. The two
armies met early in August near Wilson's Creek. The Confederates were
the most numerous, but were poorly armed and disciplined. The battle was
badly mismanaged by both sides, and General Lyon, while leading a
charge, was shot dead. His men were defeated and retreated in the
direction of Springfield.
Missouri was now overrun with guerrillas and harried by both sides.
Colonel Mulligan made a desperate stand at Lexington in September, but
an overwhelming force under General Price compelled him to surrender.
Price moved southward and Lexington was retaken by the Unionists, who
also occupied Springfield. The Legislature sitting at Neocho passed an
ordinance of secession, but most of the State remained in the hands of
the Federals until they finally gained entire possession.
General Fremont's course was unwise and made him unpopular. He issued
what was in reality an emancipation proclamation, which President
Lincoln was compelled to modify. He was fond of show and ceremony, and
so extravagant that he was superseded in November by General Hunter,
who was soon sent to Kansas, and was in turn succeeded by General
Halleck. The fighting in the State was fierce but of an indecisive
character.
The expected neutrality of Kentucky was speedily ended by the entrance
of a body of Confederates under the command of General Leonidas Polk, a
graduate of West Point and a bishop of the Episcopal Church. General
U.S. Grant was dispatched with a force from Cairo, as soon as it became
known that Polk had entered Kentucky. Grant destroyed a Confederate camp
at Belmont, but was attacked by Polk and compelled to retreat to his
gunboats.
OPERATIONS ON THE COAST.
A formidable coast expedition, with land and naval forces on board,
under command of General B.F. Butler and Commodore Stringham, in August,
1861, captured Hatteras Inlet and the fort defending it. Establishing
themselves at that point, they made other attacks along the adjoining
coast of North Carolina. A still larger expedition left Fort Monroe in
November under Commodore Dupont and General T.W. Sherman and captured
Port Royal. The fleet was so powerful, numbering nearly one hundred
vessels and transports, that the garrisons were easily driven out of the
forts, after which the land forces took possession of them. The islands
between Charleston and Savannah were seized, and in September a Union
fleet took possession of Ship Island, not far from the mouth of the
Mississippi, with a view of aiding an expedition against New Orleans.
THE TRENT AFFAIR.
It was all important for the Confederacy to secure recognition from
England and France. The Confederate government thought they could be
induced to act, if the proper arguments were laid before the respective
governments. Accordingly, James M. Mason, of Virginia, and John Slidell,
of Louisiana, both of whom had been United States senators, were
appointed commissioners, the former to England and the latter to France.
They succeeded in running the blockade to Havana, where they took
passage on the British steamer _Trent_ for England. Captain Charles
Wilkes, of the steamer _San Jacinto_, knew of their intended sailing and
was on the lookout for them. Before they were fairly on their way,
Captain Wilkes stopped the _Trent_, and, despite the protests of the
captain and the rebel commissioners, he forcibly took them off and
carried them to the United States.
In acting thus Captain Wilkes did the very thing that caused the war
with England in 1812. It was our opposition to the search of American
vessels by British cruisers that caused that war, while England was as
persistent in her claim to the right to make such search. The positions
were now reversed, and England expressed indignation, and demanded the
return of the commissioners and a disavowal of the act of Captain
Wilkes. The position of our government was untenable, and Secretary
Seward gracefully confessed it, and surrendered the prisoners, neither
of whom was able afterward to be of the slightest benefit to the
Confederacy.
SUMMARY OF THE YEAR'S OPERATIONS.
The close of 1861 was to the advantage of the Confederates. The two real
battles of the war--Bull Run and Wilson's Creek--had been won by them.
In the lesser engagements, with the exception of West Virginia, they had
also been successful. This was due to the fact that the people of the
North and West had been so long at peace that they needed time in which
to learn war. In the South the men were more accustomed to the handling
of firearms and horseback riding. Moreover, they were on the defensive,
and fighting, as may be said, on inner lines.
It must not be forgotten, however, that the Union forces had saved
Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri from joining the Confederacy, despite
the strenuous efforts of their disunion governors and an aggressive
minority in each State. Washington, which more than once had been in
danger of capture, was made safe, and the loyal section of Virginia in
the West was cut off and formed into a separate State. In wealth and
resources the North vastly preponderated. An immense army had been
raised, money was abundant, commerce thriving, the sentiment
overwhelmingly in favor of the prosecution of the war, and the
manufactories hummed with work made necessary by the building of
hundreds of ships for the navy and the furnishing of supplies and
equipments to the armies.
[Illustration: THE ATTACK ON FORT DONELSON.
This memorable battle of February, 1862, was the first serious blow to
the Confederate cause. It was also Grant's first victory of importance,
and marks the beginning of his rise to fame. Fifteen thousand prisoners
were taken. Grant generously allowed the Confederates to retain their
personal baggage, and the officers to keep their side arms. General
Buckner expressed his thanks for this chivalrous act, and later in life
became Grant's personal friend.]