Nos. 1, 2, and 3 taken from the Photographic History of the Civil War. Copyright by the Patriot Publishing Company. No. 4 from the original Brady negative. 1. SECTION OF THE DITCH AT FORT MCALLISTER SHOWING THE PALISADING OVER WHICH SHERMAN'S TROOPS HAD TO CLIMB WHEN ASSAULTING THE FORT. 2. ONE OF THE GUNS OF FORT MCALLISTER. 3. AN EXCELLENT EXAMPLE OF SHERMAN'S DECLARATION THAT "WAR IS HELL." ONE OF THE HOMES DEVASTATED BY FIRE AFTER THE OCCUPATION OF SAVANNAH BY SHERMAN'S ARMY. 4. THE WATER FRONT AT SAVANNAH IN 1865 THE EVACUATION OF SAVANNAH. surrender, stating that his guns could cast"heavy and destructive shot as far as the heart of the city," that he had completely shut off Savannah its sources of food supply, and that he would "grant liberal terms to the inhabitants and garrison; but should I be forced to resort to assault and the slower and surer process of starvation, I shall then feel justified in resorting to the harshest measures and shall make little effort to restrain my army.'* Hardee returned a defiant reply saying that he was not shut in but had free and constant communica 69 tion with his department. Nevertheless, Hardee found his position untenable and on the night of December 20 evacuated Savannah.* At daybreak of the 21st Geary's division of the 20th corps, being the nearest to the town, occupied the city and the next day Sherman formally took possession. On the 22d he telegraphed 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." CHAPTER XLIII. 1864. FRANKLIN AND NASHVILLE. Forrest's raid on Johnsonville - Hood's invasion of Tennessee – The engagement at Spring Hill - The battle of Franklin Hood's disastrous defeat at Nashville- - The engagement at Russellville - Stoneman's raid from east Tennessee to southwestern Virginia - The attack on Saltville. After General Sherman had started from Atlanta on his march to the sea, General Hood advised a counter scheme of invasion. He decided to cross the Tennessee at Guntersville, to destroy Sherman's communications, to move upon Thomas and Schofield and rout and capture both their armies before they could reach Nashville. He then intended to conduct a campaign into Kentucky and Ohio. † His army was recruited up to its full * Sherman, Memoirs, vol. ii., pp. 210-211. +Hood, Advance and Retreat, p. 268; Battles and Leaders, vol. iv., p. 425 et seq. strength until it numbered from 40,000 to 45,000, its three corps being * Official Records, vol. xliv., p. 974; Cox, March to the Sea, p. 60. Official Records, vol. xliv., p. 783. In addition to the works cited on the march to the sea see also Force, Life of Sherman; Coppée, Life of Thomas; Jones, Siege of Savannah; Nichol, The Story of the Great March; Taylor, Destruction and Reconstruction; Van Horne, Army of the Cumberland, and Life of Thomas; Alfriend, Life of Davis; Davis, Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, vol. ii.; Roman, Life of Beauregard; Hood, Advance and Retreat; Boynton, Sherman's Historical Raid; Schofield, Forty-Six Years in the Army; William H. Peck, The McDonalds; or, The Ashes of Southern Homes A Tale of Sherman's March (1867); William T. Sherman, General Sherman's Official Account of 70 HOOD'S INVASION OF TENNESSEE. commanded by Generals S. D. Lee, B. F. Cheatham and A. P. Stewart. There was also a body of cavalry under Forrest variously estimated at from 6,000 to 12,000. On November 1 Thomas' force was much inferior to that of Hood's, his movable force being estimated at 22,000 infantry and about 4,000 cavalry. Later, however, his army was much increased. It consisted of two divisions of the 23d corps under Schofield and three divisions of the 4th corps under Stanley, with the cavalry under General J. H. Wilson. As soon as Thomas learned that Hood had appeared in force on the Tennessee, Schofield and Stanley were ordered to concentrate at Pulaski, but before this could be done Forrest had made an attack at Johnsonville, one of Thomas' bases of supplies on the Tennessee River, destroying several transports and a large amount of government property. Schofield arrived at Nashville on November 5 and immediately sent an advance corps to Johnsonville by rail, but on arrival they found that Forrest had retreated. Schofield left a sufficient garrison at the place and with the rest of his command joined the 4th corps at Pulaski. It was after the Confederates had learned of Sherman's intentions to march to the sea that Beauregard ordered Hood on November 17 to take his Great March through Georgia, etc. (1865); S. H. M. Byers, The March to the Sea; S. M. Bowman, Sherman and His Campaigns, Johnson, Life of Sherman. the offensive.* Three days later Beauregard telegraphed Hood to the same effect and on November 21 the latter began his movement northward from Florence, Alabama, appearing before Columbia on the 26th. Forrest's cavalry was on the Mount Pleasant pike almost in sight of the town, when Cox's division moved at double quick time, marched across the Pulaski road and held back the Confederates until Stanley's head of column arrived and took up a position covering the approaches to the town from the south. Disappointed in his first effort to march around Schofield, Hood determined to cross the river some distance above Columbia and move upon Schofield's line of communications at Spring Hill. During the night of the 27th Schofield withdrew to the north bank of the river where he remained on the 28th. The two divisions of the 23d corps were placed in position in front of Columbia holding all the crossings of the river in the vicinity with Stanley's 4th corps in reserve on the Franklin pike ready to move whenever Hood should attempt a crossing above or below the town. Wilson's cavalry held the crossings above those guarded by the infantry. Forrest succeeded in crossing one of his divisions above Columbia at noon of the 28th, pushing Wilson's cavalry back on roads leading toward Spring Hill and Franklin, and Hood began crossing his in |