captains of the civil war- 第50部分

Before　midnight　Sherman　was　writing　his　dispatches　on　board　the　U。S。S。　Dandelion　and　examining　those　received　from　Grant。　He　learned　now；　from　Grant's　of　the　third　（ten　days　before）；　that　Thomas　was　facing　Hood　round　Nashville　and　that　the　Government；　and　even　Grant；　were　getting　very　impatient　with　Thomas　for　not　striking　hard　and　at　once。　A　week　later　the　Confederate　general；　Hardee；　managed　to　evacuate　Savannah　before　his　one　remaining　line　of　retreat　had　been　cut　off。　He　was　a　thorough　soldier。　But　men　and　means　and　time　were　lacking；　and　the　civil　population　hoped　to　save　all　that　was　not　considered　warlike　stores。　Thus　immense　supplies　fell　into　Sherman's　hands。　Savannah　was　of　course　placed　under　martial　law。　But　as　the　wax　was　now　nearing　its　inevitable　end；　and　the　citizens　were　thoroughly　〃subjugated；〃　those　who　wished　to　remain　were　allowed　to　do　so。　Only　two　hundred　left；　going　to　Charleston　under　a　flag　of　truce。

The　following　official　announcement　reached　Lincoln　on　Christmas　Eve。

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Savannah；　Georgia；　December　22；　1864。　

To　His　Excellency　President　Lincoln；　　　　　　　　　　　Washington；　D。　C。

I　beg　to　present　you　as　a　Christmas　gift　the　city　of　Savannah；　with　one　hundred　and　fifty　heavy　guns　and　plenty　of　ammunition；　also　about　twenty…five　thousand　bales　of　cotton。　　　　　　　　　　　W。　T。　Sherman；　Major…General。


In　the　meantime　Hood's　desperate　sortie　had　struck　north　as　far　as　Franklin；　Tennessee。　Here；　on　the　last　of　November；　General　John　Schofield；　commanding　the　advanced　part　of　Thomas's　army；　gallantly　withstood　a　furious　attack。　On　this　the　closing　day　of　a　lingering　Indian　summer　the　massed　Confederates　charged　with　the　piercing　rebel　yell；　and　charged　again；　re…formed　under　cover　of　the　dense　pall　of　stationary　smoke；　and　returned　to　the　charge　again　and　again。　Many　a　leader　met　his　death　right　against　the　very　breastworks。　Another　would　instantly　spring　forward；　only　to　fall　in　his　turn。　Thirteen　times　the　gaunt　gray　lines　rushed　madly　through　the　battle　smoke　and　lost　their　front　ranks　against　the　withering　fire　before　the　autumn　night　closed　in。　Schofield　then　fell　back　on　Brentwood；　halfway　on　the　twenty　miles　to　Nashville。　He　had　lost　over　two　thousand　men。　But　Hood　had　lost　three　times　as　many；　and　Hood's　were　irreplaceable　except　by　a　very　few　local　recruits。

Hood　now　concentrated　every　available　man　for　his　final　attack　on　Thomas；　who　had　odds　of　twenty　thousand　in　his　favor。　Hood　marched　his　thirty…five　thousand　up　to　Nashville；　where　he　actually　invested　the　fifty…five　thousand　Federals。　By　this　time　even　Grant　was　so　annoyed　at　what　seemed　to　him　unreasoning　delay　that　he　sent　Logan　to　take　command　at　once　and　〃fight。〃　But　on　the　fifteenth　of　December　Thomas　came　out　of　his　works　and　fought　Hood　with　determined　skill　all　day。　Having　gained　a　decisive　advantage　already　he　pressed　it　home　to　the　very　utmost　on　the　morrow；　breaking　through　Hood's　shaken　lines；　enveloping　whole　units　with　converging　fire；　and　taking　prisoners　in　mass。　After　a　last　wild　effort　Hood's　beaten　army　fled；　having　lost　fifteen　thousand　men；　five　times　as　much　as　Thomas。

The　battle　of　Nashville　came　nearer　than　any　other　to　being　a　really　annihilating　victory。　Out　of　the　forty　thousand　men　Hood　had　at　first　in　Tennessee　not　half　escaped；　and　of　the　remainder　not　nearly　half　were　ever　seen　in　arms　again。　As　an　organized　force　his　army　simply　disappeared。　The　few　thousands　saved　from　the　wreckage　of　the　storm　found　their　painful　way　east　to　join　all　that　was　left　for　the　last　stand　against　the　overwhelming　forces　of　the　North。



CHAPTER　XII。　THE　END：　1865

By　'65　the　Southern　cause　was　lost。　There　was　nothing　to　hope　for　from　abroad。　Neither　was　there　anything　to　hope　for　at　home；　now　that　Lincoln　and　the　Union　Government　had　been　returned　to　power。　From　the　very　first　the　disparity　of　resources　was　so　great　that　the　South　had　never　had　a　chance　alone　except　against　a　disunited　North。　Now　that　the　North　could　bring　its　full　strength　to　bear　against　the　worn…out　South　the　only　question　remaining　to　be　settled　in　the　field　was　simply　one　of　time。　Yet　Davis；　with　his　indomitable　will；　would　never　yield　so　long　as　any　Confederates　would　remain　in　arms。　And　men　like　Lee　would　never　willingly　give　up　the　fight　so　long　as　those　they　served　required　them。　Therefore　the　war　went　on　until　the　Southern　armies　failed　through　sheer　exhaustion。

The　North　had　nearly　a　million　men　by　land　and　sea。　The　South　had　perhaps　two　hundred　thousand。　The　North　could　count　on　a　million　recruits　out　of　the　whole　reserve　of　twice　as　many。　The　South　had　no　reserves　at　all。　The　total　odds　were　therefore　five　to　one　without　reserves　and　ten　to　one　if　these　came　in。

The　scene　of　action；　for　all　decisive　purposes；　had　shrunk　again；　and　now　included　nothing　beyond　Virginia　and　the　Carolinas；　and　even　there　the　Union　forces　had　impregnable　bases　of　attack。　When　Wilmington　fell　in　January　the　only　port　still　left　in　Southern　hands　was　Charleston；　and　that　was　close…blockaded。　Fighting　Confederates　still　remained　in　the　lower　South。　But　victories　like　Olustee；　Florida；　barren　in　'64；　could　not　avail　them　now；　even　if　they　had　the　troops　to　win　them。　The　lower　South　was　now　as　much　isolated　as　the　trans…Mississippi。　Between　its　blockaded　and　garrisoned　coast　on　one　side　and　its　sixty…mile　swath　of　devastation　through　the　heart　of　Georgia　on　the　other　it　might　as　well　have　been　a　shipless　island。　The　same　was　true　of　all　Confederate　places　beyond　Virginia　and　the　Carolinas。　The　last　shots　were　fired　in　Texas　near　the　middle　of　May。　But　they　were　as　futile　against　the　course　of　events　as　was　the　final　act　of　war　committed　by　the　Confederate　raider　Shenandoah　at　the　end　of　June；　when　she　sank　the　whaling　fleet；　far　off　in　the　lone　Pacific。

For　the　last　two　months　of　the　four…years'　war　Davis　made　Lee　Commander…in…Chief。　Lee　at　once　restored　Johnston　to　his　rightful　place。　These　two　great　soldiers　then　did　what　could　be　done　to　stave　off　Grant　and　Sherman。　Lee's　and　Johnston's　problem　was　of　course　insoluble。　For　each　was　facing　an　army　which　was　alone　a　match　for　both。　The　only　chance　of　prolonging　anything　more　than　a　mere　guerilla　war　was　to　join　forces　in　southwest　Virginia；　where　the　only　line　of　rails　was　safe　from　capture　for　the　moment。　But　this　meant　eluding　Grant　and　Sherman；　and　these　two　leaders　would　never　let　a　plain　chance　slip。　They　took　good　care　that　all　Confederate　forces　outside　the　central　scene　of　action　were　kept　busy　with　their　own　defense。　They　also　closed　in　enough　men　from　the　west　to　prevent　Lee　and　Johnston　escaping　by　the　mountains。　Then；　with　the　help　of　the　navy；　having　cut　off　every　means　of　escapenorth；　south；　east；　and　westthey　themselves　closed　in　for　the　death…grip。

By　the　first　of　February　Sherman　was　on　his　way　north　through　the　Carolinas　with　sixty　thousand　picked　men；　drawing　in　reinforcements　as　he　advanced　against　Johnston's　dwindling　forty　thousand；　until　the　thousands　that　faced　each　other　at　the　end　in　April　were　ninety　and　thirty　respectively。　On　the　ninth　of　February　（the　day　Lee　became　Commander…in…Chief）　Sherman　was　crossing　the　rails　between　Charleston　and　Augusta；　of　course　destroying　them。　A　week　later　he　was　doing　the　same　at　Columbia　in　the　middle　of　South　Carolina。　By　this　time　his　old　antagonist；　Johnston；　had　assumed　command；　so　that　he　had　to　reckon　with　the　chances　of　a　battle；　as　on　his　way　against　Atlanta；　and　not　only　with　the　troubles　of　devastating　an　undefended　base；　as　on　his　march　to　the　sea。　The　difficulties　of　hard　marching　through　an　enemy　country　full　of　natural　and　artificial　obstacles　were　also　much　greater　here　than　in　Georgia。　How　well　these　difficulties　could　be　surmounted　by　a　veteran　army　may　be　realized　from　a　recorded　instance　which；　though　it　occurred　elsewhere；　was　yet　entirely　typical。　In　forty　days　an　infantry　division　of　eight　thousand　men　repaired　a　hundred　miles　of　rail　and　built　a　hundred　and　eighty…two　bridges。

Sherman　took　a　month　to　advance　from　Columbia　in　the　middle　of　South　Carolina　to　Bentonville　in　the　middle　of　North　Carolina。　Here　Johnston　stood　his　ground；　and　a　battle　was　fought　from　the　nineteenth　to　the　twenty…first　of　March。　Had　Sherman　known　at　the　time　that　his　own　numbers　were；　as　he　afterwards　reported；　〃vastly　superior；〃　he　might　have　crushed　Johnston　then　and　there。　But；　as　it　was；　he　ably　supported　the　exposed　flank　that　Johnston　so　skillfully　attacked；　won　the　battle；　inflicted　losses　a　good　deal　larger　than　his　own；　and　gained　his　ulterior　objective　as　well　as　if　there　had　not　been　a　fight　at　all。　This　objective　was　the　concentration　of　his　whole　army　round　Goldsboro　by　the　twenty…fifth。　At　Goldsboro　he　held　the　strategic　center　of　North　Carolina；　being　at　the　junction　whence　the　rails　ran　east　to　Newbern　（which　had　long　been　in　Union　hands）；　west　to　meet　the　only　rails　by　which　Lee's　army　might　for　a　time　escape；　and　north　（a　hundred　and　fifty　miles）　to　Grant's　besieging　host　at　Petersburg。　Sherman's　record　is　one　of　which　his　men　might　well　be　proud。　In　fifty　days　from　Savannah　he　had　made　a　winter　march　through　four　hundred　and　twenty…five　miles　of　mud；　had　captured　three　cities；　destroyed　four　railways；　drained　the　Co