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CHAPTER XLIII.

GEN. LEE'S SURRENDER THE DECISIVE EVENT OF THE WAR. STRENGTH AND SITUATION OF THE CONFEDERATE FORCES SOUTH OF VIRGINIA. SURRENDER OF JOHNSTON'S ARMY.—GEN. JOHNSTON'S LINE OF RETREAT FROM RALEIGH.-SHERMAN'S PURSUIT. THE CONFERENCE AT DURHAM STATION.-SHERMAN'S "MEMORANDUM OR BASIS OF AGREEMENT.”—HE ATTEMPTS AN EXTRAORDINARY GAME OF HYPOCRISY.-HIS ASTOUNDING CONFESSIONS AT WASHINGTON.-CURIOUS SPEECH AT A SOLDIERS' FESTIVAL.—SHERMAN'S CONVENTION WITH JOHNSTON REPUDIATED AT WASHINGTON.-JOHNSTON COMPELLED TO SURRENDER ON THE TERMS GIVEN LEE.-REVIEW OF THE SECTIONS OF CONFEDERATE DEFENCE. OPERATIONS IN THE SOUTHWEST.-CAPTURE OF MOBILE.-WILSON'S EXPEDITION. THE EXPEDITION OF GEN. CANBY AGAINST MOBILE AND CENTRAL ALABAMA.-STATEMENTS OF HIS FORCE. THE WORKS AND GARRISON OF MOBILE.-SIEGE OF SPANISH FORT.-GEN. MAURY ORDERS ITS EVACUATION. CAPTURE OF FORT BLAKELY.-EVACUATION OF MOBILE.-HOW WILSON'S CAVALRY WAS TO CO-OPERATE WITH CANBY.-DISPOSITION OF THE FORCES OF GENS. FORREST AND RODDY.-CAPTURE OF SELMA, MONTGOMERY AND COLUMBUS.—THE HEROIC EPISODE of west POINT.-WILSON ADVANCES UPON MACON.-NEWS OF SHERMAN'S TRUCE.—SURRENDER OF ALL THE CONFEDERATE FORCES IN ALABAMA, MISSISSIPPI AND EAST LOUISIANA. THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI.-SURRENDER OF GEN. SMITH.-HOPE OF PROLONGING THE WAR WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.—THE LAST CALCULATION OF “EUROPEAN RECOGNITION."—SURRENDER OF THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI ARMY TO GEN. CANBY.— THE DOWNFALL OF THE CONFEDERACY COMPLETE.-SOME REFLECTIONS ON THE TERMINATION OF THE WAR.-ITS FLAT CONCLUSION.-NO GRAND CATASTROPHE.-EXPLANATION OF THIS. THEORIES, TO ACCOUNT FOR THE FAILURE OF THE CONFEDERACY.—THE VULGAR ARGUMENT OF THE NUMERICAL SUPERIOURITY OF THE NORTH.-HOW THIS ARGUMENT IS DEFECTIVE. THE TRUE BASIS OF COMPARISON BETWEEN THE MILITARY FORCES OF NORTH AND SOUTH.-THE NUMERICAL INEQUALITY NOT SUFFICIENT TO DETERMINE THE WAR AGAINST THE SOUTH.-INCONSISTENCY OF THIS ARGUMENT ON THE PART OF SOUTHERN LEADERS. THE RELATION OF NUMBERS TO OTHER ELEMENTS OF THE CONTEST.-WHAT ADVANTAGES THE SOUTH HAD IN THE EXTENT AND FEATURES OF HER TERRITORY.-GENERAL CONCLUSION, AND AN IMPORTANT REFLECTION CONSEQUENT UPON IT.

THE surrender of Gen. Lee was plainly the decisive event of the war, and drew after it rapid and important consequences. The situation in the Atlantic States south of Virginia, was weak; and that part of the Confederacy had been for some time thoroughly demoralized. The limits of Johnston's command included North and South Carolina, Georgia and

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