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boats. The time had passed to make a lodgment on the railroad by a dash: whatever was to be done now must be done deliberately and systematically.

burg Landing.

On the receipt of Sherman's letter, Smith reconnoitred Occupation of Pitts Pittsburg Landing in person, and found that it was well adapted as a base for a large army operating inland. He therefore ordered Hurlbut's division to occupy it; and then directed Sherman to move his division there, and take a position out from the river, so as to leave room for a large army behindroom enough, he said, " for a hundred thousand men."

I am particular in relating these details of the manner in which Pittsburg Landing came to be occupied, because Grant has not only been criticised, but severely blamed for what he is supposed to have done in the matter. That great soldier has made no reply, justly expecting that his tory would eventually vindicate him.

around Shiloh.

The bluff at Pittsburg Landing extended about half a The topography mile along the river: the road to the top was in a ravine, at the foot of which lay four or five steam-boats of Hurlbut's division. As this road was not more than sufficient for their accommodation, Sherman caused two more to be cut up through the bluff, which was a high plateau inclining from the west, and intersected with ravines right and left. A country road led from the landing to Corinth. At a distance upon it of about two and a quarter miles stood a little log building embowered in trees, known as Shiloh Church. It had nei ther doors nor windows, and was only half floored. When first visited there was a pile of corn in the husk on the floor. It was simply a place where Methodist camp-meetings were occasionally held, and had of late been used as a Confederate picket station. The greater part of the pla teau, a space of four miles by two and a half or three, was covered with heavy oaks, and an underbrush of hick

CHAP. L.]

ory

POSTING OF THE TROOPS.

285

and scrub; near to the landing, however, it was cleared. Sherman carefully reconnoitred. the ground, and put two of his brigades on the Corinth Road, on the right and left of the meeting-house; another brigade he put more to the right and somewhat refused, to command the Purdy Road at the Owl Creek Crossing, and the other (Stewart's) to cover the Lick Creek Ford. Thus his division, 8000 strong, was an outlying force to cover all the main roads leading to the landing. There was a short gap between his centre and right, and a wide one, of nearly two and a half miles, between his centre and left brigade (Stewart's), partially covered by Hurlbut.

Posting of the troops.

As soon as these camps were selected, Sherman and McPherson examined all the country on the front and flanks, moving out ten miles toward Corinth as far as Monterey. McPherson had been sent, by order of Smith, to post the army as it arrived. Hurlbut's division was put in line to the left of the main Corinth Road, his right where the Hamburg Road branches to the left, and Smith's own division (then commanded by General W. H. L. Wallace) was on Hurlbut's right.

McPherson placed McClernand's division about a mile in front of W. H. L. Wallace, and Prentiss's to his left, Lewis Wallace's division still remaining on the road to Purdy. It communicated with the main army by an old bridge which was over Snake Creek. These dispositions were made between the 20th of March and the 6th of April.

Death of General
Smith.

In the mean time General Smith had fallen seriously ill. He had received what appeared to be an insignificant injury-a mere scratch on his leg, in stepping into a boat. Gangrene came on, and he died on the 25th of April. His health had been ruined by exposure and fatigue at Fort Donelson.

Restoration of Grant to command.

It is to be remarked that most of the arrangements thus far made were not by order of Grant, for it was not until the illness of Smith that Halleck restored him to command. At this moment the Tennessee River was separating the army. In an hour after taking command Grant had ordered his forces to be concentrated. He established his head-quar ters at Savannah (March 17th), where he could communicate with Buell, who was coming from Nashville, and with Lewis Wallace, who was at Crump's Landing. It is also to be borne in mind that these movements were under the supreme direction of Halleck, who was at St. Louis, and whose intention was to make a lodgment on the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. All the landings except the bluffs were at this time flooded. The first ob ject was to secure positions commanding the Tennessee and bases for future operations. The west bank of the river was preferred, because it rendered unnecessary pontoons and transports for crossing.

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at Corinth.

The first line of Confederate defense having been swept Beauregard's army away by the capture of Fort Donelson, Beauregard, who had been sent by the Richmond authorities to supervise the movements in the Mississippi Valley, established a second along the line of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. The army immediately under his command was at Corinth, about 30 miles from Pittsburg Landing. His views of the measures to be resorted to for the defense of the valley were far more cor rect than those hitherto adopted by the Confederate gov ernment. His intention was not to divide, but to concen. trate all the available Confederate forces; and this he would have done previously had he arrived in time to prevent the disaster at Donelson.

He therefore, as rapidly as he could, withdrew the

CHAP. L.]

Concentration of the Confederate forces.

CONCENTRATION OF THE ARMIES.

287

forces from every outlying position. He was joined by Bragg, from Pensacola, by Polk, from the Mississippi, and Johnston's army was brought from Murfreesborough. The whole force was concentrated at Corinth, where the two great railroads connecting the Gulf of Mexico and the Missis sippi River with the Atlantic Ocean come together. That place is the key of the railroad system of Mississippi and Tennessee. Beauregard issued the customary and characteristic address to his troops: "Our mothers and wives, our sisters and children, expect us to do our duty. Our cause is as just and sacred as ever animated men to take up arms."

Corinth was thus selected not only because of its relation to the railroads, but also because it was necessary to hold it for the protection of Memphis. The national army, advancing on the line of the Tennessee River, would strike the second Confederate line perpendicularly. It had been Halleck's expectation to intervene between the Tennessee army under Johnston at Murfreesborough, and the Mississippi army under Beauregard at Corinth. Through the delay that had occurred after the fall of Donelson, the junction of those armies had, however, taken place. As soon as it was discovered that Johnston had disappeared from Murfreesborough at Buell's the national armies. front, and was about to form a junction with Beauregard, Halleck, whose command now embraced Buell's, ordered that officer to join Grant, with a view to counteract the Confederate concentration at Corinth. Buell's force was about 40,000. He accordingly at once set out on his march, and reached Columbia on the 20th; but, though he pushed forward as quickly as he could, so bad were the roads and so dreadful the weather that it took seventeen days to accomplish the rest of the distance to Pittsburg Landing-about ninety miles. Nelson's divis

Concentration of

ion was in advance; it was followed by the divisions of Crittenden, McCook, Wood, and Thomas.

The concentration of the Confederate army, which had begun early in March, went on with great rapidity. In three weeks its strength had risen from 11,000 to 45,000 men. Van Dorn and Price were coming from Arkansas with 30,000 more. After the junction with Johnston took place, that general had assumed the chief command, Beauregard's plan Beauregard being second. The conception of the campaign. of the ensuing movements was, however, due to the latter. As Halleck had intended to destroy him before Johnston could come to his aid, so now he proposed to destroy Grant before Buell could arrive. He knew from the country people every thing about Grant's movements, but it was little that Grant could find out from them about him. The question for him to decide was, Should he wait for Van Dorn and Price to come up, or strike Grant at once? At this time Breckenridge was on his right at Burnsville with 11,000 men; Hardee and Bragg, with more than 20,000, formed his centre at Corinth ; Polk and Hindman were on his left with 10,000 north of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. Grant overthrown, Buell was next to be attacked, the victorious army then taking up its line of march to the north. On Johnston's assuming the chief command, he issued an address, such as was at that time customary in the Confederate armies: "You are expected to show yourselves worthy of your valor and courage, worthy of the women of the South, whose noble devotion in this war has never been exceeded in any time."

Pittsburg Landing is a steam-boat station on the west bank of the Tennessee River, 219 miles disPittsburg Landing. tant from its mouth, and near to the intersection of the state lines of Alabama, Mississippi, and TenOn the north of the landing, Snake Creek, and

nessee.

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