CHAPTER XII.

The Campaign in the Mississippi Valley.-Bombardment of Island No. 13.-The Scenes, Incidents, and Results.-Fruits of the Northern Victory.-Movements of the Federals on the Tennessee River.-The BATTLE OF SHILOH.-A "Lost Opportunity." -Death of General Albert Sidney Johnston.-Comparison between the Battles of Shiloh and Manassas.-The Federal Expeditions into North Alabama.-Withdrawal of the Confederate Forces from the Trans-Mississippi District.-General Price and his Command.-The FALL OF NEW ORLEANS.—The Flag Imbroglio.-Major-general Butler.-Causes of the Disaster.-Its Results and Consequences.-The Fate of the Valley of the Mississippi.

THE last period of our narrative of events in Tennessee, left Gen. Johnston making a southward movement towards the left bank of the Tennessee river, for the objects of the defence of Memphis and the Mississippi river, and indicated the important position of Island No. 10, forty-five miles below Columbus, as still in possession of the Confederates.

This important position in the Mississippi river was defended by General Beauregard with extraordinary vigor and success against the fleet of the enemy's gunboats, under the command of Flag-officer Foote. The works were erected with the highest engineering skill, were of great strength, and, with their natural advantages, were thought to be impregnable.

The bombardment of Madrid Bend and Island No. 10 commenced on the 15th of March, and continued constantly night and day. On the 17th a general attack, with five gunboats and four mortar-boats, was made, which lasted nine hours. The attack was unsuccessful. On the first of April, General Beauregard telegraphed to the War Department at Richmond that the bombardment had continued for fifteen days, in which time the enemy had thrown three thousand shells, expending about one hundred thousand pounds of powder, with the result on our side of one man killed and none seriously wounded. The gratifying statement was also made in General Beauregard's dispatches that our batteries were entirely intact. We had disabled one of the enemy's gunboats and another was reported to be sunk, and the results of the bombardment so far as it had

continued, afforded room for congratulation that the fantasy of the invincible power of Yankee gunboats would at last be dispeiled, and that the miserable history of the surrender of all our forts to this power was destined to wind up in a decisive and brilliant Confederate triumph on the waters of the Mississippi. The daily bulletin from Island No. 10, for many days, represented that the enemy, after an incessant bombardment of many hours, had inflicted no injury. The people of the South were constantly assured that the place was impregnable, and that the enemy never could pass it.

The bombardment had been one of unparalleled length in the war. Every day the mortars continued to boom, and still the cannon of the island replied with dull, sullen roar, wasting shot and temper alike. The very birds became accustomed to the artificial thunder, and alighted upon the branches of trees overhanging the mortars in the sulphurous smoke. The scenes of this long bombardment are described as affording some of the most magnificent spectacles-the tongues of flame leaping from the mouths of the mortars amid a crash like a thousand thunders, and then the columns of smoke rolling up in beautiful fleecy spirals, developing into rings of exquisite proportions. It is only necessary for one to realize the sublime poetry of war, as illustrated in the remarkable scenes at Island No. 10, to imagine a dozen of these monsters thundering at once, the air filled with smoke clouds, the gunboats belching out destruction and completely hidden from sight in whirls of smoke, the shells screaming through the air with an unearthly sound, and the distant guns of the enemy sending their solid shot above and around the island, dashing the water up in glistening columns and jets of spray.

While the people of the South were induced to anticipate a decisive and final repulse of the enemy on the waters of the Mississippi, the news reached them through Northern channels that the capture of Island No. 10 had been effected on the 8th of April, and that not only had the position been weakly sur rendered, but that we had saved none of our cannon or muni tions, had lost our boats, and had left about six hundred pris oners on the island in the hands cf the enemy.

The evacuation of the island, which was effected in the greatest precipitation-our sick being abandoned, there being uc

the

concert of action whatever between the Confederates upou island and those occupying the shore, the latter fleeing, leaving the former to their fate-had taken place but two days after Gen. Beauregard had left command of the post for important operations to check the movements of the enemy on the Tennessee river, which were developing a design to cut off his communication in west Tennessee with the eastern and southern States. Gen. Makall had been appointed to take command of the post. He assumed it on the 5th of April, in a flaming order, in which he announced to the soldiers: "Let me tell you who I am. I am a general made by Beauregard-a general selected by Gens. Beauregard and Bragg." In the mean time, the enemy was busy, and his operations were suffered to escape the vigilance of the Confederate com nander. The Federals had cut a canal across the peninsula at New Madrid, through which the steamers and several barges were taken. The undertaking was an herculean one. The canal was twelve miles long, through heavy timber, which had to be sawed off by hand four feet under water.

One of the enemy's gunboats had succeeded in passing the island in a heavy fog. On the night of the 5th of April, the enemy, with a gunboat engaged Rucker's battery. While attention was engaged with this boat, a second gunboat slipped down unperceived, except by the men at one of the batteries, who fired two shots at her without effect. The situation was now serious; the enemy had possession of the river below the island. On the night of April 6, Gen. Makall moved the infantry and Stewart's battery to the Tennessee shore, to protect the landing from anticipated attacks. The artillerists remained on the island. The enemy having effected a landing above and below the island in large force, its surrender might be considered as a military necessity. But there could be no excuse for the wretched management and infamous scenes that attended the evacuation. All our guns, seventy in number, varying in calibre from 32 to 100 pounders, rifled, were abandoned, together with our magazines, which were well supplied with powder, large quantities of shot, shell, and other munitions of war. The transports and boats were scuttled. Nothing seems to have been done properly. The guns were spiked with rat-tail files, but so imperfectly that several of them

were rendered serviceable to the enemy in a very short time. The floating battery, formerly the Pelican Dock at New Or leans, of sixteen heavy guns, after being scuttled, was cut loose. At daylight it was found lodged a short distance above Point Pleasant, and taken possession of by the enemy. Four steamers afloat fell into the hands of the enemy, with all the stores on board.

The unhappy men on the island were abandoned to their fate, the Confederates on the mainland having fled with precipitation. On one of the hospital boats were a hundred poor wretches, half dead with disease and neglect. On the shore were crowds of our men wandering around among the profusion of ammunition and stores. A few of them effected their escape through the most remarkable dangers and adventures. Eome trusted themselves to hastily constructed rafts, with which to float down the Mississippi, hoping to attract the attention and aid of the people living on the shore. Others gained the upper banks of the river, where, for several days and nights, they wandered, lost in the extensive cane-brakes, without food, and in severe toil. Some two or three hundred of the stragglers, principally from the forces on the mainland, succeeded in making their way to Bell's Station, on the Ohio railroad, and reached Memphis.

The disaster was considerable enough in the loss of Island No. 10; but the circumstances attending it, and the consequences in the loss of men, cannon, ammunition, supplies, and every thing appertaining to an army, all of which might possibly have been avoided, increased the regrets of the South, and swelled the triumph of her enemies. Our total loss in prisoners, including those taken on the mainland as well as those abandoned on the island, was probably not less than two thousand. The Federal Secretary of the Navy, Mr. Welles, had reason to declare, that "the triumph was not the less appreciated, because it was protracted, and finally bloodless.' No single battle-field had yet afforded to the North such visible fruits of victory as had been gathered at Island No. 10.

THE BATTLE OF SHILOH.

In the mean time, the movements of the enemy on the Ten nessee river were preparing the situation for one of the grand est battles that had yet been fought in any quarter of the war, or had yet illustrated the exasperation and valor of the contestants. Gen. Beauregard had determined to foil the apparent designs of the enemy to cut off his communication with the south and east, by concentrating all his available forces at and around Corinth. This town is situated at the junction of the Memphis and Charleston and the Mobile and Ohio railroads, about ninety-two miles east of Memphis.

Gen. Johnston had taken up a line of march from Murfreesboro, to form a junction of his forces with those of General Beauregard. By the 1st of April, these united forces were concentrated along the Mobile and Ohio railroad from Bethel to Corinth, and on the Memphis and Charleston railroad from Corinth to Iuka. The army of the Mississippi had received other important accessions. It was increased by several regiments from Louisiana, two divisions of Gen. Polk's command from Columbus, and a fine corps of troops from Mobile and Pensacola. In numbers, in discipline, in the galaxy of tho distinguished names of its commanders, and in every article of merit and display, the Confederate army in the vicinity of Corinth was one of the most magnificent ever assembled by the Sonth on a single battle-field.

The enemy under Gen. Grant, on the west bank of the Ten nessee, had obtained a position at Pittsburg and in the direction of Savannah. An advance was contemplated by him, as soon as he could be reinforced by the army under Gen. Buell, then known to be advancing for that purpose by rapid marches from Nashville by the way of Columbus. To prevent this demonstration, it was determined by Gen. Beauregard to press the issue without delay. By a rapid and vigorous attack on Gen. Grant, it was expected he would be beaten back into his transports and the river, or captured in time to enable the Confederates to profit by the victory, and remove to the rear all the stores and munitions that would fall into their hands, in such an event, before the arrival of Gen. Buell's ariny on