not more than 14,179 were effective, with a cavali'y force little over live
thousand. Florida was destitute of troops, and South Carolina was pretty
much in the condition of a conquered province, there being no known
Confederate force in it beyond a division of cavalry less than one thou-
sand. Gen. Johnston found himself by the disaster in Virginia, opposed
to a combined force of alarming magnitude ; there was great difficulty in
supplying his troops; the enemy had already captured all workshops with-
in the Confederacy for the preparation of ammunition and repairing of
arms ; and thus embarrassed, crippled and disheartened, what was ac-
counted in point of importance the second army of the Confederacy, num-
bering on its rolls more than seventy thousand men, and yet reduced to
less than one-third of this number by desertions and " absenteeism," aban-
doned the hope of successful war, and prepared to surrender.
SURRENDER OF JOHNSTON S ARMY.
On the night of the 13tli April, Sherman's army had halted some four-
teen miles from Raleigh, when it received the news of the surrender of
Lee. The next day it occupied Raleigh ; Gen. Johnston having taken up
a line of retreat by the railroad running by Ilillsboro, Greensboro, Salis-
bury and Charlotte. Sherman commenced pursuit by crossing the cui-ve
of that road in tlie direction of Ashboro, and Charlotte ; and after the head
of his column had crossed the Cape Fear River at Avens Ferry, he re-
ceived a communication from Gen. Johnston on the 15th April, asking if
some arrangement could not be effected, which should prevent the further
useless effusion of blood. It was eventually arranged that a personal in-
terview should take place between the two commanders at a designated
point; and on the 18tli April, they met at a farm-house, five miles from
Durham Station, under a flag of truce. In proposing a surrender, Gen.
tfohnstou wanted some more general concessions than had been made in
the case of Gen Lee ; and the result was a military convention, which Gtin.
Johnston declared that he signed " to spare the blootl of his gallant little
army, to prevent further suffering of the people by the devastation and
ruin inevitable from the marches of invading armies, and to avoid the crime
of waging a hopeless war." This document, which we place here, was cer*
tainly an extraordinary ona on Sherman's part.
716 THE LOST CAUSE.
JMemorajstdum, or Basis of Agreement, made this eujliteenth day of April, A. D. 1865,
near Durham Station, in the State of North Carolina, Tjy and tetween Gen. Joseph E.
Johnston, commanding Confederate Army, and Maj.-Gen. W. T. Shci'man, commanding
Army of the United States, in North Carolina, loth being present :
1. The contending armies now in tlie field to maintain the status quo, until notice is
given by the commanding general of any one to its opponent, and reasonable time, say
forty-eight hours, allowed.
2. The Confederate armies now in existence to be disbanded, and conducted to
their several State capitals, therein to deposit their arms and public property in the
State arsenal, and each officer and man to execute and file an agreement to cease from
acts of war, and to abide the action of both State and Federal authorities. The num-
ber of arms and munitions of war to be reported to the chief of ordnance at Washing-
ton City, subject to the future action of the Congress of the United States, and in the
meantime to be used solely to maintain peace and order within the borders of the States
respectively.
3. The recognition by the Executive of the United States of the several State
governments, on their officers and legislatures taking the oath prescribed by the Con-
stitution of the United States ; and where conflicting State governments have resulted
from the war, the legitimacy of all shall be submitted to the Supreme Court of the
United States.
4. The re-establishment of all Federal courts in the several States, with powers as
defined by the Constitution and laws of Congress.
5. The people and inhabitants of all these States to be guarantied, so far as the
Executive can, their political rights and franchises, as well as their rights of person
and property, as defined by the Constitution of the United States and of the States
respectively.
G. Tlie Executive authority of the Government of the United States not to disturb
any of the people by reason of the late war, so long as they live in peace and quiet and
abstain from acts of armed hostility, and obey the laws in existence at the place of their
residence.
7. In general terms, the war to cease — a general amnesty, so far as the Executive of
the United States can command, on the condition of the disbandment of the Confed-
erate armies, distribution of the arms, and the resumption of peaceable pursuits by the
officers and men hitherto composing said armies.
Not being duly empowered by our respective principals to fulfil these terms, we
individually and officially pledge ourselves to promptly obtain an answer thereto, and
to carry out the above programme.
W. T. SHERMAN, Major- General,
Commanding Army U. S. in N. C.
J. E. JOHNSTON, General,
Commanding C. S. A. in N. 0.
Tlierc was mncli surprise on tlie part of tlie Soutliern people, that a
man of Sliennan's furious antecedents and incendiary record in the war,
Bliould exhibit such a spirit of liberality as contained in the above paper.
But furtlier developments explained the apparent contradiction, and
showed that Sherman intended the paper only as a snare ; that he was
prepared to violate its spirit as soon as it was signed ; that he had made
up his mind to disregard the paroles he took, and to refuse to protect
HYPOCRISY OF GEN. SHERMAN. 717
them ; and that he was performing a part of hypocrisy, the meanest it is
possible to conceive. A few weeks after the conference at Durham
Station, this man had the astounding hardihood to testify as follows
before a committee of the Congress at AVashington : " It then occurred
to me that I might write off some general propositions, meaning little^ or
meaning much, according to the construction of parties — what I would
term ' glittering generalities ' — and send them to "Washington, which
I could do in four days. I therefore drew up the Memorandum (which
has been published to the world) for the purpose of referring it to the
proper Executive authority of the United States, and enabling him to
define to me what I might promise, simply to cover the pride of the
Southern men, who thereby became subordinate to the laws of the United
States, civil and military. If any concessions were made in those general
terms, they were made because I then believed, and now believe, they
would have delivered into the hands of the United States the alsolute
control of every Confederate officer and soldier, all their muster-rolls,
and all their arms. 2 never designed to shelter a human heing from, any
liability incurred in consequence of past acts to the civil tribunals of our
country, and I do not believe a fair and manly interpretation of my terms
can so construe them, for the words, " United States courts," " United
States authorities," " limitations of executive power," occur in every para-
graph. And if they seemingly yield terms better than the public would
desire to be given to the Southern people, if studied closely and well, it
will he found that there is an absolute submission on their part to the
Government of the United States, cither through its executive, legislative,
or judicial authorities."
It is almost impossible to find terms, within the decent vocabulary of
history, to characterize the effrontery and self-complacency of this con-
fession of a game of 'hypocrisy with a conquered honorable adversary,
surrendering his arms with full faith in the promises of the conqueror !
But even this record of double-dealing was to be surpassed. The man
who affected so much generosity at Durham Station, and signed the name
of " W. T. Sherman, Major-General, &c. " to the Memorandum quoted
above, took occcasion, after the surrender of Lee and Johnston, to make
the following speech at a soldiers' festival in the State of Ohio : —
" When the rebels ventured their all in their efforts to destroy our Government, they
pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honours to their cause. The
Government accepted their wager of battle. Hence, when we conquered, we, h/ conquest,
gained all they had — their property lecame ours hy conqtiest Thus they lost their slaves,
their mules, their horses, their cotton, their all ; and even their lives and personal liberty,
thrown by them into the issue, were theirs only hy our forbearance and clemency. So,
soldiers, when we marched through and conquered the country of the rebels, we lecanu
wmers of all they had, and I don't want you to be troubled in your consciences for
718 THE LOST CAUSE.
takin"', wliile on our great marcli, the jDroperty of conquered rebels. They forfeited
thicir rights to it, and I, being agent for the Government to which I belonged, gave you
authority to keep all the quartermasters couldn't take possession of or didn't want.
Such an example of astounding inconsistency, such a record of iia-
blushinf hypocrisy no public man could stand against for a day, except
in that peculiar community of the North, where demagogueism and time-
service are fair games, and " the smart man " gets the plaudits of the
multitude, no matter in what line of conduct he asserts his ingenuity.
It may well be imagined that the truce of Durham Station was dis-
regarded at Washington, and that no time was lost there in repudiating
the propositions contained in Sherman's basis of agreement, which, in the
extravagant language of that amateur diplomatist, was to restore " peace
to the banks of the Rio Grande." Of course, no plan could be entertained
at Washington that substituted the simple idea of a restored Union for
that of subjugation. The Federal Government, as is already apparent in
these pages, was not likely to be satisfied with anything short of the abo-
lition of slavery in the South, the extinction of the State governments,
or their reduction to provisional establishments, and the programme ot
a general confiscation of property. Sherman was censured and denounced
in a way that shook his tactitious military reputation ; and it was said to
be the madness of generosity to abolish the confiscation laws, and relieve
" rebels " from all pains and penalties for their crimes. It was at once
telegraphed fi'om Washington throughout the country, that Sherman's
truce was disregarded, and that Grant would go to North Carolina to
compel Johnston's surrender on the same terms as Gen. Lee had accepted.
On this basis, the surrender was eventually made ; but Gen. Grant was
generous enough to forbear taking control of Sherman's army, contenting
himself with prompting that commander to what the AVashington Gov-
ernment had declared should be the text of the negotiations.
In following the logical chain of consequences of Gen. Lee's surrender,
we are led to notice how each section of the Confederate defences gave
way with this event. We have already seen how the cordon of the
Atlantic States fell with Johnston's surrender ; and we shall now see how
the system of Confederate defence fell in the Southwest ; and how, in a
little time thereafter, the department of the Trans-Mississippi was pros-
trated, completing the downfall of the Southern Confederacy.
OPERATIONS IN THE SOUTHWEST — CAPTURE OF MOBILE — WILSON's EXPEDITION.
As part of the general design of the Federal arms in 1865, a move-
ment was prepared earl^ - in that year against the city of Mobile and the
OPERATIONS IN THE SOUTH-WEST. 719
interiour of Alabama. When Hood's ill-fated army was beaten and driven
across the Tennessee River, the troops which Gen. Canby had sent to aid
Thomas were returned, and, being heavily reinforced, prepared to under-
take, with assured success, the capture of the city of Mobile — an enteiprise
which had not yet been ventured upon, unless very remotely, by any
Federal army.
The works of Mobile were very strong, and the supplies of food were
abundant for a siege. The heavy ordnance was excellent and well dis-
posed. But tlie garrison was few in number, and the supply of ammu-
nition was small. Other important interests of the Confederacy would
admit of no more troops, nor of more ammunition being placed in Mobile.
A large Federal army was soon collected on the waters near Mobile,
with a very great naval force and a fleet of transports adequate to all the
requirements of so great an expedition. Early in March, the preparations
for attack seemed complete. But the weather was bad and unfavourable
to operations. On the 25th March, Gen. Canby commenced to move his
forces to the attack. Two corps of infantry, respectively commanded by
Gens. Granger and A. J. Smith, (the whole commanded by Canby in per-
son) marclied from their camp on and near Fish River, against the posi-
tions occupied by Gen Maury at Spanish Fort and Blakely.
The same day, a corps of infantry, with a strong force of cavalry, moved,
under command of Gen. Steele, from Pensacola towards Salem, via Pol-
lard. The whole of Canby's forces now in motion may be estimated at
near sixty thousand effectives, being three corps of infantry, and about six
thousand cavalry.
The whole artillery and infantry effective force holding Mobile, under
Gen. Maury's command, numbered less than eight thousand. His cavalry
numbered less than fifteen hundred, and were not available in the siege
operations.
On the 26th March, Canby appeared in heavy force before Spanish
Fort, and commmenced its siege. The same day, he threw a division as if
against Fort Blakely, but did not yet take position for its siege. The
position of Spanish Fort was about twelve miles from Mobile, on the east-
ern shore of Appalachie River, about two and a half miles above its mouth.
The position was important as commanding the batteries, Huger and
Tracey, which held the Appalachie River. The fortifications when the
siege commenced, consisted of a battery on the water of six heavy guns and
of three detached redoubts (open in the gorge) connected by a lineof rifie-
pits, with a line of abattis in front ; the whole sweeping in a sort of semi-
circle, and resting both fianks on the river. The whole length of coast was
about a mile and a half. Gen, Randall Gibson, of Louisiana, commanded
the forces and conducted the defence of Spanish Fort. The garrison of
Spanish Fort was made up of the veteran Louisiana brigade of Gibson,
720 THE LOST CAUSE.
(five hundred muskets), the veteran Alabama brigade, of Holtzclaw,
(seven hundred muskets), and a brigade of Alabama hoys "under Brig.-Gen.
Thomas, numbering about nine hmidred effectives. There were besides,
several companies of the Twenty-second Louisiana heavy artillery, and
tliree companies of light artillery. Soon after the siege commenced, the
brigade of boy-reserves was exchanged for Eaton's Texans and Korth Car-
olinians, which numbered only about five hundred muskets, and which
made the whole infantry force about seventeen hundred muskets.
The enemy pressed his siege energetically, but cautiously. The defence
was vigourous, bold and defiant. The little garrison, when manning their
works, as they did incessantly for sixteen days and nights, stood in single
rank, and several feet apart. The experience of defence soon showed that
many things were lacking ; but the troops vigourously applied' themselves
to remedy the defects, and in a few nights had constructed traverses and
bomb-proofs, and chevaux-de-frise and rifle-pits, which proved amply suf
ficient for all their subsequent requirements. By energetic digging, the
enemy managed to advance to within one hundred yards of portions of the
main line of defence. He continually increased his batteries. He finally
opened at close range, with a great number of wooden mortars ; and al
though, in the early part of the operations, the skill and energy of Slocum'a
and Massenberg's, and Potter's artillerists could always silence the
enemy's guns, they were quite ineffective now, and towards the close, every
gun of the Confederates was easily silenced.
On the 8th April, Gen. Maury, after conference with Gen. Gibson, de-
cided that the defence had been protracted long enough, and gave orders
to commence that night to remove the surplus material, and stores, and
men, so that by the night of the 11th, the whole force should be with-
drawn. Early in the night of the 8th, the enemy made a forward move-
ment on Gibson's left flank and established himself in such a position as
would cut off farther communications by the river with Mobile, and im-
peril the garrison. In pursuance of his general instructions, Gibson with-
drew his garrison at once, and evacuated the position of Spanish Fort,
necessarily leaving his guns and stores to the enemy. The garrison was
immediately transferred to the city of Mobile, which, it was judged, would
be soon attacked. Col. Fatten tansferred his headquarters to Battery
Huger, upon which, and Tracey, would depend the defence of the Appa-
lachie River.
On the 31st March, Steele, who had marched with his corps from Fen-
Bacola, had dispersed the cavalry force, which, under Clauton, opposed his
advance at Fine Barren Creek, and occupied Follard ; and now sudden y
appeared before Blakely and commenced to besiege it.
Gen. St. John Liddell, of Louisiana, commanded the forces at Blakely,
which consisted of about 2,300 muskets, and three or four companies of
CAPTUEE OF MOBILE. 721
artillery — in all about 2,600 effectives. The ground was better for defence
than at Spanish Fort. Tlie works were better placed ; and it was believed
that the enemy would make but slow progress in its siege. The garrison
consisted of the Missouri brigade, about four hundred and fifty muskets,
under Gates ; a Mississippi brigade, eight hundred muskets ; the brigade
of Alabama boy-reserves, under Thomas, nine hundred muskets ; a regi-
ment of Mississippi dismounted light artillerists armed with muskets, and
several companies of artillery.
Very little progress had been made in the siege of Blakely, when
Spanish Fort was evacuated on the 8th April. During the following day,
however, Canby was sending up his army from about Spanish Fort to-
wards Blakely ; and in the evening, at" five o'clock, he made a grand as-
sault with a column of twenty-five thousand infantry. After being re-
pulsed on many parts of the line, he succeeded in overwhelming the little
garrison, and capturing it with the position.
Gen. Maury found his force now reduced to less than five thousand ef-
fective infantry and artillery ; his ammunition almost exhausted ; and the
city of Mobile, with its population of more than thirty thousand non-com-
batants, exposed to the danger of assault and sack, by an army of more
than fifty thousand men, ten thousand of whom were negroes. His in-
structions from his superiour officer were to save his garrison, and evacuate
the city whenever he should find that judicious defence could no longer
be made, and that an opportunity of withdrawing the garrison was still
open to him.
On the night of the fall of Blakely, he resolved to evacuate Mobile,
and save his army. On the morning of the 10th, the operations of the
evacuation commenced. Many steamers were in the port prepared for
this contingency ; upon them were hastily thrown such ordnance stores as
remained fit for troops in the field, all of the light guns, and the best of the
quartermaster's and commissary stores. The garrisons of the redoubts and
batteries about the city were also embarked on these steamers, and sent
up the Tombigbee river to Demopolis. The infantry forces accompanied
the wagon train by the dirt road to Mendina or w^ere sent up on the cars.
The large depots of commissary stores were turned over to the mayor of
Mobile, for the use of the people of the city.
In the morning of the 12th April, the evacuation was completed. Gen.
Maury, with his staff, and the rear-guard of three hundred Louisianians,
under Col. Lindsay, moved out of the city at daylight. Gen. Gibson re-
mained to see to the execution of the orders, relative to the drawing in of
the cavalry force of Col. Spence, which was to burn the cotton in the city,
and then cover the rear of the army. After having seen to the execution
of every order, Gen. Gibson directed the Mayor of the city to go out to
the fleet with a white flag, and apprise the Federal authorities that Mobile
46
122 THE LOST CAUSE.
had been entirely evacuated by the Confederate forces, and tbat no resist-
ance would be offered to the enemy's entrance into the city. About two
o'clock in the afternoon, Gen. Canby with his forces, marched into Mobile,
and peaceably occupied it.
The Federal navy took but little part in the operations. Two monitors
were sunk by torpedoes in an attempt to cross Appalachie Bar, when the
fleet desisted from further action. During the progress of the evacuation,
the little isolated garrisons of Tracey and Huger, under Col. Patton's
command, restrained and returned with great effect the heavy fire of the
enemy's batteries on the eastern shore. Here was fired the last cannon
for the Confederacy in the war.
Whilst the operations against Mobile were in progress, a heavy move-
ment of Federal cavalry was completing the plan of subjugation in the
Southwest. An expedition, consisting of twelve thousand five hundred
men, was placed under command of Gen. Wilson, who had been detailed
from Thomas' army, and directed to make a demonstration, from East-
port, at the head of steamboat navigation on the Tennessee Kiver upon
Tuscaloosa and Selma, in favour of Canby's operations against Mobile and
Central Alabama.
On the 22d March, all the arrangements having been perfected, and
the order of march designated, the movement began. At this time Gen.
Forrest's forces were near West Point, Mississippi, one hundred and fifty
miles southwest of Eastport, while Gen. Koddy occupied Montevallo, on
the Alabama and Tennessee River Railroad, nearly the same distance to
the southeast. By starting on diverging roads, Wilson expected t'o leave
the Confederates in doubt as to his real object, and compel their small
bodies of cavalry to watch equally Columbus, Tuscaloosa and Selma.
The enemy in full strength approached Selma on the 2d April, Gen.
Forrest, after an affair with his advance near Ebenezer Church, had fallen
back to Selma. He had developed Wilson's force, and knew that he would
not be able to save the city with the limited force under his command ;
but he determined to discharge what he considered to be his duty, and to
make the best fight he could under the circumstances. The line of works
was about four miles long. It was held by not more than three thousand
men in all ; fully one-half of whom were undrilled, untrained militia, with
old-fashioned muskets in their hands, and so strung out over the ground
they had to defend, that they were from five to ten feet apart. Skirmish-
ing commenced in front of the works about noon. About four or five
o'clock, a charge was made against that part of the line near the point
where the Selma and Meridian Railroad crossed the works, and which was
held by a Kentucky brigade, under the command of Gen. Buford. After
an obstinate fight, the position was carried ; the enemy came into posses-
sion of one of the most important depots in the southwest ; and having oc-
i
DEFENCE OF WEST POINT. 723
cupied Selma, destroyed the arsenals, foundries, arms, stores and military
munitions of every kind. Gen. Forrest escaped with a portion of his com-
mand. Having captured Sehna, and communicated with Gen. Canby,
"Wilson determined to move by the way of Montgomery into Georgia, and
after breaking up raih'oads, and destroying stores and anny supplies, in
that State, to march thence as rapidly as possible to the theatre of opera-
tions in North Carolina and Virginia. On the l2th April, his advance
guard reached Montgomery and received the surrender of the city. Tlience
a force marched direct on Columbus, and another on West Point. Both
of these places were assaulted and captured on the IGtli ; but at West
Point, tliere was an episode of desperate Confederate valour in the dreary
story of a country overrun almost without resistance.
Gen. R. C. Tyler, with an obstinate heroism, unsurpassed during the
war, determined to hold West Pont, with less than three hnndred men.
lie believed the maintenance of his post, and the delay of the opposing