Heroes of the Great Conflict; Life and Services of William Farrar / Smith, Major General, United States Volunteer in the Civil War

by James Harrison Wilson

It is here worthy of remark that for nearly a quarter of a century both Grant and Sherman believed and contended—in fact both died in the belief—that Sherman's lodgement on the foot-hills at the north end of Missionary Ridge, and his unsuccessful attack from that place, caused Bragg to so weaken his center by withdrawing troops from his center and left, to resist Sherman, that Thomas met with but little resistance when he advanced to the attack about ten hours later, in obedience to Grant's personal order. But it has been shown by irrefutable testimony, and is now conceded, that there is not a word of truth in this supposition—"that nothing of the kind occurred," and that in face of all statements and suppositions to the contrary, however natural they may have seemed at the time, "not a single regiment, nor a single piece of artillery," not even "a single Confederate soldier was withdrawn from Thomas's front to Sherman's on the final day of the battle. All the Confederate reports are clear and specific on that point."

The simple fact is that the plan of operations for Sherman were clear and perfect, and they were carried out in their initial stage without fault or accident, but their execution in the final and vital stage was marred by Sherman himself or by his subordinates, who never reached the point from which they could strike a fatal blow, or from which they could have taken possession of Bragg's communications with the rear.

That Sherman was entirely satisfied with Smith's part in carrying out the plan, is shown beyond dispute by his report, which bears

"willing testimony to the completeness of this whole business. All the officers charged with the work were present and manifested a skill which I cannot praise too highly. I have never beheld any work done so quietly, so well, and I doubt if the history of war can show a bridge of * * 1350 feet, laid down so noiselessly and well in so short a time. I attribute it to the genius and intelligence of General William F. Smith."

The genuineness of this praise is strikingly attested by General Grant, who almost immediately after the battle again urged the Secretary of War to give Smith the promotion which he had previously recommended. Unmistakably referring to the part taken by Smith in making and carrying out the plans which had yielded such notable results, he wrote, among other things: "Recent events have entirely satisfied me of his great capabilities and merits. I hasten to renew the recommendation and to urge it."

Shortly afterwards Grant followed this letter by another asking for Smith's assignment to the command of East Tennessee, to succeed the luckless Burnside, with whom he was dissatisfied, but in so doing he intimated that it would be agreeable to him if the government should, in pursuance of a personal suggestion sent to the War Department about the same time by Mr. Dana, give General Smith even a higher command. It is now well known that Grant had in mind the command of the Army of the Potomac, and not only then, but frequently afterwards, assured General Smith of his support for that great position.

The friendship of Grant, Sherman and Thomas, for Smith, was at that time genuine and unmistakable. Neither of these great generals had ever served with him before. He was a comparative stranger to them, and that he should have come amongst them from the East under a cloud as he did, and should in less than two months have won such unusual praise and recommendations is stronger testimony than their words themselves to the masterful part he had played at Chattanooga, and in recognition of which the President made haste to promote him again to the rank of Major General, at that time the highest grade in the service. It is to be regretted, however, that the vacancy made by his previous non-confirmation, having long since been filled, and opposition having arisen on the part of other generals already promoted and confirmed, the President did not feel justified in dating his new commission back to the date of his original appointment. The action of the President, the Secretary of War, who concurred in it, and the Senate which acted upon it, this time without reference to the military committee, set the seal of government approval in the most signal manner upon the services and abilities of General Smith. No subsequent action or criticism can deprive him of the great praise and unusual honors which were then bestowed upon him.

But a new and far less fortunate era was about to open upon General Smith's career. Grant's work in the west had reached its close, and his extraordinary success had secured for him the full rank of Lieutenant General, with the command of all the armies of the United States. It at once became known to me, and to others serving at that time on his staff; that it was from the first, and till he went east to take charge of his new duties, Grant's intention to assign Smith to the command of the Army of the Potomac. He had come to trust his intelligence,—his judgment and his extraordinary coup d'oeil implicitly, and to regard him as a strategist of consummate ability. He made no concealment of his confidence in him, nor of his intentions in his behalf, and there can be but little doubt that he would have carried those intentions into effect could he have done so without injustice to others. But it is also true that after going to the eastern theatre of war and conferring with the President, Secretary Stanton, General Meade and General Butler, the Lieutenant General completely changed his mind, not only as to the proper plan of campaign for the army of the Potomac, which he had not previously visited or studied, but as to the disposition to be made of Smith and the other leading generals. In all this he had the sagacious advice and support of General Rawlins, his Chief of Staff and doubtless of other influential persons. Exactly why he did so, or what were the details of the argument which brought him to his final conclusions, is still one of the most interesting unsettled questions of the war. The general argument has already been indicated in the comprehensive language of Rawlins and that was doubtless strengthened by Mr. Lincoln, whose homely but astute reasoning convinced him that the better and safer line of operations was overland against Lee's army wherever it might be encountered, and not through a widely eccentric movement by water to a secondary base on the James River and thence against Richmond.

It is also doubtless true that finding Meade, who had shown himself to be a prudent and safe commander, if not a brilliant one, not only favorable to the overland route, but deservedly well thought of by the President, the cabinet and the army, while Smith, on the other hand, if not openly opposed to this plan of operations, was somewhat persistent as was his custom, in favoring a campaign from the lower James, or even from the sounds of North Carolina, Grant reached the conclusion that it would be better to retain Meade in immediate command of the principal army, and to place Smith over all the troops that could be mobilized from Fortress Monroe in Butler's department. Whatever may have been the open or secret influences at work, or the reasoning based upon the facts, this was Grant's first decision, but it is to be observed that the plan as adopted was afterwards fatally modified by permitting Butler, notwithstanding his partiality for Smith, as shown by his recent request for his re-assignment to his department, to take the field in person, with Smith commanding one of his army corps and Gillmore the other. In other words, Grant was not altogether a free agent, though the government had ostensibly given him a free hand. Of course, Smith knew that in any case he could not be permitted to make all the plans, even if he held the first subordinate command, and it is always possible that he had not specially endeared himself to the leading officers of the eastern armies, but there can hardly be a doubt that he would have given efficient and loyal support to Grant without reference to the plan of operations which it might be found necessary to adopt.

Without pausing here to recapitulate the arguments for and against the line and general plan of operations actually selected by General Grant, or to consider further his choice of subordinate commanders, it may he well to call attention to the fact that the organization and arrangements made by him for the control and co-operation of the forces in Virginia, are now generally regarded by military critics as having been nearly as faulty as they could have been. It will he remembered that Meade, with a competent staff had immediate command of the Army of the Potomac, but was followed closely wherever he went by General Grant and his staff. At the same time Burnside, with the Ninth Corps, having an older commission than Meade, and having been once in command of the Army of the Potomac, was for reasons which must be regarded as largely sentimental, permitted to report directly to and receive his orders directly from Grant, while Butler with two army corps operating at first at a considerable distance and later in a semi-detached and less independent manner, made his reports to and received his instructions directly from Grant's headquarters.