The first steamship ever built in the United States was projected and owned in this city. It was built North and named Savannah. In April, 1819, it arrived here from New York, and in a few days after sailed for Liverpool, accomplishing the voyage in twenty-two days, the sails being used only eight days. Vessels propelled by steam were a rarity in those days, and the idea of steam being used in connection with sails, and a vessel of that description crossing the ocean, had never been thought of in Great Britain. When the Savannah arrived off Cape Clear she was signalled to Liverpool as a vessel on fire, and a cutter was sent from Cork to her relief. Great was the "surprise and admiration when she entered the harbor of Liverpool under bare poles, belching forth smoke and fire, yet uninjured." The return voyage occupied twenty-five days.

    James Monroe, the fifth President of the United States, visited Savannah in May, 1819, and was received with that hospitality for which Savannah has always been noted.

    On the 11th of January, 1820, after a lapse of twenty-four years, Savannah again experienced the horrors of a conflagration, far surpassing in violence and destruction that of 1796. The fire broke out about 2 o'clock A. M. in the livery stable of Mr. Boon, situated near the market. The wind was high, and before the flames were extinguished four hundred and sixty-three houses, exclusive of out-buildings, were destroyed. With the exception of the State and Planter's banks, the Episcopal church, and three or four other brick buildings, every house between Broughton and Bay streets, from Jefferson to Abercorn streets, were destroyed. The loss was estimated at four million dollars.

    The people had barely recovered from the shock caused by this great disaster and commenced to rebuild before pestilence interrupted the work and swept many into their graves. On the 5th of September a vessel arrived from the West Indies, having the yellow fever on board. A day or two after, several cases were reported in the city. It spread quite rapidly, and before it was checked, on the 6th of November following, two hundred and thirty-nine persons had been stricken down by it. The number of inhabitants at the time it commenced was 7,523. The dread of the fever caused many to flee from the city. A census was taken late in October, when it was ascertained that there were only 1,494 persons remaining in the city, and that three hundred and forty-three houses were uninhabited. The loss of life was mostly confined to the foreign population who had come the winter previous.

    General Lafayette arrived in Savannah from Charleston on the 18th of March, 1825. His arrival was made the occasion of one of the largest and most imposing civic and military displays ever before witnessed in Savannah. He landed at the east end of the bluff, and was received with the usual salutes and ceremonies. At seven o'clock a dinner was served in the Exchange. In the centre window, in the rear of General Lafayette and the Mayor, appeared a transparency of General Lafayette, over which was a scroll inscribed "He Fought for Us." In the opposite window was a transparency of Washington, with the inscription "The Father of his Country." The centre window in front presented an allegorical transparency, representing a monument surmounted with a bust of Lafayette --- on one side Liberty, on the other History presenting a tablet inscribed with the dates of the general's arrival in America, his appointment as Major-General, his being wounded at Brandywine, and of the surrender at Yorktown. During the general's stay in Savannah the corner-stone of the monument to General Greene was laid in Johnson square, and one for a monument to General Pulaski in Chippewa square, with the most imposing ceremonies.

    In the year 1846 hostilities between the United States and Mexico commenced, and a call was made upon Georgia for a regiment of soldiers, to be sent to the seat of war. The regiment was promptly raised and sent off under Colonel Henry R. Jackson, and shared the honors won by our soldiers on the Mexican plains. The Irish Jasper Greens, of Savannah, were with the regiment, the following named officers and men composing the company: J. McMahon; Captain; G. Curlette, D. O'Connor, Lieutenants; John Devaney, M. Carey, P. Martin, Sergeants; Leo Wylly, M. Feery, P. Tierney, T. Bourke, Owen Reilly, Corporals; William Bandy, W. D. Burke, P. Bossu, Francis Camfield, J. Chalmers, P. Clark, P. Cody, John Coffee, William Coffee, James Conlihan, Elijah Condon, Joseph Davis, Dennis Dermond, Michael Downy, Michael Duggan, Francis Dutzmer, Charles Farrelly, Thomas Fenton, David Fountain, James Fleeting, James Flynn, William P. Fielding, James Feely, P. Gerrin, Moses Gleason, O. B. Hall, Michael Hoar, Timothy Howard, R. M. Howard, E. W. Irwin, John Keegin, Humphrey Leary, W. S. Levi, David Lynch, Michael Lynch, L. Mahoney, Henry Marry, John Makin, Bryan Morris, James McFehilly, Hugh Murtagh, Henry Nagle, Daniel Nickels, M. M. Payne, George Perminger, Thomas Pigeon, John Reagan, Francis Reeves, R. Richardson, J. Rinehart, B. Rodebuck, R. M. Robertson, J. D. Ryan, Thomas Ryan, John Sanderlyn, Michael Shea, Peter Suzmel, David Stokes, C. F. E. Smyth, R. L. S. Smith, Patrick Shiels, Patrick Tidings, Daniel F. Fowles, J. W. Warden, James Waters, Michael Weldon, John Whaling, James Waters, jr., Jacob Zimmerman, privates; William Gatehouse, George Gatehouse, musicians.

    On the 22d of April, 1854, President Filmore, accompanied by the Hon. J. P. Kennedy, arrived in Savannah per Central railroad and was received by a large concourse of citizens, the Chatham Artillery firing a salute as the train came in. Quarters were provided for the guests at the Pulaski House. A ball was given at St. Andrews Hall, a trip made to Fort Pulaski, and everything that could contribute to the pleasure and comfort of the distinguished guests was cheerfully done during their stay.

    On the 12th of August, 1854, yellow fever made its appearance among the residents of Washington ward. In a short time it spread through the city, the mortality reaching its maximum height about the 12th of September, on which day fifty-one interments were reported. The decline of the sickness commenced about the 20th of September, and on the 29th of October only one interment was reported. The last death by the fever occurred on the 29th of November. Two thirds of the permanent white population left the city when the fever commenced to spread, leaving six thousand persons to brave the disease--a large majority of whom were sick.

    On the 8th of September, and during the prevalence of the fever, a severe and destructive storm visited Savannah. Hutchinson and Fig islands were covered with water, and a number of houses washed away and persons drowned. The timber in Willink's ship-yard was floated off and the yard injured. Baldwin's cotton-press and the buildings at A. N. Miller's foundry were unroofed. Nearly all of the trees on South Broad street were blown down. Most of the shipping in the river was driven upon the wharves and sustained considerable damage. The large dry-dock parted from her moorings and floated up the river, but was secured after running afoul of and damaging several vessels. The loss sustained was never fully ascertained, but was very heavy.

    Never in the history of Savannah had the hand of affliction fallen so heavily upon her as during this epidemic season, when disease wasted the lives and paralyzed the energies of her citizens, and the tempest and tides threatened to complete the general destruction. During these calamities the active sympathy of the benevolent everywhere was enlisted, and contributions of money and provisions poured in from every quarter. Those who extended aid will long be held in grateful remembrance by the people of Savannah, who, when in the dispensation of Providence other communities may be overtaken by misfortune, will be as prompt to extend aid as they were thankful to receive it.

    The Secession movement of the Southern States in 1860 met the hearty approval of the citizens of Savannah, which was the first city in the State to move in the glorious cause of resistance to Radical rule. The announcement of the secession of South Carolina, in December of this year, was hailed with delight and created the wildest enthusiasm. A secession flag, bearing the representation of a large rattlesnake, with the inscription "DON'T TREAD ON ME," was unfurled from the top of the Greene monument, in Johnson square. Patriotic speeches were made, and every assurance given that the citizens would heartily co-operate with South Carolina. The old volunteer companies, the Chatham Artillery, Savannah Volunteer Guards, Republican Blues, Georgia Hussars, Phoenix Riflemen, Irish Jasper Greens, Oglethorpe Light Infantry, DeKalb Riflemen, and German Volunteers, promptly tendered their services for any duty that might be required of them. Their ranks were daily increased by volunteers and numerous other companies were organized.

    The call for a state convention to assemble and act upon the question of secession originated in Savannah, and met with ready response throughout the State. On the 2d of January, 1861, an election for delegates to the convention was held. Captain Francis S. Bartow, Captain John W. Anderson, and Colonel A. S. Jones, nominees of the party favoring immediate secession and separate State action, were unanimously elected.

    The citizens of Savannah, after hearing of the evacuation of Fort Moultrie and occupation of Fort Sumter by the United States forces under Major Anderson, determined to seize Fort Pulaski, being convinced that the policy of the United States government was to provoke a war, and in furtherance of the policy would hold all the forts commanding the harbors of the Southern States. A meeting of the citizens was held in a room in Battersby's buildings, at the southwest corner of Bay and Drayton streets, at which were present all of the officers and a number of men of the volunteer companies of Savannah. It was determined to seize and occupy the fort whether sanctioned by the Governor or not, but as a matter of prudence he was notified and his permission asked, which was granted. Accordingly, on the third day of January, 1861, Colonel A. R. Lawton marshalled the Savannah Volunteer Guards, Captain (now Colonel) John Screven; the Oglethorpe Light Infantry, Captain Francis S. Bartow (afterward promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General, and killed at the battle of Manassas), and two detachments from the Chatham Artillery, Captain (now Colonel) Joseph S. Claghorn, and proceeded to the fort and took formal possession of it in the name of the State of Georgia--the small garrison, under command of an ordnance sergeant, making no resistance.

    The adoption of the ordinance of secession by the State convention at Milledgeville was hailed with a delight equal to that manifested at the secession of South Carolina. All prepared for the conflict which they saw was inevitable. General A. R. Lawton was placed in command of this department, and under his orders Fort Jackson and the Oglethorpe barracks were seized and occupied by Savannah's soldiers.

    The State convention reassembled in Savannah, in the Masonic hall, on the seventh day of March, 1861, and after framing a constitution for the State adjourned on the 23d of March.

    The day after the assembling of the convention the flag of the Confederate States of America was thrown to the breeze from the Custom House staff by Major W. J. McIntosh. A salute of seven guns--one for each State of the Confederacy--was fired in honor of the occasion.

    The Oglethorpe Light Infantry, Captain Francis S. Bartow, requested, but did not receive permission,¹ to go to Virginia, and departed without it on the 21st of May, being escorted to the cars by the volunteer companies of the city and a large concourse of citizens, who wished the company God speed, little dreaming that in a few short weeks they would, while rejoicing over a great victory, be also mourning the loss of its late gallant captain and a number of its no less gallant members. But so was it to be. The telegraph, on the 22d of July, 1861, brought the news of the great victory at Manassas, at the same time telling of the deaths of General Francis S. Bartow and a number of his old command, who had fallen in the thickest of the fray.

    The remains of Bartow were brought from the field and forwarded to this city via Charleston, at which place, in honor to his memory, the public buildings were draped in mourning and the remains escorted through the city by the military and the citizens, the whole community vieing with one another in showing respect to the fallen brave. The remains arrived in the night of the 27th of July, and were escorted from the depot to the Exchange by the Oglethorpe Light Infantry (company B) and detachments from the other city companies, all under command of Captain F. W. Sims, the Chatham Artillery firing minute-guns as the escort moved. On the 28th the funeral of the deceased took place, and was the most solemn and imposing spectacle ever witnessed in Savannah. At three o'clock P. M. the military escort, consisting of all the city companies and detachments from the troops stationed in the vicinity, formed on the Bay and escorted the remains to Christ church, which was thronged in every part with citizens. The funeral services were conducted by Right Reverend Stephen Elliott, Bishop of Georgia; after which the remains were carried to Laurel Grove cemetery, where with military honors they were consigned to their final resting place. The universal expression of sadness was truly impressive, and proved how sincerely the entire community deplored the loss of one who was not less loved in life than honored in his glorious death.

    The bombardment and capture of Port Royal in November of 1861 occasioned intense excitement in Savannah, as it was believed that the large Federal fleet employed there would next attack the city. While all were sensible of the danger that threatened Savannah, yet they did not despair of being able to successfully combat it. The paving-stones on the Bay and along the slips were torn up and placed on board of vessels, which were towed down the river and sunk across the channel, and batteries were erected to command the obstructions. All that could be accomplished was done by General Lawton and the officers and men under his command.

    General Robert E. Lee, then commander-in-chief of the Southern coast defences, arrived in Savannah on the 11th of November, and remained until the February following. He visited all of the fortifications and approved of the measures adopted for the defence of the city. He examined Fort Pulaski and expressed the opinion that its walls would withstand the heaviest cannon.²

    A portion of the enemy's fleet appeared off Tybee shortly after the bombardment of Port Royal, but made no general demonstration, the commander apparently contenting himself by shelling our batteries and replying to the compliments sent now and then from Commodore Tatnall's little fleet, yet really preparing for the reduction of Fort Pulaski. This fort, the siege and reduction of which will ever be a memorable event in the history of the late war, is situated on Cockspur island, fourteen miles from the city, and was named after Brigadier-General Count Pulaski. The site of the fort was selected by Major Babcock, United States corps of engineers, and the work commenced in 1831, under the superintendence of Captain (now Major-General) Mansfield, United States army. The work was erected to command both channels of the Savannah river at the head of the Tybee roads. It was sixteen years in building, and its massive walls contained over thirteen million bricks, and cost about a million of dollars. It has five faces, including the gorge, and casemated on all sides. The walls are seven and a half feet thick, rising twenty-five feet above the water. The fort called for an armament of one hundred and forty guns, one tier in embrasure and one en barbette. The gorge is covered by an earthwork--it and the main work being surrounded and divided by a wide wet-ditch.

    As has been stated, the work was taken possession of on the 3d of January, 1861. The captors found that only twenty thirty-two pounders were mounted; that there were no ordnance nor other stores, and everything generally out of order. But with that spirit which ever characterized the troops of Georgia the new garrison went to work, and in a short time placed the fort on a war-footing, having mounted forty-eight serviceable guns, the heaviest being ten-inch columbiads. When the Federals seized and commenced to fortify Tybee island early in 1862, the fort was considered impregnable to an assault, and as the power of rifled ordnance was then unknown, no one ever dreamed that its walls could be breached. The Federals, under cover of their gunboats, worked day and night erecting batteries. The garrison was also employed in strengthening the defences of the fort. On the 22d of February, 1862, the enemy succeeded in passing their vessels through Wall's cut and entered the Savannah river above the fort, thus cutting it off from all communication with Savannah. Just previous to this Commodore Tatnall managed with his little fleet, notwithstanding the formidable resistance made by the Federal gunboats, to effect a passage of the Savannah river, and threw into the fort a six months' supply of provisions. By the 10th of April the Federals had erected eleven sand batteries upon Tybee island. These batteries, distributed along a front of two thousand five hundred and fifty yards, mounted thirty-six heavy guns--ten heavy rifled cannon among them--and a number of mortars. These guns were well protected. The farthest was three thousand four hundred, and the nearest one thousand six hundred and fifty yards from the fort. Early on the morning of the tenth General David Hunter, commanding the besieging force, sent, under a flag of truce, an order "for the immediate surrender and restoration of Fort Pulaski to the authority and possession of the United States," to which Colonel Charles H. Olmstead, commandant of the fort, after acknowledging the receipt of the order, heroically and laconically replied: "I am here to defend the fort, not to surrender it." A few minutes after the return of the flag of truce the enemy opened on the fort from battery Halleck, followed by the other batteries, viz: Stanton, Grant, Lyon, Lincoln, Burnside, Sherman, Scott, Sigel, McClellan, and Totten. They continued firing until dark. The fort replied slowly, the gunners having to aim at the puffs of smoke, there being nothing else to indicate the position of the hostile guns. At eleven o'clock at night the firing was resumed by the enemy, and in the morning it became general. At midday all but two of the casemate guns bearing upon Tybee were dismounted, and but two of the barbette guns that could bear upon the batteries doing the most damage were left; the outer walls of two of the casemates were shot away, and two adjoining ones were in a crumbling condition; the moat was bridged over by the ruins of the walls; most of the traverses were riddled, and some of them no longer serviceable, the range of officers' quarters and kitchens were badly damaged, and the north magazine in hourly danger of explosion. The communications were so completely cut off that there was no ground for even the shadow of a hope of relief, and for the same reason no line of retreat was left. Under these circumstances Colonel Olmstead rightly considered the fort untenable, and, believing the lives of his command to be his next care, gave the necessary orders for a surrender, having first conferred with his officers and found them like himself thoroughly impressed with the conviction of the utter hopelessness of a longer struggle. The garrison then numbered about three hundred and sixty-five men and twenty-five officers, composed of the following companies: German Volunteers, Captain John H. Stegin; Washington Volunteers, Captain John McMahon; Wise Guards, Captain M. J. McMullen; Oglethorpe Light Infantry (company B), Captain F. W. Sims; Montgomery Guards, Captain L. J. Guilmartin. The field and staff officers were: Colonel Charles H. Olmstead, Commandant of Post; Major John Foley; W. H. Hopkins, Adjutant; Robert Erwin, Quartermaster; Robert D. Walker, Commissary; T. J. McFarland, Surgeon; Robert H. Lewis, Sergeant-Major; W. C. Crawford, Quartermaster's Sergeant; Harvey Lewis, Ordnance Sergeant; Edward D. Hopkins, Quartermaster's Clerk; E. W. Drummond, Commissary's Clerk.

    The members of the garrison were sent to Hilton Head and then to New York, where they were confined until a general exchange was effected. Their conduct during the trying days of the siege, bombardment, and imprisonment was most heroic, and Savannah, of which nearly all are natives, is justly proud of them and their deeds. Only eighteen members of the garrison were wounded--four seriously, the others slightly--although three thousand shot and shell were thrown into the fort. The Federals admitted a loss of several killed and wounded and considerable damage to their guns and works.

    On the second day, when the enemy's fire was hottest, the halyards of the flag of the fort were cut away and the flag fell. Lieutenant Christopher Hussey,³ of the Montgomery Guards, and John Latham, of the Washington Volunteers, immediately sprang upon the parapet, and seizing the flag carried it to a gun-carriage at the northeastern angle of the fort, where they rigged a temporary staff, from which the flag proudly floated until the surrender.

    Reverend Father P. Whelan was in the fort during the siege, and by his calmness and cheering words did much to encourage the members of the garrison during their severe ordeal. After the surrender he was offered his liberty, but refused to accept the offer, and underwent all the rigors of imprisonment with those he loved and to whom he was endeared. This noble old christian hero, after his release, administered to the wants of the sick and wounded in many localities. He is now in Savannah attending to his clerical duties as far as his feeble health will permit. May his days be long on the earth is the earnest prayers of hundreds of soldiers throughout the United States, and especially the Catholics of this city and elsewhere.

    Since the war the fort has been considerably repaired, yet there still remain thousands of marks which speak of the terrible power of rifled guns. Travelers going out and coming into the Savannah river can readily observe the battered condition of the walls of Fort Pulaski, and now and then catch a glimpse of the sand batteries, behind which the enemy worked the guns which told so fearfully upon the fort.

    The reduction of Fort Pulaski and the subsequent movements of the Federals confirmed the opinion that Savannah was to be attacked, but results have shown that they were only feints, intended to distract the attention of our authorities and keep a large force here while they prosecuted hostile operations elsewhere. The military authorities being convinced that the city would be attacked, determined to defend it to the last extremity, which determination met the cordial approval of the citizens, as also did the adoption of the following preamble and resolutions, offered by Alderman Hiram Roberts at a special meeting of the City Council held on the 29th of April, 1862:

    WHEREAS, A communication has been received from the commanding General, stating that he will defend this city to the last extremity, and whereas, the members of the Council unanimously approve of the determination of the commanding General, therefore be it

    Resolved, That the Council will render all the aid that is in their power to sustain the General and to carry out his laudable determination.

    In May, 1862, General Lawton was ordered to report to General Lee in Virginia with five thousand men, and departed shortly after reception of the order. His brigade participated in the many battles fought by the grand old army of northern Virginia and was greatly distinguished for its gallant conduct. After the departure of General Lawton General Hugh W. Mercer was placed in the command of this district, and thus remained until Lieutenant-General W. J. Hardee assumed command in 1864, a short time prior to the evacuation of the city.

    About July, 1863, the ironclad ship Atlanta, on which every effort and all means at command had been used to render her a forminable vessel, steamed down to Warsaw sound to attack the ironclad monitors Weehawken and Nahant, which were awaiting her coming. When within a few hundred yards of them, she ran aground, but was immediately backed off, only to run more firmly aground again while sailing toward her opponents. While in this unfortunate condition, unable to extricate herself or bring her guns to bear, the ironclads opened upon her with fifteen-inch guns at short range. The fire was very effective, and in sixteen minutes after its commencement the iron armor and wood backing of the Atlanta had been seriously damaged and sixteen men wounded--among them, two out of the three pilots. Under these circumstances her commander, Captain Webb, wisely concluded to surrender. The Atlanta was armed with four superior rifled guns and manned with a fine crew and efficient officers. Her capture was greatly deplored, as she had been relied upon to protect the harbor from the enemy's ironclads, and her loss left the harbor almost unprotected, excepting by obstructions and land batteries. The Atlanta was formerly the Fingal, which, under the command of Captain Edward C. Anderson, the present Mayor of the city, had been run through the blockade of the river early in the war, laden with the munitions of war and other valuable goods, which were much needed by the government.

    An offset to the capture of the Atlanta was the boarding and capture of the Water Witch by Lieutenant Pelot on the night of the second of June, 1864. The Water Witch formed one of the blockading squadron of the coast of Georgia, and was lying in Ossabaw sound. Lieutenant Pelot, with eighty men, embarked in seven barges and arrived near the Water Witch about half-past one o'clock. A dash for the steamer was immediately made, and after fifteen minutes hand-to-hand conflict (during which, and almost at the moment of victory, Lieutenant Pelot fell, pierced to the heart with a bullet) the crew surrendered. The Confederates lost six killed and twelve wounded. The enemy's crew, eighty-two in number, lost two killed and fifteen wounded, the commander, Lieutenant Prendergast, being among the latter. The capture of the steamer, armed with four heavy guns, eighty prisoners, and her equipment entire, was the result of this bold enterprise.

    Nothing out of the usual line of petty skirmishes, reconnoissances, and the like, occurred around Savannah until the 11th of December, 1864, when Sherman's army arrived in front of the line of defences, his force amounting to sixty thousand infantry, six thousand cavalry, and a full supply of artillery. Along the coast was a large fleet of ironclads and other war vessels, awaiting establishment of communication with the enemy's land force, to co-operate with it in the siege of the city. To oppose this force Lieutenant-General William J. Hardee had ten thousand men of all arms.

    The movements of the enemy were closely watched by General Hardee, and everything that human foresight could devise to embarrass and repel their advance was accomplished; in which efforts he was sustained by Generals Hugh W. Mercer, Henry R. Jackson, W. R. Boggs, J. F. Gilmer, George P. Harrison, Colonel J. G. Clarke, and all of the officers and men under their command. The citizens volunteered their services, and stood in the trenches ready and willing to risk their lives in defence of their loved and beautiful city from the hands of the marauders, whose conduct during their "march to the sea" would have disgraced savages.

    The enemy's first object was to establish communication with the fleet and obtain provisions, of which they stood in sore need. Fort McAllister, which was so ably defended in numerous instances by the soldiers of Savannah, constituted the right of the outer line of the defences of the city, and was situated on Genesis Point, on the right bank of the Great Ogeechee river, and was intended to dispute a passage up the river and to prevent depredations in that vicinity. This fort, a strong earthwork, was the only barrier in the way of establishing the desired communication, and its capture was determined upon by Sherman. Before relating the account of its capture it would not be amiss to take a retrospective glance and give a brief history of this work, the defence of which reflected the utmost credit upon the garrison, and will send its name down to history with those of Arcola, Malakoff, and Donelson. It is situated about sixteen miles from Savannah, and was among the first of the numerous earthworks constructed for the defence of the city, but was not attacked before the 29th of June 1862. Then four gunboats tested the strength of the work and the efficiency of its garrison--the DeKalb Riflemen, Captain A. L. Hartridge. The first they found to be strong and the latter cool and very accurate in their aim. In this attack two men were wounded. On the 2d of November of the same year the fort was again made a target of by several vessels. Fortunately none of the garrison (the Emmett Rifles, Captain George A. Nicoll) were hurt. This attack was followed by another on the 19th of November, during which three men of the garrison (the Emmett Rifles and the Republican Blues, Lieutenant George W. Anderson commanding) were wounded. The 27th of January, 1863, was taken advantage of by the Federals to try the effect of the guns (one fifteen and one eleven-inch) of the ironclad Montauk. The monitor was accompanied by six gunboats, all of which kept up a furious fire, to which the garrison slowly replied. Though the sand of which the work was composed was knocked about considerably, none of the garrison were injured, nor was the earthwork at all damaged, thus demonstrating that an earthwork manned by cool and courageous men could not be reduced, no matter what weight of metal was hurled against it. The garrison had little respite, for on the first of February it had to defend the fort from another attack made by the Montauk and five gun and mortar boats. The enemy were again repulsed after a six hours contest, during which Major John B. Gallie⁴ (commandant of the fort) was struck on the head and instantly killed, and seven others of the garrison were wounded. After the death of Major Gallie, which occurred early in the action, the command devolved upon Captain George W. Anderson, who bravely continued the fight with the result stated. Well deserved was the following complimentary order from General Beauregard: "The thanks of the country are due to this intrepid garrison, who have thus shown what brave men may withstand and accomplish, despite apparent odds. Fort McAllister will be inscribed on the flags of all the troops engaged in the defence of the battery."

    On the 28th of February the Rattlesnake (formerly the Nashville), laden with a large quantity of cotton and rosin, attempted to pass down the Great Ogeechee, in order to run the blockade, but unfortunately ran aground about a mile below the fort. The guns of the Montauk were immediately brought to bear and soon set the vessel on fire, by which she was completely destroyed. The guns of the fort were fired at the Montauk, with the hope of driving her off, but the distance was too great and no damage was done. But what the guns failed to do was accomplished by a torpedo, over which the Montauk passed and exploded it during the attack upon the Rattlesnake. As she did not take any active part in the attack upon the fort a few days afterward, it was believed that she was injured, which belief was afterward confirmed by Northern accounts.

    But the most formidable attack on the fort was made on the 3d of March, 1863, in comparison to which the others were almost insignificant. Early on that day four ironclads, five gunboats, and two mortar schooners appeared in front of the fort. From the account of the affair in the Savannah Republican of the 11th of March, 1863, we make the following extracts:

    About a quarter before nine o'clock the fort opened on the Passaic with a rifled gun, the eight and ten-inch columbiads following suit, to which the Montauk replied, firing her first gun at nine o'clock. She was followed by her associates in quick succession. The fire on both sides was continued for seven hours and a half, during which the enemy fired two hundred and fifty shot and shell at the fort, amounting to about seventy tons of the most formidable missiles ever invented for the destruction of human life.* * * About midday the carriage of the eight-inch columbiad was shivered to atoms and rendered the gun unserviceable for the remainder of the day. The main traverse wheel of the forty-two-pounder was shot away, but was replaced in twenty minutes. The new wheel was gotten up by Mr. Carroll Hanson, who risked his life to secure it. The wheel of a forty-two-pounder, manned by a detachment of sharpshooters, under the command of Lieutenant Herman, met with a similar accident, but was worked throughout the engagement.* * A shot from a forty-two-pounder struck the Passaic and disabled her, causing her to turn tail and run down the river, followed by the other rams. The fort fired the first and last shot. The enemy's mortar boats kept up a fire all night, and it was evidently their intention to renew the fight the next morning, but finding that the damage done to the fort the day before had been fully repaired and the garrison fully prepared to resist, declined.* * * Notwithstanding the heavy fire to which the fort was subjected, only three men were wounded, viz: Thomas W. Rape and W. S. Owens, of the Emmett Rifles, the first on the knee and the latter in the face; James Mims, of Company D, 1st Georgia Battalion Sharpshooters, had his leg crushed and ankle broken by the fall of a piece of timber while remounting a columbiad after the fight.* * * The night previous to the fight Lieutenant E. A. Ellarbe, of the Hardwick Mounted Rifles, Captain J. L. McAllister, with a detachment consisting of Sergeant Harmon and privates Proctor, Wyatt, Harper, and Cobb, crossed the river and dug a rifle-pit within long rifle range of the rams, and awaited the coming fight. During the hottest part of the engagement an officer, with glass in hand, made his appearance on the deck of the Passaic. A Maynard rifle slug soon went whizzing by his ears, which startled and caused him to right-about, when a second slug apparently took effect upon his person, as with both hands he caught hold of the turret for support, and immediately clambered or was dragged into a port-hole. It is believed that the officer was killed. The display on the Passaic the day following, and the funeral on Ossabaw the Friday following, gave strength to the opinion. As soon as the fatal rifle shot was fired the Passaic turned her guns upon the marsh and literally raked it with grapeshot. The riflemen, however, succeeded in changing their base in time to avoid the missiles of the enemy. Not one of them was hurt. Too much credit cannot be bestowed on this daring act of a few brave men.* * * Captain George W. Anderson, of the Republican Blues, commanded the fort on this trying occasion, and he and his force received, as they deserved, the highest commendations. Captain George A. Nicoll, of the Emmett Rifles; Captain J. L. McAllister, Lieutenant W. D. Dixon, and Sergeant T. S. Flood [the latter was sick at the hospital when the attack commenced, but left his bed to take part in the fight]; Corporal Robert Smith and his squad from the Republican Blues, which worked the rifle-gun; Lieutenant Quinn, of the Blues; Sergeant Frazier, Lieutenant Rockwell, and Sergeant Cavanagh; Captain Robert Martin and detachment of his company, who successfully worked a mortar-battery; Captain McCrady and Captain James McAlpin; were entitled to and received a large share of the honors of the day.

    Brigadier-General Mercer, commanding the district of Georgia, in a general order, complimented the garrison for their heroic defence, stating that under the fire of the most formidable missiles ever concentrated upon a single battery "the brave gunners, with the cool, efficient spirit of disciplined soldiers, and with the intrepid hearts of freemen battling in a just cause, stood undaunted at their posts and proved to the world that the most formidable vessels and guns that modern ingenuity has been able to produce are powerless against an earthwork manned by patriots to whom honor and liberty are dearer than life."

    General Beauregard in his general order stated that he "had again a pleasant duty to discharge--to commend to the notice of the country and the emulation of his officers and men the intrepid conduct of the garrison of Fort McAllister and the skill of the officers engaged on the 3d of March, 1863.* * * The colors of all troops engaged will be inscribed with 'Fort McAllister, 3d March, 1863.'"

    After this engagement the fort was considerably strengthened--especially its rear defences--and its armament increased by the addition of some heavy and several light guns. The latter were so placed as to aid in repulsing any attempt of the enemy to surprise the fort from the land side.

    On the 11th of December, 1864, General Sherman's army enveloped the western and southern lines of the defences of the city and completely isolated the fort, the garrison then consisting of the Emmett Rifles, Captain George A. Nicoll, twenty-five men for duty; Clinch Light Battery, Captain W. B. Clinch, fifty men for duty; Companies D and E 1st regiment Georgia Reserves, the first company commanded by Captain Henry, twenty-eight men for duty, and the second by Captain Morrison, twenty-seven men for duty. On the 13th of December General Hazen was sent with nine regiments to take the fort.

    Major George W. Anderson was in command of the fort at the time of its capture, and furnished a report of the affair to Colonel C. C. Jones for publication in his "Historical Sketch of the Chatham Artillery," from which we extract it:

    Hearing incidentally that the Confederate forces on the Cannouchee had evacuated that position and retired across the Great Ogeechee, and learning that a large column of the enemy was approaching in the direction of Fort McAllister, I immediately detached a scouting party, under command of Lieutenant T. O'Neal, of Clinch's Light Battery, to watch them and acquaint me with their movements. This was absolutely necessary, as the cavalry previously stationed in Bryan county had been withdrawn and I was thus thrown upon my own resources for all information relating to the strength and designs of the enemy.

    On the morning of the 12th of December, 1864, I accompanied Lieutenant O'Neal on a scout, and found the enemy advancing in force from King's bridge. We were hotly pursued by their cavalry, and had barely time to burn the barns of Messrs. Thomas C. Arnold and William Patterson, which were filled with rice. The steamtug Columbus --- lying about three miles above the fort --- was also burned. Early the next morning one of my pickets --- stationed at the head of the causeway west of the fort --- was captured by the enemy, to whom he imparted the fact that the causeway was studded with torpedoes in time to prevent their explosion. He also acquainted them with the strength of the garrison, and the armament of the fort, and the best approaches to it.

    About eight o'clock A. M. desultory firing commenced between the skirmishers of the enemy and my sharpshooters. At ten o'clock the fight became general, the opposing forces extending from the river entirely around to the marsh on the east. The day before, the enemy had established a battery of Parrot guns on the opposite side of the river--distant from the fort a mile and a half --- which fired upon us at regular intervals during that day and the ensuing night. Receiving from headquarters neither orders nor responses to my telegraphic dispatches, I determined, under the circumstances, and not withstanding the great disparity of numbers, between the garrison and the attacking forces, to defend the fort to the last extremity. The guns being en barbette, the detachments serving them were greatly exposed to the fire of the enemy's sharpshooters. To such an extent was this the case, that in one instance, out of a detachment of eight men, three were killed and three more wounded. The Federal skirmish line was very heavy, and the fire so close and rapid that it was at times impossible to work our guns. My sharpshooters did all in their power, but were entirely too few to suppress this galling fire upon the artillerists. In view of the large force of the enemy --- consisting of nine regiments, whose aggregate strength was estimated between three thousand five hundred and four thousand muskets, and possessing the ability to increase it at any time should it become necessary --- and recollecting the feebleness of the garrison of the fort, numbering one hundred and fifty effective men, it was evident, cut off from all support, and with no possible hope of reinforcements from any quarter, that holding the fort was simply a question of time. There was but one alternative --- death or captivity. Captain Thomas S. White, the engineer in charge, had previously felled the trees in the vicinity of the fort, and demolished the mortar magazine which commanded the fort to a very considerable extent. For lack of the necessary force and time, however, the felled timber and the ruins of the adjacent houses, which had been pulled down, had not been entirely removed. Protected by this cover, the enemy sharpshooters were enabled to approach quite near, to the great annoyance and injury of the cannoneers. One line of abattis had been constructed by the engineer, and three lines would have been completed around the fort, but for the want of time and material.

    Late in the afternoon the full force of the enemy made a rapid and vigorous charge upon the works, and, succeeding in forcing their way through the abattis, rushed over the parapet of the fort, carrying it by storm, and, by virtue of superior numbers, overpowered the garrison, fighting gallantly to the last. In many instances the Confederates were disarmed by main force. The fort was never surrendered. It was captured by overwhelming numbers. So soon as the enemy opened fire upon the fort from the opposite side of the river, it was evident that two of the magazines were seriously endangered, and it became necessary to protect them from that fire by the erection of suitable traverses. The labor expended in their construction, in the mounting of guns on the rear of the work, and in removing the debris above referred to, occupied the garrison constantly, night and day, for nearly forty-eight hours immediately preceding the attack. Consequently, at the time of the assault, the men were greatly fatigued and in bad plight, physically considered, for the contest. I think it not improper to state here that a short time before the approach of the enemy a member of the torpedo department had, in obedience to orders, placed in front of the fort, and along the direct approaches, a considerable number of sub-terra shells, whose explosions killed quite a number of the enemy while passing over them.

    After the capture of the fort, General Sherman in person ordered my engineer with a detail of sixteen men from the garrison --- then prisoners of war --- to remove all the torpedoes which had not exploded. This hazardous duty was performed without injury to any one; but it appearing to me to be an unwarrantable and improper treatment of prisoners of war, I have thought it right to refer to it in this report.

    I am pleased to state that in my endeavors to hold the fort, I was nobly seconded by the great majority of officers and men under my command. Many of them had never been under fire before, and quite a number were very young, in fact mere boys. Where so many acted gallantly, it would be invidious to discriminate; but I cannot avoid mentioning those who came more particularly under my notice. I would therefore most respectfully call the attention of the General commanding to the gallant conduct of Captain Clinch, who, when summoned to surrender by a Federal Captain, responded by dealing him a severe blow on the head with his sabre. (Captain Clinch had previously received two gun-shot wounds in the arm.) Immediately a hand to hand fight ensued. Federal privates came to the assistance of their officer, but the fearless Clinch continued the unequal contest until he fell bleeding from eleven wounds (three sabre wounds, six bayonet wounds, and two gun-shot wounds) from which, after severe and protracted suffering, he has barely recovered. His conduct was so conspicuous, and his cool bravery so much admired, as to elicit the praise of the enemy and even of General Sherman himself.

    1st Lieutenant William Schirm fought his guns until the enemy had entered the fort, and not withstanding a wound in the head, gallantly remained at his post, discharging his duties with a coolness and efficiency worthy of all commendation.

    Lieutenant O'Neal, whom I placed in command of the scouting party before mentioned, while in the discharge of that duty, and in his subsequent conduct during the attack, merited the honor due to a faithful and gallant officer.

    Among those who nobly fell was the gallant Hazzard, whose zeal and activity were worthy of all praise. He died as a true soldier to his post, facing overwhelming odds. The garrison lost seventeen killed and thirty-one wounded.

    A Federal officer in writing an account of the siege of Savannah and storming of Fort McAllister said:

    Those were dark days when the marching was over and the army had settled down in the flooded forests and before the frowning fortifications of Savannah. Notwithstanding the orders to forage upon the enemy on the way, the thirty days' rations were in parts of the army exhausted when it came to the halt, where there was no food except such as the rice-fields afforded. Then for the first time the confident cheerfulness of the chief gave place to deep thought and anxious preoccupation. It required several days for the army to establish its position. By turning aside the waters of the canal which united the swift current of the Savannah with its sluggish sister, the Ogeechee, the low swamp-lands were covered neck-deep by the treacherous element; and where the raised causeways spanned these forest bogs the enemy had girded them about with fort and bastion. Every attempt in the places to push forward our lines met with the fire of heavy artillery and the blazing sheets of infantry flame. It was not the city of Savannah our commander coveted in those days of 1864 so much as bread. Sherman might not with the hapless Queen of France answer the cry for food with "Give them bonbons!" and so he sought for the sea.

    To Hazen the capture of Fort McAllister was glory, undying fame. To the Commander-in-chief it meant bread, food, the conquest of Savannah. How swift moved events when the brazen door to the sea was unlocked! And first and most important was the feast of hard tack; and a more welcome feast was never offered to a hungry host since the days the children of Israel found manna in the wilderness. The destructive torpedoes in the river were released from their moorings, and scores of busy, puffing steam-tugs paddled up the stream, loaded with precious freight of bread. There was enough, more than enough, for all. Bread for man and food for beast. Profane fellows, who had well-nigh forgotten how to pray, now offered up grateful thanks. The soldier in his rifle-pit heeded not the mud and water, and patted his ration of hard bread with loving tenderness. As the wagons creaked into camp, groaning with their cargo of white boxes filled with hard tack, the eager groups of hungry men surrounded them with cheers of welcome. The army of refugees, crouching in their miserable camps among the bushes, were not forgotten.

    After the fall of Fort McAllister both armies lay comparatively idle, awaiting what was shortly expected to be bloody work. The enemy made numerous feints of storming our works, but hostile operations were mainly confined to petty skirmishes.⁵ The enemy, as was admitted after the surrender by a Colonel of their army, attempted to throw shell into the city, no warning of such intention being given. The Colonel stated that his gunners, in a battery on the west of the city, had their guns double-charged, hoping that the extra load would hurl the shells into the city. One shell fell near the Central Railroad bridge, and another into the river one hundred yards above the upper rice-mill. On the 19th of December the enemy placed an army corps on the South Carolina shore with a view of cutting off the Confederate army should they attempt to retreat. All hope of successfully coping with the powerful force of the enemy was rightly abandoned by General Hardee, and he concluded to evacuate the city and thus save his command to the Confederacy. A pontoon bridge was laid across the river from Anderson's wharf, a few paces west of Barnard street, to Hutchinson's island, and another one from thence to the South Carolina shore. Early on the 20th a small force was sent over and dislodged a body of the enemy's troops posted across a road by which the proposed retreat was to be made. At night the Confederates were quietly withdrawn from the intrenchments, marched through the city, across the pontoon bridges into South Carolina, and safely escaped up the country. All the artillery and stores that could be removed were carried off. A large number of families left during the night in private conveyances, following the retreating troops.

    The members of the council were notified by the commander of his intention to evacuate the city, and a special meeting was called. While the troops were leaving the city Dr. R. D. Arnold, Mayor, and Aldermen Henry Brigham, J. F. O'Byrne, C. C. Casey, Henry Freeman, Robert Lachlison, Joseph Lippman, J. L. Villalonga, and George W. Wylly met in the Exchange and resolved that the Council should repair to the outer defences before daylight, to surrender the city and secure such terms as would ensure protection to the persons and property of the citizens from the soldiers whose previous conduct filled the minds of all with a lively apprehension that slaughter and rapine would mark their entrance into the city. The council dispersed to assemble at the Exchange at a later hour, where hacks would await to convey the members to the outer works. As they came out of the Exchange a fire was observed in the western part of the city, and, by request, Messrs. Casey, O'Byrne, and Lachlison went to it with a view of taking measures for its suppression. The fire was caused by the burning of a nearly-completed ironclad and a lot of timber near the mouth of the Ogeechee canal which had been fired by the retreating troops. The wind was blowing to the west, and after observing that no danger to the city need be apprehended from the flames these gentlemen returned to the Exchange, where the other members of the Council had assembled and were in a hack prepared to start. They stated that other hacks had been provided, but General Wheeler's cavalry had pressed the horses into service. Mr. O'Byrne procured his horse and buggy and conveyed Mr. Casey to the junction of the Lewisburg road with the Augusta road--about half of a mile beyond the Central Railroad depot--and leaving him there returned for Mr. Lachlison, who had walked in that direction. The party in the hack, meanwhile, had come up to Mr. Casey, and taking him up drove up the Lewisburg road. Mr. O'Byrne met Mr. Lachlison, and with him returned to where Mr. Casey had been left, but not finding any of the party there, concluded they had gone up the Augusta road, and proceeded up it, hoping to overtake them. They advanced but a short distance when they heard the report of a gun and a minnie ball whistled between them. They halted, and were then ordered by the pickets to turn around (they had unawares passed the enemy's picket and had not heard the command to halt) and come to them. They did as commanded, and after informing the officer of the picket who they were, were conducted to Colonel Barnum, to whom they stated the object of their mission. He then conducted them to General John W. Geary. They told him that the city had been evacuated, and that they, having started with the Mayor and Council to surrender it, but became separated from them, would assume the authority of consummating a surrender. General Geary at first did not believe them, and questioned them very closely. After becoming satisfied that they were what they assumed to be, he consented to receive the surrender. The Aldermen then asked that the lives and property of the citizens should be respected and the ladies protected from insult. General Geary promptly replied that the requests should be complied with, and that any soldier detected violating the orders which would be given to restrain them should be punished with death. Messrs. Lachlison and O'Byrne then asked that a detachment should be sent to look after the Mayor and other Aldermen, which was granted. General Geary then put his troops in motion and, with Messrs. O'Byrne and Lachlison acting as guides, advanced toward the city. At the Central Railroad bridge they were met by the Mayor and Aldermen, who had been overtaken by the detachment sent for them and returned with it. They, on being introduced to the General and being told of what had been done by Messrs. O'Byrne and Lachlison, confirmed their action. The line of march was then taken up to West Broad street, down that to the Bay, and thence to the Exchange, in front of which the troops were drawn up. The officers and the members of the Council proceeded to the porch, from which General Geary addressed the troops, complimenting them upon their past deeds and upon the additional honor they had conferred upon themselves by capturing "this beautiful city of the South." During this speech Colonel Barnum observed a sergeant step out of the ranks to the store at the corner of Bull and Bay streets--now occupied by Messrs. Gazan & Bro. --- enter and come out wearing a fireman's hat. On coming down from the porch he called the sergeant to him, and drawing his sword ordered him to hold out the hat, which he did, and the Colonel with one stroke of his sword cut it in half. He then stripped the chevrons from the sergeant's arms and reduced him to the ranks.

    After the speech the troops were dispersed in squads throughout the city, and notwithstanding the strict orders they had received committed many depredations; among them the wanton destruction of valuable books and papers in the Exchange and Courthouse belonging to the city and county. General Geary established his headquarters in the Central Railroad bank and his subordinate officers in the various unoccupied stores along the Bay. On the 24th of December he issued an order regarding the posts and duties of the provost guards, and instructing the civil authorities to resume their official duties.

    General W. T. Sherman arrived in the city on the 25th, and after telegraphing President Lincoln that he would present him Savannah as a "Christmas gift," promulgated the following order from his headquarters at the Green mansion, opposite Oglethorpe Barracks. The order speaks for itself:

HEADQUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF THE MISSISSIPPI,}
IN THE FIELD, SAVANNAH, GEORGIA, DECEMBER 26th, 1864. }

    The City of Savannah and surrounding country will be held as a Military Post and adapted to future military uses, but as it contains a population of some 20,000 people who must be provided for, and as other citizens may come, it is proper to lay down certain general principals, that all within its military jurisdiction may understand their relative duties and obligations.

    I. During War, the Military is superior to Civil authority, and where interests clash, the Civil must give way, yet where there is no conflict, every encouragement should be given to well-disposed and peaceful inhabitants to resume their usual pursuits. Families should be disturbed as little as possible in their residences, and tradesmen allowed the free use of their shops, tools, &c. Churches, schools, all places of amusement and recreation should be encouraged, and streets and roads made perfectly safe to persons in their usual pursuits. Passes should not be exacted within the line of outer pickets, but if any person shall abuse the privileges by communicating with the enemy, or doing any act of hostility to the Government of the United States, he or she will be punished with the utmost rigor of the law.

    Commerce with the outer world will be resumed to an extent commensurate with the wants of the citizens, governed by the restrictions and rules of the Treasury Department.

    II. The Chief Quartermaster and Commissary of the Army may give suitable employment to the people, white or black, or transport them to such points as they choose, where employment may be had, and may extend temporary relief in the way of provisions and vacant houses to the worthy and needy as to such time as they can help themselves. They will select first, the buildings for the necessary use of the army; next a sufficient number of stores to be turned over to the Treasury Agent for trade stores. All vacant store-houses or dwellings, and all buildings belonging to absent rebels, will be construed and used as belonging to the United States until such times as their titles can be settled by the Courts of the United States.

    III. The Mayor and City Council of Savannah will continue to exercise their functions as such, and will, in concert with the Commanding Officer of the Post and the Chief Quartermaster, see that the Fire Companies are kept in organization, the streets cleaned and lighted, and keep up a good understanding between the citizens and soldiers. They will ascertain and report to the Chief C. S., as soon as possible, the names and number of worthy that need assistance and support.

    The Mayor will forthwith give public notice that the time has come when all must choose their course, viz: to remain with our lines and conduct themselves as good citizens or depart in peace. He will ascertain the names of all who choose to leave Savannah, and report their names and residences to the Chief Quartermaster, that measures may be taken to transport them beyond the lines.

    IV. Not more than two Newspapers will be published in Savannah, and their Editors and Proprietors will be held to the strictest accountability, and will be punished severely in person and property for any libellous publication, mischievous matter, premature news, exaggerated statements, or any comments whatever upon the acts of the constituted authorities; they will be held accountable even for such articles though copied from other papers.

    By Order of Major-General W. T. SHERMAN.

L. M. DRAYTON, Aide-de-Camp.

    WHEREAS, By the fortunes of war and the surrender of the city by the civil authorities, the city of Savannah passes once more under the authority of the United States; and whereas, we believe that the interests of the city will be best subserved and promoted by a full and free expression of our views in relation to our present condition; we, therefore, the People of Savannah in full meeting assembled do hereby resolve:

    That we accept the position, and in the language of the President of the United States, seek to have "peace by laying down our arms and submitting to the National authority under the Constitution, leaving all questions which remain to be adjusted by the peaceful means of legislation, conference and votes."

    Resolved, That laying aside all differences, and burying by-gones in the grave of the past, we will use our best endeavors once more to bring back the prosperity and commerce we once enjoyed.

    Resolved, That we do not put ourselves in the position of a conquered city, asking terms of a conqueror, but we claim the immunities and privileges contained in the Proclamation and Message of the President of the United States and in all the legislation of Congress in reference to a people situated as we are, and while we owe on our part a strict obedience to the laws of the United States, we ask the protection over our persons, lives and property recognized by these laws.

    On the night of the 31st of December the blockade-runner Rebecca Hertz, Captain King, "ran the blockade" (as the crew thought, not knowing of the change which had recently taken place in the government of the city) and dropped anchor opposite the gas-house. Daylight revealed the fact that the stars and stripes were fluttering at the points from which a short time before floated the stars and bars. This somewhat amazed the blockade-runners, but the situation was taken in at a glance, and Captain King turned his vessel over to the Quartermaster's Department.

    Shortly after this occurrence Sherman started a corps across our pontoon bridges into South Carolina. While a large number of the soldiers were delayed on Hutchinson's island the river rose very rapidly. The troops rushed back for the city, but a number of the men and horses were drowned in attempting to reach the bridge.

    Among the first acts of the Federal troops after their arrival in Savannah was the throwing up of intrenchments to resist any attempts of the Confederates to recapture the city. They also threw up intrenchments on the Thunderbolt road, and mounted guns to bear upon the city. This was intended as a rallying point if they were driven from the other intrenchments. With a heartlessness for which there is no palliation, not even that of "military necessity," they ran this line of works through the Catholic cemetery, destroying, mutilating, or covering up the monuments and tablets which the hand of affection had placed over the graves of the loved and lost, and in numerous instances dug up the bones and left them scattered about. It was asserted by the officers, when remonstrated with for their inhumanity in desecrating the graves, that the work was necessary, and would not have been done had it not been a "military necessity." There was no more necessity for it than there was for the breaking open of the vaults in the Old Burying-ground and at Bonaventure, in search of valuables which the soldiers supposed were hidden in them.

    The shock occasioned by the fall of Savannah was being rapidly recovered from, under what appeared to be the mild and just administration of affairs by the military, and all hoped for a speedy restoration of quiet and prosperity, even though under military rule. But alas! these expectations were doomed to meet with disappointment. The mildness and justness which had characterized the conquerors upon their first arrival were reversed, and a series of unjust acts and petty persecutions commenced.

    When the city was evacuated there were thirty thousand five bales of upland and a little over eight thousand bales of sea island cotton stored in the warehouses, only one thousand bales of which belonged to the Confederate States government. Under the pretence that the cotton belonged to the Confederate government, the United States Quartermasters seized all of it (and a large quantity of other property also) and shipped it to New York, where uplands commanded one dollar and twenty-five cents and sea island three dollars per pound, making the total value of the cotton seized about twenty-eight millions of dollars. It was stored in New York, where, in the meaning of General Sherman's order, it remained, to "be construed and used as belonging to the United States until such times as their titles can be settled by the Courts of the United States;" (i. e., what time has shown, after the claimants have spent in court and lawyers' fees the value of the cotton claimed.) Citizens were not allowed to pass through the streets in their daily pursuits without a pass which they had to show at the bidding of every insolent and drunken officer or soldier who, whether on or off duty, felt disposed to exercise the power granted him by the bayonet. No one, ladies not excepted, could receive a letter from the postoffice unless she or he had taken the oath. Added to the petty tyrannies was the unbridled conduct of the negroes and soldiers, which kept the timid in a perpetual state of alarm.

    While thus harassed and depressed the people were called upon to bear another calamity --- the fire on the night of the 27th of January, 1865 -- -which destroyed over a hundred buildings, and threatened the destruction of the entire city. To the usual horrors of an extensive fire was added the dangers of a terrific bombardment. The fire --- supposed to have been the work of the soldiers of the 20th United States Army corps,⁶ and the beginning of an organized attempt to set fire to the city, as during the night fire was discovered in St. Andrews' hall, in the Exchange, and at other places throughout the city --- commenced in a stable in the rear of the old "Granite hall" (located at the corner of West Broad and Zubly streets), which had been used by the Confederate authorities as an arsenal for fixed ammunition, and in which there were stored thousands of rounds. The fire spread rapidly. Citizens and soldiers crowded to the scene, and under orders of an United States officer, commenced to remove the ammunition and assist in working the engines. Before much of the ammunition had been removed the fire was communicated to the powder, and explosion after explosion followed in rapid succession, the fragments of shell flying in all directions, killing a negro and wounding two or three citizens. Pieces of shell were picked up near the Pulaski and also the Greene monument, and in the yards of citizens living in remote parts of the city. The first explosion scattered the crowd and aroused those asleep, many of whom, before realizing the state of affairs, thought the Confederate troops had made a night attack. During this novel bombardment, which put a stop to the working of the engines in the vicinity and allowed the fire full sway, a piece of shell struck the reservoir. A jet of water immediately sprung out, which for novelty and beauty surpassed any fountain, looking in the fiery glare like a sheet of molten silver. Before the flames were arrested over one hundred houses, situated on West Broad between Pine and St. Gaul streets, and a few on Broughton and Congress streets, were destroyed.

    The crowning act of oppression was yet to come --- that of removing the families of the officers of the Confederate army and navy out of the city. When all the other deeds of rapine, murder, and oppression which have been laid at the door of General Sherman have been buried in the dust of oblivion, this will remain a reproach and disgrace to him who, not many years before, when a lieutenant at Oglethorpe barracks, was hospitably entertained by the relatives of the ladies who, with their children, he now had torn away from their friends and sent into the Confederate lines, knowing full well they must inevitably suffer from want and exposure before meeting again with their lawful protectors. What occasioned this action is not known. Perhaps General Sherman⁷ had read of the British sending ladies from Savannah during the Revolutionary war, and did not desire to be outdone by them in cruelty and oppression. Whatever may have been the occasion, he or his subordinates never published an order defining his reasons or notifying the ladies publicly that they must leave, but sent word privately by staff officers that it was the intention of the commander to remove them, and that they must register their names by a certain time. It appears that all did not register, or at least not as many as Brevet Major-General C. Grover, then in command of Savannah, thought should have done so, and he published the following order, the italics appearing in it:

[CIRCULAR.]

OFFICE PROVOST MARSHAL, DISTRICT SAVANNAH, }
March 28th, 1865. }

ROBERT P. YORK,
Provost Marshal District Savannah, Ga.

    Shortly after this disgraceful affair the armies of Generals Lee and Johnston surrendered; the loved and honored and saved returned to cheer their old places with their presence; the restrictions upon commerce and business were gradually removed, a partial civil government restored, and under the blessings of a divine providence peace, prosperity, and plenty returned. Four years have now elapsed since the capture of the city, and Savannah is larger and more prosperous than before the war.

2 - Rifled cannon of large calibre had not been tested then, and their penetrative power was of course unknown.

3 - Lieutenant Hussey died a few days before General Joseph E. Johnston's surrender, from the effects of rigorous imprisonment.

4 - Major Gallie was a native of Scotland, and was fifty-six years of age when killed. He was a gallant soldier and a sincere christian. His loss was deeply deplored. Previous to the war he was in business in Savannah, a partner of the firm of Wilder & Gallie.

5 - It being reported that General Sherman made two demands for the surrender of Savannah, we wrote repeatedly to the Confederate officers who could have correctly informed us in this regard, but received no reply. --- Eds.

6 - The soldiers of this corps believed that they would be detailed to remain in Savannah when Sherman's army advanced, which occurred on this night. Another corps was detailed, and much ill feeling sprung up between the corps, and it was the belief of the soldiers of the corps detailed to remain that the other corps attempted to destroy the city to prevent the necessity of their remaining.

7 - It is stated that Edward M. Stanton, United States Secretary of War, who came to Savannah shortly after its evacuation, ordered that the wives and children of the Confederate officers should be sent out of the city, against which Sherman at first demurred, but afterward consented, and gave the necessary commands to have the order carried out.