men. wounded on the field. Hood then swung his army around to meet McPherson, who moved from Decatur, and in a battle on the 22d gained a temporary success, killing General J. B. McPherson and inflicting a loss of 3,641 Then the tide turned, Hood was beaten back with a loss of 8,499 of his men and withdrew into the defences around Atlanta. This was the beginning of the siege. Sherman entrenched himself, but did not attack. He still pursued his flanking tactics, moving toward Hood's left. Hood attacked gallantly on the 27th, but his repeated assaults failed. He lost 4,632 men, while the Federals lost but 700. A number of cavalry expeditions, sent out by Sherman despite desperate resistance, cut off Hood's communications. General Stoneman commanded one of these, going with 5,000 men to free the Northern prisoners at Macon and turn them loose on the country. Surrounded by the Confederates, Stoneman and 1,000 of his men surrendered. But Hood had now realized the wisdom of remaining on the defensive. Late in August, Sherman moved nearly his whole army to the south of Atlanta, and on August 31st entered Jonesboro, an unfortified point, twentysix miles from that city. Hood evacuated Atlanta on the night of September 1st, after destroying such stores and supplies as could not be moved. Sherman occupied Atlanta on September 2d, but considered this success only a partial victory, since Hood and his army had escaped. The country about Atlanta was laid waste; people old and young, sick and feeble, well and strong were driven out of the city to live as they could. Every important building was burned. The loss of Atlanta narrowed the limits of the Confederacy greatly and cut off much needed supplies that had been coming from the Gulf States over roads centring there. Hood retired to Lovejoy Station, thirty miles southeast of Atlanta, and remained there until the 21st of September, when he shifted his position to Palmetto Station, twenty-five miles southwest of Atlanta. The losses of the opposing armies in the Atlanta campaign had been about equal, and approximated 40,000 for each side. From this loss on the Confederate side, to arrive at the exact loss in battle, should be deducted thousands who deserted. To the Federal loss might properly be added the decrease from sickness, which would swell the Union loss to over 47,000. From Palmetto Station on the 24th of September, Hood began a movement with the intention of passing Sherman's rear and marching to occupy Tennessee. He transferred his army by a flank movement from Lovejoy Station on the Macon Railroad to near Newman on the West Point road, and General Sherman, surmising that this was but preliminary to a greater movement, was instantly on the alert. He sent his spare forces, wagons, and guns to the rear under General Thomas, and at the same time sent Generals John M. Schofield, John Newton, and John M. Corse to different points in the rear of Atlanta. Hood moved toward the Chattahoochee on the 27th, crossing on the 29th and 30th of September. Sherman discovered this movement on October 1st and immediately followed him. Hood attacked Alatoona on the 5th of October, but Sherman from Kenesaw Mountain signaled the garrison to hold out, and it did. Hood then moved westward, threatening Resaca, capturing Dalton on the 12th, with its garrison, and taking possession of Tilton and Mill Creek. Passing through the gap of Pigeon Mountain he entered Lafayette on the 15th, marched to Tuscumbia, rejoining his trains at Gadsden, and prepared for the march to Nashville. He crossed Tennessee River on November 20th. General Sherman had followed him only as far as Gaylesville, Alabama, where he became convinced of the direction Hood intended to take; then he abruptly abandoned the pursuit, appointing General Thomas to oppose Hood's march, and returned to Atlanta to put his army in motion for the march from that city to the sea. Reports of December 10th show that the total effective force of the Confederate army was 33,393, while the Federal army had an aggregate equipped of 75,153. It was November 15th when Sherman began his march, and when Hood crossed the Tennessee, Sherman was far on his way to Savannah. General Schofield had been sent by Thomas to oppose Hood's advance as soon as he should cross Tennessee River, while Thomas gave his own attention to collecting at Nashville a force largely superior to Hood's. On November 21st Hood moved from North Alabama into Tennessee, and pushed forward as if to cut off Schofield's retreat from Pulaski, where the Federal commander had taken position with two army corps. Fearing that his position would be flanked, Schofield abandoned Pulaski and reached Columbia by forced marches. At Hood's approach Columbia was abandoned, the Federals retiring to a strong position on the opposite side of the river, a mile and a half distant. Late in the evening of November 28th, General Forrest crossed Duck River a few miles above Columbia, Hood following early next morning with Stewart's and Cheatham's corps, and Johnston's division of S. D. Lee's corps, leaving the other troops in the enemy's front at Columbia. They moved in light marching order, the intention being to turn the enemy's flank by marching rapidly on roads parallel to the Columbia and Franklin pike, at or near Spring Hill, and to cut off that portion of the enemy at or near Columbia. Schofield, however, surmised the intentions of the enemy and began retreating. Late in the afternoon Hood's infantry forces, Cheatham in the advance, came in contact with the enemy two miles from Spring Hill and there was some skirmishing. General Hood wished to possess himself of the road to Franklin and cut off the retreat of the Federals, but owing to a series of misunderstandings Schofield was allowed to pass and succeeded in reaching Franklin. There was now nothing left but pursuit and attack. Pursuit was begun at daylight, and the Federals were so closely pressed that they had to burn a number of their |