Page:Boissonnas, Un Vaincu, English, 1875.djvu/73

 same governments would admit their Confederation to the rank of a power, the Southerners had believed that their task was almost accomplished and had fallen into a feeling of security that threatened to be fatal.

The soldiers had been discharged for the Winter, and it seemed that the South counted only on its negotiators to achieve its independence.

During that time, the North, on the contrary, had abandoned its dream of an easy triumph, and was organizing itself with a feverish ardor. Its immense financial resources allowed it to spend without sparing in all directions. All the factories were working for the armament of the country, while enormous bonuses were afforded to the enlisting men.

In the first days of Spring, 800,000 men, abundantly equipped with everything that could add to the power of their efforts, had started to move. While Louisiana was taken by surprise by the Federal Fleet ; Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri were conquered almost without fighting. An army followed the course of the Mississippi. Descending from the northern part, it was to take, one after the other, the fortresses built on the banks of the river and use them to