Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 2.djvu/211

Rh Patterson, and at other points from which invasion could be made into Maryland and across any part of the eastern border of Virginia. The State of Ohio passed an act to enroll the militia of that State on April i2th, providing for immediately mustering and arming its volunteers.

These active preparations were made before Virginia had seceded, and even before the attempt to reinforce Fort Sumter had failed. Then followed the ample answer to President Lincoln's call for troops, after which, it is a strange circumstance that on the 26th of April, Ohio created a debt of $2,000,000 to raise funds to defend the State, the governor deciding the measure constitutional because "Ohio is in danger of invasion." An immense "home army" was organized under orders of May 6th, part of which was to be "the active army of operation;" the enrolled militia of 300,000 men were divided into three corps; the people of the cities promptly raised large sums of money for the support of volunteers, and under all this pressure the State soon had a large force in the field.

Maj.-Gen. George B. McClellan, who had been in the regular United States army, and was, in 1861, the general superintendent of the Ohio & Mississippi railroad, was made major-general of State troops May 1st, and proceeding with great energy in the work, had twenty-two regiments mustered before June 1st to meet President Lincoln's call, besides a large number of other regiments in State camps, at an expenditure, as certified by the governor and auditor, of over $2,000,000.

The preliminary arrangements which rendered such rapid action possible, were made prior to the sailing of the fleet destined to reinforce Fort Sumter, and pending the efforts of Virginia to arrest secession. Through the energetic efforts of the war governors in forwarding troops to Washington in April, the State of Maryland was reduced to Federal control before it could be succored, and by the 1st of May, the entire eastern, north-