Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 08.djvu/70

58 These extracts are given to show that Smith's retreat was caused by the movement of Lee to reinforce Forrest, in obedience to the orders of Lieutenant-General Polk, Department commander.

These are the facts, as understood by the writer, connected with Sherman's Meridian expedition and W. Sooy Smith's cavalry raid from Memphis to West Point, Mississippi.

Lieutenant-General Polk, in the exercise of a wise discretion, determined from the first not to fight Sherman, if his army was as large as represented, for he felt that he was too weak to inflict a telling blow unless he was considerably reinforced. He determined to let Sherman expend himself in the piney woods, unless he moved to the Tombigbee river towards Selma, or towards Mobile, in which case he expected to receive assistance from Johnston's army in Georgia, and to crush Sherman. The movement of troops for this purpose (Hardee's corps) was at the time in progress.

General Polk's orders to Lee, operating against Sherman, plainly showed he did not want Sherman materially interfered with, but rather encouraged to move as far as he would. 'Tis true, Sherman's march was skillfully conducted, and he gave Lee but little opportunity to hurt him. In fact, Lee could only keep in his foragers and stragglers, and aid him in keeping compact while in motion.

General Polk, in carrying out his plan, at once seized the opportunity offered by W. S. Smith's cavalry expedition against Forrest, to order Lee's entire cavalry force to leave Sherman in his loneliness, and to unite with Forrest and beat Smith before he could reach Meridian, while he (Polk) was at the same moment arranging a similar concentration for Sherman's benefit, as soon as Smith was discomfited. Both Sherman and Smith displayed sagacity on this occasion. Smith, in his candor, says he retreated to avoid falling "into the trap. set for me by the Rebels." While Sherman, to cover his discomfiture, protests in his book that he never had any idea of either Mobile or Selma, but, as on a previous occasion (December, 1863, at Chickasaw bayou), he lays all the blame on a subordinate. The two campaigns, as to conceptive development and results, are quite similar from a military standpoint.

Now let us examine into the object and result of this campaign. General Sherman, in his book, says: "The object of the Meridian expedition was to strike the roads inland, so to paralyze the Rebel forces, that we could take from the defence of the Mississippi river the equivalent of a corps of twenty thousand men, to be used in the next Georgia campaign, and this was actually done. At the same