CHATTANOOGA, CHICKAMAUGA, LOOKOUT¹ MOUNTAIN. LINCOLN’S GETTYSBURG SPEECH.
In the West the war was now in two parts. The Un-ion troops had won their first point, which was to hold the Mis-sis-sip-pi Riv-er. But there had to be a long, fierce fight ere they could gain cen-tral Ten-nes-see and north Geor-gi-a. The foe² led by Bragg, and the Un-ion troops by Ro-se-crans fought their best but it was not till the warm months, and the fall of 1863 that Ro-se-crans, at last, made Bragg fall back, bit by bit, un-til Chat-ta-noo-ga was in the hands of the Un-ion for-ces. Then more of the foe went to help Bragg, and the great fight of Chick-a-mau-ga came on Sept. 19 and 20, 1863.
The first day the Un-ion ar-my won; but the next day the right half of Ro-se-crans’ ar-my was bro-ken and fled to Chat-ta-noo-ga. George H. Thom-as, a brave man and a hard fight-er, by great skill held the left wing a-gainst charge af-ter charge that the foe made up-on it, and gave Ro-se-crans time to take such steps
[116]
 as would make safe the Un-ion men who had fled to Chat-ta-noo-ga.
Grant then had all the troops west of the moun-tains in his charge. He gave Ro-se-crans’ place to Thom-as, who was called “The Rock of Chick-a-mau-ga.” Grant him-self, with Thom-as next, then took com-mand of the be-sieged for-ces at Chat-ta-noo-ga.
Some of Bragg’s men had been sent off to make a strike at Burn-side in East Ten-nes-see, so Grant saw that he had a good chance to make a move on the rear of Bragg’s ar-my.
The line of the foe was twelve miles long, ’twixt Mis-sion-a-ry Ridge³ on the east and Look-out Moun-tain on the south. The last is a height which makes a sharp rise of 2,000 feet.
[117]
Grant’s plan was to have his troops climb the two heights and storm the works that had been built on them. If he could take them, he would then com-mand the val-ley in which Bragg’s troops lay, and could force him to give up the siege. He gave Hoo-ker the task of mak-ing a strike at Look-out Moun-tain and Sher-man had his work to do at the Ridge.
 
AT MISSIONARY⁴ RIDGE.
There was a dense⁵ mist on the morn-ing of Nov. 23. Sher-man went to work and got up-on the north end of the Ridge, while Hoo-ker did his part on Look-out Moun-tain. Hoo-ker’s troops fought their way right up to the top and when there flung to the breeze the stars and stripes.

分享到：