transports, convoyed by Commodore Foote with seven gunboats.

The sites of Forts Henry and Donelson were chosen, and the work of fortifying them begun, by the State of Tennessee, when Kentucky was still holding itself neutral. Fort Donelson, immediately below the town of Dover, was a good position, and was near the Kentucky line. The site chosen for Fort Henry commanded a straight stretch of the river for some miles, and was near the State line and near Donelson. But it was low ground, commanded by higher ground on both sides of the river, and was washed by high water. Under the supervision of General A.S. Johnston's engineers, the work had become a well-traced, solidly constructed fortification of earth, with five bastions mounting twelve guns, facing the river, and five guns bearing upon the land. Infantry intrenchments were thrown up on the nearest high land, extending to the river both above and below the main work, and commanding the road to Fort Donelson. A work named Fort Heiman was begun on the bluff on the opposite side of the river, but was incomplete.

General McClernand, commanding the advance, landed eight miles below the fort. General Grant made a reconnoissance in one of the gunboats to draw the fire of the fort and ascertain the range of its guns. Having accomplished this, he re-embarked the landed troops, and debarked on February 4th, at Bailey's Ferry, three miles below the fort and just out of range of its fire. The river overflowed its banks, much of the country was under water; a heavy rain fell. The entire command did not get ashore till in the night of the 5th. In the night, General C.F. Smith was sent across the river to take Fort Heiman, but it was evacuated while Grant was landing his force at Bailey's Ferry. McClernand was ordered to move out at eleven o'clock in the morning of the 6th, and take position on the roads to Fort Donelson and Dover.

Fort Henry.

General Tilghman had telegraphed for reinforcements, and had about thirty-four hundred men with him, but only one company of artillerists. At midnight of the 5th he telegraphed to General A.S. Johnston that Grant was intrenching at Bailey's Ferry. But, on the morning of the 6th, Tilghman gave up the idea of using his infantry in the defence, ordered Colonel Heiman to move the command to Fort Donelson, while he remained with the company of artillerists to engage the fleet and the land force, if it should appear, with the heavy armament of the fort, and thus retard pursuit.

At eleven o'clock in the morning of the 6th, General Grant moved with his command, and at the same time Commodore Foote steamed up the river with his fleet in two divisions. The first was of ironclads, the Cincinnati, flag-ship, the Carondelet, and the St. Louis, each carrying thirteen guns, and the Essex, carrying nine guns. The second division of three wooden boats, under command of Lieutenant Phelps, followed half a mile astern. At a quarter before twelve o'clock the first division opened fire with their bow-guns at a distance of seventeen hundred yards, and continued firing while slowly advancing to a distance of six hundred yards from the fort. Here the four boats took position abreast, and fired with rapidity. Lieutenant Phelps' division sent shells falling within the work. The little garrison replied with spirit. Fifty-nine shots from their guns struck the fleet, but most of them rebounded without doing harm. One shot exploded the boiler of the Essex, scalding twenty-eight officers and seamen, including Commander Porter. One seaman was killed and nine wounded on the flag-ship, and one was killed by a ball on the Essex. In the fort, the twenty-four pound rifled gun exploded, disabling every man at the piece; a shell from the fleet, exploding at the mouth of one of the thirty-two pounders, ruined the gun, and killed or wounded all the men serving it. A premature explosion at a forty-two pounder killed three men and wounded others. A priming-wire accidentally spiked the ten-inch columbiad. Five men were killed, eleven wounded, and five missing. Four guns were disabled. The men were discouraged. General Tilghman took personal charge of one of the guns and worked it, but he could no longer inspirit his men. Colonel Gilmer, Chief Engineer of the Department, and a few others, not willing to be included in the surrender, left the fort and proceeded to Fort Donelson on foot. At five minutes before two o'clock General Tilghman lowered his flag, and sent his adjutant by boat to report to the flag-officer of the fleet. Twelve officers and sixty-six men in the fort, and sixteen men in the hospital-boat, surrendered. Flag-officer Foote, in his report, says the hospital-boat contained sixty invalids. All the camp-equipage and stores of the force that retreated to Fort Donelson were included in the surrender; the troops, having no wagons, had left everything behind.

At eleven o'clock, General McClernand moved out with his division, followed by the third brigade of General C.F. Smith's division. McClernand had two brigades, the first commanded by Colonel R.J. Oglesby, the second by Colonel W.H.L. Wallace. With each brigade were two batteries—Schwartz and Dresser with the first brigade, Taylor and McAlister with the second. The order to McClernand was to take position on the road from Fort Henry to Fort Donelson and Dover, prevent all reinforcements to Fort Henry or escape from it, and be in readiness to charge and take Fort Henry by storm promptly on the receipt of orders. The road was everywhere miry, owing to the wet season, and crossed ridges and wet hollows. McClernand reports that the distance by road, from the camp to the fort, was eight miles. The troops, pulling through the mud, cheered the bombardment by the fleet when it opened. At three o'clock McClernand learned that the enemy were evacuating the fort, and ordered his cavalry to advance if the report was found to be true. Captain Stewart, of McClernand's staff, came upon the rear of the retiring force just as they were leaving the outer line of the earthworks. Colonel Dickey, of the Fourth Illinois cavalry, coming up, pursued the retreating column three miles, capturing 38 prisoners, six pieces of artillery, and a caisson. The head of the infantry column entered the fort at half-past three o'clock.

Commodore Foote turned over the prisoners and captured property to General Grant, sent Lieutenant Phelps with the wooden gunboats on an expedition up the Tennessee, and returned the same evening to Cairo with two gunboats. Lieutenant-Commander Phelps proceeded up the river to Florence, at the foot of the Muscle Shoals, in the State of Alabama. An account of this expedition and its brilliant success belongs to the naval history of the war.

CHAPTER III.

FORT DONELSON.

The capture of Fort Henry was important, but it would be of restricted use unless Fort Donelson should also be taken. At this point the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers are only twelve miles apart. The little town of Dover stood upon a bluff on the left bank of the Cumberland. Immediately above it, two small brooks empty into the river, making a valley or bottom overflowed by every high water. Immediately below the town is Indian Creek. One branch of it, rising close by the head of the upper one of the two brooks, flowing outwardly from the river toward the west, then bending to the north and northeast, makes almost the circuit of the town, about half a mile from it, before emptying into the creek. Several small brooks, flowing from the north into Indian