The daily Evansville journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1862-1863, 1863-08-19

jOr General U. S. Grant Assxn1e,;
Immediate Commend of tsie Expe-
ditiOn Against Vicksburg to the
Surrender nf finaf EoI~~A
HEADQUAR's DEPT OF THE TENNESSEE, !
Vicksburg, Miss, July 6, 1868 I
Colonel: have the honor to submit
the following report of the operations of
the Army of the Tennessee, and co-ope-
rating forces, from the date of my as
suming the immediate command of the
expedition against Yicksburg, Mississp-
pi, to the reduction of that place.
From the moment of taking COM
mand in person, l became satisfied that
VickSburg could only be turned from the
south side, and, in accordance With this
conviction, prosecuted the work on
the canal, which bad been located by
Brigadier-General Williams, across the
peninsula, on the Louisiana side of the
river, with all vigor, hoping to make a
channel which would pass transports for
moving the army and carrying supplies
to the new base of operations thus pro-
vided. The task was much more hercu-
lean than it at first appeared, and was
made much more so by the almost con-
tlnuous rains that fell during the whole
of the time this work was prosecuted.
The river, too, continued to rise and
made a large expenditure OF labor neces-
sary to keep the water out of our camps
and the canal. H
Finally, on the 9Th of March, the rap
id rise of the river and the consequent
great pressure upon the dam across the
canal, near the upper end, at the main
Mississippi levee, caused it to give way
and let through the low lands back Of
our camps torrent of water that sepa-
rated the north and south shores of the
peninsula as effectually as if the Mis-
sissippi flowed between them. This oc.
Cured when the enterprise promised
success within o short time. There was
some delay in trying to repair damages.
1t was found, however, that with the then
stage of water, some other plan would
have to be adopted for getting below
on my staff, prospected route through
the bayous which run from near Milli-
ken's Bend on the north and New Car
thage on the south, through Roundaway
bayou into the Tensas river. Their re-
port of the practicability OF this route
determined me to commence work upon
it. Having three dredge-boatS at the
time, the work Of opening this route was
executed with great rapidity. One small
steamer and number of barges were
taken through the channel thus opened,
but the river commencing about the mid
die of April to fall rapidly, and the roads
becoming passable between Millikens S
Bend and New Carthage, made it i'm
practicable and unnecessary TO open
water communication between these
points .-..-
Soon after commencing the first canal
spoken of, caused channel to be cut
from the Mississippi river into Lake
Providence; also one from the Missis-
sppi river into Coldwater, by way of
Yazoo Pass.
had no great expectations of import
ant results from the former of these,
but having more troops than could be
employed to advantage at Young's Point,
and knowing that Lake Providence was
connected by Bayou Baxter with Bayou
Macon, navigable stream through
which transports might pass into the
Mississippi below, through Tensas, Wa
chita and Red rivers, l thought it pos
sible that route might be opened IL
that direction which would enable me-
to cooperate with General Banks al
Port Hudson.
By the Yazoo Pass route only ex
pected at first to get into the Yazoo b.
way of the Coldwater and Tallahatchi'
with some lighter gunboats and a fey
troops, and destroy the enemys trans
ports in that stream and some gunboat
which | knew he was building. Th
navigation, however, proved to be S
much better than had been expected
that | thought for a time of the possibil
ty of making this the route for obtainin
fcothold on high land above Halne
Bluff, Mississippi and small class steam
ers were accordingly ordered for tran
porting an army that way. Major Gel
j. B. Mcpherson, commanding the III
army corps, was directed to hold h
CORPS in readiness to move by this route
and one division from each OF the III
and 18th corps were collected near tt
entrance of the Pass to be added to
p. command. 1t soon became evident thi
a sufficient number of boats of the rig
class could not be obtained for the NOV
ment of more than one division.
2 While my forces were opening one ei
v of the Pass, the enemy was diligent
IS closing the other end, and in this W
succeeded in gaining time to strong
fortify Greenwood, below the junction
. the Tallahatchie and Yallabusha. T
advance of the expedition, consisting
= one division of McClernand's corps, frc
Helena, commanded by Brigadier Ge
r eral L. F. Ross, and the 18th and u
regiments Missouri infantry, from Sh
mans corps, as sharpshooters on
gunboats, succeeded in reaching Co
r water on the I'd day of March, after mt
Of difficulty, and the partial disabling
5. most of the boats. From the entral
~ into Coldwater to Fort Pemberton,