The examiner., 1886-02-13
MISS ANNA E. CARROLL.
The Young Woman that Planned the Campaign Which Made Gen. Grant
 FamOuas


 Famous.
 As is we'll known, the first year of our great civil war was marked by such a series of disasters to the Union side, that the danger became imminent of the recog- milton of the Confederacy by England as well as France; and threats were already made by these powers of raising our block ade. England gloating over our expected downfall had poured thirty thousand troops l into Canada, ready for an attack upon our northwestern frontier. The nation seemed nearly upon the point of being lost and it was acknowledged that it's only sal- vation rested upon our immediate military success.
 At this critical juncture Miss Anna E. Carroll, daughter of a former governor of Maryland took a trip to St. Louis to in- spect the military operations in the West. She found the plan was, with fleet of gunboats then preparing to descend the Mississippi and make that river the scene of operatiopsss<M Miss Carroll saw the weak ness of the plan, and at once wrote to MT. Bates, member of the cabinet, urging this expedition to be sent up the Tennessee. Then she drew minute map of the river with all the strategic points to be gained, and showed how it would cut the Confed- eracy in two, while the great risk and losses that would be incurred from making the Mississippi the point of attack must be of little avail, even If successful, while the centre of the enemy's country, from which they drew their supplies remained undis- turbed. ~e.--
 She wro,e out her plan in full, and with her maps of the country and river, hastened to Washington and laid it all before Secretary Stanton and President Lincoln, who saw the great military genius and wisdom displayed and adopted it with the Irovisio that it's author should not be made known while the war lasted, fearing the jealousy of commanders if they should know that it was the plan of a civilian, and that one woman, too. But it has been pronounced one of the profoundest strategic movements of all the ages. The first fruits of this plan, few weeks after being presented to the War Department was the capture of Ft Henry, on the 9th of February, 1862, and of Ft. Doneson ten days later which first made Gen. Grant known to the country.
 Nor was this all the service Miss Carroll did for the Union cause. Though slave holder herself, she had freed her slaves; and being an inma.e of Gov. Hicks family, her influence kept him and his state loyal. She replied to Senator Breckenbridge's secession speech, in 1861, with such ability that our government ordered a large edition to be printed. At MT. Lincoln's request she prepared other papers that greatly assisted the Government, besides many more military suggestions that were of great value during the war. Had it not been for the genius and patriotism of this woman, the name of Ulysses s. Grant and also that of some other generals would never have emerged from obscurity.
 But how different has been her reward from theirs. The writer of this article has printed reports of committees in Con- gress and copies of letters from high off cials providing incontestibly that the nation is indebted for it's salvation to Miss Carroll far more than to any military commander in the service. After the war, for the time and money she had spent, she presented to Congress her claims for compensation. The military committees of the And, 44th and 46th Congresses, all reported that her claims were just, and urged that she should be placed upon the pension list. Yet, in defiance of all the proofs given and the recommendations of these different com- mittees-in defiance of all honor and 1 justice, Congress has refuse ed or neglected l to make any appropriation to relieve the | patriotic woman who saved the Union, and | who is now in poverty and absolute want. In the meantime Congress lavishes its | 5000 year pensions upon the rich | widows of our Presidents, and the people | pile up contributions to them into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even the historians of the war, unmindful of the fact which has been proved over and over again, that Miss Carroll planned the campaign of the Tennessee, persist in saying