worse, except, of course, that civilians were left enough to keep
them alive, and that, with a few inevitable exceptions, they were
not ill treated.

The fighting hardly disturbed the daily routine. Sherman was
never in danger; though wiseacre Washington, supposing that he
ought to be, used to pester Lincoln, who always replied: "Grant
says the men are safe with Sherman, and that if they can't get
out where they want to, they can crawl back by the hole they went
in at." This seemed to allay anxiety; though the truth was that
Sherman's real safety lay in going ahead to the Union sea, not in
retracing his steps over the devastated line of his advance.

On approaching Savannah a mounted officer was blown up by a land
torpedo, his horse killed, and himself badly lacerated. Sherman
at once sent his prisoners ahead to dig up the other torpedoes or
get blown up by those they failed to find. No more explosions
took place. Savannah itself was strongly entrenched and further
defended by Fort McAllister. Against this fort Sherman detached
his own old Shiloh division of the Fifteenth Corps, now under the
very capable command of General William B. Hazen. As the day wore
on Sherman became very impatient, watching for Hazen's attack,
when a black object went gliding up the Ogeechee River toward the
fort. Presently a man-of-war appeared flying the Stars and
Stripes and signaling, "Who are you?" On getting the answer,
"General Sherman", she asked, "Is Fort McAllister taken?" and
immediately received the cheering assurance, "No; but it will be
in a minute." Then, just as the signal flags ceased waving,
Hazen's straight blue lines broke cover, advanced, charged
through the hail of shot, shell, and rifle bullets, rushed the