of his divisional commanders, Lew Wallace and, still more, C.F.
Smith, the old Commandant of Cadets, were also first-rate. But
the third, McClernand, here began to follow those distorting
ideas which led to his dismissal later on. The three chief
Confederates ranked in reverse order of efficiency: Floyd first
and worst, cantankerous Pillow next, and Buckner best though
last.

The Federal prospect was anything but bright on the evening of
the fourteenth. Foote had just been repulsed; while McClernand
had fought a silly little battle on his own account the day
before, to the delight of the Confederates and the grievous
annoyance of Grant. The fifteenth dawned on a scene of midwinter
discomfort in the Federal lines, where most of the rawest men had
neither great-coats nor blankets, having thrown them away during
the short march from Fort Henry, regardless of the fact that they
would have to bivouac at Donelson. Thus it was in no happy frame
of mind that Grant slithered across the frozen mud to see what
Foote proposed; and, when Foote explained that the gunboats would
take ten days for indispensable repairs, Grant resigned himself
to the very unwelcome idea of going through the long-drawn
horrors of a regular winter siege.

But, to his intense surprise, the enemy saved him the trouble. At
first, when they had a slight preponderance of numbers, they
stood fast and let Grant invest them. Now that he had the
preponderance they tried to cut their way out by the southern
road, upstream, where McClernand's division stood guard. As Grant
came ashore from his interview with Foote an aide met him with
the news that McClernand had been badly beaten and that the enemy