The season was bad, the roads impassable for anything except such an army as he had, and I should not have thought of ordering such a move.

I had, therefore, made preparations to collect transports to carry Sherman and his army around to the James River by water, and so informed him.

On receiving this letter he went to work immediately to prepare for the move, but seeing that it would require a long time to collect the transports, he suggested the idea then of marching up north through the Carolinas.

I was only too happy to approve this; for if successful, it promised every advantage.

His march through Georgia had thoroughly destroyed all lines of transportation in that State, and had completely cut the enemy off from all sources of supply to the west of it.