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by a part of
General Taylor's army at
Mobile, had about fifty-five thousand men.
1 Thomas had twenty-five or thirty thousand other men under his command, holding widely separated but important posts, which prudence forbade him to concentrate.
So he resolved to keep as strong as possible in front of
Hood, if he should advance, and falling slowly back toward
Nashville, avoid battle until sufficiently strengthened to promise success in a conflict.
Fortunately,
Hood lingered on the bank of the
Tennessee until past the middle of November; for, while
Sherman remained north of the
Chattahoochee, he was not sure that active leader might not suddenly appear upon his rear.
But when, at length, intelligence came that he had severed all communications with the
North and turned his face toward the sea,
Hood threw the remainder of his army over the
Tennessee on a pontoon bridge at
Florence, and two days afterward, moved on parallel roads in the direction of
Nashville, through Waynesboroa and
Lawrenceburg, driving
General Hatch from the latter place.
Thomas had hoped to meet
Hood in battle south of
Duck River, but the two divisions under
General A. J. Smith, coming from
Missouri,
2 had not arrived, and he did not feel well prepared to do so, when his adversary moved; so he ordered
Schofield to fall back to
Columbia.
He did so in good order, while
Capron's brigade at
Mount Pleasant covered all flank approaches from that direction.
Schofield withdrew
Ruger's division from
Johnsonville, and on the 24th of November his forces were concentrated at
Columbia.
In the mean time
General Granger had withdrawn the garrisons at
Athens,
Decatur, and
Huntsville, and returned to
Stevenson, from which he sent five fresh regiments to Murfreesboroa.
The officer left in command at
Johnsonville was ordered to remove the property there across to the
Cumberland at
Fort Donelson, and, with it and the garrison, take post at
Clarksville.
Hood moved promptly to
Pulaski, and pushed on toward
Columbia, but showed no disposition to attack
Schofield in front of that town.
But he made movements so indicative of an intention to cross
Duck River on one or both of
Schofield's flanks, that the latter withdrew
to the north side of the stream, and sent his trains toward
Nashville.
Then, informed that
Hood had crossed the river six miles above
Columbia, he ordered
Stanley to follow his trains to
Spring Hill.
The command was promptly executed just in time to save them from
Forrest's cavalry, hovering near, and which
Stanley drove off just as they were about to pounce upon the wagons and their guard.
Stanley was speedily attacked by a very strong force of horse and foot, which he fought until night fell, and, though with great difficulty, he firmly held the road over which the retreating army was to pass.
On that day
Schofield had been continually employed in keeping the
Confederates from crossing the
Duck River at
