William Boynton, Sherman's Historical Raid

[218] neutralized the effect of General Sherman's carelessness and saved their wing of the army. Still, in spite of their gallant fighting against superior numbers, it was probably owing to a mistake on the Confederate side that the left wing was not wholly overpowered.

A general assault had been contemplated by the Confederate generals about an hour before sundown. But by some error in conveying commands, or in obeying them, night came on before their lines were ready for the movement, and so the opportunity for crushing Sherman's left wing passed. Thus narrowly did this magnificent army escape serious disaster in its last battle.

General Sherman speaks repeatedly of Generals Schofield and Terry as if they were independent commanders, and says: ‘Wilmington was captured by General Terry on the 22d of February.’

Accurately, General Terry's forces formed a portion of the command of General Schofield, and advanced on Wilmington upon the left bank of the Cape Fear River, while the Twenty-Third Corps formed the other part of Schofield's army, and advanced on the right bank of the river. General J. D. Cox's troops of this latter corps, with one division of Terry's troops, assisted by the fleet, drove the enemy out of Fort Anderson, and then by secretly passing Casement's brigade in flats over Town Creek near its mouth, General Cox secured the main crossing over that strongly guarded stream, and opened the way to the rear of Wilmington, which, as a consequence, was immediately evacuated. As General Schofield directed all the movements, a careful writer would have said Wilmington was captured by General Schofield.