Comte de Paris, History of the Civil War in America. Vol. 1.
Henry Coppee , LL.D., Ed.

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[474] men, both of whom were to succumb under the effect of the wounds received while leading that fleet against the enemy, Commodore Foote and Colonel Ellet, had superintended its formation with all the ardor of their patriotism and all the resources of their inventive minds. We shall relate elsewhere how they gathered this fleet upon the hitherto peaceful waters of the Mississippi; the services it rendered to the Federal armies will appear in every line of this narrative. That fleet was divided into three categories: 1st. The gun-boats, some of them being old ships more or less adapted for military service, and most of them, thinly plated; the others were of new construction; they all carried powerful guns; were manned by sailors, and commanded by the brave Foote. 2d. The rams, the creation of Colonel Ellet, formed a separate division, organized by the War Department, and manned by land-troops. 3d. The transport-ships, which were large Mississippi passenger-boats bought or hired by the quartermaster for the conveyance of troops.

The facilities afforded by this fleet for the movement of armies naturally indicated the West, and in the West the courses of the Mississippi and the Tennessee, as destined to be the theatre of the first military operations of 1862. This calculation had formed the basis of the general plan drawn up by General McClellan for the beginning of the year. It was, however, in Eastern Kentucky that the struggle was renewed at first; and the successes which the Federals achieved there would have caused them to modify their plan if the force of events had not obliged them to adhere to it.

We have stated that the Confederate line of defences in Kentucky rested upon Columbus at the west, upon Bowling Green in the centre, and at the east upon the group of mountains from which the Cumberland springs to enter the plain. The first two points had become important military posts; another was established to cover the third. The position of Mill Springs, south of Somerset, had been selected for that purpose, because it was near the river at the place where it begins to be navigable. The unsuccessful attempts of the Federals at Pikeville, and in the direction of Cumberland Gap, had taught their adversaries that they had nothing to fear on that side, and that any expedition directed