At nine the commissioners met under the shade of the beautiful
trees, nearly on the spot where O'Brien had rested among his men
while waiting for the word on the 27th of May. On the Confederate
side the commissioners were Colonel William R. Miles, commanding
the right wing of the garrison, Colonel I. G. W. Steedman, of the
1st Alabama, commanding the left wing, and Lieutenant-Colonel
Marshall J. Smith, Chief of Heavy Artillery.

Among those thus brought together there was more than one gentleman
of marked conversational talent; the day was pleasant, the shade
grateful, and, to one side at least, the refreshment not less so;
and thus the time passed pleasantly until two o'clock, when the
commissioners signed, with but a single change, the articles that
had been drawn up for them and in readiness since six in the morning.
The alteration was occasioned by the great and unexpected length
to which the conference had been protracted. Five o'clock in the
afternoon had been named as the time when the besiegers were to
occupy the works; this had to be changed to seven o'clock on the
morning of the 9th. The terms, which will be found in full in the
Appendix, were those of an unconditional surrender. Gardner, who
was in waiting conveniently near, at once approved the articles,
and at half-past two they were completed by the signature of Banks.
A few minutes later the long wagon-train, loaded with provisions,
that had been standing for hours in the Plains Store road, was
signalled to go forward. The cheers that welcomed the train, as
it wound its way up the long-untravelled road and through the
disused sally-port, were perhaps not so loud as those with which
the besiegers had greeted the news from Vicksburg, yet they were
not less enthusiastic. From this moment the men of the two armies,
and to some extent the officers, mingled freely.

Andrews was designated to receive the surrender, and from each
division two of the best regiments, with one from Weitzel's brigade,
were told off to occupy the place.

Punctually at seven o'clock on the morning of the 9th of July the
column of occupation entered the sally-port on the Jackson road.
At its head rode Andrews with his staff. Next, in the post of
honor, came the stormers with Birge at their head, then the 75th
New York of Weitzel's brigade, followed by the 116th New York and
the 2d Louisiana of Augur's division, the 12th Maine, and the 13th
Connecticut of Grover's division, t