at McClernand's
urgent request, had sent reinforcements from other corps to confirm a
success that he found nonexistent on the spot, except in McClernand's
own words. To crown this, McClernand had sent his official order,
with all its misleading statements, to be published in the Northern
press; and the whole army was now supplied with the papers containing
it. So gross a breach of discipline could not go unpunished; and
McClernand was sent back to Springfield in disgrace.

Banks, unfortunately, was senior to Grant and of course independent
of Farragut; so he could safely vex them both--Grant, by spoiling
the plan of concerting the attacks on Port Hudson and Vicksburg in
May; Farragut, by continual failure in cooeperation and by leaving
big guns exposed to capture on the west bank. But things turned out
well, after all. The guns were saved by the naval vessels that beat
off a Confederate attack on Donaldsonville; and Grant's army was saved
from coming under Banks's command by Banks's own egregious failure
in cooeperation. This failure thus became a blessing in disguise: a
disguise too good for Halleck, whose reprimand from Washington
on the twenty-third of May shows what dangers lurked beneath the
might-have-been. "The Government is exceedingly disappointed that
you and General Grant are not acting in conjunction. It thought to
secure that object by authorizing you to assume the entire command
as soon as you and General Grant could unite."

In the end the Confederates suffered much more than the Federals
from civilian interference; for the orders of their Government
came through in time to confuse a situation that was already bad
and growing worse. Between Porter afloat and Grant ashore Vicksburg
was doomed unless "Joe" Johnston came west with sufficient force
to relieve it in time. Johnston did come early enough, but not
in sufficient force; so the next best thing was to destroy all
stores, abandon Vicksburg, and save the garrison. The Government,
however, sent positive orders to hold Vicksburg to the very last
gasp. Johnston had meanwhile sent Pemberton (the Vicksburg commander)
orders to combine with him in free maneuvering for an attack in
the field. But Pemberton's own idea was to await Grant on the Big
Black River, where, with Johnston's help, he thought he could beat
him. Then followed hesitation, a futile attempt to harmonize the
three incompatible schemes; and presently the division of the
Confederates into