The enemy could not resort to our method to protect their men, because we had an inexhaustible supply of ammunition to draw upon and used it freely.  Splinters from the timber would have made havoc among the men behind.

There were no mortars with the besiegers, except what the navy had in front of the city; but wooden ones were made by taking logs of the toughest wood that could be found, boring them out for six or twelve pound shells and binding them with strong iron bands.  These answered as cochorns, and shells were successfully thrown from them into the trenches of the enemy.

The labor of building the batteries and intrenching was largely done by the pioneers, assisted by negroes who came within our lines and who were paid for their work; but details from the troops had often to be made.  The work was pushed forward as rapidly as possible, and when an advanced position was secured and covered from the fire of the enemy the batteries were advanced.  By the 30th of June there were two hundred and twenty guns in position, mostly light field-pieces, besides a battery of heavy guns belonging to, manned and commanded by the navy.  We were now as strong for defence against the garrison of Vicksburg as they were against us; but I knew that Johnston was in our rear, and was receiving constant reinforcements from the east.  He had at this time a larger force than I had had at any time prior to the battle of Champion’s Hill.

As soon as the news of the arrival of the Union army behind Vicksburg reached the North, floods of visitors began to pour in.  Some came to gratify curiosity; some to see sons or brothers who had passed through the terrible ordeal; members of the Christian and Sanitary Associations came to minister to the wants of the sick and the wounded.  Often those coming to see a son or brother would bring a dozen or two of poultry.  They did not know how little the gift would be appreciated.  Many of the soldiers had lived so much on chickens, ducks and turkeys without bread during the march, that the sight of poultry, if they could get bacon, almost took away their appetite.  But the intention was good.

Among the earliest arrivals was the Governor of Illinois, with most of the State officers.  I naturally wanted to show them what there was of most interest.  In Sherman’s front the ground was the most broken and most wooded, and more was to be seen without exposure.  I therefore took them to Sherman’s headquarters and presented them.  Before starting out to look at the lines—­possibly while Sherman’s horse was being saddled —­there were many questions asked about the late campaign, about which the North had been so imperfectly informed.  There was a little knot around Sherman and another around me, and I heard Sherman repeating, in the most animated manner, what he had said to me when we first looked down from Walnut Hills upon the land below on the 18th of May, adding:  “Grant is entitled to every bit of the credit for the campaign; I opposed it.  I wrote him a letter about it.”  But for this speech it is not likely that Sherman’s opposition would have ever been heard of.  His untiring energy and great efficiency during the campaign entitle him to a full share of all the credit due for its success.  He could not have done more if the plan had been his own. (13)