Atlanta - Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow. John R. Hornady
citizens to formulate some line of conduct. They met near the intersection of Peachtree and Marietta Streets, and there, surrounded by the debris of damaged buildings, they decided that the thing to do was to communicate with General Sherman and, as the Confederate leader had made no formal surrender of the City, this should be done by the civil authorities. This decision reached, it was decided to notify General Sherman at once, and then came up the question of whether or not members of the party should bear arms. "No," said the Mayor, "this would never do," and thereupon weapons were laid aside, it being observed while this was being done that one of the party had four revolvers on his person! He evidently had expected to fight until the last ditch.
It required courage for these men to lay aside their arms and go forth into the ranks of the enemy, for they were liable to be fired upon long before they could reach General Sherman, but the call of duty was clear, and they went forth unafraid. They rode out Marietta Street, where progress even on horseback was made difficult at times by reason of the mass of debris which littered the street; remnants of houses that had been torn to pieces by shells. On they went through this scene of devastation, reaching and crossing the deserted earthworks of the Confederates where so many gallant efforts had been made to save their city, and thence into the open toward the works of the Federals.
For four miles the little body of civilians progressed along a smitten path, when suddenly, at a point where their movements had been concealed for the moment by the contour of the earth, they came upon a company of marching soldiers — men in blue. The committee halted, while a Union Colonel rode up for an explanation. Their story was quickly told, and thereupon an orderly was instructed to escort the committee to the headquarters of General Sherman.
Shown into the presence of the General, they found a disheveled and care-worn individual, surrounded by none of the "pomp and circumstance "of war; a man who evidently found it an ugly business, but whose stern countenance betrayed an unalterable purpose to finish it at any cost.
Addressing General Sherman, Mayor Calhoun explained the condition of the City and said that he had come to surrender it, the only condition being that life, liberty and private property be protected. What this brave executive would have done had his conditions been declined, opens an interesting field of speculation, but, fortunately, no such contingency arose. Speaking in short, crisp sentences. General Sherman said that the conditions would be granted, and, at the same time, he added that the civil authorities had pursued the right course in coming directly to him. He ventured the hope that their relations would be pleasant, "But this is war," he barked out with a great oath, "and I must place your town under martial law."
When, as they were taking leave of the Union Commander, one of the committee said, "Now that we have surrendered, you will probably come in at once, "General Sherman cried, "Come in! I think some of my men are already there.'' Then, darting a searching glance at Mayor Calhoun, he said: ''I suppose it is understood that none of your people will fire upon my soldiers?" He was assured that this would not be done, and thereupon the committeemen turned their faces once more toward Atlanta, where they had suffered so many hardships and disappointments, and where, though they thought the cup of bitterness had been drained, some dregs remained, as poignant as any that had gone before.
The arrival of the blue-clad host began immediately and continued throughout the day, the only opposition they met coming from a half dozen Confederate cavalrymen who had lingered in the city, and who fired a few shots at the enemy upon Decatur Street. Realizing, however, the futility of attempting to do what General Hood and his battalions had failed to accomplish, these dashing cavalrymen whirled almost immediately and clattered off in pursuit of the Confederate army. Thus Atlanta passed into the hands of the enemy, and thus opened that final chapter of the City's slow march up the hill called Golgotha, in which it bore its cross of suffering to the very peak.
"With the arrival of the Federal forces, the city underwent an immediate transformation. Dealers in all sorts of merchandise came swift upon the heels of the advance guard of soldiers, and by nightfall empty stores had been stocked with goods, groceries, clothing and the like, and enterprising news-dealers were crying their wares. Daily newspapers from New York, magazines and even novels were displayed, and Atlanta began to experience a revival of commerce. Quartermaster's stores were brought into the City in great quantities, and a depot of supplies was opened by the United States Sanitary Commission.
The influx continued throughout the entire night, and far into the following day. Billiard rooms and bars were opened, and advertisements appeared announcing a minstrel performance for that night. Dense crowds of soldiers and civilians thronged the streets, but there was no disorder.
As soon as a survey had been made of the City, the homes of some of the most prosperous citizens were taken over for the commanding officers of the Union army. General Sherman made his headquarters in a large building at the corner of Mitchell and Washington Streets, afterward used as a high school.
Fear that the women might be subjected to indignities disappeared quickly, as the soldiers were courteous as a rule, and were subject to strict discipline. Want had multiplied in the City during the long siege, when it was almost impossible to bring in supplies, and measures of relief were taken at once by the invaders. Food was distributed to those who needed it. But while these developments were gratifying to the people, and furnished some measure of relief from the apprehension which weighed upon them, they sensed the fact that they were under a stern and implacable ruler and no show of consideration could remove entirely the fears that compassed them about.
The Union flag was hoisted, of course, and the attitude of the people toward this emblem was watched closely. It was observed in one instance that a young lady, in front of whose home a flag had been placed, began to leave and to enter by the rear door. It being obvious that it was her purpose to avoid walking under the flag, the stars and stripes were raised above the back door. Confronted by this situation, the young lady, one of the most beautiful in Atlanta, proceeded to show her defiance by climbing in and out a window! Having auburn hair and the high-strung disposition, which is popularly supposed to go with it, she was extreme in her denunciations of the "Yankees," but that even such rage as that displayed by her may melt, was demonstrated by subsequent events.
Another charming but quick-tempered belle of the sixties, who was exceedingly bitter against the ''Yankees," was a frequent visitor at the home of my grandfather, Dr. Henry Carr Hornady, then pastor of the First Baptist Church in Atlanta. On one occasion when she was engaged in a characteristic denunciation of the foe, Dr. Hornady sought to tease her by saying: "Don't go on so, child, for you may be marrying one of these handsome Yankee officers before this thing is over." She replied, ''Never, I'd die first," but the truth is that she did this very thing some time thereafter, and the marriage was a happy one.
In this connection it might be observed, that when the war ended finally, the "Yankee" officers had a distinct advantage over the returned Southerners when it came to courting the fair sex. The Southern boys were in rags for the most part, and there was no way of providing the becoming garments of the period. Old carpets, rugs and draperies were cut up and transformed into suits, and even bed-ticking was used. The result in most cases was to merely provide a covering for the body, and the young man adorned with one of these make-shift suits lacked much of being a Beau Brummell. Those who were no better provided for naturally were somewhat backward about seeking the society of the belles of the hour, and thus golden opportunities were allowed to slip.
Contrasted with the pitiful raiment of many of these young men, the smart uniforms of the Union officers shone resplendently, and they experienced none of the hesitancy that characterized the native sons when it came to seeking the society of the fair sex. Thus circumstances, over which no one had control, so shaped events that many Northern youths found the opportunity to make themselves agreeable to the belles of the South, and it was inevitable that, in the course of time, some should have won their way into the hearts that once had flamed with hate. It was some time, however, before this state of affairs eventuated, nor is it to be assumed that the Southern boys were crowded out entirely. That would be far from the truth, for with truly Spartan courage, thousands upon thousands of lovely Southern girls, disregarding the poor apparel and the empty pockets of the returned soldiers, united with them and entered joyously upon the work of rearing citadels out of which flowed