So he
accepted what seemed to him the "ungenerous and unchivalrous terms"
which Grant proposed, and surrendered the fort with all its guns
and great stores of ammunition, and fourteen thousand men.
Up to this time Grand had hardly been heard of. He was a soldier
indeed, and had fought in the Mexican War. But eight years before
the outbreak of the rebellion he had left the army. During these
years he had tried in many ways to make a living, but had succeeded
in none, and at the beginning of the war he was almost a ruined
man. Now he became famous, and his short and sharp "unconditional
surrender" was soon a watchword in the Northern army. His initials
too being U. S. he became henceforth known as Unconditional Surrender
Grant.
__________
Chapter 84 - Lincoln - The Story of the First Battle Between
Ironclads
There was fighting too on sea as well as on land. The South sent
out privateers to catch the merchant vessels of the North, and so
bring ruin on their trade. But Lincoln replied by proclaiming a
blockade of all Confederate ports.
This was a bold thing to do, for the coast to be watched was some
three thousand miles long, and the Government had less than fifty
ships to blockade it with. When the blockade was proclaimed, too,
many of these ships were far away in foreign lands. The greatest
navy yard, also, at Norfolk in Virginia, was in the hands of the
Confederates, and was therefore not available for the building of
new ships.
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