CHAPTER XXXV
The Reopening of the Tennessee River.—1863
THE very last order General Rosecrans gave to the
engineer-in-chief was to make a thorough reconnoissance
of the south bank opposite the west side of Moccasin
Point. General Smith carried out his instructions on
October 19. He found an opening low in the ridge
bordering the river, through which a small creek discharged
into it, with Brown's Ferry at its mouth. This opening,
or gorge, offered a way for landing parties to gain by a
rush the first heights rising from 250 to 300 feet to the
right and left of it and commanding the narrow valley
between them and Lookout Mountain, and the roads
running through it towards the town from a lower ferry.
From that position the communications of the enemy up
the Lookout Valley and over Raccoon Mountain could
also be threatened. It was discovered further that the
ridge was occupied by only a thin chain of pickets, which
it seemed quite practicable to surprise. General Smith was
so well satisfied with the feasibility of the proposed lodgement
that he immediately matured plans for effecting it
without delay. He submitted it to General Thomas, as the
new army commander, who laid it, with his approval,
before General Grant upon his arrival. The very next
morning, the two generals were conducted to the ground
by General Smith, who explained the topography and his
proposed coup de main. He convinced them of the soundness
of his plan, and they authorized him on the spot to
proceed with the necessary preparations.
General Smith was assigned to the command of the expedition to be formed for his purposes. The brigades of
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