64 The Mississippi Valley in the Civil War

mander complained of such treatment as “ unchiv-alrous,” but was fain to submit.

The surrender delivered up to Grant nearly15,000 prisoners, with 65 cannon and 17,000muskets. His loss in killed, wounded, and miss-ing, had exceeded 3000, and that of the enemyhad been not far from the same. For physicaldimensions it was the greatest military achieve-ment that the American continent had yet wit-nessed ; but its strategic value was not to bemeasured by its physical dimensions. The twogreat rivers were laid open for hundreds of miles,Importance s0 ^at Union gunboats sailed far intoof the vie- Alabama . The victory of Thomas attory - Mill Spring had already led Johnston

to evacuate Bowling Green and retire upon Nash­ ville . Now it was necessary to abandon Nashville also, for the great suspension bridge over theCumberland was Johnston’s only available line ofretreat, and there was now nothing to hinder Footefrom coming up to destroy it. If the army stayedin its jeopardized situation, he would be sure tocome. There was a panic in Nashville . Thestate government fled, with the archives and allthe money in the treasury, Johnston fell back toMurfreesboro , and just a week after Buckner’ssurrender a division of Buell’s army occupied thecapital of Tennessee . On the Mississippi river