80 The Mississippi Valley in the Civil War

obstinate fighting, in the course of which theFederal front was driven back more than a mile,nothing had yet been beard from Wallace, andtwo of Grant’s staff — James McPherson 1 andJohn Rawlins — were sent to look for him. Thecause of delay was a misunderstanding such asone is continually meeting with in every-day life.It had not occurred to Grant that Wallace wouldmove by any other route than the direct road fromthe vicinity of Crump’s Landing to the bridgeover Snake creek. But it happened that some ofWallace’s brigades had been thrown out for somedistance along the Purdy road, and it seemed tohim sufficiently direct to come by a route parallelto that which Grant had in mind, crossing Snakecreek a couple of miles higher up. When Mc-Pherson and Rawlins found him, he had nearlyreached the creek; but now he learned from themthat to pursue this route would be dangerous. Itwould lead him to the point where the road fromPurdy to Pittsburg Landing crosses Owl creek, andnow that the Federal line had been driven back,this would bring him on the field in an isolatedposition, where he would be liable to be separatelyattacked. It thus became necessary for Wallaceto retrace his steps for some three miles, and then

1 Afterward commander of the Army of the Tennessee, andone of the ablest generals in the war.