on that the heretofore largely
negative support given to the Southern cause must be replaced by
organized and persistent effort. Grant's victorious progress in the West
had been checked by the disaster to Rosencrans at Chicamauga, September
18, and Grant's army forced to retrace its steps to recover
Chattanooga. It was not until November 24 that the South was compelled
to release its grip upon that city. Meanwhile in the East, Lee, fallen
back to his old lines before Richmond, presented a still impregnable
front to Northern advance. No sudden collapse, such as had been
expected, followed the Southern defeats at Vicksburg and Gettysburg.
Again the contest presented the appearance of a drawn battle. Small
wonder then that McHenry, confident in his statistics, should now
declare that at last cotton was to become in truth King[1126], and count
much upon the effect of the arguments advanced in his recently published
book[1127]. Small wonder that Southern friends should hurry the
organization of the "Southern Independence Association." Seeking a
specific point of attack and again hoping for Tory support they first
fixed their attention on the new trial of the _Alexandra_, on appeal
from the decision by the Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer. On
December 4, Lindsay wrote to Mason that he had daily been "journeying to
town" with the "old Chief Baron" and was confident the Government would
again be defeated--in which case it would be very open to attack for the
seizure of the Rams also. Nevertheless he was emphatic in his caution to
Mason not to place too high a hope on any change in Government policy or
on any expectation that the Tories would replace Palmerston[1128].

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 1041: Trollope, _North America_, I, p. 124.]

[Footnote 1042: Mason Papers. Spence to Mason, Jan. 3, 1863. Liverpool.]

[Footnote 1043: The _Index_, Jan. 29, 1863, p. 217. The active agent in
control of the _Index_ was Henry Hotze, who, in addition to managing
this journal, used secret service funds of the Confederacy to secure the
support of writers in the London press. He was in close touch with all
the Southern agents sent to Europe at various times, but appears never
to have been fully trusted by either Mason or Slidell. In 1912-13 I made
notes from various materials originating with Hotze, these being then in
the possession of Mr. Charles Francis Adams. These materials were (1) a
letter and cash book marked "C.S.A. Commercial A