e. . . . No single
army can catch him."( 3) Sherman had been "catching" Hood with a
single army all summer, and without the slightest difficulty. What
reason had he to conclude that it would be impossible to do so
later? As my experience proved, it was as easy to "catch" him in
November, though with a smaller force, as it had been in July and
August with a much larger force, and Thomas had the same experience
in December. As Sherman knew from his own experience, as well as
I, whether the pursuing force was larger or smaller, Hood was about
the easiest man in the world to "catch," even by a "single" army.
But Sherman had under his command at that time, in Georgia and
Tennessee, as he said with great emphasis and confidence, two
armies, each larger than Hood's, even assuming the largest estimate
then made of the strength of Hood's army. It appears that Sherman
gave Hood credit at that time for only thirty thousand infantry,
besides cavalry.( 4) If that was his estimate, then he had at
least three or four armies (including the reinforcements he counted
on for Thomas in Tennessee), each equal in strength to Hood's. Is
it possible Sherman thought he could not catch Hood with three or
four armies? But another despatch from Sherman, dated November 2,
seems to show that his estimate of Hood's army was more than 50,000,
instead of 30,000; for in that despatch he said in substance that
unless he drew Slocum's corps back from Atlanta, and abandoned that
place, his army would be inferior to Hood's.( 5) Now Slocum's
corps numbered 10,000 men, and Sherman marched to the sea with
60,000 after stripping down to the best possible fighting condition.
Hence Sherman, after sending back the Fourth and Twenty-third corps
to Thomas, and leaving out Slocum's corps, had 50,000 men, and
therefore according to this reckoning Hood had _more_ than 50,000.
Forty thousand would have been a reasonable estimate for Sherman
to have made of Hood's strength, with his more accurate knowledge
than any of his subordinate commanders could have. But, somehow,
the estimate of Hood's force at that time accepted by Thomas and
his subordinates in Tennessee was 45,000, besides cavalry, which
as understood to be 10,000, or even 12,000 including Forrest's
separate command. But even this was less than half of Sherman's
two armies.

Sherman made no attempt to "catch" Hood during his raid in Sherman's
rear in September, 1864, nor to interfere with his movem