When the war broke out, Sherman was theheadmaster at a military school in New Orleans. He was havingdinnerwith a few southern aristocrats when the news broke. Sherman upsethis dinner guests by telling them the South was incredibly stupidtostart a war. They would lose because the more industrialized northwould wear them down. Briefly, he sketched out what would occurduring the four bloody years and, to an astonishing extent, he wascorrect. Sherman also realized, more so than any other general, theincreasing futility of frontal attacks. He did everything possibletoavoid such encounters on his march through Georgia. He was hated bythe South, but he bore no personal animosity toward his opponents.When he signed a peace treaty with the Confederate Gen. Johnson, itwas so generous to his foes tha
