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Jones' Panic
May 20, 1845. Montgomery, Alabama:
Anson Jones found himself cursing a lot lately. The war was going badly for the Confederacy, and things were unlikely to get better any time soon. Virginia, Arkansas, and North Carolina had all declared that they would be staying with the United States. Kentucky had voted for Smith, so it was a lost cause, and given these developments Tennessee wasn't likely to join either.
Which meant Missouri was isolated and likely to fall in short order. This war was turning into a disaster quickly and people were likely going to blame him. After all, it was Texas that had gotten the Confederacy into a two front war. He'd underestimated Mexico's backbone. Texas had won independence from them so what threat could they be to the Confederacy?
Alone, they surely would have been able to take Mexico, but they weren't fighting alone, they were fighting Mexico and the United States. The Confederacy was caught in a vice. If things kept going the way they were the blame would fall on Texas and Jones himself. Having to split troop focus was not going to make this war any easier
In a way he couldn't blame the Uper South for sticking with the United States, yes they'd lose their slaves, but Smith was at least promising them compensation. Something had to be done to turn the tide and fast. His neck was probably quite literally on the line.
There was only one sane option: They had to knock out Mexico and secure the southern border, Then they could move troops up north and give the Yankees a real fight, perhaps impress Britain and France enough that they would send help.
There was on bright side though, the newspapers were already railing against the slave states that hadn't joined, Calling them traitors, and “Masoners” after the Mason-Dixo line, just as the Deep South was called Dixie. The betrayal had given the soldiers just one more reason to fight harder in the border states. Hopefully that ferocity wouldn't be all for naught.
Anson Jones found himself cursing a lot lately. The war was going badly for the Confederacy, and things were unlikely to get better any time soon. Virginia, Arkansas, and North Carolina had all declared that they would be staying with the United States. Kentucky had voted for Smith, so it was a lost cause, and given these developments Tennessee wasn't likely to join either.
Which meant Missouri was isolated and likely to fall in short order. This war was turning into a disaster quickly and people were likely going to blame him. After all, it was Texas that had gotten the Confederacy into a two front war. He'd underestimated Mexico's backbone. Texas had won independence from them so what threat could they be to the Confederacy?
Alone, they surely would have been able to take Mexico, but they weren't fighting alone, they were fighting Mexico and the United States. The Confederacy was caught in a vice. If things kept going the way they were the blame would fall on Texas and Jones himself. Having to split troop focus was not going to make this war any easier
In a way he couldn't blame the Uper South for sticking with the United States, yes they'd lose their slaves, but Smith was at least promising them compensation. Something had to be done to turn the tide and fast. His neck was probably quite literally on the line.
There was only one sane option: They had to knock out Mexico and secure the southern border, Then they could move troops up north and give the Yankees a real fight, perhaps impress Britain and France enough that they would send help.
There was on bright side though, the newspapers were already railing against the slave states that hadn't joined, Calling them traitors, and “Masoners” after the Mason-Dixo line, just as the Deep South was called Dixie. The betrayal had given the soldiers just one more reason to fight harder in the border states. Hopefully that ferocity wouldn't be all for naught.
- Neshomancer
- Word Count: 340