In five weeks’ time Cap-tain Grant was made Colo-nel and sent off to the seat of war at the head of the 21st Il-li-nois. He went first to Mis-sou-ri and then to Cai-ro. Soon, with-out ask-ing for the post, he was made Brig-a-dier-Gen-er-al. A force of the foe, led by Gen. Polk, went up the Mis-sis-sip-pi from Mem-phis and took the high bluffs at Co-lum-bus, in Ken-tuc-ky. A man from Co-lum-bus said, “The Con-fed-er-ates are get-ting read-y to seize Pa-du-cah!” Pa-du-cah was a place which would be of great worth to the side which first got hold of it. If the guns of the foe were put there they would stop steam-boats from pass-ing that point. Gen. Grant saw that he must act at once. There was no time in which to wait for or-ders from the head of the troops in the West. The ver-y next morn-ing the folks who lived in Pa-du-cah were great-ly sur-prised to see a fleet of steam-boats full of Un-ion troops made fast at the wharf. The na-tives had been told that the for-ces of the South were to be there that day, and they had gone to the quay to greet Gen. Thom-as who was to lead those troops. Grant’s quick move gave Ken-tuc-ky to the Un-ion cause and much cheer to Pres-i-dent Lin-coln. The first fight of the war in which Grant took the lead was af-ter he moved his troops from Pa-du-cah down to Hun-ter’s Point, near Bel-mont. [Illustration: BATTLE OF BELMONT.] Pres-i-dent Lin-coln strove to have a un-i-ty of ac-tion be-tween his gen-er-als. Mc-Clel-lan had a great force at hand. He did naught with it but drill and wait. Hal-leck had charge in Mis-sou-ri and Bu-ell in Ken-tuc-ky. They had noth-ing to do with each oth-er. Pres-i-dent Lin-coln told Hal-leck to men-ace Co-lum-bus on the Mis-sis-sip-pi and Bu-ell at the same time to move up-on the force un-der John-ston, at Bowl-ing Green in cen-tral Ken-tuc-ky. These men did not do as the Pres-i-dent had told them to, and they did not e-ven an-swer his let-ter or or-der. Then it was that the Pres-i-dent felt that the three com-mand-ers were not do-ing what they ought to do, in fact, that they were “three do-noth-ings.” There were bad times in eas-tern Ten-nes-see, where the folks had giv-en out that they were for the Un-ion. The foe in Geor-gi-a and Tex-as took man-y of them and put them in jail for so do-ing. Those who got off told tales of great dis-tress. Lin-coln want-ed Bu-ell to help them but he would-n’t. In the East there was much talk of Mc-Clel-lan’s long wait. The Pres-i-dent was ver-y pa-tient, too pa-tient folks said. A-gain and a-gain Lin-coln went to Mc-Clel-lan to get him to start work with his large for-ces. In the West there were two men who felt that they could do a good stroke for the Un-ion if they had leave to do it. One of these men was Com-mo-dore Foote. The oth-er was Gen-er-al Grant. CHAPTER X. GRANT WINS IN THE WEST, AND FARRAGUT AT NEW ORLEANS.