At the same time that Grant was at work on the Vicks-burg Siege, Un-ion troops, led by Gen. N. P. Banks, fought to get Port Hud-son which lay at the south end of the reb-el part of the riv-er. At last it had to yield, and on Ju-ly 9, 1863, it hauled down its flag of stars and bars. Then the brave “boys in blue” marched in and flung out the star-span-gled ban-ner to the breeze. From that time on the great Mis-sis-sip-pi Riv-er was a safe road-way for all un-armed craft which flew the stars and stripes. In the East, in the Spring of ’63, Hoo-ker fought the “Chan-cel-lors-ville Cam-paign” and lost. Then, on May 6th, he re-crossed the Rap-pa-han-nock. Lee had tak-en his ar-my a-cross the Po-to-mac and was in Penn-syl-va-ni-a. Hoo-ker’s place was giv-en to Gen. George G. Meade. The Un-ion ar-my and the foe met on the first day of Ju-ly, 1863. Friends of each side, North and South, held their breath with fear. Lee, who had been so strong in de-fence was now to prove, for the last time, what he could do in at-tack. His plan to move in-to Penn-syl-va-ni-a was a good one, but Jack-son, who had long been a great help to him, was hurt and could not be there. Lee felt this loss. June 3, 1863, Lee marched up the Val-ley of Shen-an-do-ah to-wards Cham-bers-burg. The Un-ion ar-my too took the same course, but on the oth-er, or eas-tern, side of the Blue Ridge. “Stu-art’s Cav-al-ry” held the pass-es and this kept the Un-ion troops from know-ing what went on on the west-ern side. Lee’s ar-my was the best of all the foe. Af-ter cross-ing the Po-to-mac the two ar-mies looked for each oth-er. Lee, fac-ing east, was com-ing from the west of the town of Get-tys-burg, and Meade was tak-ing his post on Cem-e-ter-y Ridge, at the south. It was not thought that a bat-tle, by all, would then be-gin, but “Meade’s Cav-al-ry,” led by Bu-ford, came up-on Lee’s front guard on Ju-ly 1, 1863, and they fought. The Un-ion men were forced back and had loss-es. Night then came on, and by that time both sides, each with a-bout 80,000 men, were in the moon-light up-on the ground. The troops were in good trim and of high cour-age. On the next day the foe car-ried works at both ends of the Un-ion line. The third day the Un-ion ar-my got back the lost ground on its right. The foe then made a fierce charge and broke through the cen-tre of the Un-ion ar-my, but were at last put down and sent back. The end of the charge was the end of the bat-tle and point-ed to the end of the war. In this fight Lee lost 36,000 men. With those he lost the first time he made a thrust at the North, and these, 90,000 of some of the best troops in the world laid down their lives for the cause they held dear. [Illustration: ARMY WAGON.]