Sherman, however, had no intention of smashing his army against what one of his soldiers called the “Georgian Gibraltar.” Northern scouts had found Snake Creek Gap unguarded and the Federal commander decided to send McPherson’s Army of the Tennessee through this gap to seize the railroad near Resaca. Meanwhile, Thomas and Schofield would engage the Confederates at Dalton to prevent their sending men to oppose McPherson. Sherman hoped that when Johnston discovered his line of supply in Federal hands, he would fall back in disorder and his army could be routed by the Northerners. By May 6, the Federals were ready to begin the campaign. Sherman moved Thomas and Schofield toward Dalton while McPherson prepared to strike for Snake Creek Gap. [Illustration: _Maj. Gen. James B. McPherson_] Johnston had not been idle. He had deployed his men in strong positions to block the expected advance. He had also requested reinforcements, and these were on the way. Some coastal garrisons had been withdrawn from their posts and were being sent to join Johnston. More important, though, was the large body of troops from Mississippi that was moving across Alabama toward Dalton. These men, numbering about 15,000, constituted the Army of Mississippi and were commanded by Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk. A West Point graduate (1827), Polk had resigned from the Army to enter the Episcopal ministry. In 1861 he was Bishop of Louisiana and entered the Confederate service where he was known as the Bishop-General. When Polk joined Johnston the Confederate strength would be raised to about 70,000. Before Polk arrived, however, Sherman sent Thomas and Schofield against Johnston’s position. On May 7 and 8, there was heavy fighting all along the lines from the area north of Dalton south along Rocky Face Ridge to Dug Gap. The Federals made no real headway, but the demonstration served its purpose, for McPherson reached Snake Creek Gap on the evening of the 8th and found it open. James Birdseye McPherson, who stood at Snake Creek Gap on the morning of May 9 with an opportunity to strike Johnston a crippling blow, was one of the Civil War’s most attractive leaders. Like Sherman, he was an Ohioan and a West Pointer (1853). In 1864 he was only 35 years old. His entire adult life had been spent in the Army, and in the Civil War his abilities had carried him from captain to major general in slightly more than a year’s time. Both Sherman and Grant looked upon him as an outstanding leader—a belief shared by the Confederate editor who called McPherson “the most dangerous man in the whole Yankee army.” He was handsome, with flowing hair and whiskers, and he had a special reason for wanting the war to end: when it was over he would be able to marry the beautiful girl who was waiting for him in Baltimore. He was courteous to men of all ranks, and his adoring soldiers remembered long afterwards his habit of riding in the fields to leave the roads open for them.