if possible, overcome. The courage and fortitude you have displayed render your commanding general confident your future efforts will result in

success.

While we mourn the loss of many gallant comrades, let us remember the enemy must have suffered equal, if not greater, losses.

We shall soon receive re-enforcements, which he cannot expect. Let us determine to continue vigorously the work so well begun, and, under God's blessing, in a short time the object of our labors will be accomplished.

GEORGE G. MEADE, Major-General commanding.

Official S. WILLIAMS, A. A.-G.

(Approved) U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General commanding

the Armies of the United States.

Major-General Dix:

WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, May 14, 1864.

The following telegrams have just reached this Department from General Butler.

EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War

HALF-WAY HOUSE, May 14-SAY

To Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War:

We are still before the base of the enemy's works at Drury Bluff, Fort Darling.

The enemy are still here in force.

General Gillmore, by a flank movement, with a portion of his corps and a brigade of the Eighteenth Corps, assaulted and took the enemy's works on their right at dusk last evening. It was gallantly done.

The troops behaved finely.

We held our lines during the night, and shall move this morning again. (Signed) BENJ. F. BUTLER, Major-General.

HEAD-QUARTERS, HALF-WAY HOUSE, May 14—10 A. M.

To Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War:

General Smith carried the enemy's first line on the right, this morning,

at eight o'clock. The loss was small.

The enemy have retired into three square redoubts, upon which we are now bringing our artillery to bear with effect.

(Signed)

BENJ. F. BUTLER, Major-General commanding.

"Cavalry Sheridan" does well his part:

To Major-General CADWALADER:

WASHINGTON, May 14-midnight

An official dispatch from General Sheridan, dated Bottom Bridge, via Fortress Monroe, May 13th, states that on the 9th instant he marched around the enemy's right flank, and on the evening of that day reached

SECRETARY STANTON'S REPORT OF AFFAIRS.

497

the North Anna River without serious opposition. During that night he destroyed the enemy's dépôt at Beaver Dam, three large trains of cars, and one hundred cars, two fine locomotives, two hundred thousand pounds of bacon, and other stores, amounting in all to a million and a half.of rebel rations; also, the telegraph and railroad track for about ten miles, embracing several culverts, and recaptured three hundred and seventy-eight of our men, including two colonels, one major, and several other officers.

On the morning of the 10th, he resumed operations, crossing the South Anna at Grand Squirrel Bridge, and went into camp about daylight.

On the 11th he captured Ashland Station. At this point he destroyed one locomotive and a train of cars, an engine-house, and two or three government buildings, containing a large amount of stores. He also destroyed six miles of railroad, embracing six culverts, two trestle bridges, and the telegraph wires. About seven o'clock, a. M., of the 11th, he resumed the march on Richmond. He found the rebel Stuart with his cavalry concentrated at Yellow Tavern, and immediately attacked him. After an obstinate contest, he gained possession of the Brockle Turnpike, capturing two pieces of artillery, and driving the enemy's forces back toward Ashland and across the north fork of the Chickahominy-a distance of four miles At the same time a party charged down the Brock road and captured the first line of the enemy's works around Richmond. During the night he marched the whole of his command between the first and second line of the enemy's works, on the bluffs overlooking the line of the Virginia Central Railroad and the Mechanicsville Turnpike. After demonstrating against the works and finding them very strong, he gave up the intention of assaulting, and determined to recross the Chickahominy at Meadow Bridge. It had been partially destroyed by the enemy, but was repaired in about three hours, under a heavy artillery fire from a rebel battery. General Merritt made the crossing, attacked the enemy, and drove him off handsomely, the pursuit continuing as far as Gaines's Mill. The enemy, observing the recrossing of the Chickahominy, came out from his second line of works. A brigade of infantry and a large number of dismounted cavalry attacked the divisions of Generals Gregg and Wilson; but, after a severe contest, were repulsed and driven behind their works. Gregg and Wilson's divisions, after collecting the wounded, recrossed the Chickahominy on the afternoon of the 12th. The corps encamped at Walnut Grove and Gaines's Mill.

At nine o'clock, A. M., of the 13th, the march was resumed, and our forces encamped at Bottom Bridge. The command is in fine spirits. The loss of horses will not exceed one hundred. All the wounded were brought off except about thirty cases of mortally wounded, and these were well cared for in the farm-houses of the country. The wounded will not exceed two hundred and fifty, and the total loss not over three hundred and fifty. The Virginia Central Railroad bridges over the Chickahominy, and other trestle-bridges, one sixty feet in length, one thirty feet, and one twenty feet, and the railroad for a long distance south of the Chickahominy, wele destroyed. Great praise is given the division commanders, Generals

Gregg, Wilson, and Merritt, Generals Custer, and Davies, and Colonels Gregg, Divine, Chapman, McIntosh, and Gibbs, brigade commanders. All the officers and men behaved splendidly.

EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War.

Such was the posture of affairs when the Secretary rereceived over the wires, trembling to the messages of a nation's struggle for life, "at noon of night," the words of cheer from the heroes of the battle-field.

Friday, May 14th, the opposing armies again met in the shock of battle. The corps of Burnside and Hancock advanced upon Lee's right wing, covering Spottsylvania Court-House.

Over a broken, hilly, piny wilderness, where no man could walk erect, and crowded with rifle-pits, with unfaltering steps the "boys" moved forward, pushing the enemy backward to his main line of intrenchments.

There were deeds of unrivaled valor before the sun of Friday set. Three regiments of Hartrauft's brigade were flanked on the left, and nearly surrounded; but upon the demand to surrender, refused, and fought hand-to-hand for their colors, until resistance was in vain, and a part of the troops were taken prisoners. Three thousand Union troops had fallen in this engagement.

Saturday was a pause after the strife of eight long hours, while General Grant's sleepless watch of his great antagonist made the comparative quiet most valuable to him in the modification of his plans, to meet the changed aspect of the field.

Both armies were busy burying those who had fought their last battle, and heeded not the war of elements which drenched but could not cleanse the crimsoned soil. Intrenchments were thrown up, and, excepting a little skirmishing, the embattled hosts rested from the harvest of death.

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499

CHAPTER XXIV

THE DEEPENING CONFLICT.

The Struggle renewed.-General Grant's skillful Movements of his Army.-Cold Harbor. The grand March to the James River.-Assault on Petersburg.Incidents.-Burnside's Mines.-Naval Victories.-General Grant and the Grandmother of General McPherson.-General Sherman and Affairs in the Southwest.

THE interlude of quiet had its own unwritten history of sad and cheerful scenes the erection and marking of headboards to many graves; the painful transmission of the fate of the killed, wounded, and captured, to the scattered homes they left in the strength of manhood; the messages of love from the uninjured; the chapel-tent scenes of prayer and praise-all filled up the soldier's leisure moments. The 18th of May broke the rest of the great armies.

General Grant had prepared, during the previous night, for an attack upon his unyielding antagonist, by massing his forces on Lee's left, to break it, if possible, and turn it -a bold movement, the more hopeful because unexpected from that quarter by the foe, who supposed that portion of the line to have been quite abandoned for any decisive work.

On this early spring morning the assault began; but the enemy was not unprepared for it. The rifle-pits captured on the 12th were retaken, and then came the stern resistance which opened again the sanguinary contest. General Wright's Sixth Corps was on the right, and next the Second Corps, and, further to the left, a portion of Burnside's corps. The useless havoc of the attempt to scale the works in the fire of the rifle-pits was abandoned, and a few days of rest followed, during which twenty-five thousand fresh and excellent troops were added to the Army of the Potomac.

May 20th, the army was once more in motion. The

unequaled flanker was again upon his enemy, and soon forced him out of Spottsylvania Court-House, making a retreat toward his capital behind North Anna River. Our pursuit was close, and attended by an attack resulting in but little loss to us, and a repulse to the rebels.

Lee, finding he was fairly flanked again, retired to the South Anna, where he was protected by strong fortifications. Avoiding collisions by another flank movement, in the direction of Hanover Junction, the thwarted chief was compelled to evacuate his stronghold.

The 27th, General Sheridan, with two divisions of cavalry, seized Hanover Ferry and Hanovertown, the crossing-places on Pamunkey River.

Two days later, the whole army was over the stream, and in position three miles from its banks. Thus was another of General Grant's brilliant and daring maneuvers crowned with complete success. On Sunday, the 29th, his army was encamped in a fertile country, within fifteen miles of Richmond. By this admirable movement, he not only turned Lee's works on the Little River and the South Anna, and avoided the hazard of crossing those two strongly defended rivers, but made himself master of the situation with regard to his new base of supplies. He was furthermore left entirely free as to the route by which he would attack Richmond, and be in full communication and co-operation with the column under General Butler. All this was accomplished within twenty-four days from the day when he struck tents at Culpepper Court-House.

What enormous strides he made toward the heart of the rebellion within that brief period, and all by disembarrassing his movements of the necessity of looking back to one inflexible line of communications and one unchanging base of supplies. This was his simple strategy, though the execution of it was as brave and brilliant as its conception was bold and original. It was this same strategy that made the march from Bruinsburg to Vicksburg one unbroken series of victories.

He was master of the Peninsula without having uncovered Washington for a single hour, and without having created the necessity of leaving one-fourth of his army be