Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 21.djvu/83

 Last Days of the Army of Xur/lt, ru 1V/ //////'/. 75

the trenches south of Petersburg, with instructions to assault if icy found the force in their front greatly weakened, or if more Ivantageous for Parke to extend so as to allow the Sixth corps to be withdrawn to join in the turning movement. A heavy rain fell on the night of the 29th, which greatly embarrassed the movements of both armies.

ACTIONS ON WHITE OAK ROAD AND AT DINWIDDIE.

Lee early divining the purpose of the enemy, sent General Ander- son with Bushrod Johnson's division and Wise's brigade, to the extreme right of his entrenchments along the White Oak road, on the morning of the 29th, and Pickett's division, which had been relieved from the Bermuda Hundreds by Mahone, was transferred to the same point about day-light on the 3oth. General Hill, command- ing the Confederate corps on the right, stretched his lines still thin- ner so as to add to the force confronting Humphreys and Warren. General Lee ordered Fitz Lee's cavalry to Five Forks, and they arrived in the vicinity of Sutherland's station on the night of the 29th, the object of the concentration being to attack Sheridan and drive him back. Pickett's division was about 3,600 strong; John- ston's, 3,000; the cavalry of the two Lee's, about 4,000 making, with some other troops, a total of about 13,000 for the moveable column with which Lee hoped to strike some weak place in Grant's armor and crush his flanking force as he had so often done before.* These forces of Lee were concentrated at Five Forks on the evening of the 30th of March. General Lee struck the exposed flank of the Fifth corps and drove back two of its divisions with the brigades of McGowan, Grade, Hunton and Wise, but the ground was wooded, and the third division of Warren's corps coming to his assistance, the retreat of his other two divisions was stopped, while an attack by Humphrey on the left of Wise's brigade, which was the extreme left of the Confederate attacking force, compelled the retirement of the Confederate force to their intrenchments.

Foiled in the attempt to destroy the Fifth corps, and paucity of num-

Pickett's brigades had not reaceed him, and Anderson's whole division was not present. Of the cavalry reported February 20, 1865, a large number were dismounted. General Pickett estimates the total force as considerably less than stated in the text.
 * This is the best estimate I can make with the data at hand. One of