866 
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS OF 
federal artillery, emboldened probably by the continual retreat of the enemy ; 
and thereby, though they suffered unusual casualties, they inflicted more 
than unusual loss on the enemy. The federals preferred, for general use, 
batteries of brass 12-pr. Napoleon guns, bringing but few rifled 10-prs. with 
them; and although in the original armament the number of batteries had 
been equally divided between the two natures, they generally retained for 
this campaign but one-third rifled to two-thirds Napoleon. 
During the night rain set in, and continuing through most of the 
30th, rendered the roads very impracticable; little advance of moment was 
made save that the 5th corps effected a lodgment on the Boydton Plank- 
road, and ascertained that there were strong works on it ahead of them. 
The army, during the 30th and part of the 31st, had consolidated its position 
and had corduroyed the worst part of its roads, when, late on the 31st, news 
arrived from Sheridan that the cavalry, in sweeping round on the left in 
conformity with the movement of the rest of the army, had been assailed 
and cut in two with much loss, by cavalry and infantry combined, and had 
been forced to retreat on his former position of the night of the 29th. Still 
later, more urgent dispatches came in, relating the strong force of the con¬ 
federate attack, and declaring that it included troops from Johnston's army 
in North Carolina, besides those of the army of Virginia proper. Now, doubts 
began to find utterance by Generals as to whether the “ extension " strategy 
had not been carried too far; the line of works ahead and the left uncovered by 
the cavalry suggested the liability of the army to another of those heavy 
checks frequently received in former times; but General Grant lost no time 
in maintaining the forward policy by the use of the immense numbers at his 
command. The 5th corps was ordered to the left rear to join the cavalry 
that- night (General Grant proposed to send a division only, but General 
Meade persuaded him to send the whole corps, an alteration which probably 
told much on the speediness of the following series of events); the 2nd corps 
occupying part of the vacated position of the 5th, and leaving the right of 
its own to be occupied by General Orders corps, which was by this time in 
fortified connection with it from the left of the old position. And next day, 
the 1st April, the tide flowed again with the numbers. 
Sheridan with his own cavalry (now about 11,000) and the corps from the 
army of the Potomac (about 21,000) came upon the confederate force 
(afterwards ascertained to have consisted of 5000 infantry and 4000 
cavalry) slightly entrenched at hive Porks, the road-centre from which they 
had driven him the day before: attacking their front with his cavalry 
(dismounted as usual) and one division of infantry, and turning their left 
with the other two divisions, he, after a short and hot engagement, took the 
greater part of the infantry prisoners together with one or two field batteries. 
The cavalry were very effective in picking up prisoners, pursuing mounted 
when organized resistance was at an end . 
This action opened the road towards the south side railroad, but it had 
not the effect of turning Lee's right, as commonly reported by the news¬ 
papers : his main position, a day's march distant, remained untouched, 
though his communication was so far endangered as to necessitate either a 
retreat or a re-establishment of the balance of force in this direction. I 
have been the more particular in stating the occurrences of this action and 
their consequences, as the former go far to modify the novel opinions 
