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FIVE FORKS AND THE PURSUIT OF LEE.

VIEW ON THE CONFEDERATE LINES COVERING- PETERSBURG. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH.

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no such tiling,” cried Sheridan. “ I don’t believea word of it. You’ll find Forsyth’s all right.” Tenminutes after, Forsyth rode up. It was the gallantGeneral Frederick Wintlirop who had fallen in theassault and had been mistaken for him. Sheridandid not even seem surprised when he saw Forsyth,and only said: “There ! I told you so.” I men-tion this as an instance of a peculiar trait of Sheri-dan’s character, which never allowed him to bediscouraged by camp rumors, however disastrous.

The dismounted cavalry had assaulted as soonas they heard the infantry fire open. The nattycavalrymen, with tight-fitting uniforms, shortjackets, and small carbines, swarmed through thepine thickets and dense undergrowth, looking asif they had been especially equipped for crawlingthrough knot-holes. Those who had magazine gunscreated a racket in those pine woods that soundedas if a couple of army corps had opened fire.

The cavalry commanded by the gallant Merrittmade a final dash, went over the earth-works witha hurrah, captured a battery of artillery, and scat-tered everything in front of them. Here Custer,Devin, Fitzhugh, and the other cavalry leaderswere in their element, and vied with each other indeeds of valor. Crawford’s division had advancedin a northerly direction, marching away fromAyres and leaving a gap between the two divisions.General Sheridan sent nearly all of his staff-officersto correct this movement, and to find GeneralWarren, whom he was anxious to see.

After the capture of the angle I started offtoward the right to see how matters were goingthere. I went in the direction of Crawford’s divi-

sion, passed around the left of the enemy’s works,then rode due west to a point beyond the Ford road.Here I met Sheridan again, just a little beforedark. He was laboring with all the energy of hisnature to complete the destruction of the enemy’sforces, and to make preparation to protect hisown detached command from an attack by Lee inthe morning. He said he had relieved Warren,directed him to report in person to General Grant,and placed Griffin in command of the Fifth Corps.I had sent frequent bulletins during the day to thegeneral-in-chief, and now dispatched a courierannouncing the change of corps commanders andgiving the general result of the round-up.

Sheridan had that day fought one of the most in-teresting technical battles of the war, almost per-fect in conception, brilliant in execution, strik-ingly dramatic in its incidents, and productive ofimmensely important results.

About half-past seven o’clock I started for gen-eral headquarters. The roads in places were cordu-royed with captured muskets. Ammunition trainsand ambulances were still struggling forwardfor miles; teamsters, prisoners, stragglers, andwounded were choking the roadway. The coffee-boilers had kindled their fires. Cheers were re-sounding on all sides, and everybody was riotousover the victory. A horseman had to pick his w-avthrough this jubilant condition of things as bestlie could, as he did not have the right of way byany means. I traveled again by way of the Brooksroad. As I galloped past a group of men on theBoydton plank, my orderly called out to them thenews of the victory. The only response he got