Litchfield enquirer., 1865-12-28
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 eppssating with the main lla movements sGainst LeeaDd Johnston, Iawas desirous oi using all other troops not necessarily kept it dspsftmepts remote from aihe fields of immedi- snpsfatieos, and also those kept in the back. 9fSgnd fof shs protsetion Of o1r sztepdsd fines bstzesp the loyal States and the armies oper- Siiak aasiDst thep. szssaa aas ssE.ssgs 2 Egeg s ~ ~ WY corsidsfabi iSiss under cosn.,nand of Mejof GsnetaI Sieel vas e held for the pro. tscfl66 ngI Iigss Maryland iaad Pennsylvania. While these troops could not be withdrawn to distant fields witheut exposing the north to invasion by com, parsfisslY small bodies of the enemy, they could
 act diseetly sotbeiffront. and give bateriproa tsctioH thsn if lying idle ia garrison z By such
 movement they would either compel the enc
 nyssedetaeb largely for the protection of is a.nIplpIiss spd lines of conmunication, or hts, wsnldsloss ,thems sf slds,.s ej ss .sfsas g7a 7 ssnefsl sissp wasstherefore directed 'toaotS gsaiss all bis available force into tvo expedi7 tionss gtofnoss from Beverly and Charleston. under commabd of Generals Ord and Crook, against the East Tennessee and. Virginia rail road Subsequently, General Ord having been relieved .t his own request, General sigel vas ipstru ;ted, at bis own suggestion. to give up tbef expedition by, Beverly, and to form two columns. one under General Crook, on the. Kar nawar numbering abppt ten thousand men and one on the Shenandoah, numbering about seven tbousand men, The one on the Shenandoah toassemble between Cumberland and the She nardoab, ,saasl theinfanrysaud artillery advanc- ed to Cedar Creek with such cavalry as could
 bs made available the moment, to threaten
 tue enemy in the Shenandoah valley, and ad- vance q far as possible while General Crook
 would take possession of iLewisburg with part of iiiI force and move down inc Tennessee railroad, doing ss much damage as he could, dsstroyine the New river bridge and the salt works at saltville. Va s.T ,,s S F, ,i9',5 es, lowing to the weather and bad condition oi the roads, operations were delayed until the Is. of May, when everything being in readiness and tbe roads favorable, orders were given for |a general movement of all the armies not later
 Erst e9 0biscs % % 6sias so break down .l,s pi
 itasy. power ofths 5rebellion and capture the epemy's important strongholds, made me de. sifous thar General Butler should succeed in
 hiis movement against Richmond. as that would tend mose,tbsn anything else, unless it were the capture Of Lees army, to accomplish this desired result in the east If he failed it wa mydeterminaticn, by hard 6ehting; either to
 compel Lee to retreat or to so cripple him that he could not detach . large fierce to go north, and still retain enough for the defence of Ric r.
 mond. It was well understood, by both Gen erals Butler and Meade. before starting op the campaign, that it was my intention to put both
 their armies south of the James river, in case
 of failure to destroy Lee without it.o,, 5d. sogl
 Before giving General Butler his instructions I visited him at Fort Monroe, and in conver- sation pointed out the apparent importance of getting possession of Petersburg, and destroy ing railroad communication as far south as pos sttie. Believing, however, in the practicabili- ty of capturing Richmond, unless it was re!eu- forced, l made that the objective point of his operations, As the army of the Potomac was to move simultaneously with him, Lee could mot dstach from bis army with safe.y, aod the enemy did not hsya troops elsewhere to bring t0 sddefence of the city ii time to meet U 2 rapid movement from the north of James | rivef.saiia7 bla. bsjgaba gsda b9ft@ 2atHf ll'mayhere state that, commanding all the armies as did, I tried, as far as possible, to leave General Meadein independent command |lof the army of the Potomace My instructions for shatarmy were all through him. and were general in their nature, leaving all tbe details andIexecatisn tol him. The campaignss tbst followed zaprovsa 2 bim, Q to be. the right
 mapr in s,heg right place His command
 ing always inothe presence of an officer superi; or to him in rank, sas drawn from him much oflthat p1bliesattension that bis zeal and aba' ftydentitIs kirn fo; and which he would othef. w,iissss ,iissss hsye receiiyedA asfoa1h 1as'2 07fsgoa
 The movement ofsthe army of tue Potomac connsuesd early on the morning of the 4lh ef Msy,saader tbs iupediate direction and orders of Major General Meade. pursuant to instrue- tions. Before night the whole army was across the uRapidsny {the 64h and 9th corps crossing at Gerinania Ford; ;sand the 2d corps at United states Ford, the ca cavalry utidsr Major General shsiiden moving in advancs with the greater part Sf its trains, numbering about 1000 wags r 4f arrrefn zf4- -FeA ffs Ts