Litchfield enquirer., 1865-12-28

thsPssnbaEs sa6d Richmond railroad, destroy- ing sa portion Of t sftst some fighting. On the eth he telegraphsd as follow:
 HEADouARTERs near Bermuda Landing, Msy ssb, fe6A 0m operations may bs sum med up in | ssM words. With 1,7o0 cavalry we have advanced pthe Peninsula, forced the Chickahominys and have safely brought them to OF present position. These were colored cavalry, and are now holding our advanced pickets towards Richmond. saea1 ss''sw General Kautz with 5000, cavalry from sut- folk, on the sams day with our movement up Jumes river, forced the Blackwster, burned the railroad bridksss Stony Greek. below Peters burg, cutting in two Beauregard's force at that point. sgsFFaIHs aaaa1a.Ig
 We have landed here. aintsssched ourselves, desssQgngmapyi niles ofa railroad, and got . aHwhishowith proper supplies we can hold against the whole of Lees army. have ordered up the supplies. .,sq gs.s5g
 Bsaure9ard with n large portion of his force was left South by the cutting of the railroads byaKautz. That portion which reached Pe- tesburg under Hill l have whipped to-day kill ing and wounding many and taking many pris- sserss after severe and well-contested fight. r iaGsnsra Grant will not be troubled sith any furtber.re.enforcemen to Lee from Beaure- eard,s force. BENJAMIN F BUTLER, 5'2
 53s .95 MaJ0r General. ' Hon. E M Stanton, Secretary of War.
 On ths esening of the 18th and morning ot the l4tb he carrieda portion of the enemy'a first line of defences at Drury's Bluff, or Fort Darling, with small loss. The time thus con suued from tbe 9th lost tous the benefit of the surprise and capture of Richmond and Peters burg, enabling as it did. Bsauregard to collect his loose forces in North and South Carolina and bring them to the defence of those places On5he l6th the enemy attacked General But Ter his position in front of Drury's Bluff r. He was f6fced back Or drew back into his en- trenchments between the forks of the James and Appomattox rivers, the enemy intrenching stronglyin hin front, thus covering bis railroads and thecity, and ell that was valuable to him. His army, therefore. though in a position of great security, was as completely shut of from further operations against Richmond as if it had been in bottle strongly corked. It re. quirea but comparatively small force of the enemy to hold it there. ,1 k J
 On the 18th of April, and prior to the move ment of, General Butler, the enemy. with land force under General Hooker and an iron-clad ram, attacked Plymouth, N. O., commanded by General Fl. w. Vessels, and our gunboats thesss and aiaer severe fighting the place was carrisd by assault and the entire garrison and armament captured. The gunboat Smithfsld vas sank and the Miami disabled.
 The army sent to operate against Richmond having hsrmstically sealed itself up st Bermu- da Hundreds, the enemy was enabled to bring the most if not all the re-enforcement brought from the south by Beauregard against the army of Potomac. In additio to this re-enforce- ment . very considerable one, probably not less than 15.0o0 men, was obtained by calling in the scattered troops under Breckinridge fromXhs western part of Virginia. 5A8e
 saThe position at Bermuda Hundred was as easy to defend as it was difRcnltto to operate from against the enemy. Undermined there fore, to bring from it all available forces, lsav- ing enough only to secure what had been gained. and accordingly on the 22d. directed that they be sent forward, under command of Major General w. F. Smith, to join the army ofIths Potomsc. I3sgtI am lge bs7l5
 Ou the 24th of May the sth army corps, commahded by Major General A. E. Burn. eide, was assigned to the army of the Potomac and from this time, forward constituted por- tion of Major General Meade's command. <
 Finding the enemy's position on the North Anps stronger than either of bis previous ones, Iwithdrew on the night of the 26th to the north bank of the North Anna, and moved via 9anovertowr to turn the enemy's position by hisfi6ht Us AsA Ei f
 Generals Torbert's and Msrfitt's divisions of cavalry, under Sheridan, and the 6th corps led the advance crossed the Pamunky river al Hanovertowu alter considerable fighting, and on the ash the two divisions of cavalry had 6 severe but snccesaial engagement withths en- emy at Flaws shop. On the 18th and 3oth we advanced with heavy skirmishing to the Hanoysr Court House and Cold Harbor road and deysloped the euemy's position north ol the Chickabominy. Late on the evening o, the last day the enemy came out and attacked our left, but was repulsed with very sconsidera ble loss. An attack was immediately ordered byGeaeral Meade along his whole line, which resulted iu driving the enemy from part oi his entrenehed skirmish line. 13t. sgsf53s 3 NG1AT NG-A.RKMTs