Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-06-02

Point Grant headquarters TO the front
before Petersburg. and the signal was
given 10 start the train moved off,
Grants last campaign rad begun. Since
3 o'clock that morning the columns had
been In motion and the Union Army and
the Army of Northern Virginia We're soon
locked in a death grapple. The President
remained at City Point. where he could
he promptly informed of the progress Of
the movement.
The military railroad connecting head
quarters with the camps south of Peters
burg was about thirteen miles long, or
would have been If il had been con-
structed on a horizontal plane. but as
the portion built by the army was sur
face road, up hill and down dale, if the
rise and fall had been counted in Its
length would have defed all ordinary
means OF measurement Its fluctuations
were so striking that a train moving
along IL looked in the distance like fly
crawling over a corrugated dashboard.
The general sat down near the end OF
the car. drew from his pocket the flint
and slow-match that he always carried.
uhich, unlike match. never missed fire
in the smoke of the inevitable cigar /
took seat near him with several other
officers OF the staff and he at once began
to talk over his plans in detail
For month or more Gen Grants chief
apprehension had been that the enemy
might suddenly pull ont from his in
condiments and fall back into the in
terror, where he might unite with Gen.
Joe Johnston against Sherman and force
cur army 10 follow Lee to a great dis
lance from its base. Gen. Grant had
been sleeping with one eye open and one
foot out of bed for many weeks in the
fear that Lee would thus give him the
slip. He did not dare delay his move
ments against the enemy's right until
the roads became dry enough to permit
an army TO move comfortably. for fear
Lee would himself take advantage of
the good roads 10 start first.
Each army. in fact. making prepa-
rations for either a night or a foot race
or both. Sheridan. with mis- cavalry COM
mand. had been ordered TO move out in
the direction of Dnwiddie Court House.
on our extreme left. and to he ready TO
strike the enemys right and rear. Tt
was the intention, soon as he could
take up good position for this purpose.
TO reinforce him with a corps of infan-
try and cut off Lees retreat in the d-
rection of TNanyille, in case we should
break through his ntrenched lines in
front of Petersburg and force him from
his position there.
The weather had been fair for several
days and the roads were getting in good
condition for the movement of troops
that is, as good as could be expected
through a section of country in which the
dust in summer was generally so thick
that the army could not see where to
move. and the mud in winter was so
deep that it could not move anywhere.
When We reached the end OF the rail
road we mounted our horses which had
been carried on the same train. started
down the Vaughan road and went into
camp for the night in field just south
Of that road. The weather had become
cloudy and toward evening rain began
10 fall. 1t fell in torrents during the
night and continued with but little in
terruption AL the next day.
The country was denSe1y wooded, and
The ground swampy. and by evening of