House in person. They are out of
rations, or nearly so. They were advancing up the railroad towards
Burkesville yesterday, when we intercepted them at this point."

It now became a life and death struggle with Lee to get south to his
provisions.

Sheridan, thinking the enemy might turn off immediately towards
Farmville, moved Davies's brigade of cavalry out to watch him. Davies
found the movement had already commenced. He attacked and drove away
their cavalry which was escorting wagons to the west, capturing and
burning 180 wagons. He also captured five pieces of artillery. The
Confederate infantry then moved against him and probably would have
handled him very roughly, but Sheridan had sent two more brigades of
cavalry to follow Davies, and they came to his relief in time. A sharp
engagement took place between these three brigades of cavalry and the
enemy's infantry, but the latter was repulsed.

Meade himself reached Jetersville about two o'clock in the afternoon,
but in advance of all his troops. The head of Humphreys's corps
followed in about an hour afterwards. Sheridan stationed the troops as
they came up, at Meade's request, the latter still being very sick. He
extended two divisions of this corps off to the west of the road to the
left of Griffin's corps, and one division to the right. The cavalry by
this time had also come up, and they were put still farther off to the
left, Sheridan feeling certain that there lay the route by which the
enemy intended to escape. He wanted to attack, feeling that if time was
given, the enemy would get away; but Meade prevented this, preferring to
wait till his troops were all up.

At this juncture Sheridan sent me a letter which had been handed to him
by a colored man, with a note from himself saying that he wished I was
there myself. The letter was dated Amelia Court House, April 5th, and
signed by Colonel Taylor. It was to his mother, and showed the
demoralization of the Confederate army. Sheridan's note also gave me the
information as here related of the movements of that day. I received a
second message from Sheridan on the 5th, in which he urged more
emphatically the importance of my presence. This was brought to me by a
scout in gray uniform. It was written on tissue paper, and wrapped up
in tin-foil such as chewing tobacco is folded in. This was a precaution
taken so that if the scout should be captured he could take this
tin-foil out of his pocket and