inted hour, with Birney as a reserve. Barlow pushed
forward with great vigor, under a heavy fire of both artillery and
musketry, through thickets and swamps. Notwithstanding all the
resistance of the enemy and the natural obstructions to overcome, he
carried a position occupied by the enemy outside their main line where
the road makes a deep cut through a bank affording as good a shelter for
troops as if it had been made for that purpose. Three pieces of
artillery had been captured here, and several hundred prisoners. The
guns were immediately turned against the men who had just been using
them. No (*33) assistance coming to him, he (Barlow) intrenched under
fire and continued to hold his place. Gibbon was not so fortunate in
his front. He found the ground over which he had to pass cut up with
deep ravines, and a morass difficult to cross. But his men struggled on
until some of them got up to the very parapet covering the enemy.
Gibbon gained ground much nearer the enemy than that which he left, and
here he intrenched and held fast.

Wright's corps moving in two lines captured the outer rifle-pits in
their front, but accomplished nothing more. Smith's corps also gained
the outer rifle-pits in its front. The ground over which this corps
(18th) had to move was the most exposed of any over which charges were
made. An open plain intervened between the contending forces at this
point, which was exposed both to a direct and a cross fire. Smith,
however, finding a ravine running towards his front, sufficiently deep
to protect men in it from cross fire, and somewhat from a direct fire,
put Martindale's division in it, and with Brooks supporting him on the
left and Devens on the right succeeded in gaining the outer--probably
picket--rifle-pits. Warren and Burnside also advanced and gained
ground--which brought the whole army on one line.

This assault cost us heavily and probably without benefit to compensate:
but the enemy was not cheered by the occurrence sufficiently to induce
him to take the offensive. In fact, nowhere after the battle of the
Wilderness did Lee show any disposition to leave his defences far behind
him.

Fighting was substantially over by half-past seven in the morning. At
eleven o'clock I started to visit all the corps commanders to see for
myself the different positions gained and to get their opinion of the
practicability of doing anything more in their respective fronts.

Hancock gave t