On the 5th of March I had heard from Sheridan.  He had met Early between Staunton and Charlottesville and defeated him, capturing nearly his entire command.  Early and some of his officers escaped by finding refuge in the neighboring houses or in the woods.

On the 12th I heard from him again.  He had turned east, to come to White House.  He could not go to Lynchburg as ordered, because the rains had been so very heavy and the streams were so very much swollen.  He had a pontoon train with him, but it would not reach half way across some of the streams, at their then stage of water, which he would have to get over in going south as first ordered.

I had supplies sent around to White House for him, and kept the depot there open until he arrived.  We had intended to abandon it because the James River had now become our base of supplies.

Sheridan had about ten thousand cavalry with him, divided into two divisions commanded respectively by Custer and Devin.  General Merritt was acting as chief of cavalry.  Sheridan moved very light, carrying only four days’ provisions with him, with a larger supply of coffee, salt and other small rations, and a very little else besides ammunition.  They stopped at Charlottesville and commenced tearing up the railroad back toward Lynchburg.  He also sent a division along the James River Canal to destroy locks, culverts etc.  All mills and factories along the lines of march of his troops were destroyed also.

Sheridan had in this way consumed so much time that his making a march to White House was now somewhat hazardous.  He determined therefore to fight his way along the railroad and canal till he was as near to Richmond as it was possible to get, or until attacked.  He did this, destroying the canal as far as Goochland, and the railroad to a point as near Richmond as he could get.  On the 10th he was at Columbia.  Negroes had joined his column to the number of two thousand or more, and they assisted considerably in the work of destroying the railroads and the canal.  His cavalry was in as fine a condition as when he started, because he had been able to find plenty of forage.  He had captured most of Early’s horses and picked up a good many others on the road.  When he reached Ashland he was assailed by the enemy in force.  He resisted their assault with part of his command, moved quickly across the South and North Anna, going north, and reached White House safely on the 19th.

The time for Sherman to move had to be fixed with reference to the time he could get away from Goldsboro where he then was.  Supplies had to be got up to him which would last him through a long march, as there would probably not be much to be obtained in the country through which he would pass.  I had to arrange, therefore, that he should start from where he was, in the neighborhood of Goldsboro on the 18th of April, the earliest day at which he supposed he could be ready.