On March 9 the main column started eastward down the James River, destroying locks, dams, and boats, having been preceded by Colonel Fitzhugh’s brigade of Devin’s division in a forced march to Goochland and Beaver Dam Creek, with orders to destroy everything below Columbia.  I made Columbia on the 10th, and from there sent a communication to General Grant reporting what had occurred, informing him of my condition and intention, asking him to send forage and rations to meet me at the White House, and also a pontoon-bridge to carry me over the Pamunkey, for in view of the fact that hitherto it had been impracticable to hold Lee in the trenches around Petersburg, I regarded as too hazardous a march down the south bank of the Pamunkey, where the enemy, by sending troops out from Richmond, might fall upon my flank and rear.  It was of the utmost importance that General Grant should receive these despatches without chance of failure, in order that I might, depend absolutely on securing supplies at the White House; therefore I sent the message in duplicate, one copy overland direct to City Point by two scouts, Campbell and Rowan, and the other by Fannin and Moore, who were to go down the James River in a small boat to Richmond, join the troops in the trenches in front of Petersburg, and, deserting to the Union lines, deliver their tidings into General Grant’s hands.  Each set of messengers got through, but the copy confided to Campbell and Rowan was first at Grant’s headquarters.

I halted for one day at Columbia to let my trains catch up, for it was still raining and the mud greatly delayed the teams, fatiguing and wearying the mules so much that I believe we should have been forced to abandon most of the wagons except for the invaluable help given by some two thousand negroes who had attached themselves to the column:  they literally lifted the wagons out of the mud.  From Columbia Merritt, with Devin’s division, marched to Louisa Court House and destroyed the Virginia Central to Frederick’s Hall.  Meanwhile Custer was performing similar work from Frederick’s Hall to Beaver Dam Station, and also pursued for a time General Early, who, it was learned from despatches captured in the telegraph office at Frederick’s Hall, was in the neighborhood with a couple of hundred men.  Custer captured some of these men and two of Early’s staff-officers, but the commander of the Valley District, accompanied by a single orderly, escaped across the South Anna and next day made his way to Richmond, the last man of the Confederate army that had so long contended with us in the Shenandoah Valley.

At Frederick’s Hall, Young’s scouts brought me word from Richmond that General Longstreet was assembling a force there to prevent my junction with Grant, and that Pickett’s division, which had been sent toward Lynchburg to oppose my march, and Fitzhugh Lee’s cavalry, were moving east on the Southside railroad, with the object of circumventing me.  Reasoning that Longstreet could interpose