The night of the 29th the left of General Grant’s infantry—­Warren’s corps—­rested on the Boydton road, not far from its intersection with the Quaker road.  Humphreys’s corps was next to Warren; then came Ord, next Wright, and then Parke, with his right resting on the Appomattox.  The moving of Warren and Humphreys to the left during the day was early discovered by General Lee.  He met it by extending the right of his infantry on the White Oak road, while drawing in the cavalry of W. H. F. Lee and Rosser along the south bank of Stony Creek to cover a crossroads called Five Forks, to anticipate me there; for assuming that my command was moving in conjunction with the infantry, with the ultimate purpose of striking the Southside railroad, Lee made no effort to hold Dinwiddie, which he might have done with his cavalry, and in this he made a fatal mistake.  The cavalry of Fitz.  Lee was ordered at this same time from Sunderland depot to Five Forks, and its chief placed in command of all the mounted troops of General Lee’s army.

At daylight on the 30th I proceeded to make dispositions under the new conditions imposed by my modified instructions, and directed Merritt to push Devin out as far as the White Oak road to make a reconnoissance to Five Forks, Crook being instructed to send Davies’s brigade to support Devin.  Crook was to hold, with Gregg’s brigade, the Stony Creek crossing of the Boydton plank road, retaining Smith’s near Dinwiddie, for use in any direction required.  On the 29th W. H. F. Lee conformed the march of his cavalry with that of ours, but my holding Stony Creek in this way forced him to make a detour west of Chamberlin’s Run, in order to get in communication with his friends at Five Forks.

The rain that had been falling all night gave no sign of stopping, but kept pouring down all day long, and the swamps and quicksands mired the horses, whether they marched in the roads or across the adjacent fields.  Undismayed, nevertheless, each column set out for its appointed duty, but shortly after the troops began to move I received from General Grant this despatch, which put a new phase on matters: 

“HEADQUARTERS ARMIES OF THE UNITED STATES,
“GRAVELLY RUN, March 30, 1865.

“MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN: 

“The heavy rain of to-day will make it impossible for us to do much until it dries up a little, or we get roads around our rear repaired.  You may, therefore, leave what cavalry you deem necessary to protect the left, and hold such positions as you deem necessary for that purpose, and send the remainder back to Humphrey’s Station where they can get hay and grain.  Fifty wagons loaded with forage will be sent to you in the morning.  Send an officer back to direct the wagons back to where you want them.  Report to me the cavalry you will leave back, and the position you will occupy.  Could not your cavalry go back by the way of Stony Creek depot and destroy or capture the store of supplies there?