At this time Merritt and Mackenzie, with the cavalry, were off between the road which the Army of the Potomac was marching on and the Appomattox River, and were attacking the enemy in flank.  They picked up a great many prisoners and forced the abandonment of some property.

Lee intrenched himself at Amelia Court House, and also his advance north of Jetersville, and sent his troops out to collect forage.  The country was very poor and afforded but very little.  His foragers scattered a great deal; many of them were picked up by our men, and many others never returned to the Army of Northern Virginia.

Griffin’s corps was intrenched across the railroad south of Jetersville, and Sheridan notified me of the situation.  I again ordered Meade up with all dispatch, Sheridan having but the one corps of infantry with a little cavalry confronting Lee’s entire army.  Meade, always prompt in obeying orders, now pushed forward with great energy, although he was himself sick and hardly able to be out of bed.  Humphreys moved at two, and Wright at three o’clock in the morning, without rations, as I have said, the wagons being far in the rear.

I stayed that night at Wilson’s Station on the South Side Railroad.  On the morning of the 5th I sent word to Sheridan of the progress Meade was making, and suggested that he might now attack Lee.  We had now no other objective than the Confederate armies, and I was anxious to close the thing up at once.

On the 5th I marched again with Ord’s command until within about ten miles of Burkesville, where I stopped to let his army pass.  I then received from Sheridan the following dispatch: 

“The whole of Lee’s army is at or near Amelia Court House, and on this side of it.  General Davies, whom I sent out to Painesville on their right flank, has just captured six pieces of artillery and some wagons.  We can capture the Army of Northern Virginia if force enough can be thrown to this point, and then advance upon it.  My cavalry was at Burkesville yesterday, and six miles beyond, on the Danville Road, last night.  General Lee is at Amelia Court 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.