As soon as Warren was fortified and reinforcements reached him, troops were sent south to destroy the bridges on the Weldon Railroad; and with such success that the enemy had to draw in wagons, for a distance of about thirty miles, all the supplies they got thereafter from that source.  It was on the 21st that Lee seemed to have given up the Weldon Railroad as having been lost to him; but along about the 24th or 25th he made renewed attempts to recapture it; again he failed and with very heavy losses to him as compared with ours.

On the night of the 20th our troops on the north side of the James were withdrawn, and Hancock and Gregg were sent south to destroy the Weldon Railroad.  They were attacked on the 25th at Reams’s Station, and after desperate fighting a part of our line gave way, losing five pieces of artillery.  But the Weldon Railroad never went out of our possession from the 18th of August to the close of the war.

CHAPTER LVIII.

SHERIDAN’S ADVANCE—­VISIT TO SHERIDAN—­SHERIDAN’S VICTORY IN THE SHENANDOAH—­SHERIDAN’S RIDE TO WINCHESTER—­CLOSE OF THE CAMPAIGN FOR THE WINTER.

We had our troops on the Weldon Railroad contending against a large force that regarded this road of so much importance that they could afford to expend many lives in retaking it; Sherman just getting through to Atlanta with great losses of men from casualties, discharges and detachments left along as guards to occupy and hold the road in rear of him; Washington threatened but a short time before, and now Early being strengthened in the valley so as, probably, to renew that attempt.  It kept me pretty active in looking after all these points.

On the 10th of August Sheridan had advanced on Early up the Shenandoah Valley, Early falling back to Strasburg.  On the 12th I learned that Lee had sent twenty pieces of artillery, two divisions of infantry and a considerable cavalry force to strengthen Early.  It was important that Sheridan should be informed of this, so I sent the information to Washington by telegraph, and directed a courier to be sent from there to get the message to Sheridan at all hazards, giving him the information.  The messenger, an officer of the army, pushed through with great energy and reached Sheridan just in time.  The officer went through by way of Snicker’s Gap, escorted by some cavalry.  He found Sheridan just making his preparations to attack Early in his chosen position.  Now, however, he was thrown back on the defensive.

On the 15th of September I started to visit General Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley.  My purpose was to have him attack Early, or drive him out of the valley and destroy that source of supplies for Lee’s army.  I knew it was impossible for me to get orders through Washington to Sheridan to make a move, because they would be stopped there and such orders as Halleck’s caution (and that of the Secretary of War) would suggest would be given instead, and would, no doubt, be contradictory to mine.  I therefore, without stopping at Washington, went directly through to Charlestown, some ten miles above Harper’s Ferry, and waited there to see General Sheridan, having sent a courier in advance to inform him where to meet me.