John D. Billings, The history of the Tenth Massachusetts battery of light artillery in the war of the rebellion

March 24th a corps review was held, and sutlers and non-combatants generally were ordered to City Point.

We were now on the tiptoe of expectation. Sherman was marching northward by rapid stages, and great events were discernible in the near future. We did not look forward to the opening of the spring campaign with so much dread as we felt a year before, for two reasons,—first, because we had since become thoroughly seasoned by what was indisputably the hardest year's campaigning of the war; and second, because we knew the terrible strait to which our foe had been reduced in numbers and morale.We did not expect any more hard fighting. Everything during the winter had betokened a rapid wasting away of the so-called Confederacy, and we felt the end to be near.

We were aroused from our slumbers one morning (March 25) by the roar of artillery from the front of Petersburg, and soon came orders to pack up and be ready to move at once. It was occasioned by the Rebels assaulting Fort Stedman at daylight, carrying it with almost no opposition; but not following up their success, they were served much as was the assaulting column at the Elliott Salient the memorable 30th of July previous. This fact we, of course, did not learn until later. We heard simply that Fort Stedman had been captured, but as the firing died away, and no enemy appeared sweeping down on our flank, and as preparations were now making for an attack in our front, we became convinced that their advantage must have been short-lived.

When everything was in readiness the infantry advanced along our front and captured the enemy's fortified picket line, during which we employed our