Adam Badeau, Military history of Ulysses S. Grant from April 1861 to April 1865. Volume 3

‘ [514] an outer line, which the enemy might give up without giving up Petersburg. Parke should either advance rapidly, or cover his men and hold all he gets.’ At the same time he cautioned Weitzel, north of the James: ‘The greatest vigilance is necessary on your part that the enemy do not cross the Appomattox to overwhelm and drive back Parke.’ To the staff officer left in charge at City Point he said: ‘Instruct Benham to get the men at City Point out to the outer lines, and have them ready. While all our forces are going in, some enterprising rebels may possibly go through down there, in a fit of desperation, to do what damage they can.’ With all his aggressive audacity Grant never neglected the necessary precautions against similar traits in the enemy.

Meanwhile the two corps on the left of the Sixth had made their advance. The ground in front of Ord was difficult, and his troops at first did not succeed in penetrating the enemy's line; but, as the rebels weakened their force in his front in order to resist Wright and Parke, Ord also broke through the entrenchments. Humphreys too was doing well. At about half-past 7 the entrenched picket line in his front was captured under musketry as well as artillery fire, and at eight o'clock Hays's division of the Second corps carried an important redoubt, with three guns and a large part of the garrison. Mott's division of the same corps was then pushed forward to the Boydton road, but found the rebels on that front had evacuated their line.

At 8.25 A. M., Grant thus summed up for the President the results that had been attained: ‘Wright has gone through the enemy's line, and now has a ’