RAID FROM CHICKASAW TO SF1.MA AND MACON).
His first objective was Selma, Ala. A portion of Forrest's cavalry was encountered and defeated at Montevallo 30 March. The fortifi cations of Selma (q.v.) were carried against Forrest 2 April, and immense war supplies and plants for the manufacture of war materials destroyed. Montgomery surrendered 12 April; West Point was captured 15 April, after sharp to the left, began on the 29th, and brought on the battle of Dinwiddie Court House (q.v.) and White Oalc Road on the 31st, and the battle of Five Forks (q.v.) on 1 April, in which latter engagement the Confederates were de feated. On 2 April the Confederate entrench ments were carried, and General Lee abandoned his lines during the night, having notified Presi dent Davis during the forenoon that he would begin a retreat on Amelia Court House that night. Jefferson Davis received this dispatch in church. He and his Cabinet immediately col lected personal effects and Confederate archives, and left Richmond on a special train. Gen. Godfrey Weitzel received the surrender of the city on 3 April.
General Lee's army was assembled at Amelia Court House 5 April, and continued its re treat at night. On the 6th General Meade ad vanced on Amelia Court House, but, finding that General Lee had left, he moved toward Deatonsville (Sailor's Creelc), where the most of Ewell's corps, the rear of Lee's army, was captured 6 April. (See SAILOR'S CREEK). About the same time some 10,000 men of the divisions of Anderson, Pickett and Bushrod Johnson (qq.v.), were captured. Lee continued his retreat and reached Farmville on the morn ing of the 7th. Here his troops received their first rations since the retreat began. At 11 o'clock, Union troops appearing, the march was renewed, his men being greatly exhausted with loss of sleep, hunger and hard marching. On this day the correspondence began between Generals Grant and Lee, which, on the 9th, re sulted in the surrender of Lee's remaining forces at Appomattox. The number paroled
was 28,231 officers and men, extra duty men and detailed men of every description, this rein nant being all that was left within the control of General Lee of his magnificent fighting machine, the Army of Northern Virginia. See FARMVILLE AND HIGH BRIDGE.
In North Carolina Sherman and Schofield moved against Johnston, occupying Raleigh 13 April. On the 14th Johnston asked for a con ference, and on the 18th terms of surrender were agreed upon, subject to the approval of the President of the United States. These, be ing deemed in part political, were disapproved, and General Grant was sent to Raleigh to insist upon the same terms made with Lee. These General Sherman demanded of and received from General Johnston 26 April, and the war was over, though small independent forces were in the field for a short time thereafter, Gen. Dick Taylor in Alabama not surrendering to General Canby till 4 May. The last engage ment of the war occurred at Palmetto Ranch, Tex. (q.v.).
President Lincoln made nine calls for troops during the war. Under these about 2,800,000 men of all classes were enlisted, including emergency men of a few weeks, three, six and nine months' men, two and three years' men, conscripts and substitutes. There were 52,000 drafted men held to service; 75,000 conscripts who sent substitutes; and 42,000 men who sent substitutes, although not themselves drafted.
The Confederate records are very deficient, having been largely destroyed. The best esti mate from the data in the possession of the War Department places the Confederate strength at something over 600,000. After Mr. Davis' calls of the first year a general conscription act was passed 16 April 1862, including all white men between the ages of 18 and 35 for the term of three years. On 27 Sept. 1862, this act was extended to include those of 45 years. On 17 Feb. 1864, the law was extended to those be tween 17 and 50, the term to be for the war.