The great American news since last week is that General
Lee has retreated again from Spotsylvania Court House to a point in the angle between the North and South Anna Rivers, where he is supposed to be defending the junction between the southern rail- road to Richmond and the western to Gordonsville. Whether this movement, which took place on the 20th May, was caused by Grant's manceuvre of outflanking the Southern right wing, or whether it was a spontaneous retreat which had begun before General Grant ordered his left, under General Hancock, to move round Lee's right wing on the Bowling Green line towards Rich- mond, is still a disputed point. It is certain, however, that on Monday the 23rd Grant's army crossed the North Anna River, with but little opposition at first, at Jericho Ford, and had then to repel a furious attack. At the latest dates from the army Grant and Lee were fronting each other in this angle between the rivers about twenty-eight miles from Richmond, Grant's object being apparently to work to the left, so as to intercept Lee from Richmond and drive him off towards Lynchburg. In the south- west General Banks had returned to New Orleans with his
army, or so much of it as remained to him after the losses he had sustained, and Admiral Porter's gun fleet in the Red River had been saved by an adroit engineering operation,' which dammed up the river for a time so as to give enough water to float the gun- boats. General Sherman in Georgia was still pursuing General Joseph Johnston towards Atlanta,—or, as the Confederates put it, the Confederate General was "drawing on" the opponent from whom he was endeavouring to escape.
