During the early days of August Sherman kept extending his lines to the right, with frequent demonstrations against the enemy at all points. He brought down from Chattanooga some heavy rifled guns with which to bombard the enemy's works. Many of the shells fell beyond the enemy's fortifications in the city itself, and did much damage. At the middle of the month it was decided to execute a grand flank movement around the city. The advance was made toward the right or southward. At the same time Hood sent a force of cavalry, from 6,000 to 10,000 strong, to pass around Sherman's rear and cut off his communications and lines of supply. Sherman was glad to learn this, for he knew that the absence of these troops from the Rebel army would be a more serious loss to Hood than they could possibly inflict upon the Union army. He at once halted his flanking movement, and sent Kilpatrick with 5,000 cavalry to break the West Point Railroad near Fairburn, and then go on and break the Macon Railroad, cutting off Atlanta from the Southern counties. Kilpatrick was not able to accomplish this work as completely as Sherman desired, and the flanking movement was soon resumed. On the night of August 26th, the Army of the Tennessee moved to the South, followed by the Army of the Cumberland, while the Army of the Ohio remained substantially in its position. The armies thoroughly accomplished the destructive work which Kilpatrick had tried to do, and then faced eastward. Howard encountered the enemy's cavalry at several points, and drove it before him. "From the 25th to the 30th of August," says General Howard, "Sherman's forces made a curious manoeuvre. If you should face a line of cavalry, infantry and artillery to the rear, and then make a little more than a half wheel about its new left as a pivot, you would get some idea of the manner in which we fell upon Hood's communications. Yet the line, like an Indian rubber string, was stretched out till the Army of the Tennessee, rapidly marching, reached Renfro Place, twenty-five miles from Atlanta. Schofield kept near the pivot, and Thomas was between.