The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-22
"THE FIRST AND LAST"
IMPORTANT EVENTS IN CONFEDER-
ATE HISTORY BRIEFLY NOTED.


Army Experiences.
Pine Crest villa Maitland. Fla, Nov.
21.-As the United Confederate Veterans
will be IN Savannah tomorrow morning 10
enjoy the bounteous hospitality of the
good people of the Forest City" it may
not be out of place 10 give them a few
| items Of historical value in regard to the
Lost Cause" for which they so bravely
contended on many hard-fought battle
| fields
do not call them "Old Veterans" as
is often done by careless writer's. for the
term veteran embraces both old and
long experienced" as old soldiers or old
sailors or Inexperienced machinist.
The term veteran. Without any prefix, is
the proper one to use in regard to the old
soldiers and sailors of the civil War"
l shall write of some of the first and
last things in the career of the Southern
Confederacy. and they are not copied
from any condensed publication, but have
sources, and in the main 1 think they will
be found perfectly reliable.
The first step in the formation of a
Southern Confederacy was the seeding of
! South Carolina from the Union of States,
| on Dec. 20, 1860.
The last state to secede. following South
| Carolina, Mississippi Florida, Alabama,
| Georgia, Louisiana, Texas. Virginia, Ten
| nessee and Arkansas was North Carolina,
on May 20, 1861
| The first fort seized was Fort Pulaski,
| at savannah, on Jan. 8, 1861, but the first
| gun was fired at Charleston, S. c., on
/ AFtE
| ter, which caused the surrender of the gar
| rison under Mai. Robert Anderson, U. S.
| A.
| History does net record the name of the
man who fired the last gun of the war,
nor locate the place nor fix the date on
| which it was fired The venerable Hon.
| Edmund Ruffin of Virginia fired the first
| gun on Fort Sumter.
The FIRST Southern West Point graduate
! in the regular army who resigned to en-
| ter the Confederate service, was William
| Henry Talbot Walker, a Georgian, then
| Dec 20, 1S60-maj or and brevet leuten-
| ant colonel of The Tenth u. S. Infantry
| who became a Confederate Major General
and was killed in the battle of Atlanta
| and buried in Augusta his old home.
The first Northern West Point graduate
in the regular army who resigned to enter
| the Confederate service, was Robert P.
Maclay, a Pennsylvania, then-Dec. 81
u .. \,
who became a Confederate brigadier gen.
! Grad and is now reported to be living a
| quiet life at Cooks Landing, in Lou siana,
| as planter, All his regular army SER
vice, except during the Mexican war, was
| in Texas and Florida, from 1910 to 1860.
The last Southern West Point graduate
| in the regular army who resigned to enter
| the Confederate service. was Gabriel j.
| Rains, North Carohnian, then-Jufy g.
| 1861, the lieutenant colonel of the Fifth
U. s. Infantry, who became a Confederate
| brigadier general in the ordinance depart
| ment Was a citizen of Augusta, Ga
| after the war but died while on visit
to the North several years ago.
The last Northern West Point graduate
! in the regular army who resigned to enter
| the Confederate service, was Daniel Rug
! giles OF Massachusetts, then-May T. 1861
| captain in the Fifth T.. S. Infantry and
| brevet major and lieutenant colonel who
became a distinguished Confederate gen
eral After the war he resided n or near
Fredericksburg, Va, where he died a few
| years since.
The first great army of the Confederate
| states was called the Army of the Poto-
mac, but as that name was also given the
| Union army opposed to it, the name was
| changed in 1862, to THE Army of North
| ern Virginia" and as such il surrendered
! April 8, 1865, TO the Army of the Poto-
| mac" at Appomattox, under Gen. r. E.
| Lee. The last Confederate army to sur
| render was that of the Trans Mississippi
! department, under Lieut.. Gen. f. Kirby
| Smith, c. 5. A, to Mai. Gen E. r. s.
| Candy, U. s. A.. at New Orleans. La, on
| May 26, 1865, Lieut. Gen. Dick Taylor, c.
| 8. A., having surrendered his army at
| Chronicle, Ala, to Gen Candy, on The
| 4th day of the same month. Gen. Joe
| Johnston's surrender followed that Of
| Gen. Lee, on April 26, at Bentonville. N c.
10 I)Nft, l,.,,f tlO
regular army to be killed in battle during
the Civil War was First Lieutenant John
| T. Grebe a Pennsylvania, who was in
| the Second U. S. Artillery, and fell at the
battle of Big Bethel, Va, June 10, 1861
The last general officer killed in the war
| was Brig Gen. R. c. Tyler c. S. A., of
| Tennessee, on temporary duty at West
Point Ga. and the last regmental COM
| mander to fall was Col c. A. L. Lamar
| of Savannah, who was killed resisting
| Wilson'S raid upon Columbus, Ga, after
| the surrender.
| The first Georgia regimeutal commander
| who saw active service for the state, was
| the late Gen. Alexander r. Lawton of Sa-
| vannah, then colonel of the First Georgia
| Regiment Of Infantry He became quar-
| termaster general of the c. S. A, and was
| 'dn at the death" of the Confederacy at
| Washington. Ga, on May 5, 1865. and SUI
i perinteuded the execution of the hast or
|
being in the quartermaster generals de-
| partment.
The last general officers killed during
| Sherman's March to the Sea- through
| Georgia, were Mai. Gen. James B. Nc
| Pherson. L. S. A. and Mai Gen. William
| Henry Talbot Walker, c. S. A. both killed
| in the battle of Atlanta. on July %, 1854,
| Gen. Mcpherson is honored by a memorial
erected on the spot where he was
! killed. and by Fort Mcpherson, the new
| government barracks at Atlanta. Gen.
| walker is hcnored by Fort Walker, IN
| Grant Park. near where he was Killed and
| hy C. statue on the Confederate monument
| in his native city of Augusta, Gu, where
| he was buried. Earlier in the war Lieut..
| Gen atuCas Polk. G. S. A. was killed
| on Pine mourtain, and Prig Gea. Daniel
| McCoolx was mortaHv wounded in the
| Peachtree creek. or eKnnesaw mountain,
| engagement
The first suggestion fer decorating
/ Co q GO1iiqrc ba' u