The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-19
SIDNEY HERBERT's LETTER.
INTERESTING REFERENCE TO THE
stx1RNIsH OF BLACTxBURN's FORD.

nuested-The Place Held in the
Army by Rev. DIR. Henry N. Payne
who Died Recently in Atlanta.
comments on the UnvciIIng of the
statue of Gen. HOOkcr-Gen. John
B. GordOn's Article on Gettysburg.
Attention Called to Some State
mcnts Made In It-COmpIim ntary
references to the Savannah Mill
tary-Other Matters of General In
terest.
Pine Crest Villa, Maitland. Fla, July
1S.-It is due Mr.. w. NJ, Tison of Tar
boro, S. c., to state that his inquiry
about the battle of Honey Hill was not
made TO create a controversy, but
simply for information. He is an old
man, nearly so years of age, and like
many other persons had heard the
matter discussed from several stand
points, and his inquiry was made to
ascertain which was correct. =
This day-July Is, 1871 was in the
battle or sllirnish of Blackburn's s
Ford, Va, where 1 had a lively time
for awhile with Confederate infantry
and a few calvary, and finally, while
helping Capt. Qater GEM R. B. Ayres,
in command of the light battery,
was wounded for life, by the excellent
craftsmanship of the famous Washing
ton Artillery of New Orleans. Three
days later, although unable to walk,
I was put on my horse and went into
the battle Of Bull Run at the head of
Gen Tyler's division. We were pitted
against Gen. Bartows Georgia brigade
and after my horse was shot from un-
der me l was in charge of Gen. Will
liam Montgomery Gardner lieutenant
colOneD and Col. ]. H. Estill and John
j. Griffin and other Confederate
wounded prisoners. Estill and Griffin
were discourteous enough to skip out"
without saying thank you" Estill
was the long and Griffin the short of
the matter And now, July 81. 1903,
Col. Estill invites me to come over to
"Wimberly" and join the old Boys in
Gray" who are survivors, like our
selves, of that bloody battle. They
were brave soldiers and are now hon,
ored citizens and l should be glad to
meet them after these long years, and
talk over the stirring scenes of that
fearful ver-to-be-forgotten day But
! am not able to sit up long at a time
month after month. Gen. Gardner
and 1 met at Rome, Ga, when the
Chatham Artillery was in camp there
years ago, and dined together. l was
very kind to him when he was wound
eel and he never forgot it.
My correspondence the past week
has overwhelmed me, and it will re-
Quire some time to respond to all the
writer's. A cultured lady in South Geor-
gia, a remote descendant or relative
of Gen. Mordecai Gist, thanks me for
my recent mention of his heroic con-
duct in the Revolutionary War, ami
gives me some additional facts about
him, for which she has my thanks
A prominent military official and
Confederate veteran at Tallahassee
desires information about the Florida
volunteers in the Mexican War. My
supply is very limited, and l think the
volunteers were few in number
TWO more of my dear old friends
have just passed away-Rev. DR.. r. H.
Weller of Jacksonville, and Rev. DR..
B. II. Sassnett of Atlanta, both gallant
Confederate soldiers in war and de-
vout, Jealous soldiers of Christ in
peace. Bro. Sassnett was my spirit
ua attendant in Atlanta when the
surgeons had me under their knives
on the operating table, and l can not
forget his kindly and comforting
words But both were amiable char
acters and full of good works, and
they have gone to a rich reward in
heaven. South Carolina
veteran writes me about the First
Shot at Sumter" and tells of a picture
in Frank Leslie's representing Mr..
Ruffin in the act of firing that shot.
And so the credit goes from one man
to another. = A special press
telegram from Chicago, where he was
visiting his sister, announces the ap-
preaching marriage of Lieut.. David
Yulee Beckham, U. S. A. (at Fort
Screven) to Miss Myra Wilcox of Sa-
vannah. Lieut.. B. is a brother of
Gov Beckham of Kentucky, and Is
another outsider to win fair Georgia
girl in army circles.
The Jacksonville Fla, Metropolis re-
ports the passenger agents as saying
that the first National Encampment of
the G. A. r. on the Pacific coast is to
be held at San Francisco in August.
This is a mistake, for the national en-
campment of 1886 was held in that
city, and the enormous sum of over
100000 was expended for it's entertain
ment. There is no city in the Union
whose hospitality rivals that of San
Francisco. In looking over
4iSt VI SOHlSQSIdCc SeilSA dis hAllCN III
battle, published few years ago in
Washington, D. c., the name of Gen.
Robert H. Anderson appears as hav-
ing been killed in the battle at Jones'
boro. And yet he was chief of police
IN Savannah for several years after the
surrender. 1t is hard to account for
such absurd publications, and yet they
are constantly to be found in newspa-
pers and magazines and sometimes in
so-called histories. Mr.. w. Ri
ley Boyd of Atlanta commends my
Kindly reference to his dear old friend,
capt Usina, and also touches upon
military schools, etc. While disapprov-
ing of military instruction, he does
not deny it's good results in many
cases, as In that of Gen. r. E. Lee,
Lieut.. Gen. T. ]. Jackson, Maj. Gen.
" .. Howard, Lieut.. Gen. ]. M. Scho-
neld, not to mention Bishop Polk, Rev.
brs. Park and Bledsoe, and Pendleton
ana Vinton and others.
Ihe Rev. DIR. Henry N. Payne, an
eminent Presbyterian divine who died
III Atlanta last week, was not a col
UHel IN the Union Army, as stated in
ule obituary notice, but a lieutenant
eo'onel of the Fifty-seventh United
SSlates colored infantry.
south Carolina reader of these letters
writes me in regard to who command
t gu the Confederate troops at the Bat
t'e OF Honey HILL He says: "The above
.idS long been mooted question and
1Iie IN which I have naturally felt an