The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1910-06-21
A TRYING DAYS.
By Mitchell

showed me a piece of poetry found
among some old papers of his aunt's,
Miss Fannie Cooper, who afterwards
married a Mr.. John McReynolds.
The paper that this poetry was
written on was Confederate paper
with the first design of the Confed-
crate flag printed on it. The upper
conner next to the sstaf, about one
fourth of the flag was blue and in
this blue, arranged in a circle, were
13 stars, around the palmetto tree.
The palmetto tree represented South
Carolina and each star represented
one of the Southern States. The bal
ance of the flag was in white and
red bars. 1t was thought that this
design looked too much like the Unit
ed States flag, and after the first year
it was changed to the present design
that we now have.
This little piece of poetry bore the
signatures Of three members of Com
pany c, Third South Carolina regi-
ment, J. E. Sigman, l.. W. Long and
J.. @. A. Stockman, June 80, 1861,
Camp B~eaureguard, Prince William
county, Va.
Any of the soldiers of Bonham's
brigade will remember. the camp at
or near Fairfax court house, and the
hasty retreat that the old brigade
made from Fairfax on the 18th of
July, 1861, back to Bull Run, and the
first battle of Manassas or Bull Run,
on the Goth of July, and the great
victory and the origin of the Rebel
yell that day, when Mcdowell was
driven across Bull Run, and back in
to Washington, and all the good things
he left behind for Johnnie to help
himself. The army of Virginia armed
and equipped itself that day at the
expense of Uncle Sam.
The Third and Seventh regiments
did not get into the fight that day.
They were under a heavy fire from
the artillery.
Now as to this little. piece of poetry
it recalls much history. L. ". Long
and J. @. A. Stockman were from the
Utopia section, and J.. E. Sigman from
Deadfall. They all enlisted in Com
pany G., at Frog Level, the company
was known as Pickens' Guard under
command Of Capt. Clayton Mafett.
The company went to Columbia on a
Sunday, the very day the news came
that Fort Sumter had surrendered.
After a few months of drilling they
were mustered into Confederate SER
vice and went to Virginia. and were
at this camp at Fairfax court house
when this writing was done. I think
the poetry is original and. was the
product of ]. @. A. Stockman. I am
satisfied he did the writing. I
would like to give a little sketch of
these three men and what became of
them.
=. First, J. E. sigman, while on a
march from Greenville, Tenn, to
Bristol, Sigman went foraging and
went to a house. The lady of the
house seized his gun and began to
call for help. Sigman jerked the
gun from her, as he did so he said he
heard footsteps up stairs. He jump
ed out the door and drew his gun and
watched upstairs at the window, but
no n showed themselves. So he be-
gan to walk backward with his face
to the house until he thought he
was far enough that he could get
a tree between himself and the
house, but before he got to the tree
three bullets struck him, two going
through his clothes and n passed
through his left arm. He said. he
got behind the tree and looked back
and saw four men come out of the
house and start like they were try
ing to cut him off, but he out ran
them and got into camp. 1t turned
out he had gotten into a bunch Of
bushwhackers there in the mountains
of east Tennessee. After this there
was very little struggling or foraging
in east Tennessee. We were afraid
of bushwhackers. This was in March,
1864. After this I think in February,
1865, Sigman was in a scouting party
with Tom Paysinger, VIM. Boozer. and
VIM. Orchard. Somewhere in Lexing-
ton county, I think, the party had
captured some prisoners, and it was
said Sigman and Boozer were detailed
to take these prisoners out and kill
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