Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 19.djvu/114

 108 Southern Historical Society Papers.

who inquired of the General what was the number of his regiment. This confused him, and he could not or did not answer, but said, ' Go ahead, you are driving them.' Blakey said, ' You are my pris- oner.' The General said, 'Yes.' 'Have you any side-arms ?' in- quired the sergeant. ' Yes,' he answered ; ' but I am a general offi- cer, and prefer surrendering them to a field officer.' 'All right,' re- plied Blakey, and marched his prisoner up to Colonel Flowerree, to whom the General surrendered his sword and pistols and was hur- ried to the rear with some seven or eight hundred of his brigade."

General Heckman has the following account of his capture written, by himself, which appeared in the Philadelphia Times : " As the left of their (Confederate) line passed me a sergeant approached and demanded my surrender. I bid him attend to his duty, telling him in reply that I was Major Anderson of General Hoke's staff. The sergeant apologized, and joined his command, but I was by no means out of my predicament, the fog being still very dense, and the firing having for the moment ceased. I had nothing to guide my actions by. Taking direction for the point at which the Confederates had disappeared in the fog, I soon found myself in part of a Georgia bri- gade, headed by Archie Gracie, formerly of Elizabeth, N. J., who at once recognized me. He said he was glad to see me ; was proud to say that he had been fighting Jerseymen all day ; that he had only a skirmish line left. On the way to the rear I had an animated discus- sion with his adjutant on the results of the war ; and at 9 A. M. the next morning I was registered at the ' Hotel de Libby.' "

From this, his own statement, it appears the General truly was in a fog. He calls Gracie' s brigade a Georgia brigade, and after walking into this brigade he was made a prisoner by General Gracie, who recognized him. He does not say who he surrendered his sword to.

The facts are just as stated by Sergeant-Major Johnston. I talked with Colonel C. C. Flowerree myself that morning, and know he re- ceived General Heckman's sword. Others of our regiment were present when he was turned over to Colonel Flowerree, who sent him under guard to the rear, where, no doubt, he met General Gracie, who then recognized him. The capture occurred just to the left, and in rear of our regiment, not far from where we came across the coffee- pots.

JEFF. VAUGHAN TAKEN IN.

Among the men detailed to take the prisoners off, several got lost in the fog, and instead of going to our rear, which had been our front, they carried them into the enemy's line; thus N. F. Wheat,