The Ann Fulmore Harllee Chapter of The United Daughters of the Confederacy met September 10, 2015 at the home of Mrs. Fay Sloan. The meeting was opened with prayer by Mrs. Mattie Strickland, after which everyone enjoyed delicious refreshments consisting of a fresh fruit cup, pound cake with divinity icing, cream cheese and pepper jelly on crackers and an iced beverage.
Mrs. Strickland called the meeting to order and welcomed Mrs. Diane Pittman as a special guest for the afternoon. Everyone participated in the club ritual which was closed with prayer by Mrs. Phyllis Hagan.
The minutes of the May meeting were read and approved and a treasurer’s report was given by Mrs. Sloan. Everyone was reminded that the 2015-2016 dues should be paid at this time.
Mrs. Sloan was recognized for her outstanding work on the new yearbook. Mrs. Strickland directed everyone’s attention to all the information to be found in the yearbook and reminded everyone of the 119th annual SC Division Convention which will be held in Columbia October 1-3, 2015.
The program for the afternoon was given by Chris Harris. She referred to an article entitled “A Refuge for the Needy” which gave many interesting examples of men and women who, in the midst of the turmoil of The War Between the States, demonstrated honorable character by showing compassion to the enemy in his time of weakness. These examples included Southern and Northern soldiers helping each other, civilians and soldiers supporting each other, and even prisoners and guards aiding one another.
A Union private told of suffering a broken leg by a musket ball at the Battle of Chickamauga. As he lay unable to move, five Confederates came to him and moved him under a tree. They spread his blanket on which he could rest and even covered him with a homemade quilt which belonged to one of the Confederates.
After the War, A Union Captain told of being thrown from his horse and knocked unconscious in battle in Tennessee. A Confederate helped him to a nearby log cabin, assisted him with water from a well and bathed his face to remove the blood and mud. The Union Captain also told of marching to Richmond as a prisoner. No one had anything to eat, but he asked a Confederate officer for food. The Confederate replied that he had only two apples, but he gave one of the apples to the Union prisoner.
In another situation, a Pennsylvania captain told of being marched along with nearly 300 other prisoners by a South Carolina battalion. He described the South Carolinians as essentially giving their entire supply of rations to the captured soldiers.
In October of 1864, 28 Union Soldiers had surrendered to a brigade of Confederates after the Battle of Glasgow, Missouri. These soldiers were being delivered to the nearest Union military post to be paroled and to wait to be exchanged for Confederate prisoners. Unfortunately, a guerrilla group followed the Union prisoners and their Confederate escorts, planning to seize the prisoners to rob and murder them. The Confederate Lieutenant gathered the prisoners and the soldiers together to explain the dire circumstances. He offered the prisoners a chance to leave and to try to make it out alive, or to take a gun and stand with the Confederates to fight the guerillas. The Union prisoners chose to fight, the guerillas were defeated and the journey was completed with the exchange of prisoners.
Even though many acts of kindness and compassion carried out by both armies were told and recorded after the War, one of the best known stories involved a 19 year old South Carolina sergeant. This took place at the base of Marye’s Heights at the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia which was won by the Confederates. The cries of the thousands wounded and dying men as they lay between the Confederate and Union lines could be heard throughout the night.
The young sergeant requested permission from his General to cross over the stone wall and assist the wounded. With canteens filled with water, the young soldier ventured out onto the battlefield to offer aid to the fallen. Soldiers on both sides held their fire while the sergeant ministered to the wounded for over an hour. There is a monument at Fredericksburg to honor this young man who is remembered as the “Angel of Marye’s Heights.”
Three million Americans fought in The War Between the States, and at least 610,000 men, two percent of the total population died. In addition to the horrible death toll, there was immense suffering among military and civilians alike. Americans were wounded, imprisoned, widowed and killed in very similar situations on both sides. An untold number of these accounts of compassion have been lost simply because they were not recorded. However, we can be grateful for the accounts we do have that help to renew our faith in human kindness and brotherhood.
At the conclusion of the program, the meeting was adjourned.