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CalCasieu Greys Volume 35, Issue 8 Sons of Confederate Veterans, Lake Charles, Louisiana August 2016 Louu

SCV NEWS By Mike Jones, Camp editor/historian New leaders elected The new leaders of the Sons of Confederate Veterans were recently held reunion in Richardson, Texas. It is a good lineup of leaders. Commander in Chief—Tom Strain of Tanner, Alabama. Lieutenant Commander-In-Chief—Paul Gramling Jr. of Shreveport, Louisiana. Army of Trans-Mississippi Councilman—Darrell Maples of Missouri. Army of Trans-Mississippi Commander—Johnnie Lee Holley Jr. of Hawkins, Texas. Museum plans The Sons of Confederate Veterans recently released a rendering of the planned National Confederate Museum at Elm Springs. Progress is being made and the ground breaking will commence soon. More funds, however, are needed to get the building underway. We need our own museum to make sure the true history of the South and the Confederacy are told to the world from a Southern perspective. Please consider making a donation to this worthy project. You can find more information at http://theconfederatemuseum.com/ Send checks to: Sons of Confederate Veterans c/o TCM Building Fund P.O.Box 59, Columbia, TN 38402 Or call 1-800-MY-DIXIE to pay by credit card.

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Captain James W. Bryan NEXT MEETING The next meeting of Captain James W. Bryan Camp 1390, Sons of Confederate Veterans, will be from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 9, at Ryan’s Buffet, 4051 Ryan St. in Lake Charles, La. Compatriot Tommy Curtis is our scheduled guest speaker. His program will be on “Southern Vindication in the Modern Age.” Please be there for great Confederate fellowship and fine food. DUES NOW DUE If you haven’t already sent in your annual dues, please do so as soon as possible. Attacks on our Confederate Heritage are continuing with fury and we need every current member to grow our ranks as much as possible. Please send your annual dues of $42 to Camp Adjutant Luke Dartez, 908 Henning Road, Sulphur, La. 70665-7673. Thank you for your continued support. The Louisiana Division SCV also encourages the following optional extra giving: Division Operations – to help with division expenses. Elm Springs Fund – for our own Confederate museum. Large Flag Fund – for raising a large Confederate flag flying along Interstate 49 just south of Shreveport. Camp Moore – for the largest Confederate wartime training camp in Louisiana with a large cemetery and museum. Legal Defense Fund – for heritage defense. Camp Giving—for the extra support our own local Camp 1390.

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"Niblett's Bluff in the War Between the States" by Michael Dan Jones tells the story of the Confederate fortification at Niblett's Bluff, Louisiana during the war. The book provides such information as when and how it was built, what type it was, the types of armaments there, and information on some of the men and military units stationed there. The author drew the information from the War of the Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederates Armies, the National Archives, wartime letters and diaries, pension records and other sources. He discuss the importance of Niblett's Bluff in the various military campaigns it was involved in, including the storing and distributing military supplies, a center for concentrating troops going to and from Louisiana and Texas and as a Confederate military hospital. The author also discusses the types of uniforms the men wore in that area, how they were armed and types of artillery at Niblett's Bluff. While no battles were fought there, Niblett’s Bluff was involved in supporting Confederate forces in the battles and campaigns along the Texas coast and western Louisiana. The book features wartime pictures of Confederate soldiers who actually served there, the types of flags they flew and other details. It has short histories of the Naval Raid on Lake Charles, the Battles of Sabine Pass, the Bayou Teche Campaign, Red River Campaign, the Battle of Calcasieu Pass and others. "Niblett's Bluff in the War Between the States" will be available at the August meeting of Camp 1390, and also is available from online book sellers. It has 105 pages, photos, maps, bibliography and index.

Tom Strain, CIC, SCV

General Order 2016-01 21 July 2016 LAW ENFORCEMENT APPRECIATION DAY Whereas, with the current vicious and despicable attacks being waged against the law enforcement officers around the country today, and Whereas, law enforcement officers are the domestic protectors of our citizens, our society and our way of life, and Whereas, a society cannot survive without the valor, dedication, and sacrifices of our law enforcement officers and the support from their families, and Whereas, responsible citizens have a moral duty to support the institutions and citizens who place their lives in peril every day so that our society can enjoy the rights, privileges, and freedoms of citizens of a great republic which our forefathers and God provided us, Now therefore, the following proclamation is hereby published to the Confederation: Thursday August the 18th of 2016 shall be proclaimed as National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day by the Sons of Confederate Veterans. Camps, Brigades, and Divisions are hereby highly encouraged to show their support to their local law enforcement officials on this day by any and all means appropriate on this day. We offer our most sincere thanks and appreciation to those who place their lives in the Almighty's favor on a daily basis protecting and serving the public. By order of the Commander-in-Chief, Thos. V. Strain Jr.

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Louisiana Secession Convention (Louisiana State Museum) Ordinance of Secession of Louisiana

Passed in the State Capitol at Baton Rouge on 26 January 1861, By a Vote of 113-17 An Ordinance to dissolve the union between the State of Louisiana and other States, united with her under the compact entitled “The Constitution of the United States of America.” We, the people of the State of Louisiana, in Convention assembled, do declare and ordain, and it is hereby declared and ordained, That the ordinance passed by us in Convention on the 22nd day of November, in the year eighteen hundred and eleven, whereby the Constitution were adopted; and all laws and ordinance by which the State of Louisiana became a member of the Federal Union, be and the same are hereby repealed and abrogated; and that the union now subsisting between Louisiana and other States, under the name of “The United States of America” is hereby dissolved. We do further declare and ordain, That the State of Louisiana hereby resumes all rights and powers heretofore delegated to the Government of the United States of America; that her citizens are absolved from all allegiance to said Government; and that she is in full possession and exercise of all those rights of sovereignty which appertain to a free and independent State. We do further declare and ordain, That all rights acquired and vested under the Constitution of the United States, or any act of Congress, or treaty, or under any law of this State, and not incompatible with this ordinance, shall remain in force, and have the same effects as if this ordinance had not been passed.

GENERAL LEE QUOTES

General Robert E. Lee (Library of Congress) Duty then is the sublimes word in the English language. You should do your duty in all things. You can never do more, you should never wish to do less. You cannot be a true man until you learn to obey. It is well that war is so terrible. Otherwise, we would grow too fond of it. A true man of honor feels humbled himself when he cannot help humbling others. To be a good soldier, you must love the army. To be a good commander, you must be willing to order the death of the thing you love. True patriotism sometimes requires of men to act exactly contrary, at one period, to that which it does at another, and the motive which impels them—the desire to do right—is precisely the same. I cannot trust a man to control others who cannot control himself. (Regarding Northern abolitionists) These people must be aware that their object is both unlawful and foreign to them and to their duty, and that this institution, for which they are irresponsible and non-accountable, can only be changed by them through the agency of a civil and servile war. In this enlightened age, there are few I believe, but what will acknowledge, that slavery as an institution, is a moral & political evil in any Country.

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LOUISIANA STATE FLAG AND SEAL

The Louisiana state flag and seal, the pelican feeding its young, with the motto "Union, Justice, Confidence," have long been familiar symbols of the "Pelican State." The pelican feeding her young also has ancient Christian roots. It was adopted by early Christians as a symbol of "Jesus the Redeemer." An old legend held that a pelican would wound herself to feed her young with her own blood, which reminded early Christians of Jesus' act of sacrificial love in dying for them on the cross in remission for their sins. Saint Thomas Aquinas in his hymn, Adoro te devote, wrote, "Like what tender tales tell of the pelican, bathe me, Jesus Lord, in what Thy bosom ran, blood that but one drop of has the pow'r to win all the world forgiveness of its world of sin." It is also a reminder to Catholics that Jesus feeds us still today with the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. The pelican feeding its young is still seen in many Catholic churches. In 1812 when Louisiana became the 18th state in the union, unofficial flags began appearing throughout the state with the pelican feeding its young on it. Then in 1813, Gov. W.C.C. Claiborne and the Louisiana legislature adopted the pelican feeding its young as the state's official seal. H.L.Favrot, a member of the legislature, is said to have found the pelican symbol in an old Catholic prayer book. During the War for Southern Independence the pelican flag was still a popular representation of Louisiana and some Louisiana soldiers were referred to as pelicans. The flag was briefly the Louisiana Confederate flag before a colorful striped flag was adopted as the national flag of Confederate Louisiana. Some Confederate military units adopted a pelican flag as their regimental flags. Also Louisiana Confederate governor Henry Watkins Allen changed the state motto from "Union, Justice, Confidence," to "Justice, Union, Confidence," in a symbolic sign of Louisiana's wartime fervor. The emblem also appeared on Louisiana catridge boxes and cross belts. In 1870, the carpetbag Louisiana governor, Madison Wells, changed the motto back to "Union, Justice, Confidence."

SECOND MANASSAS: A Great Confederate Victory Location: Prince William County, Virginia Campaign: Northern Virginia Campaign (June-September 1862) Date(s): August 28-30, 1862 Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. John Pope [US]; Gen. Robert E. Lee and Maj. Gen. Thomas J. Jackson [CS] Forces Engaged: Armies Estimated Casualties: 22,180 total (US 13,830; CS 8,350) In order to draw Pope’s army into battle, Jackson ordered an attack on a Federal column that was passing across his front on the Warrenton Turnpike on August 28. The fighting at Brawner Farm lasted several hours and resulted in a stalemate. Pope became convinced that he had trapped Jackson and concentrated the bulk of his army against him. On August 29, Pope launched a series of assaults against Jackson’s position along an unfinished railroad grade. The attacks were repulsed with heavy casualties on both sides. At noon, Longstreet arrived on the field from Thoroughfare Gap and took position on Jackson’s right flank. On August 30, Pope renewed his attacks, seemingly unaware that Longstreet was on the field. When massed Confederate artillery devastated a Union assault by Fitz John Porter’s command, Longstreet’s wing of 28,000 men counterattacked in the largest, simultaneous mass assault of the war. The Union left flank was crushed and the army driven back to Bull Run. Only an effective Union rearguard action prevented a replay of the First Manassas disaster. Pope’s retreat to Centreville was precipitous, nonetheless. The next day, Lee ordered his army in pursuit. This was the decisive battle of the Northern Virginia Campaign. (National Park Service) Louisiana Confederate