service that had such a proportion of young men for officers.

I will here relate an incident connected with the name of Captain
Hance's family, that was spoken of freely in the regiment at the time,
but little known outside of immediate surroundings--not about
Captain Hance, however, but the name and connection that the incident
recalled, that was often related by the old chroniclers of Laurens.
Andrew Johnson, who was at the time I speak United States Senator from
Tennessee, and was on the ticket with Lincoln, for Vice-President of
the United States in his second race against McClellan, was elected,
and afterwards became President. As the story goes, and it is vouched
for as facts, Andrew Johnson in his younger days had a tailoring
establishment at Laurens, and while there paid court to the mother of
Captain Hance. So smitten was he with her charms and graces, he paid
her special attention, and asked for her hand in marriage. Young
Johnson was fine looking, in fact handsome, energetic, prosperous, and
well-to-do young man, with no vices that were common to the young men
of that day, but the great disparity in the social standing of the
two caused his rejection. The family of Hance was too exclusive at the
time to consent to a connection with the plebeian Johnson, yet
that plebeian rose at last to the highest office in the gift of the
American people, through the force of his own endowments.

* * * * *


SEVENTH SOUTH CAROLINA REGIMENT.

The Seventh Regiment was reorganized by electing--