Rebellion Record: a Diary of American Events: Poetry and Incidents., Volume 4.
Frank Moore, Ed.

As for Columbus, I repeat my confidence in the genius of Beauregard. If the place can be held by human pluck and skill, he will hold it. To show his military intuition, I will tell you a fact which came to me lately from the chief of his staff. Do you remember a story in the Yankee papers about an interview between McClellan, Lincoln, and a third person, whose name was not given? McClellan told Abraham of the trap he had laid to catch our forces at Mason's and Munson's Hills, and said that it must inevitably have succeeded but for the treachery of some person who threw up rockets to give the rebels warning in time to get out of the way. “Only two persons,” added McClellan, “knew of this plan; one is myself, the other is now in this room.” This other person is believed to have been Adjutant-General Thomas, who, about that time, lost his high position in the United States Army. In truth, though, poor Thomas was as innocent of treason as an unborn babe. When the Yankee advances upon Munson's Hill began, rockets were thrown up by the various divisions to notify each other that they were in motion. Of course this was at night. Gen. Beauregard, seeing the rockets, suspected something was in the wind. He, therefore, caused his Chief of Ordnance, Col. Alexander, to be waked up, and told him that while he was entirely ignorant of the meaning of these rockets, he was satisfied that we ought to throw up rockets too. Alexander threw up the rockets, the Yankees suspected foul play, became alarmed, and took the back track. Hence the mysterious story concocted by the Chinese imagination of the Yankees.