Our Flag: Origin and Progress of the Flag of the United States of America by George Henry Preble

This is one of the books cited as 'proving' Thompson to be the designer of the Second National Flag-

page 415-
"In April, 1863, while the subject of a national flag was under discussion before the confederate congress at Richmond, Mr. Wm. T. Thompson, editor of the Savannah Morning News, suggested a white flag with the southern cross or battle flag for its union, as a national ensign for the confederacy, and to demonstrate the beauty of the design, got Capt. Wm. Ross Postell formerly of the Unted States and Texas navies, to make a colored drawing of his proposed flag. His editorial, published in the News, April 23, which follows, was republished with approval by the Richmond papers about the time the vote was taken in the house on the flag, but after the senate had adopted a white flag with a broad blue bar in its centre... "

It was republished on May 8 in the Richmond Whig - a full week after the final vote on the flag. There's no statement by the Whig of approval or disapproval of Thompson's views. They just reprinted part of his editorial. Reprinting items from other papers was a common practice in the 1800s.

p.415 cont-
"...On motion of Hon. Julian Hartridge, then chairman of the house committee on the flag..."

Hartridge was not chairman of the Flag and Seal Committee. He wasn't even on the committee.

The author's only source for this info is...William T. Thompson.

page 419-
"On the 20th of May, a correspondent wrote to the Savannah News: "Mr. Editor you are one of the admirers of the new flag, and you copied into yesterday's News a very enthusiastic panegyric of it from the Richmond Examiner. But I doubt if either you or the editor of the Examiner has yet seen the flag which was established by law. The picture in your office (which is very beautiful), is not correct, nor have I seen one, of the several which are now in use, in and around this city, which is proportioned according to the law..."

"The picture in your office"...?
So, did Thompson actually submit a drawing to Congress?...or was it still hanging in his office?