Rensselaer Republican, Volume 17, Number 47, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 July 1885 — Parting of Lee and his Generals. [ARTICLE]

Parting of Lee and his Generals.

A propos of Appomattok,* I give the following as a subject for a Southern poet or painter: The parting between Washington and his generals has been celebrated in song and story, and the famous painting of that occurrence has, in millions of copies, become familiar to the people. But no singer has sung of the parting between General Robert E. Lee and his generals after Appomattox. No painter has painted it. Washington and his officers separated in the sunshine of a magnificient victory, the fruition of their brightest hopes. Lee and his officers separated in the gloom of defeat, the darkness of despair. Amid the happy homes of their people, the shout and banners and the merry music and the rejoicing multitudes. Washington and bis generals parted to go each one to his pleasant home. Amid the ruins of their Capital, with bare, bowed heads, in utter silence and bitter tears, Lee and his generals separated and went their several ways so homes destroyed, families broken up and scattered, and often into exile and oblivion. The final parting was in front of Lee’s mansion in" Richmond, two days after Appomattax. Lee’s house is an Ordinary square brick, standing alone on Franklin street, one square from the Capitol. AH the other houses on the square are connected. Upon the afternoon of the second day after the surrender people in that vicinity were surprised to see come riding up the street from the south a company of Confederate horsemen. They were unarmed, their gray unjforms were worn, soiled, and often tattered, their trappings old and patched. They wore slouched hats, and here and there was a feather remaining of the once smart and jaunty ’drooping plume of the Confederate cavalryman. They were bronzed and browned and bearded. They sat erect and came on with the splendid horsemanship for which they were noted. Upon the collars of some of the gray jackets could still be seen the faded and tarnished gilt stars, the emblems of the wearers’ rank. In front of them rode Lee. His two hands held the loosely swinging reins and-rested upon the pommel. His head was bent and his eyes were looking straight ahead from under his downcast brow, but they seemed to see nothing. As the troops cantered updo his old home his horse stopped at the gate and he aroused himself suddenly, as from a dream, and cast his eyes upon tUfe familiar windowsand then around over the group of gaUant soldiers who had followed his fortunes for four bloody years and gone down in defeat., unefer '"'his banner. The end of it all had come at last. He threw himself from the horse, and all his companions followed his action. They stood hat in hand, with an arm through the bridle rein,while Lee went from man to man, grasping each hand, looking intently into eaelj. face as though he would press it upon his memory fortver. Then he turned and went through the gate and up tke steps to his door. As a servant opened the door he paused with his left foot upon the veranda,his right upon the last step, and looked back for the last time. Not a word had been spoken, note good-bye uttered! There was no sound heard but that of sobs as these unkempt and grizzled heroes of 100 battles leaned

their heads against the shoulders of their horses and wept. Lee gave one look, and broke down at last. His hands went over his eyps, his irame shock with sobs, as he turned quickly and disappeared into his lonely house. With the closing of the door behind him ended forever the wild dream of the Southern Confederacy.— Washington Letter, in the Commercial'Gazette.