The Sweetwater enterprise. (Sweetwater, Tenn.) 1869-187?, 1870-11-24
THE GREAT CONFEDER ATE
CAPTAIN.
Personal "reminiscences and ARec-
dOteS OF Gen. II. Il. Lee. Il
Written for the Cincinnati Commercial by
Confederate Chaplain,

confederate Chaplain.
The modest humility of the q At
chiettain was so conspicuous that We
are ut no loss for incidents to illustrate
it. To n letter from Jackson, at Clan
cellorsyille, he replied II have justl re-
ceiyed your note informing me that iou
were wounded. I cannot express my
regret at the occurrence. Could L fave
directed events, 1 should have cl) sen,
for the good Of the service, to hayet zen
disabled in your stead. 1 con@atA tate
you on the victory which is due toiDur
skill and energy" 1t was upon III re-
ception of these touching words from
his loved chief that the great Stonewall
exclaimed Better that ten Jacksons
should fail than one Lee! But he
meokly added, "Gen, Lee should give
the glory of the victory to God"
The worlds history affords few sub
Inner spectacles than that of this grind
old chieftain moving among his SKATER
ed battalions as they recoiled from>their
unsuccessful charge upon the heights of
Gettysburg, As calm and cool aAif he
Lal just Won n great victory, he would
quietly say "All this viii come RIGHT in
the end wen talk it oyer hereafter ;
but in the meantime all good mefImust
rally, We want all good and trud men
Just now" And to one of his 1fina-
diers, WHO reported, in most desphdent
tone, tho shattered condition of u brig
ade, he said, in WchdSakA4aaasS kNev-
er mind, General all this has been my
fault. 1t is 1 that have lost this fight,
and you must help me out of it the best
way You can"
In the winter Of GA the following in
cidcnt went the rounds of the Southern
press {:
'One very cold morning a young sol
dior, on the cars TO Petersburg, was max
ing fruitless efforts to put ON his over
coat, with his ann in a sling, His teeth
MS well as his sound arm, were brought
into use to effect the object but in the
midst Of his efforts an officer rose up
from his seat, advanced to him, and very
carefully and tenderly assisted him.
drawing the coat gently over his wound
I'd arm and buttoning it comfortably e;
tLen witha few kind and pleasant words,
returned to his seat.
"Now, the officer in question was not
clad in gorgeous uniform, with n brill
liant wreath upon the collar, and u null
titudo Of gilt lines upon the sleeves, ru-
sembling a famous labyrinth OF Crete,
but he was clad ina simple suit of gray
distinguished from the garb of II civilian
by the three stars which every Con-
federate colonel is, by the regulations,
entitled to veal. And yet he was no
other than our chief General, Robert Il.
Lee, who is not Drawer than he is good
and modest"
When the Board Of Trustees elected
him President Of Washington College
he at first declined, saying, II am not
competent to teach moral philosophy,
is usually expected Of the Presi-
"But,' said Judge peterborough, who
OF him, you can teach mathe-
MATES, General, and we will get some
one else to teach moral philosophy
"No, sir" vas the prompt reply, g"
not eve do That. l used to know
some mathematics when l was at West
but l should be unwilling to at
tempt to teach it now" -
1t was finally decided to offer him the
position with the understand that he
teaclAnothins snhp4y
give himself to the general oversight and
management of the college. Withmany
nisgiyings and much solf-depreciation
ne was finally persuaded to accept, and
devoted himself to his new duties with
III energy and zeal which made himfIrst
smong college Presidents as he was first
smong military chieftains.
Closely allied to his modest humility
vas his spirit Of self denial, He never
presumed upon others, and never called
IN his men to make sacrifices or endure
privations which he was not willing TO
share. .,.., g..
Hon. A. II. Stephens relates in his
War Between the States" that when he
irst came to Richmond as a Conmis-
sionCr of the Confederate States, to treat
with Virginia in reference to her joining
lhe Confederacy, and turning over to it
ler army, that a serious diicultywas the
rank of General Lee. By vote of the.
Convention he had been made Com
nander-in-C Chief Of the Virginia Forces,
md his friends were unwillingfor him to
have a less rink in the Confederate
army, while OH the other hand there
we're several officers already commission
ed who would outrank him there. In
this dilemma, Mr.. Stephens sent for
Gen. Lee and explained to him the DIFF
He at once said that no person
n interest of his should interfere for a
moment with the demands of the cause
he was willing to take any posi-
ton i'll (which lie could best serve his
State. BY Gen. Lees personal influence
Ill difficulty was removed, and the desir-
union consummated. %
Soon after the West Virginia cam
while the newspapers and the
people We're censurin9 him for not fight
lng Rosccrans, he said to an intimate
81 could have fought, and l am
satisfied that l could have gained a vic
tory. But the nature OF the country was
such that it would hive proved IL barren
and l had rather sacrifice my
reputation and quietly rest I'M
Ter this unjust censuro than to sacrifice
unnecessarily the life of q single one Of
men,"
Gen. Lee rarely slept in a house-nev-
or outside Of his lines-during the war,
md when on the march some conyen-
ent fence corner would be his most fire.
luent place OF bivouac. The writer has
not unfrequently seer some Colonel or
Quartermaster entertained in
nrilinaly cfula ot un,,a hncun;t,lln ,xnp