Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1879-12-21
GENERAL LEE ON GEN. GRANT.
BOW the Conquered General Regarded
the Conquering General.
Philadelphia Times.

Philadelphia Times.
One day last week Colonel j.
Stoddard Johnston, of Kentucky,
gave the following account of an
interview with General Lee imme>
diately after the war:
81 had been paroled," said Col.
Johnston sat Greensborough, N. c.,
in Joe. Johnston's surrender, on the
1st of May, 1865, and shortly after
reached Richmond, proposing to
return to Kentucky. In conse-
quence of an opinion just issued by
the Attorney-General of the United
States to the effect that Kentuck-
ians in the Confederate army had
expatriated themselves and could not,
therefore avail themselves Of the
terms of General Lees surrender
authorizing Confederate soldiers to
return to their homes unless they
took the oath, being unwilling to
accept these conditions, in company
with large number of others, |
remained in Richmond a fortnight,
until this opinion was withdrawn,
and we were admitted to return un~
der our paroles. At that time
Gen. Lee was at his private house,
Gen. Halleck, who was in command
of the city, had issued stringent
orders requiring all persons to take
the oath as a condition of carrying
on business or receiving the pro-
lection of the laws. There was
very uneasy feeling among the Con-
federate soldiers and officers then in
Richmond lest they would be
treated with rigor, especially as re-
ports were current that Gen. Lee
was to be arrested and imprisoned.
Projects for emigration to
Mexico, Brazil aad other foreign.
parts were discussed, but finally
it was concluded that we should
consult with General Lee as to our
probable fate and what was best to
be done. At an informal meeting,
General Echols, of Virginia, and
myself were appointed a committee
to wait on General Lee for this pur-
pose. We both knew him and were
cordially received. Upon stating
the object of our visit General Lee
replied very impressively that our
condition and the condition of the
whole South was very deplorable.
BY the terms of General Halleck's
order we were left without the pro-
lection of law while the South was
a ruin, her people impoverished and
the youth of our country growing
up without education. That he had
but one conviction, which was that
whatever fate might be in store for
us, We who had been leaders should
not leave the country and abandon
our people but should share their
fate. We should remain with them,
seek to build up the waste places,
alleviate their troubles and educate
the youth. 'As to my own fate, said
he, 4 know not what is in store
for me. I believe the politicians at
Washington are bent on the most
extreme measures, and if they have
their way and will stop at no hu-
they can heap on me. Ny
sole reliance is in General Grant. I |
have faith in his honor and his in
tegrity as soldier, and do not be-
lieve that he will permit the terms
of my surrender or the parole given
me to be violated The sequel
showed that General Lee was cor
rect in his estimate of General
Grants character. Stanton had
to arrest and imprison him,
when General Grant interposed and !
P. evented it, demanding that the
terms of the surrender should be
strictly complied with, and declar-
ing that if General Lee was mo-
Tested he would break his sword.
Knowing this as historical fact,
although opposed in the past, and
expecting to be in the future, to
General Grant, politically, I have
alwayssfelt that he was entitled to