Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1880-11-18
GEN. LEES SURRENDER.
The Closing Scenes Of the War--Th,

ofNorthern Virginia--Gen. Grant
Reception of Gen. Lee--The Ar
mics Fraternizing.
Philadelphia Times
On the morning of April Cd
1866, it was obvious that some.
thing out of the ordinary routine
had happened, and | rode in The
direction of General Lees head.
quarters, which were at a house
about a quarter of a mile from
Petersburg. The scene here
was busting and full of excite.
ment. Couriers were passing
to and fro across the field car.
rying orders, and the black
smoke mentioned was seen tC
rise from a burning house TO-
ward the outer works, neal
which was caught the CLEAN of
Federal bayonets. They had
broken the lines there, captured
the forts and were rapidly adj
vancing, apparently to attack
Gen. Lees slight inner breast
works directly in the suburbs
of Petersburg. --
l was very much struck with
his calmness on this trying oc-
casion, and have often remem-
bered it since as a remarkable
proof of the extraordinary cool
ness and equipose of his char
acter. lie was standing in the
midst of a group of officers on
the lawn of the house in which
he had his headquarters, look
ing through his feId-glasses at
a Federal brigade or division
advancing at double-qhick TO
charge a battery posted OH a
knoll at about three hundred
yards to the right of the house.
His face was entirely composed
and nothing in his face indica-
ted any emotion whatever. Hav-
ing asked a friend in the group
of officers if he could tell me
where / could find Gen. PendIe-
ton, Chief of Al tiflery, Gen.
Lee, hearing the question, turn
ed round, raised his hat in re-
turn for my own salute, and
told me IN a mild voice what |
wished to know. In few min
utes the Federal infantry, at
which he 9had been looking,
charged the guns on the knoll,
and Gen. Lee, finding that he
was in danger of capture, ,moun-
ted his gray and rode back slow.
ly toward the town. AS he was
surrounded by a considerable
of officers and the group
attracted the attention of the
enemy, they opened fire on
it. One of the shells killed the
horse of an officer within few
feet of me, and cut the bridIe-
rcins Of others, and a second
shell exploded directly behind
Gen. Lee, within a few feet it
seemed of his back, without hurt.
ing him. His escape was re-
markable, as the fragments of
the shell raised the dust around
him like a shower of musket--
balls, and the incident seemed
to excite him for the first time.
His face had been quite COM
posed up to this moment, but
suddenly flushed with anger.
He turned his head over his
right shoulder and looked at the
Federal guns with the express
sion of man who would like
to charge them. He grew calm,
however, in q few moments and,
saying to an officerIn a matter
of-fact voice, "This is a bad bus
mess, Colonel" rode on, still m-
der the fire of the shell, at a
slow pace, to the low inner
works manned by thin line of
infantry. 5h
On the morning of what a
rhetorical writer would be apt
to call the "fatal day" / rode up
to Appomattox Courthouse,
which is a village on a hill, with
the natural curiosity 10 find
out what was going to take
place. 1t was certain that the
events of the forenoon would
decide every thing, as Appomat-
tox was, in military phrase, the
"defile" through which the Con-
federates must pass to their safe
ty or destruction. A heavy
Federal force, whether infantry
or cavalry was not known, was
IN front, and the decisive mo-
ment had come. If it was on
ly cavalry it was tolerably sure
that a man like Gordon, at the
head of five thousand veterans,
would make short work of them;
but if the Federal infantry was
up in heavy force it was quite
as certain that it would make
short work of Gordon. He had
advanced considerably beyond
the Courthouse, and there were
no troops in the village at the
time that / entered it and rode
on. There were traces Of an
engagement, however, on the