Morning journal and courier., 1884-12-16
Robert K. Lee.

Robert K. Lee.
 l From Gen. E. D. Reyes Fifty Years obser- vation,'' just published by Charles Scribner's Sons
 From infancy to three-score he knew no
 physical malady ,and the admirable symmetry of his person and the manly beauty of his countenance were the aids of his virtues, which secured to him tolerance, affection and respect from all with whom he mingled. He passed the four years of his cadetship with
 out single mark of demerit, and during my long acquaintance with him never heard
 him accused of any act of meanness, tyranny, or neglect of duty. His nature was genial 1 and sociable, and he would join freely in all
 the sports and amusements proper to his
 age. He was exempt from every form and degree of snobbery, which is a detestable
 quality that appears most often among peo- pie whose theories of government presume an 1 absolute equality. He was a favorite with the ladies, but he never allowed them to
 waste his time to wrap his judgment, or to
 interrupt his duty. To whatever station he
 was ordered, however secluded or unhealthy it might be- he would go to it with cheerful ness Every kind of duty seemed pleasure to him, and he never intrigued for promotion or reward. Nevertheless, no man could stand in his presence and not recognize his capacity, and acknowledge his moral force. His orders, conveyed in mild language, were instantly obeyed, and his motives were uni versally approved. In all the time Tn which observed his conduct was true to my own antecedents I was northern man, and no word dropped from my lips or shed from my pen that did not testify to my origin and proper allegiance. I will not deny that the presence of Lee, and the multiform graces ILl. II 1S of%o
 pressed me, though I never envied him, and doubt if he ever excited envy in any man.
 All his accomplishments and alluring virtues seemed natural in him, and he was free from the anxiety distrust and awkwardness that attended sense of inferiority, unfriendly discipline and censure.
 The last time I saw Lee was in the spring of 1861. He had just arrived in Washington from Texas, where he had been second in mmand to Gen. Twiggs, who surrendered to the secessionists. Coming to pay his re- speets to the commanding general of the army, he entered my room and enquired if Lieut.. Gen. Scott was disengaged l stepped quickly forward, seized his hand, greeted him warmly, and said: 'Lee, it is reported that you concurred in Twiggs' surrender in Texas; how's thatl" Without replying to my question he assumed an air of great seriousness and calmly said: ''I am here to pay my respects to Gen. Scott; will you be kind enough, colonel, to show me to his office" I opened the generals door, Lee passed in, and the two Virginians re- mained alone nearly three hours.
 It was usually the custom of Gen. Scott, having had private interview with an i'm portant person, to relate to me what he had said On this occasion he told me not word, and he made no reference to the sub ject of his conversation with Gen. Lee. His
 manner that day, when he dined alone, was IJa hol o1p iJo1o- roust fancy for Lee, whose military genius he estimated far above that of any other officer of the army. On one occasion, after the Mexican war, Gen. Scott, speaking to me of Lee remarked that, if hostilities should break out between us and England, it would be cheap for the United States to insure Lees life for 8, ,000, 900 a yeari
 It has frequently been surmised that Scott at one time offered to retire from the service and give Lee command of the federal army. In my mind there is not shadow of doubt that he did so during the conference above offered to. Without question, he employed his utmost power to convince Lee that 1t was his duty to comply with his suggestion. The two gentlemen, although their opinions were usually harmonious, probably disagreed in regard to the state of things then existing. Scott could have no idea that Lee going to lead an army of northern men to fight against the South. On the contrary, he de- sired to see him at the head of 8 Union force sufficiently powerful to keep the peace and to prevent civil war, which they equally ab- horred. Both those men were born in Vir- ginia and both loved the Union, and neither of them could bear the thought of unsheath- ing his sword against his native State. The younger man considered the war inevitable, the other indulged hopes that it might be avoided. Lee being in full vigor of his mind i, and eonscientiously bound to comply with the decision of his native State, departed to join the seceders, while Scott, weighed down in years and infrmities, and trusting that hostilities might be avoided or confined to few skirmishes, remained with the North.