Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1885-01-15
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GENERAL Il. +. LEES FAMILY.

At the recent opening OF the MetropOlI-
tan museum Of art, | saw among the many
notable people there, Miss Mary Lee, the
second daughter of General Robert f. Lee.
She is IL plain-looking lady of thirty-fve,
and, like her father, is altogether unpre-
tentious. She wore a heavy cashmere
wrap, and was in company with lady sim
ilarly attired. Miss Mary Lee resembles
her mother in appearance more than her
father. 1t is a remarkable fact that the
only one of General Lees children who at
all resembles him is his oldest son, General
G. w. Custis Lee, now the president OF
Washington and Lee University, at Lex
ington, Virginia.
There are five of the Lee children, three
sons and two daughters. They were all
born at Arlington, the old Custis home
stead, near Washington, where Mrs. Lee
continued to reside after her marriage. The
eldest daughter, Mildred, has travelled a
great deal since the war, spending much OF
her time in Europe, but when here makes
her home with her brother Custis at Lex,
ington. Miss Mary, the next sister, also
lives with him. Miss Mary, the next sister,
also lives with him. Agnes, the youngest
sister, died during the war at hea tn re-
sort i'm North Carolina. None Of the daugh-
ters married, and Custis Lee is also single,
but Runey Lee and Robert E., Jr., are both
married and are both Virginia farmers
One of them only has children, and the
probabilities are that it is through him
alone that the Lee family and the Custls
| family are to be perpetuated.
Mrs. Robert Z. Lee was the only child OF
George Washington Park Custis, who was
the only son and heir of Martha Washing:
ton. It was from George Washington and
Martha Washington that Custis obtained
Arlington, which, at the opening OF the
war, was one of the finest pieces OF country
property in the South. 1t was the ideal
Southern homestead. The Union forces
the hostilities, and during the war it was
converted into a national cemetery. Ac.
cording to the proviso of the will of George
Washington Park Custis, the entire prop
erty was to 60 to the eldest son of Mrs. Lee
The eldest son was the present General
G. w. G.. Lee, and he obtained $l25, 5,OOC
from the government in payment for Az
| lington, last winter, there having been d
long contest at law about it. That money
represents the bulk Of the property now in
possession of the Lee family, and is but
| trihing remnant of the magnificent estates
But the family has Jared better than many
others of the South that were equally
wealthy before the war.
General Custis Lee, though the legal pos
SCISSOR of the $125, 900 he received for Airing
ton, has big heart, and makes the most lib
eral provision for his two maiden sisters
Though, as stated at the opening of this
article, Mary Lee is plain-looking lady
with no pretentions to beauty, she is gifted
in intellect, and is a most charming person
| During the war she was most of the time IN
Richmond with her mother and sisters, ano
with them endured many privations. J
have seen little account book in which
there was a record of expenditures by
the little party with which Mrs. Lee and
her daughters messed. 1t was seldom they
| had meat or coffee, and the most eX
orbitant prices had to be paid for chicken
or even green corn. The bulk of the die
was make up of rice, bread and such light
articles. Mrs. Lee was the most patient
and self abnegating of women, and though
confirmed invalid during the entire wal
in which her husband was such a promi
nent actor never complained, but was, II
the face of constant mislortunes and threat
ened dangers, always resigned and serene
She maintained this character up to the
very hour of her death.
A touching story Of which Miss Mary Lee
is the heroine is that after one Of the terri
BILE battles near Richmond just previous tc
the close of the war, she and some of the
ladies went on the field to render whatever
assistance they could in the care of the
wounded and dying soldiers of her fathers
army. One among those to whom she went
to offer relief was a youth not over sixteen
who had been fatally shot and was ready
to expire. She saw the poor fellow was
going to die Immediately, and being struck
by his youth and neat attire asked him j
he had any message to leave behind. Eyes, >
said he "my home is -, and my mother
lives at -; tell her, if you please, that
have just seen our splendid commander
General Lee, ride by, and that am content
to die" That was all. He never knew il
was his splendid commanders daughter tt
whom he was confiding that final message
Correspondence Of New York Herdld.