Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-07-12
THE FINAL PARTING.
SEPARATION OF LEE AND HIS GEN.
ERALS AFTER APPoMATTox.
In the Gloom of Defeat, the Darkness of
Despair-A Scene for q Poet or
Painter-Ended For

Washington Cor Gin Commercial Gazette
! Apropos of AppomattoN. | give the
following AS a subject for a southern poet
or painter
The parting between Washington and
/ his generals has been celebra ted in song
and story. and the famous painting OF
that occurrence has, in millions of copies,
become familiar to the people. But no
singer has sung of the parting between
Gen. Robert f. Lee and mis- generals after
AppomattoN. No painter has painted it
Washington and his officers separated in
the sunshine of magnificent victory the
| fruitiOn of their brightest hopes Lee
and his officers separated in the gloom of
defeat the darkness of despair. Amid
the happy homes of their people. the
shouts and the banners and the merry
music and the rejoicing mu,titudes. Wash
ington and his generals parted to go each
one To his pleasant home. Amid the ruins
of their capital with bare. bowed heads
in utter silence and bitter tears Lee and
his generals separated and went their sev-
eral wa,s TO homes destroyed, families
broken up and scattered, and often into
exile and Oblivion.
The final parting was in front of Lees
mansion in Richmond, two days after
AppomattON Lees house is an ordinary
square brick. standing alone on Franklin
street. one square from the capitol All
the other houses on the square are con
neCted pom the afternoon of the second
day after the surrender people in that
vicinity were surprised to see come riding
up the street from the south company Of
Confederate horsemen They were un-
armed Their gray uniforms Were worn
al a Z, 4 -.
Old and patched. They wore slOuched
hats. and here and there was a feather re
naming of the once smart and iaunty
dropping plume of the Confederate cavalry
man. They We're bronzed. and Drowned
and bearded They sal erect and came on
with the splendid Workmanship for which
they were noted lon the collars of
some Of the gray Jackets could still be
seen ths faded and tarnished gilt stars,
the emb ems of the wearers rank
In front of them rode ce. His two
h sndS held the loosely swinging reins and
rested upon the pOmmel. Ills head was
bent. and his eyes were looking straight
ahead from under his downcast brow but
they seemed TO see nothing
As the troops cantered up 10 his old
home his horse stopped at the gate, and he
aroused himself suddenly. as from a
dream. and cast his eyes upon the famil-
lar windows and then around over the
group of gallant soldiers who had fol
lowed his fortunes for four bloody Years
and gone down in defeat under b s banner
The end of il al had to come at last
He threw himself from his horse. and all
his companions followed his action They
stood hat in hand with an arm through
the bride rein while Lee went from man
10 man. gra>ping each hand. looking in
tently into each face as though he would
press il upon his memory forever Then
he turned and walked through the gate
and up the steps to his door As servant
opened the door he paused with his left
foot on the veranda, his right upon the
last step. and looked back for the last
time. Not word had been spoken not u
goodbye uttered There was no sound
heard but that Of sobs as these unkempt
and griZzled heroes of 100 battles leaned
their heads against the shoulders of their
horses and wept
Lee gave one look and broke down at
last his hands went over his eyes. his
frame shook with sobs as he turned
quickly and disappeared into his lonely
house With the closing of the door be
hind him ended forever the wild dream Of
the Southern CCuiederacy.