The evening times., 1900-10-18
THE MEMORY OF ROBERT E. LEE
Some Suggestions by MIR. McKiniey's
Chief Newspaper Supporter Which
Deserve, and Doubtless VIII RE
a.eixsa LIN M e Can al ac IN ON.
rom the New York SUM-


Union, must have occurred, and should
have occurred, to many minds since the
selection of the names to be honored in the
Hall of Fame as the most illustrious in
American history and most deserving CT
celebration by future general tions of Amer
leans.
ITO the Editor of the sun-sir: Can you in
form why Robert f. Lee should have his
in the Hall of Fame?
t'What did he ever do to make his name ia
NOUS outside of being traitor 20 his countryf
Did he not leave his Government in the hour of
needY He resigned his commission and While it
was being delivered he took command OF an army
IN rebellion against it, thus making himself
deserter from his flag.
Are the American people to understand that
Lee, the Commander of the Confederate forces is
to be named with such men Washington and
LincolnI AN OLD SOLDIER. -
Our correspondents summary tf the
facts regarding Robert E. Lee is correct.
They were peculiarly fragrant. Lee was
an officer of the United States Army and
had received his training as such at the
West Point Military Academy. at the cost
OF the American people, through their Ma
tional Government, and had taken this
oath accordingly:
Il do soIemnly swear that will bear true faith
and allegiance to the United States OF America
and that i viii serve them honestly and faith
fully against their enemies opponents whom
soever; and that | viii observe and obey the
orders OF the President of the United States and
the orders OF the officers appointed over me, ac-
cording TO the rI:les and articles OF WAT.
In order to escape from that oath Rob-
ert E. Lee resigned from the army on
April 20. 1851, or eight days after the
firing was opened on Fort Sumter and
six days after its surrender. Only about
a month before, or on March 16, he had
been commissioned by President Lincoln
colonel Of the First Cavalry. after ha Jing
served under the flag throughout his man
hood and received hnnnr and
confidence General Scott, himssl also a
Virginian by birth, had. with the approy-
al of Lincoln. selected Lee for the com-
mand of the army of his country. and
the Office was offered to him unoficially
on April 1S, or the day after a secession
ordinance had been secretly passed By
Virginia. The accounts of his attitude
toward the offer are contradictory, blt
Lee himself asserted, in a letter to
Reverdy Johnson after the war, that he
declined the proposition. because
though opposed to secession and 6epTe-
eating war, / could take no part in an
invasion of the Southern States l. p
letter to his son, dated January 2} sol
he had written: The trainers CT the Con-
stitution never exhausted so much labor,
wisdom, and forbearance in its forma-
tion and surrounded it with so many
guards and securities, if it was intended
to be broken By every member OF the
= "
been no invasion" of Virginia, Lincoln
having positively disciaimed any such ia
tentiOn and the whole effort of the Gov
ernment simply being to regain posses
sion of United States property seized by
insurTectionists-
IN his proclamation of April 15 1851,
calling for the 75 600 militia. Lincoln had
expressly declared that they were TO be
used simply to secure the execution of the
laws against obstruction offered and to
repOssess the forts, places, and property
which have been seized from the Union,
and that the utmost care will be obseTv-
ed to avoid any devastation" or ANY DIS
turbance of peaceful citizens in any Iart
of the country" Moreover, the platform
on which Lincoln had been elected de-
nourced the Iawiess invasion by any
armed force of the soil of any State or
Territory and demanded the main
tenance inviolate of the rights of the
States and especially the right of each
State TO order and control its own domes-
tic institutions according to its Judg-
ment" only denying and protesting
against the new dogma that the Consti-
tuition by its own force carries slavery
into any and all of the Territories" No
menace was offered to any State by his
election. The States of the old secession
Confederacy had no more justification fer
revolving IN 1861 against the Union be-
cause of his election in spite of their con-
trary votes, than they Will have for re-
peating their violence because of the re-
election of President Mckinley in 1900
against their solid opposition.
At a time when the flag and the Gov
ernmept Lee had sworn 10 defend ''hon
estly and faithfully against their enemies
or opponents whomsoever" were in sore
need Of the most loyal obedience to their
oaths by officers of the Army he wrote TO
General Scott Ito tender my resignation,
7 for
acceptance" Two days later, without
waiting for such acceptance or receiving
dismissal from the service in which he had
been for a generation, ne was appointed by
the Governor of Virginia TO the chief com
mand of its insuFrectionary forces, and the
next day was publicly invested with that
command. He resigned in face of the en-
emy and while still an officer of the United
States Army he forswoTe himself by TAX
ing command of its enemies and thus be-
came a deseTteT.
Now. these are incontrovertible facts
No army can hold together unless its off,
GERS and enlisted men are faithful to such
an oath as Robert E. Lee violated. No
nation can be preserved from anarchy
u 'ess its officers obey such an oath in
both spirit and letter. That his was
capital military crime, a crime against
civilization. cannot be denied. Nor was
there any pretext for it in state of rev
the United States was simply engaged in
an effort 10 regain its own property vio-
lently taken from it. II had not commit
ted nor had it suggested or mediteted any
act or proceeding in violation of the Con-
stitutfon or to the injury of any State. If
an officer Of the army throws up his COM
mission and goes over to the enemies or
opponents of the flag he has sworn to
serve honestly and faithfully against
them. it is bad enough, but when he thus
deserts it in the very face OF the enemies
and joins them in attacking it, without
waiting for dismissal from its service is
he entitled to exaltation before American
youth among the most illustrious of the
heroes and benefactors OF the Republic?
However lenient the consideration we
T0ay give to Robert E. Lee because of the
perplexities of the situation in which he
was at the outbreak of the civil war is
his a name fitly chosen to inspire among
youth an emulation stimulating to manly
virtue and conducive to the perpetuity of
the Republic? II under that name could t,e
put this expression as coming from Lees !
lips its eyaltatiGn in the American Hail of
Fame would not be incongruous: 81 have
served my country under the flag of the
Union for more than fifty years and as
long as God permits me to live will de-
fend that flag with my sword, even if my
own native State assails it, But this
loyal and soIdiarly sentiment, worthy of
immortal preservation, was uttered, not
by Robert K. Lee, but by another Virgin
ian, Winfield Scott.
Are our words harsh? That is not a