The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-12-19
THE LETTER SPURIOUS ! ).
DR.. j. William Jones Makes Out
Cool C;,sc for His Side.

DR.. r. William Jones Makes Out u
Cool Case for His Side.
Editor Of The Times:
sir,-I see that you have recently re-
produced a letter which went the foui'''s
of the papers during the War between
the States and has been pubiishea IN
several books, purporting to be from Coz.
/ R. e. Lee at Arlington to his son, GUSTS
at West Point.
nuhlished in the University Monthly.
New York. in March, 1872, the following
article. which, I think. shows concluslselS
that the letter is spurious:
GEN LEES LETTER TO HIS son.
..The famous letter purportins to be from
General Lee, at Arlington, to his son
Gusts at West Point. is Enthusiastically
spurious This letter, which is published
in the November number of the University
Monthly, has Ions passed current as CIV
ing the keynote of the Life of the great
chieftain
TT mas been very extensively copied. and
appears in a number of books about the
war, It seems a pity to spoil all that has
been written about it, and yet we have
the highest authority for saying that Gem
eral Lee never wrote and his son never
received any such letter.
Its history is s1np.y this: In the early
days of the war it was published IN the
Northern papers purportng to be a letter
found by Federal soldier at Airing
ton.
Being republst,ed in the South, it at
tracted the attention of the Lee family
and the General stated that he did not
remember writing it. and did not think
that ne did "a very strong denial for
him) while his son General Gusts Lee)
was confident that he had never recelV-
ed it, Upon these statements the RicIl-
mond Examiner denied its authenticity,
and criticised with some severity its
style
But the letter Itself bears internal evil
dence of being spurious. 1t is headed Ar
lington House. whereas General Lee and
his family were always careful to write
! simply Arlington to distinguish their
beautiful home from Arlington House
! 1T is dated April 5th. 1852. Now at this
| date General Lee was not at Arlington
| but was at West Point in the discharge
| Of his duties as Superintendent of the
| NIii,ary Academy, where he could have
| seen his son, ana given him pr0pe' adj
! vice without the necessity OF writing.
The letter makes General Lee say: I
! am just in the act OF leaving home for
! New Mexico. My fine Old regiment has
! been ordered to that remote region. and
| [ must hasten to see that the men are
| properly taken care Of when he really
! did not leave West Point until lS3o-three
years after the date of this letter. The
| regiment-the famous Second Cavalry
| was not organized until 1855. and while
he might well call d corps fine which
| numbered among its officers such men as
| Albert Sydney Johnston, r, Z. Lee VIM.
| j. Hardee. Earl Van Dorm, Kirby Smith,
! Hood Field. Cosby. Major Fitz- Lee.
| Geo. H. Thomas, Johnson, Palmer. and
| Stoneman he would hardly have spoken
+! certainly not three years before-its or
! ganlzaton.
Besides there are other parts of the
| etter-especially the story of the old
| Puritan legislator. which are not written
at all in General Lees style. and which
| we might conclude q, priori he did not
| write
THE Lee family are so entirely per-
| suaded that the letter is spurious that
Mrs. Lee made special request that 1t
| should not go into the forthcoming Lee
Memorial saying that she wanted moth
| .ng in That volume which is not strictly
| authentic
But the expression, Duty is the subli-
! NEST word in our language did occur in
| letter (at a different date) from Cen
>ral Lee to his son, and other sentences
of this letter We're probably used by him
| It different times.
.The true origin OF the letter, then,
seems to be that some ingenius correSpon-
| lent took number OF General Lees let
-ers to his son found at Arlington and
| manufactured this one, which has been
O successfully pamed off on the public.
| But although he did not write this,
| General Lee did write letters as noble in
sentiment and even more felicitous in ex-
,ression. Indeed. he was a model letter
| writer
! I'VE have had the privilege of looking
,ver some loose sheets found after his
!eath in General Lees army-satchel
cong with his parole and other papers
| With which he had evidently amused
-:~'-~o hour in camp.
There were quotations from the Psalms,
and from select authors, with comments
of his own. and some fine specimens OF
| his chaste, simple style On one sheet
was written, in his well-known clarac-
teristfc chirography. the following, which
we deem well worthy OF a place in the
columns of the University Monthly: The
| warmest instincts OF every mans soul
declare the glory Of the soldiers death.
It IS more anprGnr'ate to the Christian
than to the Greek to sing:
.luus MS fate and envied his lot,
w. COR his country fights and for it
dies
by. ; is a true Glory and true honor.
The glory OF duty done-the honor of the
integrity Of principle
'.Ani certain in his own pure life he
beautifully exemplified this noble senti-'
ment and has left an example of devo-
ton to duty which cannot be too frequent
" held up for the study and imitation OF
the youth OF the country
| as nav be mat ~ small moment
but l am sure that The Times desires to
ne enfire1,- accurate aSpa.-;aIfv in a his