The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-11-08

the only plan worthy OF consideration.
AS he went on General Lee. looking
steadily into the fire with an distracted
air, listened patiently. Alexander said
his full say. A brief pause ensued which
General Lee finally broke in somewhat
these words: No! General Alexander.
that will not do. You must remember
we are asChristian people. We have
fought this fight as long as and as we'll
IS we kn,w how. We have been defeat
ed. For us, as Christian people, there
is now but one course to pursue. We
must accept the situation; these men
must go home and plant crop. and we
must proceed to build up our country
on a new basis. We cannot have recourse
to the methods you suggest I remem-
Der being deeply impressed with General
Alexander's comment, as he repeated
these words of General Lee. They had
evidently burned themselves into his
memory. He said: 4 had nothing
more to say / felt that the man had
scared way up above me-he dominated
me completely l rose from beside him,
silently mounted my horse, rode back to
my command and waited for the order to
surrender
"Then and there General Lee decided
it's course for the Confederacy. And l
take it there is not one solitary man in
the United States to-day North or South,
who does not feel that he decided right.
The other statement in support of his
position is thus given by Mr.. Adams;
1.-The question rested in the hands OF
one mantle commander of the Army OF
Northern Virginia. Fairly reliable and
graphic accounts of what took place at
General Lees headquarters in the early
morning hours of that day have either
appeared in print or been told in CONVEX
sation. and to two of these accounts /
propose to call attention. Apparently the
second of the interviews described fo.-
lowed close on the first, not more than a
couple of hours intervening between
them. OF the first, find this account in
a book recently published by John Sar-
gent Wise, entitled THE End of An Era. :"
John Sargent Wise is the son of Henry
A. Wise, once prominent id our national
politics Governor of Virginia in the
later fifties. he was subsequently briga-
der general in the Confederate service.
Though in 1866 but youth Of nineteen.
John S. Wise was hot Confederate, and
had already been wounded in battle. At
the time now in question he CHANGED to
have been sent by Jefferson Davis, then
on his way from Richmond to Danville.
with dispatches to Lee, and while seek
ing Lees headquarters he came, in the
early morning of April 9th, across his
father, Governor and General Wise, in
Wi ic briO 10 Tho hpr a G
then nearly sixty years of age, but the
son found him lying on the ground,
asleep among his men. typical South
ern fire eater" of the extreme type,
Henry A. Wise was an out and out seces-
sionist and Confederate. Aroused by his
son from his uneasy slumber, almost the
first wish he expressed was to see Cen
eral Lee, and he inquired impetuously Of
his whereabouts. The son knew the Con-
federate headquarters were, and the two
started together to goto them.
John Wise has described wildly the
aspect of affairs as they passed along:
The roads and fields were filled with
stragglers. They moved, looking behind
them, as if they expected to be attacked
and harried by pursuing foe. Democrat
ization, panic, abandonment of all hope,
appeared on every hand. Wagons were
rolling along without any order or sys-
tenn. Caissons and timber chests, with
out commanding officers, seemed to be
floating aimlessly upon a tide of disor-
ganiZation Rising to his full height,
casting glance around him like that of
an eagle, and sweeping the horizon with
his arm and bony forefnger, my father
Ava LOT &c ho L. &c i'm
possible to convey an idea of the agony
and the bitterness of his words and ges-
lures" Then follows this description
of the interview which ensued:
1--WE found Gen. Lee on the rear por-
tco of the house that I have mentioned.
He had washed his face in a tin basin
and stood drying his beard with coarse
towel as we approached. Gen. Lee ex-
claimed my father, my poor brave men
are lying on yonder hill more dead than
alive. For more than a week they have
been fighting day and night without food,
and, by God, sir, they shall not move an
other step until somebody gives them
something 20 eat!"
" Come in, General said General Lee
soothingly They deserve something to
eat and shall have it: and meanwhile you
shall share my breakfast He disarmed
everything like defiance by his frank
ness.
1T was but a few moments. however,
before my father launched forth in a
fresh denunciation of the conduct of Gen.
Bushrod Johnson in the engagement Of
the 9Th. j am satisfied that Gen. Lee
felt as he did; but. assuming an air of
mock severity. he said: General, are
you aware that you are liable to court
martial and execution for insubordna-
ton and disrespect toward your COM
manding officer@
"My father looked at him with lifted
eyebrow and flashing eyes, and exclaimed:
Shoot! You can't afford to shoot the men
who fight for cursing those who ran
away. Shot! / wish you would shoot me.
If you don't some Yankee probably will
within the next twenty four hours
Growing more serious. Gen. Lee in
quired what he thought of the situation.
/" .Situation? said the bold old man.
There is no situation! Nothing remains,
Gen. Lee, but to put your poor men on
your poor mules and send them home in
time for spring ploughing This army is
hopelessly whipped and is fast becoming
demoralized. These men have already
endured more than l believed flesh and
blood could stand, and l say to you, sir,