The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1906-01-23
LEES BIRTHDAY CELEBRATED.
Interesting ani Appropriate Exercises in
0p.Ta EoIjSc Under AuSriCeSo Of DaU%&-
to 5 Of C0nfcicracv.


Chapter, Daughters Of the Confed-
eracy, the birthday of General Rob-
ert z. Lee was observed in New
berry on Friday last. The opera
house was filed with the Veterans,
Daughters of the Confederacy,
Sons of Veterans, the students of
Newberry college and the Newber-
~ graded schools, and the people OF
Newberry generally.
The principal feature of the oc-
casion was an address by DR.. James
A. B. Scherer. After prayer by DR..
! A. T. Bowers, and music by the spe-
cial choir for the occasion, DIR.
! Scherer was introduced by Col. w.
! H. Hunt. DR.. Scherer's address
! was a scholarly effort. and it was
! heard with the closest attention by
the large audience. Zone year from
todav." he said, "a century will
! have passed since Lee was born.
: The next century will appreciate
/ him even more than the century
which was gone, because he was
one of those grand epic figures that
require perspective for their true
ganduer to appear.
Almost in the beginning of his
address DR.. Scherer paid a touch
ing tribute to Captain A. ?. Plter,
who was a member of General
LEES staff, and who, with Colonel
IT. F. Young, of Charleston, is now
the only living representative OF
the staff living in South Carolina.
CAPTAIN Pifer was seated on the
stage and the mention OF his name
was received with long-continued
applause. The presence Of Captain
Pifer was an honor, said DR.. Scher-
er. not only because of the d1stln-
guished services which he had rem
dered in the south, but also because
he had been a member of the staff
of the Southern Confederacy S
chieftain, and on behalf Of the au-
dience, in the name of this great
chieftain, the speaker saluted Cap
tain Pifer.
DR.. Scherer said there were
three qualities which a man must
possess in order to be a Christian
man: Strength, tenderness and un-
selfshness: boldness, gentleness
and the spirit Of sacrifice; majesty,
grace and the spirit of service, or
noblesse obliige, and these General
Lee possessed in an eminent degree.
In language which. glowed with
the beauty of its thought and the
eloquence of it's expression, DR..
Scherer spoke of General Lee S
strength, of his tenderness, of his
unselhshness. Lee, the bravest OF
the brave, was the gentlest Of the
gentle, for
"The bravest are the tenderest,
The loving are the daring.
But with all his strength and all
his tenderness, and no man possess
ed them in larger degree, the high
est quality, the most splendid at
tribute, which marked him as king
among men, was the heroic measure
of his unselhshness. Sacrifice. said
the speaker, was the very essence
of heroism. No man could be truly
great who would not truly serve.
even as Christ, the King of men,
came not to be ministered unto but
to minister. DR.. Scherer gave
many instances of General Lees
unselhshness; speaking Of the occa-
sion when he was offered the posi-
ton of comn1ander-in-clief of the
Federal forces. and which he de-
clined. thus rejecting the offer OF
the supremest position which had
been offered to any man since the
time of Washington. Lee threw in
his lot with his state; for, while he
deplored the breaking up OF the
Union. there were underlying prin-
ciples involved, and his state had
spoken. Here, as throughout his
life, he hearkened to the voice OF
d,1tv. ."stern DAUGHTER Of the voice