The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1906-10-02

North Carolina has lost a true ana
manly son.
| received an announcement of the
publication of Il volume that gave me
! ~nnWonted pleasure both as to the sub
lject OF the volume. ana the author Of
1t. 1t is a One-VOlume Life of Robert
Edward Lee who was. as / stead
lastly believe. the greatest man ever
born on the American Continent. 1t
IS published in handsome style by the
Meals Publishing Co. of New York
and Washington. The price is $500.
postage Il cents. 1t is handsomely
printed, richly decorated. and fully IL
Illustrated. There are portraits of gen
e"ations of the Lees, many published
for the first time. And who is the new
and important life of the greatest
American II SOuthron by? 1t is from
the elegant pen of II Of the foremost
North Carolina writer's among the
dead or the living, Henry e. Shop
herd, NJ. A. Ii. D.. born at Fayette-
Vile. and the son of Il former member
OF the t. :. House Of Representatives.
DR.. Shepherd is my personal friend.
and has been SO for nearly a quarter
of Il century | have read much that
he has written, including of course
two of his volumes already published.
He is a writer of really high accom-
pliShmentS. AS d master OF style he
deserves to rank with the very best Of
the writer's thus far born in our State
or in al southland. | will not under
take here to say who is the first. but
among the living writer's as to finish.
grace. and inspiration he has but few
equals. So far as l know or believe
the best of Il living North Carolina
stylists are Rev. Dr.. w. w. Moore.
head of the Presbyterian Theological
Seminary at Richmond. Va. and Il ma
tive of Charlotte: DR.. Edwin 4. Al
derman, president OF the University
of Virginia, and born in Wilmington;
DR.. Henry f.. Shepherd, of Baltimore,
and the brothers.. Rev. DR.. Egbert
Smith, now of Louisville, Ky. and
Prof. G. AlphOnso Smith. of the Uni
versity of North Carolina. | suppose
these two richly gifted scholars and
writer's are "natiVe here and to the
manner born 1t is a noticeable fact
that our highest endowed writer's have
gone out from among us seeking fame
and usefulness in what they regard
as richer fields beyond those at home.
We are sorry to lose them. but take
much interest in their fame and use
~fulness. This State has suffered in
this way for an hundred years. and
today it has men like Rev. DE-. Dix
on. Thomas Dixon. his gifted brother.
and others. who are successes even in
the plethoric and brilliant North. |
am glad that non of these Aas ever
attempted to placate and invite the
adulation and patronage of the North
ern people by either casting re-
prOacheS at the South or slandering
and misrepresenting the true people
of North Carolina who are equal to
the best.
But let me return to DR.. Shepherds
new biography of Gen. Lee. which
promises to be the most interesting and
informing of all in some important
particulars. It is set forth that Or.
Shepherds work is in no wise a con-
ventional biography. Il narration of the
facts and dates of a man's life, when
he did certain things and how and
with what effect. This biOgrapher has
looked below the sign to the thing
signified. beyond the act to the soul of
the actor. beneath the mans life to
the mans character. 1t is better than
biography; it is characterization.
Great and star-like as was the war
says Dr.. Shepherd, the man is
greater 1t is my distinctive pur-
pose to xhibit the life of our hero in
those critical and all-pervading reIa-
tons which constitute the abiding test
of true greatness: Lee as q parent. 4 |
husband. Il Christian. q gentleman. .
Lee in the hour of disaster, Lee in
the sanctity of his home. co~nsecratlfg
his energies to the restoration of a
PROSTATE and desOlate south" He was
personally with the great
and is specially qualified to treat
" iselv. correctly. Sympathetically, en-
tertainingly, illustratiVely of the noble
whom ne considers So
carefully. The South should desire to
read such a biography of one of the
best rounded, noblest char
acters known to the world. DR.. Shep-
herd was in the War and lou8ht Tor
nome and people. AS an educator
he has had = long and successful ser
vice in Charleston and Baltimore.
hail with exceeding pleasure this new
contribution to the biographical liter
allure of the South.
g. = - + g = =
one of the rarest. most oVefW lclm-