The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1908-01-30
TRIBUTE TO GENERAL LEE.
Mr. Stuart II. Smiths Address Before
the Buck KiiChin Camp Of C0Dfeder.
ate Veterans Of Scotland Neck Jan.
uaFy 20, 1908.

Veterans Of the Confederacy, Ladies
and Gentlemen:
We have met here to-day to cele-
brate the one hundred and first
birthday of General Lee. Very
wisely and very properly the Legis-
lature Of this and cher southern
states have set apart the 18th day
Of January as public holiday for
people to gather together and call
back to memory the days of the past,
when the sword of Lee flashed from
its scabbard pure and bright and
led us to victory" So long as there
is a man, woman or child in whose
veins throbs one drop of Southern
blood, let this day be celebrated as a
tribute to his memory. To him we
owe a debt of gratitude and love that
we can never repay, for he it was
who in the time Of our direst need
came into our midst and did for Us
more than any other mortal man
could have done. For the sake of
the South he gave up power, wealth,
and the fulfilment Of his highest am
bition, that he might be on our side
and that our cause might be his. To
him, to ourselves, to poSterity, and
to the South, it is a lasting duty to
keep green the memory of his SER
vice to the Confederacy, and to hold
up for the emulation Of all who
would become great and good his
beautiful and unsullied character.
For the accomplishment Of this pur-
pose, there is no better way than to
celebrate each year his birthday.
If we had the time at our disposal
it would be a pleasure to follow him
from his first birthday at Stratford,
in Westmoreland county, Virginia,
until nearly sixty-four years later he
was laid to rest in the quiet little
college chapel at Lexington, where
he had spent the closing years of his
life, instructing young men in those
principles that had guided and help
ed him to greatness. To you, Veter-
ans, am sure it would be most de-
lightful could we trace his footsteps
from battle field to battle field, as
you followed him over forty years
ago, from the day that he assumed
command of the army in May 1862,
until the surrender at Appomattox.
But it is apart from our purpose to
go into the details Of his military
career. We shall refer to it only as
it serves to throw light upon his
character.
It is sweet to reflect that in each
Of us is a something that never dies,
and that lives on and on, even in
this world, after our bodies have
been returned to the dust out Of
which they were fashioned. Char
acter endures forever. In the real
and truest sense Robert 6. Lee still
lives and moves among his people.
He still commands them and leads
them. In unmistakable accents he
points out to them the path of duty
and bids them consecrate their lives
to the South. In all that is beauti-
full, in all that is trne, in all that is
great he leads them triumphantly
to glorious victory.
The character of General Lee is Of
a beauty, a symmetry, and a great
ness which appears in that Of no
other public man who has come
within my observation. Some, in
deed, in one or more particulars may
have approached and even equalled
him, but in none other were the
elements so mixed that his most ar
dent admirers and followers could
claim for him that, take him all in
all, he was the equal of Robert E.
Lee.
1t is essential to true greatness of
character that there should be a
strong religious sentiment. The
very basis Of the character of Gen
eral Lee was his trust in God. He
seemed to feel that without Divine
help he could accomplish nothing.
And like the prayers Of Jackson his
prayers were often heard to the
sorrow of the eueny. One of his
friends relates that as he watched
by the side of General Lees body
the day after his death, he picked
up from a table near by a small
pocket Bible that was we'll worn.
Upon the fly leaf in the Generals
handwriting was this inscription,
"R. e. Lee, Lieutenant Colonel OF
the U. S. Army" No doubt this
little book had been with him in all
his most arduous campaigns, and
had been his daily comfort IN the
darkest hours of his life. One OF
his last acts before he took his place
L