The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1909-02-12
Continued from first page.

uOLIIdu, VIC SdI IiIdkCuioii va WV WI
sican for Lee possessed all the military
acumen of either with the faults anC
fOibleS OF neither! Do | seem eXtrav.
agant? II so it is because circum'
stances are not considered and facts
nf history have no weight. Why tor
iegners themselves class Lee with
Gu;tavus Adolphus. William OF
Orange, Frederick the Great
Napoleon. Wellington and Vor
MOltke. Then to whom shall he bt
compared? ITO those who knew
him best ne was never compared will
any man, friend or foe, for he StoOC
in a superlative and absolute class by
himself"
If one should attempt any analysis
OF that superb military genius, this
peerless personality, this matches
man, this hero that fate alone cvulc
vanquish, he would be at a loss Il
know where to begin or with what
characteristic to make an end. Fol
as some one has well said 1T was the
misfortune OF this great Southern
soldier, il misfortune it could be call
ed, to have had other great Char
acteristics oveIshodowed not to Soy
overlooked by his t~ranScendent mil
itary career.' Who thinks VI this
grim soldier Of two a as a scholar?
And yet he was a born student, grad
uating second in a class OF fOrty-Six,
each OF whom gained admission to
school by a competitive examination,
and died PRESIDENT Of a great univer-
Sity. Had there been no civil strife
to call forth his matchleSS military
skill he would have been known, |
feel no doubt, as one OF the worlds
great scholars.
Who thinks Of Lee as an engineer:
And yet his fame might rest upon his
skill as an engineer alone. Compe.
tent writer's assert that the brilliant
and victorious campaigns IT Scott in
Mexico were due largely to the en-
cheering skill OF Lee. At the close
IF the Mexican war Gen. Scott de-
:lared enthusiastically that Lee was
the greatest military genius in
America" 1t was this great engineer
who planned the fertilization OF
And this fertilization
cost the Federals moe powder and
0all to reduce than all the other
Qualifications together and were re-
luced finally only from the land side.
But it is as a soldier that the world
has come TO look upon Lee. Although
IN ideal husband, a model father, a
citizen and a devont Christ
an yet all these are OverShadOwed by
lis ~trauScendent military career and
therefore it is as a soldier we must
low think of him.
He was a warrior by blood, a fighter
)y inheritance, a commander Dy
and a soldier by nature. Ii
would have been little short Of a won
Ter had he not been a soldier for war
.ior blood OF more than twenty gen.
coursed through his veins.
We hear Of this line of fearless fight
RS for the first time nearly a th"uS-
md years ago. A clanSman OF this
llustriouS line crossed the channel
With William the COnquerOr; another
ought with Richard the LiOn-5earted
q the Third Crusade. 1t was not by |
Lcc,dent then SO much as by fate that
when the eyes Of the ~Confederacy
;wept.tne horizon in search Of a leader
guide her forces during the viciS-
itudes SO soon to envelop her that tie
orm of the Virginia Cavalier should
DOM high above his fellows.
l declare to you that the campaigns
II Robert Edward Lee with that
army of Northern Virginia have new
II been eclipsed in human history and
perhaps never been equaled except by
he dashing and fantaStical campaigns
Judas MaccabeeS. There is not
line to 20 into the details Of those
Lwful campaigns reeking with the
blood Of the best and braveSt Of a con-
inent. To appreciate the. skill of
his great general it is only necessary
or US to remember that when be took
command of the Army OF Northern
Virginia that his men were confront
d by a force outnumbering them by
wo to one, q little later three to one