Year: 1870

10 the memory OF the lllustriOus dead The
heavily loaded columns and the dark lines
of mourning would form sheet of sad and
touching eloquence reaching from the Allan
tic to the Pacific cost The warm blooded and
ardent Southrons form the Ohio river to the
gulf of Mexico, have poured out their souls
and filed the air with the pathetic lamenta-
tions Of children for beloved father. Prose
writers have mourned the want of language
to express their grief, and his excellence, and
poets have auEht lofner strians of praise
and found deeper touches of uathos. in
which 20 give vent to the profoundess feel
iugs of their souls. Even the colder spirits
of the North, felt the electric shock and
shared the general gloom from the extin-
gusbed lamp. They missed the brightest
luminary from the skies, the sun, struck
Suddenly from mid heaven; and could not
refrain from catching up the general note
Of Voc, and speeding 1t on, over their cold
and quiet lakes to echo among the iceborgs
Of the Polar Sea. England sighs as she
declares The greatest Captain ofthe age is
gone" France and Prussia pause in their
own fierce conflict. aa if arrested by an event
that makes the earth to culver to the centre,
and amid the hushed artillery, and silent
musketry exclaim, The greatest general, the
most remarkable man of the world is gone,
Prince and great man fallen Beloved,
you will pardon me if | endeavor to profit
by this occasion, by holding before you Gen.
r. e. Lee as model, an example worthy of
imitation, and capable of being initiated.
When tell you of the great model and ex.
ample for all men. The Word, that was
made flesh, the son Of God who became the
son Of Man, and hold him up before you as
worthy of Imitation in all things, many are
tempted to say "Ah, but he was more than
human, it is useless to attempt to initiate
him" Although see not the force of this
reasoning and know not why we may not
strive to initiate God himselfin His goodness,
yet let me ask you for the present to be-
hold what man can do, to look to what hu-
man nature may attain Gen Lees great
ness was not unrivalled by his goodness


He attained a very high degree of
excellence and exhibited a very rare ex.





Chris tianity. Towering far above the vast
herd which wear their religion for a cloak
ii was with him principle of living, com
ponent part of the man, part of his educar
ton and training, a habit of his life "Duty'
be said twas the sublimest word in any
language" And he never rated his duty to
God, second to that he owed his fellow
man and himself He blew no trumpet
He made no boast. But his quiet and
unostentatiOns piety permeated his whole
being. The light shone and men could not
help seing it. He was a candle on q candle
stick, a city on a hill There was eh1ldIike
simplicity quiet dignity and an unswerv-
ing integrity that compelled respect and re-
ceive homage without an effort Now here
is the character Of man. which we GER
tainly can initiate. We may not be able to
rival him in genius or equal him in skill,
but cannot every one subdue vices and cul-
tivate virtues and strive after high stand
ard of character2 Cannot every one cult
vate feelings of charity and desire for
peace Cannot we learn even to bear and
| suffer wrong, without murmuring or com
planning. Cultivating that charity, that
blessed and exalted love, "that thinketh no
evil, beareth all things, believeth ali things,
hopeth all things endureth all things" "re-
joiceth not in inquity, but rejOiceth in the
truth" Can we not avoid quarrels and dis
turbances and evil speaking and slandering,
and learn to forgive as we hope to be for
given. Beloved, it seems to me that the
mere recital of such character as that of
| Gen. Lee. The view of true and real
| christianity though such a medium, would
wiring from all who are not already earnest
followers Of Christ, the exclamation of
King AgrIpra to St. Paul, almost thou
| persuadest me to be christian" And the
voice of the noble hero bound with the chain
Of adversely and humiliation, yet serene
and faithful under all, might reply almost in
the very words of the great Apostle II
would to God that not only thou but ali that
hear me this day, were not only almost but
altogether such as l am, except those bonds"


The crowning virtue in Gen. Lees char.
acter was his Christianity. This gave a
tone to every thought word and deed. Other
generals have doubtless been as great from
a military point of view, but if we look at
Ceser, Anthony or Alexander, their vices
aud their crimes SO stain and blacken up
! their character, as to dim the lustre of their
genius, and tarnish the fame of their ex-
ploits, Even Napoleon, although aston nding
the world by the splendor of his genius,
dazzling the age with the matchless brilIi-
ancy Of his military skill, and terrifying and
confounding all nations, with the extzaor-
binary rapidity Of his movements and cons