Show kT kabrt brT I 1 historic structures of i the Shenandoah 1 valley within a radius ot one mie of the little village ol 01 levetown leetown W va ani in the most beautiful portion of the valley are still standing three houses which once sheltered three of the most famous characters in annei lean history being somewhat out of the line of ordinary travel these historical houses have passe 1 comparatively unnoticed to the stu dent of revolutionary war history they possess a patriotic interest not to be found in adv other cent of the early das of america s struggle for freedom one of the houses was occupied pied b gen charles lee the daring but tm commander whose rashness pt the battle of monmouth gained alii a rebuke aiom george washington lee in a rape retired from the tee and douht the seclusion of the shenandoah gon fa oratio gates who aspired to rival washington and ft hose hopes were dashed by defeat at the battle of camden also sought the peaceful valley where he nourished his grievances real or fancied for nearly the balance of his life in a aird bouse lived adam stephen once intonate friend of washington and 11 1 1 perhaps lee has been too much blamed and was perhaps hot such a great offender as the world supposed his error at monmouth a as not a want of courage but of judgment for he had fought with the most reckless bravery on two continents this sol dier of fort ne wl had all to lose and nothing but life to ai 1 but the brave man abandoned a cause which be regarded as having outraged him and refused to take further part in the war he was court marti aled W his commission taken from him he went back to his estate and busied himself in growing tobacco declaring it the best school for a general after years of weary existence gea lee moved to philadelphia where h died while george washa on v as sta tio aed at the town of winchester en in his work of surveying he formed the acquaintance of adam sta phen and late on when washington became commander of the forces the frontier adam stephen received his first commission he was corn mandant for some time at fort cum berland then the furthest advanced post of the border and immediately general charees lee s home levetown leetown LJ who fell into disgrace by hip abrupt withdrawal from the army all three were trial by court martial and die missed from the service tradition has it alt after lee s re buke by gen washington at mon mouth the latter sent a note stating that he would call upon him on a ce tain morning and that he hoped all past contentions and bitterness ha I 1 been forgotten lee could cate the old anger he felt for his ad and uncil e the ordinary man he could not make a commonplace excuse for not desiring to see him ha had do out of the ordinary do lt as no aher person would so on the day fixed for the visit of gen washington lee sent away his italian errant and all the negroes and thea confronting fort duquesne he con a battalion sent to the aid of south carolina by virginia soon t ter this he abrupt left the servile returning to his home to spend w balance of his days gen stephen held large landed possessions and gave to the cantry the land on which martins i i burg now stands it is said that stephen like morgin and other soldiers of the period was much given to the wine cup acdan like hs neighbor lee be loved cota pany and V as never happier than ahn he had his friends around him from his cabin there was often the sound of revelry in the long hours of the wu nights stephen kept open hou e all the time he loved the wild wools in which he lived he loved his people WV rm f general stephens home on the mounting his horse he rode away first however having left a note affixed to his front door the only one sayin NO MEAT COOKED HERE TO DA it Is said that washington came and knocked in vain but when he read the paper he silently rode away rei zing the bitterness of his companion stronger than ever gen lee was called the boiling water by the mohawks to distin aguish his restless temperament a temperament which led him over eu rope and other countries before i e found final residence in america se aling in virginia in 1773 he became an ardent republican and was one of the original major generals genei als of the revolutionary war when washing ton rebuked him on the field of mon mouth and charged him with ill timed imprudence lee quickly retorted I 1 know of no man blessed with a larger portion of imprudence that rascally virtue than yourself and waa a man ot rude jest and wild revel but with brave and patriotic am pulses he worthily fought many fights for the people he loved and his home in his will he disposed of a large area of land and requested that his remains be laid to rest at a certain point in the edge of martinsburg Mart insburg a location which is now included in the estate of former senator charles faulkner and in the northwest corner of the beautiful grounds which his home the general also provided in his will that a certain sum of money be expended in erecting a substantial monument over his grave but the ex of the estate never got further than placing a few hugh stone bowl ders for a foundation somehow as is sometimes the case in such matters the money was not forthcoming and to day the large stones for the dounda alon of the monument are all that shows where the great fighter and lib eral citizen Is buried |