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Show to the history of the period a full report of that conversation would be! Finally Lee went out "very pale and evidently under deep emotion," says an officer who happened to see him as he left the venerable friend he was never to see more. ( f all the episodes of this war, to me there is none fuller of pathos than this. As he walked away Lee felt that he wan leaving all his hopes behind him. It happened that he met Ben Hardin Helm at the threshold of the war department. de-partment. Helm had been a cadet at West Point while Lee was superintendent, superintend-ent, and stopped to speak to his old-time old-time commandant. Helm, too, wa agitated, for he was brother-in-law to Mr. Lincoln, find that very day Lincoln had offered him the place of major and pay-master, '-vice Longstroet, resigned." resign-ed." All this Helm told Col. Lee. 'I cannot advise you," said tho stately Virginian, "for within the last hour I have given up my career. I have left the United States Army. My own mind is too much disturbed to advise ad-vise you. But do what conscience and honor bid." I shall say nothing of Loo as a soldier of the late war. There was one curious fact in Gen. Lee's selection of his staff after ho succeeded Gen. Joseph E. Johnston in the command of tho army of Northern Virginia. It was that his staff was mainly composed of bright young fellows who had come from tho Virginia Military Institute, and not of West Pointers. ' "Never have I seen or known such a man as Gen. Lee," said poor Corley, who died by his own hands long after the war. "I saw him every day for hours. No officer could be kinder or more courteous. But he was hedged about by something a strong natural dignity that no man upon earth ever broke through." I think Senator John W. Daniel best estimated Gen. Lee's character in his incomparable oration at Lexington, Va., June 2!), IHH'A, when ho said: ' -When tho lino of battle formed llob-ert llob-ert Lee took his place in the lines be-sido be-sido his people, his children, his kindred, kin-dred, his home. There can bo no stronger or tenderer tie than that which binds the heart to kindred and home. And on that tie, spanning tho heavens, rivetted through eternity to the throno of God on High, and beneath be-neath it to tho souls of good men and true, in that tie rests, stainless and immortal, im-mortal, the fame of Kobert Lee." - A MODEL YOUNG SOLDIER. THE EARLY CAREER OF GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE. Light Horse Harry anil llli Famous Hon J Interesting Krmiillsceurea of the Midlife Career of t he Famous Fam-ous Mao. Robert Edmund Lee's grandfather and father are frequently confounded in history. Kichard Henry Lee, Kobert Kob-ert Lee's grandfather, was born at the family seat, Stafford, in Westmoreland county, Va., about 1732. He was a famous member of tho Virginia house of Burgesses. With his great fellow-countryman, fellow-countryman, George Washington, he was among the first Virginians to declare de-clare that the colonies must set up for themselves. His son, Henry Lee the 'Light Horse" Harry Lee of the revolution was born about 17.j0, possibly a year or two litter. Ho was a very young man when the war began that ended in American independence. When Robert Edmund Lee was 18 years old, writes Wm. Hugh Roberts, he went to West Point. Another young cadet. that year from tho same state and about tho same ago was Joseph Keeleston Johnston, afterward tho famous fam-ous soldier and general of the confederacy. confed-eracy. To look at this veteran, as he walks along our world-famous avenue these fine afternoons, you would scarcely think him to be over 80 and bearing eleven honorable battle scars. The lives of these two distinguished soldiers were thus blended very early in life. While Leo was fond enough of his work, he wanted some duty that would give him more out-of-door life. He was a born horseman, and had always regretted that he did not go into one of tho dragoon regiments when they were organized. We had no cavalry proper in the regular military establishment estab-lishment until 18."),"). To bo sure, there were tho two dragoon regiments and the mounted rifles. But so singularly jealous was congress of any increase of the regular army that it was not until 18.)5, and under the greatest pressure, that a bill was finally passed, adding the Ninth nnd Tenth Regiments of infantry in-fantry to the foot force, and authorizing authoriz-ing the creation of two mounted regiments, regi-ments, the First and Second Cavalry. Here was Lee's opportunity. For the first and only time in Jliis entire life he used political influence to obtain what he wanted. Office duty had become be-come more and more distasteful to him, and a four-year's tour of duty as superintendent super-intendent of the United States Military Academy, beginning at the close of the Mexican war and ending, I believe in 1853, only strengthened his desire for active service in the field. Jefferson Davis was secretary of war, and it has never been denied that he was one of tho very bost secretary's the country ever had. As chairman of tho house military committee he was the means of getting the best rifle of that day introduced in-troduced into our service, and had the percussion-lock musket adopted in place of the venerable flint and steel piece that had been in use ever since the nation had a history. In the organization of the new cavalry regiments regi-ments Mr. Davis was especially interested. inter-ested. Even at that now far-away period in the nation's history there was sviine sectional feeling growing, and actively stimulated byeertain factions, especially in tho New England states. The president, Mr. Pierce, was a New Hampshire man. There wai a great pressuro brought to bear upon him touching the political status of the officers of the now regiments, but he divided the positions equally with great fairness. For lieutenant-colonels of the two new calvary commands ho went to the corps of engineers. To the first he commissioned as Lieutenant-Colonel Joseph Eeelestun Johnston; to the second, sec-ond, in tho samo grado, ho sent K. E. Lee. So just in their prime the two Virginians, Vir-ginians, who had begun life almost together, were at just the same rank, and where they both, most desired to bo, in mounted service. It was nt a far-off cavalry post, just before tho war, that tho writer saw Lieut. -Col. K. K. Leo. He was in tho fatigue uniform of his regimental rank. An orderly was holding his horse, a superb "natural" "na-tural" thoroughbred. Col. Lee was then something above the fifties in age. He stood in his riding boots just six feet and an inch. As he gracefully swung himself into the saddle his spirited charger gave a plunge and a bound that would have shaken most horsemen out of the saddle. But it only served to display the admirable calvary seat to perfection. A simultaneous simul-taneous murmur of admiration went up from tho old troopers about me. I thought I had never seen so excellent a typo of "the man on horseback," the man born to command, as at that moment mo-ment was Kobert E. Lee! Nothing ever so pained Leo 88 to leave tho old army, lie was on leave early in and lived at Arlington, and almost daily rode over to Washington, Washing-ton, lie was always in immaculate riding costume and rode the bost horses that could bo bought. "Yes, I am somewhat extravagant in the matter of horses," said Col. Lee, with gravity, to a friend, "but a horse is the noblest work of God after humanity. I do not consider it an extravagance to own the very best horses your moans will permit." per-mit." It was a charming spring day, 27th of April, in 1861, when Col. Lee sev. ered his connection with the United States army. He went to tho war department. Lieut. -Col. E. 1). Town-send, Town-send, afterward Adjutant-General, and Major W. A. Nichols were on duty. I wish to see Gen. Scott," said Lee, after exchanging tho usual salutations. salu-tations. So one of them announced him. Ho remained with the venerable Virginian and soldier almost two uninterrupted hours. What a vn'.uuble contribution |