him. How then can I sympathize with a people at war with me and mine?"
She always objected to being thought Southern in feeling.

Mr. Lincoln was generous by nature, and though his whole heart was in
the war, he could not but respect the valor of those opposed to him. His
soul was too great for the narrow, selfish views of partisanship. Brave
by nature himself, he honored bravery in others, even his foes. Time and
again I have heard him speak in the highest terms of the soldierly
qualities of such brave Confederate generals as Lee, Stonewall Jackson,
and Joseph E. Johns[t]on. Jackson was his ideal soldier. "He is a brave,
honest Presbyterian soldier," were his words; "what a pity that we
should have to fight such a gallant fellow! If we only had such a man to
lead the armies of the North, the country would not be appalled with so
many disasters."

As this is a rambling chapter, I will here record an incident showing
his feeling toward Robert E. Lee. The very morning of the day on which
he was assassinated, his son, Capt. Robert Lincoln, came into the room
with a portrait of General Lee in his hand. The President took the
picture, laid it on a table before him, scanned the face thoughtfully,
and said: "It is a good face; it is the face of a noble, noble, brave
man. I am glad that the war is over at last." Looking up at Robert, he
continued: "Well, my son, you have returned safely from the front. The
war is now closed, and we soon will live in peace with the brave men
that have been fighting against us. I trust that the era of good feeling
has returned with the war, and that henceforth we shall live in peace.
Now listen to me, Robert: you must lay aside your uniform, and return to
college. I wish you to read law for three years, and at the end of that
time I hope that we will be able to tell whether you will make a lawyer
or not." His face was more cheerful than I had seen it for a long while,
and he seemed to be in a generous, forgiving mood.

CHAPTER IX

BEHIND THE SCENES

Some of the freedmen and freedwomen had exaggerated ideas of liberty. To
them it was a beautiful vision, a land of sunshine, rest and glorious
promise. They flocked to Washington, and since their extravagant hopes
were not realized, it was but natural that many of them should bitterly
feel their disappointment. The colored people are wedded to
associations, and when you destroy these you destroy half of the
happiness of their lives. The