ngs that men upon whom depended the fate of the South
should be shoeless, in tatters, and forced to subsist on a quarter
of a pound of rancid bacon and a little corn bread, when thousands
remaining out of the army, and dodging the enrolling-officers, were
well clothed and fed, and never heard the whistle of a bullet. The
men understood this care for them, and returned the affectionate
solicitude of their commander in full. He was now their ideal of a
leader, and all that he did was perfect in their eyes. All awe of him
had long since left them--they understood what treasures of kindness
and simplicity lay under the grave exterior. The tattered privates
approached the commander-in-chief without embarrassment, and his
reception of them was such as to make them love him more than ever.
Had we space we might dwell upon this marked respect and attention
paid by General Lee to his private soldiers. He seemed to think them
more worthy of marks of regard than his highest officers. And there
was never the least air of condescension in him when thrown with them,
but a perfect simplicity, kindness, and unaffected sympathy, which
went to their hearts. This was almost a natural gift with Lee, and
arose from the genuine goodness of his heart. His feeling toward his
soldiers is shown in an incident which occurred at this time, and was
thus related in one of the Richmond journals: "A gentleman who was in
the train from this city to Petersburg, a very cold morning not long
ago, tells us his attention was attracted by the efforts of a young
soldier, with his arm in a sling, to get his overcoat on. His teeth,
as well as his sound arm, were brought into use to effect the object;
but, in the midst of his efforts, an officer rose from his seat,
advanced to him, and very carefully and tenderly assisted him, drawing
the coat gently over his wounded arm, and buttoning it up comfortably;
then, with a few kind and pleasant words, returning to his seat. Now
the officer in question was not clad in gorgeous uniform, with a
brilliant wreath upon his collar, and a multitude of gilt lines upon
the sleeves, resembling the famous labyrinth of Crete, but he was clad
in a simple suit of gray, distinguished from the garb of a civilian
only by the three stars which every Confederate colonel in the
service, by the regulations, is entitled to wear. And yet he was no
other than our chief, General Robert E. Lee, who is not braver than he
is good and modest."

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