“Coosawhatchie, South Carolina, December 25, 1861
I
cannot let this day of grateful rejoicing pass, dear Mary, without some
communication with you. I am grateful for the many among the past that I
have passed with you, and the remembrance of them fills me with
pleasure. For those on which we have been separated we must not repine.
If it will make us more resigned and better prepared for what is in
store for us, we should rejoice.
Now
we must be content with the many blessings we receive. If we can only
become sensible of our transgressions, so as to be fully penitent and
forgiven, that this heavy punishment under which we labor may with
justice be removed from us and the whole nation, what a gracious
consummation of all that we have endured it will be!
As
to our old home [Arlington], if not destroyed it will difficult ever to
be recognized. Even if the enemy had wished to preserve it, it would
almost have been impossible. I fear, too, books, furniture, and the
relics of Mount Vernon will be gone. It is better to make up our minds
to a general loss. They cannot take away the remembrance of the spot,
and the memories of those that to us rendered it sacred. That will
remain to us as long as life will last, and that we can preserve.
You
must not build your hopes on peace on account of the United States
going into a war with England [via the Trent Affair]. We must make up
our minds to fight our battles and win our independence alone. No one
will help us. We require no extraneous aid, if true to ourselves. But we
must be patient. It is not a light achievement and cannot be
accomplished at once.
The enemy is still quiet [here] and increasing in strength. We grow in size slowly but are working hard.
Affectionately and truly,
R.E. Lee”
(The Civil War Christmas Album, Philip Van Doren Stern, editor, Hawthorn Books, 1961, page 18)
Merry Christmas from the North Carolina War Between the States Sesquicentennial Commission!
“Unsurpassed Valor, Courage and Devotion to Liberty”
