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March Across Virginia / An Open Letter / Reflections

Today, Monday November 6, 2006 , I will have to make the decision on whether
to continue the March Across Virginia and the efforts to raise the necessary
funds, and other needed support. I further agonize in that thought as I read
the following passage from the Sons of Confederate Veterans Chaplain’s Handbook(
Remembering General R.E.Lee—Senator B.H.Hill of Georgia in a speech he delivered
to the Southern Historical Society: When the future historian shall come to
survey the character of Lee, he will find it rising like a huge mountain above
the undulating plain of humanity, and he will lift his eyes high toward Heaven
to catch its summit. He possessed every virtue of great commanders without their
vices. he was a foe without hate; a friend without treachery; a soldier without
cruelty; a victor without oppression, and victim without murmuring. He was a
public officer without vices; a private citizen without wrong; a neighbor without
reproach; a Christian without hypocrisy, and a man without guile. He was Caesar,
without his ambition; Frederick, without his tyranny; Napoleon, without his
selfishness, and Washington, without his reward. He was obedient to authority
as a servant, and royal in authority as a true king. He was gentle as a woman
in life; modes and pure as a virgin in thought; watchful as a Roman festal in
duty; submissive to law as Socrates, and grand in battle as Achilles!

There are many ironies in my contemplation . Here my brother and I are in the
very State of Marse Lee ; heading North as he did to the Nations Capitol though
now in retreat. Here in the State where he gave his all for her defense; yet
in the very county(Amherst ) where we began, his flag would be removed dishonorably
from the seal that depicted his historic stand ; here in his home where his
name would be removed from the Boys Scout Council, here in his home where several
of his men rest on the grounds of the DuPont Plant, yet they have been forbidden
to be memorialized by the people who hold them dear, here in his State who house
the Capitol of his Confederacy; Confederate History Month would be denied from
a Senate whose members once asked Marse Lee to make his stand; and as if this
is not bad enough; the Church of Marse Lee; the Episcopal Church, would deny
the family of two Confederate soldiers (Vas brothers) buried on their grounds,
a memorial service.

Here in the great State of Virginia, our Southern babies now gather their views
of the past from partisan histories rather than from sacredly preserved traditions,
from generally Northern school books and authors who paint our heroes and heroines
as traitors, and unholy provocateurs of the economic institution of slavery
, while purposely omitting the place of honor , dignity and heroism earned by
the African people in defense of their homeland, the Southland of America.

I hope in my heart that this retreat on highway 29 North does not last long
.We carry a message to the nation of men and women who exemplified every trait
of honor and loyalty of any citizen who called themselves American.