Chapter VIII




Colonel Lee After the Mexican War


It is probable that Lee would have been well content to remain
indefinitely at Baltimore, for his duties there enabled him to be
more with his family than had been possible for some years. To his
boys and girls he was both a companion and a friend and in their
company he took the keenest delight. In fact, he and his wife
made their home the center of attraction for all the young people
of the neighborhood, and no happier household existed within the
confines of their beloved Virginia.

It was not to be expected, however, that an officer of Lee's reputation
would be allowed to remain long in obscurity, and in 1852, he was
appointed Superintendent at West Point. A wiser selection for this
important post could scarcely have been made, for Colonel Lee,
then in his forty-sixth year, possessed rare qualifications for
the duties entrusted to his charge. He was not only a man whose
splendid presence, magnificent physique and distinguished record
were certain to win the admiration and respect of young men, but