Lee looked at the other Union officers, Hancock, leaning heavily on his cane, nodding in agreement, Elihu Washburne, standing the corner, nodding as well.
'I am here as a representative of the president,' Elihu said, 'as secretary of war. I will take an oath affirming the truth of what General Grant has just told you, and the promise, as well, that if we are forced to fight again, unconditional surrender will be the tragic result. Please, sir, that is not the wish of President Lincoln now.'
Lee glanced at Judah, who looked over at Elihu and then back to Lee and nodded an assertion.
'Then I believe it is my duty to sign,' Lee replied softly.
Grant smiled.
'Thank you, sir. I think you are as weary of the fighting as I am. Let us end it this day.'
'Several favors, please,' Lee asked. 'Certainly.'
'Many of the mounts belong to the men themselves. May they please take them home with them. Fall harvest is about to come in, and it would be a tremendous help if they could return with their horses and mules.'
'Of course.'
'Officers to retain side arms. That is a traditional mark of rank and will help to maintain order as well if any men might rebel against this surrender.'
'I understand.'
'Finally, it humbles me to ask this. Some of my men have not eaten in two days.' Grant smiled.
'Our own supply wagons are stuck in the mud, but I promise I shall see what I can do.'
'I have enough rations on the canal boats,' Hancock interjected. 'I will have them brought up with all possible speed.'
Grant motioned to Ely, who quickly added in the extra provisions on the two copies of the document.
A minute later Ely carefully slid the document over to Lee, who scanned it one last time, took up a pen from the inkwell, and without hesitation signed it. He passed it back to Grant. The second copy was signed, both of which Grant now countersigned, and then there was a long silence.
'Once the printing press is up and paroles printed out and signed, your men will stack arms. That done, you and your army are free to march out of here and back into Virginia. I think we can make those arrangements by late tomorrow.'
'General, I think I shall return to my men,' Lee said. 'I must break the news now and see to their welfare.'
Grant stood up, hesitated, then extended his hand, which Lee took.
Lee walked out, staff and officers following, mounted, and rode off.
'He didn't offer you his sword,' Elihu said as the room emptied out.
'Nor should he, nor would I have taken it,' Grant said softly. 'He is an honorable man and I would have been ashamed to take it. Elihu, we fought him for two years, perhaps this final action by him has saved this country after all. He may keep his sword.'
Elihu looked over at Grant and smiled.
'I know I shouldn't ask, but how's the headache?'
'What headache?' Grant said with a grin. 'It disappeared the moment I saw that white flag.'
Grant stepped out of the chapel, all order having broken down around it. Hundreds of men, Union and Confederate gathered around the outside.
As Lee mounted, he looked around and offered a salute, every man returned it. He set off at a slow trot, riding back to the South.
8:00 P.M.
'General Lee?'
It was Walter Taylor standing in the doorway of the vestry that Lee now used as his headquarters.
Walter knew he had been asleep for several hours, and Lee, a bit embarrassed, stirred and sat up. 'Yes, Walter.'
'Sir, a messenger just came from General Grant. He requests that you meet him back at the chapel, you and Secretary Benjamin.'
'I'm coming.'
Lee stood up, brushed himself off, and almost picked up his saber and side arm to snap on, then left them in place. Outside the church Traveler was waiting, Benjamin already mounted.
The two rode off together, Walter and a dozen cavalry troopers providing escort.
The encampment area was quiet, as it had been throughout the day. The men were so exhausted that the shock of what had transpired this day had caused a complete collapse. Men had simply lain down in the fields and gone to sleep. With the coming of evening a few managed to get fires going, but there was little to cook until something absolutely remarkable happened.
At first it was just one or two, then a few dozen, and then by the hundreds; Yankees had crossed the field, drifting into the camps, shyly pulling out a few pieces of hardtack, a tattered bag filled with coffee, a little bit of salt pork or a chicken snatched from some farmyard. They sat peacefully together, chatting away, comparing notes of who had fought where. Officers were doing it, too, especially the West Pointers, seeking out classmates and comrades from so long ago.
As Lee's party approached the chapel, Grant was leaning against the doorway, smoking a cigar, and he stood up formally as Lee dismounted. The two stood silently for a moment, neither quite sure of protocol, and finally Lee offered a salute, which Grant returned.
'Sir, I felt we should talk,' Grant said and he motioned Lee to the door, then looked back at Judah Benjamin. 'Just the four of us. The secretary of war waits inside.'
The table in the room was set about with four chairs, a coal oil lamp in the middle and a few candles by the altar shedding the only light. Souvenir hunters had been busy throughout the day in the abandoned chapel. It was reported Phil Sheridan had snatched the table the surrender had been signed on, while others had hauled out pews, even a couple of the stained-glass windows. The table between them now was a rough-hewn affair, carried over from Grant's headquarters, as was the lantern and candles.
A pot of coffee, still warm, was on the floor, and Elihu produced four tin cups and poured the drinks as the small group sat down.
'I think we need to talk,' Grant said, opening now without any nervous preamble.
'I agree, sir. And again my thanks for the generosity shown to my men this day.'
Grant unconsciously let his hand drift to his breast pocket, which contained the missive from Lincoln: 'Let them down easy,' had been written not once, but twice, in his directives not only to negotiate the surrender of Lee but to discuss broader issues as well.
'General Lee,' Grant continued, 'I realize there is a difference in our ranks. I command all of the armed forces of the United States of America now in the field, while you but command the Army of Northern Virginia.'
'Yes, that is true.'
'But I would like to enter into negotiations to end all fighting, to end this war. The president in a memo sent to me yesterday reaffirmed my authority to do so in a military sense, and he asks if you would consider such a proposition.'
Lee sat back and shook his head.
'General Grant, I have no authority to do so. You are right, I command the Army of Northern Virginia, which has laid down its arms this day. As for the other armies in the field, I have absolutely no authority to speak for them.'
'As I knew you would reply,' Grant said.
'Then why ask?'
'Sir, I think I should explain a few things that now confront us both.' 'Go on.'
'As I told you this morning, you and all your men will be paroled home. I offer as well to you my personal pledge that, once home, no one will bother or molest you or your men. The president made that clear in his memo to me. As far as he is concerned, your war is over, or should I say, our war against you; Obey the laws of the United States of America, and nothing more will be done to any of you.'
'And as I said before, that is most generous.'
