"even if he did say it so what?" My sentiments exactly. Lee was a realist. At times, his blood got up in battle, and he had to be restrained by his men. After fighting their way from Richmond to Appomattox, finding no rations at Danville, Lee realized he was surrounded, his troops scattered and starving, exhausted, that there was no chance of going on. Attempting to fight a guerilla war led only to disaster. He made the only choice he could. Five years later, near death, surrounded by former comrades, he might have made such a statement, but it would have applied only to his wish that he had not been the one to surrender to what had become his former soldiers' suffering. I'm sure he would rather have not been forced to give up. Ultimately, he knew he had done the best he could for his men at the time. He loses no respect nor honor. Stan