April 9, 1865

Andy Obermueller reminded me this morning that today marks the anniversary of the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. (Leave it to a Yankee to bring up such anniversaries.) There were many men from Patrick County there--among them, A. D. Reynolds, brother of R. J. Reynolds (yes, the very same.) Abram David Reynolds came back home to find guerrilla bands marauding, looting, and killing in the mountains. The only time he was wounded was after the war was supposedly over.

Robert E. Lee's surrender to U. S. Grant marked the end of the war in the minds of many, but not in reality. There were still armies in the field, prisoners of war in far flung prisons, hundreds of thousands of refugees some of whom might, or might not, see home. With the assassination of Lincoln, the fear that swept the country was palpable: Would the war start again? Would slavery be reinstated? Would the reunited country indeed split in two? Would four years of bloodshed be for nothing for either side?

I am often amazed that we psychologically survived the war and its aftermath, and as I watch history unfold around the world, I am continually amazed by the ability of man to survive and overcome. We are doomed to destroy but we appear equally compelled to survive and conquer.

It's a paradox.

And now dear friends, before retiring for the evening, a toast to Marse Robert and the Army of Northern Virginia.

(Top photo: Sayler's Creek, see earlier post; inset photo, home in Richmond where Robert E. Lee returned in April; for more accounts, see The Day Dixie Died; for more on Patrick
County in the War, visit freestateofpatrick.com; for more from Andy Obermueller, visit streetauthority.com)

Anybody Lost a Cat?

My friends, Freddy and Barbara Badgett from Mount Airy, sent this:

I think it's priceless!

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Andy, Andy, Andy!

On a related note, if you're not looking for a cat, but are instead looking for an erudite, elucidating, business column, check out Andy Oberumueller at http://andyobermueller.blogspot.com/ He may not find you a feline, but he can tell you which is a better investment--a cat or a dog.

A Great Gal

From Andy Obermueller, Austin, Texas:

It's the birthday of actress Katharine Hepburn, born in Hartford, Connecticut (1907). She became a Hollywood star by not doing anything that Hollywood stars were supposed to do. Her looks were unconventional: she had red hair and freckles and sharp cheekbones. She didn't wear make-up or dresses, she didn't cooperate with the media, and she had a habit of insulting other people in the business. She played smart, sexy, independent women who were always able to get the guy in the end.

She won her first Oscar for her role in Morning Glory (1933).

After that she hand-picked each of her movies, and she often had a say in who the other actors in the movie would be. Sometimes she rewrote her own lines, something almost no other actress would have dared to do at the time.

In 1991, Hepburn published her autobiography, titled Me, and it was a best-seller. She wrote about her twenty-seven-year affair with Spencer Tracy, her career, and life in her brownstone in the middle of Manhattan, where she lived for more than sixty years.

Katharine Hepburn said, "If you obey all the rules you miss all the fun."

Now there's a motto I can live by. (Top photo: Miss Hepburn with John Wayne in Rooster Cogburn)

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Trivia

For those who don't recall their cinematic or Civil War Trivia, Rooster Cogburn lost his eye at the Battle of Lone Jack, Missouri, and his cat was named for Confederate General Sterling Price.