"Yes."
He handed Lee a folded paper bearing the great seal of the State.
"A message, sir, from Richmond."
Lee's hand trembled as he broke the seal. He stared at its words as in a dream.
"You have important news?" Blair asked.
"Most important. I am summoned to Richmond by the Governor in obedience to a resolution of the Legislature."
Mrs. Marshall advanced on the dusty, young messenger, her eyes aflame with anger.
"How dare you enter this house unannounced, sir?"
The boy did not answer. He turned away with a smile. She repented her words immediately. They had sounded undignified, if not positively rude. But she had been so sure that Blair could not fail. This call from Richmond, coming in the moment of crisis, drove her to desperation. She looked at Blair helplessly and he rallied to the attack with renewed determination.
"A Nation is calling you. The Union your fathers created is calling you,
Colonel Lee!"