That passage, “Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good,” is well illustrated by a reply of General Lee to President Davis. It is said that in the first years of the Civil War, before Lee had proved his pre-eminence as a general he was severely criticized on more than one occasion by General Whiting. Whiting had stood at the head of his class at West Point and was considered bright and capable as a soldier.
One day President Davis, who was needing an officer for some important command, sent to Lee for advice. Davis asked, “What do you think of Whiting?” Lee replied without hesitation, commending Whiting as one of the most capable men in the army. One of the men drew Lee aside and said, “Don’t you know what unkind things Whiting has been saying about you?”
Lee answered to those around him, “I understood that the President desired to know my opinion of Whiting, not Whiting’s opinion of me.”
(Excerpts from “Answered prayers and soul-winning incidents – published in 1940)
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