As predicted in last week's newsletter, the National Archives has unveiled a handwritten note from President Abraham Lincoln. In it, Lincoln urges his generals to pursue Robert E. Lee's army after the battle of Gettysburg. They didn't -- and the war dragged on for two more years.
Though the Gettysburg battle marked the turning point of the Civil War, General George Meade has been faulted for not closing in to destroy Lee's army afterward, possibly bringing an earlier end to the war.
The note had been missing for probably 100 years or so. A Civil War specialist at the archives discovered the note three weeks ago in a batch of military papers. He said it was tucked in a drawer.
You can read more about this discovery at http://tinyurl.com/2n87jn.
