The Soldier s Home By Ernest Hemingway - 969 Words

â€Å"The Soldier’s Home† by Ernest Hemingway is a short story that tells the story of a soldier who returns home but realizes that war has changed his life. Hemingway ensures that the readers fully understand the purpose of the short story by using a detached tone, brief sentence structure, and a lack of imagery help develop the short story. The use of these literary techniques in Hemingway’s story allows him to develop his plot without losing his audience’s attention and include a message in the story. The story is told in third-person which allows for the reader to have a clear image of the soldier Krebs and his return home. To begin with, since the beginning of the short story the reader is able to note that Krebs is a soldier who is severely impacted by the war. Short sentences allow Hemingway to demonstrate the isolation that Krebs feels once he returns home. This use of abrupt sentence structure not only shows Krebs detachment, but it also signals to the reader that fighting in the war has emotionally deteriorated Krebs. To clarify the reason for Krebs behavior, the narrator mentions, â€Å"By the time Krebs returned to his home town in Oklahoma the greeting of heroes was over. He came back much too late† (Bedford 116). This not only gives background information on Krebs but it reveals to the reader that Krebs did not receive the welcome he expects. He returns home with the hopes of feeling like he belongs, but he is incapable of establishing connections or even feelingShow MoreRelatedThe Soldier s Home By Ernest Hemingway1054 Words   |  5 Pages Veterans Difficulties in relating to the family â€Å"Soldier’s Home† by Ernest Hemingway is a story that an American war veteran, Harold Krebs, returns to his home Oklahoma from World War I. He comes home later than the other soldiers do, and he misses the welcome greetings of his hometown people. He tries to tell his war story to people but he find out no one is interested to listen to him. KrebsRead MoreThe Soldier s Home By Ernest Hemingway952 Words   |  4 PagesForeign Home â€Å"The Soldier’s Home† by Ernest Hemingway is a short story that tells the story of a soldier who returns home but realizes that war has changed his life. Hemingway ensures that the readers fully understand the purpose of the short story by using a detached tone, short sentence structure, and a lack of imagery help develop the short story. The use of these literary techniques in Hemingway’s story allows him to develop his plot without losing his audience’s attention and include a messageRead MoreA Comparison Between Ernest Hemingway Stories And Soldier s Home 1506 Words   |  7 PagesA comparison between Ernest Hemingway stories Ernest Hemingway was an American novelist, journalist and short story writer. In 1918 he was recruited by the Red Cross to assist as an ambulance driver in Italy. While carrying chocolate and cigarettes to the men in battle he was wounded by the fire of a mortar. Due to the severity of his injuries he was transferred to a hospital where he spent three months. This experience traumatized him and led him to tell his story through the short stories heRead MoreA Very Short Story Of A Soldier s Home By Ernest Hemingway1522 Words   |  7 PagesErnest Hemingway was an American novelist, journalist and short story writer. In 1954 he won the Nobel Prize in Literature. He published seven novels, six short story and two non-fiction works. At 1918 he was recruited by the Red Cross to assist as an ambulance driver in Italy. While carrying Cigarettes and chocolate to the men in battle he was wounded by the fire of a mortar. Due to the severity of his injuries he was transferred to a hospital where he spent three months. This experience traumatizedRead MoreThe Life of Ernest Hemingway Essay1191 Words   |  5 PagesErnest Hemingway â€Å"But man is not made for defeat, he said. A man can be destroyed but not defeated.† (Hemingway, 29). This is one of the lines that Ernest Hemingway uses in one of his books, titled, â€Å"The Old Man and The Sea.† It was published in 1952, and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize the following year. The story of an old fishermans journey, his long and lonely struggle with a fish and the sea, was considered to be the most popular of all his works. Fortunately for this well-known author, heRead MoreEssay about Analysis of Hemingways Soldiers Home1000 Words   |  4 PagesEssay #1: Characterization Title: â€Å"Soldier’s Home† Author: Ernest Hemingway Setting: Post World War I era, 1919. In Howard’s (Kreb’s) quaint home town in Oklahoma. All who have returned from the harsh war are welcomed; their stories as well. All except for Krebs. Narrative Point of View: 3rd person. The narrator puts the reader in Kreb’s environment or in his society, so to speak. This allows one to feel as Krebs does and better understand the lasting effects of war (or perhaps the lastingRead MoreA Farewell Of Arms By Ernest Hemingway1942 Words   |  8 PagesFarewell to Arms Ernest Hemingway wrote, We re going to have a strange life. (D). His life was not ordinary by any means; he became the voice of his generation with his poignant works capturing the emotions of the American people after World War I. In his novel A Farewell to Arms Ernest Hemingway attempts to demonstrate through the characters of Frederic Henry and Rinaldi the feelings of horror and disillusionment the people of the Modern era tried to escape. Ernest Miller Hemingway was born on JulyRead MoreResearch Paper On Ernest Hemingway1640 Words   |  7 PagesCalcara Mr. Balistreri Research Paper 15 September 2017 Ernest Hemingway Although Ernest Hemingway might be an older author, he has written some classic novels, such as The Old Man and the Sea and For Whom the Bell Tolls. This American short story writer and novelist was around years ago. Born in 1899, Ernest was raised by his parents, Clarence and Grace Hemingway. Growing up, Ernest and his parents loved to spend time away from their home in Chicago, Illinois. The family owned a cabin in northernRead MoreThe Lost Generation Analysis920 Words   |  4 PagesFitzgerald, T.S Eliot, and Ernest Hemingway. It was like a slap in the face and people didn’t see it coming, so there was a momentous time of shock. The Lost Generation was more than an accumulation of materialistic items that were being to gain popularity i.e cars it was a time period changed that completely changed people’s outlook on life. There are emotions in the books that could be instilled by outside sources or things that have happened in their lives. Take Ernest Hemingway, for example, he wroteRead More Ernest Hemingway Essay1313 Words   |  6 Pages Ernest Hemingway nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ernest Hemingway was a great American author. He was a giant of modern literature. Hemingway was born on July 21, 1899. He was the first son of Clarence and Grace Hall Hemingway and the second of their six children. Hemingway’s gather was a doctor and his mother was a music teacher. Hemingway’s parents owned a cabin in northern Michigan where he spent most of his summers hunting and fishing, being separated

The Theory of Classical Utilitarialism Essay - 1014 Words

In this essay, I will talk about the theory of classical utilitarianism. My objection will be about how classical utilitarianism ignores justice and moral rights, and I will argue how this can undermine the theory. I will then discuss how this theory cannot be saved from this objection. Classical utilitarianism is a form of consequentialism where actions are judged only by the consequences of the action (act based). According to Hodgson (1967), the act is only right if it was to have the best consequences for any alternative acts open to you. Utilitarianism is a popular form of consequentialism. Utilitarian’s believe that the consequence of the action must maximise utility, and by maximizing utility, your action will maximise†¦show more content†¦This means there is also a small amount of guessing involving to come up with what would be the best possible outcome. An objection to classical utilitarianism is how it ignores justice and moral rights. According to Allison (1990, p.38), ‘Utilitarianism fails to provide adequate basis for justice because of its indifference to the pattern of distribution of goods and its goal of improving the aggregate good of all no matter how badly some individuals may do, it may sometimes legitimately augment considerations of justice as the satisfaction of needs.’ Philosophers such as Robert Nozick who came up with ‘the entitlement theory of justice’ also have similar arguments, ‘that satisfying some people’s needs violates other people’s rights.’ (Allison, 1990, p.39). So, for example, there is a story that has made an appearance in the newspaper this year about a female tourist being gang raped by five homeless rapists in India. If we were to look at this from a Deontological theorist, this act is wrong because raping someone is an unjust act to do. However , from a classical utilitarian perspective, this act will be the right thing to do because when adding up the amount of happiness and pleasure the rapists would be getting in comparison to the pain the female tourist would feel, 5:1. However, in saying this, the utilitarian may object to this saying it is not right in saying that they will agree that this would be the right act to do. For example,

Possible solutions to Energy Crisis free essay sample

The situation about energy crisis in India and its potential remedies are discussed in this paper. There is a deficit in energy production. In order to meet the demand for energy, different options need to be explored. The solution lies in recycling, reduction in losses during energy consumption and utilization of renewable energy sources. Among these, the best solution to overcome this problem is maximum utilization of renewable energy, because it is clean and environmentally safe. That is, the sources of renewable energy will produce lower or negligible levels of green house gases and other pollutants as compared with the other types of energy sources (Fossil and Nuclear energy sources). Recycling also plays an important key role in consuming the raw materials, which in turn protect the raw resource (non-renewable). The energy consumption has been recognized worldwide as a parameter of development in a society and India needs to increase it’s per captia energy consumption. In the present paper, an attempt has been made to review the energy situation within India. Here the current policies and future strategies for the optimal utilization of renewable energy resources will be discussed. 1. Introduction Overview: India experienced a crucial energy crisis on Tuesday 31 July 2012 when three of its regional power grids collapsed. Over half of the country was impacted, leaving 620 million people without electricity for several hours. The consequences were many; Hundreds of trains were stalled across the country. Traffic lights went out, causing widespread traffic jams in major cities, Emergency workers had to use diesel generators in coal mines to rescue miners trapped underground. On such occasions, serious concerns about energy crisis were raised in the mind of common people. In order to meet the huge appetite for energy, as India aspires to become a regional economic superpower we need to explore other sources of energy more efficiently and reduce losses of energy and power theft. Indias power grid has grown significantly in recent years and is now operating at or over its capacity. However, one-third of Indias households still do not even have electricity to power a light bulb, according to last years census. Decentralised power generation using renewable energy sources, energy consumption and recycling are the possible solution to this problem. 2. Consumption of energy in India: 2 a. Consumption of electrical energy and reducing the power loss in transmission lines: Power loss in an electrical transmission line depends on current. A reduction in current will reduce the power loss and increase the efficiency of distributing electrical power to the consumer. The power dissipated in the transmission line is related to the current and is given by; W=I2Rt (1) Where, I is the current flowing in the transmission line. Transmission lines are used to distribute electric power. As a rule, society would like to minimize power loss due to heating to maximize the amount of primary energy reaching the consumer from power plants. We can reduce power loss by reducing the current or by decreasing the distance of transmission. In most cases, it is not a viable option to decrease the transmission distance. It is possible, however; for example, we could choose to build a manufacturing facility near a power station to minimize the cost of transmission of power. One consequence of that decision is that the manufacturer may incur an increase in the cost of transporting goods to market. A more viable option for reducing power loss is to reduce the current that must be transmitted through transmission lines. Power loss increases faster with an increase in current than with an increase in transmission distance. Power losses in transmission lines limit the distance that electrical power can be transmitted. An option for the future is to use superconductors as transmission lines, but this is an exotic one and not presently feasible (economically and technically).  2 b. Energy Consumption in service sectors and in industrial sectors: In the commercial sector, the key energy services are lighting, office equipment and cooling. The intensity of energy usage differs across service and building types. Buildings can be the largest collectors of solar energy and therefore the electrical appliances (light bulbs, refrigerators, washing machines, etc. ) w ith innovative energy-efficient models, can reduce electricity demand and increase the significance of, e. g. photovoltaic electricity, to the whole energy budget. Passive solar building designs can reduce the conventional energy consumption by as much as 75% and PV can provide the rest. Such designs use knowledge of the position of the sun either to allow sunlight to enter the building for heating or to shade the building for cooling, and employ natural ventilation and daylighting. Solar Industrial Process Heat (SIPH) is an ideal application of solar energy. As a matter of fact, 30- 50% of the thermal energy needed in industrial processes is below 250oC, which can be easily provided by low- and medium-temperature solar collectors. Consequently, this application of solar energy is expected to grow as the cost of fossil fuels goes up. In Industrialised countries, 35-40% of total primary energy consumption is used in buildings. However, if the energy used to manufacture materials and the infrastructure to serve the buildings is taken into account then buildings share of total primary energy consumption can be around 50%. 2 c. Energy consumption in the Agriculture Sector: Agriculture remains a key sector in India, in which modernization is seen as enhancing more rapid economic development. The 11th Five Year Plan (2007-2012) [ref section No 9] envisages 4. 1% growth in agriculture value added with the purpose of achieving an overall 10% economic growth (Planning Commission, 2007). Energy consumed in the agriculture sector is in large part attributable to pumping for irrigation. Since the cultivated area cannot be increased, the increased production will be only possible by increasing productivity factors and cropping intensity. Increasing cropping intensity requires principally bringing water to crop fields which normally receive water only once a year. Increasing productivity will result further diffusion of modernized and mechanized tools. And this is a cycle (positive feedback) towards prosperity. 3. Recycling. 3a. Role of recycling in energy consumption: Recycling means using something over and over again. Typical items that can be recycled are newspapers, cardboard, aluminium, batteries, glass bottles. The advantages of recycling are reduction in the amount of waste that is dumped in landfills, use of less energy to make a product from recycled material (than it does to make it from new material), saving natural resources (Recycling paper saves trees and water). For example, recycling aluminium saves 95 % of the energy we need to produce aluminium from bauxite. 4. Use of renewable energy sources: Renewable energy is the term used to describe a wide range of naturally occurring, replenishable energy sources — in particular, sun, wind, water and a range of biomass resources. Renewable energy systems are regarded as sustainable technologies or sustainable energy supply systems and promoting their development and widespread use is viewed as a technological solution to sustainable development. The introduction of renewable energy technologies into energy production system is seen as a new pattern of energy production based on smaller scale generation systems operated on a more decentralized base in a liberalized market. Renewable energy technologies (RETs) have a vast potential and have the advantage of being environmentally sustainable. 4a. Hydroelectricity: Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. Since we know that, hydro power is the second highest contributor of the energy consumed in the Indian power sector. At the present time, it is one of the clean energy source that can be commercially developed on a large as well as small scale. Recently, hydropower and small hydro power plants (SHP) have considered as most readily available, renewable and clean sources of electricity. They use the potential energy of rivers and supply more than 20% of total India’s electricity. SHP has also some advantages; they may be connected to conventional electrical distribution networks as a source of low-cost renewable energy. Alternatively, SHP projects may be built in isolated areas that would be uneconomic to serve from a network, or in areas where there is no national electrical distribution network so as to improve the quality of life. 4b. Wind power: Wind energy is being developed in the industrialized world for environmental reasons and it has attractions in the developing world as it can be installed quickly in areas where electricity is urgently needed. In many instances, it may be a cost-effective solution if fossil fuel sources are not readily available. Wind power plants, or wind farms are clusters of â€Å"wind machines† used to produce electricity. A wind farm usually has dozens of wind machines scattered over a large area. There are two types of wind machines (turbines) used today based on the direction of the rotating shaft (axis): horizontal–axis wind machines and vertical-axis wind machines. The size of wind machines varies widely. Small turbines used to power a single home or business may have a capacity of less than 100 kilowatts. Some large commercial sized turbines may have a capacity of 5 million watts, or 5 megawatts. Larger turbines are often grouped together into wind farms that provide power to the electrical grid. New technologies have decreased the cost of producing electricity from wind, and growth in wind power has been encouraged by tax breaks for renewable energy and green pricing programs. Many utilities around the country offer green pricing options that allow customers the choice to pay more for electricity that comes from renewable sources. The most serious environmental drawbacks to wind machines may be their negative effect on wild bird populations and the visual impact on the landscape. 4c. Solar energy: Solar technologies are broadly characterized as passive solar or active solar; depending on the way they capture, convert and distribute solar energy. Active solar techniques include the use of photovoltaic panels and solar thermal collectors to harness the energy. Passive solar techniques include orienting a building to the Sun, selecting materials with favorable thermal mass or light dispersing properties, and designing spaces that naturally circulate air, which can make considerable contributions to solving some of the most urgent problems the world now faces. Solar solutions to Indias energy crisis: We can find 10 solar projects which are included by the government of India that can help to fight against the energy crisis: 1. Solar-power microgrid service in rural villages: Startup Mera Gao Power wants to have a total of 70 villages electrified with its solar panels, cell phone charging service, and distribution lines by the end of 2012. 2. One of India’s first megawatt-scale rooftop solar projects: Azure Power, a startup run by entrepreneur Inderpreet Wadhwa, is developing a project that puts solar panels on dozens of rooftops and shares revenues from power sales with the building owners. 3. 600 MW of solar in Gujarat: The Indian state of Gujarat in April threw a big party to celebrate the commissioning of 600 MW of solar energy projects over a year. [refer section No 2] 4. The aspirational country goal: The National Solar Mission in January 2010 set a goal of installing 20 GW of grid-connected solar and 2 GW of off-grid solar by 2022 — that’s 3 percent of the country’s power using solar by 2022. 5. SunEdison experimenting with rural projects, too: While project developer SunEdison has brought 45 MW of solar projects in Gujarat online, it is also looking at how it can make solar panel projects work in rural villages. 6. Selling solar like cell phone service: Startup Simpa Networks has developed a home solar panel product for off-grid customers controlled by a mobile, pay-as-you-go system. 7. Solar teaming up with water use: One of SunEdison’s solar projects is a 1 MW installation over nearly half a mile of the Narmada Canal in the state of Gujarat. 8. Solar lanterns: Startup d. light recently celebrated its fifth anniversary and the company has reached the goal of 7 million people using its solar-powered products in 40 countries. 9. Giant solar thermal projects: Areva Solar is building a 250 MW solar thermal project in the northwestern part of India (in the state of Rajasthan) that will use mirrors to concentrate sunshine onto water filled tubes to produce steam — steam that will drive a turbine and make electricity. 10. Solar for cooking, heating, making stuff: A company called Flareum sells solar concentrating systems that can be used for cooking, and for producing steam and heat for industrial applications 4d. Geothermal energy: Geothermal Energy is heat (thermal) derived from the earth (geo). It is the thermal energy contained in the rock and fluid (that fills the fractures and pores within the rock) in the earths crust. In most areas, this heat reaches the surface in a very diffuse state. In the production of geothermal energy, wells are used to bring hot water or steam to the surface from underground reservoirs. Geothermal energy has often been accepted as a renewable energy resource, but they are not, especially on the time scale usually used in human society. It is emphasized that â€Å"they are renewable only if the heat extraction rate does not exceed the reservoir replenishment rate† Therefore, the reinjection of fluids into the reservoir is significant for the sustainability of the resource. Geothermal resources are classified as low temperature (less than 90 °C or 194 °F), moderate temperature (90 °C 150 °C or 194 302 °F), and high temperature (greater than 150 °C or 302 °F) (Figure 3. 3). The highest temperature resources are generally used only for electric power generation. Uses for low and moderate temperature resources can be divided into two categories: direct use and ground-source heat pumps. The applications of geothermal energy for direct use include space heating –both district and individual heating systems, geothermal heat pumps, bathing and swimming, greenhouse heating, aquaculture pond heating, agricultural drying, industrial uses, cooling, and snow melting. There are three basic types of geothermal power plants: [ref section No 9] 1. Dry steam plants use steam piped directly from a geothermal reservoir to turn the generator turbines. The first geothermal power plant was built in 1904 in Tuscany, Italy at a place where natural steam was erupting from the earth. 2. Flash steam plants take high-pressure hot water from deep inside the earth and convert it to steam to drive the generator turbines. When the steam cools, it condenses to water and is injected back into the ground to be used over and over again. Most geothermal power plants are flash plants. 3. Binary power plants transfer the heat from geothermal hot water to another liquid. The heat causes the second liquid to turn to steam which is used to drive a generator turbine. 4e. Biomass and biofuels: India is an agricultural country. About 70% of our population depends on agriculture and around 50% of the population is employed in agriculture. One-third of our National income comes from agriculture. Our economy is based on agriculture. Its arable land area of 157. 9 million hectares (390. 2 million acres) is second only to the United States. This has enabled India to become the world’s second largest producer of paddy rice and wheat, among other agricultural products. With an estimated production of about 350 million tonnes of agricultural waste every year, residual biomass is capable of generating much needed clean, renewable power for India. India’s total biomass potential is estimated at 18,000 – 23,000 MW this is at least six times more than the current installed capacity. [Ref section No 3] Biomass provides the socio-economic benefits. Owing to its availability across India, biomass can provide villages too remote or poor to connect to the national electricity grid with a local and sustainable form of energy. Distributed biomass-based power generation plants could also provide base load power that many other renewable sources cannot deliver. Biomass-based energy also brings a new source of income to farmers, helping to diversify their income base and reduce the pressure to immigrate to more developed urban centers, which are already stressed by over-population. Biofuels: Algae can be used to produce biofuel, called algae fuel, algal fuel, or even third generation biofuel. Compared with second-generation biofuels, algal fuels have a higher yield: they can produce 30 to 100 times more energy per hectare compared to terrestrial crops. Algae, like corn, soybeans, sugar cane, Jatropha, and other plants, use photosynthesis to convert solar energy into chemical energy. They store this energy in the form of oils, carbohydrates, and proteins. The plant oil can be converted into biodiesel; hence biodiesel is a form of solar energy. The more efficient a particular plant is at converting that solar energy into chemical energy, the better it is from a biodiesel perspective, and algae are among the most photosynthetically efficient plants on Earth . Algae for biofuels have been studied for many years for the production of hydrogen, methane, vegetable oils (for biodiesel), hydrocarbons, and ethanol. Algal hydrogen production has been extensively researched for over three decades, but no mechanism for it has ever been demonstrated. 5. Conclusion: If the nation is demanding energy and facing severe environmental problems, and if the utilization of renewable energy, recycling are the solutions to improve air quality, to fight against climate change and to reduce fossil-fuel dependency a radical change is vital for widespread use of renewable energy sources. Since we know that the renewable energies embrace a wide spectrum of options ranging from solar, biomass, wind energy to geothermal and CHP applications, each option requires different set of policies and implementations strategies, new learning processes, competences and organizational solutions at both the demand and supply side. In this regard, a decentralized renewable energy policy which is the combination of the application of a specific technology, the mixture of the organizational and financial structure and the promotional activities, and the setting of each application in each state is unique. 6. List of references: India energy Outlook: End use demand in India 2020. Stephane de la Rue du can, Michale MC Neil, and Jayant Sathaye, Environmental energy technologies division Jan 2009. 2. Indian energy crisis July 2012 Retrieved from: http://www. greenlivingpedia. org/Indian_energy_crisis_July_2012. 3. Indian energy crisis and the role of biomass Retrieved from: www. carbonneutral. com 4. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews Volume 18, February 2013, Pages 460–470 A comprehensive analysis of strategies, policies and development of hydropower in India: Special emphasis on small hydropower Naveen Kumar Sharma, Prashant Kumar Tiwari, Yograj sood. Department of electrical engineering National Institute of Technology(NIT) Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh. 5. Energy in 21st century by John R Colorado School of mines USA. Published by; World Scientific publishing co. pvt. ltd, 5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore-596224 6. 2010 Survey of energy resources: world energy council Published by world energy council, Regency house 1-4 warwick street London W1B5LT UK. 7. Green energy and technology: Algae energy by Ayhan Demirbas professor of energy technology Srinak University Turkey. And M Faith Demirbas Sila Science and energy unlimited company university mab. Turkey. 8. Renewable sources of energy edited by Emily B. Kling, Ed. D Extension specialist, 4-H and Youth development and david R. self, M. S 4-H energy educator. Alabama cooperative extension system. 9. Integrating Renewable energy technologies into cities through urban planning. In the case of geothermal and wind energy: A PhD thesis submitted to the graduate school of Engineering and science of Izmir institute of technology by Zeynep Peker.

Robert E. Lee Was Born In Stratford Hall, Near Montross, Essays

Robert E. Lee was born in Stratford Hall, near Montross, Virginia, on January 19, 1807. He grew up with a great love of all country life and his state. This stayed with him for the rest of his life. He was a very serious boy and spent many hours in his father's library. He loved to play with some his friends, swim, and he loved to hunt. Lee looked up to his father and always wanted to know what he was doing. George Washington and his father, "Light-Horse Harry Lee," were his heroes. He wanted to be just like his father when he grew up. In the 1820's, the entrance requirements for West Point were not close to as strict as they are now. It still was not that easy to become a cadet. Robert Lee entered the United States Military Academy at West Point where his classmates admired him for his brilliance, leadership, and his love for his work. He graduated from the academy with high honors in 1829, and he was ranked as a second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers at the age of 21. Lee served for seventeen months at Fort Pulaski on Cockspur Island, Georgia. In 1831, the army transferred him to Fort Monroe, Virginia, as assistant engineer. While he was stationed there, he married Mary Anna Randolph Custis who was Martha Washington's great-granddaughter. They lived in her family home in Arlington on a hill overlooking Washington D.C. They had seven children which were three sons and four daughters. Lee served as an assistant in the chief engineer's office in Washington from 1834 to 1837, but then he spent the summer of 1835 helping to lay out the boundary line between Ohio and Michigan. In 1837, he got his first independent important job. As a first lieutenant of engineers, he supervised the engineering work for St. Louis harbor and for the upper Mississippi and Missouri rivers. His work there earned him a promotion to captain. In 1841, he was transferred to Fort Hamilton in New York harbor, where he took charge of building fortifications. When war broke out between the United States and Mexico in 1846, the army sent Lee to Texas to serve as assistant engineer under General John E. Wool. All his superior officers, especially General Winfield Scott, were impressed with Lee. Early in the war, Lee supervised the construction of bridges for Wool's march toward the Mexican border. He then did excellent work on scouting trips. Lee later was helping General Winfield Scott plan a great battle. The Army was about to attack Vera Cruz, a large Mexican town on the sea. The attack began. Soldiers fired huge guns at the walls of Vera Cruz. One of the men at the guns happened to be Robert's brother, Smith Lee. When he could, Lee went to stand by his brother's gun. "I could see his white teeth through all the smoke of the fire"1 Lee said, in a letter to Mary. The Mexicans soon gave up Vera Cruz. General Scott thanked Lee for his work. Now the Army could move on to the Mexican capital. The march to Mexico City would be hard. General Scott asked Lee to find the best way to go. And he asked him to see what Santa Anna, the Mexican general, was doing. To get news for Scott, Lee went behind the lines of enemy soldiers. This was dangerous work. Once when Lee was behind enemy lines he heard voices. Mexican soldiers were coming to drink at a spring. Lee jumped under a log. More Mexicans came. They sat on the log and talked. Lee had to hide there until dark. Lee found out many things for Scott. Once he even found a secret road for the army. He was extremely brave. At Cerro Gordo he led the first line of men into battle. The Americans won. Lee then wrote to his son, Custis, "You have no idea what a horrible sight a field of battle is."2 Then came the biggest battle of the war. The Americans attacked a fort outside Mexico City. Lee planned the attack. For days he worked without sleep. He found out where the Mexican soldiers were. He knew where to put the big guns. It was easy for the Army to take the fort. The American Army marched right into Mexico City. The war was now officially over. Lee's engineering skill made it possible for American troops to cross the difficult mountain passes on the way to the capital. During the march to Mexico City, Lee was promoted