m-mmm ('lass '-k >RESENTED ISY fhe Suppressed Truth ABOUT THE Assassination OK a ibraham Lincoln Written and Compiled by BURKE McCARTY, Ex-Romanist Address Burke McCarty Publisher. Lock Box 1618 Washing-ton, D. C. •er cover $1.00 Cloth bound $1.50 1 922 ; Dedicated to The Voters of To-morrow. Copyright — by — Burke McCarty, Lock Box 1618, Washington, D. C. 1922. . -J, >M (Copyright) By the "Leaden Bullet" April 14, 1865. PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN CONTENTS Page Introduction 9 Chapter I. Destruction of this Republic Plotted by European Monarchists 11 Chapter II. The "Society of Jesus", the En- gine of Destruction 20 Chapter III. "The Saint Leopold Foundation" Spy System 30 Chapter IV. The Turning Point in Lincoln's Life 43 Chapter V. When the Pope was King 64 Chapter VI. Lincoln Takes up the Burden 76 Chapter VII. Assembling the Chosen Assassins 97 Chapter VIII. The Blackest Deed in American History 126 Chapter IX. The Trials of the Assassins by Documentary Evidence 140 Chapter X. The Trail of the Arch Conspira- tor—John H. Surratt 167 Chapter XL The Trial of John H. Surratt 203 Chapter XII. Summing it all up: Two and Two 231 LINCOLN MEMORIAL, POTOMAC PARK, WASHINGTON, D. C. One of the most magnificent monuments in the world, dedi- cated Memorial Day, 1922, to the great American the Jesuit?, thought they had destroyed on April 14, 1865. The Conspiracy of Silence on the Death of Abraham Lincoln INTRODUCTION In all the bloody history of the Papacy, perhaps in no one man, as in Abraham Lincoln, was there concentrated such a multitude of reasons for his an- nihilation by that system. In all the history of the political assassination plots by the enemies of freedom, which for cold cal- culation, malicious methods, relentless pursuit, subtle cunning, and cowardly execution, nothing can exceed the cruel murder of this greatest of all Americans, — for President Lincoln was the living, breathing type in which was fulfilled the triumph of the New Con- cept of Popular Government, the central postulate of which is, the consent of the governed. It was the life of Abraham Lincoln which placed this form of government forever outside an "experiment" where its enemies persisted in endeavoring to keep it. That a barefoot, nameless boy on poverty's path could, by his own efforts, reach the highest office in the gift of the American people, gave the lie to the "Divine Eight" croakers, and merited their most unceasing hatred. Barring the martyrdoms of Jesus Christ and Joan D' Arc, the methods used in Abraham Lincoln's assassination will stand pre-eminent in point of malice and cruelty, and strange as it may seem, the same diabolical cunning which nerved the hand of the assassin has pursued Lincoln beyond the grave, and has been largely successful in hiding from the public all details of his physical destruction, a crime, in the eyes of the writer, which almost outstrips the first, for by this conspiracy of silence on his death, the youth of America are being deprived of the knowl- edge of the details of the greatest tragedy in their country's history. 10 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN This appalling fact has been the one big urge which inspired the writing of this book, the contents of which represent only a part of the result of leisure hours spent in public and private libraries in the va- rious cities, covering a period of the past seven years, — gathering a fact here and one there, from books, magazines, newspapers and court records, filing them away, and finally condensing the salient points be- tween the covers which you now hold in your haiid. I feel safe in stating that nowhere else can be found in one book the connected presentation cf the story leading up to the death of Abraham Lincoln, which was instigated by the "Black" pope, the General of the Jesuit Order, camouflaged by the "White" pope, Pius IXth, aided, abetted and financed by other "Di- vine Righters" of Europe, and finally consummated by the Roman Hierarchy and their paid agents in this country and Canada on "Good Friday" night, April 14th, 1865, at Ford's Theatre, Washington, D. C. I am convinced that if this knowledge can be given adequate distribution and placed in possession of the boys and girls of the public elementary schools, for whom it is especially designed to reach, that the wicked boast of the Jesuits and their lay agents, the Knights of Columbus, to "MAKE AMERICA CATHO- LIC" can never be accomplished. THE GREAT SPIRIT OF THE MARTYRED LIN- COLN WELL RISE UP AND DEFEAT HIS SLAY- ERS AND THEIR SUCCESSORS! In closing, I only ask each reader whose heart beats in unison with those of us who love our country and all that it represents, to assist in the sale of this little book, by giving it all the publicity possible, there- by joining in President Lincoln's expression of loyalty, "If ever my country is destroyed, it shall be my proud- est plume, not that I was the last to desert her, but that I NEVER DESERTED HER!" Yours Truly. Burke McCartv Chapter I. Destruction of this Republic Plotted by European Monarchists. The death of President Lincoln was the culmina- tion of but one step in the attempt to carry out the Secret Treaty of Verona, of October, 1822, a pact entered into by the "high contracting parties" of the former Congress of Vienna, Austria, which had held its sessions secret, covering the whole year of 1814-15. Simultaneously with the calling of the Congress of Vienna in 1814, Pope Pius Vllth restored the Society of Jesus (Jesuit Order) which had been abolished by Pope Clement IVth, July 21, 1773, on the grounds that it was immoral, dangerous and was a menace to the very life of the papacy. Clement was promptly .poisoned for his act. With the restoration of this order, the execution of the Secret Treaty of Verona was placed in their keeping. The Congress of Vienna was a black conspiracy against Popular Governments at which the "high con- tracting parties'" announced at its close that they had formed a "holy alliance." This was a cloak under which they masked to deceive the people. The par- ticular business of the Congress of Verona, it de- veloped, was the RATIFICATION of Article Six of the Congress of Vienna, which was in short, a prom ise to prevent or destroy Popular Governments wher ever found, and to re-establish monarchy where it had been set aside. The "high contracting parties" of this compact which were Russia, Prussia, Austria and the Pope Pius Vllth, king of the Papal States, entered intc 12 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN a secret treaty to do so. That the reader may get some idea of the villainy of these two Congresses and their relation to our government, and to the death of Abraham Lincoln, I quote excerpts from that document below, as it appears on the Congres- sional Record of April 25, 1916, placed there by Sena- tor Robt. L. Owen and as it is recorded in the Diplo- matic Code, by Elliott, page 179: SECRET TREATY OF VERONA The undersigned specially authorized to make some additions to the treaty of the Holy Alliance, after having exchanged their respective creden- tials, have agreed as follows: ARTICLE 1. The high contracting powers be- ing convinced that the system of representative government is equally as incompatible with the monarchial principals as the maxim of the sov- ereignity of the people with the divine right, engage mutually, in the most solemn manner to use all their efforts to put an end to the system of representative governments, in whatever country it may exist in Europe, and to prevent its being introduced in those countries where it is not yet known. ARTICLE 2. As it cannot be doubted that the liberty of the press is the most powerful means used by the pretended supporters of the rights of nations to the detriment of those of princes, the high contracting parties promise re- ciprocally to adopt all proper measures TO SUP- PRESS IT, NOT ONLY IN THEIR OWN STATE BUT ALSO IN THE REST OF EUROPE. ARTICLE 3. Convinced that the principles of religion contribute most powerfully to keep na- tions in the state of passive obedience which they owe to their princes, the high contracting ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 13 parties declare it to be their intention to sustain in their respective states, those measures which the clergy may adopt with the aim of amelior- ating their own interests, so intimately connect- ed with the preservation of the authority of the princes; and the contracting powers join in offer- ing THEIR THANKS TO THE POPE FOR WHAT HE HAS ALREADY DONE FOR THEM, AND SOLICIT HIS CONSTANT COOPERATION IN THEIR VIEWS OF SUBMITTING THE NATIONS. ARTICLE 4. The situation of Spain and Port- ugal unite unhappily all the circumstances to which this treaty has particular reference. The high contracting parties, in confiding to France the care of putting an end to them, engaged to assist her in the manner which may at least compromit them with their own people and the people of France by means of a subsidy on the part of the two empires of 20,000,000 of francs every year from the date of signature of this treaty to the end of the war. ARTICLE 5. In order to establish in f he peninsula the order of things which existed be- fore the revolution of Cadiz, and to insure the en- tire execution of the articles of the present treaty, the high contracting parties give to each other the reciprocal assurance that as long as their views are not fulfilled, rejecting all other ideas of futility or other measure to be taken, they will address themselves with the shortest possible delay to all the authorities existing in their states and to all their agents in foreign countries, with the view to establish connections tending toward the accomplishment of the objects proposed by this treaty. 14 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ARTICLE 6. This treaty shall be renewed with such changes as new circumstances may g've ©ccasion for, either at a new congress, or at the court of one of the contracting parties, as soon as the war with Spain shall be terminated. ARTICLE 7. The present treaty shall be rati- fied and the ratifications exchanged at Paris within the space of six months. Made at Verona the 22nd of November, 1822. For Austria: Metternich For France: Chateaubriand. For Russia: Bernstet. For Russia : Nesselrode." When Senator Owen was questioned by members of Congress upon the meaning of the Treaty, the Record shows his reply in part as follows: "This Holy Alliance, having put a Bourbon prince upon the throne of France by force, then used France to suppress the condition of Spain, immediately afterwards, and by this very treaty gave her a subsidy of 20,000,000 francs annually to enable her to wage war upon the people of Spain and prevent their exercise of any measure of the right of self-government. The Holy Alli- aiice immediately did the same thing in Italy, by sending Austrian troops to Italy, where the people there attempted to exercise a like measure of liberal constitutional self-gov- ernment; and it was not until the printing press, which the Holy Alliance so stoutly opposed, taught the people of Europe the value of lib- erty that finally one country after another seized a greater and greater right of self-government, until now it may be fairly said that nearly all the nations of Europe have a very large measure oi self-government. "However, I wished to call the attention of the Senate to this important history in the growth ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 1ft of constitutional popular self-government. The Holy Alliance made its powers felt by the whole- sale drastic suppression of the press in Europe, by universal censorship, by killing free speech and all ideas of popular rights, an£ by the complete suppression of popular government. The Holy Al- liance having destroyed popular government in Spain, and in Italy, had well-laid plans also to de- stroy popular government in the American Col- onies which had revolted from Spain and Portugal in Central and South America under the influ- ence of the successful example of the United States." "It was because of this conspiracy against the American Republics by the European monarchies that the great English stateman, Canning, called the attention of our government to it, and our statesmen then, including Thomas Jefferson, who was still living at that time, took an active part to bring about the declaration by President Mon- roe in his next annual message to the Congress of the United States that the United States would regard it as an act of hostility to the government of the United States and an unfriendly act, it this coalition, or if any power of Europe ever undertook to establish upon the American con- tinent any control of nny American republic, or to acquire any territorial rights. "This is the so-called Monroe Doctrine. The threat under the secret treaty of Verona to sup- press popular government in the American repub- lics is the basis of the Monroe Doctrine. This se- cret treaty sets forth clearly the conflict between monarchial government and popular government, and the government of the few as against the gov- ernment of the many/' The above comments of our United States Senator before Congress in 1916, clearly defines the object and intent of these "Divine Righters" in Europe. 16 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN It will be well for the reader to understand that the church of Rome with its sixteen centuries of in- trigue, plans fifty or a hundred years ahead. The ulti- mate goal of the GREAT SCHEME is to throw the lever of time back by restoring- the Pope as the "uni- versal arbiter" from whom all the rulers of the earth must receive their authority to rule, as during the Dark Ages. The BIG IDEA of democracy, taught by Jesus Christ when he proclaimed the spiritual equality of all men, has always been hated and feared by the Je- suit System, and made the target of their venom, de- spite all their protestations of Christianity The IDEA of spiritual equality, logically and in- evitably leads to social equality which has been made practical by Popular Governments. The central Idea of Popular Government is "con- sent of the governed. ,, The first real social freedom resulted from the Protestant Reformation, led by the little German monk, Martin Luther, in 1517. This was an unpardon- able sin, — this was the death blow to the Papacy. Protestant Germany, Protestant England, and of course, Protestant United States, have been from the beginning marked by them for destruction. Ex-Cath- olic Italy and Ex-Catholic France are next in this "rule or ruin" , policy. In Protestant Denmark, Sweden and Holland, the same process of "working from within," is being pursued as it is in this country and Canada. The seeds of hate between Germany and England were planted in those two glorious Protestant coun- tries by the Jesuits so that they might develop in time to block the celebration of the Protestant Refor- mation on its four hundredth Anniversary, — an event which was planned to surpass anything of the kind the world has ever seen, a celebration which would have set Protestantism fifty years ahead. The Jesuits, anticipating this, staged the World War which completely sidetracked it. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 17 For over sixty years the Great Scheme the Vati- can and its Jesuits have been working on is, in a nut- shell, to form an ECCLESIASTICAL EMPIRE, unit- ing French Canada with our Atlantic States, Maine, i\ew Hampshire, Vermont, Massachesetts, Rhode Is- land and Connecticut, 'mis is to oe aone by annexa- tion, manipulated through corrupt politicians at vVash- ington, D. C, in much the same method as the annexa- tion of Texas was accomplished, over sixty years ago. The next big card being played by Rome is the unification of the French Canadian and Irish-Catholic vote in the New England States where the influx of Catholic Canadians is of such proportion as to cause serious consideration of loyal Americans right now. -The Church is meeting with some difficulty, owing to the deep seated dislike between the French and Irish Catholics. This, however, is being rapidly over- come by two methods: intermarriage and through the work of the Knights of Columbus which is by far the most dangerous lay organization in this country. The "Tragedy of Quebec," a book written by a Protestant Canadian, exposes the PLAN in detail, and the facts and figures given by this writer who has been a close student of the subject for many years are startling. It would be illuminating to the reader who is not familiar with this book to read it. The full plan of extending the Pope's empire on the Atlantic coast will be done by Latinizing our Southern States, a process which was begun very early in our history, prior to the Civil War. The big efforts of the Catholic Church to papalize the negro in the South should not be overlooked where great strides have been taken in that direction. The next step in the Vatican's Great Scheme is to make war between this country and Japan after the latter country has been placed under full domi- nance of the Jesuits. The priests, monks and nuns of the Roman Church have been pouring into Japan from 18 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN all over the world now lor many years with that purpose in view. The writer was tola by a Christian Japanese minister in charge of a Protestant mission in Los Angeles in reply to tne question as to why the Jesuits, who had been barred lor years from Japan, had now been permitted to enter. Jle answered that the Roman church had gotten into his country under tne guise of Mohammeuamsm, and that after it was well entrenched threw off its disguise, and his coun- try learned to its astonishment that it was to the Koman Church and its monastic orders it had opened its doors. That the Roman-Catholic-controlled trade unions in California are at the bottom of most of the agitation against the Japanese in that State is a fact; that the Roman Catholic politician, James Phelan, was sent to the United States Senate in 1913 by the solid Roman vote, and has been the prime mover in the anti-Jap agitation, is also a fact. There are many Californians, of course, outside the Roman church, who fear the Japanese menace on account of their prolific propagation, and their non- assimilative proclivities, but it is only since I have realized the activity of the Jesuits to papalize Japan,' that the real horror of the "yellow peril" has impressed itself upon me. Add Romanism to Japan, and it cer- tainly becomes terrifying in its aspect. j. am not presenting these things as a calamity howler, but I believe with careful consideration and immediate intelligent activity, the danger can be avert- ed. We must be alert and doing. And now we will take up the Roman question which is the big, overshadowing world question to- day, and it will continue to be until the Papacy is finally uprooted. We will have to take cognizance of it in Europe frequently through these pages in order to get a clear view of the impending danger to ourselves. I ask the reader to be patient and follow me closely in my hurdling of the Atlantic, back and forth, at various times which I have been ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 19 obliged to do. It is a big and perplexing question to try to simplify sufficiently for the busy non-Romanist who is so absorbed in his own affairs and who so little understands that pernicious system. The great mistake which the American non-Cath- olic people make is that they judge the Papacy by the Roman Church as they find it in this country. One can- not gauge it from this standpoint, for we must re- member that it is operating where more than five- sixths of the people are non-Romanists — in a Prot- estant country. In order to get an accurate estimate one must survey it in its native state, so to speak, — in Catholic countries where it has held sway for cen- turies. On this side of the Atlantic, for instance, we will have to contemplate it. as it is in Mexico, or Cen- tral and South America, in order to get a true esti- mate. I shall quote through these pages copiously from several books, some of which are out of print, in or- der that their messages may not be entirely lost. Chapter II. The "Society of Jesus" the Engine of Destruction. The "Society of Jesus" the members of which are referred to as the Jesuits, has absorbed the Papacy. This Society was founded by a fanatic, one Ignatius Loyola, in 1541; its object being to combat the Prot- estant Reformation of Martin Luther of 1517. Loyola was the son of a prominent Spanish family who had distinguished himself as a soldier, and by the immoral excesses of his private life, but who, owing to an accident which maimed him, was supposed to have become "converted," and during the illness which followed, the Society of Jesus was conceived in his brain, fertile with deviltry. The Society of Jesus is under the strictest mili- tary discinline, due to the military training and psy- chology of its founder. It is absolutely commanded by the "General" its head, also known as the "Black" Pope. The garb is always a plain black cassock. But here permit me to present the definition of one of its eminent "Generals" of the seventeenth century and which aptly describes it today: "The members of the Society are dispersed in every corner of the world, and divided into as many nations and kingdoms as the earth has lim- its; divisions, however, marked only by distance of places, not of sentiment ; by the differences of languages, not of affections ; by the dissemblance of faces, not of manners. In that family the Latin ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 21 thinks as the Greek, the Portugese as the Brazil- ian, the Hibernian as the Sumatran, the Spanish as the French, the English as the Flemish; and amongst so many different geniuses, no contro- versy, no contention, nothing which gives you a hint, to perceive that they have more than one. Their birthplace offers them no motive of personal interest. The same aim, same conduct, same VOW, which like a conjugal knot, has tied them together. At the least sign one man, the General, turns and returns the entire society and shapes the revolution of so large a body. "It is easy to move, but difficult to shape." (Imago Primsaeculi Societas Jesu," published by the authorisation of Mutto Vittelschi, General in 1640.) With the above authentic illumination you will be able to somewhat grasp the reason that the execu- tion of the mandate of the Holy Alliance and. secret treaty of Verona was entrusted to the members of the Society of Jesus. God save the mark! THE JESUIT OATH As a further item of interest we quote the fol- lowing excerpts of this oathbound organization. It is the oath taken now by practically all priests of the Church of Rome, and has been charged as the one tak- en by the members of the Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus. (See Congressional Record, House B^l 1523. Contested election case of Eugene C Bonniwell, against Thos. S. Butler, Feb. 15, 1913, pages 3215-16.) "I , now in the presence of Almighty God. the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Blessed Michael the Archangel, the Blessed St. John the Baptist, the Holy Aoostles, Peter and Paul, and all the Saints, sacred hosts of Heaven, and to you. my ghostlv Father, the Superior Gen- eral of the Society of Jesus, founded by St. Ig- 22 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN natius Loyola, in the Pontification of Paul the Third, and continued to the present, do by the womb of the Virgin, the matrix of God, and the rod of Jesus Christ, declare and swear that his holiness, the Pope, is Christ's Vice-regent, and is the true and only head of the Catholic or Univer- sal Church throughout the earth ; and that by the virtue of the keys of binding and loosing, given to his Holiness by my Savior, Jesus Christ, he hath power to depose heretical kings, princes, states, commonwealths and governments, all being illegal without his sacred confirmation, and that they may be safely destroyed. "Therefore, to the utmost of my power, I shall and will defend this doctrine and his Holi- ness* right and customs against all usurpers of the heretical or Protestant authority, whatever, especially the Lutheran Church of Germany, Hol- land, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, and the now pretended authority of the Church of En- gland and Scotland, the branches of the same, now established in Ireland, and on the continent of America and elsewhere .... I do now renounce and disown any allegiance as due to any heretical king, prince or state named Protestant or Liberals, or obedience to any of their laws, magistrates or officers. "I do further declare, that I will help and. assist and advise all or any of his Holiness* agents in any place wherever I shall be, and do my ut- most to extirpate the heretical Protestant or Lib- eral doctrines and to destroy all their pretended powers, legal or otherwise. "I do further promise and declare, that not- withstanding I am dispensed with to assume any religion heretical, for the propogating of the Mother Church's interest, to keep secret and pri- vate all her agents' counsels, from time to time as they may instruct me, and not to divulge di- rectly or indirectly, by word, writing, or cir- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 23 cumstances whatever; but to execute all that shall be proposed, given in cnarge or discovered unto me, by you, my ghostly lather "I ao further promise and declare, that I will have no opinion or win oi my own, or any mental reservation whatever, even as a corpse or cadaver (perinde ac cadaver) but unhesitatingly obey each and every command that I may receive from my superiors in tne Militia of the fope and Jesus Christ. "That I will go to any part of the world, whatsoever, witnout murmuring and will be sub- missive in all things whatsoever communicated to me I do further promise and declare, that I will, when opportunity presents, make and wage relentless war, secretly or openly, against all heretics, Protestants and Liberals, as I am directed to do to extirpate and exterminate them from the face of the whole earth, and that I will spare neither sex, age nor condition; and that I will hang, waste, boil, flay, strangle and bury alive these infamous heretics ; rip up the stomachs and wombs of their women and crush their in- fants' heads against the wall, in order to anni- hilate forever their execrable race. "That when the same cannot be done openly, I will secretly use the POISON CUP, THE STRANGULATION CORD, THE STEEL OF THE POINARD, OR THE LEADEN BULLET, RE- GARDLESS OF THE HONOR, RANK, DIGNITY OR AUTHORITY OF THE PERSON OR PER- SONS WHATSOEVER MAY BE THEIR CONDI- TION IN LIFE, EITHER PUBLIC OR PRIVATE, AS I AT ANY TIME MAY BE DIRECTED SO TO DO BY ANY AGENT OF THE POPE OR SU- PERIOR OF THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE HOLY FAITH OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS." 24 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The late Edwin A. Sherman, a 33rd Degree Mason of Oakland, California, in his book entitled, "The En- gineer Corps 01 Hell," quotes Chas. Sauvestre, whose work he translated from the Spanish, whicn says in part : "Such are the Jesuits. Always expelled, for- ever returning, and little by little, clandestinely, and in the darkness, tnrowing out its vigorous roots. Its wealth may be confiscated, its losses cannot be detained for they are covered. . . Con- fessors, negotiators, brokers, lenders, peddlers of pious gew gaws, inventors of new devotions to make merchandise. At tunes, mixing in politics, agitating states, and making princes tremble up- on their thrones, for tney are terrible in their hate. WOE UNTO HIM WHEN THEY TURN UPON HIM AS AN ENEMY! Its society grows and increases in riches and influence by all sorts of means; and no one can attack them, for everywhere we find men prompt to serve them, to obtain from them some advantage of position or pride .... For themselves, they are nothing, not having pompous titles, no croziers, no mitres, no capes of the prebendaries, but per- tain to that one ORDER, everywhere governing and directing ... In whatever place of the Catho- lic world a Jesuit is insulted or resisted, no matter how insignificant he may be, he is sure to be avenged, — and this we know." "The General is always surrounded by coun- sellors, professors, novices and graduates," says Michelet . . . 'prescribing friendship in the semi- naries and being prohibited to walk two by two, it is necessary to be alone, or three together, but not less, for it is well known that the Jesuits never establish any intimacy before a third, for the third is a spy ; for when there are three, which is indispensable, there cannot be found a traitor." ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 25 THE JESUIT OATH TAKEN BY THE FIRST ARCH- BISHOP OF BALTIMORE (1769) LEAVES ITS IMPRESS The papal church when expedient, follows the rule of pagan Rome to hold a conquered country in leash, and make it yield its pound of flesh, by placing over it native rulers, which is the easy way to ap- proach the people on their blind side. In 1753 an American-born boy of eighteen, one John Carroll, from Upper Marborough, Maryland, en- tered the College of the Society of Jesuits at Watteau, Flanders, to study for the Romish priesthood in that Order. The time required ordinarily for the training in that Society, is fourteen years, and, as John Carroll was not ordained until he had served sixteen years in preparation, it is safe to conclude that this American born youth was an especially well grounded "Cadaver" upon his return to the Colonies in 1769, and that his Society was justified in feeling that its interests would be competently administered. John Carroll had taken the oath from which we quoted some pages back, to "When opportunity pre- sents, make and wage relentless war, secretly or openly, against all heretics, Protestants and Liberals/' It is interesting to note that John Carroll was a first cousin to Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the only Romanist who signed the Declaration of Independence. The officials of Maryland Colony sent a committee, of which Beniamin Franklin was a member, to visit French Canada to see if help could be had from that source in the interest of the Colonies in the coming conflict with England. It was recommended by Congress that Charles Carroll ask his cousin, John Carroll, the Jesuit priest, to accompany them, honing that he would use his in- fluence in securing the assistance of the French priests in the Cause of the Colonies, an act which showed the 26 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN lack of understanding of the fundamentals and disci- pline of the Jesuit Society, by the Colonists. Of course, the expedition utterly failed, owing to the influence of the French priests and the people of French Canada, over whom "Father" John Carroll was supposed to have had the power of persuasion. Though England was an "heretical" country, the exceedingly liberal and the independent spirit of defiance in the American Colonies, was far more menacing, in the eyes of the priests, to the interests of t v e church and the di- vine righters, and Priest Carroll's Jesuit Oath pre- cluded the possibility of his having any interest in his native country, consequently he had to think in the same channel as his French compatriots in religion. That he, a few years later, merited the distinction from his church to be made the first Archbishop of Balti- more, and was permitted to live to the ripe old age of four score years, is proof positive that he served his church faithfully by strictlv adhering to his Jesuit Oath. The first Archbishop of Baltimore left his indeli- ble stamp on that diocese as was clearly demonstrated during the Civil War, for every plot to assassinate President Lincoln, and there were many, was hatched in Baltimore, — in fact, Baltimore i? the Vienna of America. The fact also must not be overlooked, that there were less than 30,000 Romanists and 25 priests in the Colonies at the breaking out of the Revolution. This, of course, was a handicap to the Reverend Car- roll. The first Archbishop of Baltimore must have been, however, thoroughly conversant with the rumblings of the Revolution in Europe, for his Society was having some "rough sledding" during the early eighteenth century when he arrived in Flanders, and its members were being driven out of first one country and then another. The great battle for political freedom was being bitterly waged between the Jesuits on one hand and Freemasonry on the other, just as in the final analy- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 27 sis of the present irrepressible conflict in the United States today, these two forces are lining up, a fact which is becoming more obvious as time goes on. They stand today as they have always stood, these Jesuits, against every principle upon which Freemasonry is founded — upon which Americanism is based. A group of French cyclopedists, led by Jean Jacques Rousseau, had embodied a new concept of government, in which the central postulate was, that the only authority to govern should come from the consent of the governed. This was whipped into shape and published early in the eighteenth century and boldly proclaimed to the world by Rousseau in his "Social Contract" — contract of society. Eleven years after, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine and other framers of our Declaration of Independence, incor- porated it in that great chart of liberty, and when the silver tones of our old Liberty Bell in Philadelphia rang it out on July 4th, 1776, it reverberated around the world and stirred the red blood of every divine- right hater to its depths: "Gravely plain the good pen lined it, And the Fifty Six all signed it; Pledged their lives to seal and bind it, True and well! Then sudden from the steeple, Clanged the tocsin of the people, Spoke the sum of history's pages, Pealed the thoughts of saints and sages, Rang the keynote of the ages, — in the Bell." ("The Liberty Bell" by Howard S. Taylor.) It is difficult now for us to realize the boldness and courage required of that little group of Colonial "Rebels" who gathered around the table in Indepen- dence Hall in Philadelphia, to sign that document. It was a grim joke, indeed, that Benjamin Franklin sprung when he took up the pen to write in his name, and said: "Gentlemen, we must now all hang together, for if we don't, we will hang separately." 28 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The success of the Revolution in the American Colonies gave the stimulation to the French to revolt in 1789. The triumphant conclusion of John Wilkes' battle for a free press in England, the rumblings of revolt in the Papal btates where tne pope was King, all these held the cradle of Popular Government in this country in security until the infant had dropped its swaddling clothes, and got a fair start to grow. John Carroll was studying in the Jesuit College in Flanders when Rousseau's Social Contract set Eu- rope ablaze with its message to the downtrodden masses. The sensation precipitated by that revolu- tionary proclamation can be but faintly imagined now. Certain it is that the pope of Rome with the rest of the crown heads of Europe saw the handwriting on the wall, if the New Idea of government were per- mitted to take root. Four years later John Carroll was a full-fledged Jesuit priest, and was returned to his native land where he had an opportunity to get a "close-up" of the work- ing out of the first Popular Government where the peo- ple were the only source of authority. In 1808 this Jesuit priest was created the first Archbishop of Baltimore, by his "Lord-God" the pope. In receiving the pallium he took a more disloyal oath ot allegiance than that as a priest, to direct the work of his Order and his church. Verily, "The ways of God are wondrous strange.'' Who would have thought that a few months later an infant son would be born to a pioneer couple in the backwoods of Kentucky, in a rude log hut, who was destined to, fifty years later, with one blow, defeat the cautiously laid plans of the Vatican, its Jesuits, the Romanoffs of Russia, the Hapsburgs of Austria and the King of Prussia! I have often pictured the baby Lincoln playing about the humble log cabin in the Kentucky woods, whose life was no different from the infant life of other children of the pioneers, except in the greater degree of poverty, and wondered if by chance in her ASSASSINS OP ABRAHAM LINCOLN 29 day dreams, Nancy Hanks Lincoln could have glimpsed the perspective in which her baby boy was destined to become the savior of this Popular Govern- ment; if, when she gathered him to her proud moth- erly heart, quieting him to sleep with a crooning lulla- by, which all mothers sing, the noble but storm-tossed future of the child she snuggled might by chance, like summer lightning, have flashed over her vision? And, in my mind's eye, I pictured the meeting on the other side of the Great Divide of this mother and son on the morning of April 15th, 1865, and the happy look of triumph in her glistening eyes as she beheld him in the immortal garb of martyrdom which his enemies had inadvertently placed upon him. Chapter III. "The Saint Leopold Foundation" Spy System. Owing to the combination of circumstances in Europe just referred to, the autocrats did not dare to "wage open war" on this government since the warning enunciated in the Monroe Doctrine. In 1828 an organization in Vienna was formed which was called the "Saint Leopold Foundation." The plan was then, to operate under the mask of religion, which would insure its safety from any governmental interference and they hoped to accomplish by intrigue and innuendo what could not be done by bullets and bayonets. The Hapsburg family of Austria was the most powerful Roman Catholic ruling family in Europe and consequently the most cruel, despotic and reactionary, and had the American people not been so absorbed in the upbuilding of the Republic, they would have detected the hypocrisy of this "holy" fraud, — the Saint Leopold Foundation. One of the Hapsburg brothers, Prince Rudolph, was a member of the Roman Curia, the Cardinal Ru- dolph Hapsburg, of Olmutz. It was easy for the Jesuits of the Vatican to operate through him as the agent for the foundation funds which poured into the United States in a stream of gold. Nor did the Vatican furnish all the funds. They were most likely furnished by the "high contracting parties," of the Holy Alliance and the "secret treaty of Verona." In short, the immense sums distributed among the bishops and archbishops of the Catholic church in this country in estab- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 31 lishing bishoprics in cities where none existed, were used solely as gigantic POLITICAL SLUSH FUNDS to corrupt and ultimately destroy the government and "set up a monarchial" one instead. One year after the Saint Leopold Foundation had been established, it received the recognition and blessing of the pope. The wonderful generosity (?) of the Hapsburg family was called to his attention. The "blessing" was conveyed at a pontifical high mass in Vienna, January, 1829, at which all of the royalty was in attendance, and the happy occasion was closed by a grand ball in the palace at night. The scum of Catholic Europe, especially from Ireland, then began pourine into this country from every nook and cranny of that poverty stricken con- tinent: in many cases, their passages being advanced from this "slush fund." The Roman bishops of every large city from New York to San Francisco, then be- gan massing this foreign vote. Tammany Hall had years before been organized, and from its very inception began a system of po- litical corruption which dominates New York's poli- tics to this very day. This situation should have stag- gered the world, but it failed to awaken the Ameri- can people except in spots. The massed Roman vote in the cities placed the balance of nolitical power in the hands of the Roman bishops and priests. Intimidation has always been the "bipr stick" used when any mnn in public office presumed to opnose the advance of these ecclesiasti- cal "bosses." With the rapidly increased foreign im- migration, these agents of the divine righters of Eu- rope operatin.tr through the Jesuits and their lay agents have made progress beyond their wildest dreams. City councils, state legislatures, and even Congress have been brow-beaten and bribed. It was boasted within a year that any seat in Congress can be bought for one hundred thousand dollars! Not only 50, but some years ago when the Chicago Con- 32 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN gressman, Wm. Lorimer's seat was contested, it was made a matter of record that this sum was the pur- chase price. A forced resignation followed. It is in- teresting to note that Mr. Lorimer's chief witness was a Catholic priest of Chicago, who testified, ac- cording to the Associated Press reports, that a peni- tent of his, had acknowledged in the confessional, that he had libeled Mr. Lorimer. The said penitent was not named, of course. A few months after Mr. Lorimer's resignation, the press dispatches notified us that he "had been received into the Catholic Church" with great ac- claim. I cite this one case merely to emphasize my point. The Saint Leopold Foundation is a great Jesuit Spy System which is not confined to the ecclesiastics of the Roman church, but embraces every element of society, from the private secretary of the President in the White House, to the Catholic servant girl em- ployed in the Protestant American families. Nor, in- deed, is it restricted to Roman Catholics, for the Jes- uits do not hesitate to use non-Catholic tools whenever it is possible. In fact, they prefer them, for in this way attention is distracted from them. In case of failure it is always preferable to use non-Catholics. The priest of every parish in this country is the king-pin in this web of spying, and reports regularly to his bishop every item of interest, directly or indirect- ly and in turn, the bishop to his archbishop, the arch- bishop to the cardinal and the cardinal to the pope. The confessional box is the Roman clearing house, whereby the Pope keeps his finger on the pulse of the world. It is a strange thing to know that no matter how densely ignorant a Roman priest may be, that is on any subject outside the things bearing on his church, that priest knows perfectly the psychology of every non-Romanist of any prominence in his district. He knows his mental attitude toward the Romish chrrch ; ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN S3 he knows what the man will think and do under cer- tain circumstances; he particularly knows if he is friendly or unfriendly to the Roman church ; he knows the extent of his wealth, and if the party is of enough importance in the community, he knows the most in- timate details and conduct of his private life. The man, on the other hand, knows little or nothing of the par- ish priest. More than likely, if he was asked, he would say that he was the Catholic priest of such a parish. If it happened to be in a town where the Catholic pop- ulation was small and of no social or political impor- tance, this would express the limit of his knowledge. If, on the other hand, he was politically ambitious and alert, the priest would be one of the first with whom he would ingratiate himself, for most of the politicians have learned to realize the political advantage of an organized vote. The sources of information which the Roman priest can tan are almost unlimited and unknown to the ordinary layman outside that corporation. The Le- opoldines are honeycombed in every avenue of civic. state and national life. There are, to begin with, the police departments of the various cities, ninety per cent of whom I may, I think, conservatively say, are Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus. Thev are always at the beck and call of the hierarchy. Their chief duty as "Catholic citizens" is to obey their bishops and the Holy See. "As God himself." (See Leo Xinth's "Great Encyclical" page 192,) Then there are their Jesuit college graduates^ in every state, who are especially trained as expert spies. If any man holding a political position refuses to prostitute that position, by yielding to the demands of the Romish priests, and persists in his stand, they use their blackmail threats, if they cannot accomplish their purpose in any other way, for, "Any means to an end" is the Jesuit motto. If there is no such knowl- edge in their possession by which to discredit or frighten him, they do not hesitate to set their traps for him, and should this fail, they are fortified to re- 34 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN sort to what is known in common parlance as a "frame-up" which is an easy matter through their "red-light" affiliations. Many a good man has been driven from public life by this route. Many a man in politics this moment, is a subservient tool of the Roman priests, because he fears the physical violence of their arson and murder gangs, or that they may drag out some family skeleton to discredit him. I am aware that these are harsh sayings, but the truth is very often shocking. The principal branches of the Leopoldines, still operating in this country under various titles, are: The German Catholic Central Verem, with headauar- ters in St. Louis and Detroit; The Third Order of St. Francis, which bids fair to sunplant, outwardly at least, the original organization ; The Catholic Laymen's Council, the League of the Sacred Heart, and the Cath- olic Women's Council. These organizations are all branches of the Leonoldinps' Sny Svstem. To name one incident in which the ramification of this spy system mav be s Q ^Te^r\r>(>^ w"HVH Mr Brown was about to appropriate, and succeeded in doing so, a fact which dem on strated that the Jesuits have not a corner on the market when it comps to cleverness. The Aurora paper had for months been receiv- ing complaints from its subscribers, to the effect that thev were being nersecuted. and if in business, boy- cotted in their home towns by Roman Catholics, and ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 35 it had been puzzling the editors as to the avalanche of complaints coming from all directions until the dis- covery of the big consignment of cancelled envelopes, a large proportion of which had the return addresses on them. It was by this means that the list was procured. The publicity which the Menace gave to this matter at the time, put a stop to the inquisition for the most part. This was an attack upon FREE PRESS which these Leopoldines were pledged to execute. This great Spy System penetrates every avenue of social life. The field of journalism has been invaded until a Roman Catholic sits at many important editori- al desks of great newspapers, from coast to coast. They fill the reportorial staffs and other departments in the front offices and it goes without saying that the presses, composing rooms and other mechanical departments are dominated by them. These Spies are members of all the important com- missions, public works, school boards, library boards, housing commissions, naturalization departments, and are even active members of "Americanization" Commit- tees. Yes, I shall go farther and say, that I doubt if there is ever an assemblage of the ministers of any Protestant church in this country that meets without the presence of the Leopoldines. Our state universities and Protestant universities are honeycombed with them. Roman priests hold professorships in several state universities! On every text book committee se- lected to pass on the books to be used in our public schools, sits a Roman priest, or his personal representa- tive. He is there for the purpose of seeing to it that every truth derogatory to the Roman Catholic church is eliminated and every thing that will in any way re- flect credit upon that institution is incorporated. This explains why it is that the extent of the knowledge of the facts leading up to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln has been carefully suppressed so that the ex- tent of the knowledge about this greatest of all trag- 36 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN edies in the history of our country does not exceed these words : ****** "President Lincoln was assassinated in Ford's Theatre, April 14th, 1865, by an actor named John Wilkes Booth. Andrew Johnson was immediately sworn into office/' The one point upon which the Roman church is and has always been exceedingly ' 'broad" is in regard to its members in the saloon and red-light districts of the cities. Have you ever asked yourself how it comes that a large majority of the proprietors of the whiskey places and brothels are members of that church in good standing? Did you ever hear of a saloon keeper being excommunicated by the church of Rome ? Have you any knowledge of any female member of the under- world having had the anathemas of Rome hurled at her head? I think not. I will tell you some of the reasons why. A large part of the enormous income of the Cath- olic church reaches it through these channels. The church of Rome has for centuries been a large manufacturer of wine, liquors and beers. The most expensive European wines are made by the monks and nuns of that church. The finest champagne, for instance, is manufactured by the Carthusian Monks. "Benedictine" that beverage of hell, the sole purpose of which is intended to increase prostitution, was con- cocted by a monk of the Benedictine order eleven cen- turies ago. He was later created a cardinal by the Pope for the valuable "service" which he thereby rendered his "Holy" church. The cross is blown in the glass of every bottle of Benedictine; the coat of arms of the order is im- pressed upon the wax which seals it, and the Latin motto dedicates it "To God, the purest and the best." Fifty per cent of the wines manufactured in the United States was made in California and about fifty ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 37 per cent of this was manufactured by the Roman Cath- olic church in its monasteries in that state. To illus- trate: At Los Gatos the Jesuit Fathers "Novitiate of the Sacred Heart" conducted a large winery in which three special brands of wine were made, "Villa St.- Joseph" was described in their advertising as "A dry white wine, pleasant flavor, delicate taste." "Novitiate" — a heavy bodied, sweet, rich, mellow fragrance, does not need to be bottled. One hundred gallons at $39.00. New Revenue tax ten cents a gallon, or two cents per bottle." "Retail store — Pure Altar Wine Company, East Dubuque, Ills." The above is from the advertisement which goes on to tell us that its purpose is to "supply Reverend clergy in the N. W. States and Mississippi Valley, Rev. Walter F. Thornton, S. J. (Society of Jesus, or Slick Jesuit) Rector of Novitiate of the Sacred Heart. Ap- pointed F. M. Rhonberg, Agent on personal recommen- dation of His Grace, Archbishop of Dubuque, Iowa." The following letter is official and will explain it- self: "St. Mary's Cathedral, 1100 Franklin St. San Francisco, California To whom it may concern: Having appointed the Rev. D. O. Crowley Superior of St. Joseph's Agricultural Institute, to superin- tend the making of altar wines, I commend the wine made under his supervision at the Beaulieu Vineyard, and vouch for its absolute purity. (Signed) Edw. J. Hanna, Archbishop of San Francisco." 38 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN I wish to digress further by saying that the sale of these wines was not confined to the clergy. Their retail stores in all of the large cities were opened for anyone to purchase from. At this St. Joseph's Agri- cultural Institute near Napa, California, a large part of the work was done by children — waifs, orphans and half -orphans, Priest D. 0. Crowley, the "big" ecclesias- tical boss of the politics of San Francisco, gathers in through the Juvenile Court and elsewhere to his in- stitution known as the "Catholic Youths' Directory" which occupies one of the highest nobs overlooking San Francisco in what is known as the Mission Dis- trict. These boys, ranging from ten to eighteen years old are shipped every so often up to St. Joseph's Insti- tute where they are supposed to spend their "vaca- tion" helping to manufacture the wine. Priest Crowley, bye the bye, has been for several years president of the Public School Playground Com- mission, appointed by Mayor Jas. Rolph, who is not a Roman Catholic, but I am sorry to say, a member of the Masonic Fraternity. I cite this example to show how non-Romanists are utilized as Leopoldines. Just one more instance of the connection between "Wets" and the Roman Catholic church. Twenty-one brewing, wineries and distilling companies of Chicago, Illinois, contributed twenty thousand two hundred and fifty dollars as their last gift to the Roman Catholic "Charities" in a drive which Archbishop Mundelein launched in 1918, just previous to the November election Political Slush Fund — ("Charity covers a multitude of sins.") ROME'S REPRESENTATION IN THE UNDER- WORLD The courtesan has always securely held her posi- tion in the Roman church. In the Tenth Century two infamous courtesans, one the mother of a Pope, held sway in Rome where they helped to make and un- make popes. The two most eminent Catholic modern ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 39 historians, the Rev. Doctors John Alzog and Ludwig Pastor, are authority for startling facts pertaining to these women and their influence with the Papacy. Dr. Alzog said "Marozia, who was one of the infamous daughters of the infamous courtesan, Theodora, the Elder. Marozia had Pope John Xth thrown into prison and put to death in order to have her son who reigned as Pope John the Xlth, placed on the Pontifical throne. Pope John the Xlth was throughout his whole reign, subject to the baneful influence of either his mother or brother." (See Alzog's Universal Church History, Vol. 2, page 293 and 296.) Vanozza, a married woman, the mistress of Pope Alexander Vlth, the occupant of the pontifical throne in 1492, when Columbus didn't discover America, was the mother of his four children, Caesar, Juan, Jofre and Lucrezia, who were afterward legitimatized by pa- pal bulls. This documentary evidence found in the secret archives of the Vatican is emoted by the above Cath- olic historians. During the early years of the pontifi- cate of Alexander Vlth, Vanozza occupied a palace close to the Latern palace. — the first Vatican — which the Pope had built for her, and in this residence the most brilliant social functions were held, presided over by his recognized affinity. JENNIE DALY— MADAM It is not exaggerating to say that there is not a city in the United States today but what the members of a large quota of its demi monde are faithful devotees of the Romish church who ply their profession every day in the week but who would not think of missing mass on Sunday. One of the most notorious women in Indianapolis, some years ago, was "Jennie Daly" the keeper of houses of ill repute within a gun shot of the courthouse in that city. Her flagrant association with a prominent lum- berman, a man of family for years, Warren Tate, whose 40 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN business was close to the redlight district where this coarse featured female held sway, and who untimately separated him from his family. In the early eighties Tate, who was a bad tempered, abusive man was twitted about his affinity by a man named Love during the progress of some litigation in which they were engaged. The incident occurred in the court room. Tate told Love he would "kill" him for that remark. He hurried out, went to his mill nearby, got his revolver and shot Love to death as he was coming down the court house steps. As the threat was made in the presence of wit- nesses, Tate who was arrested for murder in the first degree, had to use the bulk of his fortune during the sensational trial which followed, to save his neck. Public opinion, naturally was highly in the favor of the prosecution and it was an open secret that Jen- nie Daly spent ninety thousand dollars of her money in Tate's defense, and that she finally threatened every- one connected with the case that if he was convicted she would,"tell all she knew." Strange as it may seem, the murderer was allowed to go free. During all these years Jennie Daly was a regular attendant at the Roman Catholic church, and was a generous donor. She finally, after amassing a large fortune, "retired from business," purchased a preten- tious residence in a respectable part of the city, and she and Tate married and lived there. At this time she was a pew-holder in St. Josenh's Catholic church. After some years Tate was taken ill. and faithful daughter of the church that she was, she called in the narish priest who formally received this man into its fold. He was buried in a consnicious place in the Catholic ceme- tery south of that city where his widow erected a beau- tiful monument to his memory. In a few years she fol- lowed. She was given all the "consolations" within the gift of the Romish church, and at the Requiem Mass at which she was buried the great eulogv which the priest delivered over this notorious prostitute aroused the indignation of many of the decent, respectable par- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 41 MONUMENT OF NOTORIOUS "JENNIE DALY' Keeper of "resorts" in Indianapolis in the early 80's. "Faith- ful daughter of the Holy Church". 42 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ishioners. The dust of the righteous mingles with that oi these two scandalous characters, tor were they not "obedient children of the Holy Mother Church ?" The only unforgiveable sin in the Jtiomish corporation is to tell the truth about it. Jennie Daly proved herseif to have been a useful devotee, generous and faithful to the end, and was so rewarded. In San Francisco the "Jennie Daly" happens to be a Spanish woman in close proximity to one of the large churches there, who may be seen hurrying to early mass on almost any Sunday morning. In San Francisco, however, I might say there are hundreds of the demi monde devotees of this church. So I might go on, ad lib, ad nauseum. I wish my readers to get a true estimate of the ramification of this wicked system which is responsi- ble for the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. You must remember that some of the most valuable in- formation is poured into the listening ear of the Rom- ish priest in the confessional box by this route. You must know the real significance of what they mean when they tell you that they intend to "Make America Catholic." You cannot defeat an enemy which you do not understand. You can never have a conviction strong enough to stir you to fight this common enemy of ours, unless you do, and this is the motive of the writer. „ ,..*m The clean, pure, upright life, public and private, of Abraham Lincoln, was his protection from these Leopoldines. There never was an act of his that would have placed this great American in their power. This fact alone was sufficient to merit their implacable hatred, and it did. And now let us hasten on and trace the soft footfalls of these Jesuits, step by step as they shadowed the public life of our beloved mar- tyr. Chapter IV, The Turning Point In Lincoln's Life. While the Society of Jesus was organizing its de- structive forces in Vienna under the title of the St.- Leopold Foundation, in 1828, two boys from the tall timbers of Spencer County, Indiana, in their teens, guided their flatboat which they had spent weeks in making, toward the wharf in New Orleans, Louisiana. One was a tall, awkward youth, with frank gray eyes, tanned skin, a mouth of generous proportions, a shock of rather coarse black hair on a well-shaped head, which was topped by a coonskin cap, commonly worn by the men and boys from the "backwoods" of the interior. When the boat holding its small cargo was within reach of the pier, the taller lad climbed to it with the agility of a cat, seized the rope, tied the boat to the pier, and helped his thick-set companion up. This done, the boys strode away, soon lost in the crowd. They attracted no special attention from the pedes- trians for these pioneer young merchants frequently visited the great southern metropolis. They were busy taking in the sights of a real city for the first time and it is not difficult to fancy the impressions and wonderment at what they saw, and their exchange of ideas while making their rounds. There was one incident, however, which made a lifelong impression and proved to be the turning point in the taller boy's life, this lad who measured six feet two. Their attention was directed to a large crowd by the loud voice of a man towering above it. He had long, black hair, loose flowing tie, wore a large slouch hat, was dressed in the garb of a city man, and was 44 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN calling out in the language of an auctioneer, empha- sizing his points with the crack of a black snake whip. The boys moved over, pushing their way through the crowd made up of almost every type from the gentleman in broadcloth down to the street urchin, nor did they stop until they had reached the inside of the circle around the large block upon which stood a young negro, about the age of the two youths whose curiosity had drawn them there. The colored lad was ordered to display his teeth, the fitness of his mus- cles, which stood out like great brown cords, demon- strating his splendid physical strength. The bidding was snappy, being worked up by the expert tactics of the auctioneer, whose facetious re- marks brought many a coarse guffaw from the by- standers. Finally, the hammer banged down on the table, which was the signal that the lad had been sold to the highest bidder, the deal was closed. A shrill cry rang out, followed by the stifled sobs of a beautiful mulatto girl, whose refined fea- tures, glossy black hair, hanging carelessly to her waist, betokened the dominance of the white blood in her veins. She was one of the "pacel" of slaves who was to be auctioned off the following morning, and was the BRIDE of' the boy who had just been dis- posed of. There was not the slightest attention paid to the incident for the details of the business transaction in human souls were being completed by the parties of the first and second parts. The crowd quickly dis- persed as the "show" was over for that day. The two boys from the "timbers" walked quickly away. Finally, as they were nearing the place where their boat was secured, our tall friend turned quickly to his companion and said: "John, if I ever get a chance to hit that thing, by God, I'll hit it, and I'll hit it hard." He kept his oath, but no one but God and the Angels, as they looked down that night, knew the time nor the place, but God knew then that the deft brown hand which tossed the rope lightly into ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 45 that old flatboat, would one day sign the emancipa- tion of three million slaves! Permit me here to give a "close-up" of our boy hero twenty-six years later, — a pen picture dispatched by a reporter for the Boston Journal who covered the debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Doug- las, which made both of these men famous. The State Convention had nominated Mr. Lincoln for the United States Senate. The report was as fol- lows : "The men are entirely dissimilar. Mr. Douglas is a thickset, finely built, courageous man and has the air of self-confidence that does not a little to inspire his supporters with hope. Mr. Lincoln is a tall, lank man. awkward, apparently diffident, and when not speaking, has neither firmness nor fire in his eye. He has a rich, silvery voice, enunciates with great dis- tinctness, and has a fine command of language. He commenced by a review of the points Mr. Douglas had made. In this he shows great tact and his retorts though gentlemanly, were sharp and reached to the core of the subject in dispute. (Lincoln) "My distin- guished friend says it is an insult to the emigrants of Kansas and Nebraska to suppose that they are not able to govern themselves. We must not slur over an argument of this kind because it happens to tickle the ear. It must be met and answered. I admit that the emigrants of Kansas and Nebraska are competent to govern themselves, but (the speaker rising to his full height) I deny the right to govern any other person, without that person's consent." The vast throng- was as silent as death; every eye was fixed upon the speaker. He then charged Mr. Douglas with doing nothing for freedom; with dis- regarding the rights and interests of the colored man, and for about forty minutes he sooke with a power we have seldom heard equaled. There was grandeur in his thoughts, a comprehensiveness in his argu- ments, and binding force in his conclusions, which were perfectly irresistible ... He was the tall man 46 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN eloquent; his countenance glowed with animation, and his eye glistened with an intelligence that made it lustrous. He was no longer awkward and ungainly, but graceful, bold, commanding. Mr. Douglas had been quietly smoking up to this time, but here he forgot his cigar and listened with anxious attention. When he arose to reply, he appeared excited, disturbed and his second effort seemed to us vastly inferior to his first. Mr. Lincoln had given him a great task, and Mr. Doug- las had not time to answer him, even if he had the abil- ity." Thus we see that Mr. Lincoln made good on his boyhood promise, "to hit that thing hard/' As early as 1856. Mr. Lincoln availed himself of his opportunity to "hit that thing hard" when he en- tered the political campaign, after an absence of sev- eral years, which he had been devoting to his law practice in Springfield, Illinois, with the intention of never leaving it again. He was drawn into the field by the infamous Dred Scott Decision rendered by the fanatical Romanist, Judge Taney. Chief Justice of the United States Suoreme bench. The Taney decision in a nutshell was, that the "Negro had no rights which the white man had to respect." This virtually placed the government endorsement on black slavery, and aroused Mr. Lincoln to action. In November, 1855, Abraham Lincoln drew down upon him the fire of Rome when he answered a wire from the Reverend Chas. Chiniquy, Catholic priest, of Kankakee, Ills., who had been engaged in a series of court suits with the bishop of the Chicago diocese, of which he was a "subject/* asking his professional services. Within twenty minutes the reply came to Chiniquy : "Yes, I will defend your life and your honor at the next May term of the court at Urbana. A. Lin- coln." Promptly on May 19th, 1856, Mr. Lincoln appeared at Urbana and consulted with Father Chiniquy, but I will let him tell you of their meeting! "He was a giant in stature, but I found him still ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 47 more a giant in the noble qualities of his mind and neart. It was impossible to converse with him live min- utes, without loving him. There was such an expression of kindness and honesty in his face, such an attractive magnetism in the man, that after a lew minutes con- versation, one felt as tied to him by all of the noblest affections of the heart. When pressing my hand, he told me: "You were mistaken when you telegraphed that you were unknown to me. I know you by reputation, as the stern opponent of the tyranny of your bishop, and the fearless pro- tector of your countrymen in Illinois. I have heard much of you from two friends, and last night your lawyers, Messrs. Osgood and Paddock, acquainted me with the fact that your bishop employs some of his tools to get rid of you. I hope it will be an easy thing to defeat his projects, and protect you against his machinations.' He then asked me how I had been in- duced to desire his services. I answered by giving the story of that unknown friend, a lawyer, who had advised me to have Mr. Lincoln — for the reason that he was the best and most honest man in Illinois. He smiled at my answer with that inimitable and unique smile which we may call the 'Lincoln smile' and repli- ed: 'That unknown friend would have been more cor- rect had he told you that Abraham Lincoln was the ugliest lawyer in the country,' and he laughed out- right." (Chiniquy's Fifty Years in the Church of Rome.) The defeat of Rome in this celebrated case by Mr. Lincoln; his terrific arraignment of the "perjuring gang of priests" who had left no stone unturned to ruin Father Chiniquy by a false accusation against him in which it was charged by the infamous priest La Bell that Mr. Chiniquy had made an attack upon the sister of the former. On the night before the case was to go to the jury, Mr. Lincoln, himself, had almost given up hope of an acquittal, notwith- standing the fact that he was convinced of Father Chiniquy's innocence. He frankly told Chiniquy of 48 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN his fears and his last admonition to the distressed and persecuted man was: "My dear Mr. Chiniquy, tnough I hope tomorrow to destroy the testimony 01 LaB^U against you, I must concede that I see great danger ahead. There is not the least doubt in my mind that every word he has said is a sworn he, but my fear is, that the jury thinks differently. I am a pretty good judge of these matters, — I fear that our jurymen think you are guilty — I have never seen two such skillful rogues as those two priests. There is really a diabolical skill in the plan they have con- cocted to ruin you — the only way to be sure of a favorable verdict tomorrow, lis that: God Almighty would take our part and show your innocence! Go to Him and pray, for He alone can save you." Surely a more direct answer to prayer was never received, for that very night Father Chiniquy spent almost the entire time on his knees interceding that his innocence might be established, when at three o'clock in the morning he answered a knock on his door, and there stood Mr. Lincoln, "his face beaming with joy" as Chiniquy expressed it, — "Cheer up, Mr. Chiniquy, I have the perjured priests in my hands. Their diabolical plot is known, and if they do not fly away before the dawn of day, they will sureiy be lynched. Bless the Lord, you are saved!" The wide publicity given the ca>se in Chicago through the press had brought out the fact that Chini- quy would probably be convicted. This was read by the French Catholics and brought to light two wit- nesses, two women who were present in priest La Bell's house when he offered his sister two sections of land if she would swear falsely against Father Chiniquy. La Bell allayed her scruples by assuring her he could forgive her sin if she would confess to him. (Priests' relatives rarely ever confess to them, if it can be avoided). One of these female witnesses whose conscience was aroused by the unjust position in which Father Chiniquy had been placed, came to Springfield that night and told the facts to Mr. Lin- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 49 coin. The priests left town early in the morning, fearing the consequences as public opinion had been strongly against them, and La Bell's lawyer asked that the case be dismissed, which was granted. Mr. Lincoln did not permit the priests to go un- scathed, however, and in a most terrific scorching at their audacious attempt to corrupt the courts, he closed his rebuke as he towered above his auditors with these words : "May it please your honor, gentlemen of the jury and American citizens, this conspiracy, I am aware, has failed in its efforts, but I have a few words which I wish to say." He then went on and depicted the career of Father Chiniquy, how he had been unjustly persecuted, and in conclusion said: "As long as God gives me a heart to feel, a brain to think, or a hand to execute my will, I shall devote it against that power which has attempted to use the machinery of the courts to destroy the rights and character of an American citizen.'" And this prom- ise made by Abraham Lincoln in his maturer years he also kept. That same year when he entered the political field, tearing to tatters, as no other man could, Taney's Dred Scott Decision, in favor of black slavery, he fully understood the motive power behind it was Rome. Whenever Lincoln "hit a thing," he "hit it hard." From that time on the black clouds of Jesuitism were fast gathering about the life of Abraham Lin- coln. These enemies followed his path as a shadow fol- lows sunshine. From that moment his doom was writ- ten in letters of blood. A remarkable thing transpired, when, after the trial, Mr. Chiniquy asked Mr. Lincoln for his bill. While he was drawing up a note for $50.00, as his client had requested, Mr. Lincoln said to him : "Father Chiniquy, what are you crying for? You ought to be the happiest man alive. You have beaten your enemies and come out triumphant; they have fled in disgrace." To which the emotional Frenchman re- 50 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN plied : "I am not weeping for myself, but for you, sir. They will kill you ; and let me tell you this, if I were in their place and they in mine, it would be my sole, my sworn duty, to take your life myself, or to find a man to do it." Chiniquy was right. They found their man. LINCOLN THE THIRD PRESIDENT ASSASSIN- ATED. The murder of five presidents of this Republic, by these enemies of Popular Governments in less than sixty years, is a toll which is worthy, it would seem to the writer, of the most serious consideration of the American people. Five presidents of this Re- public in 59 years were assassinated ; two by the poison cup and three by the leaden bullet. Abraham Lincoln was the third president assas- sinated; two before him had been given the "Poison Cup." Indeed, poison had been administered to Presi- dent Lincoln, according to the Chas. Selby letter to Booth which was a conspicuous government exhibit in the trials of Mrs. Mary E. Surratt and the other con- spirators, which stated: "The cup failed us once, and might again." There were two things the ultra-pro-slavery leaders of the South had been urging for years by which they expected to make the breach for their entering wedge. One was the invasion of Cuba; the other, the annexation of Texas. The fine Italian hand is easily discernible in both. An invasion of Cuba would have meant war with Catholic Spain, Catholic France, Catholic Austria, Catholic Belgium, and, of course, Italy, where the Pope was king of his dominion. What chance would our young Republic have had in case they succeeded? Disruption? Not only disruption but total annihila- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 51 tion of Popular Governments and the setting up of the monarchial institutions pledged at Congress of Vienna in 1814, and ratified at Verona in 1822. The PLAN of these imperialistic conspirators was to wipe out the little Republic of Mexico where the Liberals had succeeded, under the leadership of Juarez, the half-indian, rebellious ex-priest, in throw- ing off the Spanish and Papal yokes. Juarez had been elected president of Mexico when Civil War broke out in the United States. During this time the new popular government was progressing rapidly in Mexico. The first official act, was the CONFISCATION of all the Roman church property, which included over thirty-five per cent of the most valuable and choicest land and holdings, There was a certain line of policy which these monarchical plotters were pursuing in this country through the Leopoldines. The Slave question was be- coming more acute all the time. The Jesuit-controlled leaders only, were aware of the PLAN. The masses of the Southern people had no real knowledge of it. They were not permitted to have, but their political leaders had. The masses of any people cannot- be corrupted. The strong sense of justice and right and fairness which God has implanted in each human heart at birth, unless destroyed by some evil influence, or system, will invariablv spring into action at a crisis, if they are permitted to have a clear understanding of the issue. As a matter of fact their very instinct of self- preservation sharpens their judgment and strength- ens their resolutions. The only instances of wrong de- cisions, or actions at such times, comes from false, wicked leaders. I say again, that it was the evil, "Un-christian, un-American influence of the Roman Church" that dominated and controlled the ultra-pro-slavery leaders, which led on to its own destruction. They carried on a constant "Rule or ruin" policy in state and national af- fairs. They were, in fact, the strong element in the beginning but with the advent of the Abolitionists of 52 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN the North, a weakening of their hold began, for the SLAVERY was thrust out in the open and could not be further obscured. First President Assassinated. In 1841 General Wm. Henry Harrison of Ohio, was elected President by a large majority. The loyalty to the Union of General Harrison was above ques- tion, and it was out of the power of the Leopoldines to defeat him. It was with his election that the "Big Stick" of intimidation was first raised when political intrigue had failed. In his inaugural address, which was a masterpiece, President Harrison clearly, definitely and finally cut any ground for hope from under them, which these enemies to the Union of States might have had when he said: "We admit of no government by divine right, believing that so far as power is concerned, the beneficent Creator has made no distinction among men; that all are upon an equality, and that the only legitimate right to govern, is upon the ex- press grant of power from the governed. " With these unmistakable words President Har- rison made his position clear; he hurled defiance to the Divine Right enemies of our Popular Government. Aye, he did more — for those were the words that signed his death warrant. Just one month and five days from that day, President Harrison lay a corpse in the White House. He died from arsenic poisoning, ad- ministered by the tools of Rome. The Jesuit oath had been swiftly carried out: "I do further promise and declare that I will, when opportunity presents, make and wage, relent- less war, secretly or openly, against all heretics, protestants and Liberals, as I am directed to do, to extirpate them and exterminate them from the face of the earth . . . , Jesuit Oath Fulfilled Five Times in Sixty Years. "By the Poison Cup" April 4, 1341 President Wm. Henry Harrison "By the Poison Cup' July 5, 1850 President Zachary Taylor By the "Leaden Bullet" July 2, 1881 By the "Leaden Bullet", Sept. 6, 1901 President James A. Garfield President William McKinley 54 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "That when the same cannot be done openly, I will secretly use the poison cup regard- less of the honor, rank, dignity, or authority of the person or persons .... whatsoever may be their condition in life, either public or private, as I at any time may be directed so to do by any agent of the Pope or Superior of the Brotherhood of the Holy Faith of the Society of Jesus." Allow me to quote for you from U. S. Senator Benton's "Thirty Years View," volume 11, page 21, regarding the death of President Harrison : "There was no failure of health or strength to indicate such an event or to excite apprehen- sion that he would not go through his term with the same vigor with which he commenced it. His attack was sudden and evidently fatal from the beginning." Vice President John Tyler, who had been ap- proached by these assassins previous to the election of himself and Harrison, had replied to their interro- gations on the annexation of Texas question : "If I should ever become president, I would exert the entire influence of that office to ac- complish it." President Tyler made good his promise and the annexation of Texas which was tricked through, caused the resignation of every member of President Harrison's Cabinet, with the exception of Daniel Web- ster, but let us again quote from Benton's "Thirty Years' View:" "He (Webster) had remained with Mr. Ty- ler until the Spring of 1843, when the progress of the Texas annexation scheme carried on pri- vately, not to say clandestinely, had reached a point to take an official form, and to become the subject of government negotiation, though still ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 55 secret. Mr. Webster, Secretary of State, was an obstacle to that negotiation. He could not be trust- ed with the secret, much less conduct the negotia- tions. How to get rid of him was a question of some delicacy. Abrupt dismissal would have re- volted his friends. Voluntary resignation was not to be expected .... A middle course was fallen upon — that of compelling a resignation. Mr. Ty- ler became reserved and indifferent to him. Mr. Gilmer and Mr. Upshur, with whom he had few affinities, took but little pains to conceal their distaste to him Mr. Webster felt it and told some of his friends. They said "resign." He did and his resignation was accepted with an alacrity which showed it was waited for. Mr. Up- shur took his place and quickly the Texas negotia- tions became official, still secretly. (Thirty Years' View, P. 562.) Circumstances pointed to the Messrs. Gilmer and Upshur, as being the actual assassins of President Har- rison. Thus, at last, they accomplished, after years of effort, one of their daring schemes — the annexation of Texas. And at the close of the chapter in Senator Ben- ton's book, we read this significant bit of information which should be well pondered : "That the deceased President had been closely preceded and was rapidly followed by the deaths of almost all of his numerous family, sons and daughters/' That is "extirpation" with a vengeance, is it not? WHOLESALE extirpation. In fact, there was but one of his eight children, a son, permitted to live. INTIMIDATION was the covert motive behind this wholesale assassination of the Harrison family of Liberal "heretics/' whose distinguished father had 56 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN been martyred for his belief in the POPULAR GOV- ERNMENT of which he had been made the highest representative by the PEOPLE. THE ASSASSINATION OF ZACHARY TAYLOR. As these plotters against the Union had tried President Harrison out on the annexation of Texas, they used the invasion of Cuba as the test for Zach- ary Taylor, and had their plans ready to launch their nefarious scheme in the early part of his administra- tion, but from the very beginning President Taylor snuffed out all hope of its consummation during his term. In his first message to Congress, he said.: "But attachment to the UNION of States should be fostered in every American heart. For more than half a century, during which kingdoms and empires have fallen, this Union has stood un- shaken In my judgment its dissolution would be the greatest of calamities, and to avert that should be the steady aim of every American. Upon its preservation must depend our own hap- piness and that of generations to come. Whatever dangers may threaten it, I shall stand by it and maintain it in its integrity to the full extent of the obligations imposed, and power conferred on me by the Constitution. " There was no quibbling in this. The pro-slavery leaders had nothing to count on in Taylor, therefore they decided on his assassination. While these poli- ticians were not influential enough to name the Presi- dent, they were cunning enough to be able to control the nomination of the Vice President, and it goes with- out saying that they always chose a man who was in full sympathy with their plans. They pursued this as ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 57 PRESIDENT JAMES BUCHANAN Given "Poison Cup" at the National Hotel, Washington, D. C, February, 1857, but escaped in a wholesale poisoning in which fifty were affected and thirty-eight died. 58 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN the next best thing. It had become practically a "trade" between the two groups of politicians. Millard Filmore, a staunch pro-slavery man, strong for the things his party wanted, was chosen as Vice President for Taylor. The President, knowing the cal- ibre of this running mate, had no sympathy, and as little to do with him as possible. The arch-plotters, fearing that suspicion might be aroused by the death of the President early in his administration, as in the case of President Harrison, permitted him to serve one year and four months, when on the Fourth of July, arsenic was administered to him during a cele- bration in Washington at which he was invited to de- liver the address. He went in perfect health in the morning and was taken ill in the afternoon about five o'clock and died on the Monday following, having been sick the same number of days and with precisely the same symptoms as was his predecessor, President Har- rison. I quote again from Senator Benton's "Thirty Years View:" "He sat out all the speeches and omitted no attention which he believed the decorum of his station required The violent attack be- gan soon after his return to the Presidential mansion/' (Vol. 11, P. 763.) The Vice President, Millard Filmore, was immedi- ately sworn in as President, after the death of "Old Rough and Ready" as Zachary Taylor's friends affec- tionately called him. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 59 THE ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF THE FIFTEENTH PRESIDENT The Presidential election of 1856 was a hotly con- tested one for the pro-slavery forces fully realized that never again would they be able to dominate or control the presidency. The newly AWAKENED SO- CIAL CONSCIENCE of the North had animated PUB- LIC SENTIMENT to such an extent that this would be impossible, so they were ready to take the most desperate chances to elect James Buchanan as the only presidential possibility, in whom they could have any hope. Not being absolutely certain of his dependable- ness, they resorted to their old policy of being doubly sure of his running mate and nominated John C. Breck- enridge of Kentucky. In order that the Dred Scott Decision should not in any way hazard the chances of Buchanan's election, these Jesuit schemers compelled Judge Roger E. Taney to withhold his decision until after the election. It was not published until two days after the Inauguration, March 6th, 1857. The new President proved himself a decided "Trimmer/' Although he was a Northern man, he had strongly courted the Southern leaders, and given them to understand that he was "Wifh them heart and soul." in short, he double-crossed them. He was invited to deliver an address on Washington's birthday, and made a reservation at the National Hotel, (which, by the way, was the headquarters for the Jesuit traitors) for himself and friends. The Southern leaders immediately got in touch with him with the intention of testing him out and learning precisely whether he intended to make good on his pre-election promises or not. The gentleman had had his ear to the ground ev- idently and heard the rumble of the Abolitionists' wheels, and when the committee asked for a confer- ence, he coolly informed them that he was President of. the North, as well as of the South. This change of at- titude was indicated by his very decided stand against 60 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Jefferson Davis and his party, and he made known his intention of settling the question of Slavery in the Free States to the satisfaction of the people in those States. The following quotations from the New York Herald and the Post at the time chronicled what fol- lowed : "The appointments favoring the North by the Jeff Davis faction will doubtless be accepted, and treated as a declaration of war, and a war of ex- • termination on one side or the other." (Feb. 25, 1857.) "On Washington's birthday, Buchanan's stand became known and the next day (23rd) he was poisoned. The plot was deep and planned with skill. Mr. Buchanan, as was customary with men in his station, had a table and chairs reserved for himself and friends in the dining room at the Na- tional Hotel. The President was known to be an inveterate tea drinker; in fact, Northern people rarely drink anything else in the evening. South- ern men prefer coffee. Thus, to make sure of Bu- chanan and his Northern friends, arsenic was sprinkled in the bowls containing the tea and lump sugar and set on the table where he was to sit. The pulverized sugar in the bowls used for coffee on the other tables was kept free from the poison. Not a single Southern man was affected or harmed. Fifty or sixty persons dined at the table that evening, and as nearly as can be learned, about thirty-eight died from the effects of the poison." "President Buchanan was poisoned, and with great difficulty his life was saved. His physicians treated him fenderstandingly from instructions given by himself as to the cause of his illness, for he understood well what was the matter." "Since the appearance of the epidemic, the tables at the National Hotel have been almost ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 61 empty. But more remarkable than the appear- ance of the epidemic itself, is the supineness of the authorities of Washington, in regard to it." "Have the proprietors of the Hotel, or clerks, or servants, suffered from it? If not, in what re- spect did their diet and accommodations differ from those of the guests (Northern) ?" "There is more in this calamity than meets the eye. It is a matter that should not be trifled with/' (N. Y. Post, March 18, 1857.) Thus again, we see the Jesuits "found their man" and kept their oath that : "I do further promise and declare, that I will have no opinion or will of my own, or any mental reservation whatsoever, even as a corpse or cada- ver, but I will unhesitatingly obey each and every command that I may receive from my superiors in the Militia of the Pope, and of Jesus Christ." "That when the same cannot be done openly, I will secretly use the poison cup . . . the steel of the poinard, or the leaden bullet, regardless of honor, rank, dignity or authority, either public or private, as I at any time may be directed to do." The close call to death frightened and made James Buchanan the most subservient tool the Jesuits ever had. An old friend who visited him in Washington a few months after, said he had "aged twenty-five years.'" He had been the picture of health, robust and straight as an arrow, when he arrived in Washington for his Inauguration. After he had gotten his dose he was emaciated and bent. An item from the Newark News Advertiser of March 18th, 1857, said: 62 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "SYMPTOMS OF THE ATTACK AND NAMES OF SOME OF THE MURDERED DEAD." "A persistent diarrhoea, in some cases accom- panied by violent vomiting, and always with a most distressing loss of strength and spirits in the person. Sometimes the person for one day would be filled with the hopes of recovery, then relapse again to loss of spirits and illness." "Elliott Eskridge, the nephew of President Buchanan, died from the effects of the poisoning." During the Buchanan administration seven States seceded, headed by South Carolina, taking seven forts, four arsenals and one Navy Yard, and the United States Mint at New Orleans, with five hundred and eleven thousand dollars. The total value of the govern- ment property stolen at this time was TWENTY-SEV- EN MILLION DOLLARS AND EIGHT MILLIONS OF INDIAN TRUST BONDS! Allow me here to give the following graphic pic- ture of the situation in 1850-60, taken from a eulogy, delivered on Wendell Phillips in Boston, April 9th, 1884, by the Rev. Dr. Archibald H. Grimke of Washington, D. C, one of the most scholarly and eloquent thinkers of his race: "But when the year 1850 came and the slave power hung its Black bill over the Free States, non-resistance had no longer any place in the conflict. The time for argument had passed; the time for arms had arrived. On the first wave of this momentous change Wendell Phillips mounted to leadership. His speeches were the first billows breaking in prophetic fury against the South. They were the first blasts of the tempest; the first shock on the utmost verge of the Civil War. Forcible resistance of the Black bill was now obedience to God . . . The passage of the Bill was the actual opening of hostilities between two sec- tions. The Union from that moment was in the state of war. Of course there were not then any ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 63 of the visible signs of war, — no opposite armies — two belligerent governments. ... It was none the less real, however The peacable surrender of a fugitive slave becomes now treason to freedom. Wendell Phillips comprehended the gravity of the situation. He refused to cry peace when there was no peace. He answered the Southern manifesto with the thunder of his great speech on the an- niversary of the rendition of Sims. . .He is in com- mand and has called for guns. . . He saw clearly that the danger of the reform lay in the stupor and indifference which repeated executions under the law would produce. "The South was united and highly organized, impelled by a single purpose, and in possession of the whole machinery of government. He saw the North timid, irresolute, sordid, drugged by Whigs and Democrats, and frozen with the fear of dis- union. . . Peace was slavery, and sleep was death. The only hope of freedom lay now in the finger that could pull the trigger. This might beat back the advancing apathy and save the citadel of lib- erty. It is the glory of Phillips that he saw this. .... He was an army in himself. His eloquence poured out month after month, and year after year, a kind of imminent presence. . . . the very air of the Free States vibrated with the disembod- ied soul of his mighty invectives. . . Shock after shock has loosened the ice from the conscience and courage of the North. The Republican party is born, and then comes the first political freedom. Abraham Lincoln has entered the White House, and Jeff Davis has turned his back upon Washing- ton forever. The trial morning is rising gloomily upon the republic. The gray light is haunted with strange voices, winged portents, bloody appari- tions. Right and Wrong, Freedom and Slavery have reached the plains of '60 !" Thus we have been given a glimpse of the decade from the murder of Taylor to the Election of Lincoln. Chapter V. When The Pope Was King. That Pope Pius IXth conspired with Napoleon nird to take advantage of the conflict between the North and the South in this country and to with one blow destroy both Popular Governments of Mexico and the United States, is beyond question. During the years from 1864 to '65 the activity of these Jesuits in Europe was redoubled. There is no doubt that they were not in close touch with every step and phase of the Rebellion in this country. In 1856 Prince Maximillian of Austria, was called to Rome where a marriage had been arranged through ecclesias- tical and royal intrigue between himself and the Prin- cess Carlotta, daughter of King Leopold Ilnd of Bel- gium, thus uniting two of the strongest Catholic powers in Europe. The next step was the marriage of this royal couple in the Cathedral at Vienna. In April, 1864, by the orders of the pope, they were crowned Emperor and Empress of Mexico at Pontifical High Mass and amidst great rejoicing. On April 14, 1864, just one year to the day, previous to Lincoln's assassination, this royal couple set sail in an Austrian ship of war for Mexico. They put in at Cevita Vecchia, the port in the Papal States, and were received at the Vatican by the most elaborate ceremonies which had ever been extended by a pope to royalty. After several days of these honors and being loaded down with the papal blessings they again resumed their journey across the Atlantic. Maximillian had been, during a previous visit to Napoleon Illrd and his Empress Eugenia, assured of the assistance of thirty thousand French and Belgium troops for his invasion into Mexico, the specific ob- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 65 ject of which was the destruction of the young Repub- lic already established under Juarez. These troops were poured in and were being supported by the Mexican people. It had been impressed upon Maximillian at the Vatican that his first official act must be complete restoration of all the church property and ecclesiasti- cal "rights'' of the clergy which had been confiscated by the Liberal government. After the conquest of Mexico the plan was for this imperialistic commander "Emperor" Maximillian, to join Jefferson Davis and Confederate troops at Rich- mond, where they would sweep north and capture Washington. Davis had made a strong appeal in 1863 in a letter to the Pope, and after the reply which he prompt- ly received from "His Holiness" a wholesale desertion of the Irish Catholic troops of the North to the Con- federacy followed. In fact, the government figures "are that out of 144,000 Irish Romanists, but 44,000 re- mained loyal. We have seen and heard how the Roman priest- hood the world over, is bending every effort to restore the pope to the position which he occupied during the Dark Ages. This is perhaps, an opportune time for the reader to take a survey of the conditions which existed in the Papal States prior to and during the Civil War where the popes of Rome had been in supreme com- mand for over fourteen hundred years. Certainly, four- teen hundred years ought to be sufficient for a thor- ough test of the merits of a system. Pius IXth was elected in 1846. There had been three popes in the in- terim between him and Pius Vllth who had restored the Jesuits and called the Congress of Vienna in 1814. There was no change in policy, however, nor any lax- ness in regard to the attitude of the church toward its obligations to the "high contracting parties" of the Holy Alliance and their Secret Treaty at Verona. Of all of his predecessors Pius IXth was one of the most reactionary, and in his notorious Syllabus which was proclaimed to a startled world in December, 1864, he 66 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN anathamatized every fundamental principle upon which this Republic is based. The historians are inclined to place all the blame of his mistakes, and they were many, upon his Secretary of State, Cardinal Antonelli, who was beyond doubt "the power behind the throne" — the agent for the "Black" pope. Antonelli is far more interesting as a character study than the "White" pope, inasmuch as he was so deeply interested in the affairs of this country during the war, I am taking the liberty of reproducing some graphic pen pictures by the distinguished French journalist, M. About, who made a personal visit to the Papal States to learn, firsthand, if the astounding reports from the Italian Revolutionists which had been pouring into the Eu- ropean press for several years were correct. M. About's book, "The Roman Question" is intensely interesting and written in the peculiarly piquant style of the brilliant Frenchman. It is long since out of print and difficult to secure as the Leopoldines have bought up every copy which comes under their WATCHFUL EYE. It is a terrific arraignment, especially so, as the author himself was a Roman Catholic. His visit to the Papal States was made in 1859, the same year you will remember that Abraham Lin- coln was making his telling political campaigns for the presidency, and immortalizing himself by his de- bate with Judge Douglas, tearing to tatters the Dred Scott Decision of Judge Roger E. Taney. The great Italian poet and patriot, Mazzini, was an exile, living in a London attic, pouring out his soul's most noble apoeals to the Liberals of Europe. His large property holdings in Italy had been confiscated by the Pope's government. The Carlysles had visited him in his attic and through their friendship he was brought from the miserable surroundings and ensconsed in comfortable quarters, where the most distinguished literati of London and Paris visited him and were cap- tivated by his remarkable talents and his sincere pa- triotism and completely won over by his irresistible arguments for a FREE AND UNITED ITALY. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 67 The exile Garibaldi, with his "Redshirted Legion" had answered the call of his country after a sojourn in the United States where he had also lived in an at- tic in New York City, f ollowing the humble profession of a candlemaker, saving up his money. One day he suddenly closed his attic door and dis- appeared as mysteriously as he had come. The great soldier patriot returned to Italy by the way of London and one of his most brilliant conquests was the capture of the hearts of the people of London. The red-blooded staunch Protestants not only of the city itself, but from all over England, came to welcome the man who had returned to offer his sword against the papal yoke. They went wild with delight. Garibaldi with his yellow flowing hair under his big slouch hat was lifted to the shoulders of the crowd, mad with joy which surged about him, and carried as though his great form was but a feather's weight. This was an insult, aye, it was the unforgiva- ble sin in the eyes of the black-robed Jesuits, and the Vatican, which aroused the deadly hatred for. the English Protestant nation, a hatred which has not abated up to today. One might presume under the circumstances that the Pope would have been too occupied with his own af- fairs to have meddled with the politics in the United States, at such a time. The clever Frenchman, M. Dupin, has said: "Le Jesuitism est un epee dont la poingee est a Rome, et la point partout." — Jesuitism is a sword whose hilt is in Rome and its point everywhere. Gladstone had visited the Papal States in 1S50 and on his return to England, had reported to his government and the London Press that the Papal gov- ernment was "The negation of God." 68 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN In the preface of his book, M. About says : "It was in the Papal States that I studied the Roman Question. I travelled over every part of the country; I conversed with men of all opinions, ex- amined things very closely, and collected my informa- tion on the spot" "The pressing condition of Italy has obliged me to write more rapidly than I could have wished; and this enforced haste has given me a certain air of warmth, perhaps of intemperance, even to the most carefully matured reflections I fight fairly and in good faith. I do not pretend to have judged the foes of Italy without passion; but I have calumniated none of them." "If," he continues, "I have sought a publisher in Brussels, while I had an excellent one in Paris, it is not because I feel any alarm on the score of the regu- lations of our press, or the severity of our tribunals. But as the Pope has a long arm that might reach me in France, I have have gone a little out of the way to tell him the plain truths contained in these pages." And now for the "plain truths" about his Secretary of State, the Cardinal Deacon, Antonelli. "He was born among thieves- His native place Sonino, is more celebrated in the history of crime, than all Arcadia in the annals of virtue. This nest of vultures was hidden in the southern mountains, to- ward the Neapolitan frontier. Roads, impractical to mounted dragoons, winding through brakes and thick- ets; forests impenetrable to the stranger; deep ra- vines and gloomy caverns — all combine to form a most desirable landscape, for the convenience of crime. "The houses of Sonino, old, ill built, flung pellmell, one upon another, and almost uninhabitable by human beings, were, in point of fact, little else than depots of pillage and magazines of rapine. The population, alert and vigorous, had for many centuries practiced armed robberies, and depredation had gained its livelihood at the point of the carbine." ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 69 "Newborn infants inhaled a contempt of the law with the mountain air, and drew in the love of others goods, with their mother's milk. Almost as soon as they could walk, they assumed cioccie, or moccasins of untanned leather, with which they learned to run fearlessly along the ledge of the giddiest mountain precipices. When they had acquired the art of pur- suing and escaping, of taking without being taken, the knowledge of the value of different coins, the arith- metic of the distribution of booty, and the principles of the rights of nations, as they are practiced among the Apaches or the Comanches, their education was deemed complete. . . . "In the year of grace 1806, this sensual, brutal, impious, superstitious, ignorant and cunning race, en- dowed Italy with a little mountaineer, known as Gia- como Antonelli. Hawks do not hatch doves. This is an axiom in natural history, which has no need of demonstration. Had Giacomo Antonelli been gifted with simple virtues of an Arcadian shepherd, his vil- lage would instantly have disowned him. But the in- fluence of certain events modified his conduct, al- though they failed to modify his nature." "If he received his first lessons from successful brigandage, his next teachers were the gendarmerie. When he was hardly four years old, the discharge of a high moral lesson shook his ears ; it was the French troops who were shooting brigands in the outskirts of Sonino." "After the return of Pius Vllth., he witnessed the decapitation of a few neighboring relatives who had dandled him on their knees. Under Leo Xllth., it was still worse. The wholesome correctives of the wooden horse were permanently established in village square St. Peter's Gate, which adjoins the house of the Antonelli, was ornamented with a garland of human heads, which .... grinned dogmatically enough in their iron cages Young Giacomo was enabled to reflect upon the inconveniences of brigandage, even before ^he had tasted its sweets ... He hesitated for 70 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN some time as to the choice of a calling. His natural vocation was that of the inhabitants of Sonino . . . to live in plenty, to enjoy every sort of pleasure, to rule others, to frighten them if necessary, but above all, to violate laws with immunity." "With the view of attaining so lofty an end, without endangering his life, for which he had ever a most particular regard, he entered the great seminary of Rome." That's a beautiful picture of the next highest pre- late to the Pope, is it not ? So much for the early years of Antonelli. But permit me to quote again from the pen of the author of "The Roman Question," who, as we know, was an eye witness : "No country in Europe is more richly gifted, or possesses greater advantages, whether for agricul- ture, manufacture or commerce .... Traversed by the Appenines, which divide it about equally, the Papal dominions incline gently on one side the Adriatic, on the other the Meditteranean. In each of the seas they possess an excellent port ; to the east, Ancona to the west, Civita Vecchia .... If Panurge had had these ports in his kingdom, he would have infallibly built himself a navy ... The Phoenic- ians and Carthagenians were not so well off. A river tolerably well known under the name of the Tiber, waters nearly the whole country to the west. In former days it ministered t') the wants of internal commerce. Roman historians describe it as navigable up to Perugia. At the present time it is hardly so far as Rome ; but if its bed were cleared out, and the filth not allowed to be thrown in, it would ren- der greater service and would not overflow so often. In 1847, the country lands subject to the Pope were valued at about 34,800,000 pounds sterling . . . the Minister of Public Works and Commerce admitted ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 71 that the property was not estimated at above a third of its real value. If capital returned its proper interest, if activity and industry caused trade and manufac- tures to increase, the national income, as ought to be the case, it would be the Rothschilds who would bor- row money from the Pope at six per cent interest/' As a matter of fact the Papacy was heavily in- debted to the Rothschilds upon which About throws a high light further on. "But, stay/' he continues, "I have not yet com- pleted the catalogue of possessions. To the munificence of nature, must be addea the inheritance of the past. The poor Pagans of great Rome left all their property to the Pope who damns them. They left him gigantic aqueducts, prodigious sew- ers and roads which we find still in use, after twenty centuries of traffic. They left him the Coliseum, for his Capuchins to preach in. They left him an exam- ple of an administration without equal in history. But the heritage was accepted without the respon- sibilities. "I will conceal from you no longer that this magnificent territory appeared to me in the first place most unworthily cultivated. From Civita Vecchia to Rome, a distance of sixteen leagues, cultivation struck me in the light of very rare accident . . . Some pasture fields, some land in fallow, plenty of brambles, and, at long intervals, a field with oxen at the plow; that is what the traveler will see in April. He will not meet with the occasional forest which he finds in the desert re- gions of Turkey. It seems as if man had swept across the land to destroy everything, a\:d the soil had been taken possession of by flocks and herds I used to walk in every direction, and sometimes long distances . . • However, in pro- portion as I receded from the City of Rome, I 72 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN found the land better cultivated. One would sup- pose that from a certain distance from St. Peter's, the peasants worked with greater relish " . . . . "I sometimes fancied that these honest la- borers worked as if they were afraid to make a noise, lest by smiting the soil too hard, too deeply, too boldly, they should wake up the dead of the past ages." "St. Peter's is a noble church, but, in its way, a well cultivated field is a beautiful sight. . . . ... It seemed to me, that the activity and prosperity of the subjects of the Pope were in exact proportion to the square of the distance which separated them from Rome ... in other words, that the shade of the monuments of the eternal city, was noxious to the cultivation of the country, Rabelais says, 'the shade of monas- teries is fruitful' but he speaks in another sense." I submitted my doubts to an old ecclesiastic, who hastened to undeceive me. "The country is not un- cultivated," he said, "or if it be so, the fault is with the subjects of the Pope. This people is indolent by nature, though 21,415 monks are always preaching activity and industry to them!" That is a birdseye view, dear reader, of the Pa- pal States in the early eighteenth century when we were having our blind struggle with the Papacy for our national existence in this country. In his chapter on PLEBEIANS, M. About has this to say: "The subjects of the Holy Father are divided by birth and fortune into three very distinct classes — nobility, citizens, and people, or plebeians. The Gospel has omitted to consecrate the inequal- ity of men, but the law of the state — that is to say, the will of the Popes — carefully maintains it. Benedict XIV declared it honorable and salutary in his Bull of January 4, 1746, and Pius IX expressed himself in the same terms at the beginning of his Chirografo of May 2nd, 1853." ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 73 Ponder these words well, dear reader, and add to them the following quotation which I lifted from The New World, the Official Organ of the Roman Catho- lic Church in the Archdiocese of Chicago, 111., which was a comment on the Federation of Catholic Socie- ties held at New Orleans the previous November 1910 : Human society has its origin from God and is constituted of two classes of people, rich and poor, which respectively represent Capital and Labor. Hence it follows that according to the ordinance of God, human society is composed of two classes, su- periors and subjects, masters and servants, learned and unlettered, rich and poor, nobles and plebians." (The New World, Chicago, HI., Dec. 20-1910.) It is astounding to know that Diomede Falconio, the Pope's Legate to this country, who uttered the above divine right treason on that occasion was at the time a naturalized citizen of the United States ! ! ! That is what the oath of a Jesuit amounts to. Falconio, who has since died, was instructing the subjects of the Pope in this country and there were thousands of Catholics present at the New Orleans Convention, that a government based as our POPU- LAR Government is, is not worthy "favor or support." (See Leo XIEth's Great Encyclicals, page 126). In a nutshell, the Roman Church in this country has always taught and is still teaching its subjects a separate citizenship inimical to orr American citizen- ship that the sole authority to rule must come from the consent of the ruled. This is the same divine right IDEA which rent this country from stern to stern in 1860, which gashed its fair face with the Mason and Dixon Line ! This is tha same identical teaching which swept Abraham Lincoln from us at the most critical moment in our country's history. This is the concentrated treason which is today be- ing inculcated in the minds of one million seven hundred thousand boys and girls who attend the Catholic paro- chial schools which we have wickedly permitted her to 74 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN erect in direct opposition to the Public Schools where the fundamentals of POPULAR GOVERNMENT is in- stilled. This is the ROMAN QUESTION, the irrepres- sible conflict, the same old question which the great Lincoln understood and denned so thoroughly in his campaign with Douglas — Douglas with the Roman Catholic wife — Douglas, the Leopoldine, the defender of slavery, who was chosen whether consciously or un- consciously, I cannot say, but chosen just the same to champion the doctrine of class distinction in this coun- try with which they thought to destroy it. "That is the issue that will continue in this coun- try when the poor tongues of Judge Douglas and myself shall be silent- It is the eternal struggle between these two prin- ciples — right and wrong — throughout the world. They are the two principles that have stood face to face from the beginning of time, and will ever con- tinue to struggle, The one is the common right of humanily and the other, the divine right of kings it is the same spirit that says: "You work and toil and earn bread and I'll eat it." no matter in what shape it comes, .... it is the same tyrannical principle." (Lincoln's Speech at Alton, HI., October 15, 1858.) Abraham Lincoln was the living embodiment of "the common right of humanity." In his life the perfection of the NEW IDEA had been materialized, had become a living, breathing FACT which was un- conquerable, yes, unassailable. Lincoln knew the struggle would go on, after "these poor tongues of Judge Douglas and myself shall be silent." I believe that the prophetic, inimitable, words that Charles Chiniquy attributes to him in his Fifty Years In The Church of Rome were said by him. They have the peculiar literary style of Lincoln, and could never ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 75 be confused with the effusive, emotional manner of ex- pression of the Frenchman that Chiniquy had than night with day. The opening words : "I do not pretend to be a prophet,'' ring with the modesty which distinguishes many of Mr. Lin- coln's greatest sayings. Listen: "I do not pretend to be a prophet. But though not a prophet, I see a very dark cloud on our ho- rizon. That dark cloud is coming from Rome. It will be filled with tears of blood. It will rise and increase, till its flanks will be torn by a flash of lightning, followed by a fearful peal of thunder. Then a cyclone such as the world has never seen will pass over this country, spreading ruin and desolation from north to south. After it is over, there will be long days of peace and prosperity; for popery with its Jesuitism and merciless In- quisition, will have been forever swept away from our country. Neither you, nor I, but our children will live to see these things." — (Page 715, Fifty Years In The Church of Rome, by Rev- Charles Chiniquy) Chapter VI. Lincoln Takes Up The Burden. Certainly, no president of this Republic was ever beset with so many staggering problems as President Lincoln. The more we study those perilous years, the more we wonder at his great wisdom, firmness and boundless patience and charity- The Ultra-Pro-Slavery leaders had sworn to pre- vent the seating of Abraham Lincoln in the Presideiital chair. So certain were they of the success of their plans that just as Buchanan was leaving the White House, before the arrival of Mr. Lincoln, he turned and said : "As George Washington was the first Presi- dent, so James Buchanan will be the last President of the United states." Mr. Lincoln had no idea of the rottenness and treason which were there to face him in Washington. Almost every department in Washington was headed by a traitor to the Government, for the arch-plotters had been placing their trusted tools preparatory to the final blow. The first months of his administration were spent in investigating these national assassins, and replacing them with men who were true. This, in itself, was a task that only the judgment of Lincoln could have accomplished. Mr. Lincoln had no idea of the dimensions of the Secession Plot. He was later to find that his first call for 75,000 volunteers was inadequate and was amazed when the Governors of three Southern States refused to send their quota. Another disillusionment came when he noted that as he increased his calls for troops, Jefferson Davis did not send out any call. From that on Lincoln becran to realize something of the seriousness of the situation ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 77 and his last call was for "three years or during the war." Southern leaders also realized the fact that they were up against the real thing. When President Lincoln reached Philadelphia for his first inauguration, there was a plot discovered and disclosed to General John Hancock at Washington to assassinate Mr. Lincoln at Baltimore, where he was to have stopped to address the citizens on his way to the Capital. The full details had been planned. An Italian barber well known in Baltimore, a Romanist, was to have stabbed him while seated in his carriage, when he started from the depot. The son of Wm. H. Seward, who was at that time Senator and afterwards Lincoln's Secretary of State, was sent post-haste to Philadelphia to warn Mr. Lin- coln of his danger. It was a difficult matter at first to convince him of the seriousness of it. He flatly refused to go to Washington immediately, as was suggested by his friends, but promised that after he had raised the flag on Independence Hall in Philadel- phia, and delivered an address to the members of the Legislature at Harrisburg, he would take an ear- lier train to Washington, which he did, accompanied by only one friend, Wade C. Lammon, one of his law partners, and Wm. H. Pinkerton, head of the Detective Agency of that name in Chicago. The party took the six o'clock train out of Philadelphia, quietly without attracting any publicity, and as Mr. Lincoln was sound- ly sleeping, the train whizzed through Baltimore, and got him to Washington early in the morning, where he was taken in charge by the largest military and Secret Service escort a president ever had been sur- rounded with. Thus was the first of Rome's assassina- tion plot thwarted. The awakening of the President and the North came on the morning of April 12, 1861 with the firing on Fort Sumpter. This opening shot of the rebellion was sent by General Beauregard, Jesuit leader of the mili- tary operations. Beauregard was a professed Roman- ist and sprung from a distinguished family of Jesuits. 78 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN BIRTH The Cabin home where the baby Lincoln played about while the "Holy Alliance" was entered into to destroy the Govern- ment he was to save. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 79 hssggsas The White House to which the People sent him Nov. 4, 1860, to "hit that thing hard". i%>'& The East R,oom where President Lincoln's body lay in state, ilain by the "leaden bullet". In this room the bodies of five slain Presidents have rested. SO ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The North was wholly unprepared for war. They seemed not to have been able to realize that there could ever be a conflict between the citizens of the United States. This delusion was shot to pieces on April 12th, and amidst the greatest consternation and excitement preparations began in earnest. That President Lincoln fully realized it was not a Protestant South with which he was contending, is clearly evident from his own words on this sub- ject in his conversation with the Rev. Charles Chini- quy, ex-Catholic priest of Kankakee, 111., who called once each year during his administration at the White House to warn the President of his danger of assassina- tion by these enemies of Popular Government and their agents, the Jesuits, through their Leopoldines. "THE COMMON PEOPLE HEAR AND SEE THE BIG NOISY WHEELS OF THE SOUTHERN CON- FEDERACY CARS, AND THEY CALL HIM JEFF DAVIS, LEE, THOMPSON, BEAUREGARD, SEMMES, OR OTHERS. THEY HONESTLY THINK THAT THEY ARE THE MOTIVE POWER, THE FIRST CAUSE OF OUR TROUBLES, BUT IT IS A MISTAKE, THE TRUE MOTIVE POWER IS SE- CRETED BEHIND THE THICK WALLS OF THE VATICAN— THE COLLEGES AND SCHOOLS OF THE JESUITS; THE CONVENTS OF THE NUNS, THE CONFESSIONAL BOXES OF ROME." "THERE IS A FACT WHICH IS TOO MUCH IGNORED BY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE AND WITH WHICH I AM ACQUAINTED ONLY SINCE I BE- CAME PRESIDENT. IT IS, THAT THE BEST AND LEADING FAMILIES OF THE SOUTH HAVE RE- CEIVED THEIR EDUCATION IN GREAT PART, IF NOT ALL, FROM THE JESUITS AND THE NUNS— HENCE THE DEGRADING PRINCIPLE OF SLAV- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 81 ERY, PRIDE AND CRUELTY, WHICH ARE AS SEC- OND NATURE AMONG MANY OF THE PEOPLE." And continuing Mr. Lincoln analyzed the Roman psychology which played its part in his own murder, when he said : "HENCE THAT STRANGE WANT OF FAIR PLAY FOR HUMANITY; THAT IMPLACABLE HATRED AGAINST IDEALS OF EQUALITY AND LIBERTY, AS WE FIND THEM IN THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST— IT IS TRUE THAT WE BOUGHT FLORIDA, LOUISIANA, SOUTH CAROLINA, NEW MEXICO AND MISSOURI FROM SPAIN, BUT ROME HAD PUT HER VIEWS OF HER ANTI-SOCIAL AND ANTI-CHRISTIAN MAXIMS INTO THE VEINS OF THE PEOPLE, BEFORE THEY BECAME AMERI- CANS." Surely, no clearer conception of the masked enemy with which that great man was contending was ever glimpsed. While other men studied books, Lincoln STUDIED MEN, and the above interpretation of the terrible conflict in which he was the Commander-in- Chief is startling in its accuracy. It is very simple now for those of us who have the knowledge of an array of facts before us, to see what Lincoln then saw, but we must remember when he spoke those words, he was the very storm-center and chief actor in the social upheaval without the advantage of retrospect. Mr. Lincoln had a prophetic sense almost uncanny, which alone made him superior to any of his contemporaries More than once he told his close friends that he had a strong premonition that he would not outlast the Rebellion, that his work would be finished with it. 82 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ROMAN CHURCH ALWAYS HAS ADVOCATED CHATTEL SLAVERY. Disruption has always been the first motive of the Jesuits, and black slavery was the rock upon which they planned to rend this government. There was no other principle, no ethics involved, never is, so far as Jesuitism goes, except the fundamental prin- ciples of the divine right rule of the popes of Rome From the earliest times the Roman Church ad- vocated human slavery. In the Middle Ages, when feu- dal slavery flourished, the church fattened on the ex- ploitation of the serfs who were bought and sold with the land. These serfs were supposed to have no souls, and were in precisely the same category as cattle. The great monasteries and nunneries were among the larg- est owners of serfs. For instance, had Joan D' Arc lived four hundred years before her time, she and her fam- ily would have been among the serfs attached to the Monastery of San Ramey. In short, serfdom was the basis of the wealth of the papacy. It is true that in rare cases the church lifted out of serfdom, a boy in whom it recognized some peculiar native talent or personal trait which might be culti- vated and turned to its own advantage, but the act was simply the removal from the thralldom of serfdom to that of ecclesiastical slavery for further and more useful exploitation by more exacting task masters, for the Roman church has always enslaved the minds of its victims. The Jesuit Oath exacts the obedience of "cadavers." In the "Doctrine of the Jesuits" by Gury, trans- lated into the French by that brilliant educator and statesman, Paul Bert in 1879, we find the position of ihe church and the Jesuits on black slavery quoted as follows : "Slavery does not constitute a crime before any law, divine or human. What reasons can we have for undermining the foundations of slavery with the same zeal that ought always to animate us in overcoming ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 83 evil? When one thinks of the state of degradation in which the hordes of Africa live, the slave trade may be considered as a providential act, and we almost re- pudiate the philanthropy which sees in a man but one thing — material liberty." The above is the papal virus to which Lincoln re- ferred and with which the youths of the best families of the Southern Confederacy were inoculated, and which made the leaders of the ultra pro-slavery forces an easy prey to the Roman hierarchy and its priest- hood in the great conspiracy or destruction which Lin- coln visioned. It was the virus which was let into the veins of Mary E. Surratt and was passed on by her to her son, the arch-conspirator, John H. Surratt ; it was the opiate which silenced the voice of conscience and kindness of heart of John Wilkes Booth, and nerved his hand to send the bullet into the great brain of Abraham Lincoln; it was the deadly drug which made Lewis Payne, the unfortunate, the Haopy-go-lucky "Davy" Herold, the shiftless Edw. Spangler, and the rest of the non-Catholic tools, wax, in the hands of the arch-Leopoldines in this wicked conspiracy to wreck this popular government. This Jesuit virus that "Slavery does not constitute a crime before any law, divine or human," was the deadly drug that set the BLOOD OF THE SLAVE OWNERS ON FIRE, JUSTIFIED THEIR "CAUSE " distorted their vision, controlled their ethics and ap- pealed so strongly to their economic interests, and it was the one big urge underlying the whole progress of the treason of secession. In the "A Memoir" of Jefferson Davis, the leader of the Southern Confederacy, published by his wife after his demise, we find on page 445, this remark: "Mr. Davis's early education had always inclined in the Roman Catholics, friends who could not be alien- ated from the oppressed." In chapter 2nd, that gen- tleman is quoted as follows : g4 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "The Kentucky Catholic school called St. Thomas College, when I was there was connected with the church. The priests were Dominicans. They held large property ; productive fields, slaves, flour mills, flocks and herds. As an association they were rich. Individually, they were vowed to pov- erty and self-abnegation. They were diligent, in the care, both spiritual and material, of their parishoners' wants. When I entered the school, a large majority of the boys belonged to the Roman Catholic church. After a short time I was the only Protestant boy remaining, and also the small- est boy in the school. From whatever reason, the priests were particularly kind to me. Father Wal- lace, afterwards bishop of Nashville, treated me with the fondness of a near relative." It is very obvious from the above that the "kind- ness" shown to Jefferson Davis as a child clung to him and influenced his whole life- It bore fruit, and his friendliness to the Catholic church was well repaid by that institution which always, under such circum- stances, rewards its tools. When Mr. Davis had been arrested after the close of the Civil War and was to be tried for treason, it was the distinguished Catholic attorney, Chas. O'Con- nor, of New York City, who offered his services, which were accepted in Mr. Davis's defense. On Sept. 25th, 1863, Davis addressed the follow- ing letter to Pius IXth: "Richmond, Va., Sept. 25, 1863. Very Venerable Sovereign Pontiff: The letters which you have written to the clergy of New Orleans and New York have been committed to me, and I have read with emotion the deep grief therein expressed for the ruin and devastation caused by the war, which is now being waged against the States and the people who have selected me as their president, and your orders ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 85 to your clergy to exhort the people to peace and charity. I am deeply sensible of the christian charity which has impelled you to this reiterated appeal to the clergy. It is for this reason I feel it my duty to express personally and in the name of the Confederate States our gratitude for such sentiments of christian good feeling and love, and to assure Your Holiness, that the people threaten- ed even on their own hearths, with the most cruel oppression and terrible carnage is desirous as it always has been, to see the end of this impious war; that we have ever addressed prayers to heaven for that issue which Your Holiness now de- sires ; that we desire none of our enemies posses- sions, that we merely fight to resist the devasta- tion of our country and the shedding of our best blood, and to force them to let us live in peace under the protection of our own institutions and under our laws, which not only insure to everyone the enjoyment of his temporal rights but also the free exercise of his religion. I pray your Holiness to accept on the part of myself and the people of the Confederate States our sincere thanks for the efforts in favor of peace. May the Lord preserve the days of Your Holi- ness and keep you under His divine protection. (Signed) Jefferson Davis." It occurs to me that after perusing the above bit of concentrated treason, any apologist for this leader of the Rebellion would be out of order. Here is the Pope's reply: "Illustrious and honorable President, Salutation. We have just received with all suitable wel- come the persons sent by you to place in our hands your letter dated the 25th of Sept. last. g6 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Author of infamous "Syllabus" proclaimed December 8, 1864 which anathematizes the fundamentals of Representative Governments and was aimed particularly at the United States which stands in authority today precisely as it did the day it was uttered as is attested by the Great Encyclicals of Leo XIII. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 87 Not slight was the pleasure we experienced when we learned from those persons and the letter, with what feelings of joy and gratitude, illus- trious and honorable President, as soon as you were informed of our letters to our venerable brother, John, Archbishop of New York and John, Archbishop of New Orleans, dated the 18th of October of last year, and in which we have with all our strength exerted and exhorted those ven- erable brothers that in their episcopal piety and solicitude they should endeavor with the most ardent zeal and in our name, to bring about the end of that fatal Civil War which has broken out in those countries in order that the Amer- ican people may obtain peace and concord and dwell charitably together. It is particularly agreeable to us to see that you, illustrious and honorable President, and your people, were animated with the same desires of peace and tranquillity which we have in our let- ters inculcated upon our venerable brothers. May it please God at the same time to make other people of America and their rulers reflecting seriously how terrible is civil war and what calamities it engenders, listen to the inspira- tions of a calmer spirit and adopt resolutely the part of peace. As for us, we shall not cease to offer up the most fervent prayers to God Almighty that He may pour out upon all its people of America the spirit of peace and charity, and that He will stop the great evils which afflict them. We at the same time beseech the God of Pity to shed abroad upon you, the light of His Grace and attach you to us by a perfect friendship. Given at Rome, at St. Peters the 3rd day of December, 1863 of our Pontificate Eighteen. (Signed) Pius IXth." 88 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The reader will note the recognition by the Pope of a divided country and also his recognition of Davis as the President. It was on the publication of this letter that the large desertions of Roman Catholics from the ranks of the North began. Mrs. Davis tells us: "During Mr. Davis' imprisonment, the Holy father sent a likeness of himself and wrote under- neath it, with his own hand, attested by the seal of the Cardinal Antonelli, 'Come unto me all ye who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest/ " The lady further opines that: "The dignity and the man both illustrated the meek and lowly Lord of us all, whose Vice- Regent he was." This remark leaves no doubt as to precisely where she stood on the question. The writer vvas amused to learn that Jeff Davis was a "Wet" which is also in keeping with his early education in the Roman Church, and that his explanation upon an oc- casion when he was pressed for his attitude upon the subject is almost identical with that of the late J. Card. Gibbons. He says in part in his defense of the liquor traffic: "To destroy individual liberty, and moral responsibility, (Get that, dear reader) would be to eradicate one evil by the substitution of an- other, which it is submitted would be more fatal than that for which it was offered as a remedy. The abuse and not the use of stimulants, it must be confessed, is the evil to be remedied" Upon the whole, surely no one can deny that Rome's fatal virus worked in the veins of this Ultra- Pro-Slavery leader in the late Rebellion, and that ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 89 Lincoln was right when he recognized the "anti- social and anti-christian views" of the foe with which he struggled. The fact that Jefferson Davis was not a professed Roman Catholic did not in the slightest curtail his usefulness as a Leopoldine. A sense of justice and gratitude should com- pel every loyal American to remember the de- cisive and correct attitude of the English govern- ment at the psychological moment in our Civil War. It stands in sharp contrast with the meddlesome, treacherous letter of the Pope, above quoted to the "Honorable and Illustrious President" of the Seceding States. On page 476 the "Memoirs" by Mrs. Davis, quotes in full the ultimatum of England which was re- ceived by Davis at Richmond through the British Con- sul which says in part: "After consulting with the law officers of the Crown, Her Majesty's government have come to the decision that the agents of the authorities of the so-called Confederate States have been en- gaged in building vessels which would be at least partially equipped for war purposes on leaving the ports of this country; that these war ves- sels would undoubtedly be used against the United States, a country with which this gov- ernment is at peace; that this would be a viola- tion of the neutrality laws of the realm ; and that the Government of the United States would have just grounds for serious complaint against her Majesty's Government, should they permit such an infraction of the friendly relations subsisting between the two countries. No matter what might be the difficulty of proving in a court of law that the parties procuring the building of these vessels are agents of the socalled Confed- erate States, it is universally understood through- out the world that they are so, and Her Majesty's Government are satisfied that Mr. Davis would not deny that they are so. Under these circum- 90 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN stances, Her Majesty's Government protests and remonstrates against any further efforts being made on the part of the so-called Confederate States, or the authorities or agents thereof to build or to cause to be built, to purchase or to cause to be purchased, any such vessels as those styled as "Rams," or any other vessels to be used for war purposes against the United States, or against any country with which the United King- dom is at peace or on terms of amity; and Her Majesty's Government further protests against all acts in violation of the neutrality laws of the realms. I have the honor to be your Lordship's obedi- ent servant, (Signed) Russell" Those are the words with the "bark on." No recognition of "Your Illustrious and Honorable Presi- dent." Only recognition of a UNITED STATES— preservation of the Union — for which Abraham Lin- coln was contending and gave his precious life. The wobbly attitude of the past administrations in Washington on the dangerous interference of the Sinn Fein element in this country during the present unpleasant attempt at disruption in the British Em- pire on the so-called "Irish Question" which is not Irish at all, but a Roman question, makes one ashamed and humiliated at the hemming and hawing of the politicians in high office at Washington. On July 26, 1862 in a letter to Reverdy Johnson, who by the way was the attorney who afterwards gave his distinguished services to Mrs. Mary E. Sur- ratt, Mr. Lincoln said: "I am a patient man, always willing to forgive on the Christian terms of repentance, and also to give ample time for repentance. Still, I must save the government if possible. What I cannot do, of course I will not do; but it may as well be understood, once ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 91 for all, that I shall not surrender this game leaving any available card unplayed " This was the same expression of sentiment which had caused the death of William Henry Harrison, the ninth President and Zachary Taylor, the twelfth President, the preservation of the UNION and the fact that Lincoln did it, was the grounds for his physical death, by these wreckers. Nor did the great Lincoln stop pouring out his patriotic soul all during these trying four years. On August 15, 1863, he gave his opinion upon the Draft as follows: "Shall we shrink from the necessary means to maintain our free government, which our grandfath- ers employed to establish, and our own fathers have already employed once to maintain it? Are we de- generate? Has the manhood of our race run out?" (Complete Works, Nicolay & Hay, Vol. 11, p. 391). The President spent the first months of his ad- ministration feeling his way, so to speak. Delving into the conditions in the various departments, finding traitors and carefully replacing them by those whom he knew to be true. The lesson he was learning would have staggered a man of less couiage than Lincoln — the steadfast, unyielding patriot, whan any principle of right was in the balance. It was the siting time with Lincoln. In his letter to Corning, June l£6a he writes: "The man who stands by and says nothing when the peril of his country's government is discussed, can- not be misunderstood. If not hindered, he is sure to help the enemy; much more, if he talks ambig- uously — talks for his country 'with buts and ifs and ands/ " (Barrett, p. 632.) In addressing the members of the general as- sembly Presbyterian Church, President Lincoln said: "As a pilot, I have used my best exertions to keep afloat our ship of state; and shall be glad to resign my trut? at the appointed time to another pi- lot more skillful and successful than I may prove. 92 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN in every case and at all hazards the government must be perpetuated/' (Complete Works, Vol 2, Page 342.) Thus almost daily was Lincoln telling of his Amer- ican creed, adding fuel to the fires of hatred which * ere burning in the wicked hearts of his country's deadly enemies. Spurred on like a lot of demons, they rounded up their hell hounds in and about Wash- ington for the final perfidious act. It finally became manifest to Piesident Lincoln that the presence of the foreign droops in Mexico waa a menace to the safety of this country, and througn our American Consul at Paris, this government served notice on Napoleon, that Jesuit tool of the Pope, that his troops must be removed from Mexico within the time indicated by this country. That there could be no misunderstanding con- cerning the attitude of the Lincoln administration toward the Republic of Mexico, was made plainly ev- ident by the "note" sent through Secretary of State Seward to our Consul at Paris to be delivered to Napoleon nird which reads: "The United States government does not de- sire to suppress the fact that their sympathies are with Mexico, that is to say with the Repub- lic of Mexico nor does United States gov- ernment, in any sense, for any purpose, disapprove of the Republican government, now in force in Mexico, or distrust the admin- istration. Neither was there any disposition apparently, to deny the Liberals of Mexico finan- cial assistance." When President Lincoln submitted to the Senate a Treaty granting a loan of $11,000,000 to the Repub- lic of Mexico, although he made no recommendation upon the subject, it was a sufficient hint which ex- pressed his sympathy. The demand that the French troops be removed from Mexico was complied with to the letter, owing B h. 8 b m a !•§ ^ & S 60^ O -" © 5 S SliM | -' +» aj O _, H v aS g fcs3"S B Q B^ «T CO gfc +» o © a S | b*>>£ sggn 94 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN to complications in the situation in which France at the time was involved in Europe she feared war with the United States. As can be imagined, this was a terrible blow to the CONSPIRATORS in Europe, Canada and Mex- ico, not to speak of their tools in this country. It served to practically break the morale of the Confed- erate army, and hastened the end oi the war with a Victory for the right. In the meantime events were shaping up in Mex- ico in favor of the new Republic. The Empress Carlotta within a few months after their arrival in Mexico City, was sent to Rome by Maximillian to explain in person that the strength of Popular Government there had been underesti- mated; that it was impossible to restore the church property and the rights of the clergy. The important part of her mission, however, was to ask for more troops. Her reception at the Vatican was simply "withering;" the Pope was so chagrined and angry at the failure of his designs and so severe in his re- proach that the sensitive princess was carried out bodi- ly in an unconscious state, upon which she recovered a mental wreck. She was incarcerated in the Castle of Bouchet near Brussels, Belgium, where she was placed under constant surveillance, and was unaware that on June 19th, 1867, Maximilian, her husband, was shot at sunrise at Queretaro, Mexico, by the Revolutionists. This is the tragic termination of what has always been alluded to as one of the greatest love matches of the royalty of Europe. A victory for the North was not indicated un- til the very last days of the War. The Leopoldines left no stone unturned to defeat Lincoln's renomi- nation. They fully realized that if they did not, it meant their doom. When the news of his re-election was flashed over the wires, they did not give up — far from it. They redoubled their efforts. They saw 96 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN more clearly than ever before that Abraham Lincoln was their Nemesis. They knew only too well that he would be the stumbling block to their future plans, for they felt that in Lincoln they would always en- counter a powerful champion for the preservation of th*e Union and all its institutions. They feared with a deadly fear the influence of his able pen and voice. They knew that to permit this calm, thorough, clear- visioned man who had such a complete estimate of their perfidious designs to serve at the helm during the RECONSTRUCTION PERIOD would mean their ultimate rout in our political affairs. Chapter VII. Assembling The Chosen Assassins. One Sunday morning, during November, 1864, as the congregation of the little Roman Catholic Church of St- Mary's, Charles County, Maryland, was filing out after high mass and stood about in groups on the lawn talking in subdued voices about the news from the "front" which was not far distant, a hand- some young man with dark, glowing eyes, jet black curling hair, a swinging, graceful carriage, with the grooming of a city man of culture and refinement, sauntered out from the church and stood a moment scanning the crowd; he finally made his way to a group, the center of which was a Dr. Queen, a lead- ing physician of that locality, and member of one of the prominent families. The stranger presented a card and the physician on glancing at it extended his hand and gave the gentleman a most cordial wel- come. The contents of the card must have borne a magic password which admitted him to the confi- dence and homes of these Romish devotees, every one of whom was a strong secessionist. The doctor introduced the stranger, who was none other than John Wilkes Booth, son of the distinguished actor, Junius Brutus Booth. John Wilkes Booth was the most eminent young tragedian at the time in the coun- try, by far the most talented of the Booth brothers. He had accumulated by his profession some $25,000 which was quite a fortune in those days for a young man still in his twenties to accumulate. Booth was what is known as a "traveling star," having with great success played most of the big cities in this country and Canada- He was exceedingly popular with the members of his profession and up 98 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ST. MARY'S ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, ON BRYANTOWN ROAD This is the Church where Booth attended Mass the Sunday, middle of November, 1864 when he met Dr. S. A. Mudd and oth- er Knights of the Golden Circle and tried to get in touch with Surratt. This church marks the Catholic community to which he fled and received protection. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 99 until he was caught in the Jesuit web, his whole thought and ambition was devoted to his art. John Booth had chosen to work under the name of Wilkes until he gained recognition independent of the family name, desiring to win on his own merits his theatrical laurels. This in itself showed a principle somewhat out of the ordinary. After a pronounced success under the name of John Wilkes, he allowed himself to be starred under his own name. He assumed no airs, nor was he given to egotism as members of this profession of lesser distinction and talent are prone to be. There is no better way of estimating a man or wom- an's disposition more surely than from the opinion of those with whom he comes in daily contact in his voca- tion. I give the tribute paid to Booth before he fell under the spell of the Jesuit psychology, at least before it had taken a fatal hold of him. The witness is none other than that queen of tragedy of two decades ago, Clara Morris. She is quoted thus : "In glancing back over two crowded and busy seasons, one figure stands out in clearness and beauty- In this case so far as my personal knowledge goes, there is nothing derogatory to dignity and manhood in being called 'beautiful' for he was that bud of splendid promise blasted to the core before its full triumphant blooming, known to the world as a mad- man and assassin, but to the profession as 'that un- happy boy, John Wilkes Booth/ He was so young, so bright, so kind. "I could not have known him well ? Of course, too, there are two or three different people in every man's skin. Yet when we remember that stars are not in the habit of showing their brightest, best side at re- hearsals, we cannot help feeling both respect and lik- ing for the one who does. "There are not many men who can receive a gash over the eye at a scene at night without at least a momentary outburst of temper, but when the com- bat between Richard and Richmond was being re- hearsed, John Wilkes Booth had again and again. 100 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN urged McCullom — that six foot tall and handsome man who used to entrust me with the care of his watch during such encounters, 'Come on hard, come on hot, old fellow! Harder, faster!' That he would take the chances of a blow if only they could make a hot fight of it. Mr. McCullom, who was a cold man at night, became nervous in his efforts to act like a fiery one. He forgot that he had struck the full num- ber of hard blows and when Booth was expecting a thrust, McCullom wielding his sword with both hands brought it down with an awful force fair across Booth's forehead. A cry of horror arose, for in one moment his face was marked in blood, one eye- brow was cut through. Then came simultaneously one deep groan from Richard (Booth) and an exclamation of 'Oh good God, good God!' from Richmond (McCul- lom) who stood trembling like a leaf and staring at his work. Booth, flinging the blood from his eyes with his left hand, said as gently as a man could speak: 'That is all right, old man. Never mind me, only come on hard, and save the fight/ which he resumed at once. And although he was perceptibly weakened, it required a sharp order from Mr. Ellsler to ring the first curtain bell to force him to bring the fight to a close a single blow shorter than usual. There was a running to and fro with ice and vinegar, raw steak and raw oysters, and when the doctor placed a few •stitches where they were most required, Booth laugh- ingly declared that there were provisions enough to start a restaurant. "McCullom came to try to apologize, to explain, but Booth would have none of it. He held out his hand saying, 'Why, old fellow, you look as if you lost the blood. Don't worry — now, if my eye had gone, at would have been bad/ So, with light words he turned to set the unfortunate man at ease, and though he must have suffered much mortification and pain from the eye, he never made a sign showing it. "John Wilkes Booth, like his next elder brother was rather lacking in height, but his head and ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN lOi throat and the manner of their rising from his shoul- ders were truly beautiful. His coloring was unusual, the ivory pallor of his skin, the inky blackness of dusky curly hair, the heavy lids of his glowing eyes, were all oriental, and they gave a touch of mystery to his lace when it fell into gravity, but there was gener- ally a flash of white teeth behind his black silky mus- tache. "Now it is scarcely exaggerating to say that the fair sex was in love with John Wilkes Booth, or John Booth as he was called, the name Wilkes apparently being unknown to Jiis family and! close friends. I played with John Wilkes to my great joy, playing 'Player Queen' in the 'Marble Heart' I was one of the group of three statues in the first act, then a girl in my teens. "With all my admiration for the person and genius of John Wilkes Booth, his crime I cannot condone. The killing of that homely, tender-hearted father, Abraham Lincoln, a rare combination of cour- age, justice, and humanity, whose death at the hands of an actor will be a grief of horror and shame to the profession forever. And I cannot believe that John Wilkes Booth was the leader of a band of bloody conspirators. "Who shall draw the line and say, 'Here genius ends and madness begins? There was that touch of strangeness, in Edwin it was a profound melancholy; in John it was an exaggeration of spirit, almost a madness. There was the natural vanity of the actor too who craves a dramatic selection in real life. There was also his passionate love and sympathy for the South, which was easier to play upon than a pipe. "Undoubtedly he conspired to kidnap the Pres- ident; that would appeal to him. But after that I truly believe he was a tool; certainly he was no lead- er. Those who led him knew his courage, his belief in fate, his loyalty to his friends, and because they knew these things he drew the lot as it was meant he should from the first. Then, half mad, he accepted 102 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN JOHN WILKES BOOTH Horrible example of the degenerating effects of the Jesuit psychology. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 103 the part fate cast him for and committed the murder- ous crime. "God moves in a mysterious way And His wonders to perform." 'And God shutteth not up his mercies forever in displeasure/ "We can only shiver and turn our thoughts away from the bright lierht that went out in such utter darkness; poor guilty, unhappy, John Wilkes Booth." John Wilkes was the only member of the Booth family whose sympathy was with the Confederacy. According to the "Great Conspiracy" a book published in 1866 by Barclay Co., in Philadelphia, Pa., John Wilkes Booth had been initiated into the Knights of the Golden Circle in Baltimore in the fall of 1860, "in a residence opposite the Cathedral." The same writer is authority for the following oath of the Knights of the Golden Circle, taken by John Wilkes Booth: "I , do swear by the blood of Jesus Christ, by the wounds of the most Sacred Body; by the Dolors of His immaculate Mother, and in the name of the Holy and Undivided Trin- ity, that I will solemnly keep all secrets of the Golden Circle: that I will faithfully perform whatever I may be commanded, and that I shall always hold myself in readiness to obev the man- dates of the said Circle whether at bed. or board, at the festive circle, or at the grave, and if I shall hesitate or divulge the secret may I incur the severest penalties to which flesh is heir. "May I be cursed in all the relation of my life, in mind, body, and state, and may the pangs of hell be my eternal portion. "I feel honored fellow knights and compan- ions of the Golden Circle that you have deigned 104 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN to admit me. No efforts shall be wanting on my part to advance the interests of the organiza- tion "A distinguished Latin Author has justly re- marked, that it is sweet and profitable to die tor one's country. I have but one life and am ready to give it should it be necessary The President rises and says : "Sir Knight you have just taken a most sol- emn adjuration and believe me that you are known to all members in every part of the country. The Order is extensive and though the government is zealous and would freely spend thousands to unveil our designs, all efforts have hitherto been fruitless. No traitor has yet appeared among us, and inevitable ruin awaits the individual who would play the part of a Benedict Arnold. No public steps would be taken. He would disap- pear and I leave it to you to judge his fate. "Dead men tell no tales/' Ponder well on these things, and remember you cannot escape us. "Members give the hand of fellowship to our new Knight. (The Great Conspiracy published by Barclay 1865.)" The pass-word to this organization was "Rome. Beware of the Negroes." That the author of the book, "The Great Con- spiracy," was thoroughly informed upon the details which could scarcely have come from anything short of actual membership in the organization is plainly evident. Also that he had knowledge of the assassina- tion of the former Presidents Harrison, and Taylor, we gather. The incident occurred just after the re-elec- tion of President Lincoln. Booth, sitting in a hotel lobby one day, appeared very dejected; he was aroused by the following remark, which evidently was part of the secret phraseology of theK. G. Cs.: ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 105 ''It would be a queer thing were Lincoln to die and Andy Johnson be President after all. What makes you think so? Why, you know that Harrison and Taylor and that Fillmore and Tyler were presidents. Lincoln may take it into his head to follow their example. Perhaps, said the stranger at Booth's elbow and regarding him steadfastly, neither Lincoln nor John- son will serve their terms out. Do you mean that the President and the Vice- President both will die? Such a thing has never hap- pened before in the United Sates. But it may occur nevertheless Lin- coln and Johnson are both mortals .... I feel certain that ere another month Lincoln will die .... . Yes, he may die of some disease. Booth's suspicions were aroused and he turned suddenly around and asked: "You said I believe, sir, that the President might die of some disease?" "Yes sir, of such diseases as commonly prevail in Rome." "What diseases are they?" asked Booth. "All to which flesh is heir, the malaria from the Pontine marshes carries off hundreds; the plague of its day almost decimated the capitol of the Caesars ..... but I tell you again that the President will die of a disease from Rome. Booth: "Sir, as you are well versed in history perhaps you can answer me one question, which one of all the sovereigns of all Italy had the most fickle wife?' "I am an indifferent guesser of conundrums, but I suppose the Doge." Ques. "Which Doge, he of Venice or Genoa?" Ans. "He of Venice, because he wedded the sea with a golden circlet. You remember Byron's beautiful lines?" After this "test" Booth was invited to the gentleman's room where they conferred privately. That John Wilkes Booth was initiated in this Order as early as 1860, the same authority states. 106 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The following letter is quoted from Booth to a brother Sir Knight: "Dear Sir: The K. G. C. had a meeting; I was initiated. 'The die is cast and I have crossed the Rubi- con' and can never return. They tell me that Lin- coln, the damn chicken-hearted nigger lover, will per- haps be inaugurated, but I most heartily wish, 'That never shall sun that morrow see.' I am devoted to the South, mind and body, so that she gains her independ- ence, I don't care what becomes of me. If I am sacri- ficed, I know that my country will grant me immortal- ity; if I escape, so much the better. I can serve her in other ways. One thing is very clear to my mind, the South must take some decisive step. She must throw a bomb-shell into the enemy's hand that shall spread terror and consternation wherever it goes. You know what I mean, so don't be surprised. Sincerely yours, John Wilkes Booth." (See Page 26, The Great Conspiracy.) The same authority gives a letter signed "Veritas" (truth) to Booth, which one would be strongly in- clined to believe might have been written by a priest judging by the style and Latin quotations — possibly his ecclesiastical sponsor. "My dear Booth : Since you left us, the Circle has held another meeting. The members are all exceed- ingly dissatisfied and if something be not speedily done, the southern cause is lost forever. Important dispatches have been received from Canada. They spoke out almost too plainly to be sent by mail, but as there was no signature and addressed to a feigned name, I do not suppose there was any danger. There is to be a ball or party at the White House and the Ape I suppose will be there in all his glory retailing his filthy anecdotes and pointless jests till they fall on the ear, usque ad naseum. Did you see what is the determination of the Lincoln Cabinet about confisca- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 107 tion ? There is a clerk by the name of Charles Morton, who is employed in one of the government offices. He is gentlemanly but vain and exceedingly soft. I am told he drinks. Anyhow, make his acquaintance and see what can be got out of him. Handle him tenderly and you will be sure to catch your fish. Should you want any more money you will know where to send for it. An idea has struck me ; you know in the correspond- ence between Sir Henry Clinton Arnold and Andre the whole matter was treated in a mercantile way. We for the sake of safety and to make assurance doubly sure, must do the same. I will not detain you any longer, but give you an opportunity to read about our friends in Canada. Whatever be the results, rely on me. Sincerely your friend, Veritas." The statements made by his professional friend, John McCullough of a visit he paid Booth at the National Hotel, showed the deadly influence when he said: "At another time I came over suddenly from New York, and being in the habit of go- ing right into Booths room without knocking, I turned the knob and pushed right in. At the first wink I saw Booth sitting behind a table on which was a map, a knife and a pistol. He had gauntlets on his hands and spurs on his boots, and a military hat of a slouch character on his head. As the door opened he seized the knife and came for me. Said I, 'John, what in the name of sense is the matter with you — are you crazy?' "He heard my voice and arrested himself, and placed his hands before his eyes like a man dissipating a dream, and then said: 'Why, Johnny, how are you?' When I heard that it was he who killed Lincoln, I thought that he had been at the time I describe ready to carry out his purpose." In answer to a request by the writer for a state- ment of his acquaintance with John Booth from Rear Admiral Geo. W. Baird, U. S. N. retired, 33° Mason, of 108 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN GEORGE ATZERODT Delegated to assassinate Vice-President. Always known as a Catholic prior to the assassination. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 109 Washington, D. C, who is probably the only living wit- ness who helped to identify the body of John Booth, who was shot to death in the tobacco barn on the Gar- rett plantation, near Port Royal, Va., April 26, 1864, I received the following: 1505 Rhode Island Avenue, Washington, D. C, November 29, 1921. Miss Burke McCarty, Grace Dodge Hotel, Washington, D. C. My dear Miss McCarty: Your letter of the 25th was received last night: I will try to answer it categorically, and, to avoid errors. I must go back to my diary. My acquaintance with John Wilkes Booth was net at all intimate. I met him in New Orleans in the winter of '63 and '64, when he was playing in the theatre there in "Marble Hearts" and he was splendid in his part. My acquaintance was what may be called a bar-room acquaintance. Was introduced to him by a young officer of my ship the "Pensacola" whose name was Fitch and who afterwards married the eldest daughter of General Sherman. Booth seemed to be a congenial fellow with a sense of humor and I thought was very temperate in his habits, not like his father in that respect. The War was at its height and was freely discussed, but Booth did not seem to be much interested in it. He was from Maryland, whose pop- lation was divided, though men as a rule believed it proper to side with their state. My ship went north in the spring of 1864 and I was assigned to my duty in the navy department. In 1850 when I was seven years of age, I went to school in Washington to two reverend gentlemen Cox and Marlot, who taught in the lower story of the Ma- sonic Hall, Virginia Avenue and Fourth Street East. The boy who sat by me about my own age was David Herold, a little round headed, round eyed, round bodied boy, whose general rotundity was completed by a 110 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN voice that rolled his R's. I envied David his disposi- tion in that he got along with the big boys so well. When a big boy imposed on David, he would escape with a funny remark which was called witty, which generally got a laugh, and David was called popular. When a big boy imposed on me, I hated him; I hate him yet. David's father, Mr. George Herold, and my father were members of Naval Lodge of Masons. The Herolds were members of Christ Church Episcopal. My people were members of the Baptist Church. When I left that school about a year later, I lost sight of David. I heard he became a drug clerk. Now I quote from my records : On the night of the 14th of April, 1865 I went to call on a young lady and about 10:30 her brother came in and said Abe Lincoln is dead. He had been to the theatre to see Laura Keene in "Our American Cousin" and during the play a man had got into the box where the President was, and had shot the President, jumped out of the box on to the stage, and escaped from the back of the stage I left at once ; saw police- man at the corner whom I interrogated and he con- firmed the story. I inquired as to the appearance of the assassin and he not only gave a description that fitted but said he resembled me, and I thought that I had better hurry to my boarding house. On arriving at my boarding house Dr. Ludlam and Mr. Fitch in- quired if I had heard the news and suggested that we go down town and get the latest "bricks" but nothing could induce me to appear on the streets again that night. The people were wild with excitement. I never heard such threats of vengeance. Before 10:00 o'clock the next morning almost every house was draped in mourning. People had exhausted the stores here and wired Baltimore for black crepe and cambric. Dan Ballauf , the model maker, was standing leaning on the lower box in the theatre and saw it all. He denied the report that Booth had uttered the words "sic semper tyrannis," but the newspapers had printed it. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 111 The newspapers had the story very early, that John Wilkes Booth was the assassin and David Herold was the accomplice/' Though never intimate with John Wilkes Booth, I admired him, his voice, power of declaiming. I took drinks with him at the Franklin House, Custom House Street, a place frequented by army and navy officers. He seemed to me to have no interest in the war. It was hard to understand. I had not seen him but once in Washington and that about three weeks before the murder of the President. It was on Sunday when he was coming out of Saint Aloysius Catholic Church Vesper Service — great crowds of various creeds used to go to that vespers where the music was good. I think Mme. Kretzmayer was the attractive soprano. A large reward was offered for Booth's arrest and conviction. The War had practically ended and our troops were at liberty to travel in any state with- out molestation. I was detailed to make a series of experiments in the Navy Yard, and after Booth's body was brought to the Navy Yard and lay on board the "Montauk" this happened : I was called on board the Montauk by Lieut. W. W. Crowninshield, to identify the body of John Wilkes Booth, which I did. I noticed a piece of cord about the size of a cod line on his (Booth's) neck and invited Crowninshield's attention to it, who pulled it out and on it was a small Roman Catholic medal. Surgeon General Barnes arrived at that moment and probed the wound in Booth's neck. I got a horse and buggy and drove down to Sur- rattville the following day. The house they saiu belonged to Mrs. Surratt and had been leased to John M. Lloyd whom I knew. He was a policeman at Washington during all of Buchan- an's administration and bore an excellent repu- tation. I inquired of some boys whom I found very communicative. One boy said that Mr. Jenkins, broth- er of Mrs. Surratt, and Mr. Griffith and Mr. Wylie (or 112 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN - ■-"' mm: MRS. MARY E. SURRATT Who "kept the nest that hatched the egg," — (President Andrew Johnson). ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 113 Wyville) and Mr. Lloyd were all out that night listen- ing for the horses coming, that when the two men came, fresh horses were brought out of the stable, saddles transferred from the tired horses to the fresh, and the men rode on. On May 22, 1865, I went to Baltimore on duty in connection with the "Pensacola." The "Washington Star" of May 12, 1865 gives Lloyd's testimony as follows : "Sometime ago two carbines and some pistols were left at my house. The Friday before the assassina- tion Mrs. Surratt came to my house and told me to have the carbines and pistols ready as two men would call for them. On the night of the assassination Booth and Herold rode up to the house; Herold dismounted, went in, and took a carbine and the pistols. Booth would not take his carbine on account of his lame ankle." The "Washington Star" of the 15th said: Lloyd testified that it was John Surratt who brought the carbines. Watchman saw Mrs. Surratt, Booth, John Surratt, and Dr. Mudd together on Sev- enth Street, and that Booth was a frequent visitor at the house of Mrs. Surratt, and their interviews were always apart. I was retired from active duty by law in 1905 but continued on duty until 1906. The next year I passed some days at Poland Springs, Maine. Among other Washingtonians was Mr. Crosby Noyes, principal editor of the "Washington Star," who told me he was the reporter for the "Star" at the trial of the conspirators, and he was satisfied that Mrs. Sur- ratt and all the rest of them were guilty. I was at sea when John Surratt was tried- My information on that trial was that printed in the "Washington Star." Surratt was poor, but Mr. K. T. Merrick, a Roman Catholic Lawyer, wa3 his principal counsel and it was commonly reported that he paid the entire expense of the trial. His associate counsel was Mr. Jos. Bradley, a famous criminal lawyer, who 114 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN rarely, if ever, lost a case, and to whom the bad cases usually came. Quoting from the "Evening Star" of September 23, 1868: Judge Wylie on the bench, Messrs. Merrick and Bradley argued on a demur to the plea of the amnesty proclamation which had been issued by the government in favor of the Confederates who had been in arms against the government. Their purpose was to make it apply to the case of John Surratt who had been tried for conspiracy to murder the President, and in whose case a year ago the jury had hung. Merrick said the court was not technically a Court of the United States, wherein the judge held that the Court held that the Circuit Court of the District of Columbia was not on the same footing as the United States District Courts, though the judges of such Courts were vested with the same power. He would submit in view of the double character of the Court that to except a person of some felony he must be indicted for felony in some Circuit Court of the United States. He referred to the Bankrupt Act. Mr. Bradley referred the Court to several au- thorities. The Court suffered counsel to amend the plea. From the "Evening Star" of September 24, 1858, Page 4, Column 2, viz: "A NEW MOVE BY THE DEFENSE, STATUTE OF LIMITATION, DISCHARGE OF THE PRISONER. "Mr. Merrick stated that he had presented a new plea. He claimed the indictment defective in that it did not aver that Surratt had not fled from Justice." The paper stated that he walked out of the court unmolested. I saw the medal when it was taken off Booth's neck and I saw it afterwards in the War Department. It was kept in a safe of the Judge Advocate General. It was in a little tin box which also contained a news- paper scrap referring to it with the bullet from Booth's neck, and I think the derringer also. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 115 When I became superintendent of the S W. and Navy Department in 1895, I asked the messenger at the Judge Advocate General's door if the relics were still on exhibition as I wanted to show them to some friends, and he said that they were all there but the medal, that the Secretary of War, (Mr. Lamont) had sent for them to show some friends and forgot to re- turn them, and they remained on his desk four months, and when returned the medal was missing. John M. Lloyd, the Washington policeman in 1857-9-60 bore a good reputation. I think the claim that he was intemperate or a sot as Mr. Brophy called him was all propaganda. A policeman knows how to testify and he knows the penalty. I was reluctant to believe Lloyd a conspirator until the boys at Sur- rattville told me of the story of Lloyd, Jenkins, Wylie, et al listening for the coming of Booth that night, and his testimony confirmed it. One of the propaganda writers says that Lloyd had to be awakened from a drunken stupor that night when Booth arrived, when the boys, who had no purpose to serve, told me that Lloyd was wide awake on the ro<\d listening for horses- They said that when the horses were plainly heard, that Lloyd, et al, went into the stable and brought out the fresh horses as if in a hurry. Lloyd and his wife (whom I also knew) were Roman Catho- lics, and I believe members of St. Dominic's Congre- gation. The testimony shows Lloyd drunk but once; it was when he met Mrs. Surratt in Uniontown, now called Anacostia, and that was on the eve of the fright- ful tragedy and he might have needed "Dutch conrage. ,, My impression was that the effort to damage Lloyd's character was for the sole purpose of impeaching his testimony. I always thought he found himself in se- rious trouble and told the truth to save his neck. Yours sincerely, G. W. BAIRD. 116 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Post mortem of Booth's body as it lay on the Montauk, April 27, 1865. U. S. troops under Lieutenant Baker, surrounded the tobacco barn on the Garrett farm and ordered Booth to surrender, which he refused to do. "Davy" Herold, however, asked to surrender and was allowed to come out. He was handcuffed and placed in charge of a squad of cavalrymen. The barn was finally fired by Colonel Conger. Booth, who could be now plainly seen by the light of the flames was peering out, when a bullet from the revolver of Sergt. Boston Corbett whizzed by and Booth crumpled up on the barn floor. He was dragged out by the soldiers and lay on the grass, apparently dead, but was revived by a dash of cold water in the face. The bullet had entered almost at the same spot in which his own bullet had pierced President Lincoln's head. He was carried and laid upon the porch in front of the Garrett house where he suffered several hours of the most intense agony. Noting his lips moving, an officer stooped down and heard him whisper: "Tell ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 117 my mother — tell my mother — I died for my country — and did what I thought best." Indicating a desire that his paralyzed arms be held up, which was done, con- templating them, he murmured, "useless, useless." These were his last words. The body was taken by wagon to the river and placed on board the Gunboat Montauk and brought to Washington, and Admiral Baird was one of the men who made positive identification. From Adm. Baird's letter one would gather that as late as the winter of '64, only a few months previous to Booth's coming to Washington, he was indifferent on the subject of the war. The fact that he was in New Orleans where he would have been very safe in express- ing his opinion in favor of the South would seem to indicate he had no great feeling on the subject. There is no doubt in the writer's mind but that Clara Morris was perfectly right in her statement that John Wilkes Booth was the victim chosen from the beginning and that he "Drew the lot" after his New Orleans engagement where Adm. Baird had seen him. From the time he registered at the National Ho- tel in November, 1864, it is plainly evident that he became obscessed with the idea, and the working of the virus is traceable in his every act from that time on. He lost all interest in his profession, — a thing in itself most remarkable, for which we can only ac- count in the one way. John H. Surratt, Arch Conspirator John Harrison Surratt, the nineteen-year-old son of Mrs Mary E. Surratt, who was chosen by the Jesuits as the arch conspirator in the assassination of Abra- ham Lincoln, had studied three years in preparation for the Roman priesthood at the Sulpician Fathers monastery, at Charles County, Maryland, previous to the breaking out of the Civil war. The Sulpician Fath- ers is a branch of the Jesuit order. In 1862 young Sur- ratt was called to his home in Surrattville, a crossroads village 13 miles south of Washington, by the death 118 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN of his father. The elder Surratt had been a railroad contractor, and had accumulated some money which was partly invested in slaves and a plantation and tavern at Surrattville where he served as post- master at the time of his demise. The family consisted of Isaac, the eldest son, a civil engineer, who enlisted in the Southern Cause at the very beginning of the war and who the last heard of him had joined Maximillian's forces in Mexico; Anna, the only daughter, a girl in her early twenties, and John H., the youngest. The Surratts were all ardent secessionists and fa- natical Roman Catholics. Mrs. Surratt was, early in life, perverted to Romanism from the Protestant faith. Her children were Romanists from birth. That John Harrison Surratt, was cool, clever, cal- culating and crafty, far in advance of his years, is shown by the fact that at the very beginning of the Rebellion he was selected to do important work in the Southern secret service, bearing the most important dispatches from Jefferson Davis at Richmond to his agents at Washington and to the members of his "kitchen cabinet" in Montreal, Canada. On his return home from the monastery near Bal- timore, John Surratt was sworn in as postmaster in his father's place at Surrattville. His Jesuit training enabled him to lift his hand and swear undivided alle- giance to the United States. So much for a Jesuit's oath. To get a complete estimate of John Surratt's part in the diabolical conspiracy to murder President Lincoln and other heads of this government we must fully consider the preliminary training he received. This boy, (for we must remember that he was but in his teens, at his entrance into this plot,) was never free from the espionage and evil influence of the Romish church from his baptism in infancy to the day of his death at the age of seventy-two years. When he was but twelve years old he was placed in Gonzaga College, Washington, D. C, a Catholic preparatory school, under the tutorage of Priest Wiget, who was ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 119 the confessor for years of both himself and his moth- er. After leaving Gonzaga College he spent two years at Georgetown in the Jesuit College before leaving for the Sulpician Fathers monastery. I am calling the attention of the reader to this fact when you come to pass judgment on this young man, that you may place the blame for his conduct where it belongs — on the Jesuit psychology inculcated by the priests of the Roman Church.. That he was a leader and a dependable one, in this conspiracy of wholesale assassination, is shown by the fact that the object of John Wilkes Booth's first visit to St. Mary's Catholic Church in Howard County, Maryland, was to learn the whereabouts in Washington of John Surratt. Young Surratt, had then, never the slightest chance or desire to escape from the deadly virus. This virus stultified every noble aspiration, every natural affection, every personal ambition, even the strongest instinct in the human mind,— self-preservation is thrust aside when the victim hears the call of duty to "the holy mother church." Then, mother love, father love, brother love — all, all, must yield to this cursed thing. This complete mental control which Rome exercises over its dupes whom it per- mits to have no more will of their own, nor resistance, than that of a cadaver. Terinda ac cadaver." (as a corpse) to be moved here, or there, at the will of the manipulator. The Roman Catholic child is thus handi- capped at birth, yes, there is a prenatal influence as the study of these two characters in this tragic drama will disclose. The mother, Mary E. Surratt, the inti- mate associate of priests, her soul deadened by the fatal virus of the Jesuit training, passed on to her son the terrible inheritance which made him wax in the black hands of the Vatican intriguers, to mold as they would. During Surratt's theological training he had- studied St. Thomas Aquinas, who justifies the assas- sination of heretics, or any one who apostacises from 120 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN the Romish church. It was a significant and eloquent fact that the Jesuits released from time to time during the war the report that President Lincoln had been, in his infancy, baptized by a Catholic priest. On one of his visits to the White House of the Rev. Charles Chiniquy to warn President Lincoln of his danger in assassination, Mr. Lincoln is quoted by Chiniquy in his book "Fifty Years in the Church of Rome" as follows : "Father Chiniquy, I want your views about a thing which is exceedingly puzzling to me and you are the only one to whom I would like to speak on the subject. A great number of Democratic newspapers have been sent me lately, evidently written by Roman Catholics, publishing that I was born a Roman Catho- lic and baptized by a priest. They called me a renegade and apostate on account of that, and they heaped upon my head mountains of abuse. Now, no priest of Rome has ever laid his hand on my head. But the persist- ency of the Romish press to present this falsehood to their readers as gospel truth, must have a meaning. Please tell me, as briefly as possible, what you think about it." This, Mr- Chiniquy answered, was done solely to incite and justify the act in the minds of some of their fanatics to assassinate the President. It was the equivalent to a command, as it afterward proved. Booth Meets Surratt. A few days before Christmas, 1864, young Weich- mann invited Surratt to go with him over to Pennsyl- vania Avenue to select some Christmas gifts for his sis- ters in Philadelphia. As they were nearing the Avenue on 7th Street, Weichmann said, "John, someone is call- ing you," and Surratt, turning, saw Dr. Mudd of Bryan- town and a younger man with him, whom he intro- duced as John Wilkes Booth. After the introductions were over Booth invited the party up to his room at the National Hotel, where he. ordered wine and cigars ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 121 SURRATT HOUSE, 541 "H" STREET, WASHINGTON, D. C, 1865. "The Nest where the Egg was hatched." Presi- dent Johnson's reply, when he was asked to com- mute her sentence to life imprisonment "because of her age (46) and sex." 122 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN for the group. From this meeting on John Booth was a constant visitor at the Surratt home on H Street, which was the rendezvous of the conspirators up to the very day of the assassination. It was also the mecca of various Roman Catholic priests, among whom were the Reverends Walters and Wiget of St. Patrick's Church, 10th and G Streets, of which the Surratts were members. From their first meeting Booth and Surratt busied themselves selecting their associates. David Herold was undoubtedly the choice of John Surratt who had known him from his college days, evidently, at Georgetown University. The testimony of Louis J. Weichmann, college chum of Surratt and the State's chief witness, at the trials of the conspirators shows that Surratt had introduced him to David Her- old as one of the members of the Washington Ma- rine Band which had serenaded the Surratt Tavern at midnight on one occasion when Weichmann was spend- ing the week-end there. This was a year before Booth's appearance in Washington. There is no doubt but that all the conspirators were members of the Knights of the Golden Circle; there is also no doubt that while some of them were nominal Protestants they were whol- ly papalized, certainly they were not Protestants. All through the testimony we see that Booth and Aster- odt were at "mass." It is morally certain that Booth himself had been secretly taken into the Roman Church when he was given the "Agnus Dei" medal which was taken from his neck. The significance of this medal is: The translation of "Agnus Dei" is "Lamb of God ; it indicates sacrifice, — the shedding of blood. The writer is informed by an ex-Romanist who examined the medal that it was made in Rome, proba- bly sent direct from the Pope as was Pius EXth's letter to Jeff Davis, a distinction which would tend to flatter the vanity of John Wilkes Booth. Michael O'Laughlin, another conspirator, was from Baltimore and was, as his name would indicate, a Roman Catholic Irishman. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 123 Sam Arnold, it appears, had attended the same school with John Wilkes Booth in their childhood and was a nominal Protestant. George Asterodt was the "rough" man, that is the uneducated and uncultured one, who was probably an Austrian Catholic, but not over religious. He attend- ed Mass with Louis Weichmann at the Piscataway Church and St. Patrick's church in Washington. Lewis Payne, the atheletic young giant who was delegated to murder Seward, Secretary of State and al- most accomplished this deed, really showed more strength of character and less cowardice than any of the other conspirators. As far as is known he was the son of a Protestant minister. He refused to tell any- thing about himself, but when he went to his death he was courageous to a degree that astonished the newspaper correspondents and other spectators. Edw. Spangler, another conspirator, was a roust- about employee at Ford's Theatre, much given to drink. He had great admiration for John Booth and was a decided Southern sympathizer with a pronounced dislike for Abraham Lincoln, which he had often ex- pressed. About November 1st, 1863, Mrs. Surratt and her family moved to their residence at 541 H. St., Wash- ington, D. C, where she opened a select boarding house. Select to the extent that there were no "her- etics" among her boarders. The first to come was Louis J- Weichmann, who had been for three years a classmate of John Surratt's at the Sulpician Monas- tery where Weichmann also was preparing for the Roman priesthood. From the very first Weichmann and Surratt were bosom friends. Weichmann was born in Baltimore in 1843 and was the son of a merchant tailor who was a staunch Lutheran. The wife was a devout Roman Catholic. The family consisted of two boys and three girls, all of whom were brought up in the faith of their mother. Both boys, Louis, and the second boy, Frederick, were studying for the Roman priesthood. 124 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN With the breaking out of the Civil War Louis Weichmann's college studies were interrupted and he came to Washington where he obtained a position as professor at Gonzaga College, when John Surratt first learned of his presence in Washington. During the Spring vacation of '63, young Weich- mann proposed that he and Surratt pay a visit to their Alma Mater near Baltimore. They were received with warm cordiality by both professors and students who were eager to learn the progress of the war,etc. During this visit, according to documentary evidence to be introduced later on, both young men freely expressed their pro-Southern views. Before leaving the institution Louis Weichmann announced his intention of going to Little Texas, or Ellengown, where he had taught the parochial school for the Cath- olic priest there, before entering college. The Rev. Denis, prefect of the Sulpician Monastery told him that the teacher at that time in Little Texas was Henri de St. Marie, who had been a former pupil of Denis in Montreal; that he was a fine young man who spoke French and Italian fluently. He asked Weichmann if he would hand him an Italian paper when he called up- on him. On reaching Little Texas, Mr. Weichmann de- livered the paper and introduced his friend Surratt to the young Canadian. This was the beginning of an acquaintance which was to end very disastrously for Surratt. Before closing this chapter in reference to the religion of John Wilkes Booth I might say that his family were members of the Episcopal church in Baltimore. Edwin A. Sherman, Past Grand Registrar of the Grand Consistory of the Thirty-third Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of the State of California, in his book entitled "Engineer Corps of Heir' on page 213, has this to say: "It has been told to us, coming from what we believe to be true authority, that Booth, about ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 125 three weeks before he committed the crime, was admitted to the Roman Catholic church, and pri- vately received the sacraments from no less a personage than Archbishop Spaulding himself, which he did to silence any conscientious scruples that he might have in taking Abraham Lincoln's life, and that he might have the whole influence and sympathy of persons in that faith in pro- tecting and concealing himself when the act was done, to aid him in it. He certainly had that aid and influence in planning and accomplishing his hellish work and in making his escape, and it could not have been more cheerfully and faithful- ly rendered than it was, even if he had been a Jesuit priest himself. We believe the statement to be true; and it was but a short time after thac Archbishop Spaulding received a donation of funds for the specific purpose which was to uni- form and equip a military body in the same man- ner and style as the Papal Guard at Rome. "The uniforms, muskets, cartridge boxes and belts all bearing the Papal coat of arms and con- secrated by the Pope himself, were sent to Arch- bishop Spaulding at Baltimore; and when he died he was buried with military honors and his re- mains escorted by the same military bodyguard. The entire diocese of Archbishop Spaulding was rebel to the core and fierce in its hatred of Lin- coln." In a recent book written by one of Rome's apol- ogists, we find that John Wilkes Booth was by "re- ligion a Roman Catholic; by politics a Democrat." Chapter VIIL The Blackest Deed In American History. And now we come to that darkest day in the histo- ry of our Republic, April 14th, 1865. The Surrender of Lee, April 3rd, to the "Little Smoking General" Grant, came like a thunderbolt out of a clear sky, and was a terrific blow to the hopes of the South, as well as unexpected victory to the North. The people were wild with enthusiastic joy. We can get some conception of that word after four years of the bitterest civil war, we, who have the news of the Armistice still fresh in our memories in the recent World War which was sev- eral thousand miles away. The figure of Abraham Lincoln will ever stand out on the page of our history, never to be effaced, not only in the minds of the people of his own country, but in those of the Peoples of the World, as the savior of the New Concept of Government! Lincoln, that great, sad-faced man, with his shoulders drooping under the terrible burdens which he had patiently carried for four long years, breathed a sigh of relief when he arose this bright balmy April morning and gazed at nature's gay spring garb. During breakfast with his family he had suggested to his good wife Mary, that they two alone should take a long drive in the country which called so strongly to this heavy laden man. Accordingly, after a few pre- liminary office duties were gotten out of the way, the President returned to the White House, and he and Mrs. Lincoln got into their carriage and drove out through the city over the Potomac River bridge into the country. The fruit trees were white with blossoms, the roadsides green, and the very birds flitting in and ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 127 Ford's Theatre, Washington D. C. U. S. Government property as it appears today. Exterior un- changed. House on Tenth St. where President Lincoln died April 15, 1865. Now Lincoln Memorial Collec- tion. out through the hedges seemed to surpass themselves with their songs. President Lincoln beg;an to talk of their future. He confessed to her that he would welcome the day when his administration would be over, and they could return to private life, never to leave it again. "I have managed, my dear, by strict economy, to save a little nest egg out of my salary, so we will go back to Springfield to live, and I hope not have to work quite so hard. We can visit with our friends and neighbors and enjoy life a bit. Then he unfolded to her his plans to take up his law practice again and the threads of life where he had left them when he came to Washing- ton, a little over four years ago. After driving several 128 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN hours, and being rested by the quiet of the country and sweet breath of spring, this great simple-hearted, plain man and his wife returned to the White House. I cannot but contrast that last morning on earth of Abraham Lincoln and his modest plans, with the conduct of Woodrow Wilson and his dozens of trunks, which carried the elaborate wardrobes of himself and wife to Europe. The sinful extravagance of this peda- gogical upstart! It seems almost sacrilegious to men- tion him in the same paragraph with Lincoln. The day began for John Wilkes Booth with his usual trip to Graves Theatre where he received his mail. This morning he had several letters, and after chatting pleasantly with the members of the cast present for rehearsal, as was his custom, he sauntered away toward the Kirkwood house, now the Raleigh, where the Vice President was stopping. He sent up the following card to Mr. Johnson, which is still, and per- haps, always will remain a mystery: "For Mr- Andrew Johnson: Don't wish to disturb vou : are you at home ? John Wilkes Booth." After his call at the Kirkwood House, he went to the livery barn of J. Pumphreys on C Street, back of the National Hotel. Here he engaged a horse to be ready that afternoon at four thirty o'clock. He had been in the habit lately of hiring his horses here after he had sold his own a few weeks previous. Upon this occasion he asked for a particular sorrel horse which he preferred, but was told it was out at that time, so he took instead a small bay mare. Booth was an ex- pert horseman and fencer, and spent a great deal of his time in horseback riding and the latter amuse- ment, when he found a man who was skillful enough fo interest him. After his arrangement for the horse was completed, he spent a large part of the day con- ferring with the other conspirators, who were in the ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 129 city, Mrs. Surratt, John Surratt, O'Laughlin, Herold, Spangler and Atzerodt. The evening of this same day, April 14, 1865, on which Mr. Lincoln and his wife went for their last drive in the country, the managers of Ford's Theatre featured the fact in the local press that the President and Gen. U. S. Grant would attend the performance of "Our American Cousin" at that theatre in the even- ing. This would have been the first public appearance of General Grant since the surrender of Lee, and the word that the people would have an opportunity to greet their hero that night at Ford's Theatre made a rush on the box office, and the performance opened with a packed house. The Presidential party did not arrive until nine thirty- When the tall, gaunt figure of the tired- eyed President made its appearance in the flag-draped box the house went wild with delight, and the orches- tra struck up "Hail to the Chief;" the house arose as one body, and enthusiasm was inspiring. For several minutes the cheering continued and the President bow- ed and bowed his acknowledgements. The absence of General Grant was soon noticed, but this did not dampen the welcome for the great man who had sent out, but a few days previous, the most wonderful — the most extraordinary message to a conquered enemy the world had ever heard, namely, for them to return to their homes, and help in the re- construction of the Republic. No punishments, no crit- icisms, no bitterness, but just simply to return to their homes and set about rebuilding what they had tried to destroy, in a spirit of "With charity for all and malice toward none." The President and Mrs. Lincoln, upon receiving the regrets of General Grant and wife, who had been called to the bedside of their daughter, Miss Nellie, who was ill at a private boarding school in New Jersey, had invited Mai or Rathbone, lately returned from the front, and his fiance, Miss Harris, daughter of Senator Harris, to accompany them. The party seated them- 130 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN selves after the long ovation given the President, and turned their whole attention to the pastoral comedy of which Mr. Lincoln was very fond. Miss Laura Keene was playing the star lead that evening, assisted by a cast of prominent and capable actors, and the play went with a zest, the audience receiving it with a gale of laughter as one funny scene after another passed- The President chuckled quietly in his own peculiar quizzical manner .While this bril- liant scene was taking place inside, a most unusual play was transpiring on the outside. Sergt. Dye, a member of the government service was sitting in front of the restaurant next door to the entrance of the theatre on Tenth Street, talking with some other men who were enjoying the warm evening and their cigars, when a tall young man well dressed, stepped to the front of the theatre on the sidewalk, and in clear tones called the time. This did not attract any particular attention until he had re- peated it at an interval of every fifteen minutes for the third time, at ten fifteen. He disappeared and Sgt. Dye's curiousity was aroused by his strange conduct. He got up and started to walk in the direction the young stranger had taken, when wild cries and con- fusion within the theatre reached the street. "The President is shot," "The President is killed," finally was clearly heard- The entrance doors burst open, and men, insane with fright bolted out giving the call to those on the pavement, then rushed back in. It all hap- pened quicker than it takes to write it. At a moment before the last call of the time in front of the theatre, John Wilkes Booth, the popular young tragedian, stepped out of the bar-room attached to the theatre on Tenth Street, where he had called for several brandies, walked rapidly into the front lobby, passed the doorman at the center aisle with a genial nod, calling him familiarly by name, which was answered in the spirit which John Booth's greet- ings generally were. He passed over to the side aisle and started down when his passage was ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 131 - JOHN WILKES BOOTH FIRING THE FATAL BULLET barred by the arm of the head usher, who happened to be talking with friends in the aisle. Booth put his arm across the shoulder of the man who had his back to him and peering into his face said, "Why you don't want to keep me out, do you, old boy?" This was in the melodious Booth voice, once heard, never to be forgotten. The usher, swinging around said, "No, in- deed, Mr. Booth. Allow me to present you to my friends" Booth acknowledged the introduction gra- ciously and turning, sauntered down the aisle toward the box occupied by the Presidential party, intent on the most cruel, cowardly murder in all the world's history. 132 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN He passed the man on guard, who for the moment left the door of the box and was watching the play from a seat nearby. Booth entered the box, stealthily placing the board in the socket on the inside which had been made ready that day, by Spangler, the stage carpenter. Booth's entrance was so quiet that it attracted no attention from any of the party, all of whom had their eyes fixed upon the stage where only two people were, — Laura Keene and Harry Hawks as Asa Trench- ard. The lines and situation were exceedingly funny and the house was uproariously enjoying the comedy. Booth, after securing the door from any inter- ference from the outside, crept panther-like close to the back of the President's chair, whipped out his der- ringer with his right hand and a dagger with his left, placing the revolver just above the back of the chair. There was a muffled report, a whiff of smoke, and the President's head dropped upon his breast. The in- truder darted toward the railing in front of the box, but before he reached it, Major Rathbone, horror- stricken, but not really knowing just what had hap- pened, bounded to his feet. He reached out to grab the assassin, who, dropping his revolver, slashed viciously at him, warding him off by an ugly stab which cut his sleeve from shoulder to wrist from which the blood spurted. With the agility of the skilled athlete that he was, Booth sprang over the balustrade of the box onto the stage twelve feet below, but his spur, for he was in riding habit, caught in the large American flag which had been draped around Stuart's Washington on the front of the box, and he fell to the stage, breaking a small bone in his leg. He bounded to his feet instantly and darted away from the stage past the petrified actors, out through the rear door, where he mounted his horse which he had gotten the candy butcher, called "Peanuts" to hold for him just before he entered the front door a few moments pre- vious. Jos. B. Stewart, a man from the audience, who had taken in the situation before others in the au- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 133 dience had recovered from their horror, scrambled to the stage yelling "Stop that man" and rushed after the assassin, but just as Booth darted through the alley door someone in the dark slammed it shut before Stewart reached it and before he could get it opened, the man mounted his horse and dashed madly away in the darkness. Spangler, the stage carpenter, the testimony de- veloped, was the man who had slammed the door. He had been heard to promise his assistance to Booth earlier in the evening when he had dismounted from his horse. For this and disloyal statements about the President which he had been heard to make, he re- ceived a sentence of six years at the Dry Tortugas prison. The gaunt body of the dying President was tender- ly carried out of the theatre on the door of the box, which had been hastily pressed into service as a stretcher, across the street to the three story brick house of a man by the name of Peterson, who let his rooms furnished to the business men employed at the stores and nearby theatres. The stretcher-bearers carried him to the bedroom in the rear of the hall on the first floor and into a room occupied by a returned soldier, William Clark by name. The bed was a single bed and the body of the Presi- dent had to be laid diagonally across on account of his great height. The pitiful scene here can scarcely be portrayed by words. The hysterical sobs of Mrs. Lincoln and her constant cry of "Oh, why did they not take me- Why did they take him?" was heart-breaking. Capt. Robert Lincoln just returned from the front a few days before, was immediately summoned from the White House, where he was entertaining a college classmate, to the bedside of his dying father. He spent the time alternately trying to comfort his mother in the front parlor and watching at the bedside of his dying father- Soon the members of Mr. Linc^n's cabinet had 134 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN gathered in the sick room and Dr. Gurley, Protestant minister, and Surgeon General Barne-i, came as soon as possible from the bedside of the Secretary of State Seward, the Surgeon having been called there after Mr. Seward had been stabbed by L^uis Payne. Mr. Seward was now hovering between life and death. General Stanton, the cold, severe, dignified man, who had never been known to show any emotion, dropped on his knees at the foot of the President's bed, buried his face in the covering and sobbed like a child. Charles Sumner, who, perhaps, loved Lin- coln with the deepest and most ardent love of them all, never stirred from his place at the bed, holding his hand, and aiding the physicians, and watching with bated breath for the slightest sign of returning con- sciousness. But the wounded man never for one in- stant recovered, and died without knowing what had occurred. From the moment the physicians first reach- ed him and found the wound, they knew he was doomed. The President never regained consciousness and died a few minutes after seven the next morning. Secretary Stanton as he watched the life of the great man go out, turned to those in the room and said: "And now, he belongs to the ages!" At the same time that Booth assassinated the President, Lewis Payne, known as the "Florida Boy" an athletic young giant, who some months before joined the Conspiracy, rode up to the front of the res- idence of the Secretary of State, William Seward, and tied his horse to the hitching post. Mr. Seward had been ill for three weeks, suffering from a fractured jaw, the result of the running away of his team, and was under the constant care of male nurses. Payne rang the bell and it was answered by the colored butler. He told the latter that he had been sent with some medicine which he must take to the sick room. The butler refused to allow him to enter, saying that he had orders to allow no one to go to Mr. Sew- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 135 WILLIAM H. SEWARD, Lincoln's Secretary of State who was stabbed by Lewis Payne. 136 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ard's room. The stranger, after a short struggle, knocked him down, and went bounding up the stairs. He rushed into the sick chamber, after felling each of the two sons of the Secretary, one of whom had been in the service, the blow fracturing the skull of the younger man from which he never fully recovered- He then sprang upon the sick man and seriously stabbed him three times. By a superhuman effort the latter struggled out of the bed with his assailant who left him in a heap on the floor, bleeding from the wounds he had inflicted. After his murderous assault on Secretary Seward, the ruffian rushed down the stairs, yelling at the top of his voice, "I am mad, J am mad," and he very probably was. He was entirely un- der the control of the hypnotic influences of the wicked people in whose power he had allowed himself to be. It was part of the plan that Michael O'Laughlin one of the conspirators from Baltimore, was to have murdered General Grant that night. This was not possible, owing to the change in the General's plans- To Atzerodt, it fell to assassinate Vice President Johnson, but he became frightened and spent the day riding into the country on a horse from the livery barn in Washington, where he was found several days after with relatives of his below Washington. He made a written confession before he was executed which confirmed the presence of Surratt in Washington that fatal day a fact, which nine reputable witnesses had sworn to. Booth familiarized himself w T ith every road leading out of Washington to the south, and had studied and planned his escape with careful attention. It is not likely that he would ever have been caught, had h* not broken the small bone in his left leg in his jump. This was the providential handicap which hampered not only himself and Herold, but those of his friends who were ready to assist him. There is not the slight- est doubt but that every mile of that wild ride had been planned in advance, — weeks in advance- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 137 THE SURRATT HOUSE ON H. STREET, APRIL 1922. Recently sold for $10,500. Is occupied by owner. Supposed to be "haunted" by Mrs. Surratt's ghost. Stoop and steps re- moved by recent purchaser. 138 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The intense agony which Booth suffered every moment from the time he first met with the accident when jumping from the box doomed his chances of escape. The little bay mare dashed madly along under the cruel urge of his spurs as he sped over the bridge which spanned the Potomac to the Bryantown road. He passed the soldier at the bridge, after having told him his name, and was swallowed up in the blackness of the night. The moon was veiled behind a huge bank of clouds. Presently the guard at the bridge heard the clatter of another horse's hoofs approaching and the horse and rider soon hove in sight onto the bridge. The guard stopped him and asked him to give an ac- count of himself before allowing him to go on. This was Herold and in explanation he gave a false name saying that he had been in bad company which delayed him from returning home before sundown. He was permit- ted to pass. He cut his spurs into his horse and sped along, finally catching up to the first rider, Booth, be- fore they reached Surrattville, whither they were expected by the tenant Lloyd who had been visited by Mrs. Surratt that afternoon who had instructed him (Lloyd) to "Have those shooting irons" and other things ready, that they would be needed that night. Herold drew up to the tavern, sprang from his horse and dashed madly into the bar-room, saying: "Lloyd, for God's sake, make haste and get those things." Lloyd testified at the trials that he gave the car- bines which had been left six weeks before with him to be called for later on ; that Mrs. Surratt had been driven down from Washington on Friday (the 14th) to his house by Weichmann; that he met them on the road on his way to Washington ; that he got out of his buggy and went over to the side of their buggy and after a few moments of conversation she told him to "Have those shooting irons ready; that they would be called for soon." ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 139 Weichmann also testified that he overheard this order by Mrs. Surratt. Mrs. Surratt brought with her on this trip (the day of the assassination) a package containing Booth's field glass, to be handed out when called for. Herold took a bottle of whiskey out to Booth, who, owing to his suf- fering, did not come in. They only took one of the revol- vers, so Lloyd testified. Herold turned as he was about to drive off and said: "I'm pretty sure that we have assassinated the President and Secretary Seward. The two riders put their spurs into their horses and set off down the road to the little village of T. B. at full speed. The next stop was made at the residence of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, where they arrived at four o'clock on Saturday morning. This conspirator housed them and set the bone in Booth's leg. He bound it up in splints improvised from pieces of a cigar box, after which Booth was helped upstairs to bed where he re- mained until the afternoon of the same day. O'Laughlin had come to Washington on Thursday, the day before the assassination, with three of his co-religionists who prepared to make a perfectly good bullet-proof alibi for their friend O'Laughlin, which is the rule with Roman Catholic criminals. They were so solicitous in this intent that they over-reached them- selves and spoiled it. The great grievance of the Catholic church is that Mary E. Surratt was brought before a Military tri- bunal, instead of a civil court. The real basis of this complaint, was however, that there could be no po- litical influence brought to bear on a military court, which the hanging of four conspirators and life sen- tences of the three others bears out. As it is not within the power of the writer to pre- sent the facts in any simpler or more readable language than that used in the closing argument of the special Judge Advocate, John A. Bingham, I shall rely on ex- cerpts from that document to give the facts. Chapter IX. The Trials Of The Assassins By Docu- mentary Evidence. ARGUMENT OF JOHN A. BINGHAM, Special Judge Advocate. IN REPLY TO THE SEVERAL ARGUMENTS IN DEFENSE OF MARY E. SURRATT AND OTHERS, CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY AND THE MUR- DER OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, LATE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, ETC. May it please the Court: The conspiracy here charged and specified and the acts alleged to have been committed in pursuance thereof, and with the intent laid, constitute a crime, the atrocity of which has sent a shudder through the civilized world. All that was agreed upon and attempted by the alleged inciters and instigators of this crime constitutes a combination of atrocities with scarcely a parallel in the annals of the human race. Whether the prisoners at your bar are guilty of the conspiracy and the acts alleged to have been done. . . as set forth in the charge and specifica- tion, is a question, the determination of which rests solely with this honorable court, and in passing upon which, this court are the sole judges of the law and the fact. In presenting my views upon the questions of law raised by the several counsel for the defense, and also on the testimony adduced for and against the accused, I desire to be just to them, just to you, just to my ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 141 country, and just to my own convictions. The issue joined involves the highest interests of the accused, and, in my judgment, the highest interests of the whole people of the United States .... A wrongful and ille- gal conviction, or a wrongful and illegal acquittal upon this dread issue, would impair somewhat the se- curity of every man's life, and shake the stability of the Republic. The crime charged and specified upon your record is not simply the crime of murdering a human being, but it is a crime of killing and murdering on the 14th day of April, A. D. 1865, within the Military Depart- ment of Washington and the entrenched lines thereof, Abraham Lincoln, then President of the United States, and Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy there ; and then and there assaulting with intent to kill and murder, Wm. H. Seward, then Secretary of State of the United States; and then and there lying in wait to kill and murder Andrew Johnson, the Vice President of the United States, and Ulysses S. Grant, then Lieu- tenant General and in Command of the Army of the United States, in pursuance of a treasonable conspir- acy entered into by the accused with one John Wilkes Booth, and John H. Surratt, upon the instigation of Jefferson Davis, Jacob Thompson, Clement C Clay, George N. Sanders and others, with intent thereby to aid the existing Rebellion and subvert the Constitution and laws of the United States. The Government in preferring this charge, does not indict the whole people of any State or section, but only the alleged parties to this unnatural and atrocious crime. The President of the United States in the dis- charge of his duty as Commander-in-Chief of the Army and by virtue of the power invested in him by the Con- stitution and laws of the United States, has consi- tuted you a military court, to hear and determine the issue joined against the accused, and has constituted you a court for no other purpose whatever. To this charge and specification the defendants have pleaded first, that this court has no jurisdiction in the prem- ises; and, secondly, not guilty.'' 142 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN After a careful covering of every point raised by the defense, embellished with numerous citations of legal authorities and court decisions as to both of the points raised by the defense, the Judge Advocate con- tinues : "It only remains for me to sum up the evidence and present my views of the law arising upon the facts in the case on trial. The questions of fact involved in the issue are : First, did the accused, or any two of them, con- federate and conspire together as charged ? — and Second, did the accused, or any of them, in pur- ance of such conspiracy, and with the intent alleged, commit either or all of the several acts specified? If the conspiracy be established, as laid, it results that whatever was said or done by either of the parties in the furtherance or execution of the common design is the declaration or act of all the other parties of the conspiracy; and this whether the other parties, at the time such words were uttered, or such acts done by their confederates, were present or absent — here, within the entrenched lines of your Capitol, or crouching behind the entrenched lines of Richmond, or awaiting the results of their murderous plot ?« gainst their country, in Canada The same rule obtains in cases of treason. . A conspiracy is rarely if ever proved by positive testimony. When a crime of high magnitude is about to be perpetrated by a combination of individuals, they do not act openly, but covertly and secretly. The purpose formed is known only to those who enter into it Unless one of the original con- spirators betray his companions and give evidence against them, their guilt can be proved only by circum- stantial evidence/' During the course of Judge Advocate Bingham's address the influence of the Jesuit theology showed ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 143 THE OLD CAPITOL PRISON, WASHINGTON, D. C. Court room where conspirator trials were conducted in July, 1865. up in his reference to Jacob Thompson, one of the con- spirators referred to, who was a leader in the group of Confederates of Montreal, when he said: "In speaking of this assassination of the Presi- dent and others, Jacob Thompson said that it was only removing them from office, that the killing of a tyrant was no murder." Emanuel Sa, a Jesuit authority, said, "The tyrant is illegitimate; and any man whatever of the people has a right to kill him. (Uniquis - que de populo potest occidere.) But note this bit of evidence referred to by the distinguished lawyer: "Dr. Merritt testified further that after this meet- ing in Montreal he had a conversation with Clement 144 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN C. Clay in Toronto about the letter from Jefferson Davis which Sanders had exhibited and in which con- versation Clay gave the witness to understand that he knew the nature of the letter perfectly and re- marked that he thought, "The end would justify the means." The witness also testified to the presence of Booth with Sanders in Montreal last fall and of Surratt in Toronto in February last." The above is certainly proof positive of Jesuit in- fluence. Continuing below record shows: "John Wilkes Booth having entered into this con- spiracy in Canada, as has been shown, as early as October, he is next found in the City of New York on the 11th day, as I claim of November, in disguise, in conversation with another, the conversation disclos- ing to the witness, Mrs. Hudspeth, that they had some matter of personal interest between them; that upon one of them the lot had fallen to go to Washington. . . upon the other to go to Newbern. This witness upon being shown the photograph of Booth swears that "the face is the same" that of one of the men, who, she says, was a young man of education and culture, as appeared by his conversation, and who had a scar like a bite near the jawbone. It is a fact proved here by the Surgeon General that Booth had such a scar on the side of his neck." It was this witness that found the letter on the floor of the car which Booth dropped and which was transmitted from her to the War Department on No- vember 17th, 1864. The letter was delivered to Presi- dent Lincoln, who after having read it wrote the word "Assassination" across it, and filed it in his office where it was found after his death and was placed in evidence as a court exhibit. The letter read as follows: ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 145 "Dear Louis: The time has come at last that we have all so wished for, and upon you everything depends. As it was decided, before you left, we were to cast lots, we accordingly did so, and you are to be the Charlotte Corday of the Nineteenth Century. When you remember the fearful solemn vow that was taken by us, you will feel there is no draw- back. Abe must die, and now. You can choose your weapons, the cup, the knife, the bullet. The cup failed us once and might again. Johnson who will give this has been like an enraged demon since the meeting, because it has not fallen to him to rid the world of a monster ..... You know where to find your friends. Your disguises are so perfect and complete that without one knew your face no police telegraphic despatch would catch you. The English gentleman, Harcourt, must not act hastily. Remember, he has ten days. Strike for your home; strike for your country; bide your time, but strike sure. Get introduced ; congratulate him; listen to his stories (not many more will the brute tell to earthly friends;) do anything but fail, and meet us at the appointed place within the fortnight. You will probably hear from me in Washington. Sanders is doing us no good in Canada. ~, „ „ Chas. Selby. " And we quote again from Judge Bingham: "Although this letter would imply that the assassination spoken of was to take place speedily, yet the party was to bide his time. . . . The let- ter declares that Abraham Lincoln must die and now, meaning as soon as the agents can be em- ployed and the work done. To that end you will bide your time." "Even Booth's co-conspirator, Payne, now on his trial says Booth had just been to Can- 146 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ada, 'Was filled with a mighty scheme and was lying in wait for agents-' Booth asked the co- operation of the prisoner and said/ I will give you as much money as you want; but you must swear to stick to me. It is in the oil business.' This you are told by the accused was early in March last In the latter part of November, 18'64, Booth visits Charles county, Maryland, and is in company with one of the prisoners, Dr. Samuel E. Mudd, with whom he lodged over night, and through whom he procures of Gardner one of the several horses which were at his disposal and used by him and his co-conspirator in Washington on the night of the assassination." "Some time during December last it is in the testimony that the prisoner Mudd introduced Booth to John H. Surratt and the witness Weich- mann; that Booth invited them to the National Hotel; that when there in the room to which Booth took them, Mudd went out into the passage, called Booth out and had a private conversation with him, leaving the witness and Surratt in the room- Upon their return to the room, Booth went out with Surratt and upon their coming in all three — Booth, Surratt and Samuel A. Mudd went out to- gether and had a conversation in the passage, leaving Weichmann alone. Up to the time of this interview it seems that neither the witness or Surratt had any knowledge of Booth as they were then introduced to him by Dr. Mudd. Whether Surratt had previously known Booth it is not im- portant to inquire. Mudd deemed it necessary, perhaps a wise precaution, to introduce Surratt to Booth; he also deemed it necessary to have a private conversation with Booth shortly after- wards. Had this conversation, no part of which was heard by Weichmann been perfectly inno- cent, it is not to be presumed that Dr. Mudd, who was an entire stranger to the witness, would have deemed it necessary to hold the conversation ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 147 y~ ■ M '' -v' 1 ' 1 ' '- . '-: " HH jA»** '^"^ w 1 1P9 W? r ' '' ; 'V Wsa&WL ■' 3 * a, S^J*w»- : : : ' ; '^ : :$i/* : ':M f % :; :--3|I ''■"- r j " ' &T, 148 ASSASSIN^ OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN secretly, nor to have volunteered to tell the wit- ness, or rather pretend to tell him what the conver- sation was . . . And if it was necessary to with- draw and talk by themselves secretly, about the sale of a farm, why should they disclose the fact to the very man from whom they had concealed it?" As a matter of fact the above conversation about the purchase of Mudd's farm by Booth was merely a ruse to deceive Weichmann. The whole conversation was talking over the shortest and safest route for f^ght from the Capitol by which to reach their friends south of Washington. A number of Dr. Mudd's slaves testified that he was absent from his home at this time which corrob- orated Weichmann's testimony. We quote from the summing up of the evidence at the trials by Judge Advocate Bingham referring to O'Laughlin as follows: "Michael O'Laughlin had come to Washington on the 13th of April, 1S65, the day preceding the assas- sination, had sought out his victim, General Grant, at the house of the Secretary of War, that he might be able with certainty to identify him, and that at the very hour when these preparations were going on, was lying in wait at Rullman's on the Avenue, keeping watch, and declaring as he did, at about ten o'clock P. M. when told that that fatal blow had been struck by Booth, "I don't believe Booth did it." During the day and night before he had been visiting Booth, and doubt- less encouraging him, and at that very hour was in po- sition, at a convenient distance to aid and protect him in his flight, as well as to execute his own part of this conspiracy, by inflicting death on General Grant who happily, was not at the theatre, nor in the city, hav- ing left the city that day." "Who doubts that Booth ascertained in the course of the day that General Grant would not be present ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 149 at the theatre. 0"Laughlin who was to murder Gen- eral Grant, instead of entering the box with Booth, was detailed to lie in wait, and watch and support him." "His declarations of his reasons for his changing his lodgings here and in Baltimore, so ably, and so in- geniously presented in the arguments of his learned counsel (Mr. Cox), avail nothing before the blasting fact, that he did change his lodgings and declared: 'He knew nothing of the affair whatever.' " "O'Laughlin who said he was in the 'oil business' which Booth, Surratt, Payne and Arnold, have all de- clared meant this conspiracy, says he "knew nothing of the affair." O'Laughlin, to whom Booth sent the despatches of the 13th and 27th of March, — O'Laugh- lin who is named in Arnold"s letter as one of the con- spirators, and who searched for General Grant on Thursday night, laid in wait for him on Friday, was defeated by that Providence "which shapes our ends," and laid in wait to aid Booth and Payne, declares, he "knows nothing about the matter." Such a denial is as false and inexcusable as Peter's denial of our Lord." While these preparations were going on, Mudd was awaiting the execution of the plot, ready to faithfully perform his part in securing the safe escape of the murderers. Arnold was at his post at Fortress Monroe, awaiting the meeting referred to in his letter of March 27th, wherein he says they were not to 'Meet for a month or so,' which month had more than expired on the day of the murder, for his letter and testimony disclose that this month of suspensions began to run from about the first week in March. He stood ready with the arms with which Booth had furnished him, to aid the escape of the murderers by that route, and secure their communication with their employers. He had given the assurance in that letter to Booth that although the Government "suspicioned" them, and the undertaking was becoming "complicated" yet a time "more propitious would arrive," for the consummation of this conspiracy in which he "was one" with Booth 150 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN and when he "would be better prepared to again be with him". It was upon the above evidence for which O'Laugh- lin and Arnold were convicted and sentenced to the Dry Tortugas. And now I will quote from the same document the summing up of the evidence against Mary E Surratt, for as a matter of facts tersely stated noth- ing could surpass that of the Judge Advocate, John A. Bingham. "That Mary E. Surratt is as guilty as her son, as having thus conspired and combined and confedera- ted, to do this murder, in aid of this rebellion, is clear. First, her house was the headquarters of Booth, John Surratt, Atzerodt, Payne and Herold ; she is in- quired for by Payne, and she is visited by Booth, and holds private conversations with him. His picture, together with the chief conspirator, Jefferson Davis, is found in her house. She sends to Booth for a car- riage to take her on the 11th of April to Surrattville, for the purpose of perfecting the arrangement deem- ed necessary to the successful execution of the conspir- acy, and especially to facilitate and protect the con- spirators in their escape from justice. On that occas- ion, Booth, having disposed of his carraige, gives to the agent she employed (Weichmann) ten dollars with which to hire a conveyance for that purpose- And yet the pretense is made that Mrs. Surratt went on the 11th of April to Surrattville on exclusively her own private and lawful business. Can any one tell, if that be so, how it comes that she should apply to Booth for a conveyance? And how it comes that he, of his own accord, having no conveyance to furnish her, should send her ten dollars with which to procure it?" "There is not the slightest indication that Booth was under the slightest obligation to her, or that she had any claim upon him, either for a conveyance, or for the means with which to procure one except that he ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 151 was bound to contribute, being the agent of the con- spirators in Canada and Richmond, whatever money might be necessary to the consummation of this in- fernal plot. On that day, the 11th of April, John H. Surratt had not returned from Canada with the tunas furnished him by Thompson." "Upon that journey of the 11th, the accused, Mary E. Surratt, met with the witness, John M. Lloyd at Uniontown (her tenant at Surrattville) . She called him; he got out of his carrigae and came to her; she whispered to him in so low a tone that her attendant could not hear her words, though Lloyd to whom they were spoken, did distinctly hear them, and testifies that she told him he should have those "shooting irons" ready, meaning the carbines, which her son, and Her- old and Atzerodt had deposited with him, and added the reason, "for they would soon be called for." On the day of the assassination, she again sent for Booth, had an interview with him in her own house, and im- mediately again went to Surrattville, and then, about six o'clock in the afternoon, she delivered to Lloya a field glass and told him to "Have two bottles of whis- key and the carbines ready, as they would be called for that night." Having thus perfected the arrange- ment, she returned to Washington to her own house at about half past eight o'clock, to await the final result. How could this woman anticipate on Friday afternoon at six o'clock, that these arms would be called for, and would be needed that night, unless she was in the conspiracy and knew the blow was to be struck, and the flight of the assassins attempted and by that route." "Was not the private conversation with Booth held with her in her parlor on the afternoon of the 14th of April, just before she left on this business in relation to the orders she should give to have the shooting arms ready?" "An endeavor is made to impeach Lloyd. But the Court will observe that no witness has been called who contradicts Lloyd's statement in any material matter; 152 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN neither has his general character for truth been as- sailed. How, then, is he impeached? Is it claimed that his testimony shows that he was a party to the conspiracy? Then, it is conceded by those who set up any such a pretense that there was a conspiracy. A conspiracy between whom? There can be no con- spiracy without the co-operation, or agreement, be- tween two or more persons- Who were the other par- ties to it? Was it Mary E. Surratt? Was it John H. Surratt? Was it George Atzerodt, David Herold? Those are the only persons so far as his own testimony, or the testimony of any other witness discloses, with whom he had any communication whatever on any subject immediately or remotely touching this con- spiracy before the assassination. His receipt and con- cealment of the arms, are unexplained evidence that he was in the conspiracy." ' The explanation is, that he depended on Mary E. Surratt; was her tenant, and his declaration, given in evidence by the accused, himself, is that: "She had ruined him and brought this trouble upon him." But because he was weak enough, or wicked enough, to become the guilty depository of these arms, and to deliver them on the order of Mary E. Surratt, to the assassins, it does not follow, that he is not to be be- lieved on oath- It is said, that he concealed the fact that the arms had been left and called for. He so testifies himself, but he gives the reason, that he did it only from apprehension of danger to his life. If he were in the conspiracy, his general credit being unchallenged, his testimony being uncontradicted in any material matter, he is to be believed, and cannot be disbelieved if his testimony is substantially cor- roborated by other reliable witnesses." "Is he not corroborated touching the deposit of arms by the fact that the arms are produced in court, one of which was found upon the person of Booth at the time he was overtaken and slain, and which is identified as the same which had been left with Lloyd, by Herold, Surratt and Atzerodt? Is he ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 153 SURRATT TAVERN AT SURRATTVILLE, APRIL, 1922. Now the residence of Mrs. William Penn who has a linen handkerchief with "John H. Surratt" embroidered in corner, pre- sented to an aunt of Mrs Penn who attended school taught by him. 154 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN not corroborated in the fact of the first interview with Mrs. Surratt by the joint testimony of Mrs. Offut (his sister-in-law), and Louis J. Weichmann, each of whom testified, (and they are contradicted by no one) that, on Tuesday, the 11th of April, at Union town, Mrs. Surratt called Mr. Lloyd to come to her, which he did, and she held a secret conversation with him? Is he not corroborated as to the last conversation on the 14th of April by the testimony of Mrs. Offut, who swears that upon that evening, April 14, she saw the prisoner, Mary E. Surratt, at Lloyd's house, approach and hold conversation with him? Is he not corroborated in the fact, to which he swears that Mrs. Surratt delivered to him at that time, the field glass wrapped in paper, by the sworn statement of Weichmann, that Mrs. Surratt took with her on that occassion two packages, both of which were wrapped in paper, and one of which he describes as a small package, about six inches in diameter? The attempt was made, by calling Mrs. Offut, to prove that no such package was delivered, but it failed; she merely states, that Mrs. Surratt delivered a package wrapped in paper to her, after her arrival there, and before Lloyd came in, which was laid down in the room. But whether it is the package about which Lloyd testifies, or the other package, of the two about which Weich- mann testifies, as having been carried there that day by Mrs. Surratt, does not appear. Neither does this wit- ness pretend to say that Mrs. Surratt, after she had delivered it to her, and the witness had laid it down in the room, did not again take it up, if it were the same, and put it into the hands of Lloyd. She only knows that she did not see that done; but she did see Lloyd with a package like the one she received in the room before Mrs. Surratt left. How it came in his possession she is not able to state ; nor that the package was that Mrs. Surratt first handed her; nor which of the pack- ages she afterwards saw in the hands of Lloyd" "But there is one other fact in this case that puts forever at rest the question of the guilty parties ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 155 ST. PATRICK'S ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH The Surratt household were attendants of this church at 10th and G. streets. 156 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN pation of the prisoner, Mrs. Surratt, in this conspiracy and murder; and that is, that Payne who had lodged four days in her house — who, during all of that time had sat at her table, and who had often conversed with her — when the guilt of his great crime was upon him, and he knew not where else he could go so safely, to find a co-conspirator, and that he could trust none, that was not like himself, guilty, with even the knowl- edge of his presence, under the cover of darkness, after wandering for three days and nights, skulking be- fore the pursuing officers, at the hour of midnight found his way to the door of Mrs. Surratt, rang the bell, was admitted, and upon being asked, "Whom do you want to see?" Replied, "Mrs. Surratt." He was then asked by the officer Morgan, what he came at that time of night for, to which he replied, "To dig a gut- ter in the morning." that Mrs. Surratt had sent for him. Afterwards he said that Mrs. Surratt knew he was a poor man and came to him. Being asked where he last worked, he replied: "Sometimes on I street;" and where he boarded, he replied, that he had no boarding house but was a poor man who got his liv- ing with the pick, which he bore upon his shoulder, having stolen it from the entrenchments of the Cap- ital. Upon being pressed why he came there at that time of night to go to work, he answered that he sim- ply called to see what time he should go to work in the morning. Upon being told by the officer who fortunate- ly had preceded him to this house, that he would have to go to the Provost-Marshal's office, he moved and did not answer, whereupon Mrs. Surratt was ask- ed to step into the hall and state whether she knew this man. Raising her right hand, she exclaimed : "Be- fore God, sir, I have not seen that man before ; I have not hired him; I do not know anything about him." The hall was brilliantly lighted" "If not one word had been said, the mere act of Payne in flying to her house for shelter, would have borne witness against her, strong as proofs from Holy Writ. But, when she denies, after hearing his ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 157 declarations that she had sent for him, or that she had never seen him, and knew nothing of him, when, in point of fact, she had seen him four consecutive days, in her own house (that same house) in the same cloth- ing which he wore, who can resist for a moment, the conclusion that these parties, were alike, guilty?" And this is the woman whom the Roman hierarchy in this country is trying to make a martyr of! Con- template this female Jesuit, this Leopoldine, without being asked to swear to her denial, volunteered to lift her hand and in the name of her God, perjure herself in the presence of those witnesses! Do you doubt that she was a lay Jesuit? Listen. Let me quote the "Doctrine of the Jesuits" upon this point: Under "Of Lying and False Swearing" in JUICIO TEOLOGICA, Basnedi, Jesuit authority, page 278, we find: "If you believe in an inconvertible manner, that you are commanded to lie, then lie." , Again we quote from the Jesuit Father Stoz in "Of the Tribunal of the Penitent: "When a crime is secret, the culpability of the crime may be denied; it being understood publicly." Mary E. Surratt knew the command of her church at that moment, and in order to save it from scandal and culpability in this great crime, as well as her own life and safety, she was dispensed to lie, and so with- out any hesitancy she raised her right hand and swore to this lie. Continuing, Judge Bingham said: 158 ASSASSINS OP ABRAHAM LINCOLN "Mrs. Surratt had arrived at home from the com- pletion of her part in the plot, about half past eight in the evening. A few minutes afterwards she was called to the parlor, and there had a private interview with someone unseen, but whose retreating footsteps were heard by the witness, Weichmann. This was doubt- less the secret, and last visit of John H. Surratt to his mother, who had instigated and encouraged him to strike this traitorous and murderous blow at his country. "Booth proceeded to the theatre about nine o'clock in the evening, at the same time that Atzerodt and Payne and Herold were riding the streets, while Sur- ratt, having parted with his mother at the brief in- terview in her parlor, from which his retreating steps were Tieard, was walking the Avenue (Pennsylvania) booted and spurred, and doubtless consulting with O'Laughlin. When Booth reached the rear of the thea- tre, he called Spangler to him and received from Span- gler his pledge to help him all he could, when, with Booth, he entered the theatre by the stage door, doubtless to see that the way was clear from the box to the rear door of the theatre, and to look upon their victim, whose erect position they could study from the stage. After this view Booth passes to the street in front of the theatre, where on the pavement, with other conspirators, yet unknown, among them one de- scribed as a low-browed villain, he awaits the ap- pointed moment Presently, as the hour of ten o'clock approached, one of his guilty associates calls the time; they wait; again, as the appointed time draws nigh, he calls the time; and finally when the fatal moment arrives, he repeats in a louder tone "Ten minutes past ten o'clock, ten minutes past ten o'clock." .... The hour has come when the red right hand of these murderous conspirators should strike, and the dreadful deed of assassination be done " "Booth at the appointed moment entered the theatre, ascended to the dress circle, passed to the right, paused ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 159 INTERIOR OF FORD'S THEATRE ON NIGHT OF MURDER. JOHN WILKES BOOTH'S ESCAPE AFTER DEED. 160 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN a moment looking down, doubtless to see if Spangler was at his post, and approached the outer door of the closed passage leading to the box, occupied by the President, pressed it open, passed in, and closed the passage door behind him. Spangler's bar was in its place and was readily adjusted by Booth in the mor- tise, and pressed against the inner side of the door, so that he was secure from interruption from without. He passed on to the next door, immediately behind the President, and stopping, looks through the aperture in the door into the Presidents box, and deliberately ob- serves the precise position of his victim seated in the chair, which had been prepared by the conspirators, as the altar for the sacrifice, looking calmly and quietly down upon the glad and grateful people, whom by his fidelity he had saved from the peril which had threat- ened the destruction of their government, and all they held dear, this side of the grave, and whom he had come, upon invitation, to greet with his presence, with the words still lingering upon his lips, which he had uttered with uncovered head and uplifted hand, be- fore God, and his country, when on the fourth of last March, he took again the oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution, declaring that he entered upon the duties of his great office "With malice toward none and charity for all" "In a moment more, strengthened by the knowl- edge that his conspirators were all at their posts, seven at least of them present in the city, two of them. Mudd and Arnold, at their appointed places, watching for his coming, this hired assassin moves stealthily through the door, the fastening of which had been removed to facilitate his entrance, fires upon his vic- tim, and the martyred spirit of Abraham Lincoln as- cends to God." "Treason has done his worst; nor steel nor poison Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing Can touch him further." ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 161 Now, I will let Judge Bingham pick up the thread of evidence by which Booth and Herold were left at the home of Mr. Mudd : ". . . They arrived early in the morning before day, and no man knows at what hour they left. Herold rode towards Bryantown with Mudd, about three o'clock that afternoon, in the vicinity of which place he parted with him, remaining in the swamp, and was after- wards seen returning the same afternoon in the direc- tion of Mudd's house, a little before sundown, about which time Mudd returned from Bryantown towards his home. This village, at the time Mudd was in it, was thronged with soldiers in pursuit of the murder- ers of the President, and although great care had been taken by the defense to deny that anyone said in the presence of Dr. Mudd, either there or elsewhere on that day, who had committed this crime, yet it is in evi- dence by two witnesses, whose truthfulness no man questions, that upon Mudd's return to his own house that afternoon, he stated that Booth was the murderer of the President, and Boyle, the murderer of Secre- tary Seward, but took care to make the further re- mark that Booth had brothers, and that he did not know which one of them had done the act " "When did Dr. Mudd learn that Booth had broth- ers? And what is still more pertinent to this inquiry, from whom did he learn that either, John Wilkes or any of his brothers, had murdered the President?" "It is clear that Booth remained in Mudd's house until some time in the afternoon of Saturday ; that Her- old left the house alone, as one of the witnesses states, being seen to pass the window; that he alone of these two assassins was in the company of Dr. Mudd on his way to Bryantown. It does not appear that Herold re- turned to Mudd's house. It is a confession of Dr. Mudd himself, proven by one of the witnesses that Booth left his house on crutches and went in the direction of the swamp. How long did he remain there, and what became of the horses that Booth and Herold rode to 162 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN his house and which were put in his stable, are facts nowhere disclosed by the evidence- The owners testify that they have never seen the horses since." As a matter of fact, it afterward developed, Herold, while he and Booth skulked in the timbers near the place of Thomas Jones, not a great way from the road on which they could see the soldiers and searchers riding up and down feared the horses might, by neighing, at- tract the attention of the riders and be betrayed, so he led the horses a safe distance away and shot them. The late Brig. General T. M. Harris, a member of the military commission which convicted the con- spirators, in his great book on the Conspiracy Trials, page 80, describes Dr. Mudd as follows : "Mudd's expression of countenance was that of a hypocrite. He had the bump of secretiveness largely developed, and it would have taken months of favora- ble acquaintanceship to have removed the unfavorable impression made by the first scanning of the man. He had the appearance of a natural born liar and deceiver. Mudd was a physician living on a farm. He had a con- siderable number of slaves at the breaking out of the Rebellion, most of whom had left him during the previous winter. His father, also living in the neigh- borhood, was a large land and slave holder, and Mudd's disloyalty was, no doubt, of the rabid type. His home was a place for returned Rebel soldiers and recruiting parties, and he had a place of concealment in the pines near his house, where they were sheltered and cared for, the doctor sending their food to them by his slaves; and if at any time any of these parties ven- tured to his house to take their meals, a slave was al- ways placed on watch to give notice of the approach of anyone." Mudd not only entertained Booth a week-end in November, but he was known to have made several trips to Washington that winter, and each time was in conference with both Booth and Surratt. There is no ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 163 doubt that Booth's Knight of the Golden Circle sig- nals and signs did not give him entree to the Roman- ists in the community south of Washington, in which St. Mary's Catholic Church was the center, and to which he and Herold fled after the deed committed in Ford's Theatre. The next damaging evidence against Dr. Mudd was, when the officers visited his house on the trail LOUIS J. WEICHMANN. Student for priesthood with John H. Surratt at Sulpician Monastery near Baltimore, Md. State's chief witness. of the two fugitives and he emphatically denied that he had any strange visitors. It was not until the third visit, when the officers, fortified by definite facts in- formed him that they would have to search the house, that he admitted the presence of the two men, one wounded, who had been there the Saturday after the assassination. Mrs. Mudd disappeared and in a few minutes came in bringing the bootleg which Mudd had 164 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN cut from Booth's boot when he bandaged his leg. On the bootleg were the initials "J. W. B." written in India ink inside. Even then neither Mudd nor his wife told an accurate story. Both denied that they had any idea it was Booth, notwithstanding the fact that they were well acquainted with him, and notwithstanding that his was a personality with voice and manner that once known could never be forgotten- When Mudd was being taken to the Dry Tortugas after his conviction, he admitted to the officers who had him in charge, that he recognized Booth and Herold the morning after the murder when he came to have his leg dressed. Mudd only served three years' imprisonment and was liberated with Spangler, as was Arnold. O'Laugh- lin died of the Yellow Fever in an epidemic in the pris- on, and Dr. Mudd rendered his professional services so efficiently, that it was on this ground he received his discharge from President Johnson, who had prom- ised he would do so before retiring from office. The liberation of these assassins of President Lincoln by his successor, caused much sharp comment and criti- cism from Lincoln's friends. It seems almost unbe- lievable that any sort of leniency should have been shown to these criminals who were guilty not only of the murder of the most distinguished American, but of high treason to their government! It may be interesting to the reader to know that in the book written by Dr. Mudd's daughter, she proudly boasts of the fact that her mother is a grad- uate of the Visitation Convent at Georgetown and that on graduation her diploma was presented to her class by "Cardinal Rodini, who was the first papal Le- gate to the United States." The lady does not state, perhaps she did not know, that Cardinal Bodini, prior to his elevation as papal Legate was known all over Italy as the "BUTCHER of Bologna," because of the many Italian patriots he ordered put to death and that he gave the order that the Revolutionary priest, Ugo Bassi, who was the ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 165 devoted follower of Garibaldi, should be tortured three hours before his execution. She neglects also to state that this was the same Cardinal Bodini, who was made to leave this country between suns by the "KNOW NOTHINGS' — God bless them, and all their kind! Spangler, broken in health, returned with Dr. Mudd and made his home with him until his death in 1875. He is buried in the cemetery, two miles from the Mudd residence, near St. Peter's church. Dr. Mudd lies buried in the little country graveyard connected with St. Mary's church where he first met Booth on that bright November morning in 1864. The body of John Wilkes Booth was given to his brother, Edwin, who had it removed from the old pen- itentiary in the Arsenal grounds, where it had been since the burial of the other four of his fellow con- spirators, by a Baltimore undertaker, assisted by a local Washington undertaking firm, Harvey & Marr, to Baltimore, and buried in the Booth family lot at beau- tiful Greenmount cemetery. The army box labeled with Booth's name at the time of the burial was somewhat decayed but the body was identified by the dentist who had filled several teeth, and who had no difficulty in identifying it as that of Booth. The skull had become detached but the jet black hair hung in long black ringlets. Edwin Booth did not view the body but remained close by un- til notified of the complete identification. He ordered the body placed in a casket which had been provided by him and shipped to Baltimore. The mother of Michael O'Laughlin was given the body of her son, which was shipped from the prison burial ground and placed in the Catholic cemetery in Baltimore. 166 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN GARRETT TOBACCO BARN, PORT ROYAL, VA. Booth being dragged out after he fell from bullet fired by Sergt. Boston Corbett April 26, 1865. Chapter X. The Trail Of The Arch Conspirator- John H. Surratt. Now, we will take up the trail of the arch-con- spirator and assassin, John Harrison Surratt, the man who called the time in front of Ford's Theatre the night of the murder of President Lincoln, and track him, step by step, to the very shadow of the Vatican, whose protection he sought and received, until a for- mal demand was made by the United States govern- ment for his return to this country for trial for the murder of Abraham Lincoln. In order to nail the Roman church to the cross in this great treason plot, the writer asks your patience and careful reading of this subject which has lain for over a half century buried in the oblivion where the Jes- uits placed it and from which we have resurrected it and pieced it together, in what we hope may prove a readable shape, to be understood and the information passed on. It is safe to say that the escape of this tool of the Roman priesthood was one of the most spectacular in all history. It began the very night after the tragic scene in Ford's Theatre. It will probably never be known positively by what means Surratt made good his escape from Wash- ington that night, or early the next morning, for he has passed to his eternal accounting and did so, so far as is known, without having revealed it. But this is certain; he succeeded in making his escape safely to Montreal, Canar|a ? an$ was lodged securely in the house \ \ 168 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN of the parents of the Roman priest, La Pierre, who was waiting and ready to receive him, close by the papal "palace" of the Archbishop to whom he was secretary. Then began in the United States what was one of the most extraordinary man hunts for Surratt that ever occurred, before or since, in the history of this country. The rewards by the government amounted to twenty-five thousand dollars, and every detective in the government secret service, every detective of the private agencies, and every amateur sleuth en- gaged in this drive to recover this nineteen year old boy, leader of the gang of laymen who were instigated, aided, urged and abetted by the priests of the church of Rome, to complete the destruction of this Republic, which had recently been recovered from the awful cataclysm which our foreign enemies had precipitated four years previous. The government secret service, under the direc- tion of the War Department, sent out the following letter: "Headquarters Department of Washington, Washington, D. C, April 16th, 1865- Special Orders, No. 68, Special officers, James A. McDevitt, George Holohan, and Louis J. Weichmann, are hereby ordered to New York on important government business, and, after executing their private or- ders, to return to this city and report at these headquarters. The Quartermaster's Department will furnish the necessary transportation. By command of Major-Gen eral Augur, T- In- graham, Colonel and Provost-Marshal-General. Defenses North of Potomac." These officers after leaving Washington, arrived in Montreal on April 20th, and registered at the St. James Hotel. They searched the registers of the hotels in that city, and found that Surratt had arrived at ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 169 the St. Lawrence Hall Hotel on April 6th, and checked out on the 12th of that month; that he had returned on the 18th and left a few hours later. They learned on further investigation that he had stayed at tne home of a man by the name of Porterfield, a Secession- ist from Tennessee, who was one of the agents for the Confederacy in that city, and that Surratt had left that house with another man dressed exactly like himself, each taking a carriage and being driven in different directions. At this point the trial ended un- til the government learned of his sailing on the Peruvi- an, an English steamer, plying between Quebec and Liverpool. The Secretary of State received the following code telegram from our Consul in Montreal, J. F. Pot- ter: "No. 236. (Mr. Potter to Mr. Seward) U. S. Consul, B. N. A. F. Montreal, Oct. 27, 1865. Sir: Have just had a personal interview with Dr. L. J. McMillan. He informs me that just be- fore the Steamer Peruvian sailed, a person with whom he was acquainted, asked him if he was willing that a gentleman who had been somewhat compromised by the recent troubles in the United States, should pass as his friend on board on the passage out. The Doctor refused to acknowl- edge the person as his friend, until he should know who he was. Subsequently, the same oerson, accompanied by a party (Priest La Pierre — Ed.) came on board before the ship left port, whom he introduced to the surgeon as Mr. McCarthy. During the voyage McCarthy made himself known to the Doctor as John H. Surratt, and related to him many of the particulars of the conspiracy. He said he had been secreted in Montreal most of the time, with the exception of a few weeks, when he was with a Catholic priest down the river. He also stat- ed that Porterfield of this city, formerly of Tenn- 170 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN essee, assisted in secreting him. The Doctor also informed same that Surratt had dyed his hair, eyebrows and mustache, blackstained his face, and wore glasses. He landed in Londonderry, Ireland, fearing he might be watched and detected in Liv- erpool. He told him he was obliged to remain until he could receive money from Montreal. He re- quested the Doctor to see his friend in this city, and bring him funds. After the return of the Peruvian, the Doctor was transferred to the No- va Scotian. When I saw him he had just had an interview with his friend who had introduced him to Surratt, as McCarthy, who told him he was expecting funds from Washington, D. C, bur that they had not come yet. The Doctor says that Surratt manifests no signs of penitence, but justifies his action, and was bold and defiant, when he speaks of the assassi- nation of Abraham Lincoln. To illustrate this: He told me that Surratt remarked repeatedly, that he only desired to live two years longer, in which time he would serve President Johnson as Booth served Lincoln. The Doctor said he felt it his duty to give me this information for he regarded Surratt a desperate wretch, and an enemy to so- ciety, who should be apprehended and brought to justice." (Signed) John F- Potter." To this important information, our Consul re- ceived no reply from the War Department, as he had expected and the next day he followed it with a tele- gram, also in code, printed below : "No. 236. (Mr. Potter to Mr. Seward) U. S. Consul General, Montreal, Can., Oct. 25th, 1865. Sir: — I sent you a telegram in cipher with information to the Department that John H. Sur- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 171 ratt left Three Rivers, in September, for Liverpool, where he now is, awaiting the arrival of the Nova Scotian, which sails on Saturday, next, by which he expects to receive money from parties in this city by hand of Ship Surgeon. . I have information from Dr. McMillan, Surratt intends to go to Rome. He was secreted at Three Rivers by a Catholic priest, with whom he lived. I have requested in- struction in my telegram, but hearing nothing yet, I scarcely know what course to take. If an officer could proceed to England on this ship, no doubt, Surratt's arrest might be ef- fected, and this, the last of the conspirators against the lives of the President and Secretary of State be brought to justice. If I hear nothing from Washington tomorrow, I shall go to Quebec to see further on the subject. Respectfully, etc. (Signed) Potter." And now a most peculiar phase of this remarka- ble case presents itself to us. The U. S- War Depart- ment with the full knowledge of the exact whereabouts of that arch-criminal, who not only assisted, but led in, and actually directed the murder of the President of the United States and Secretary of State, William H. Seward, refused to make the least attempt to arrest the said John H. Surratt, which the following cable to our Consul in Liverpool shows: "(Mr. Hunter to Mr. Wilding) Dept. of State, Oct. 13th, 1865. Sir: Your dispatches 541-543 inclusive have been received. In reply to your No. 538, I have to inform you, that upon consultation with the Secretary of War and Judge Advocate General, it is thought advisable that no action be taken in regard to the 172 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN arrest of the supposed John H Surratt, at pres- ent. W. H. Hunter, Acting Secretary." Then in only a few weeks from that date, the following order was sent to the War Department from Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, and successor to Abraham Lincoln: "(General Order No. 164) War Department Adj. General's Office, Washington, Nov. 24, 1865. All persons claiming reward for the appre- hension of John Wilkes Booth, Lewis Payne, G. A. Atzerodt, David E. Herold, and Jefferson Davis, or either of them, are notified to file their claims and their proofs with the Adj. General for final adjudication by the special commission appointed, to award and determine upon the validity of such claims before the first day of January next, after which no claims will be received. The reward for the arrest of Jacob Thompson, Beverly Tucker, George W. Sander, Wm. G. Cleary, and John H. Surratt, are hereby revoked. By order of the President of the United States. E. D. Townsend, Ass't. Adj. General." Naturally, with the revoking of the reward for the arrest of Surratt, his chances for his safety from expiating his crime were multiplied many fold. On September 30th, 1865, our Consulate at Liver- pool, sent the following cable in Code to the Secretary of State at Washington: ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 173 "(Mr. Wilding to Mr. Seward) No. 539. U. S. Consulate, Liverpool, Sept. 30, 1865. Sir: Since my dispatch No. 538, the supposed Surratt has arrived in Liverpool and is now stay- ing at the Oratory of the Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Cross. His appearance indicates him to be about 21 years of age, rather tall and toler- ably good looking. According to the reports Mrs. Surratt was a very devout Roman Catholic, and I know clergymen of that persuasion, on their way to and from America, have frequently lodgea, while in Liverpool, at that same Oratory, so that the fact of this young man going there, some- what favors the belief, that he is the real Sur- ratt. I cannot, of course, do anything further in the matter without Mr. Adams' instructions, and a warrant. If it be Surratt, such a wretch ought not to escape. Yours respectfully, Your obedient servant, H. Wilding." The Oratory of the Holy Cross was the Roman Catholic Clearing House through which the ecclesiasti- cal agents passed between this country and the Vati- can, during their activites through the Civil War. And now, with the official correspondence to show us Surratt's moves, let me chink up the open spaces. When Surratt left the home of Porterfield, he was taken under the wings of the French priests from under which he never departed until they had seen the ship surgeon on the Peruvian and arranged for his safe passage as we have seen. The facts brought out at the two trials of Surratt, after he had finally been returned to the United States, showed that the fugitive had gone to the little village of St. Liboire, some sixty miles out of Montreal, skirting the pine woods, and an ideal place for the purpose. The parish •priest's name was Boucher. Here he secreted Surratt for several weeks, when the hunt got too hot in Mon- 174 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN treal which was being combed thoroughly for him. St. Liboire was out of the way of the general traffic, and the inhabitants, French Catholics, who worked for the most part in the lumber camps, and were by their location, as well as their lack of education, cut off from the rest of the world and its doings, as if they were people of another planet. They were sub- survient to their priest, so much so, that they would no more have thought of criticising his acts, than they would of God Himself. Consequently, when a strange young man appeared at the parish house nothing was thought of it, or if, perchance, some one with just a drop of rebellious blood in him, might have asked himself, "Is this another mouth to feed?" he would whisper it so softly that even his guardian angel could not hear it, and would quickly "bless" himself, for daring to criticise or find fault with what his "Bon Pere" should take it into his head to do. After several weeks of this life in the Canadian village, Surratt became restless, no doubt, and anxious to hear from the States, for we must remember that all his mail and the newspapers were censored by his priestly guardians, as he afterwards told in his Rock- ville lecture. Each time the "Holy Mother Church" would step in and allay his anxiety and he received al- most weekly visits from that other "Valued and trusted friend," Priest La Pierre of Montreal. Once when he in- sisted, Priest La Pierre took him back to Montreal, him- self, in citizen's clothes, and Surratt disguised as a hunter. You will note the solicitude of these French priests concerning this American youth who had a price of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars on his head, "dead or alive." Is it not an eloquent fact of, not only their personal guilt, but the guilt of their church, that they never thought of surrendering him and receiving the reward, notwithstanding the inordinate love of money which characterizes Rome's priests? Do you think for one moment that these priests in Canada, or the priests in Washington, would have ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 175 dared to have become parties in this conspiracy, there- by involving their church, without the full knowledge of the Roman hierarchy? Priests receive all their or- ders from the Pope through their Bishops. Would this obscure, native born American boy have been so carefully protected and cared for as he was by these priests, without the command of the Vatican ? You must remember that this government had sent broadcast the warning that anyone who would be found "aiding, abetting, protecting, comforting," or in any way assisting any of the conspirators, would be held as co-partners in the crime with them, and dealt with accordingly. There is not a record that I have been able to find, wherein there is one word of criticism, one word of disapproval, one word of regret officially, or otherwise, on the part of the Roman Catholic Hierarchy for the participation of the Romanists connected with this conspiracy, which consummated in the murder of Abraham Lincoln! THERE IS NOT IN THE LARGE COLLECTION OF OFFICIAL CONDOLENCES RECEIVED BY THIS GOVERNMENT UPON THE DEATH OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, COMING FROM EVERY CIVILIZED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD, ONE WORD FROM THE POPE OF ROME. AND THIS IN VIEW, MARK YOU, OF THE FACT THAT THE POPE WAS KING OF THE PAPAL STATES AND HAD MORE SUBJECTS IN THIS COUNTRY THAN ANY OTHER RULER IN EUROPE! Pius IXth by his silence at this time, made a con- fession of his guilt written in letters of fire — un- quenchable lire— which brands him and his Jesuits with the brand of Cain in the hearts and minds of the AMERICAN PEOPLE, when they shall have been given a full knowledge of their (the Jesuits) responsi- 176 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN bility in the CONSPIRACY OF DESTRUCTION OF THIS POPULAR GOVERNMENT ON THAT GOOD FRIDAY NIGHT IN FORD'S THEATRE, APRIL 14th, 1865; Who, among the government detectives from this country, would have thought to search the houses of the priests for their fugitive? How much chance would they had to secure a search warrant for such search in French Canada if they had? The Roman Catholic SYSTEM operates in safety through its in- stitutions in this country and Canada. It is only in Catholic Mexico, where the people who have been burdened by the Papal yoke, have been progressive enough to make laws and operate them that a search warrant can be obtained with which these hell-holes of the Pope of Rome in their country can be reacheu. Do you realize that in Mexico a Roman priest or nun has not the right of suffrage ? That they cannot vote or enjoy any of the rights or privileges which accompanies the ballot box? And yet we supposedly intelligent Americans, not only permit them to vote, but they are today the dominating force in politics of every large city in the United States. THINK OF IT! All the powerful machinery of the Hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church was set in motion from the moment after the murder of Mr. Lincoln to shield Surratt and defeat justice for his awful crime, and we have public documents with which to brand these ecclesiastical plotters. Notwithstanding the fact that the U S. War Department knew exactly every step taken by the young fugitive, from the day he sailed for Europe, no effort was made to airest him. The startling knowledge, however, came to the attention of certain members of Congress, and the matter was brought up in that body, and a committee appointed to investigate same. I herewith give the report of this committee in full: ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 177 OFFICIAL REPORT ON JOHN H. SURRATT ISSUED BY SECRETARY OF STATE FOR CONGRES- SIONAL RECORD. 39th Congress House of Representatives Report 33 2nd Session March 2, 1867 REPORT OF JUDICIARY COMMITTEE. That John H. Surratt sailed from Canada about September fifteenth, 1865, for Liverpool; that infor- mation was received by Secretary of State, Wm. H. Seward, from Mr. Wilding, V ice-Consul at Liverpool, by communication, dated Sept. 27th, 1865; that Sur- ratt was at that time in Liverpool, or expected in a day or two. By dispatch, from Wilding Sept. 30th, 1865, the supposed Surratt had arrived and was staying at the Oratory of the Roman Catholic church of the Holy Cross, and that he, Wilding, could do nothing in tne matter without instructions from our Minister in Eng- land, Mr. Adams, and a warrant. The Secretary of State, received a dispatch from Mr. Potter, our Consul General at Montreal, Canada, October 25th, 1865, informing him that Surratt left Canada for Liverpool, the September previous, and was there waiting the arrival of a steamer by which he expected money, which steamer had not yet iett Canada, and that he was intending to go to Rome. Upon November 11th, 1865, Mr. Potter received a dispatch from the Department of State, that the information in his dispatch had been properly availed of, and that on the 13th day of November, the Secre- tary of State, requested the Attorney General of the United States, to procure indictment against Surratt, as soon as convenient, with a veiw to demand his surrender. Our Minister, Mr. Rufus King, at Rome, com- menced as early as April 23rd, 1866, stated in his 178 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN dispatch, that information of Surratt, under the name of "Watson" had enlisted in tne Jfapai zouaves, tnen stationed at Sezzes. in a dispatch, August 8th, 1865, said he repeated information communicated to him, to Cardinal An- tonein, in regard to Surratt; that nis Eminence, was greatly interested by it, and intimated tnat if the American government desired the surrender of tne criminal, tnere would probably be no difficulty in the REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE "1st. That the Executive did not send any de- tective or agent to Liverpool to identify Surratt, or trace his movements, notwithstanding tnere was am- ple opportunity, for doing so, as appears in the com- munication from Potter. 2nd- That the Executive did not cause notice to be given to our Minister at Rome; that Surratt in- tended going there, when the government had every reason to believe, such was his intention. 3rd. That on November 24th, 1865, an order was issued from the War Department, revoking the reward offered for the arrest of John H. Surratt. 4th. That from the reception of the communi- cations of Mr. King, Aug. 8th, 1866, to October 16th, 1866, no steps were taken, either to indentify or pro- cure the arrest of Surratt, then known to be in the Military service of the Pope. The testimony of the Secretary of State, Secre- tary of War, and others which is herewith submitted, tending to justify acts of the government in the prem- ises, does not, in the opinion of your committee, excuse the great delay in arresting a person charged with complicity in the assassination of the late President Abraham Lincoln. They are constrained from testimony to report that, in their opinion, due diligence in the arrest of ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 179 John H. Surratt, was not exercised by the Executive Department of the government. Respectfully submitted, (signed) F. E. Woodbridge, For Committee." So ends the report of that splendid, fearless group of men, chosen by the House of Representatives to look into the matter. It seems almost incredible that the memory of Abraham Lincoln, could have been so soon forgotten. That the virus of which he had such a clear knowledge should have been making its deadly inroads in the veins of his successor and the Secretary of State, William H. Seward, whose life hung in the balance for days, caused by the hand of one of the assassins under the personal direction of this same Surratt! I now call attention to the communication from our American Consul at Rome, at the time, General Rufus King: No. 33 Regarding Sainte-Marie Ames (Gen. Rufus King to Mr. Seward) 2nd Session Legation II. S., Rome April 23rd, 1866- Sir: On Saturday last, the 21st, Henry de Saint-Marie, called upon me for the purpose, as he said, of com- municating the information that John H. Surratt, who is charged with complicity in the murder of President Lincoln, but made his escape at the time, from the United States, had recent! v enlisted in the Papal Zouaves, under the name of "John Watson," and is now stationed with his company at Sezze. My informant said that he had known Surratt in America; that he recognized him as soon as he saw him at Sezzes: that he called him by his proper name, and that Surratt acknowledged that he partici- pated in the plot against Lincoln's life. . 180 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN He further said that Surratt seemed to be well supplied with money, and appealed to him, Sainte Marie, not to reveal his secret. Sainte Marie, expressed an earnest desire, that if any steps were taken toward reclaiming Surratt as a criminal, that he (Sainte Marie) should not be known in the matter. He spoke positively, in answer to my questions as to his acquaintance with Surratt, and he certainly thinks this was the man, and there seemed such an entire absence of motive for any false statements on the subject, that I could not very well doubt the truth of what he said. I deemed it my duty, therefore, to present the circumstances to the Department, and ask instruc- tions. Respectfully, (signed) RUFUS KING" SURRATT ENTERED ENGLISH PAPAL COLLEGE AT ROME. An affidavit from an Irish Romanist. Edward O'Conner, a book dealer there, .skives this illumination upon that young criminal's movement: "About twelve months ago Mr. Surratt came to Rome under the name of "Watson" In Canada he nro- cured letters from several priests to friends in Eng- land. Having left England for Rome, he got letters for some people here, among others for the reverend Dr. Neane, Rector of the English College. Being de- tained some davs in Cevita Vecchia, and having no money to pay his expenses, he wrote the reverend t5r. Neane, from whom he received fifty francs. On his arrival here, he went to the English College, where he lived for some time; after that he entered the papal service. Rome, Nov. 25th, 1866." ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 181 O'Connor also turned over to our Minister, which is included in the other official papers in the archives of this government, a letter received by him from Surratt as follows: "Edw. O'Connor, Esq., Rome, Italy. Dear Sir: Will you be so kind as to send me a French and English grammar, the best method you have. I think Ollendorff is the most in use. When I come to Rome I will settle with you. Shall be in, in the course of two or three weeks. If you should have time to re- ply to me, please give me a ] l the news you can. By so doing, you will greatly oblige, Your friend, John Watser mitted to escape." We see Antonelli assuring our Con- sul that he had undoubtedly "made good his escape" and was in Italian territory." After the order of Cardinal Antonelli for the ar- rest of Surratt from the Papal Guard had been given the official wires of this country were busy. The fol- lowing orders were telegraphed to the officers of our Fleet in the Mediterranean : "Rome, Nov. 16, 1866, 11:50 A. M. His Excellency, Mr. Harvey, American Minister, Lis- bon. Inform Adm. Goldsborough that very important matters renders the immediate presence of one of our ships-of-war necessary at Vecchia. Rufus King." Mr. Harvey's reply was: ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 195 "As Rear Adm. Goldsborough is not now in port, I sent immediately for Commodore Steedman, who ar- rived here some days ago, and who is now the superior officer present, in order to consult as to the proper measures to be adopted. The U. S. Steamer Swatara, left here yesterday for Tangier, Gibraltar, and other ports in the Mediter- ranean, and if the Rear Admiral who is believed to have left Cherbourg for Lisbon, within the last few days, does not appear as soon as expected, Commodore Steedman will intercept and order the Swatara by tel- egram to proceed to Civiti Vecchia. *. ... Harvey" On November 17, 1866, a telegram from Minister Harvey announced that the Swatara had been ordered to Civiti Vecchia, which arrived in due time, but Sur- ratt had made his escape on a steamer which left Na- ples for Egypt and Henri de Sainte Marie was p'aced on board the Swatara, and held awaiting word from our Consul at Alexandria. The vessel upon which Surratt sailed put in at Malta. Our American Minister there who had been notified to be on the alert for that young fugitive, found that he was on board and cabled our Consul at Rome. This message was sent on to our Minister at Alexandria, Egypt, so that when the ship arrived at that port, it found Mr. Hale, the U. S. Consul General, waiting for him. I will let the official wire to the United States War Department describe his arrival. "(Extract) It was easy to distinguish him, (Surratt) from among the seventy-eight third-class passengers by his Zouave uniform and scarcely less easy, by his almost unmistakable American type of countenance. I said at once to him: "You are the man I want; you are an American?" He said "Yes sir." I said, "You doubtless know why I want you ? What is your name ?" He said, promptly, "Walters" I said, "I believe your 196 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN name is Surratt," and in arresting him I mentioned my official position as United States Consul-General. The Director of Quarantine speedily arranged sufficent escort of soldiers, by whom the prisoner was conducted to a safe place within the Quarantine walls. Although the walk occupied several minutes, the prisoner close at my side, made no remark what- ever, displaying neither surprise nor irritation. Arrived at the place prepared, I gave him the usual magisterial caution, that he was not obliged to say anything, and that anything he did say would be taken down in writing. He said "I have nothing to say. I want nothing but what is right" He declared he had neither transportation nor luggage, nor money, except six francs. His companions confirmed his state- ment. They said he came to Naples, a deserter from the Papal army at Rome. I find he has no papers, no clothes but those he is wearing. The appearance of the prisoner answers very well the description given by witness Weichmann on page 116 of Pittman's Re- port, sent me by the government. Hale." Here, again, we see Surratt, under the most try- ing circumstances under which an innocent man would have broken, taking his arrest with amazing coolness, the same, in fact, which he displayed previously, when he was taken at Velletri, although, so far as is known, that was the first time that he had ever been arrested. He was beyond doubt, fortified by the as- surance that under the protection of the Vatican, and he had, like all Jesuits, a clear understanding of all that fact guaranteed. He was clever enough to re- alize that with his inner knowledge of this whole sor- did, treasonable transaction, his "holy church" would jbe compelled to continue its protection as their inter- ests were inseparable. His confidence must have been further intensified by the fact that he would not have to face a military tribunal, as had his mother, and the rest of his co-conspirators, who were executed, and JOHN HARRISON SURRATT, IN PAPAL UNIFORM AT TIME OF HIS ARREST AND RETURN TO THE UNITED STATES. The above is reproduced from the only photo taken at the W which is the property of Col. O. H. Oldroyd of. Washington DC. .who kindly gave permission to reprint it here. It is taken from Oldroyd L s Lincoln Memorial Collection. (Col.. Oldroyd is himself author of an in- 198 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN that the political influence of the Jesuit machine al- ready had reached the presidential chair, so recently occupied by his victim, Abraham Lincoln. Taking stock of the above facts, the young mon- ster had good and sufficient reason to be philosophical about his present condition. He was probably rather relieved when he found himself a manacled prisoner, with his face turned homeward to the country of his nativity, to the country he had so miserably and wick- edly betrayed. He knew many staunch friends await- ed him, — friends, who, like himself, hated the gov- ernment. Before going further we present another offi- cial communication of this matter which throws added light upon the situation in Italy when the POPE WAS KING. "Mr. Marsh to Mr. Seward. Legation of U. S. Florence, Italy, Nov. 18, 1866. Sir: — On my arrival from Venice on Tuesday morning, I found the papers, copies and translations, of which marked respectively, A B C D and E, are hereto annexed. Mr. McPherson introduced by a letter, marked A, had gone to Leghorn, and I had no other information on the subject of his mission, than such as the papers referred to above have furnished. I lost no time in seeing the Secretary of the Min- ister of Foreign Affairs. I stated to him such facts as I was possessed of, and enquired whether he thonght his government would surrender Surratt to the United States for trial, if he should be found in Italian ter- ritory. He replied, he thought the accused man would be surrendered on proper demand and proof, but prob- ably, only on stipulation on our part, that the punish- ment of death, should not be inflicted on him. Having no instruction on the subject, and knowing nothing of those Mr. King might have received, and at that time having no reason to suppose that Surratt had escaped into the territory of the King, I did not pursue the discussion farther. .. . I doubt whether in ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 199 case of surrender of Surratt, a formal stipulation to exempt him from punishment by death, will be in- sisted upon. In the famous LaGala escape, Mr. Viscount Venos- to, then, as now, Minister of Foreign Affairs, refused to enter into such a stipulation, on the extradition of the offenders, but nevertheless, the government yielded to the intercession of the Emperor of France, and the sentences of those atrocious criminals, though convicted of numerous murders, robberies and even cannibalism, were commuted, and I suppose the gov- ernment of Italy, would strongly oppose capital pun- ishment and recommend Surratt to mercy, if he sur- rendered to us. The public sentiment of all classes in Italy, is de- cidedly averse to the infliction of capital punishment, and I shall not go too far, if I add, to any severe or adequate punishment for grave offenses. Marsh." There is a psychological reason for the innate en- mity in the hearts of Romanists for severe punish- ment. It is traceable to the long dark centuries of un- just, atrocious cruelties of the misrule which the Ital- ians endured, under the reigns of the popes of Rome. Suppression of any peoples continued for ages, will react and have a strong tendency to make government of anv sort resented and distasteful to them. Surratt did not overestimate the orotection of his church, for from the moment he landed in this coun- try, he was greeted and sustained by the priests of that church. When his trial began in Washington on June 10th, 1867, the nresence of Roman nriests and the students from the Jesuit University at Georgetown and the Sulnician Monastery where he had studied three years for the priesthood, were the most notice- able features of the sessions. Although he declared himself a bankrupt, he was furnished the services of the best lawvers. When it became necessary to furnish bail for his final release, it was immediately presented 200 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN by an Irish woman he did not even know, to the amount of thirty thousand dollars. According to press reports this stood there until his death in 1916. That is some friendship, is it not? AFFIDAVIT OF HENRI de Sainte Marie. Aims report, House of Representatives, 39th session Congress, Page 15, Ex. Document No. 9. Rome, July 10, 1866. "I, Henri de Ste Marie, a native of Canada, Brit- ish America, age 33, do swear and declare under oath, that about six months previous to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, I was living in Maryland, at a small village called Ellangowan, or Little Texas, about 25 or 30 miles from Baltimore, where I was engaged as a teacher for a period of about 5 months. I there and then got acquainted with Louis J. Weichmann and John H Surratt, who came to that locality to pay a visit to the parish priest. At that first interview a great deal was said about the war and slavery, the sentiment expressed by the two individuals being more than strongly secessionist. In the course of the conver- sation I remember Surratt to have said that Presi- dent Lincoln would certainly pay for the men that were slain during the war. About a month afterward I removed to Washington at the instigation of Weich- mann and got a situation as tutor at Gonzaga Col- lege where he was himself engaged. Surratt visited us weekly, and once he offered to send me South, but I declined. I did not remain more than a month at Washing- ton, not being able to agree with Weichmann and en- listed in the army of the North as stated in my first statement in writing to General King. I have met Surratt here in Italy at a small town called Velletri. He is now known under the name of "John Watson." I recognized him before he made him- self known to me and told him privately, "You are ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 201 John Surratt, the person I have known in Maryland. He acknowledged he was and begged me to keep the thing secret. After some conversation we spoke of the unfortunate affair, of the assassination of Presi- dent Lincoln, and these were his words: 'Damn tne Yankees, they have killed my mother; but I have done them as much harm as I could. We have killed Lincoln the nigger's friend.' He then said, speaking of his mother, 'Had it not been for me and that coward Weichmann, my mother would be living yet. It was fear made him speak. Had he kept his tongue, there was no danger for him; but if I ever return to Amer- ica or meet him elsewhere I shall kill him." He then said he was in the secret service of the South. And Weichmann, who was in some department there, used to steal copies of the dispatches and for- ward them to him and thence to Richmond. Speaking of the murder he said, they had acted under the or- ders of men who were not yet known, some of whom are still in New York and others in London. I am aware that money is sent to him yet — from London . 'When I left Canada,' he said, 'I had but little money, but I had a letter from a party in London. I was in disguise, with dyed hair and false beard; that party sent me to a hotel, where he told me to remain until I heard from him. After a few weeks he came to me and proposed to me to go to Spain, but I declined, and he asked me to go to Paris. He gave me seventy pounds with a letter of introduction to a party there who sent me here to Rome where I joined the Zouaves/ He says he can get money in Rome any time. I be- lieve he is protected by the clergy and that the murder is the result of a deej* laid plot, not only against the life of President Lincoln but against the existence of the republic, as we are aware that priesthood and roy- alty are and always have been opposed to liberty/' "That such men as Surratt, Booth, Weichmann and others^ of their own accord planned and executed the infernal plot which resulted in the death of Presi- 202 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN dent Lincoln is impossible. There are others behind the curtain who have pulled the strings to make these scoundrels act "He says he does not regret what has taken place and he will visit New York in a year or two, as there is a heavy shipping firm there that had much to do with the South, and he is surprised that they have not been suspected. This is the exact truth of what I know about Sur- ratt. More I could not learn, being afraid to awaken his suspicion and further I do not say." Sworn and subscribed before me at the American Legation in Rome, this tenth day of July, 1866, as witness my hand and seal. Signed : Henri de Ste Marie Rufus King, Minister Resident." Chapter XL The Trial Of John H. Surratt From the very moment the Swatara, the espec- ially chartered warship, reached this country with John H. Surratt, bound hand and foot on board, all the wheels of the Roman Catholic political machine were set in motion for his certain release. The intense excitement which had enveloped the trials of the con- spirators two years previous had naturally subsided perceptibly, this, of course, being an advantage to the prisoner, and the smallest details were looked af- ter by the array of high-priced lawyers who fought the two legal battles for this penniless young traitor and assassin. His attorneys, Messrs. Merrick, Bradley and Bradley were Romanized, the former a professed Cath- olic, and the other two, by strong sympathy, left no stone unturned in the building of his defense, although his alibi, so carefully planned and presented, was soon shattered by a number of reputable witnesses who could not be shaken by the unprofessional tactics which these lawyers resorted to. The first step in the proceedings was a motion filed by the States' lawyers from which we quote in part: IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES AGAINST JOHN H. SURRATT, INDICTMENT: MURDER. "And now, at this day, to-wit, on the 10th day of June, A D., 1867, come the United States and the said John H. Surratt, by their respective attorneys and 204 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN the jurors of the jury, impanelled and summoned also come; and hereupon the said United States by their attorney challenge the array of the said panel, because he saith, that the said jurors comprising the said panel, were not drawn according to the law, and that the names from which said jurors were drawn, were noc selected according to law, wherefor, he prays judg- ment, and that the said panel may be quashed. This motion, if your Honor please, is sustained by an affidavit which I hold in my hand, and which, with the permission of your Honor I will now proceed to read. We think after this affidavit shall have been read it will not be found necessary to introduce any oral testimony." The reader will note that the two charges made were that the names were not drawn according to law ; and that they were not selected according to law. The law required that the registrar of the City of Washington should make out a list of four hundred names on or before the first day of February; the City Clerk of Georgetown was to make out a list of eighty names to be selected : and the Clerk of the Levy Court of the County of Washington was to make out a list of forty names to be selected ; and that such lists should be preserved, and any names that had not been drawn for service during the year, might be trans- ferred to the lists made up for the subsequent year. After this had been done the officers should meet and jointly select their respective lists of the number specified; the names being written by each officer on a separate paner, folded or rolled ut>, so that no one could see the name, and then deposited in a box pro- vided for that purpose. The box was then to be thor- oughly shaken and officially sealed, and then by these three officers, given into the custody of the clerk of the County Court of Washington City for safe keep- ing. These same officers were to meet in the City Hall. Washington City at least ten days before the ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 205 commencement of each term of the Circuit Court, or Criminal Court, and there the Clerk of the Circuit Court was to publicly, and in their presence, break the seal of the box and proceed to draw out the number of names required. If it were a Grand Jury Court, the first twenty-three names drawn, were to constitute the grand jury, for the term. This having been done, the box was to be sealed and returned to the clerk for safe keeping. The clerk of the Circuit Court at that time was a Samuel E. Douglas, registrar of the City of Washing- ton. His examination showed that no such lists had been made out as required; that no joint action had been had by these three officials, but that each one had written his own required list, and deposited it in the box independently of the others. It was also brought to the attention of the Court that these officers had not sealed the box as requir- ed, but had delivered it to the clerk to be sealed by him. It was also shown that the names had been drawn, not by the clerk of the Circuit Court, but by the clerk of the City of Georgetown. There was nothing to prevent the Georgetown clerk from carrying any of the names of the jurors whom he might have seen fit, and who might have been "fixed/ in his hand, and when he put his hand into the box, which was a perfectly illegal act. to have withdrawn the very names he held in his hand. The whole procedure was so infamously bold and irregular that the Court said: "My order is that the marshal summon twenty-six talesmen. This occupied several days. After the jury had been selected, Sur- ratt's attorneys filed the following to be made the basis of carrying the case up on a writ of error ; 206 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, THE UNITED STATES VS. JOHN H. SURRATT, IN THE CRIMINAL COURT MARCH TERM, 1867. And the said Marshal of the District of Colum- bia, in obedience to the order of the Court, made in this case on the 12th of June, this day makes return that he hath summoned, and now hath in court here, twenty-six jurors, talesmen, as a panel, from which to form a jury to try the said cause, and the names of the twenty-six jurors, so returned being called by the clerk of said court, and they having answered to their names as they were called, the said John H. Surratt, by his attorneys, doth challenge the array of the said panel, because, he saith, it doth plainly appear by the records and the proceedings of the court in this cause, that no jurors have ever been summoned according to law, to serve during the present term of this court, and no names of jurors, duly and lawfully summoned, have been placed in the box, provided for in the fourth section of the Act of Congress, entitled: "An act pro- viding for the selection of jurors to serve in the sev- eral courts of the District ,, approved, sixteenth day of June, 1862, on or before the first day of February, 1867, to serve for the ensuing year; wherefore, he prays judgment, that the panel now returned by the said Marshal, and now in the court here, be auashed, Merrick, Bradley & Bradley, Attorneys for Surratt" It is a notable fact that there were sixteen Ro- manists out of the twenty-six in the first panel drawn in that irregular manner. The answer filed in the motion of Surratt's at- torneys was the first step in this bitterly contested case and while the prisoner was, according to his own statement, absolutely penniless, he was represented by an expensive array of legal talent and where the money came from reimbursing them remains a mys- tery today. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 207 Georgetown — Jesuitized Georgetown — was con- stantly in evidence at the trial. Tne priests from the Jesuit college were there, and the students who were just dismissed tor their vacations, were on hand and would always make it a particular point to greet Sur- ratt who had been a student of tnat institution lor two years, most cordially, and he was scarcely ever without a priest at his side, it is small wonder that the priests of Kome gave every assistance to the pris- oner at the bar. Their interests were inseparable. The interest of the Koman church in this country was deeply involved and no one appreciated this more than Surratt. He was confident ana defiant all through the weeks, of what would have been to most young men an unendurable ordeal, stimulated by the knowledge that all of the powerful machinery of his church was being used in his defense and that his liberty was guaranteed. John Surratt was a bold, cold-blooded, unscrupu- lous, unrepentant criminal, who had been steeped in the immoral teachings of the Doctrines of the Jesuits from his earliest childhood when his misguided mother had placed him under the guidance of priest Wiget at the Boys' Preparatory school at Gonzaga College, a fact which was testified to by that gentleman at Sur- ratt's trial. * Surratt's lawyers presented the following peti- tion at the beginning of the trial: "To the Honorable, the Justices of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, holding the Crim- inal Court in March Term, 1867. The petition of John H. Surratt shows that he has been put upon his trial in a capital case in this court; that he has exhausted all his means, and such further means as have been furnished him by the liberality of his friends, in preparing for his defense, and he is now unable to procure the attendance of his witnesses. He therefore prays your Honor for an order that process may issue to summon his witnesses, and to 208 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN compel their attendance at the cost of the government of the United States, according to the statute in such cases made and provided." This petition was granted by the court. From the very beginning, duplicity and innuendo were used, and unprofessional conduct of tne most fla- grant character was resorted to. Tne States' witnesses were badgered, abused and Duildozed, so much so tnat the Judge had to interfere more than once. Especially was this the fact in the case of Dr. McMillen, the ship surgeon of the Peruvian, to whom priest La Pierre introduced Surratt under the name of "McCarthy." The physician made a splendid witness and refused to be confused, but the attorney for the detendant was so abusive that the witness gave an angry response in pure self-defense. The papal venom showed itself all through the trials of Surratt in the never-ceasing effort of his at- torneys to stab the memory of Lincoln and througn their contention that the Military Court which had convicted Surratt's mother, had been an usurpation of power by President Johnson, and the act of a ty- rant. When one reads the records of those trials, one marvels that in so short a time after the passing out of that great man, these tools of the ecclesiastical mur- derers would dare to venture so far out in the open, with their treasonable utterances. When court was called to order in the John H. Surratt trial, Judge Fisher, presiding, said: "Gentle- men, this is the day assigned for the trial of John H. Surratt, indicted for the murder of Abraham Lincoln, late president of the United States. Are you ready to proceed? Surra tt's lawyer, Mr. Bradley, answered: "The prisoner is ready, sir, and has been from the first." This unnecessary falsehood was a beginning quite in keeping with the life and action of the prison- er, and his Jesuit attorney brazenly tried to implant in the minds of the jury the innocence of his client who had fled to Canada, then put the Atlantic ocean ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 209 between him and his pursuers and when arrested at Velletri, Italy, dashed himself down an unscalable precipice to evade being returned to his native land! Nothing less than Roman effrontery could have prof- fered such an answer to that question, "Are you ready?" DESPERATE FLIGHT HAS NEVER BEEN USED AS AN ARGUMENT FOR READINESS BE- FORE, 1 will wager, and it gives the keynote of the conduct of the defense. This is just a sample of one of those little Jesuit jokes. No doubt his attorney had a mental reservation when he assured the court that ins client had "been ready from the first," — to skip again, if the slightest opportunity offered itself. Men- tal reservation is one of the ethics of the Jesuit theol- ogy. The Roman Catholic religion was first dragged in by Surratt's own lawyer, R. T. Merrick, when they called attention to a telegraph dispatch to the New York Herald, in which the fact that the State had de- manded a new jury impanelled because there were six- teen Romanists out of the twenty-six jurors called in the first panel. The district attorney interrupted by showing that the news came from Washington and as afterwards proved that it was but one of many press dispatches, which were instigated by the defense to prejudice the public in Surratt's favor. If there were no other signs to indicate that the hand of Rome was the guiding one in the trials of Surratt, this alone would be sufficient to the esoteric. A most convincing presentation of the charges against the prisoner was made by assistant district attorney Nathaniel Wilson who made the opening ad- dress on June 18th. It ran in part as follows: "May it please your Honor, and gentlemen of the jury, you are doubtless aware that it is customary in criminal cases, for the prosecution at the beginning of the trial, to inform the jury of the nature of the offense to be inquired into, and of the proof that will 210 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN be offered in support of the charges of the indict- ment 'The Grand Jury of the District of Columbia has indicted the prisoner at the bar, John H. Surratt, as one of the murderers of Abraham Lincoln. It has be- come your duty to judge whether he is guilty or in- nocent of that charge, — a duty, than which more sol- emn or momentous, was never committed to human in- telligence. You are to turn back the leaves of history, to that red page, on which is recorded in letters of blood the awful incidents of that April night on which the assassins' work was done on the body of the chief Magistrate of the American Republic, — a night, on which for the first time in our existence as a nation, a blow was struck with the fell purpose, not only to destroy a human life, but the life of the nation, the life of LIBERTY itself. "Though more than two years have passed by since then, you scarcely need witnesses to describe to you the scene in Ford's Theatre, as it was visible in the last hour of the President's conscious life. . . . Per- sons who were present will tell you that about twenty minutes past ten o'clock, the 14th of April, 1865, on that night, John Wilkes Booth, armed with pistol and knife, passed rapdily from the front door of the theatre, as- cended to the dress circle, and entered the President's box. By the discharge of a pistol he inflicted a death wound, then leaped upon the stage, and passing rapid- ly across it, disappeared into the darkness of the night. "We shall prove to your entire satisfaction, by competent and credible witnesses, that at that time, the prisoner at the bar was then present, aiding and abetting that murder; and that at ten minutes past ten o'clock that night, he was in front of that theatre in the company of Booth. You shall hear what he then said and did. You shall know that his cool and calcu- lating malice was the director of the bullet that pierced the brain of the President, and the knife that fell upon the venerable Secretary of State. You shall know that the prisoner at the bar was the contriver ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 211 of that villainy, and that from the presence of the prisoner, Booth, drunk with theatric passion and traitorous hate, rushed directly to the execution of their mutual will. We shall further prove to you, that their companionship upon that occasion was not an accidental or unexpected one, but that the butchery that ensued was the ripe result of a long premeditated plot, in which the prisoner was the chief conspirator, "It will be proved to you that he is a traitor to the government that protected him: a spy in the em- ploy of the enemies of his country in the years 1864- 65; he passed repeatedly from Richmond to Washing- ton, from Washington to Canada, weaving the web of his nefarious scheme, plotting the overthrow of this government, the defeat of its armies, and the slaughter of his countrymen ; and as showing the ven- om of his intent, as showing a mind insensible to ev- ery moral obligation and fatally bent on mischief — we shall prove his gleeful boasts, that during these jour- neys he had shot down in cold blood, weak, unarmed soldiers, fleeing from rebel prisons. "It will be proved to you that he made his home in this city, the rendezvous for the tools and agents in what he called his "bloody work" and that his hand deposited at Surrattville, in a convenient place, the very weapons obtained by Booth while escaping, one of which fell, or was wrenched from Booth's death grip, at the moment of his capture. "While in Montreal, Canada, where he had orone from Richmond on the 10th day of April, on the Mon- day before the assassination. Surratt received a sum- mons from his co-con snirator. Booth, requiring his immediate presence in this city. In obedience to that pre-concerted signal, ho at once left Canada and ar- rived here on the 14th. By numerous, I had almost said a multitude of witnesses, we shall make the proof to be clear as the noonday sun. . . . that he was here during the day of that fatal Friday, as well as present at the theatre that night. ... We shall show him to you on 212 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Pennsylvania Avenue, booted and spurred, awaiting the arrival of the fatal moment. "We shall show him in confenerce with Herold in the evening; we shall show him purchasing a contriv- ance for disguise an hour or two before the murder. When the last blow had been struck, when he had done his utmost to bring anarchy and desolation upon his native land, he turned his back upon the abomina- tion he had wrought, he turned his back upon his home and kindred and commenced a shuddering flight. We shall trace that flight, because in law, flight is the criminal's inarticulate confession, and because it happened in this case, as it always happens. . . . that in some moment of fear or elation, or of fancied se- curity, he too, to others, confessed his guiRy deeds. He fled to Canada. We will prove to you the hour of his arrival there and the route he took. . . He found there safe concealment and remained there several months. . . In the following September, he took his flight. . . . Still in the disguise and with painted face, painted hair, painted hand, he took ship to cross the Atlantic. In mid-ocean he revealed himself and related his exploits, and spoke freely of his connection with Booth in the conspiracy relating to the President. He rejoiced in the death of the President, he lifted his im- pious hands to heaven, and expressed a wish that he might live to return to America and serve Andrew John- son as Abraham Lincoln had been served. He was hid- den for a time in England, and found there sympa- thy and hospitality. . . . From England he went to Rome and hid himself in the ranks of the papal army in the guise of a private soldier. Having placed almost the diameter of the globe between himself and the dead body of his victim, he might well fancy that pur- suit was baffled. . . but he was discovered by an ac- ouaintance of his boyhood. When denial would not avail, he admitted his identity and avowed his guilt in these memorable words: 'I have done the Yankees as much harm as I could. We have killed Lincoln, the niggers' friend V ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 213 "The man to whom Surratt made this statement did as was his high duty to do — he made known his discovery to the American Minister. . .Having him ar- rested, he escaped from his guards by a leap down a precipice. . . He made his way to Naples and then took passage on a steamer that carried him across the Med- iterranean Sea to Alexandria, Egypt. . . . The inexora- ble lightning thrilled along the wires that stretch through the wasted waters which roll between the shores of Italy and Egyot and spake in his ear its word of terrible command; from Alexandria. . . manacled, he was made to turn his face towards the land he had polluted by the curse of murder. He is here at last to be tried for his crime." In his closing argument attorney Oarrington for the Prosecution referring to Surratt's mother in connection with him said: "Now, gentlemen of the jury, let us view the con- nection of Mrs. Surratt with this assassination. I feel the delicacy of the ground unon which I stand. I know the situation. I know that you dislike to consider this question which has been forced upon you. I do not want to do it. My duty is to prosecute the prisoner, but one of the counsel has said she was murdered, and another that she was butchered, and it becomes my duty to trace her connection with this crime, and then leave it to you. to say whether she was guilty. ... of the crime for which she suffered. "First, I call your attention to the fact to which, we have already adverted: that her house. 541 H Street, was the rendezvous for these conspirators. Now, gen- tlemen, will you pause for a moment and let me ask you how you cpn reconcile that with innocence? You remember the l^w. that it is not how much a narty did. but whether she had anything to do with it. Can you, I say, reconcile it with innocence that this woman's house should have been the rendezvous of Booth. Lewis Pavne, Atzerodt. Herold and John Surratt? Would you not know by intuition? 214 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Would you not know by their conversation ? Would not your judgment and your hearts tell you who they were and what they contemplated ? "... Secondly, who furnished the arms with which this bloody deed was done ? . . . According to the testi- mony of John M. Lloyd, this is shown. Do you believe him, or disbelieve him? My friend, Mr. Bradley, . . . . said he was a common drunkard; but, mark you, he was an attendant and friend of Mrs. Surratt." (Mr. Bradley) "Who says so?" (District Attorney) "I will prove it. When I was examining that witness and proposed to ask him cer- tain questions in reference to Mrs. Mary E. Surratt, he said, 'Mr. Carrington,' for he knew me personally, 'I do not wish to talk about Mrs. Surratt, for she is not on trial/ I said 'Go on, Mr. Lloyd.' ... I applied to the court and the court said it was his duty to answer. He saw her continually. He lived in her house ; he drank her liquor. Why, this evidence shows that John H. Surratt, Herold and John M. Lloyd played cards and drank together. But, says the friend and companion (Lloyd) of the prisoner at the bar, (Surratt) unwill- ing to testify against her, when put on solemn oath. . . he says certain arms were furnished him by the pris- oner at the bar who showed him where they could be safely concealed. ... he (Lloyd) protesting that it might get him into personal difficulty. The mother knew about the transaction, for on the 11th of April we have Lloyd's own testimony that she asked him where those shooting arms were, and said that they might be needed soon. I say, first her house is the rendezvous; secondly, she furnished arms or knows of their being furnished. "On the night of the 14th of April, Booth and Her- old are leaving Washinsrton in flight for their lives. At Surrattville they call for whiskey from the agent (Lloyd) and friend of the prisoner and his mother. She gives them a home, gives them arms, gives them ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 215 whiskey, not to nerve them, but to refresh them after the commission of their horrid crime. "But Booth,in making his escape, needs something more than whiskey and arms. . . He needs a field glass, and has it delivered for him by his friend and agent, Mrs. Surratt. With the defense, no witness told the truth whose testimony went to convict their client, whilst the stories of the most infamous men, self-con- fessed scoundrels and accomplices, after the fact, if not before the fact, such as Fathers Boucher and Cameron, must be taken as Gospel truth! (See testimony of Father Boucher, Trial of Surratt, page 859^ Also Rev. Stephen Cameron, page 793.)" There were some eight or nine reputable witness- es who testified to having seen John Surratt in Wash- ington on the day of the murder. Sergt. Dye positively identified him as the young man who called the time before Ford's Theatre on the evening of the murder. A colored cook who had been engaged by Mrs. Surratt during John's absence testified that Mrs. Surratt had ordered her on the day of the assassination to bring a pot of tea and some toast into the dining room for John. While serving it to him, Mrs. Surratt said, "This is my son John; don't you think he looks like his sister Anna?" I am herewith giving the testimony of David C. Reed, a tailor, who had known John Surratt since he was fourteen years old, whose evidence could not be questioned. His professional critical eye was naturally more attracted to the up-to-date cut of Surratt's cloth- ing. Testimony of David C. Reed, June 3rd, 1867. "The last time I saw John H. Surratt was about half past two o'clock on the day of the assassination, April 14th last. I was standing on the stoop of Hunt and Goodwin's military store. Mr. Surratt was going 216 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN past the National Hotel. I noticed his hair was cut very singularly, rounding away down on his coat collar. I did not notice whether he had whiskers or a mustache as I was more attracted by the clothing he had on. His appearance was very genteel, remarkably so. He did not look like a person from a long journey. I cannot say I ever had any connection with Mr. Surratt since he was quite a child ; I knew him by sight and we had just bowing acquaintance." (Surratt Trial) TESTIMONY OF SHIP SURGEON DR. L. J. McMIL- LEN, THE PERUVIAN. Washington D. C. Tuesday, June, 1867 Question. Did you know John H. Surratt? If so state where and under what circumstances. Ans. I became acquainted with John H. Surratt in the month of September, 1865. I did not know him under the name of Surratt. He was introduced to me under the name of "McCarthy" by a gentle- man in Montreal who kept him in secrecy after the assassination of Mr. Lincoln. I was then ship surgeon of the Steamship Peruvian plying be- tween Quebec and Liverpool. He came on board on September 11, 1865. I never suspected who he was until after we left. One day he inquired of me, "Who is that gentleman?" pointing to a pas- senger. He said he believed he was an American detective and that he was after himself. "But," said he, "if he is (he put his hand in his pocket and drew out a revolver) that will settle him." Then I began to suspect — not that he was Surratt but that he had been connected with the Rebel- lion here in some way. After that he would be con- tinually with me every day, because I was the only person on board he knew, having been in- troduced to him by my friend, and he seemed ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 217 not to care for being in the company of any one else. He used to come to me when I was alone and ask me to walk with him on deck; and he would always talk about what happened here during the war. He told me that he had been from the begin- ning in the Confederate States' service, carrying dispatches between here and Richmond, and also as far as Montreal; that he and Booth had planned at first the abduction of President Lincoln; that, however, they could not succeed in that way and they thought it necessary to change their plan. After this, before the assassination, Surratt was in Montreal when he received a letter from Booth ordering him immediately to Washington; that it was necessary to act and act promptly and he was to leave Montreal immediately for Washington. He did not tell me he came here, but he told me he came as far as Elmira, N. Y. and from that place telegraphed to New York to find out whether Booth had already left for Washington and was answered that he had. He did not tell me that he had gone any farther than Elmira. The next place he spoke to me was St. Albans, Vermont, where he said he arrived early one morning about breakfast time and went to a hotel there for breakfast. When he was sitting at the table he heard several talking about the assassination and he inquired, "What was up?" They asked if he did not know President Lincoln had been assassi- nated. He said. "I do not believe it, because the story is too orood to be true/' On that a gentle- man pulled out a newspaper and handed it to him. He opened it and saw his own name as one of the assassins. He said this unnerved him so much that the paper fell out of his hands and he im- mediately left the room. As he was going out through the house he heard another party say, that Surratt must have been or was at the time in St. Albans, because such a person (mentioning that person's name) had found a handkerchief 218 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN on the street with Surratt's name on it. He told me he actually looked in his pocket and found that he had lost his handkerchief. From that place he went to Canada and was concealed there from April to September. There were a great many things he told me that I had forgotten, or at least are not fresh in my memory. At the time I paid particular attention to what he said, and when I first made a deposi- tion in Liverpool, everything was fresh in my memory. . . . The first time I was sure he was Surratt was on the day he was talking about his mother hav- ing been hung. He did not call her Mrs. Surratt or by any other name, but just spoke about his mother having been hung; of course I knew well enough that there was only one woman that had been hung in connection with the assassination so I was pretty certain he was her son. He also asked me who did I believe he was. I was not sure who were the parties that escaped so I answered that I believed he was either Surratt or Payne. He gave me no reply but only laughed. But the last day he was on board he called me aside and began to talk of the assassination. It was in the evening and we were alone together and he took out his revolver which was always kept in his pocket, pointed it at the heavens and said, "I hope and wish to live just a few years more — two will do me — and then I shall go back to the United States and I shall serve Andy Johnson as Abraham Lincoln has been served." I asked him why? "Because he has been the cause of my mother being hung." I then said, "Now who are you?" I was pretty sure then who he was but still he had not given me his name himself. He looked around to see whether any one was near us and said: "I am Surratt/' I made this affidavit September 25th in Liv- erpool. Next day would be Wednesc]ay the 26th, ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 219 : f 1 4^ - -- "3§IP ' ; m'^i # 5 si ^'. 4 - ,> Tim* 7—. ■ -?•*, ! ■'*■' . ■ - ; n Hi -' ; " ' : *\' - V,» ,*' '""4 ' £* ' ?■ ;• /: ^ ^ ' W^f; lltfM l!iliv> fcSa SCAFFOLD AND EXECUTION OF FOUR CONSPIRATORS. "Davy" Herold, Louis Payne, Atzerodt and Mary E. Surratt, July, 1865. 220 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN I told Mr. Wilding, United States Counsel, he would be in Liverpool in a day or two. On Wednesday the 26th, Surratt came to my boarding house but I was absent He returned in the evening and wanted me to go with him to a place he had been recommended to go, but he could not find the place, so I went with him. Mr. Wilding, I think had sent a de- tective to watch us for I saw a man follow us from the time we left my house until I left Surratt and he went to that house to which he had been recommended. (Oratory of the Holy Cross Church) He promised to see me next day but didn't. I got a short note stating he intended to go to London but when he got to the station there were several Americans there and he was afraid of being recognized, and did not go any farther. In a few days again I saw him and he gave me a letter to bring back to the party who had taken care of him in Montreal. He expected some mon- ey because when he got to Liverpool he had very little money He told me he ex- pected a remittance from Washington but it would come through his friend in Montreal, and that I would very likely be charged with it when I returned. Testimony of F. L. Smoot, June 2nd. (Conversation with Mr. Jos. T. Nott occurred in the bar-room of the Surratt Tavern, at Surrattsville on April 15th.) Mr. Nott said: "He reckoned John was in New York by this time." I asked him why he thought so and he said, "My God ! John knows all about this mur- der. Do you suppose he is going to stay in Washing- ton and let them catch him?" I pretended to be much surprised and said, "Is that so?" He replied, "It is, by God! I could have told you that this thing was ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 221 coming to pass six months ago." Then, putting his hand on my shoulder, "Keep that in your own skin, my boy. Don't mention it; if you do, it will ruin me forever." (See Surratt trial) Joseph T. Nott was Lloyd's bar-tender at the Surratt Tavern. General Harris in his "Assassination of Lincoln" on page 280, says: "Mr. Merrick then went on to meet the argument that Surratt tad confessed his guilt by flight, by de- claring that the mad passions of the hour and tyranni- cal usurpations of the government in its methods of dealing with those charged with this crime, by send- ing them before a military commission instead of a civil court for trial, justified him in his flight. He (Mer- rick) then went on to vindicate the Catholic church, which he claimed had been assailed in this matter. The only reference to the Catholic church in connec- tion with this trial had been made in the public press. The prosecution had carefully abstained from any as- sault on that church, and had tried to exclude relig- ious prejudices from the minds of the jurors. Mr. Mer- rick, however, seized the occasion to pass an eulogium on that church, in which he showed as much disregard for facts of history, as he did for the proven facts in this case. Perhaps, he felt this vindication to be called for from the fact, that most of the conspirators were Catholics in religion, and the further fact that the friends who waited and watched for the return of his client, to Montreal, after the assassination, and who on his return, spirited him away (priests La Pierre and Boucher) and kept him secreted five months, and then helped him off to Italy, where he was found in the ranks of the Pope's army, and who voluntarily came before the court on his trial to testify, and to procure testimony in his behalf, were priests of that church." 222 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Continuing, General Harris comments : "In his eulogium on that church he forgot to men- tion the iact that the pope, during the progress of the war, acknowledged tne Southern Confederacy, and wrote a sympathizing letter to Jefferson Davis, in which he called him his dear son, and by implication de- nounced President Lincoln as a tyrant. "He could have scarcely forgotten that the pope of Rome had sought to take advantage of the arduous struggle in which our government wab engaged for the preservation of its life, to establish a Catholic empire in Mexico, and had sent Maximilian, a Catholic prince, to reign over, at the time, unhappy people, under the protection of the arms of France, lent to the further- ance of his un-hoiy purpose, by the last loyal son of the church, that ever occupied a throne in iiiurope." "Perhaps, he did not realize that it was God who frustated the last grasp of the drowning man at a straw that eluded his grasp, by preparing for his holiness, the pope, and for Louis Napoleon, just at that moment, the Franco-Prussian War, which re- sulted in the final loss of the temporal power to the pope, and with it, his grip on the world and his em- pire and crown, to the last servile supporter of his temporal pretensions —Napoleon Illrd ! "To claim for that church, as Mr. Merrick did, friendship to civil liberty, respect for the rights of con- science and of private judgment, and love for our re- publican institutions, is to ignore or set at naught, all the dogmas of that church on the above questions and all the claims of the papacy. Mr. Merrick mani- festly thought that the attitude of the Catholic clergy toward the assassination of the President could be hidden from public view, by his fulsome eulogy. "The appeals made by the eminent counsel for the prisoner, to the politcal and religious prejudices of jurors, was ably seconded, all through the trial by the Jesuit priesthood of Washington City and the vicinity. It will be recalled by scores . of people who attended the trial, that not a day passed, but that ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 223 some of these were in the court room as the most in- terested spectators That they were not idle spectators, may be inferred from the fact, that whenever it seemed necessary to the prisoner's counsel to find witneses to contradict any testimony, that was particularly damag- ing to their cause, they were always promptly found, and were almost always uniformly Catholics in re- ligion, as shown by their own testimony upon cross- examination. "It was a remarkable fact also, that these wit- nesses were scarcely ever able to come from under the fire of Judge Pierrepont's searching cross-exami- nation, uncripnled, and also, that when they took the risk of bringing" two witnesses in rebuttal of the same testimony, their witnesses uniformly killed eacn other off, before they got through the ordeal, that tests the truthfulness of witnessess — cross-examination. "Other outside influences were brought to bear on the jurors, such as these: Father J. B. Menu, from St. Charles College, (Sulpician Monastery) spent the day in the courtroom, sitting beside the prisoner all day. thus saying to the jury: "You see which side I am on." A great many of the students from the samp college also visited the trial, it being vacation, and they uniformly took great pains to show their sym- pathy with the prisoner by shaking hands with him. "The press also was "prostituted almost daily by publishing cunningly devised paragraphs impugning the motives of the government in the prosecution and management of the case. Thus w*re the preiudices of the iurors appealed to and efforts also made to per- vert public opinion." The above from General Harris who was present at the trials of Surratt. and who was also one of the Military Commission which tried and convicted Mrs. Surratt and the other three conspirators, recommend- ing the death penalty, and sentences to the Dry Tortugas to four others, gives the reader a concise picture which correctly photosrranhs the "fine Italian 224 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN hand" which directed Surratt's attorneys in their line of action. Nothing could be clearer. And now permit us to quote from the closing ad- dress of Judge Pierrepont. which is a masterpiece from a legal standpoint and a classic in pure English, superb in its logic, impregnable in its TRUTH: "May it please your honor, and gentlemen of the jury, I have not in the progress of this long and tedi- ous case, had the opportunity as yet of addressing to you one word. My time has now arrived. Yea, all that a man hath, will he give for his life! When the book of Job was written, this was true, and it is just as true today. A man, in order to save his life, will give his property, will give his liberty, will sacrifice his good name, and will desert his father, his mother, his sister. He will lift up his hand before Almighty God, and swear that he is innocent of the crime with which he is charged. "He will bring perjury upon his soul, giving all that he hath in the world, and be ready to take the chances and jump the life to come and so far as counsel place themselves in the situation of their client, and just to the degree that they absorb his feelings, his terror and his purposes, just so far will counsel do the same. "I am well aware, gentlemen, of the difficulties un- der which I labor in addressing you. The other coun- sel have all told you. that they know you. and that you know them. Thev know vou in social life, ana they know you in political affairs. Thev know your sympathies, your habits, your modes of thought, your prejudices, even. They know how to address you, and how to awaken your r-vmnathies. whilst I come before you a total stranger. There is not a face in those seats that I have ever beheld until this trial commenced, and yet, I have a kind of feeling pervading me, that we are not strangers. "I feel as though, we had a common origin, a com- mon country, and a common religion, and that on many ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 225 grounds we must have a common sympathy. I feel as though, if hereafter, I should meet you in my native city, or a foreign land, I should meet you not as strang- ers, but as friends. It was not a pleasant thing for me to come into this case. They had, perhaps, the right to ask, and so asking, I give you the answer. I was called into it, at a time ill-suited in every respect. I had just taken my seat in the convention called for the purpose of forming a new constitution for my State, and I was a member of the judiciary com- mittee. The convention is now sitting, and I am ab- sent, Where I ought to be present. I feel however, that I had no right to shirk this duty. "The counsel asked whether I represented the At- torney General in this case . . . and so asking, I will give my answer. There is no mystery about the matter. The District Attorney feeling the magnitude of this case, felt that he ought to apply to the Attorney General for assistance in the prosecution of it, and he accordingly made the application. I have known the Attorney General for morr than twenty years. Our relations have been most friendly, both in social and professional point of view. The Attorney General conferred v/ith the Secretary of State, who is, as you know, from my own State, and they determined to ask me to assist in the prosecution of this cause. . . This is the way I happened to be engaged in this case "When the President of the United States was assassinated, I was one of the committee sent on by the citizens of New York, to attend his funerai. When standing, as I did stand, in the East room by the side of that coffin, if some citizen sympathizing with the enemies of my country had. because my tears were falling in sorrow over the murder of the President, there insulted me. and I had at that time repelled the insult with insult, I think my fellow cit- izens would have said to me, that my act was deserv- ing of condemnation; that I had no right in that solemn, hoi^ hour, to let my petty passions or my 226 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN personal resentments disturb the sanctity of the scene. To my mind, the sanctity of this trial is far above that funeral occasion, solemn and holy as it was, and I should forever deem myself disgraced, if I should ever allow any passion of mine, or personal resentment of any kind, to bring me here into any petty quarrel over the murder of the President of the United States. I have tried to refrain from anything like that, and God helping me, I shall so endeavor to the end. "To me, gentlemen, this prisoner at the bar is a pure abstraction. I have no feeling toward him whatever. I never saw him until I saw him in this room, and then it was under circumstances calculated to awaken only my sympathy. ... To me he is a stranger. Toward him I have no hostility, and I shall not utter one word of vituperation against him. 1 came to try one of the assassins of the President of the United States, indicted before you ... so far as I am concerned, gentlemen, I believe that what you wish to know in this case is the truth. . . . My duty is to aid you in coming to a just conclusion. I believe that it is your honest desire to find out whether the accused was engaged in this plot to overthrow this government, and assassinate the President of the United States. When this evidence is reviewed, and when it is honestly and fairly presented, when pas- sions are laid aside, and when other people who havp nothing whatever to do with the trial are kept out of this case, you will discover that in the whole history of jurisprudence, no murder was ever prov- ed with the demonstration with which this has been proven before you. The facts, the proofs, the cir- cumstances, all tend to one point, and all prove the case, not only beyond a reasonable doubt, but beyond any doubt. "This has been, as I have already stated, a very protracted case. The evidence is scattered. It has come in, link by link, and as we could not have witnessees here in their order when you might have seen it in, ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 227 its logical bearings, we were obliged to take it as it came. I shall not attempt, gentlemen, to convince you by bold assertions of my own. I fancy I could make them as loudly and as confidently as the counsel for the other side, but I am not here for that purpose. The counsel are not witnesses in the case. We have come here for the purpose of ascertaining whether, under the law, and on the evidence presented, this man arraigned before you, is guilty as charged. . . . My business is to prove to you from the evidence that this prisoner is guilty. If I do that, I shall ask your verdict. If I do not do that, I shall neither expect nor hope for it. "I listened to the two counsels who have address- ed you for several days without one word of interrup- tion. I listened to them respectfully and attentively. I know their earnestness, and I know the poetry that was brought into the case, and the feeling and the passion, that was attempted to be excited in your breasts, by bringing before you the ghost trailing her calico dress and making it rustle against these chairs. I have none of these powers which the gentlemen seem to possess, nor shall I attempt to invoke them. I have come to you for the purpose of proving that this party accused here, was engaged in this conspiracy to over- throw this government, which conspiracy resulted in the death of Abraham Lincoln, by a shot from a pis- tol in the hand of John Wilkes Booth. That is all there is to be proven in this case. "I have not come here for the purpose of proving that Mrs. Surratt was guilty, or that she was inno- cent, and I do not understand why that subject was lugged into this case in the mode that it has been; nor do I understand why the counsel denounced the Military Commission which tried her, and thus indi- rectly censored in the severest manner, the Presidetnt of the United States. The counsel certainly knew, when they were talking about that tribunal, and when they were thus denouncing it, that President Johnson, the President of the United States, ordered it with his 228 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN own hand; that President Johnson, President of the United States, signed the warrant that directed the execution; that President Johnson, President of the United States, when that record was presented to him, laid it before his Cabinet, and that every single mem- ber voted to confirm the sentence, and that the Presi- dent with his own hand, wrote his confirmation 01 it, and with his own hand signed the warrant. I hold in my hand the original record, and no other man, as it appears from that paper, ordered it. No other one has touched this paper; and when it was sug- gested by some of the members of the Commission, that in consequence of the age, and the sex, of Mrs. Surratt, it might possibly be well to change her sen- tence to imprisonment for life, he signed the war- rant for her death with the paper right before his eyes — and there it is (handing it to Mr. Merrick). My friend can read it for himself. "My friends on the other side have undertaken to arraign the government of the United States against the prisoner. They have talked very loudly and elo- quently, about this great government of twenty-five or thirty millions of people, being engaged in trying to bring to conviction, one poor young man, and have treated it as though it was a hostile act, as though two parties were litigants before you, the one trying to beat the other. "Is it possible that it has come to this, that, in the City of Washington, where the President has been mur- dered, that when under the form of law. and before a court and jury of twelve men, an investigation is made, to ascertain whether the prisoner is guilty of this great crime, that the government is to be charged as seeking his blood, and its officers as lapping their tongues in the blood of the innocent? I quote the lan- guage exactly. It is a shocking thing to hear. What is the purpose of a government ? What is the business of a government? "According to the gentlemen's notion, when a mur- der is committed the government should not do any- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 229 thing towards ascertaining who perpetrated the mur- der, and if the government did undertake to investi- gate the matter and endeavor to find out whether the man charged with the crime is guilty, or not, . . . tne government and all connected with it, must be expected to be assailed as 'bloodhounds of the law/ and as seeking to 'lap their tongues in the blood of the inno- cent/ Is that the business of the government, and is it the business of the counsel, under any circumstances, thus to charge the government? What is government for? It is instituted for your protection and my protec- tion, for the protection of us all. What could we do without jt? Tell me, my learned and eloquent counsel on the other side, what would you do without govern- ment? What would you do in this city?" Have you ever heard, my dear reader, a more di- rect, explicit analysis of Roman Catholic anarchy por- trayed than the above presentation of Judge Pierre- pont? Us! There were eighty-five witnesses and ninety-six in rebuttal, called by the government and Surratt called ninety-eight witnesses in chief and twenty-three in rebuttal. The hearing began June 17th, 1867, and closed July 26th, 1867. The arguments of the attorneys cov- ered twelve days. The case went to the jury August 7th. The jury brought in a report that they stood about even for conviction and acquital, with no pros- pect of reaching an agreement. Surratt was remand- ed to jail. His attorneys asked that he be released on bail which was refused by the court. The following Sep- tember the case was nolle prosequi. He was then in- dicted on the charge of engaging in rebellion. He was admitted to bail on this charge in the amount of $20,- 000, which still stands. A second indictment was found against him, but the district attorney entered a nolle prosequi on this. The prisoner was finally released and permitted to go 230 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN free on a technicality — an omission of the three woras in the indictment, viz. : "Was a f ugitive." All of the above proceedings in the face of the burning facts brought out by his two trials, and that every charge of his guilt of the murder of Abraham Lincoln was proven beyond the peradventure of a doubt. Chapter XII. Summing It All Up: Two And Two The aim of the Jesuits in this country is to ulti- mately extricate the Roman Church from its responsi- bility in the murder of Lincoln by exonerating Mary E. Surratt and her son John by placing the whole blame on John Wilkes Booth—the "Protestant/' (?) The recent activity in this direction of these Leo- poldines, — the Knights of Columbus, — is most signifi- cant and interesting to observe. Wide publicity was re- cently given through the official press of the Knights of Columbus of an offer of five thousand dollars to "any one who can prove that John Wilkes Booth was a Roman Catholic" is one move in the plan. The Surratts must be white-washed before the Catholic Church can clear its skirts. The documentary evidence pertaining to this tragedy has been so care- fully and completely removed from the public eye. that they feel it safe now to openly refer to the death of Lincoln. But for years his name never passed the lips of either the priests or the press of Rome! With a desire to get at the truth we have made a study of these two characters. There is much to convince the fair-minded inves- tigator that John Wilkes Booth had been a pervert to the Roman Church. The evidence in both the trials of the conspirators and John H. Surratt shows that Booth was frequently at "Mass" in various Roman Churches. The fact that he wore an "Agnus Dei" bronze medal at the time of his death which was taken from his neck by Surgeon General Barnes as his body lay on the Mon- tauk, which had become corroded from the moisture of his body showed long wear. Only three weeks prior to 232 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN the murder as Rear Admiral Baird tells us, he met Booth coming out of a Vesper Service at a Roman Church in Washington. This alone of course would not be conclusive, but taken together with other evidence strengthens the conclusion, that he was not only a pro- fessed Romanist, but that he was a devout one. The close associates of Booth from his arrival in Washington from Montreal the middle of November, 1864, until his flight after the murder, were fana- tical Romanists. His first visit the next day after he registered at the National Hotel was to the little Ro- man Church at St. Mary's near Bryantown. He had at- tended "Mass" and presented his credentials to the Ro- man Catholics, Drs. Queen and Mudd; was entertained by them and enquired for the whereabouts of John Sur- ratt on that occasion, whom he met shortly afterwards in Washington and became a constant, almost daily, visitor at the Surratt home on H street which was the meeting place of the Romish priests of Washington and vicinity. The complete confidence which existed between Booth and the Surratts, in the mind of the writer, is sufficient evidence that these schemers were taking no chances on any "Heretic." The fact that every mem- ber of this household was a Romanist, and undoubted- ly a member of the Knisrhts of the Golden Circle fur- ther confirms this belief. Having absorbed the Jesuit psychology during my early girlhood training, and un- derstanding the peculiar tie that binds all devout Ro- manists together, there is not the slightest doubt in my mind but that John Booth was not a full-fledged pape. Add to this the fact that Booth himself had taken the Jesuitized oath of the Order of the Knights of the Golden Circle, given in full in this book, which no hon- orable or sincere Protestant's conscience would permit him to blacken his soul with, and we have another link in the chain of circumstantial evidence He was under the influence of the small grout* of Confederate leaders in Montreal, who in turn were the most abject tools and associates of the French priests in that city. Consider- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 233 ing these and other things we will be justified in con- cluding that it John WiiK.es Jbooth was not a professed Jttoniamst, ne might as well nave been and most cer- tainly he was notning else. There is no proiessed Catholic assassin in ail his- tory, withm the writer's knowledge who was a more ef- fectual dupe of the priests of xtome and tneir lay agents than this once oriiliant, care iree, talented young man whose most distinguisnmg characteristic, barring his kindly courtesy, was his reverence and devotion to his mother. Without wishing to excuse or condone the cruel, cowardly act which snatched Abraham Lincoln away from us at the moment when his great wisdom, kind- liness, and broad charity would have guided the re-con- struction as no other could, but the aim is to call at- tention to the instigators, higher up — the priests of Home who were accessories both before and after the fact, and who have always escaped without even cen- sor or suspicion, leaving their tools to pay the price ! Booth was chosen for this bloody deed with keen discernment and fine discrimination by these ecclesi- astical plotters against this government. That he was a young man without much depth of character is to be conceded, for they do not seek strong characters to execute these wicked and dangerous deeds. No doubt the Jesuits followed Booth for months, studying him, finding his most vulnera- ble point, delving into his very soul, before they decid- ed to cast on him the leading role. There were many advantages in his selection. His profession and the well known loyalty of the Booth family to the Gov- ernment, placed him almost above suspicion. His knowl- edge of changing his appearance, his expertness in the use of firearms, horsemanship, fencing, etc., his pro- nounced personal magnetism and easy graceful manner and above all his childlike vanity without egotism, all tended to, from their standpoint make him an ideal vic- tim of their subtle influence. One other point. Booth, even if he had no previous idea of the responsibility or 234 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN knowledge of the oath he was to take when he entered the Golden Circle, must have fully realized after, that had he failed to carry out instructions after he had drawn the fatal blank, it meant his own certain death. Geniuses are usually so absorbed in the line of work in which their gift inclines them, that they are often easy victims of stronger designing or unscrupu- lous minds, and the dramatic instinct in this unfortu- nate young man would tend to make him particularly susceptible to the weird ceremonies, garbs, etc., of the Roman Church and its psychology. Booth, by several authors, is charged with enter- ing this conspiracy of murder and destruction from a monetary object. The value of a dollar does not go hand in hand with talent nor genius. If so, it is the exception to the rule and John Wilkes Booth was not an exception. Actors make their money easily and quickly and the rule is that they let it go as easily; their improvidence is proverbial. I believe it is unjust to attribute Booth's part in this affair to a mercenary motive and am inclined to think that he very probably used much of his own money during his operations. The several genuine Oil speculations in which he was the loser, shows him to have been short on business qualifications and the E Z mark in that respect which characterized the members of the profession in his day. That John H. Surratt on the contrary, was mer- cenary and that money held a high place in his esti- mation is plentifully evidenced. He talked about the large sums of money he expected to get and repeatedly boasted to Weichmann and displayed the large bills and twenty dollar gold pieces in his possession while carrying on the Secret Service work in his trips be- tween Richmond, Washington and Canada He be- gan to dress expensively and it was because of his ultra-fashionable appearance that the attention of the tailor, Reed, was attracted to him on the fatal Good Friday as he walked down Pennsylvania Avenue from the National Hotel. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 235 It was his habit to show his money and talk of it to his friends in a boastful way. The testimony of Ste Marie shows that he was still given to this while a member of the Pope's Army. The difference in the filial devotion and the lack of it is very pronounced between these two young men. Surratt's immediate flight to Canada the morning after the tragedy at Ford's theatre, where he had directed and "called the time," where he remained in safety un- der the care of the Roman priests La Pierre and Bouch- er, during his mother's arrest, trial, conviction and exe- cution; his heartless desertion of his mother and only sister, is unparalleled as the most concentrated sel- fishness and base ingratitude and the only charitable thing to be said, is that it was due greatly to his theo- logical training — or it might have been owing to the espionage of his priestly "protectors." GEN. T. M. HARRIS "NAILS" PRIEST WAL- TERS' ATTEMPT TO WHITE- WASH MRS. SUR- RATT. The review of the Trial of John H. Surratt made by Gen. T. M. Harris who was a member of the Mili- tary Court Martial which tried and convicted the four conspirators and sentenced four others to the Dry Tortugas, was written in response to the charges of Mrs. Surratt's confessor, the pastor of St. Patrick's Roman Church, Washington, D. C, who had dared to raise his voice in defense of this woman twenty- seven years after her execution. General Harris' book, the only one of its kind, has so effectually and completely "nailed" the ecclesiastical liar, that it has been removed from most of the Public Libraries throughout the country on account of its contents. Be- cause it has gone out of print and because it is not ac- cessible to the readers I am incorporating the whole chapter on "FATHER WALTER" page 204, for the benefit of my readers, below : 236 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "From the time of the trial of the conspirators by a military commission, and of the execution of Mrs Sur- ratt by the order of President Johnson, Father Walter, a secular priest of Washington City, has made him- self conspicuous by his efforts to pervert public opin- ion on the result of the trial of the conspirators by the Commission. Whilst rebel lawyers, editors and politi- cians have boldly assailed the lawfulness of the Commis" sion and have denounced it as an unconstitutional tri- bunal, and have characterized the trial as a "star chamber" trial, as a contrivance for taking human life under a mockery of a judicial procedure, with no pur- pose of securing the ends of justice, Father Walter and other priests whose sympathies were with the Southern Confederacy have earnestly seconded their efforts by the invention and circulation of cunningly devised falsehoods. "Father Walter has every now and then bobbed up with the assertion of Mrs. Surratt's entire innocence. Knowing that not one in a thousand of our people has ever read the testimony on which she was. convicted. he feels that he can boldly assert, "There was not enough evidence against her to hang a cat." He has also become bold enough to state as facts what the evi- dence shows to be falsehoods. As an example of this: In an article in the "Catholic Review" he asserts in re- gard to Mrs. Surratt's trip to Surrattville on the after- noon of the day of the assassination that she had or- dered her carriage for the trip, which was purely on private business, on the forenoon of that day. and be- fore it was known that the President would go to the theatre. Why, if this was true was it not proven in her defense? There was no such testimony produced. The testimony on this point against her was that shortly after two o'clock on that afternoon she went upstairs to Weichmann's room, tapped at the door, and when it was opened she said to Mr. Weichmann, "I have just received a letter from Mr. Calvert that makes it neces- sary for me to go to Surrattville today and see Mr. No- they. Would you be so good as to get a conveyance and ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 237 MICHAEL O'LAUGHLIN. Delegated to assassinate General Grant. Died in Dry Tor- tugas after serving three years, of yellow fever epidemic. 238 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN drive me down? Upon Weichmann's consenting to do so, she handed him a ten dollar bill with which to pro- cure a conveyance. Surely, there is no evidence here that a carriage had been ordered already, as Weich- mann was left free to procure a conveyance where he might see fit. Weichmann went down stairs, and as he opened the front door he saw John Wilkes Booth, who was in the act, as it were, of pulling the front door bell. Booth entered the house. When young Weichmann returned, after having procured the buggy, he went up to his own room after some necessary articles of clothing, and as he again descended the stairs and passed by the parlor doors he observed that Booth was in the parlor conversing with Mrs. Surratt. In a little while Booth came down to the front door steps and waved his hand in token of adieu to Weichmann, who was standing at the curb. When Mrs. Surratt came and was in the act of get- ting into the buggy, she remembered she had forgotten something, and said, "Wait a moment, until I go and get those things of Mr. Booth's." She returned from the parlor with a package which was done up in brown paper, the contents of which the witness did not see, but which was afterwards shown to have been the field glass which Booth carried with him in his flight. This glass Booth sent to Llovd by Mrs. Surratt, with a message to have it, with the two carbines and two bottles of whiskev, where thev would be handy, as they would be called for that night. Llovd swore that this was the message delivered to him by Mrs. Surratt in the nrivate interview she sought with him in his back- yard on his return home that evening, and that in ac- cordance with these instructions he delivered them to Booth and Herold about midnierht that night. Now, let us see about the private business on which she professed to be goinor, and on which she claimed at her trial that she went. The letter from Mr. Calvert was a demand for money that she owed him, and was written at Bladensburg on the 12th of April. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 239 On the afternoon of the fourteenth she presented her- self to Weichmann and claimed that she had just re- ceived it. It would seem very strange that it took this letter two days to reach her at a distance of only six miles. She claimed that she must go and see Mr. Nothey who owed her and get money from him to pay her debt to Mr. Calvert. Mr. Nothey lived five miles below Sur- rattsville, and as she claimed that she had just receiv- ed Mr. Calvert's letter, it was impossible that she could have made any arrangement with Nothey to meet her at Surrattsville that day. She did not meet him there, neither did she go to his house to see him. When she arrived at Surrattsville she took Weichmann into the parlor at the hotel and asked him to write a letter for her to Mr. Nothey, which he did at her dictation; and this she sent to Mr. Nothey by Mr. Bennett Gwinn, a neighbor of his who happened to be passing down. Now, in view of all these facts, can any one see how her private business was in any way subserved by her trip to Surrattsville on that afternoon? She could as easily have written to Mr. Nothey from Washington as from Surrattsville. A postage stamp, a sheet of pa- per and an envelope would have saved her six dollars, the cost of her trip, and would have served her busi- ness just as well. The truth is that this talk of going on private business of her own was all a fabrication, first to deceive Mr. Weichmann as to the object of her trip, and then to be used, should it become necessary, in her defense. We have already seen what her real business was. Father Walter falsifies again in the article re- ferred to saying that she did not see Lloyd on that af- ternoon, but delivered the things to his sister-in-law, Mrs. Offutt. Both Lloyd and his sister-in-law testified to her interview with him in his backyard, and Lloyd testified as to what passed between them on that occa- sion. (See testimony of John M. Lloyd, Trial Conspira- tors, PP. 85-86 and Testimony Mrs. E. Offutt and Trial of Surratt, P. 281.) 240 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN It would seem that Father Walter is going on the theory that we have gotten so far past the time, and that the testimony has been so far forgotten that he can foist upon the public any statement that he may please to fabricate. vVe would kindly remind the rever- end Father that no ultimate gain can be derived from an effort to suppress the truth. Neither can it be ob- literated by our prejudices. We may misconstrue facts, but we cannot wipe them out by a mere stroke of a pen; and a fact once made can never be recalled. But J am not done yet with this Father. He prefaces his article in the "Review" with the statement that he heard Mrs. Surratt's last confession and that whilst his priestly vows do not permit him to reveal the secrets of the confessional, yet from knowledge in his posses- sion he is prepared to assert her entire innocence of this most atrocious crime. He means that we shall under- stand that were he at liberty to give her last confes- sion to the world, he would say that she then and there asserted her entire innocence. Will Father Walter deny that under the teachings of the Roman Catholic church he had an absolute right, with her consent, to make her confession public on this point? Nay, more, could not Mrs. Surratt have com- pelled him to do so in vindication of her good name, and of the honor of the church of which she was a member? And having this consent, was it not his most solemn duty to proclaim her confessed innocence in every public way through the press and even from the very steps of the gallows? Why was not that confession made public ? Why was it not reduced to writing and signed with her own hand? Why has it not, in its entirety, been given to the world ? Why must the public wait twenty-seven years, and instead of having the full confession, be required to content itself, in so great a case, with a mere asser- tion from the reverend Father, based on his alleged knowledge? Aye, just there's the rub! ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 241 JOHN H. SURRATT at 72. The above is the last picture taken of John H. Surratt who died m baiti- moreMd, April 23, 1916 surrounded by his wife and grown family. At his request he was buried m the Suriatt lot at Mt. Olivet, Washington, D. U at left side of his mother's grave He was auditor of a large corporation until his death. 242 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN That confession of Mrs. Surratt's would have proved very interesting reading, and might have let in a flood of light on some of tne places that are now very dark; it would, indeed, have shown how far Mrs. Surratt was involved in the abduction and assassination plots and to what degree she was the willing or unwill- ing tool of her son, and of John Wilkes Booth. That confession woujd have shown the object of Booth's visit to her on the very day and eve of the murder. It would have explained what she had in her mind when she carried Booth's field glass into the country and told Lloyd to have the "shooting-irons" and two bot- tles of whiskey ready on that fatal night of the four- teenth of April. And if she did not explain satisfacto- rily every item of testimony which bore so heavily against her, then her last confession was worth noth- ing. Father Walter never had at any time Mrs. Sur- ratt's consent to make her confession public, and he dare not do so now after twenty-seven years have elapsed since he shrove his unfortunate penitent. Why did Father Walter not do this ? Pie was inter- esting himelf very much in her behalf in trying to get her a reprieve; why did he not use this as an argument with the President in her behalf, that in her final con- fession she asserted her innocence? Why did he wait until the sentence had been confirmed by the Presi- dent and a full Cabinet without a dissenting voice, and then had been carried into execution, before he put into circulation the story of her confessed inno- cence? And why does he refer to his priestly vows as his excuse for this conduct, when he knows full well that having gained Mrs. Surratt's consent to make her confession public as an entirety, these vows imposed upon him no such restrictions? In vindication of the Commission and also the Court of Review — the Presi- dent and his Cabinet — we submit that the evidence shows her to have been guilty, no matter what she might have said, in her final confession. Perhaps she had been led to believe that President ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 243 Lincoln was an execrable tyrant, and that his death was no more than that of the "meanest nigger in the army." Her remarks to her daughter the night her house was searched indicate the views she took of the subject. "Anna, come what will, I am resigned. I think that Booth was only an instrument in the hands of the Almighty to punish this wicked and licentious people." To one who could have taken this view of the case, Booth's act could not have been regarded as a crime: and she who rendered him all the aid she could would feel no guilt. They were only co-operating with the Al- mighty in the execution of vengeance. On the trial of John H. Surratt, Mr. Merrick brought Father Walter on the stand and asked him if he heard the last confes- sion of Mrs. Surratt, to which the Father answered. "I did, I gave her communion on Friday and prepared her for death." Mr. Merrick in his argument before the jury said: "I asked him 'Did she tell you as she was marching to the scaffold that she was an innocent woman?' I told him not to answer that question before I desired him to. He nodded his head, but did not answer that ques- tion, because he had no right, as the other side oo- jected." Now, what was the object of all this? Mr. Merrick brought the Father on to the stand and asked him a question that had not the slightest relevancy to any issue before that jury. He knew, of course, that the prosecution would object, and that the auestion could not be answered. It was a direct question and could have been answered by "She did," or "She did not." Why does not the Father answer at once? He had been cautioned not to do so until desired, and so he waits for the prosecution to object and estop him from an- swering the question. Mr. Merrick, however, in his ar- gument, assumes that the Father stood ready to say that: "She solemnly declared her innocence to me in her last confession," and throws the responsibility on the other side for not getting this answer. The argu- 244 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN ment was this: "You see that Father Walter stood ready to testify to this fact, but the prosecution object- ed, and so he could not do it." Now, what has become of the Father's priestly vows, behind which he has always been hiding? Or was all this a mere piece of acting, to give the counsel a point from which to denounce the government, the Commission, and all who were concerned in visiting justice upon the assassins? We believe it to be true that the laws of his church do not forbid him to make public, with her consent or command, her last confession on this point, and that the Father in making the statements he does at this late day is simply practicing slight of hand upon the public. It is a very strange circumstance, too, that whilst Payne, Arnold, O'Laughlin, Atzerodt, and even John H. Surratt, admitted their connection with one or the other of the conspiracy plots, Mrs. Surratt has not left one word or line after her to explain away the in- criminating evidence brought against her. The reason is plain ; she could not have explained anything without involving herself and her son and giving away the whole case. For twenty-six years Father Walter and his rebel coadjutors have kept a paragraph going the rounds of the papers, stating as a fact that all the members of the Commission, but one, are dead, and that they died miserable deaths which marked them as the subjects of heaven's vengeance and that some of them perished from the violence of their own hands, being crazed with remorse. The truth is that at this writing, April, 1892, all the members of the Commission are alive except Gen- eral Hunter and General Ekin. General Hunter lived to over four score years and General Ekin to seventy- three. The present writer is nearly seventy-nine and is still able to vindicate the truth in the interest of a true history of his period. Is it not high time that the American people should be fully informed as to this most important episode in their history, in order that ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 245 they may not be misled by men who were not the friends, but the enemies, of our government in its struggle for its preservation and perpetuation/' (See page 204) The above statement of facts is sufficient to refute the lying priest Walter and block the Roman Church's mad efforts to subvert this damning evidence of its own participation in Lincoln's murder. OTHER TESTIMONY OF TB'E SURRATTS' CATHOLIC FRIENDS. Testimony of Miss Anna Ward, for xne Defense, June 3rd. :';>;:' ifPlil I reside at the Catholic Female Seminary on Tenth Street, Washington. I have been acquainted with Mrs- Surratt six or eight years. I have not been very inti- mate with Mrs. Surratt. She always bore the charac- ter of a perfect lady and a christian, as far as my ac- quaintance with her extends. I received two letters from John H. Surratt post- marked Montreal, Can., for his mother. I received the second the day of the assassination. ... I answered his letters to me, and left them with his mother as 1 supposed that she would be glad to hear from him. I have not seen him since. (See Conspirators Trial, page 134.) This Miss Ward, by the way, was twice brought into the trial sufficient participation it might seem to involve her in conspiracy. Mr. Weichmann testified that in March 1885, Surratt invited him to accompany him to the Herndon Hotel to see about securing a room. When they arrived Surratt called for the housekeeper, a Mrs. May Murray, and asked her^ to have the room in readiness for the man, not mentioning the name, whom Miss Ward a few days previous, had 246 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN spoken to her about. The housekeeper seemed not to remember until Surratt further reminded her that it was "For a delicate gentleman" who was to have his meals served in his room. With this refreshing she remembered. Surratt then told her that the gentle- man would occupy the room on the following Monday. Later on, Weichmann met Atzerodt coming along Seventh Street, who told him in answer to his ques- tion as to where he was going, that he was going to the Herndon House. Weichmann then said "Is that Payne that is at the Herndon House ?" Atzerodt ans- wered, "Yes." Then Miss Ward, this Catholic school teacher, was the one who prior to the crime, had been delegated, to establish an alibi for John H. Surratt by calling at the Surratt house on the day of the assassination with a letter which she had purported to have received that day from John Surratt in Canada. She proffered this information to Louis Weichmann, who happened to be at home. Weichmann did not read the letter which dis- appeared and was never introduced into the evidence. Surely, it was a fact worth noting from the amount of evidence, that Mrs. Surratt, a woman impov- erished by the war with no special social standing should have had the privilege of intimate acquaintance with so many priests. I give below the verbatim testi- mony of these reverend gentlemen as the records show: $ «i REV. B. F. WIGET FOR DEFENSE, MAY 25th, I am president of Gonzaga College, F Street be- tween Tenth and Eleventh. It is afeout ten or eleven years since I became ac- quainted with Mrs. Mary E. Surratt. I know her very well, and I have always heard everyone speak very highly of her character as a lady and as a christian. During all this acquaintance nothing has come to my knowledge respecting her character that could be called un-christian. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 247 I have a personal knowledge of her character as a christian, but not as to her character for loyalty. My visits were all short and political affairs were never discussed; I was not her pastor. I first became ac- quainted with Mrs. Surratt from having her two sons with me. I have seen her perhaps once in six weeks. I cannot say that I remember hearing her utter a dis- loyal sentiment, nor do I remember hearing anyone talk about her being notoriously disloyal before her arrest. (See page 135, Trial.) REV. FRANCIS E BOYLE FOR THE DEFENSE, MAY 25th. I am a Catholic priest. My residence is St. Peter's Church. I made the acquaintance of Mrs. Mary E. Sur- ratt eight or ten years ago. . . .Have always heard her well spoken of as an estimable lady. I do not undertake to say what her reputation for loyalty is. (See page 136, Trial.) REV. CHAS. H. STONESTREET, FOR THE DE- FENSE, May 26th I am pastor of Aloysius Church in this city. I first became acquainted with Mrs. Mary E. Surratt twenty years ago. I have only seen her occasionally since. At the time of his acquaintance there was no question of her loyalty, (page 136, Trial.) By the bye, on a recent trip which the author took through the Jesuit University at Georgetown in the cloister of one of the buildings there are a number of paintings of Jesuit priests connected with the institu- tion, among whom I noted one labeled, Rev. Chas. H. Stonestreet. The reverend gentleman testified that at the time of his acquaintance there was no question about the lady's loyalty. Certainly not. The question of loyalty had not arisen twenty years before the war, — evidently this is an example of "Mental reservation" of a Jesuit priest. All of them could have said: I never 248 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN questioned her loyalty. — Mental reservation — (To the Holy Mother Church.) REV. PETER LANIHAN, DEFENSE, MAY 26. I am a Catholic priest. I reside near Beantown, Charles County, Md. I nave been acquainted with Mrs. Surratt, prisoner at the bar, ior about thirteen years; intimately so, tor about nine years. In my estimation she is a good christian woman and highly honorable. Have never on any occasion heard her express disloyal sentiments. I have been very familiar with her, staying at her house, (page 136, Trial.) In "The Doctrine of the Jesuits" by Gury, in the Eighth Precept of the Decalogue, page 156, 442-1. Is it not permitted to make use of the purely and proper- ly mental restriction ? 443-2. It is sometimes permitted to make use of the restriction largely; that is to say, improperly mental ,and also of equivocal words, when the meaning of the speaker can be understood Besides, the good of society demands that there should be a means to lawfully hide a secret; now there is no other way than by equivocation or restriction, .... One is permitted to use this restriction even under oath. . . 444: A culprit interrogated judicially, or not lawfully, by the judge, may answer that he has done nothing, meaning: "About which you have the right to ques- tion me." The canon law of the Roman church does not con- cede the right of any civil authority to question or cross-question a priest. Not only so, but the canon law of the Roman church automatically excommuni- cates any Catholic layman who would bring a priest into a civil court. Consequently none of these priests' testimony was worth the paper it was written on in the matter of truth, and they were at perfect liberty to swear to anything they chose, or to whatever would seem best for the interest of the prisoner and their church. Gury in a foot note quotes Bessius, a Jesuit au- thority as follows: ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 249 MONUMENT OF PRJEST JACOB WALTER Pastor of St. Patrick's Church, Washington, D. C, friend and confessor of Mrs. Surratt, who, as such must have been fully cognizant of the woman's knowledge and participation in the conspiracy and murder. After Gen. T. M. Harris brought Wal- ter to time by his book he ceased to "break into print." 250 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "If a judge interrogates on an action, which must have been committed without sin, at least a mortal one, the witness and the culprit are not obliged to an- swer according to the judge's intention/' REV. N. D. YOUNG, DEFENSE, MAY 26. I am a Catholic priest. I reside at the pastoral home of St. Dominick's church on the Island and Sixth Street, Washington City. I became acquainted with Mrs. Mary E. Surratt eight or ten years ago. My ac- quaintance has not been very intimate. I have occa- sionally seen her and visited with her. I had to pass her house about once a month, and I generally called there, — sometimes stayed an hour. I have heard her snoken of with great praise. She never uttered any disloyal sentiments to me. Certainly the above testimony makes the posi- tion of Mrs. Surratt and her church beyond question, but to say that any one of these nriests did not know that she was DISLOYAL TO THE UNION and enter- tained a deep hatred for President Lincoln, to whom she, like many others, attributed the loss of her wealth, might be acceptable to non-Romanists who do not un- derstand the relation of such a woman to her priest, but certainly no ex-Romanist could be deceived by it. TESTIMONY OF THE REVEREND B. F. WI- GET. Washington, February 28, 1867. Question: State your residence and profession. Answer I am connected with the Gonzaga Col- lege on F. Street. Washington, between Ninth and Tenth. Question: How long have you resided in Wash- ington ? Answer: With an interruption of four months I have resided here four years. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 251 Question: Look at this photo (marked exhibit G) and state whether you have known this person from whom it was taken. Answer: John H. Surratt, I should think. Question : Have you known Surratt many years ? Answer: Many, many years, yes, sir. I knew him when he was about 12 years old. He was one or two years under my tuition. EXTRACTS FORM THE TESTIMONY OF LOUIS J. WEICHMANN. Mrs. Surratt and her family are Catholics. John H. Surratt is a Catholic and was a student of divinity at the same college as myself. I met the prisoner, Dav- id E. Herold at Mrs. Surratt's house on one occasion. I also met him when we visited the theatre when Booth played Pescara; I met him at Mrs. Surratt's in the country in the spring of 1863 when I first made his acquaintance. I met him (Herold) in the summer of 1864 at the Piscataway (Roman Catholic) church. These are the only times to my recollection I ever met him. . . .1 gen- erally accompanied Mrs. Surratt to church on Sunday Surratt never intimated to me nor to anyone else to my* knowledge that there was a purpose to assas- sinate the President. He stated to me in the presence of his sister shortly after he made the acquaintance of Booth that he was going to Europe on a cotton speculation. That three thousand dollars had been ad- vanced to him by an elderly gentleman whose name he did not mention, residing somewhere in the neighbor- hood, that he would go to Liverpool and remain there probably two weeks to transact his business; then he would go to Nassau and from Nassau to Matamoras, Mexico and find his brother Isaac. . . . His character at St. Charles College, Maryland, was excellent. On leaving college he shed tears and the president ap- proaching him told him not to weep, that his conduct had been excellent during the three years he had been there, and that he would always be remembered by those in charge of the institution. . . I had been a com- 252 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN panion of John H. Surratt for seven years (in answer to a question) No, I did not consider that I forfeited my friendship to him in mentioning my suspicions to Capt. Gleason. He forfeited his friendship to me by placing me in the position in whicii 1 now stand, testi- fying against him. I think i was more of a friend to him than he was to me. He knew I had permitted the blockade runner at the house without informing upon him, because I was his friend, but I hesitated for three days; still when my suspicions of danger to the gov- ernment were aroused, I preferred the government xo John Surratt. My remark to Captain Gleason about the possibility of the capture of the President was merely a casual remark. He laughed at the idea that such a thing could happen in a city guarded as Washington was. Mr. Weichmann also testified that on the night of the arrest he answered the doorbell when the detec- tives rang it for the purpose of demanding admittance so that they might search the house. He rapped at Mrs. Surratt's door and informed her who was at the door and what they had come for. Her answer was: "J?or God's sake, let them come in; I have been expecting them." (See page 394, Trial of Surratt ; also supplemen- tal affidavit of L. J. Weichmann.) Other comments by Gen. T. H. Harris are as fol- lows: "When they inquired for her son, she said, "He is not here; I have not seen him for two weeks." This was a sufficient answer, but her guilty conscience would not let her stop here, she had to add, "There are a great many mothers who do not know where their sons are/' Let us ask ourselves at this point, how many mothers in Washington City at that hour of that eventful night were lying awake expecting their houses to be searched by detectives ? Our inner consciousness will unerringly dictate the answer, "Not one who was innocent of crime/' It is only necessary to say further, ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 253 in regard to this defense set up of an alibi that al- though there is no more common defense resorted to by criminals, because there is none more easy of es- tablishment, there was never perhaps in all the his- tory of jurisprudence a weaker and more unsuccess- ful effort made to establish it, than in this defense. Probably no witness had ever been subjected to the severe grilling which Louis Weichmann received dur- ing these trials, his testimony at Jonn H. Surratt's tri- al being precisely the same, and he could not be shak- en by the badgering which the defense's lawyers re- sorted to. A lifelong persecution followed in conse- quence. ,J During a recent interview the writer had with a relative of his who was with him during his last ill- ness she said: "No one will ever know the sadness of Lou's life nor dream of how he was persecuted for sim- ply telling the truth. The day before he died he motion- ed for a pencil and paper and before a witness wrote : 'To All Lovers of Truth, I, Louis J. Weichmann, being of sound mind and memory do declare that everything that I testified to at the trials of Mary E. Surratt and John H. Surratt, was the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God. (Signed) Louis J. Weichmann.' He died the next day." The "persecution" was that they accused him of swearing away the life of an innocent woman who had been a kind friend to him. For many years Mr. Weichmann was under the protection of the govern- ment where he held a public position in Philadelphia. He was practically excommunicated from the church although he in later years attended. On the other hand John H. Surratt, conspirator and assassin was protect- ed and helped by the priests up until his death April 22, 1916. After Surratt's release from prison on a techni- cality he went to Rockville, Md., where he delivered a lecture which he prepared with the ostensible purpose of going on the lecture platform. He only delivered it once. The public sentiment, even in the South, was 254 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN strong against him. He then secured a position in the public school at Montrose, near Kockville, where he taught several years. The writer in making the picture of the Surratt house produced here, had a talk with the present tenant, a Mrs. Wm. Penn, whose step- mother was a pupil of John Surratt's while he taught at Montrose. Mrs. Penn has a linen pocket handker- chief, hemstitched, with the name "Surratt" embroid- ered in large script letters across the corner of it, which her step-mother, a Mrs. A. M. Higgins, was given by the owner, John H. Surratt. Some years later secured a lucrative position with a Baltimore steam- ship company where he remained until just a short time before his death. He left a widow and several grown children, one of whom, William, is an attor- ney in the "Monumental" city. On looking up the death notices some months ago when the writer was in Baltimore for that purpose, the protection of the Catholic church was shown by the in- formation that a High Requiem Mass was to be said for the deceased and that the funeral would be private, interment would be at Bonnie Brae. As a matter of fact, the body was brought quietly to Washington and buried in the family lot at the left side of his mother. The significance of this probably is that some day in the future the Roman Catholic church plans to erect a memorial to John Surratt and his "Martyred" moth- er. In a talk with the superintendent of Mt Olivet cem- etery as we stood by the graves, he proffered this infor- mation, he being himself a Catholic. "The hanging of this woman was one of the greatest crimes ever com- mitted. We would erect a monument to her in a min- ute, if we could." I asked him why they did not do it. He said: "We wouldn't dare now. The feeling for Lin- coln is too strong." On pressing the matter further with him, I found that he had no personal knowledge of the case and knew nothing but what he had been told by his church. Before closing this chapter I cannot but call your attention to God's "Wondrous ways" of just retribu- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 255 "MRS. SUR.RATT" The small headstone with but two words on it, "Mrs. Sur- ratt" which marks the lonely grave in the outskirt of Mt. Olivet Catholic Cemetery, Washington, D. C. That the body lies in "consecrated" ground is significant. 256 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN tion. Contemplate the small lonely headstone, labeled merely; "Mrs. Surratt" on the outskirt of the Ro- man Catholic Cemetery in Washington, the scene of her wicked work and within a gun shot the magnifi- cent white marble Lincoln Memorial as it stands over- looking the Potomac river, erected to the memory of the great American whom she and her priestly spon- sors had tried so energetically to destroy because he was the living type of the triumph of Popular Gov- ernment and every act of his beautiful, clean, upright public life was a stinging rebuke to the tyrannical, corrupt System, of which Mary E. Surratt, her son and the other papal assassins were legitimate products ! EXECUTING THE SECRET TREATY OF VERONA. Reverting to the Secret Treaty of Verona, we recall that the "high contracting parties," on being con- vinced that the system of representative government is . . . incompatible with monarchial principles. . . en- gage mutually in the most solemn manner, to use all their efforts to put an end to the system of repre- sentative government . . . and to prevent it from being introduced in those countries where it is not yet known. Article 2. As it cannot be doubted that the liberty of the press is the most powerful means used by the pretended supporters of the rights of nations, . . . the high contracting parties promise reciprocally to adopt all proper measures to suppress it." The process of destruction has gone on steadily from the assassination of the five presidents in the United States, which begun in 1841, and has continued at intervals, and which finds us without a semblance of a free press. After sixty years of activity by these foreign enemies within our borders what do we find? We find a subversion of free speech ; a subversion of a free press; we find a denial of the right of the American people to peaceable assemblage: we find the ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 257 complete separation of Church and State, the very basis of our form of government being a dead letter; we find the freedom of conscience being attacked; we find our great IDEA of public education being viciously undermined and sapped by a great system of parochial schools wherein are taught the prin- ciples of the old concept of monarchial institutions. And by whom is this concerted plan of destruc- tion being carried on, principally? By the priests and lay members of the Roman Catholic Church. Upon what authority is this work of subversion being operated? By the ex-cathedra mandates of the Popes of Rome, conveyed to their "subjects" in this country through Encyclical Letters. We find that the Roman Catholics who comprise less than one sixth of the population, have been the domi- nating power in our political affairs and of late years have headed almost every national, state and munici- pal office from the President down to the dog catcher. During the Wilson administrations the Army, the Navy, the Treasury, the Secret Service, the Post Of- fice, the Emergency Fleet, Transports, Printing, Air- craft and dozens of others were presided over by Fourth Degree Knights of Co 7 umbus ! The PLUNDERS of Hog Island and the Emer- gency Fleet under E. N. Hurley are matters of Con- gressional Record which mounted up into the mil- lions. Mr. Hurley is a Roman Catholic and Knight of Columbus. The "Aircraft Scandal" under the supervision of John M. Ryan, ardent Roman Catholic and Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus ran into the billions and was also subject of investigation. Admiral Benson who was advanced in a most unusual and r>eculiar way by his sponsor Woodrow Wilson, is a Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus and violated the spirit and the letter of this Republican Government by accepting a foreign title from the Pope of Rome. Admiral Benson is a member of the 258 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN "Household" of this alien ruler, who never has ceased to claim his right to temporal power for one moment since he was forced to relinquish it by the Italian People, Sept. 20, 1870. This disloyal act has never been rebuked by the American people whom Admiral Benson is sup- posed to represent. "Knighthood" is not a spiritual acquisition, nor was it bestowed as such. It is a foreign title given in recognition of his service to the Pope of Rome who claims temporal sovereignity and allegi- ance from his subjects in every country. One of the aims of the Knights of Columbus is to restore the temporal power of the Pope. The presence of these laymen of the Romish Church in our public offices is not accidental or in- cidental. They are there by the express command of their Pone, whom thev are obliged to Obey as God Himself." (See Leo XHIth's Great Encycles, nage 192) Roman Catholics are serving under a Citizenship diametrically opposed to American citizenship. American Citizenship is based upon the contention that the only authority to rule must come from th? consent of the governed. Roman Catholic citizenship is based upon the negation of this. Leo XIII has this to say: The sovereignity of the people, however ... is held to reside in the multitude: which is doubtless 3 doctrine exceedingly well calculated to flatter and in- flame the many passions, but which lacks all reasonable proof, and all power of insuring public safety and preserving order, (page 123) j LIBERTY OF SPEECH AND PRESS So too, the libertv of thinking, and of publishing whatsoever each one likes, without hindrance ... is the fountain head and origin of manv evils (page 123) The unrestrained freedom of thinking and open- ly making known ones thoughts is not inherent in ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 259 the rights of citizens, and is by no means reckoned worthy of favor or support, (page 126) We must now consider briefly liberty of speech, and liberty of the press. It is hardly necessary to say that there can be no such right as this. . . . (page 151) If unbridled license of speech and writing be granted to all, nothing will remain sacred and in- violate, (page 152) So you see the Pope denies today the right to think. The Romanists of this country are obliged to obey and inculcate these treasonable principles. It is because of this citizenship that the Roman Church has established its gigantic parochial school system. ATTEMPTING TO DESTROY THE FREE PRESS FITZGERALD BILL (H. R. 6468) On December 17, 1915, Roman Catholic Repre- sentative John J. Fitzgerald, Knight of Columbus, of Greater New York introduced the following Bill: "Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- sentatives of the United States of America, in Con- gress assembled, That whenever it shall be established to the satisfaction of the Postmaster General that any person is engaged, or represents himself as en- gaged the business of publishing any obscene or im- moral books, pamphlets, pictures, prints, engravings, lithographs, photographs, or other publicatons, matter, or thing of an indecent, immoral, or scurrilous charac- ter, and if such person shall, in the opinion of the Postmaster General, endeavor to use the postoffice for the promotion of such business, it is hereby de- clared that no letter, packet, parcel, newspaper, book, or other things sent or sought to be sent through the Postoffice, or by or on behalf, of or to, or on behalf of such person, shall be deemed mailable matter, and the Postmaster General shall make the necessary rules and regulations to exclude such nonmailable matter from the mails." 260 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The Record shows that Holy Names Societies of the Roman Catholic Church immediately became active and sent to their Representatives many petitions urg- ing the enactment oi these measures into laws. Liberty, then, as we have said, belongs only to those who have the gift of reason or intelligence. (Leo XHI the Great Encyclicals, page 137). And the priests claim the right to be the judge of those who would have the "Gift of reason or in- telligence." Roman Catholic citizenship is inimical to Ameri- can citizenship. Roman Catholc citizenship is repre- sented by the confessional box. American citizenship is represented by the BALLOT BOX. ATTEMPTING TO DESTROY THE FREE PRESS GALLIVAN BILL (H. R. 13778) On March 27, 1916, Roman Catholic Representa- tive James A. Gallivan of Boston, introduced the fol- lowing: ,,,^l^ "Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- sentatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, that the Postmaster General shall make the necessary rules and regulations to exclude from the mails those publications, the avowed and deliberate purpose of which is to attack a recognized religion, held by the citizens of the United States or any religious order to which citizens of the United States belong." In January, 1915, Representatives Fitzgerald and Gallivan had each introduced a Bill substantially identical with the Fitzgerald Bill hereinbefore set out. At the hearing on those Bills before the House Com- mittee on the Post Office and Post Roads, Roman Catholic Representative James P. Maher, of Greater New York, stated frankly that the Bills had been in- troduced to shield sixteen million Roman Catholics ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 261 and twenty thousand Roman Catholic priests from public criticism, by excluding," The Menace," the "Yel- low Jacket" and similar publications from the mails. The above un-American citizens sponsored these Bills on the explicit instructions of their Church. Leo Xlllth commands them thus: Furthermore, it is in general fitting and salutary that Catholics should extend their efforts beyond this restricted sphere (Municipal politics) and give their attention to national politics. . . While if they hold aloof . . this would tend to the injury of the Catholic religion, forasmuch, as those would come into power who are badly disposed towards the Church, and those who are willing to befriend her would be deprived of all influence, (page 131) These laymen, tools of the Romish Church would strangle our Press to prevent criticism of their religion and 20,000 bachelor fathers! LEO XIII ON LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE Another liberty, is widely advocated, namely the liberty of conscience. If by this is meant that every one may, as he chooses, worship God or not, it is sufficently refuted by the arguments already adduced, (page 155) Hence follows the fatal theory of the need of separation of Church and State, (page 148) From this teaching, as from its source and prin- ciple flows that fatal principle of the separation of Church and State, (page 159) From what has been said, it follows, that it is quite unlawful, to demand, to defend, or to grant un- conditional freedom of thought,of speech, of writing, or of worship, (page 161). And now let us see how well the Roman Catho- lic Church requires its members to observe and ac- cept the above concentrated treason to our POPULAR GOVERNMENT. The strangulation of a Free Press in this country 262 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN HON. JOHN J. FITZGERALD, Who introduced one of the postal bills. is to be completed through legislation. We call your attention to the three Bills which the Knights of Columbus have been trying to engineer through for the past seven years under the photographs of the Pope's Catholic Citizens, Messrs, Fitzgerald and Galli- van and the papalized Hebrew, one, Isaac Siegal. ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 263 HON. JAMES A. GALLIVAN, Who introduced two of the postal bills. PEACEABLE ASSEMBLAGES DENIED IN UNITED STATES BY ROMAN CATH- OLIC MOB RULE THE That the right of peaceable assemblage is almost a thing of the past in this country is proven by the numerous mobs instigated and led by the priests and Knights of Columbus and their hoodlums in the various cities from coast to coast. 264 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The reader has seen from the foregoing quota- tions from the Great Encyclicals of Leo Xnith that the right to think and to speak and liberty of con- science is absolutely prohibitive in CATHOLIC citizen- ship. In order to prove to you the existence of this divine right citizenship; and in order to prove to you that the members of the Roman Catholic church can- not and do not grant liberty of conscience to Romanists who have left the church, I call your attention to the following table of mobs and riots carried on by them : June 12th, 1913, the Protestant people of Oelwein, Iowa, invited Jeremiah J. Crowley, ex-priest and author of the "Parochial School; A Curse to the Church and a Menace to the Nation," to address them in the theatre of that town on the subject of the public school ques- tion. At the instigation of the Roman Catholic priest of that city who delivered his sermon the Sunday be- fore the Crowley lecture, some two thousand Roman- ists led by the Knights of Columbus and their hood- lums, mobbed Mr. Crowley as he was leaving the theatre with some of his friends, and beat him severely. April 14th, 1914, the Rev Otis Spurgeon of Iowa, who had been called to deliver a course of lectures by Protestant Americans at Denver, Colorado, was kidnapped from the Pierce Hotel in that city at eight o'clock in the evening, bound hand and foot, gagged and a strap placed around his neck, and was thrown in- to an automobile, narked in front of the hotel, whisked out into the country and beaten into unconsciousness. En route his captors told him they were Knights of Columbus and repeatedly during the trip when he refused to answer or did not answer as they wished, he was choked by the strap. ("Strangulation cord") The Rev. Spurgeon was finally rescued, taken to a hosnital where he was found to have sustained in- ternal injuries and lay very ill for three weeks. The Rev. Spurgeon was a "heretic" and a "Mason." On Feb. 4th, 1915, Rev. Win. Black, ex-priest, at that time a Congregational minister, was deliver- ing a course of lectures, enroute to the California ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 265 Coa3t, where he was to have testified that while he was a Roman priest and a Knight of Columbus he had taken the Jesuit oath on the Congressional Record . . . cited hereto! ore. The Reverend Black had reached Mar- shall, Texas, where he was to deliver two lectures. He gave his first lecture on the public school question in the auditorium of the City Hall at Marshall, Feb. 3rd. About five o'clock in the evening on Feb. 4th, Mr. Black and his body guard, a Mr. J. A. Hall, ex-soldier and expert shot whom he took with him on his trip were returning from a walk about the city. On reach- ing his door four men standing at the end of the corridor nearby approached him. They asked if he was Mr. Black and permission to come in and speak with him a few minutes. The Rev. Black opened the door and invited them in. The visitors first of all in- formed him that they were members of the Knights of Columbus Council of Marshall; that they under- stood that he intended to deliver another lecture "against their church" that night. Mr. Black assured them that they were correct. Then the spokesman, a prominent attorney, Ryan by name, said, "No you won't. We will give you just fifteen minutes to pack your suitcase and get out of town." Mr. Black coolly informed them that he intended to deliver his lecture; that he would relinguish his American constititional rights for no man. On rising from a shoeblacking case where he had been sitting, John Rogers, a leading architect of that vicinity who had drawn up plans of the hotel in which they now were, sprang toward him, pinioned his arms and in shorter time than it takes to tell it, Black's body was riddled with bullets, and in the melee John Rogers' body fell across that of Black's, being also instantly killed. Copeland, a leading banker the third Knight of Columbus, — Catholic citizen — re- ceived a wound from which he will never fully recover and promptly received the consolations of his church in the corridor, outside the room where they carried him. It may be of interest to know that the priest was in the lobby of the hotel when Black and Hall 266 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN entered to go to their room. Through political influ- ence, these surviving K. C. participants in this coward- ly assassination went free. April 6th,1915, the Rev Dr. Joseph and Mary Slattery, ex-priest and ex-nun, of Boston, Mass. were called by Protestant Americans to deliver some lectures in Chicago, 111. They were lecturing in a Masonic hall on the south side of the city. In the early part of Dr. Slattery's talk a mob of Roman Catholic hoodlums and members of the Knights of Columbus left their hall which was just across the street, entered the Slattery meeting and proceeded to start a riot in true Roman style, by calling Dr. Slattery "a liar." At a signal from a man wearing a Roman collar from which he drew a handkerchief which had concealed it, the riot started in earnest. Chairs and furniture were smashed, men and women were beaten indiscriminately and disfigured by the use of brass knucks and black jacks. The telephone wires in the hall and even the nearby drugstores had been cut and it was fully three- quarters of an hour before they had any response from the Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus policemen. The speaker and his wife made a miraculous escape. The windows of the automobile in which they were driven were shattered by bullets. These Roman thugs entered street cars, attacked the passengers who had not been at the lecture and knew nothing about the riot. They pulled the trolleys off the wires and derailed and de- molished several cars. So much for Roman Catholic citizenship in the great city of Chicago. In Haverhill, Mass., April 4th, 1916, these Knights of Columbus and their hoodlums being summoned lor the occasion from neighboring cities and towns, forced their way into the City Hall where a meeting was being held by Thos. E. Leyden, who was speaking upon the political activities of the Roman church in American politics. I will quote the headlines from some of the Massachusetts papers : ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 267 Boston Post, BIG RIOT RAGES IN HAVERHILL MANY BEATEN MILITIA IS CALLED CITY HALL STORMED BY ANGRY MOBS WHILE REV. THOS. E. LEYDEN WAS HIDDEN IN THE ALDERMAN'S CHAMBER 10,000 IN WILD HAVERHILL RIOTS— MILITIA CALLED OUT TO SUPPRESS MOB THAT GETS BEYOND POLICE City Hal! and Police Station Attacked With Missiles Torn from Streets. National Club Wrecked and Officer and Civilian Badly Beaten EDITORIAL FROM THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE JOURNAL, BOSTON, APRIL 21, 1916 MOB LAW The question of free speech is one of such funda- mental importance to humanity that it is easy to un- derstand the commotion which has been caused in the State of Massachusetts, by the recent riots in Haverhill. The contention that a mob with or without cause, is at liberty to usurp the prerogatives of the courts, and to substitute lynch law for official justice, constitutes, indeed, a precedent destructive of all popu- lar liberty. The history of liberty is very largely the effort of authority to restrain license. When the human passions are roused license is always apt to come to the top. 268 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN i There is no rhyme or reason in the attack of a mob. It is just as willing to smash a great invention like the spinning- jenny, for fear of the displacement of labor, as it is to stuff the mouth of a Foulon witn straw. It is just this that makes the case of the mob in Haverhill so important. If its action is overlooked, if it is connived at. worse still if it is justified today, there is no length to which it may not go tomorrow, and the example set, in Haverhill, may be repeated elsewhere at the expense of the very views which the Haverhill exhibition was intended to support. The simple fact is that the Haverhill mob out- raged in the frankest and most indefensible way the common right of free speech. It is not of the slightest importance who Mr. Leyden was, what he was going to say, or what the effect of his words might be. He was entitled to speak, or he was not entitled to speak. If he was entitled to speak no mob had any right to pre- vent him. If he was not entitled to speak no mob had any right to decide the question and to enforce its own decision. In each event it outraged entirely the rights of free speech, the only difference is that in one case it outraged it rather worse than in the other. RESOLUTIONS OF BAPTIST MINISTRY The Protestant clergy of greater Boston have registered their protest against the outrage in no un- certain tones. Perhaps the most notable of these were the resolutions adopted by the Baptist ministers of greater Boston on April 10th. Thev were read by Professor F. L. Anderson of Newton Theological Sem- inary and were, in part, as follows: "The plain, significant and undisputed fact is that an American citizen was denied the right of free speech, guaranteed by the constitution of Massachu- setts, and that the authorities failed to protect him. That the mob was the result of a premeditated plan ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 269 appears clear from the fact that the lecturer was not permitted even to begin. "We want to know whether this sort of thing is to continue, whether it is possible that we are entering upon an era of Catholic tyranny in this state, whether henceforth in this state criticism of one church, and only one, is to be indulged in only at the risk of life and limb. We demand of the cardi- nal that he publicly state his attitude and enforce his authority in such a manner as shall make Catholic mobs impossible in this state. If the cardinal fails to accede to our demand, we shall know how to interpret his continued silence and shall act accordingly. "We demand that the public authorities bring to justice the leaders of the mob and that the courts impose suitable punishment. A failure here will prove the constitution and laws of Massachusetts mere scraps of paper, and will forever debar our state, the nursery of liberty, from criticising those Common- wealths where lynching goes unavenged. We say this advisedly, for, according to the beliefs of both our fathers and ourselves, liberty of speech is more pre- cious than life. "But more than this is required. The only adequate reparation which can be made for this public outrage is a public atonement. This, to our mind, should take the form of an arrangement with Mr Leyden by the citizens of Haverhill, by which he shall speak in Haverhill on the topic already advertised, and shall be protected in his rights by the city and state at any cost. If he then transgresses the laws against slander or incendiary speech, let him be proceeded against by due process of law." PROTESTANT MINISTERS SPEAK The entire body of the Protestant clergy of Hav- erhill, thirteen in number, appeared before Mayor Bartlett and Commissioner Hoyt. on April 7, to pro- test against the outrage, the inefficiency of the police 270 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN and the equally disgraceful failure of the department of justice to ferret out, arrest and punish the ring leaders of the mob. The Rev. Nicholas Van der Pyl acted as spokes- man for the ministerial body. In the course of his address he thus voiced the sentiments of the united Protestant ministry of Haverhill: "I speak in behalf and by the authority of the entire Protestant clergy of the city of Haverhill. "We deplore, and we feel indignant about the lawlessness which overran this city last Monday night. Our city has been disgraced before the country, and only the people of this city can remove the disgrace which is ours today. "We are not bigots. We have the highest charity for all who worship God in their own way and according to the dictates of their own conscience. "But we are also American citizens, and we are the accredited representatives of the morals and re- ligious interests of this city. We hold inviolable the great principles of freedom of speech and freedom of the press, subject to the laws of libel and incendiar- ism, after the fact, which have been established by all the people, and which only the people can abrogate. "A mob has overrun our city. Churches have been broken into and desecrated by that mob. The homes of unoffending and innocent citizens have been stoned. In some cases lives have been threatened and placed in jeopardy. We cannot forget so long as the mob is permitted to be victorious, and its leaders glowing in the fact that they have trampled under their feet the most sacred rights of all our people. We will not forget until the principle of free speech has been im- pressively vindicated by the law-abiding element of this community itself." In point of fact the condition is this, that no ex-Romanist now in the field in this conflict in this country is granted his or her constitutional rights by the priests and prelates of the Roman Cath- ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 271 olic church. There is not an ex-Catholic lecturer in the field today who does not take his or her life in their own hands every time they appear be- fore an audience. Speaking from personal experience the writer has had several mobs, one of which was in the Pioneer Congregational church in Chicago, Illi- nois, where the following subjects were advertised: "The Enemy within our borders." "The Public vs. Parochial schools." "The Suppressed Truth about the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln." The church early in the evening was surrounded by a mob of about 2,000 Catholics some of whom forced their way in and filled up the auditorium. After listening for about three quarters o± an hour, at a whistle from the leader of the mob which was the signal to begin, windows were broken, chairs were smashed, literature torn and scattered all over the hall. In response to a riot call from the down town station (police at that precinct there would not respond) two wagon loads of officers stepped out, all of whom but one were Knights of Columbus. I know this because they admitted it to me. Such wide publicity of my meetings has been given by the local and anti-Roman press of K. of C. mobs in San Francisco, Sept. 22nd and Sept. 26th, 1921, that it is not necessary to dwell on them. ,• Only a few weeks ago we read of the mobs of the meetings of the Baptist minister, ex-Monk Eli M. Erickson in Chicago, El., who speaks upon his con- version from Romanism to Protestantism. But again the priests of Rome denied Rev. Erickson his Ameri- can rights. This mobbing is not confined to ex-Ro- manists. That splendid patriotic worker and eloquent lecturer, Wm. Lloyd Clark, of Milan, Illinois, has, in spite, of Rome's vicious mobs, time without number, held the torch of American patriotism up for the last thirty-five years. For the most part he was almost sin- gle handed and alone. Mr. Clark has been rotten-egged, 272 ASSASSINS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN shot at, arrested and jailed, dozens of times, but he has never ceased to batter at these assassins of Liberty. In closing I will leave it to my reader to decide whether I have proved my contention in the beginning of this book that the assassination of Abraham Lin- coln and four other presidents is but a part of t**e great conspiracy which was outlined in the Secret Treaty of Verona to destroy this Republic. That the execution of this conspiracy in Lincoln's case, was delegated by the Pope of Rome to the Jesuits in the United States and their lay agents, the Leopol- dines. That instead of the use of bullets and bayonets, their method has been and is to destroy from within by the subversion of all of the free institutions upon which this Republic is based. That the church of Rome has established a sepa- rate citizenship to promote its teachings and by its enormous wealth a large proportion of which has been obtained by unconstitutional and illegal appropriations from public funds; that with this wealth (over two and a half billion dollars worth of church and other religious property, for the most part exempt from taxation) it has by a system of intimidation and brib- ery corrupted our free press and is in control of every avenue of publicity, so that the American people re- main in almost total ignorance of its pernicious activi- ties, which, if not curbed, will succeed in accomplishing its object in these United tates. For the further information of the reader, allow me to impress it upon you, that the present Pope, Pius Xlth, is the Cardinal Ratti, whom the late Pope sent to Poland on the express mission of inducing the makers of the new constitution to restore the Roman church as the State church, a feat which the gentle- man covered himself with papal glory, by accomplish- ing, an act n® doubt, which earned him the Pontifical throne. Also remember that Pius Xlth stands for just what all Popes have stc^/ for. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 011 899 905 8