The Life, Crime, and Capture of John Wilkes BoothTownsend, George Alfred
History
The Life, Crime, and Capture of John Wilkes Booth
Townsend, George Alfred
Assassins -- United States -- Biography; Booth, John Wilkes, 1838-1865; Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 -- Assassination
He took a room at the Kirkwood House on Thursday, in order to get a pass
from Vice-President Johnson to go to Richmond. Booth was to lease the
Richmond theater and the President was to be invited to attend it when
visiting Richmond, and captured there. Harold brought the pistol and
knife to the room about half-past two o'clock on Friday. He (Atzerott)
said he would have nothing to do with the murder of Johnson, when Booth
said that Harold had more courage than Atzerott, and he wanted Atzerott
to be with Harold to urge him to do it. There was a meeting at a
restaurant about the middle of March, at which John Surratt, O'Laughlin,
Booth, Arnold, Payne, Harold and himself were present, when a plan to
capture the President was discussed. They had heard the President was to
visit a camp, and they proposed to capture him, coach and all, drive
through long old fields to "T. B.," where the coach was to be left and
fresh horses were to be got, and the party would proceed to the river to
take a boat. Harold took a buggy to "T. B." in anticipation that Mr.
Lincoln would be captured, and he was to go with the party to the river.
Slavery had put him on the side of the South. He had heard it preached
in church that the curse of God was upon the slaves, for they were
turned black. He always hated the nigger and felt that they should be
kept in ignorance. He had not received any money from Booth, although he
had been promised that if they were successful they should never want,
that they would be honored throughout the South, and that they could
secure an exchange of prisoners and the recognition of the confederacy.
Harold slept well several hours, but most of the night he was sitting
up, either engaged with his pastor, Rev. Mr. Olds, of Christ Church, or
in prayer. His sisters were with him from an early hour this morning to
twelve o'clock; they being present when he partook of the sacrament at
the hands of Dr. Olds. The parting was particularly affecting. Harold
conversed freely with them, and expressed himself prepared to die.
Powell conversed with Dr. Gillette and Dr. Striker on religious topics
during the morning, sitting erect, as he did in the court-room. From his
conversation it appears that he was raised religiously, and belonged to
the Baptist church until after the breaking out of the rebellion. He
appeared to be sincerely repentant, and in his cell shed tears freely.
He gave his advisers several commissions of a private character, and
stated that he was willing to meet his God, asking all men to forgive,
and forgiving all who had done aught against him. Colonel Doster, his
counsel, also took leave of him during the morning, as well as with
Atzerott.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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