Life, Crime and Capture of John Wilkes Booth

[Gene C]

I can agree with you on this Bill, a good possibility some of the things mentioned about him are true. I don't have a high opinion of Johnson.
Also haven't seen any evidence that you have a weak mind.

[RJNorton]

(11-30-2015 09:41 AM)Gene C Wrote:  Also haven't seen any evidence that you have a weak mind.

I second Gene!

[Gene C]

Be sure to read and be ready to comment on chapter 2 begining Sunday, December 6.

What have your read in Chapter 2 that you found interesting??

[Wild Bill]

The crowds that came to DC to see Lincoln's lying in state reminds one of a sentence from Macbeth: Nothing in his life became him like the leaving it. This is an excellent example of the moralistic and maudlin newspaper reporting from the 19th century that GATH specializes in.

It also foresees the messianic idolatry that we use to worship Lincoln today. It leaves out the reality of the extra and intra party squabbles of the war, except that GATH does refer to the premature emancipation that General David Hunter established in coastal South Carolina as the predecessor to the actual Emancipation Proclamation. Left out is the fact General John Charles Fremont did the same in Missouri, but then Fremont was not at the funeral as was Hunter. But Hunter and Fremont were discredited generals and poor politicians.

[RJNorton]

GATH writes, "Three years ago, when little Willie Lincoln died, Doctors Brown and Alexander, the embalmers or injectors, prepared his body so handsomely that the President had it twice disinterred to look upon it. The same men, in the same way, have made perpetual these beloved lineaments."

Like many books this is somewhat misleading IMO. The actual embalmer was Henry Pratt Cattell who was a senior member of the firm of Brown and Alexander. Cattell embalmed Willie Lincoln in 1862 and Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Andrew Johnson was present during Lincoln's embalming. The charge for the embalming was $100.00.

[Eva Elisabeth]

I didn't know Johnson was present during the embalming. I find it somewhat disturbing that upon death obviously all private sphere is nullified. This is some kind of treatment/action that I find inappropriate to be watched by anyone but family members and close friends.

[RJNorton]

(12-05-2015 04:17 PM)Eva Elisabeth Wrote:  I didn't know Johnson was present during the embalming. I find it somewhat disturbing that upon death obviously all private sphere is nullified. This is some kind of treatment/action that I find inappropriate to be watched by anyone but family members and close friends.

I agree with you, Eva.

The information on Johnson's presence is in Ed Steers' encyclopedia, and forum member/author Kathy Canavan agrees.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Thanks, Roger! Does a photo of Harry Cattell exist (was there perhaps one in 20 Days? Will check...)?

[BettyO]

Here is an interesting site regarding Cattell -

http://www.historynet.com/the-humble-und...eature.htm

Also a photo of him -


   

[RJNorton]

Thanks, Betty!

I assume Henry Ware Cattell was Henry Pratt Cattell's son (and continued in the same occupation). There is an interesting article here about Henry Ware Cattell and Walt Whitman's brain.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Thanks, Betty and Roger. I didn't know that about Whitman's brain. That era had quite some morbid handling of death and deceased ones.

[Gene C]

I found the following comment in Gath's book a bit odd (on p13, 2nd paragraph)

"The population of the city this morning was not far short of one hundred thousand, and of these as many as thirty thousand walked in procession with Mr. Lincoln's ashes"

I found the comments on page 14 regarding the embalming of Mr. Lincoln morbidly interesting but also a bit unsettling.

But Gath is a talented journalist as seen in the following comment (p14);
"All that we see of Abraham Lincoln, so cunningly contemplated in his splendid coffin, is a mere shell, an effigy, a sculpture. He lies in sleep, but it is the sleep of marble. All that made his flesh vital, sentient and affectionate, is gone forever.

[L Verge]

This chapter is certainly one of the most descriptive of the funeral proceedings that you will ever read, and it is interesting to see the lay-out of the East Room and those in attendance described in detail. I did feel a little uncomfortable with seeing the word "celebration" used in the very first paragraph - even though I know it is now a word frequently used to replace "funeral" (i.e. "celebration of a life").

I also suspect a bit of Democratic politician in Townsend when he wrote, "Rarely has a Republican assemblage been so orderly." Was that a wise-crack on his part? What was Townsend's political persuasion?

Reference was made to Gen. Grant having the eagles on his right shoulder hidden. What is the military significance of this?

Finally, I'm enjoying learning some new words while reading this. I knew that Dearborn was a city in Michigan and the birthplace of Henry Ford, but I did not know that, with a little "d," it is a light, four-wheeled wagon. I also learned that the word "serried" refers to being crowded and pressed together, and that "badinage" refers to playful repartee.

[Gene C]

I found this interesting.

Gath mentions (p14) in describing the appearance of Lincoln's embalmed remains, that Lincoln had Willie disinterred twice to look upon him. That has been mentioned by others, but I can't recall who, was it Lamon? (I never realized Lamon was almost 20 years younger than Lincoln)

Among other attending the services (p17)
Gath mentions George Francis Train was at the White House service. I'd never heard of him before. It appears that he was quite a wealthy and a bit eccentric personality.
"No blood relatives of Mr. Lincoln were to be found."
"Mrs. Lincoln's relatives were present, however, in some force."
"...and little Tad, his face red heated, cried as if his heart would break."
Kate Chase Sprague is also mentioned as attending.

[RJNorton]

(12-10-2015 07:38 AM)Gene C Wrote:  I found this interesting.

Gath mentions (p14) in describing the appearance of Lincoln's embalmed remains, that Lincoln had Willie disinterred twice to look upon him. That has been mentioned by others, but I can't recall who, was it Lamon? (I never realized Lamon was almost 20 years younger than Lincoln)

(10-27-2015 07:00 PM)Rob Wick Wrote:  

Quote:Lincoln wanted to see his son Willie again so badly that he had him exhumed once or twice just so he could see his face.

In 40-plus years of reading about Lincoln, not once have I ever come across this in any of the main biographies or books about the aspects of his life. Doing a quick Google search, I saw this mentioned on various websites but none gave a source. I looked through four main Lincoln biographies (Burlingame, Donald, White and Oates) and not one mentions this ever happening. I would be interested in knowing a verifiable source for this outside of the internet.

Gene, I agree with Rob. I do not know what the original source is for this story. I would assume Gath must have read or heard this somewhere, but I do not know his source. I would guess the story was in the newspapers, but if so, I do not know their source for it.