Something about John Wilkes Booth you may not know...

[Gene C]

I leaning in Rob's direction on this one. Booth used people, he appears to be self centered. Almost everyone has some redeemalbe qualities, so I will assume Booth had some too. Nora Titone's book "My Thoughts Be Bloody" didn't have much good to say about him. For someone who was in touch with the Confederate Gov't, and traveled extensively in the north and the south, he sure misjudged the situation.

As far as his violent attack on Rathbone, well Rathbone stood in the way of his escape. That theater box was tiny. He had to get him out of the way somehow, and quickly. I don't think he was a coward, but he didn't have any problem taking some of the other conspirators down with him.