Louis Weichmann

[Pamela]

Laurie, I appreciate your stance on Mary, you described it before and I am aware of it. Btw, I would love to read the Holt/Weichmann file of correspondence and I look forward to reading what Colleen has dug up. She's awesome! I seriously doubt that Major General Lew Wallace was alone in his appreciation of Weichmann. Holt, Richards and many others had high praise for him. P400, Weichmann: "General Harris, a member of the Comission, and author of a history of the assassination of Lincoln, has this to say of me in reviewing the trial of John Surratt: 'Weichmann stood the test of every effort and came out unscathed from a bitter and most hostile cross examination that occupied a day and a half. Every effort was made to make him contradict himself as to his present testimony-in-chief, and also as to his testimony two years before at the military trial, but without avail. No false witness could possibly come out of such a fiery ordeal unscathed.
After every effort was made that could be devised by the ingenuity of man, Weichmann stood before the court, the jury, and the country as an honest, conscientious, truthful man. He was also a man of superior talent, education, and intelligence. In short, he established a character that must challenge the admiration of every candid man'".
You may and do undervalue Weichmann and make the playground comment, but I have offered proof that he recieved high praise from relevant and influential people who knew him. When public figures, as Weichmann became , get positive attention, jealousy is always aroused in some. It's just a fact of life. The fact that you never thought to use the word jealousy in describing how people felt about him speaks to your bias, with all due respect.

Wild Bill, thanks for the book recommendations. They're a bit out of my scope of interest, though.

Remembering about John's job, and the words he used to get it, make it all the sadder that Booth came along when the war was ending and spoiled everything for the Surratt family and the country.