Booth's visit to the Surratt Boarding House after the assassination

[Bill Richter]

Ok gang, to get back to the original subject 115 posts ago, here are two more things to ponder:

If JWB had saddlebags on his horse, why did he send the binoculars to Surrattsville via Mary Surratt? To say they were full with guns is no answer, as the alleged saddlebags discussed by those of you have have the propensities of Peterson House's rubber room. Of course one must then wonder if Booth stopped at the townhouse. If he picked up the guns there, why not the binoculars, too?

Next, everyone who has posted has assumed that JWB was traveling south to Virginia. He left ample evidence behind that he was after all. But what if all of that including his giving his name to Sgt Cobb at the navy Yard Bridge. What if his trip to Surrattsville was part of an elaborate feint, JWB turning on the Woodyard Rd going east and then north along the route of Hwy 301 to Baltimore, or more accurately, Relay Station south of Baltimore where the B&O split into its DC run and the tracks to Ohio? This is why he had the beard to disguise himself and why Joh Surratt, Jr., was waiting at the Canadian border--remember he was overnight in a railroad station there? Along with a companion, who might have been Sara Slater in male drag, according to John Stanton, which I used in my Confederate Freedom Fighter book. The horse would have to be ridden to death to make such a run (there is a lengthy discussion of some months back on the other forum about this and whether it could have been done). This theory is advanced by Larry Starkey in his book, Wilkes Booth Comes to Washington. It includes a long footnote on horse stamina and speeds that Starkey got from a Kentucky Derby trainer. Remember JWB was an excellent horseman. Of course JWB breaking his leg, seeking Dr Mudd, then Sam Cox, forced him and Herold to travel the Doctor's Line, the exact route that was to be his route to mislead pursuit. Tom Jones took over from there.