An update on research of interest.

[SSlater]

(11-19-2016 06:29 AM)RJNorton Wrote:  

(11-18-2016 10:20 PM)SSlater Wrote:  The "New York Crowd" approved all that was to be done.

From the beginning I have had trouble grasping the makeup/goals of the "New York Crowd." Although I have not read Dixie Reckoning I did read what the late Rick Stelnick wrote for the Surratt Courier. My memory is that Stelnick's theory was Booth was not assigned to kill Lincoln. Rather Lincoln was to be kidnapped by Booth on Easter Sunday. The New York crowd was shocked and angered that Booth acted on his own and killed Lincoln two days before the kidnap was to take place. If memory serves me I think Stelnick felt Booth was escaping Washington as much from fear of what the New York crowd would do to him as what the federal government would do.

John, in your research, it sounds like you would reject Stelnick's theory because you feel the New York Crowd knew of the plan to bomb the White House. Am I saying your feelings correctly?

Roger. Thanks for your interest.
I never read Stelnick - because he was so controversial. (I wish I had) ( maybe I will).
As I understand it, Richmond people realized, in early March, that things were very bad for the South, so they looked for something drastic to turn the war around and it had to be accomplished by mid-April. Thus, Davis met with Stringfellow - someone he trusted implicitly. Stringfellow went to Washington - for a month - to develop a plan and set it up. He was in Washington on March 17th - when Booth tried his kidnap scheme. I'll bet he was there when Booth failed. He had first hand knowledge that the Kidnap plan was OUT! So he recommended to Richmond "better try something else!". Time was running out for the South so they turned to the "Blow up the White House" scheme. (not really the plan, but that is what Atzerodt call it.)
With that plan in mind Booth went to New York (he told Atzerodt about the plan when he got backfrom New York.) Someone from New York came to D.C. and conferred with Booth and Booth discussed the plan with his action group and they all approved the plan. Richmond provided Harney, to be the "Expert". I have to ask this question. Was Harney sent to be an "Observer/Expert" or was he to "do the Job"? We don't know. (He left Richmond with NO TOOLS!)
(He may have expected Mosby to provide the heavy stuff).
As a "P.S. - They were not about to "Blow up the White House". TOO IFFY. If they were to use enough powder to Blow up the White House, they better not be anywhere near the White House, when it Blew - yet the plan was to sing him a song. WHAT? YES!!!
In my opinion and I have worked with explosives (as a minor observer) but it had to be small. I suggest - Lincoln was to step on a small mine, or it was to be detonated - when he was in the proper position. The observers could be s close as 20 feet. I have observed "ship mines" being detonated and I suggest that you watch from the next County. (They throw up a huge plume and a pressure blast goes out, then they drop a ton of water on a BIG area. If I'm describing a demolished building - get back a little further. (He won't hear the song, any how - his ears would have popped.)
In my opinion (Developed - reading the material presented) the New York Crowd was "upset" because "their plan failed." Booth had been ORDERED not to kill Lincoln. He and everyone else knew Lincoln was to Die. He reacted to the failure and decided that Richmond NEEDED Lincoln dead, so he resorted to the next-best plan, to appease Richmond, and to collect any reward money, for doing the "Dirty Work".
Want More?
Some Guesses. Was Booth expected to kidnap Lincoln on Easter, and if that failed, then "blow up the White House". We do know that Hogan gave Booth the word - not to shoot Lincoln. That means that Richmond knew Booth's plan, in its entirety. I have assumed Booth got that message sometime in early April - which caused him to run around the country to find out what was going on.
Then, if someone in Richmond didn't know that Booth was already informed of Harney's mission, and was told to back off on his shooting plan. It appears that Richmond was well informed on all the various plans, and was informing the people in the field to watch out for one another. (Harney might have "Blown up" Booth, along with Lincoln.) Do you think they might have sung that song to Booth? He He He!.