Life, Crime and Capture of John Wilkes Booth

[Eva Elisabeth]

1. This passage:
"Let men remember that she is the mother of a son who has fled to save
his forfeit life by deserting her to shame, and perhaps, to death. Let women,
who will not mention her in mercy, learn from her end, in all succeeding
wars, to make patriotism of their household duties and not incite to blood."

...was one I was going to post, too. First because of the judgement/criticism of J.S.'s flight, and as for the "typical" (especially 19the century)) male view on male and female "determination" and chores. I guess men had little share in kids' education and upbringing?


2. Another sentence that struck me: "How far her wicked love influenced her to participation in the murder rests in her own breast." Love for whom? Booth? The South? (Her son?)


3. "It is 10 o'clock, and the court is soon to sit. Its members ride down in superb ambulances and bring their friends along to show them the majesty of justice. A perfect park of carriages stands by the door to the left, and from these dismount major-generals' wives, in rustling silks; daughters of congressmen, attired like the lilies of the milliner; little girls who hope to be young ladies and have come with " Pa," to look at the assassins; even brides are here, in the fresh blush of their nuptials, and they consider the late spectacle of the review as good as lost, if the court-scene be not added to it."

This passage instantly reminded me of this:
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KQmmyY0NEAg
... and similar events. Also of the First Battle of Bull Run picknickers.

[Gene C]

A few more interesting quotes from this chapter

p.65, about Payne
"Taller by a whole head than either his
companions or the sentries, Payne, the assassin, sits erect, and flings his
barbarian eye to and fro, radiating the tremendous energy of his colossal
physique."

p. 66 . "The mystery attending Payne's home and parentage still exists to make
him more incomprehensible" (interesting to note, that even at this late stage, little is known about him)

"He is entirely beardless, yet in his boyish chin more of a man physically than
the rest, combined."

p.67 We have this about Atzerott.
" The filthiness of this man denies him sympathy. He is a disgusting little
groveler, of" dry, sandy hair, oval head, ears set so close to the chin that
one would think his sense of hearing limited to his jaws, and a complexion
so yellow that the uncropped brownness of his beard does not materially
darken it. (who says looks don't matter?)

"Atzerott swaggered about Kirkwood's Hotel asking for the Vice-President's room;
Payne or Booth would have done the murder silently. Nobody pities a
dirty man. The same arts of dress and cleanliness which please ladies
influence juries"

O'Laughlin only gets a short paragraph.
About Spangler, he says this
"This man has a simple and pleading face, and there is something genial in
his great, incoherent countenance. He is said to have cleared the stage for
Booth's escape, but this is indifferently testified to."

p 68 . Sam Arnold
"He is, perhaps, the best looking of the prisoners, and the
least implicated. He has a solid, pleasant face ; has been a rebel soldier,
foolishly committed himself to Booth, with perhaps no intention to do a
crime, recanted in pen and ink, and was made a national character. Had
he recanted by word of mouth he might have saved himself unpleasant
dreams. This shows everybody the absurdity of writing what they can so
easily say.

p 69 and about the Military Commission
"Excepting Judge Holt, the court has shown as little ability as could be
expected from soldiers, placed in unenviable publicity, and upon a duty
for which they are disqualified, both by education and acumen."

"This court was needed to show us at least the petty tyranny of martial
law and the pettiness of martial jurists."

There is a whole I left out. Hope you will read the book and perhaps get a feel for what the press was telling the public at the time.

[Gene C]

Chapter 9 - The Executions

This is the last chapter. One can't help but feel sadness as the conspirators meet their punishment. Little is said about those who are not executed.

Describing the scene on p71
"And not far from these, in silence and darkness beneath the prison where
they had lain so long and so forbodingly, the body of John Wilkes Booth,
sealed up in the brick floor-, had long been mouldering
(the deception that his body was dumped in the Potomac didn't last long)

Regarding the spectators
"Cigars were sending up spirals of soothing
smoke. There was a good deal of covert fear that a reprieve might be
granted. Inquires were many and ingenuous for whisky, and one or two"
were so deeply expectant that they fell asleep."

John Surratt was not forgotten- p 72.
"Her base and fugitive son, to know the infamy of his cowardice and die of his shame,
should have seen his mother writhing in her seat upon the throne his
wickedness established for her."

Regarding Payne, he writes
"Payne, the strangest criminal in our history, was alone dignified and
self- possessed...
His height, his vigor, his glare made
him the strong central figure of this interelementary tableaux.
Now and then he looked half pityingly
at the woman, and only once moved his lips, as if in supplication. Few
who looked at him, forgetful of his crime, did not respect him."

Few kind words for Davey Harold, p73
"Harold would have enjoyed this execution vastly as a spectator. He
was, I think, capable of a greater degree of depravity than any of his accomplices."

And even fewer for George Atzerodt, p73
"Atzerott was my ideal of a man to be hung...
His spiritual adviser stood behind him, evidently disgusted with him."

"They were, altogether, a motley and miserable set.
...but these people, aspiring to overturn a nation, bore the appearance
of a troop of ignorant folks, expiating the blood-shed of a brawl."

Details of the scene on the scaffold and then a few touching comments about Anna, p78
" The misery of the pretty and heart-broken daughter of Mrs. Surratt is
the talk of the city.
She visited her constantly, and to-day made
so stirring an effort to obtain her life that her devotion takes half the disgrace
from the mother."

What are your impressions on the book?

[L Verge]

Gene, I apologize for not having the time to actively participate in this discussion, however, I did manage to read the various postings, and they were a good review of material that I had read many years ago. Thanks for setting up this thread.

[Wild Bill]

I still stand by what I wrote early on:

GATH writes in purple prose and fills in the gaps with truths or suppositions, typical of the time. And he is unwaveringly pro-Union and anti-Confederate.

[L Verge]

Agreed, Bill...

[Gene C]

A special thank you to all who participated in reading and commenting on this book.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Thanks to you, Gene, for this great idea and for hosting.