Booths Diary

[STS Lincolnite]

Gary, I find that the account printed by Winkler has little credibility as it puts forward ideas originally published in the The Lincoln Conspiracy by Balsiger and Sellier. The alleged statements from Julian's diary/journal published there have been declared as falsifications by a number of respected historians and researchers. In fact, Julian's diary/journal notations for 1865 were published in 1915 in the Indiana Magazine of History and they don't make any statements as claimed by Balsiger and Sellier. Apparently whoever made the spurious claims as to what was written by Julian in his diary/journal were not aware of that.

I would highly recommend you read Chapter 12 of Ed Steers' book Lincoln Legends: Myths, Hoaxes, and Confabulations Associated with Our Greatest President. He discusses at length the questions you raised and debunks the idea the Julian diary/journal made any such sensational claims as were printed in The Lincoln Conspiracy and then repeated in Winkler's book. The spurious account claims that Julian and other radical Republicans met Stanton in his office and viewed Booth's diary on April 24, 1865. Here is what Julian wrote on April 24, 1865 as published in Indiana Magazine of History in 1915:

"Monday, 24th
On Saturday last we had General Rosecrans before our committee, and his account of the campaign of Western Virginia makes McClellan look meaner than ever. On last Friday went with Indianans to call on President Johnson. Governor Morton transgressed the proprieties by reading a carefully prepared essay on the subject of reconstruction. Johnson entered upon the same theme, indulging in bad grammar, bad pronunciation and much incoherency of thought. In common with many I was mortified."