Andrew Johnson - Mistress

[Steve]

I think the possibility that Starr faked the suicide attempt cannot be ignored, especially with the anonymous account 20 years later. But from reading the newspaper accounts it sure does seem like that Ella actually took the chloroform and was unconscious. That, along with the recovered note to Booth makes me think the attempt was real and not a fake, whether or not it was half-hearted. But I don't think there's any way we'll know for sure now.

I also doubt the anonymous newspaper account that Booth saw Starr right before the assassination. I suspect the source may actually have known Ella and her sister in Washington but he seems catty in his attitude toward her.