Daily national Republican. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1862-1866, 1865-06-05
EXTRA
THE CONSPIRACY.
ASTOUNDING DISCLOSURES.
THB SUPPRESSED TESTIMONY.
The COMMISSIONS Issued to the
Assassins in Canada.
Surratt Delivering Dispatches
from JET, Davis 70 Jake
Thompson.
THB SUPPRESSED TESTIMONY.

cation
| SANFORD CONOvER
testified A. follows: am native Of Now York /;
| have resided In Canada since October last was
cDnscfiptcd into the confederate army and de-.
| tailed to service In tho War Depart ment of the
confcd"racy In RichNond, under James A. Scd p
| duu, Secretary uf War While In Canada, was
intimhtely acquainted with q. n. Saunders, Jacob
| Thompson, Dr. Blackburn, Tucker, WIN. G.
| Clcary, Capt. Castleman, Mr. Cameron, Porter.
! nrld, Cart MRgrudef, aud other; 1 also knew
Clement &. Clay aud Genoral CARROLL Of Tennes-
soc; knew Mr.. Surratt also, aud J. W. BOUth.
| aud Visited these gentlemen In Canada; saw Sur.
ratt there uu several occasions last April, In Mr..
Jacnb Thomps0h'S room; al-o IN company with
Geo. N. Saunders aud other Tnbels Ia Canada
snrrsti l. about i've feet niBc ten inrhcz high,
taif comPleNioned naR with light hair; { saw
him about the Gth or 9Th II April with Thonpson
| saunders aud Booth.
| Al that time he delivered to Thompson In his
| room, In my presence, dispatches from richmond,
! from BEN amin, aud FROM jefferson Davis; the
| latter either cipher dispatch or y letter. Bou-
iamin was Secretary of state II III" Coufedcracy
| Previous To this, ThDDipspH cHrerSsd 'oih ne
| "I,pa N, Sutoi NJ q plot Ia dsSIssiHItG Pr,Si-
dS,a LincDi1 "mi his G,hind, Of which gave
notice, before the assassination, In the New York
! TribgHs, tho paper for which oOrru-pnudCd. |
| had been invited by Mr. Th"uPsou IT, Participat,
| In that enterprise When Surrati delivered thes.
dis spGtlches from Davis, Thompson laid his hand
upon the papers aud said. referring 10 the a,SaS-
| snatiuu aud iu tho assent uf the Fah, Huthuri-
ties +" THIS makes the thing all right The
dispatchcs sp"ke of tho pcrsons 10 be- a.gaSsu-
atod Mr.. Iinculu, Mr.. Johnson, Secretary Of
War, Secretary 81 State, Judge Chase, aud Gen
Grant Mr.. Thompson said on that OCCASION ar On
the day before that interview, that the assnssina
ton proposed would leave Tho Government uf the
| United States entirely without head that there
was nu provision In tho Constitution Of the Uni.
ted stntos by which they could elect another
President.
Mr. wcllcs was also named. hut Mr Thompson
! said II wa not worth Will" to Kill him; he va
! II no consequence; my first interview with
! Thompson on this subject Of assassination wAs
| IN the early part of last February, In Thump-
sou ToOm In st. Lawrence Hall, Montreal hr
then spoke uf a raid on Ogdru.burg, New York
Il was abandoned, but that was because the Uni
ted States Government received information Of
u he said he would have to drop It for time,
hut added "wc'll catch thcm asleep yet, - aud
To me he said; There II a better opportunity T."
| iminnrtRliLa yourself aud save your conniry, -
meaning tho cnnfrdcracyi l told them ! was
ready to do anything {" save th" country, aud
| asked them what was to bc dome he said 'snInc
| af our boys HTc going t. play y grand Joke gu
| Abc and Andy which h" said was to xii!
| them; his words were remove them from
| ntleH " aud hc said that tho killing 0f tyrant
was not murder; thIi he h0ni commissions y"r
mr. irOrk from hs rfbsi IUihOritisS, dHd cpH-
| Csrrtd 0Hs "a B0Oih, or would cnnirr Que that
| every body engaged In this enterprise would he
| comm ssiuucd, aud II they escaped tO Canada
| they cuuld not hc successfully claimed under the
| ENtrRditOn Treaty.
| know that Thumpson and the others held
these commissions In blank. They commissioned
! Bennett Young, the II. Albans raider. II was u
| blank commission hllnd up aud conferred by Mr.
| Clay A. II cam" to them from Richmond II was
only sigued "Jas. A. Seldom, Secretary of war
Mr. Thompson called mo 10 examine these blank
- that nj ght testify to the genuinCnCSs NJ SCd
| dnn's RignatuTC In the ease uf BNunctt Young
| before Judg" smith the signature was genuine /;
IN n subsequent conversation, after the first re-.
frrTPd to In February, Thump.Ou told mr Booth
had been curnmls stoned had cOnYcrsntion " illr
| VIM G.. Clcary ON the day before, nr the day Of
the Rssa-siHRtiun, at -. Lawr"uc" Hall; We were
speaking ot the rejoicing Ia the Stat"s over tho
surrender NJ Leo aud the capture ui ltiChmund
! Glrary pRid they would have th" laugh m tho
| other side uf the mouth Ia day or two. think
| this was the day before th" H,sas -lnatiuu. IT,
| knew WA. Ia the secret OT the conspiracy. II
was tn that he referred The IsaISgiHntinH IrIs
| Sirk,H ~ Im"Hg az IS CImm"HIgUSh' i".I'h't
Before that Saunders asked mr VI kucw
| Booth very we'll, 1Hd 'rI'T SS,d IH apprehension
| HUt Buih I01Uh make n ~. ,JN: that hr WIS
desperate aud rrck less, aud he wa afraid that
! the whole thing would h. failure. ICnmmuni -
Gated TO tho TFijWI' the intended raid Un 81.
| AlbAnz aud the proposed assassination uf tho
| President hut thoy refused to publish the letter.
| | lIl this IN March last, ~ t0 tho prcsidCnt's :
assassination also IN February, think certainly
before tho Ith Of March. surrHu delivered tho
| dispatches IN ThOmpron' = room four ~ Ave days
before the asslssinaiOn. Tho whole rUnYCrsA-
tiuu showed that SurrHti was one uf tho cOuSpim E
tors to take the prrndcnt's life. That was tho
| substance uf tho cunyUrsAtion. II was also un
. uffNlhOu lnhN lhfIN was plohll Ol money Nhfh
there was uuythiug TO la done. The Cuuyorsa-
tiuh Indicated that SurTatt had very few day
before len Richmond that he was "Juh from
Richmond -
While was In Canada wa- n correspondent
for the T'FbuiD, And received no compensation
| except from the Tribune, | have not receive Il
one cent from our own GoYcrnmcnt, nor the
promise,
They never supposed was n correspondent fur
any paper; nuly said was seeking itrm,. They
supposed was II rebel, aud was IN their c"nh
deuce. The proposed nrdenshurg raid wH-
printed In the TTibUHt ! did net communicate
thi- matter directly 10 tho Uoycrnmcnt, Tor the
reason that supposed the communication IN the
7TiLWH' would hr seen by III" Government "il
cials, aud did not rh"o," tn have the imiurma.
nation ~ To- III" GuNornInont directly from ne.
requested Mr.. Gay, uI III" TrlbUHr, to give th'
Information to the Government, aud believe h,
did ~. saw Surrntt In Cannda three or fruI
days In succession, In April last. had cunY"r'
sntluu with him, personally, about Richmund.
Was introduced To him by Sanders, ] was CN
PnCtcd 10 partiCpat" with ihesr rebels In tho raid
IN Ogd"ushurg. never received auy pay from
them for any services. heard the capture ul ih,
prrstdrut mlkud uf ia February. When MI
Thnmrs"u Hr,t suggost"d the assassination I,
me, asked him II II would meet with the arprn
baton Of the GuVuTmmopt vt Rirhmnud Ilr said
he Thought h" would know IN n few days Thi'
wus early la February.
ThunIsou did not say In April, whcu these dis,
patches were delivered that this was tho first aI'
I prevail they had received OT this plot from Rich,
muud, hut know III NJ others. ouly inirTrrd
thd that was tn" first approval. Thumpsuu said
IN his conversation with uo that kiiling u " rant
10 such ease was NJ murder, and asked me "
had read letter called "RilIug no Murder,
addressed By Titus To oliver Cromwell. ThU
was Ia February. Mr. llmlin WAS also nnhUd
10 February ~ ono al the victims oI this EChrnIu
IL April the prrbuuS before named Wrr" men
tlnmrd, but Mr.. Humliu wa omitted aud Vice
President johnson put In his place. ran iht
blockade fran RiehmOnd. ThcsU Cnmmisstuu'
were all hlauk but the signature, they were ii
hr given A. . cover, ~ that In case UI detection
tho parties employed cuud claim that they were
rebel suldirrs, n,li in"UId, htrfDT,, "iIim iU h,
irsdlTd dS prisoners 0r Lsrr, II was un,lrT~tuu
that they would be- protected A. snCh. rhump.uu
said II the mun who w"I" engaged In this cutter
prise were detected and executed, tho GnuICdor.
alto Government would rriallalc; that II was u,
murder, uuly KILLING.
thiuk Booth was specially commissioned fnI
this purpose saw Booth Ia Canada In the lat
ter part "I oct"hcr, with sanders, ~ Mr Thump'
sous, NJ the St Law renee Hall, where he va,
stTuttlng about, di=SlpltInr aud playing bill J.
lizards have heard these mon talk uf tho burn
Ing Of New York aud other enterprises which
they have under consideration now. There wa,
proposition before the agents nf those rebel, In
Canada ip drdrrV he C,rI"" DiU, by ,0hG.h m,
city NJ M,m Iurk is supplied ,cH" ,rdrr Itwas
Ihuppusud II would not only damage mHuutur-
, turr., but distress the people gcucrally. MI
Thompson remarked that there was plenty "l
furce aud that III" city would he destroyed by n
g"u"rM Cnunagmtiuu, And, II they had Thought
. II this SOONER they might have saved great
many urckE This was said u few weeks agu.
Thump,nn, Sanders, GHsil"mRu, aud GUn. Carroll
were present. They had arms concealed, aud u
large number uf Iacu concealed In Chicago
som" "gh' hundred for the purpose oG releasing
a a a