The Lansing state Republican. [volume] (Lansing, Mich.) 1855-1874, 1865-08-02
The Assassin Of Seward.

/ strength. Let Us have no mawkish senti-
ment for him. lie was a murderer. and 2
murderer Of an old man. a murderer of am
ole and helpless man who Law on a sick bed
that had Just escaped being a death bed.
Whatever circumstance a strange pr0vi-
dence could add 10 A simple murder 10
/ make il appalling dreadful atrocious. WIS
added 20 this That Mr.. seward siill lives
mitSates the crime in no respect his
murderer deserved death: deserved 10 10y
4 hanging, deserved il by other mode ifone
more infamous. We're allowed oar civiiiza-
/ ton. Yet this boy Powell. called PAYNE.
was worth saving-wOrth the best ~ that
/ time aud money and culture can give any
man.
! His history is told in n Few words Tie
was born IN Alabama in lsf5. went with
/ bis fathers family 10 Georgia IN ls47, and
/ then 10 Florida IN 1919 or ls5O His father
was a Baptist minister. who owned large
| plantation and sept many slaves. When
/ fourteen Years OF age being then almost q
man Ia size and appearance, this boy be-
came sort OF general superintendent Of
I the place. The beginning OF the war found
/ him there and thus employed. With other
young men of the South. he enlisted into
/ The army. His regiment was soon sent
North aud with it be fought I'm the PENN
sula campaign. and afterwards az Fredoricks-
4 burg ChancelQrsyllle and Gettysburg At
/ this latter place he was wounded and fell
into our hands. This was in july. lsh2.--
/ When he recovered from his wound which
was slight, he was detailed as nurse in thu
hospital, and appears for a time 90 have
l passed Tor one 81 our men. In October he
deserted from the hospital. and while work
/ ing his way up the Shenandoah Valley.
fell in with one of the Confederate cavalry
/ regiments aud Joined himself thereto. I'm
I this bee served til December. 1861. when
/ he deserted, came 20 Alexandria, sold bis
horse, gave his name a Lewis Payne. took
\ Tie oath OF allegiance, aud was allowed 10
/ 70 10 Baltimore, where be- appears to hayo
made his headquarters during the three
months next preceding the assassination.
This story Is commonplace enough. and
/ furnishes little or no foundation for roman
eng or sentmentalZing. Yet in tlis story
lies the germ Of the murder of Abraham
Lincoln. Had there not been among Booths
accOmpAces other material than such as
! Spangier. Harold. AtzerOt Onauehln aud
| Arnold afforded. be never could have IN
dertaken the work he did. In this rnna-
way rebel soldier was the other material
lie was not the hardened h.0od-thirsty
wretch 50 many times painted. His pro-
ceedings al Mr.. Stewards, were so extra-hu-
man that men and women accustomed 10
lncOnsiderate judgements. shaliowly rcas-
0ned that he must be eXtra-human. and
therefore inhnman 10 the last degree of hru-
tai vlllany. With such notions and preiu-
dices, II was easy 10 ST. ln his great iieure
an uncommon face. giant Hercules of i'm
fanny and wickedness. Yet this boys soul
was east IN gentle mould. de loved quiet
and meditation, ard seli-introspection. lie
had rare cOmpOSuse Of spirit, and courtesy
was natural TO him. He was something
awkward with his long arm and b0ny hand.
but his speech was simple aud manly lie
mad vague aud semi-superstltiOus notions
and wiims, but be carried lofty ideal OF
duty and ofbeauty, and passionately aspired
toward grace aud purify. lie reyerencet
God; but his Divine Master was a being
born Of his teaching and experience. and
therefore One-slded, something vicious and
2 wholly hateful of the North AMI ot The Yam
kee. lie Was frank, honest and direct. de
: loved truth, and hated dissimulation. He
mad 40 Dragadoclo bat held himself the
natural equal of any man. He was reser-
we'd and very much given % sen-cOmmu-
. nlngs. He was 10 religious fanatic, Tor he
. had no religion; but he believed that PrOy-
lence was very near unto him. and spoke
often 10 him. He coveted what We best
name Manhood. but saw his way 10 it only
through such paths as wiser souls know
, never could nave led thereto. The one
great iact concerning him Is that he was
{ gnOrant and One-sidel lie had ability
0ut not culture. lie had force but 10 was
- misdi ected. lie bad a deal of what Is call
+ ed Character, bat il had been perverted
10 wrong ends. In Intelligence natural pa.
st.ncts. original tendencies, be was more
than averagey good. Four years ago. nay.
Z twO years agO-pOssiOly and not improh4
2 bly, on the very day be died such deserved
- aud lgnOmmiOus death, there was in BIN
j. the making Of a man OF worth and standing
: a man who would have been leader ID
2, | good things IN tie community where lived
d a man who would have stood a. no meal
% pattern for his neighborhOOd.
. Do yOu ask me how this man whom haF
~ lraw8 could DO the deed that Lewis Pawn
a id lie was The very man 10 do g. 4
leariless wretch could not have done IT.
i could not have even attempted b. Monel
D. could not have bought his attempt and bal
D. service. What money could command wa
y ALzer0t. what revenge could Inspire wa
o Mrs Surratt; what personal Obligation
could hold was SpangIer: what disiovalt
oi could produce was Dr. Nudd; what lascina
Do lion could brDg was Harold; what irleul
rn ship could influence Was . OLaugAlln; wAs
Do irollcsOmeness could lead 10 was ArnOll
e. None Oi these influences or agencies c0i
as trolled Payne. lis Ideas o. dQfy as Co,
iederate soldier, bis belief iu personal con
muniOn with Providence wholly mimic
10 20 the North, his blind Aspirations fOI ID.
ed which be named manhOOd-these were a
le. we're the unseen forces that nerfel h.s ar
q and steelel bis heart in tie aufgl hour i
ld said more than once 10 his guard that
)st had 10 I'll VIII toward Nr. Seward, and sei
in him Yesterday message 10 that effect. J.
is- has asserted, time and time again. that j
n s0le motive was what be conceived ~
va l.S duty as n man anl q sOldIer-thDug
orr doubtless, lie g0t something of his idea
NJ lliy from the fascinating and impas-i0n'
.eQ Booth. lie confessed that till tie deed -.
,sQ done, he had 10 question but that Pro-
lelce would sanction bis act. When,
ding away from the house. bis horse stun
- bed, threw hin, and lefl him such narIg
"a chance with the cavalry that lie vas oJLg
~ ~ take % the fields, lie Qgerel wletl
~ Providence was really with him. WA
-, he wandered three days IN the woods al
81 swamps east u the city, and gradually :
81 allied that his escape was becoming q ml
ef- ter 0i grave doubt, be slowly swung arOui
~ % the belief that Providence had aeseru
- BIN. In the last week Of his life he reach
IT, TIE cylc44-lyA L4dL llDF-4-Atc IaA u
sanctioned his deed-ia the first iOrtJ-eig
y, hours lie saw that be had done wrong. a
= then admitted the justice Of tie panls
- ment.
a. Lewis Thornton Powell was worth saw
t0r 10 him were the germs Ofgood mauhoc
Tie very qualities that made him ~ seei
m ingly in-human in the encounter ~ y
40 Seward's were the ones on which thai LA
ed. hood would have grown lad be been glT
tel other surroundings. Let Us De sure
rer gain 10 false pity for him. Tie seaten
eat passed upon him was deserved beyond {
ect sry possibility OF question. The death
.- net 50 c0mposedly was never more Just
Jns served By human law. Yeti crave the u.
on. Of al the good men AID women 1or tAis
ren 90 eheaply thrown away, 50 lgAOra1tly =.
ere ted l craTe-may l not demand -
&c detestation Of al good men and women
Of ward slavery, whereby the promising ~.
In vas ruined.-LOr. CAscago TriJune.
JIG
1~- L Ia said that the Government Is about