The Norfolk post. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1865-1866, 1865-07-10
HOW THE CONDEMNED coNsPIRAToRs PASSED
THEIR LAST HOURS

hvW AaE SONDEtlNEp CONsHlkAIORS PASSED
THEIR LAST HOURS
AS everything connected with this
expiation will be greedily read, COM
PIE nom gossip and report statement
ners.
curing the morning a female friend of
;Atzerodt, from Port Tobacco, had All
i nLeW with him-she leaving him
1 eleven O'Clock. He made the fol-
lowing statement:
ATzERoDTs CONFESSION.
He took q room at the Kirkwood
House on Thursday, in order to get
| pass from Vice. President johnson 10 %
to Richmond. Booth was to lease tie
Richmond theatre, and the President
was to be invited to attend it when
visiting Richmond, and captured there
Harold brought the pistol and knife
10 the room about half-past two o'clock
on Friday. He, Adzerodt, said he
would not have anything to Go with the
murder Of johnson, when Booth said
Harold had more courage than Atzerolt,
and he wonted, Atzerodt to be with Hay,
old to urge him to do 1t There was q
meeting at arestaurant about the middle
Of March, at which John Surratt,
ULaughlin, Booth, Arnold, Payne,
Harold and himself were present, VIXEN
plan to capture the President was dis.
cussed. They had heard the President
was to visit camp, and they proposed
to capture him, coach and all, drive
through long old fields to "T. b.
where the coach was to be left and fresh
horses were to be got, andthe party would
proceed to the river to take boat. Har-
old took buggy to ''T. B. In anticipa-
ton that Mr.. Lincoln would becaptured,
and he was to go with the party to the
river. Slavery had put him on the side
OF the South. He had heard it preached
in church that the curse of God was up
on the slaves, for they were turned black,
He always hated the niger and. felt
that they should be kept In ignorance.
he mad not received any money from
Booth, although he had been promised
that II they were successful they should
never want, that they would be honored
throughout the South, and that they.
could secure an exchange Of prisoner
and the recognition of the Confedemcy.
Harold slept well for several hours,
but Of the night he was sitting up, either
engaged with his pastor, Rev. Mr.. Olds.
of Christ Church, or in prayer His sis.
tiers were with him from an early hour
this morning to twelve O'Clock; they
being present when he partook of the
sacrament at the hands Of Dr. Odds. The
parting was particularly affecting.
Harold conversed freely with them, and
expressed himself prepared to die.
Powell conversed with DR.. Gillette and
DIR. Striker on religious topics during the
morning, sitting erect, as he did In the
courtroom. From his conversation ii
appears that he was raised religiouslv.
and belonged to the Baptist church until
after the breaking out of the rebellion.
He appeared to be sincerely repentant,
and In his cell shed tears freely. ETe
gave his advisers several commissions
OF private character, and stated that
he was willing to meet bis God, asking
all men to forgive, and forgiving all who
had done aught against him. Colonel
Doster, his counsel, also took leave of
him during the morning as well as with
zerodt. Mrs. Surratts daughter was
with her at an early hour. One of her
male friends also had an interview with
her, and received directions concerning
the disposition of her property, During
the night and morning she received tho
ministrations of Reys. j. A. Walter, and
B. F. Wigett, and conversed freely with
them, expressing, while protesting her
innocence, her Willingness to meet her
God. Her counsel, Messrs. aiken and
Clampitt, took leave of her during the
morning.
THE ARREST OF GEN. HANCOCK.
A singular feature of this execution
was the arrest Of General Hancock this
morning, who appeared in court, to an
swer a writ of ha5eQs corpus, with O full
staff. 1t Is well to notice that this eye
cution by military order has not, there
fore passed without civil protest,
Before Judge Wylie.
Mr., Aiken addressed the court-A
writ of habeas corpus was issued in the
following words:
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, to-ayst. In
the matter Of Mary E. Surrstt-Petition
ior Habeds CorpNs.-The President OF
the United States to Major General w.
). Hancock, commanding military di-
vision, greeting: You are hereby COM
handed to have. the body Of Mary E.
5urratt, detained under your custody, ae
it Is said, together with the day and
cause OF her being taken aud detained,
BY whatever name she may be called in
the same, before the Criminal Court in
the District of Columbia, now sitting at
the City Hall, in the city Of Washing.
ton, at the hour of ten o'clock y, NJ,
t1AiS sSNeulu gay VI v ulyI lcOOi lOUO AuU
receive whatever shall then and there
be considered of in this behalf and have
then and there this writ.
Witness: Andrew Wylie, one Of the
Justices Of the Supreme Court of said
district, the seventh day of July, eigh+
teen sixty-fve.
CSignedl r. J. MEIes, Clerk.
Certified served on General w. S.,
Hancock at the Metropolitan Hotel at
81 o'clock A. NJ, by David S. Gooding,
United States Marshal. The writ had
been placed in the hands of the Marshal,
who had returned the writ, certified thai
it had been served at 81 o'clock A. NJ
and it is now thirty minutes past the
hour, and he made this statement IN or.
der to know what course the court will
pursue. District-Attorney Darlington
said he had but recently heard OF the
writ and il appeared to him to be extra
ordinary. He had not seen the prison
ar does not know if she is in the court,
and does not know she will be brought
into court. Mr.. Darlington thought that
after the party had been tried by q legit-
innate court, condemned, sentenced, and
the sentence approved by the President,
it is too late to proceed in this manner.
He was not prepared to enter upon an
argument upon the jurisdiction of the
hr,t thnr1 t1,f, No m a