Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1868-10-22

HUt, 10 Oehefai haftffut, who WA5 IN
charge Of the prison, I would give them
both to save that woman .aE .H1a
Mr.. Ford proceeded to describe Mrs.
Surrstt and her household:
/" It Is not very difficult to conceive one
aspect of a situation like that al Mrs.
Snrratfs, Here was a widow, with a full
grown son-a young man of the world,
who might have had to do with his init
mate friends in some affairs, less criminal
or less serions than this, in which he would
never have thought of making his mother
confdsnt, and in which he could not
have dreamed of making her party,
Most Young men OF our day would hesi-
tate TO tell their mothers of all their wild
scrapes, and would certainly take good
care not TO inform them of any crime or
desperate measures which they should
contemplate. Booth inlimaied nothing to
his mother neither was it supposed that
any of his associates, except Surratt, dis
closed their plans to theirs- It happened
that the conspiraiors used to meet at Sur
rats house, in Washington, where his
mother dwelt. Bu. 10 decide, upon
the 1imsy circumstantial evidence at the
trial, thai Mrs. Sufralt was cognizaut Of
what was going on because she was in the
house, is a decision becoming the blind
passion Of the days Of the vendetta, when
all the members of a family were held
sInenable alike for the insult or misdeed Of
single party. Even this Is not an adequate
parallel, for in the days of the vendetta the
females of the house were excepted from
the feud. Mrs. Surratt and her daughter
were both devoted adherents of the Catho-
lie Church. Though they may have been
strong adherents of the Rebel cause, their
character and disposition preclude the
idea that either of them could have been
parties to murderous conspiracy. The
abduction scheme, to which her son is
avowed TO have been party, would doubt
less have been exploded by Ms. Surratts
deliberate common sense, if she had been
made acquainted with it. The proposal to
assassinate the President would have re-
coiled from her stern indignation, or been
melted in tears. The idea of 3 woman
like her acceding to or considering a pro-
posal like that for an instant, without fear,
trembling, horror and discussion, is pre-
pOaerOus. John Surratt and his friends
knew that it was not well to trust her with
hint Of what they may have argued
themselves into believing was the fair
stroke In war OF kidnapping Lincoln and
taking him down South. Booth would
have been mad, indeed, if he had, in Sur.
rats absence, gone TO Surrsti's mother on
the very eve Of carrying out his mora des-
perate resolve, and told her that he was
about TO shoot President Lincoln.
"Mrs. Surratt-of whom had no more
knowledge than yOn had previous TO her
mprisonment-bor no resemblance TO the
ideal mother Of q Brulus. Her manner
was that of Hiatron bowed down by unex-
peeted and undeserved disgrace, and who
depended upon her religion for some sup.
port under the load. Perhaps yon have
not heard that she was ironed during the
trial. She was ironed about both her
ankles-ironed with a ball and chain. She
stepped into the room where the court sat
with great difficulty, and one of her attend
ants behind was observed 10 sioop and sup
port her iron burden with his hand.
"Her case deeply interested me, as it did
others. Her sentence surprised and stunned
her. She had faith, as she had written
her son John in Canada, that il was impOs-
sible for a court TO find her guilty Of what
she was guiltless of. To hear herself con-
demned to be hung from a gallows must
have been to her like listening to some
horrible strange portent conveyed in an
unknown tongue. The sound of it changed
against her brain; the vague terror of il
bruised her heart. But it took some time
for her to comprehend that it mad the dis
tinet, certain, fatal meaning which it had.
And only day and a night were left her
TO digest its meaning and prepare for her
death. All appeals for mercy to her were
Of no avail. wrote letter 10 the Presi-
dent urging him to remit her sentence, and
left il ~ Mr.. BIaiT's house the morning Of
the day of the execution. Anna Surratt
attempted to see Mrs. Patterson-to see the
President, in vain. IL was an awful thing
10 this girl that her mother was to be the
victim of such fate; and it was the more
terrible to her and her mother that the lat
ter was to have so short shrifl 1t seemed
to both these deyout Catholics that no soul
could so suddenly be shriVed clean and fit
for the sight of its Maker.
"Of Mrs. Surratts judges-well, you
have read the trial proceedings. But here
is one circumstance Of which you may not
have heard. Mrs. Surtatt, whose cell was
within hearing of the sound of conYersa-
ton in the room where the Judges met at
the arsenal, stated that one day she heard
the murmur of dispute, for and against
her, between some persons in that room :;
and she got the impression that Judge
Bingham's was the voice that pleaded in
her favor. Judge Bingham, you know,
has been accused Of having the blood Of
this woman on has hands. You will OBJ
tain some idea Of the manner of his deal
ing with witnesses during the trial from
Mr.. Clifford. l content myself with rt%
lating three incidents, the first two illus
trating the temper of the time when the
arrests of conspirators and others were
being made, and the last illustrating how
witnesses were sometimes bullied and
scared into making inexact statements:
"When AtZerott, Harold, OLaughlin.
Payne and Arnold we're taken on the gum
boat and ironed, the officer or officers in
charge found that they had, besides these,
a sixth man on their hands, though there
were only Eve Indictments. They guess
toned this sixth man who was in irons
like the other prisoners), but he could give
them no satisfaction. he had been ruth.
lessly seized, dragged upon the gunboat,
and disgracefully treated, and he did not
know what it was for. That was all. His
name, l believe, was Richter. He was an
elephant which the officials had not the
shadow of an authority to carry. Never
theless, ne had to remain a fortnight in
irons on the gunbOat and ten days in
prison before he was released. Because
they had him, they suspected, probably,
Al fir,r e. A k.air
having him. The wolves teeth were
sharp then; every army officer, and de-
tective, and jailor was hungry for a
prisoner.
$50 a man named John d. Reamer Wa:
arrested in Hagerstown, Md, just after the
assassination, for no better reason than
that somebody had heard him exclaim al
his store: Five read that reward of 500,
| 600 offered by Gail, of Alabama, TO any
| man who will kill Lincoln.' Reamer wa
in delicate health. Before he left Wash
iugton his captors suffered him to g
| twenty four hours without food. He haC
to beg for a bite One threw him an ca
of corn, as to 8 hog, with Damn you
that's good enough He was brought Il
Washington and thrown into prison. Will
he wasted there his son fell i'll at his hom
in HagerstoWn-his only son, who, it wa
at last announced to him, was dying
Reamer besOught with all his eloquenee Il
be permitted to 60 and sit beside the boy
dealh-bed. This was refused him. Ii
was Democrat, and was not allowed tn
slightest opportunity Of justification, no
the slightest mercy. News of his SON
death arrived and broke his heart. Tw
months of prison life, and that blo'
crushed him. He was released, reache,
his home, fingered three weary weeks. H