Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-06-17
[Special Telegram to the Globe. |

BALTIMORE June 16.-The Gazette to-day
prints an interview with John 7. Ford, who
was manager of Fords theatre, Washington,
when President Lincoln was assassinated.
This is the first statement Ford has made since
that terrible occasion. He says J. Wilkes
Booth was trained from his earliest infancy to
consider almost deifed the assassin Brutus,
just as Shakespeare immortalizes him. His
father was named Junius Brutus and his
brother is now bearer of that same name.
The great actor frequently appeared in the
play of Julius Caesar, and not later than 1864
three of his sons acted three leading characters
of the play to an audience that applauded the
sentiments of Brutus to the echo. Now trace
the assassination of Lincoln. On the morning
of April 18th, 1865, Booth, who had conspired
for six months previous
TO ABDUcr PRESIDENT LINCOLN,
and convey him prisoner to the South. was
the last guest at breakfast at the National
hotel in Washington. The surrender at Apo
mattox had ended all chance for him to carry
out his original conspiracy. Leaving the hotel
he stopped at Surratt's house and found Mrs.
Surratt going to her farm. He requested her
to get some article belonging to him that he
had left at a country tavern and left her, go
ing back to the theatre. This was about noon.
There he heard that Lincoln and Grant were to
visit the theatre that night, Ford says be-
lieve, and all reliable written oral testimony
confirm that belief, that then and there the
TERRIBLE THOUGHT OF ASSASSINATION
first suggested itself. It came like this: IF
failed to serve the South in my conspiracy to
abduct, can be her Brutus.'' This thought
fastened on his brain and led him to go from
the theater toward the Kirkwood house to have
a conference with some of his old conspirators.
John Surratt was away, OLaughlin was in
Baltimore, and Arnold was in a suffers store at
Fortress Monroe. They knew the abduction
conspiracy had been abandoned, but Payne,
Altered and Harold were in Washington. The
latter got together and conspired to kill the
President, Grant, and some of the cabinet.
Between that time and evening Booth wrote
lengthy account of his intentions,
ExoUs1NG HIS INTENDED CRIME
by the Roman precedent. This article was
given to an actor to carry to the National In
teztigencer. This actor, frightenedlat the brisk
he ran, opened the package, read the statement
and burned it. If that package had been pre-
served it would have revealed the declaration
that until noon that day its writer had not
premeditated murder, but feeling deeply the
humiliation of the South, to the people of
which he bore all the
LOVE THAT BRUTUs EVER FELT FOR ROME,
he would strike down that night the leading
men of the victorious hosts who were shouting
the pean Of triumph. Booth referred in this
statement to the soldier when dying, saying it
would explain all. 1t was, says Ford,
burnt in the CRATE of chamber of boarding
house, and Catholic priest, now living in
Washington, had the fact confessed to him soon
afterwards. had the occurrence stated to me
with the added information Of the confession
by the priest, who was the custodian Of the
package. This fully sustains my theory that
John Wilkes Booth had not contemplated the
assassination of President Lincoln when he
met Mrs. Surratt at midday, and ne never met
her again.