Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-07-02
THE SURRATT CASE.
A List Of The Military Commits.
sion and Their Politics.
An Interview With Mrs. Surratts
Counsel.
Pittsburg Post.
THE suRRATT COURT MARTIAL.

Pittshurg Post
THE SURRATT COURT MARTIAL.
In answer to correspondent we
would state that the court martial, OF
rather military commission that tried
Mrs. Surratt in 1865, was composed OF
the following officers ofthe army
Ra Major General d. Hunter, Major
General L. Wallace, Brevet Major
General A. A. Kautz, Brigadier Gen.
eral Howe, Brigadier General Foster,
Brevet General j. A. Eken, Brigadiei
General T. M. Harris, Brevet Colonel
Z. II. Sampkins, Lieutenant Colonel
D. X. Clendenin, Brigadier General
j. Holt, Judge Advocate and Re.
corder, General John +. Hartranft
was Provost Marshal General.
These officers are all republicans
and some of them held importa #
civil Offices at the hands of the repub-
lican party. The court was organized
to convict by Stanton. The statement
that General Garfield was member
Of the court is not correct. lie did his
work for the malignants in the Fitz
John Porter trial.
THE COUNSEL OF MRS. sURRATT.
The Sunday Capital at Washington
publishes an interesting interview
with Judge John Clampette, Of Chi
cago, the leading counsel for Mrs. Sur
ratt, of which the following is an ex-
tract:
Hancock was from the first to tn,
last" said Judge Clampette, "thC
ideal of an officer and a gentleman
He really was powerless to do much
either in one way or the other. lie
was not a member of the court; he
was merely an official, and an oficiaI
whose duty was to command and order
the execution of the sentence.
Mrs. Surrat was treated most care
lessly as respects convenience, and in
most brutal manner by those in
whose charge she was. 1t may not
have been done purposely, but Ger.
tainly they were coarsely Indifferent
towards her while she was still an un.
convicted woman. | found her, when
trstadmitted tospeak to her as counsel
in wretched room with an apology
for a bed in the shape of some straw
strewn on the floor and not a sign Of
furniture within the four walls. She
was lying sick on the miserable pallet
and | had to kneel down to speak tC
her. She was in the charge, as were
the other prisoners, of Colonel Hart
ranft. On a motion | made before
the court, it expressed its Ignorance
of the brutal treatment she lived
under, and at once ordered decent ac.
commodNtions for her.
Hancock, " continued Judge Clam
petite, "had no more to do with these
details than you had. When Judg,
Wylie, with Roman majesty of char
acter, issued, almost at the peril O
| his life, the writ of habeas corpus il
the case Of Mrs. Surratt, Presiden
johnson and Secretary Stanton de
| Gided to suspend the writ and che ex
ecutioR followed. We had hopes t,
the last OF a reprieye and q pardon fol
Mrs. Surratt, and / waited at tn
arsenal hoping against hope. Gen
eral Hancock rode down and approach
| ing, | asked, Are there any hopesi
He shook his head slowly an,
mourntullV. and with n sort of gosn
ing catch in his speech, said ~ al
not no, there is not" H then Wake,
of o bit, He had dismounted an,
gave some orders to his orderlies an,
walked about for moment 0
two. Returning he said to me
II have been in many battle, an
have seen death, and mixed with it i
disaster and victory. have been 4
a living hell of FIRE and grapeshot
and, by God, I'd sooner be there tel
thousand times over than to give tn