The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1880-01-03

TWO GASHS.
Eex President Lineeln's assassin Raisss
Dress GesE.

San Francisco Chronicle. Ii
There reposes in The trunk OF
William Wishers, leader of the
California Theatre orchestra, an
sncieut swaIlow-tailed coat. faded
somewhat witt. time, fragmentary
in condition through the clipping
Of pieces from it as mcmentos, yet
wlthal a highly interesting gar
mcnt through historical associa-
ton. The coat has two long knife
c,.ts in It, one III the neck aud the
other near the hip, which werc re-
eeived in Ford's Theatre at Wash
ington, where the coat, with Mr..
Withers inside Of it, was present
on the night that President Abra-
ham Lincoln was assassinated.
The gashes were inflicted by the
assassin John Wilkes. Booth, q few |
moments after he had fired the |
shot that reverbcrated through |
/ the nation, and the story OF that
night, as told by Mr.. Withers to u
Chronicle reporter yesterday, is as
follows:
The play, as You will recollcct,
was Our American Cousin The
house was jammed from pit to
dome with throng whose admi-
ration and attention were divided
between the presidential box,
where sat MIR. and Mrs. Lincoln,
little Tad and Major Rathbone,
and the stage. where Harry Hawk
and Laura Keene personated the
leading roles. The first two acts
had proceeded without unusual in
tercst, President Lincoln appear
: ing to quietly enjoy the perform
ance, and finally tho curtain rose
, on the third act, and the dairy
, scene, where Trenchard was to
I propose to Marg Meredith. Dn-
{ ring the intcrlndc had gono be-
t hind to talk with Wright, the
: prompter. ! hrd composed q scns
: called Honor TO Our Soldiers IN
4 honor of the occasion, which had
\ not been sung at tho proper time
! and went 10 sec about II. Io ta'I
9 with him whore he stood, lad 4
4 order Spangler, The scene sliilicr
5 out Of The way. Ills position wal
C ut The gas boz. aud Il turned no
\ afscrward that his enforced reno
val spoiled one Of the cards in tll'
j programme, which was Tho turn
= Ing oli' OF the gas as soon Is ihl
I. shot was fired. had fnished NJ.
!, talk with Wrielst andIurned dow
: tho passage uIiielfea V.lt into u
!, stairway where Peanut Johu wa
:. holding B0oth's horse, and Whlcl
Z. also led 10 the door by which | &c
Is Is turned 20 my place IL the orshes
!. ira. The passage was dark an
nr very narrow, SO much 80 ~ ias
!. that two men could not pass sid
Z by side. ] had trayersed nearly [
the door whcn ! heard singl
= pistol shot. | stopped, startlc
and trying to think where thci
MT was a pistolired inthe America
Ii Cousin Then | heard a sirane
of murinur, and looking around | sa
er ilarry Hawk running rapidly 4
ad the steps that led TO his dressli
or. room. A second afterward ga
se a man running across The stag
no He had jumped from the box
tc, the stage on the other side OF m
his but his impetus was so great tn
ing he ran into the brick wall near Il
Iim and the entrance to the passaa
his putting out his hands to break t
vas force OF the collision. Then
the jumped for tho passage way, a
the saw his face, but scarcely rcce
uizcd Booth. His eyes seem
starting from Ills head, his bla
W. hair stood on end, aud his dal
'n' handsomoI Inre wore such d fel
cious expression that he did Il
y q seem like the same man. | y
= . completely paralyzed as he rusl
les into The passage and said, e
aoo out Of my way Icould not hs
'ne done SO even if had had my pr
'pe- cncc Of mind, and IN second
Dy was OH me, striking at me with
~ dagger he held in his right ha
IVY The blow struck mo glancing
''",' ~ tue hip, and made the cut you
o,N there. It turned me partly rou
"N and like flash be struck at
nus again, and knocked me headIt
use 10 the floor Of the passage in Fl
the Of him. Without losing a scce
tate he jumped over me, seized
t-,..1. aud a, ,sn,trho1 fho d0op nr1