Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-09-20

States. shall no longer occupy the chair of the
Senate. and have thought that formal COM
munication to that effect. through Your secre-
tary. might enable you the more promptly to
proceed to the choice of a presiding officer
MILLARD FILLMORE.
Mr.. FILLMORE ANNOUNCES To CONGRESS- THE
PRESIDENra DEATH, AND REPEATS his LAST
WORDS
wAsurSdqks, July 10. 1850.
FeEo,c-citzeas Of G,e Senate and Of dse House Of
Representatives
have to perform the melancholy duty Of an
nouncing to You that it has pleased Almighty
God to remove from this life Zachary Taylor, late
President of the United States. He deceased
last evening at the hour of half-past 10 o clock.
in the midst Of his family. and surrounded by
affectionate friends. calmly and in the full pos
session of all his faculties Among his last words
were these, which he uttered with emphatic dis
tnctness - have always done my duty: am
ready To die: my only regret is for the friends
leave behind me-"
Having announced to you feow-citizens. this
most affecting bereavement and assuring you
that IL mas penetrated no heart with deeper grief
! IMAM mlne it remains for me TO say that I pro-
! pose this day at IL O'Clock i'm the hall of the
house OF Representatives, in presence of both
Houses of Congress. to take the oath prescribed
Dy the constitution to enable me to enter on the
execution OF the office which this event has de-
| vowed upon me. WILLARD FILLMORE.
|
| TO THE OBsEQrIEs OF HIS PREDECESSOR.
| WASHINGTON. July 10. 1850.
FeLlo,c-cifsens of Gte Senate and Of De House Of
| Representatives.:
great man has fallen among us and whole
/ country is called to an occasion of unexpected,
deep, and general mourning 1 recommend to
the two Houses of Congress to adopt suci,
measures as in their discretion may seem proper,
| Aprfprm Wi tiaSt lao f,1na ola
sequles of Zachary TAYLOR. late President of the
United States, and thereby to signify the great
and affectioBate regard OF the American people
! for the memory of one whose life has been de-
voted to the public ser7ice-whose career i'm
arms has not been surpassed i'm usefulness or
| D'llllancy-who has been recently raised by
| the unsolicited voice of the people To the high
est civil authority i'm the government. which he
| administered with so much honor and advantage
| To his country, and by whose sudden death so
many hopes of future usefulness have been
! blighted forever
To you. Senators and Representatives Of a
nation in tears. cansay nothing which can al
| leviate the sorrow with which You are oppressed.
1 appeal to You TO aid me, under the trying cir
cumstances which surround ne. in the discharge
! OF the duties from which. however much MAY
De oppressed by them dare not shrink; aud !
| rely upon Him who holds i'm His hands the desti-
MES of nations. to endow me with the requisite
| strength for the task. and to avert from our
country the evils apprehended from the heavy
| calamity which has befallen U.s.
! 1 Shall most readily concur i'm whatever
| measures the wisdom of the two Houses NAV
| suggest as Deftting this deeply melancholy occa-
| sion. WILLARD Fill NoRE
THE ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN
DETAILS OF HIS DEATH. AND THE SUCCESSION
! OF ANDREW JOHNSON To THE PRESIDENCY.
Though sixteen years have elapsed. the occur
| FENCES attending the assassination of President
! Lincoln and the succession of the Vice Presi-
! dent, Andrew johnson, to the presidency are
| still fresh in the memory. President Lincoln on
the night of April IA, 1865. attended a perform
| ance of Our American Cousin" at Ford's Thea
ter. on 10th street. He was assassinated there
at half-past 10 o'clock. while sitting in his pri-
waite box with Mrs. Lincoln, Miss Harris and
Major Rathburn. The assassin. who approached
from behind the President, after firing the fatal
SHOT leaped upon the stage, brandsling dag
ger. and escaped by a rear entrance
before the crowded audience realized that a
terrible crime had been committed. The
wounded President was borne 10 the house OF
Mr. Petersen, opposite the theater. where he
| lay unconscious until his death which occurred
| at twenty minutes past seven O'Clock on the fol
! lowing morning. No one who was i'm Washing
ton that night will ever FORGET the wild excite
ment that racked the reason of the strongest
men, murderOus assault made upon Secre-
| tary Seward at his residence on LAFAYETTE
| square. about the same hour, increased the pop
ular agitation.
PRESIDENT LINCOLN DIED
at % minutes past seven O'clock i'm the morning.
He closed his eyes as if falling asleep. There
We're no indications of pain, and it was not
known that he was dead until the gradually
decreasing respiration ceased altogether. Rev.
/ DR.. Gurley. of the New York Avenue Presby-
! terrain church. Immediately on its being ascer-
tanned that life was extinct. knelt at the bedside
and offered an impressive prayer which was
responded to by all present. Or. Gurley then
! proceeded to the front parlor of the house. where
/ the members of the Presidents family Were
assembled. and again offered prayer for the con-
| ISOLATION of the family Immediately after the
/ Presidents death a Cabinet meeting WAS called
/ by Secretary Stanton. and held in the room
| where the body lay. A little after nine o'clock
| in the morning, the SemainS having been placed
! in a temporary coffin. were borne TO the White
House, escorted by detachment of cavalry.
VICE PRESIDENT JOHNSON INAUGURATED.
At an early hour on the morning OF the 18th
Secretary Stanton sent communication TO Wee
| President Johnson notifying him of the death OF
| the Chief Magistrate. and requesting him to
state the place and hour at which his Inaugural
| ton as President should take place. Mr. John
son at once replied that it would be agreeable to
him to have the proceedings take place at his
rooms in the KirkwO0d House as soon as the ar
rangements could be perfected. The Kirkwood
| House then occupied the site where the Pension
Office now stands The EVENING STAR of April
Is. 1865, gives the following account of the brief
ceremony of Inauguration:
''Chef Justice Chase was informed of the
| fact, and repaired to the appointed place
i'm company with Secretary McCulloch. OF
| the Treasury department; Mr.. Attorney Gen.
eral Speed. F. =. Blair. ST.. Hon. Montgomery
Blair, Senators Foot. Of Vermont; Ramsey. Of
| Minnesota: Yates. of Illinois; Stewart. of Ne
vada; Hale of New Hampshire and Gen. Farms
| worth, of Illinois. At IL O'Clock. the oath of
office was administered 10y the Chief Justice of
the United States, in his usual solemn and i'm
pressive manner. Mr.. johnson received the
Kind expressions of the gentlemen 10y whom he
was surrounded. in manner which showed his
earnest sense of the great responsibilities SO
suddenly deyolyed upon him. and made a brief
speech. in which he said: The duties of the
Office are mine; will perform them; the con-
sequences are with God Gentlemen | shall
lean upon you: feel that shall need your sup
port. / am deeply impressed with the solem-
nifty of the occasion and the responsibility of the
duties of the Office am assuming"
THE FUNERAL OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN
took place from the White House on Thursday
April 29th. The body lay in state in the East
Room. where years before the bodies of Presi-
dents Harrison and Taylor had lain in state The
remains were escorted by an immense procession