The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1881-08-05

zerodt was to stab Johnson at the Kirk
wood House, and Payne to stab Seward,
and these two were to cross the upper
bridge of the eastern branch, which
would compel them to make q detoar OF
three or four miles, but they would join
him either at Surrattsville or at Mudd's,
and then the four were to take to the
water, cross into King Georges county,
Va, and by 10 o'clock next morning the
Rappahannock river would be between
them and the Potomac. The fortifica-
tons Of Washington would be forty or
fifty miles behind them TO the northeast,
the army of Grant was away down below
the Appomattox river, and there was an
open and friendly country to go through
to escape to Southwestern Virginia and
Tennessee. This was probably Booths
programme.
But Atzerodt was n coward and va
grant, and he got drunk, talked the
murder, rode his horse around town,
and, instead of joining Booth, he ran
away up into Western Maryland among
the native Dutch of his connections, and
was caught there some time afterward.
Harold waited for Booth somewhere
about Capitol hill, and they crossed the
Eastern branch bridge almost within
sight of each other. Payne undertook
to find the upper bridge, bat in the
night. the roads cut up and leading in
every direction by reason OF the military
encampments, he could not find the lane
leading to the bridge, and finally, seeing
that he could not catch Booth, he re-
turned to Mrs. Surratt's house three
nights after the murder.
Mr.. Lincoln had been killed Friday,
and on Monday night, about midnight,
Payne repaired back to this doomed
womans. 1t is probable that on Satur-
day, Sunday and Monday he had been
trying to make connections with Booth,
but the whole country being up, and
Lower Maryland filled with soldiery,
and he, perhaps, unacquainted with the
country, he knew not what to do with
himself, and came back to Mrs. Surratt's
to see If he could make connection with
John Surratt, whom he knew TO be on
the way back from Canada. Mrs. Sur
raft, though very well acquainted with
him, denied with uplifted hands ever
having seen him, and this was another
thread in the rope to hang her to the
gallows.
Booth crossed the lower, or navy yard,
bridge before l o'clock Friday night.
He and Harold rode with such speed
over the high hills thata little after mid
night they were at Surrattsville. When
Harold went into the tavern he aroused
the drunken landlord, Lloyd, who had
been drunk at Upper Marlborough court
all day. Harold said: "Lloyd, for
Gods sake make haste and get them
things" "Mrs. Surratt had told me-"
said the landlord, "to give the carbines,
whisky and field-glasses to whoever
called for them. John Surratt deposited
the carbnes there a considerable time
before. A rope and a monkey-wrench
had also been deposited, but they were
not asked for, further showing that the
murder was a different scheme from THAT
of the capture. There was now nobody
to bind, and no vehicle to screw up.
Booth and Harold stood there five
minutes on the green before the tavern,
and took drink from the whisky bot
tie, and Booth boastingly cried out that
they had assassinated the President and
Seward. In the early morning Booth
rode to Mudd's house. Mudd says that
at o'clock he went to the window ana
saw Booth sitting on horse and talk
alive young man holding that horse and
another horse from which he had dis
mounted. 1t is well known, in his vain
performance in jumping from the pri-
vate box, Booth had fractured his leg.
This leads to the doubt as to whether
Booth had intended originally to stop at
Mudd's house at all. He might have
designed passing TO the west OF Mudd's
house, which was out of his plain course
to the Potomac, but when he broke his
leg it was inevitable that he must stop
at Mudd's to have it set. Mudd set the
limb and made crutch for Booth, and
tried to get carriage for the party,
but the situation was very grave. Some
time during the Saturday, probably late
in the afternoon, Booth and Harold rode
their horses in Zekiah's swamp, and rode
out again to the road and started for the
Potomac. DIR. Mudd told of Mr.. Lin
coins murder before the news reached
Bryanstown.
The accident to Booths leg was seri-
Gus thing. 1t is local belief in Lower
Maryland that Mr.. Cox, rich man of
rebel utilization. allowed Booth and Har-
old to be fed by a white man in the
woods on his farm, where they had some
kind of bush protection.
There was no certain account of the
two men from that Saturday, April Is,
until the following Monday week, when
Booth and Harold appeared in Virginia
1t is understood that Booths illness and
4" 80 helpless cowardice kept them
risouers on the Maryland side, and
hey made repeated efforts to cross the
broad river, but in the darkness, or rain,
or wind, were blown to adjacent parts of
the Maryland shore. Others think they
went directly to Virginia. They lodged
there at one DIR. Stuart's on Monday
one week after the murder, on Matthias
point. and Stuart would not invite them
in. but sent them food to the barn.
Booth wrote him an indignant letter,
copying it out of his diary where he
composed it,
Tue two men now struck across the
country, as if they were going to Lynch
burg. The line of their short progress,
if produced, would pass along the rail
rood opd t,,rp,,iLa of South vyaotarp Vir