Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1881-03-22
tant, where he found shuffling crowd
DAZED AND PANIC. STRICKEN.

tant,) where he found a ashuffling crowd
DAZED AND PANIC. STRICKEN,
Moving around the outside of the build
ing. They acted as If they knew not
whittier they were going. nor what they
were doing but were indulging in such
calculations as, "Oh! what a terrible
thing! Who could have done it? II
we only had the assassin we would make
short work of him."
| No one among them knew where Mr..
Lincoln was then, and none could an
swer intelligently the inquiries made,
but the hasty glance of a practiced eye
took in the situation, as he elbo wed his
way through the stupified look ers on,
and small bunch of men were discov
cred to be carrying the inanimate and
apparently lifeless body of Mr. Lincoln
up the steps of small house, opposite
the theatre, now occupied by Mr.. Louis
Schade. editor of the Washington Sen
tinel. He was carried into the rear
room, at the end of the hall, which had
large double bed in it. This apart
ment was evidently used for sleeping
purposes, and had little other furniture
in it than a few chairs, and small ta-
BILE and washstand of a cheap kind The
floor was covered with q kind of grass
maj ting, and everything betok kened a
simplicity and absence of expenditure
which the limited means possessed by
the occupant of the house rendered ne
| cessary,
The tidings of this shocking tragedy
soon spread abroad. People at first could
not credit it, and among the quickly
| gathering crowds of alarmed and dunn
founded citizens, officials, officers of the
army and navy, who silently flock ed to
the hotels, though the hour was late and
fast nearing midnight when the dread
fu1 murder became known, it was re-
garded first as hoax or cruel rOOr- back,
and every one shuddered to think that
| 1T could prove, upon investigation. as it
unfortunately did, to have taken the
form of
A TERRIFYING REALITY. IS
People rushed to and fro, from one
crowd to another, to test the truth of the
| rumOr and sickening apprehension
came to the timerous as it was c0Irobor-
| ated. Each one instinctively and IRE
sistably asked himself the question: Is
this the whole of it? What was the
purpose? Who could have the heart to
kill the humble, dear, harmless, tender
souled, quaint-looking and loveable Mr.
Lincoln? What fool had insanely done
| the deed? 1t was regarded as such q
height of insanity and hardihood that
no human could reach it, for he must
have known hundred, aye u thousand,
hands would have been raised instantly
to strike him down. No one could be-
lieve for moment that any one SO lost
to the respect and Difference due to the
President of the United States could be
found to perform such an unnecessary
and mad act. AS the time wore on these
hasty conjectures were frozen into the
awful reality that Mr.. Lincoln had been
| shot by the bullet of an assassin and
| that his life blood was fast flowing out,
and he was passing beyond the verge of
life into the closing confines of eternity.
Let us return to the cham Der of death.
Mr.. Lincoln was laid gently on the bed,
after having been partially disrobed.-
DR.. Charles A. Leale was holding and
examining his head, from the side of
which, near the left ear, blood was ooz-
ing with some parts of the cerebral mat
ter mixed with it, which trickled over
the pillow and counterpane. Life seem
ed extinct and no breathing was at first
apparent. The expression of Lincoln's
face was, however. more that of one in
q comat0se than dead state and with
out the slightest expression of pain. The
physician in loud tones, and perempto-
rily, after scrutiniZing Mr.. Lincoln
closely, as he held his head slightly rais-
ed in his hand, said, run and get me
some brandy" The Provost Marshal
dashed from the room and over the way
to bar room opposite, where he procur
ed large glass of brandy, with which
he quickly returned and assisted DIR.
Leale to pour some of the liquor down
Mr.. Lincoln's throat. After few mo-
ment's the Presidents chest surged, and
with spasmodic effort he drew long
breath, and continued thereafter in
rapid but short stertOrous respirations
Proceeding to place guards at the door
to keep the crowd back, the Provost
Marshal observed q gentleman standing
in the hall, bleeding profusely from
wound in the arm, and manlfestlng
some signs of faintness as he slowly
moved towards the hall door, This
proved to be Col. Rathbone, who had &C
companied Mr. Lincoln to the theatre
that night and sat in the box with him
and the rest of the Presidential party
He had come over when Mr.. Lincoln
was carried to the humble little back
room where he then laid. He was suf
fering from
STAB WOUND IN THE RIGHT ARM,
inflicted by the same hand which fired
the fatal shot at Mr.. Lincoln. It was
received while he was in the act of seiz
ing hold of Wilkes Booth as ne sprang
from the theatre box to the stage to
make his escape when he had inflicted
the deadly injury. The Provost Mar
shall exchanged few words with Col.
Rathbone, who did not speak of his own
wound in the great and overshadowing
presence of the more serious danger to
Mr.. Lin coin; but he was observed sub
denly to grow pale and faint, then stag
gered little, when the Provost Marshal
remarked that he, too, was injured, but
he merely responded in reply. lit is only
mere trifle" It being evident that he
was growing weak from loss of blood
the Provost Marshal led him down The
front stoop of the house and assisted in
placing him In carriage, which was
rapidly driven to his residence some
friends accompanying him and ad-
ministering restOratives to cope with
the effects of the profuse bleeding.
Through the hurrying and agitated
crowds of people now in the streets
when Mr.. Lincoln was found to be as
well cared for as possible, the Provost
Marshal drove rapidly to the houses of
Messrs. Seward and Stanton, the Secre-
taries of State and War. who were re-
ported also 10 have been assassinated. =
At the first place an excited and angry
crowd of loyal citizens were found and
the information obtained that Mr..
Seward was then (though just recover
ing from injuries received in carriage
accident) bleeding and almost lileless
from the blows of an assassin's knife
His son, too, in the attempt to save the
father, had been struck down and both
were lying insensible in an upper bed
chamber. A man wearing COnfeder-
ate uniform was met Immediately op-
posite the house, and being questioned,
said he was paroled prisoner. His
gray jacket was instantly torn from him
and thrown into the park and he order :
ed on his way. In the agitated condi-
tion of the crowd it is likely that in q
moment of blind fury which then pre-
vailed on all sides, had he not quick ly
Obeyed the Provost Marshal's orders, he