Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1882-07-19
SELECT.
SEWARD'S ASSASSIN.

Lewis Payne, formerly United States
Attorney for Wyoming Territory, was
pat to considerable trouble in bis youth
because Booths fellow conspirator,
who attempted to kill Mr.. Seward, as
sumed his name. Mr.. Payne's inter-
est in the assassination has caused him
to search closely into the history of
that remarkable person, and the out
come of the search is an important
article in the current number of the
Weekly Times. From that article the
following paragraphs are taken:
I Powell is also one of the men who
made the celebrated calico raid in the
valley in the fall of 1864, when train
load of calico was captured and the
calico strewn all over the country for
miles around. In retaliation for shoot
ing one of Gen. Hunters men, SOL
dier named Anderson and several
others were captured and shot by the
Federals at Fort Royal. The speed
of Powell's mare was all that saved
his neck from being stretched on that
occasion. He escaped with seventeen
bullet holes through his clothing.
On one occasion the house in which
Powell was stopping was surrounded
bv the Federals, when Powell blacked
his face with lamp-black and walked
out of the house. One of the soldiers
remarked: dThat is d-n tall mig
GER" and let him pass on without mo-
lestation. / might give great many
incidents of this kind in the career and
adventures of Powell, but it is unneces-
sary. Such things occur in the lives
of many soldiers. Powell had the
reputation of having killed great
many men, and when any desperate
matter was to be undertaken he was
selected.
On one occasion Powell captured a
sutler near Orleans, with wagon load
of tin cups and ginger cakes. After
the war the sutler, whose name was
Tomasen, settled in Fauquier. In de-
scribing his experiences with Powell,
the old man used to say that he made
him drive through the woods and up
into Cobbler Mountain, where goat
could hardly climb. There they stayed
until the Union army moved away,
when Powell distributed his goods and
wares to the people in the neighbor-
hood. For some time afterwards every
body was munching ginger cakes and
every negro had a new tin cup, a
luxury they had not enjoyed 'afore
God, massa, since de wah !; The old
fellow never failed to wind up his mar
rative with 'Mein Got, mein Got he
was so clever init my goods, he gives
'em every tam bit away Powell's
favorite mare was blood bay. This
animal had habit of foaming at the
mouth and exposing the whites of her
eyes. Mounted on this mare this
strange man rode fast and far to share
wars fercest perils.' The people herr
in Virginia who remember Powell, a
he appeared twenty years ago, will
his pale face, slouch hat, and myste
-rious ways, mounted on that bay mare
dashing and splashing through tn
woods, across fields, over bitches ant
fences, by day, at night, and througl
all kinds of weather almost believe tina
he must have been a stray knight iron
the Black Forest.
There is one incident in the strang
and wayward life of Lewis Po vel
which l had almost forgotten to relate
9 An old man named Elias Corder bt
came violently insane in Upper Fat
Q quier. He is now in the asylum 6
9 Staunton, and will probably neve
). know how he got there. Powell ha
g been on raid, and returning late on
u u stormy night stopped at an old vacar
/; church near Cordor's house, sprea
3 down his blanket on the floor, and ws
y soon fast asleep All of sudden /
: was awakened by clash of thunde
80 and saw by the Pickering lightning a
Q: object standing near him. He got L