Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1884-11-21
ABRAHAM hlNC0LN.
The SEQ en Cap ard Military Cloak
Story a Fabrication.
zoe Howard ConicsNcs That lie
Evolved II from the Ny@tcr[.
ous Bepths His Journal.
iSiic Bmagsna:ion.

[Joe Howard in Philadelphia Press
| had Ncan delegated lay the paper ! repre-
sentcd b. accompany Mr. Li'uiu AMI Aii
family from Swm.nrli, Ill.,. to Washington,
and of cour-o did 20. I st1ol within a
yard of lin whoa, in Trenton, he made ire
memorable assertion that it Wl, time the
government pat is foot down firmly and
was with hn in Philadelphia when he was
comfortably hpu~,I in the Continental hotel,
whcr' the best people in the city vie | with
each other to do hin honor and pay him the
respect 50 honestly his due. And by tine
way, this is about as good time as any for
me uu explain tine Scotch can and military
cloak story, which long since pass Il into his
tory and can be found in all the cJclopediaS
Of the day.
There isn't word of truth in it, The in
tention was, after the reception and parade
in Philadelphia, Mr. Lincoln and hi, party
reviewing the torchlitht wide awakes ana
bands Of music and attended by thousands,
from his rooms on Chestnut sire It, to 20 by
the carly train to Harrisburg, whore. as in
big LAGOS. a rcccption wns to he given and
procession hal in his honor. and thence di-
rect to- Washington. This plan, however, was
thwnrtcd by information brought 20 the Con.
tincutal aud communicated | think first to
MI Kingsley and subsequently iutI1isted to
Mr. Lincoln, although the wisdom of that
step was then and has ever since been
doubted. The Information was to the etIect
that the train from Harrisburg was to hr
thrown from the track III the hope Of killing
the president elect, without regard to the
lives or safety Of his wife and children and a
largo number OF notables who were accom-
panving them Mrs. Kingsley and Lincoln and
gentlemen in charge Of the party, who were
Col Wood, subsequently superintendent of
bull lingS in Washington; Ward Lamon, sub
seQucutly marshal of the District of Column
bin and "a detective in the secret service by
the name of Burns, brother OF the Burns
who used to keep the Perrepont house in
Brooklyn kept the secret well II was an
snx,ous night with those people and with
Mr. Seward, Jr., who accompanie the de-
tecive from Washington and brought the
information to the parties interested. The
next morning the presidential group started,
and continuous ovation greeted Thorn all
the way to Harrisburg, where n worry credit
able turnout was made with spec Ii, band,
and fireworks accompaniment ! went to
my room in the hotel AT night, and was pre-
pnriny my dispatch to wira TO this city when
Detective Burns entered the room and
loch"d the door
looked M him in ama2ement. and H,kel
him Nhat he meant. He told me | couldn't
leave the room until the following morning
ASKED why, and to make II long story short.
in spite of my threats and representations #
seri. embarrassment to me personally and
pro.". sioualv, the conclusion was that was
not 10 leave until the following morning rs
it was for the public good, which h.. upon
my promise not to use. explained. saving
thu' MIR Lincoln Lad nlrc;dy let by n
special engine and car AID had gone back
over iI, track in time to catcl the rN eminr
tram from New York, while his family and
the r.-t Of the party would continue their
journey in accordance with the piearrana ell
programme He also informed me that
thr wires had been cut. and TINT communi-
cation with New York was n Uhv,iral
impo-~ihiltv, hut that never,h. les, his or
der wc,c that none of the uow~I ap'r mon
should leave their rooms tlat night. ~
One wrote n dispatch beginning rs follow:
"Aha'am Lincoln, preSi,jont-cle't of The
Ou'cl States, is safe in the city of Wash
ing.au,' AMI then proceeded to nlrra'e thn
circumstances, aS unfolded TO IN" by the dn-
tectivc. WHO, with considerable mystery said
that no one would recognise Nh Lincoln at
sight, and that the plans of the conspratorS
were fortunately fIilad.
a led myself what possibla Disguise could
Lincoln get in Harrisburg, ami, ms | wrote
on. ina siucd him i'm a Scotch cap, which
would he n! ont rs marked AMI opposite to his
high silk hat rs one could conceive and {;
military cloak, which borrowed, in my i'm
agua'iou, from the Shapalv shoulders Of Col
sumner who was travelling with the preSi-
dpnt-cloct My dispatch was sent very
early in the mo ming, and, by good
luck, reached The Times office Just AS
the day editor entered his room. His first