Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1889-03-28
. CRAWLING MICHIGAN, THURSDAY MARCH %, 1885,

starting forward he caught at an olu table rs H
about 10 tip IL over upon the flames. He quick
ly saw the futility of this, and dropping one
crutch he limped with the other toward the door;
At ABOUT the center OF the barn he stopped ana l
fractured in his jump TO the stage after the
assassination OF the President was forgotten,
and Booth stood before his solitary watcher
erect and defiant His hat was of, and his dark
hair pushed back from his high, white forehead
He held his carbine In one hand and a revolver
I'm the other In his belt was another pistol ana
n bowie knife. His lips were compressed, his
features fierce, and his full, dark eyes were roll
ing and glittering with excitement. Ihe names
swept up to the roof, rolled across and to the
floor below. He was u picture OF Apollo in q
frame of fire. He stood under an arch OF flame,
leaping rolling and kissing, as in mockery OF
His only hope now was to make dash for the
doors and run the gauntlet OF the Gordon
Of soldiers Suddenly ne droppea rhne MS resni ann
sprang forward. Then sounded the pistol
OF Boston Corbett, the man President Lin
coin had pardoned when once sentenced 10
be shot for remissn in guard duty, and Booth
fell forward ON his face. Lieut.. Baker sprang
upon him and caught the nerveless arms. III
was unnecessary. The shot had paralyzed him
below the wound, and all save the fertile brain
and fiuttering heart and lungs were already dead
The assassin was carried from the barn and laid
under apple tree out of reach OF the flames.
Presently he opened his eyes and appeared TO
realize his condition. In painful whisper he
aTell mother. Tell mother"
Then he became unconscious again. The heat
/ of the burning barn grew intolerabe under the
! tree and he was removed to the piazza cloth
! wet with brandy and water was placed between
his lips and at length he revived again. His
| eyes looked with dumb appeal into the faces OF
/ those about me. 20, kill me; Kill me quick, ne
| whispered bitterly.
Another lapse into unconsciousness and 1t
seemed impossible that he could revive again
but Just before sunrise there was u last bright
ening OF the stunned brain. As he revived he put
| out his tongue, and Lieut.. Baker, thinking ne
wanted to know If there was blood in his mouth,
1 n Na
Tell mother / die for my country" Booth
gasped to the officer. II did what thought was
best
Baker lifted one Of the nerveless hands. 1t
| fell back by his side again. useless, useless, :
! murmured Booth
These were the last words.
Col. Conger had been sent on to Washington
twenty minutes before the death OF Booth,
and, after hurried 6reeakfssst' Lieut.;
I was wrapped in blanket that had been used as
a saddle cloth, and after the blanket had been
firmly sewed together was placed in riekety
market wagon. An old negro, supposed To be
thoroughly familiar with the country acted as
driver. Baker directed the cavalrymen to follow
him as soon as they had breakfasted, and with a
| single corporal by his side departed for Belle
Plain Landing, thirty miles away.
The story of that days ride has never appeared
in print. Mile after mile was passed over, but
the cavalry did not rejoin them, although the
negro driver assured him that they were on the
shortest road to the landing. The officer finally
became alarmed for the safety of his command
and sent the corporal back with orders TO the
squad TO push forward with the utmost haste.
The corporal did not return, nor did the cavalry
men appear. One officer was alone with the
negro in hostile country and With the body OF
the murderer of the hated Lincoln in his posses
sion.
The road grew forbidding. The day be-
came hot and sultry. Baker began 10 meet
struggling groups of Confederate soldiers, who
glanced carelessly at the burden in the rickety
wagon and said: What hev you there dead
Yank?"
There has been no other day in Lieut.. Bakers
10 I'm
cal and mental strength. Exhausted by thirty
six hours of hard riding in the saddle, he was
required to be constantly ON the alert in antici
patton of an attack from every ravine. Hungry
and thirsty, he dared not stop for food or drink
Now the kingbolt broke and the front end OF the
wagon-box dropped down. The corpse slipped
forward and blood from the wound tricklej
down upon the axle and reach and smenred the
hands Of the old negro rs he bent under the
, wagon to repair the damage. The old man crleo
astop your noise" sternly commanded the Of
fcer; "it will wash off,"
? ait will nobber nebber wash off " walled the
negro, in horror. 1T is the blood of mur
derer."
Up hills almost without end threading mum
berless ravines, the two plodded along, finally
reaching the Potomac in the evening, only x
find themselves three-fourths of mile aboy,
the landing The negro had taken the old road
I while Lieut.. Bakers command had returned OF
the newer and better road constructed by tn
I Government during the war. When the cor
Q poral reached his company the officer IN com
a inand, jealous that a mere detective had beer
) placed in authority above him. refused to follow
. Baker, and said, shortly:
@ IF he wants to go off ON the wrong road n
v must take tho consequences.
: Baker and tho negro made the best OF tn
situation by carrying booths , Dody ;3,oIs 70 In
o after which the former rode two miles around
o bluff and found his command and gunboat a
n the Government landing. He pulled bac
], with two men to the old landing, secured tn
body, and when it was swung ON board the gun
e boat he dropped exhausted on the deck and la
there until tho boat had steamed half way Z
n Washington.
9 The next day he gave the Secretary 9
n War detailed account OF the TRAGEDY
d Stanton had Booths carbine, and IL wa
found that the cartridge out of position an
n could not be exploded. Its appearance shove
d that n number OF efforts had been made To dis
J. | charge the weapon and II is probable that Boot
n snapped it repeatedly at Baker as the latte
@ stood before the old barn with the candle in hi
hand.
4 The administration was In a quandary regard
ing the disposal of the assassins body whic
10 was still on board the gunboat. The second da
70 after Lieut.. Bakers return Gen. Baker came
l. him, and said stanton wants me to dispo4
4 of Booths body He doesn't care where II
II put, only 30 it will not be found until Gabri'
" blows his trumpet. want you to 90 with me.
The two started for the navy yard, stopping 0
4 the way for moments conversation with IN
IS officer in charge OF the OLD penitenuary t tne me
~ cousins dropped into rowboat the body wa
~ ~ taken on board and n heavy ball and chain wa
q conspicuously placed in the boat 1t was the
~ late in the afternoon. Crowds OF people lined I'll
~ river and followed the rowboat as far down th
: stream as the marshes would permit.
y The story sprang from lip TO lip that the bod
y, was to be weighted down with ball and chat
10 and sunk in midstream. For several days ther
= after searching parties dragged the stream, an
ya the next issue of Frank Leslies newspaper col
y y tanned singularly accurate full-page pictur
. showing the Bakers in the act Of showing IL
. body into the river.
= Two miles below the city the boat halted In
little cove near the grounds whore condemne
= warehouses; were slaughtered, and remained unit
V darkness had settled down. Then il was pullt
slowly back TO the old penitentiary. door
:. the waters edge was opened and the corpse ca
nv ried to criminal cell where the stone slab thi
~ covered the floor had been removed and a graz
=, dug i'm the earth beneath. Into that black hOl
ho with only the United States blanket as win
!. ing sheet, was lowered the body of J. Wilk'
~ Booth, and the stone slab replaced above II.
~ ~ Col. Conger afterward insisted that the con
N y mand OF the capturing party was turned over
-. him in Virginia, and claimed the lions share
~ ~ the reward. All the foundation there was Il
W this claim was that Conger informed Bak
y, during the search that he knew the lay of u
ll land we'll and the latter replied: well, II yC
~ ~ are familiar with the country, go ahead Ho'
" over, Conger induced corporal of the guard
- testify that Baker had really turned over tl
W. W. command, and by shrewd engineering eventual
'u secured 500 as the commander of the part
-, Lieut. Baker receiving only 5000