The Portland daily press., 1893-03-31
OLD-TIME STATESMEN.
"reminiscences Of President LincoIn's
Assassination.
Incidents of the Night of the Awful Crime
Tho Last Note Written by the Msr-
tyr Notwithstanding Scenes
ON the Streets.
Especial Washington letter.

Hon. William E. Spencer, the journal
clerk of the senate, ST frequently find
myself in a reminiscent mood. To-day
in looking over the senate observed
Senator Stewart, of Nevada, and Sena-
tor Sherman, of Ohio, in conversation
near the cloak-room door, and do not
know why, but my memory ran back
through the many intervening years,
and recalled the fact that those two
men alone of all the members of the
senate at tie time of the assassination
of Lincoln, in 1865, remain as members
of this distinguished body.
Senator Sherman took his seat in
the senate on the 23d day of March,
1851. He had been a member of the
house of representatives and was elected
to the senate to take the place of Sal
mon P. Chase, whose election had but
recently occurred, but who had accepted
the position of secretary Of the treasu-
ry by appointment of President Lin
coin. With the exception of the few
years when he was secretary of the
treasury during the administration of
President Hayes, Senator Sherman has
been continually a member of the up
per house. When the new state of
Nevada was admitted to the union,
Senator Stewart and Senator Nye were
the first representatives of that state
in the upper house, and they began
their terms of service on February 1,
1868. Senator Stewart remained in
the senate until March 4, 1875, and re-
appeared as a senator from the same
state March 4, 1887.
previous to the civil war the ses-
sions of the senate were held in the
room which is now occupied by the SUI
preme court. This is a very small room
compared with the present senate cham
Der; but it was large enough at that
time, because there were fewer states
and consequently fewer senators. jan
uary 4, 1859, the new senate chamber
and hall of the house were completed
and occupied. was in the treasury
department at the time and heard Of
the assassination about half an hour
after it occurred. I Immediately went
down to the theater and remember the
thrilling scenes of that night as if they
had occurred but yesterday. knew
many of the senators, as was appoint
ed to clerkship in the senate short
time afterward. I was well acquainted
with Vice President Andrew johnson,
who succeeded Mr.. Lincoln in the white
house. At that time suspicion of COM
plicity in the plot for the wholesale as
sassinarion of Mr.. lincoln and his cab
met pointed to every man whose loyalty
was suspected. Andrew johnson was
subjected to the unkindness and cruelty
of suspicion, too. Of course there was
absolutely no ground for that, and no
one who knew the man entertained the
idea for moment. He was one of the
ablest and most prominent men of his
time. His subsequent political career
became clouded, largely because of his
consciousness of his own good inten-
tions and his strong-willed determine
ton to have his own way in carrying
out policy which he believed to be
right.
There is another member of the SEN
ate to-day who was prominent in execu-
tive life at that time, but was not a
member of either house of congress I
refer to Senator William E. Chandler,
of New Hampshire, who was at that
time assistant secretary of the treasury.
He has not been in continuous public
life ever since, but has been in Wash
ington great deal of the time. There
are other members of the senate to-day
who were at that time members of the
house of representatives. They are
Senators Morrill,, of Vermont; Dawes,
Of Massachusetts,; Allison and Wilson,
of Iowa; Sawyer, of Wisconsin, and
Voorhees,, of Indiana.
sI think that Congressman O'Neill, of
who is now called the
Father of the House, is the only mem
Der of the house of representatives to-
day who was a member of that body
upon the occasion of the assassination.
One by one they have all been retired
from public service or have responded
to the final summons of the grim de-
stroyer."
While Mr.. Spencer was narrating
these facts and turning to official docu-
ments to give me names Of prominent
men whom he had known at the time,
Senator Stewart entered the Office of
the secretary of the senate, and in re-
sponse to my inquiry he said:
'I remember that night very well. I
came from New York with Judge Niles
Searles, of California, a gentleman of
on the Pacific coast, who
had formerly been my partner. Presi-
dent Lincoln held receptions at seven
o'clock in the evening and at ten o'clock
in the morning Judge Searles desired
to meet the president, and | accompa-
MED him to the white house, where |
we arrived at about half-past seven |
o'clock. / wrote the name of my |
friend upon my own card and sent it up |
to the president. The card was re- |
turned to me, and upon the back of ii
Mr.. Lincoln had written: Going to the |
theater with my wife. Come to-mor-
row. A. Lincoln That is the last |
note Abraham Lincoln ever wrote, and
would give great deal to have it to- |
day. AS we walked slowly down.
stairs I tore the card into little bits |
in a thoughtless manner, never |