The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-12-24
LINCOLN,s ASSASSINATION.
Harry CattelI's Record OF the Official
Autopsy OF the President.
Washington Post.


One of the assistants to Chief Clerk Syl-
vester, OF the Metropolitan police depart
ment is Mr.. Harry u. Cattell, who has
charge of the property room In his
younger days Mr.. Cattell was embalm-
er, and at the time OF President Lincoln's
assassination he was in the employ OF
Brown Alexander, embalmers. who had
their establishment on Pennsylvania ave-
nue., near Eleventh street, northwest. On
Saturday morning, April, Is, a few hours
after the death of the President Mr.. Cat
tell was directed by his employers 10 go
10 the executive mansion and enbalm the
body. 1t was O'Clock in the morning when
he reached there with his instruments and
embalming fluid and proceeded to work.
1t is nearly thirty years ago since the
assassination which excited such profound
horror in all civilized portions OF the globe.
and while every reader knows how the
beloved chief executive met his death, COM
paratively few people Of this generation
his body or what course IL took. Mr. Cat
tell showed a Post reporter a verbatim copy
of the original autopsy report written by
an assistant TO Surgeon-gensral Barnes,
who made the autopsy. The following is
Yesterday Surge0n-general Barnes, as
sisted by Drs. Stone, the late Presidents
family physician, Curtis, Woodward. Crane.
Tant ana other prominent medical men,
made an autopsy in the presence OF Presi-
dent Johnson. General Augur. and General
Itucker. The external appearance OF the
face of the President presented deep
black stain around both eyes; The fatal
hind and i'm a line with and three inches
from the left ear The course OF the ball
was obliquely forward toward the right eye.
crossing the brain in an oblique manner and
lodging few inches behind that eye. In the
track Of the wound were found fragments
of bone. which had been driven forward by
the ball. which was embedded In the ante
rior lobe of the left hemisphere of the
brain The orbit plates Of both eyes were
the seat of communicated fracture and the
eyes were filed with extravasated blood
Inc serious injury of the orbit plates was
due TO the centre-coup, the result OF the
intense shock OF so large projectie fired
IDENTIFY Deringer, 'hand-cast. and from
which the neck had been clipped A shay
ing of lead had been removed from the ball
in its passage through the bones of the
wound. The first fragment OF bone was
found two and one-half inches within the
brain: the second and larger fragment
about four inches from the orifice OF the
wound. The ball lay still further in ad-
vance. The wound was about one-half inch
In diameter. The autopsy fully confirmed
the opinion OF the surgeons on the night OF
the assassination that the wound was NOR
tai
Yesterday morning Drs. Brown and AL
exander were sent for to embalm the body
of President Lincoln The embaiming pro-
cess was performed by Mr. Harry =. Cat
tell, an employee Of the aforementioned
firm, who also embalmed little Willie Lin
coin. son OF the President. in February 1862.
The body was embalmed in the late Pres
ident's own bedroom i'm the west wing OF
the executive mansion, fronting on Penn
sylvania avenue. Among those in attend
ance during the process were Vice President
Johnson, General Augur, General Rucker
and the attending physicians OF the la
mented deceased.
Immediately after the embalming the re-
mains were taken in charge by undertakers
Frank Sands and George W. Harvey, who
will be remembered by old residents as be-
ing undertakers with store on F street
northwest