The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1897-04-04
50AN WILKES BOOTH
Henry HattersOn Discusses The Mad Actor
anu His Assassination Of Lincoln.
l0QIH WAS HONEST III HIS MOTIVE
BstE Wrongs were Imaginary Ent He
Believed They ENistct-.Fh Story
Tint Nooih is S,iil Alive Regarded
;:n q bsurG "A Tribute to the Cl,nr.
Fc'cr OF abraham, Ijucnn.
tsmlth Clayton in Atlanta Journal.)

tSmith Clayton in Atlanta JournalD
Talking with Mr. Henry Wattcrson
thepthcr day. put This question to him:
'Epu you think that in the coming
generations the descendants Of The men
who nov axecrate the memory Of Alb
rahnm Lincoln viii look upon John
Wilkes Booth as n Brutus?''
Never" said he, There was nothing
OF the Brntus about Booth. He was il
;itrollinS player. who became worked up
the Lord only knows why, and brooded
ever matters urtil in II moment Of des-
pera;ion he Killed Lincoln"
Booth" continued lle, was nothing
but a common assassin lie belongs 10
the class Of .assassins 10 which Iaavail-
lac. who killed Henry the IN, OF France
the man who killed tho Duke de Berri in
Paris and Guiteau, who killed Garfield
belonged"
You don't think, then that Booths
motive was patriotism, as he understood
it?''
oh. no, do not. I think that he was
incapable Of rising to that height He
was morbid. He may have thought
that the killing OF Lincoln would do The
South good. but doubt even if that
strongly influenced him AS Il matter
of fact the killing Of Lincoln benefited
nobody. nor any section. 1T was the
work Of man. incapable OF realizing
the enormity Of the crime which lie had
set out to commit"
Booth did not know what he was do
lnE then p
oh. don't say that !. TIe evidently
knew that he was killing man-knew
that that man was President Lincoln
what mean to say IS, that he had no
clear conception Of his tremendous act
no conception, whatever of what might
be the awful consequences OF that act :"
lie had weighed 1t, had lie not?"
We'll he had brooded over It in a
morbid way. His head was full Of the
idea OF killing Lincoln, but the condi-
tion or his brain on the subject was con-
fused, mixed"
How do YOU account for the way in
which he did 1.-THE dramatic feature %
AS nave said, Booth was n strOlIing
player. Fe had the dramatic instinct
1t was natural for him TO be snowy in
anything he did, after the manner Of
MS PROFESSION. This, 1 think, accounts
Tor the time and occasion selected for
the assassination, the circumstances
surrounding It,"
Didn't he Show bravcry?"
10, not bravery-but desperation. It
was not the COOL deliberate act of n
Grave man. 1t was the aot OF q man
made desperate by brooding over i'm
a.gined wrongs Lincoln had done moth
ing 10 deserve death ut Booths hands
nnt IN MS foolish desperation Booth i'm
iSlned that Lincoln was playing the
tyrant-but, rs n matter or fact, no
character In history was further from
tyranny th9n Lincoln. :.
lie was the friend Of the very sec
ZION, the South, which Booth fancinf1
mat ne represented when he killed him
nave been committed for the South.
ioOntn could not see thIS-op1 HE
ln!lN brought suffering on the peonIn
VINO would never have Endorsed such q
causeless killing"
Booth had nothing personal acainst
Lincoln ?" -, . "n''''S'1
Nothing that have ever heard"
was IT." "i'''t
He had no motive. lie simply in,-
aglned mat he had n motive. That Is
my view" %
Hls mind was not sound tlen?"
thlnk not. He was insane on the
subject OF killing Lincoln. r think thnt
nf inherited this mental inGrmi,y from
n.s ia.her, Juhius Brutus Booth. He
was not always at himself
IT is said that HE imagined nj inns
.hat lie was Richard the Thiru-hut 7
n,an?" $50 = ct''"s
No.hot exactly q. lunatic-.but IN
souhu IN n certain direction--hi:, mind
VAS suh9ect 10 alteration, which unbal
anccd it for the time. / thinl, fl,n+
John Wilkes Booth Inherited this men
tal pecuiarity from his futhcr-and ~ NJ
ms MIND was not altogether sound when
he killed Lincoln "''~''
if that be true, Booth was not 70
aponsible for his act"
Perhaps not--but nothing cnnI, !,
saved him. imagine, so wrought m w., :.
che public mind against hin. ,rhm,- u -, -
ne had not been captured, instead ri
KfIied, we don't know what would h,vn
been done with him. '''' :
me chances are that. like Gutca;,.
ne would have been hanged?"
i suppose So
inE-do your" 49, ''>
Why, no, ] have never had tho slfo,,,
est doubt that he was: killed. Dnetn,
May, VINO knew Booth from his hn,.i,nnl
up--kneW him intimatcly---eNam M
pooN most minuteiy after it was; Drou~h
10 10 washington. Ills conclusion was
This Is John Wilkes Rooth NC
fhat, III Itself. was enough 10 rnn
Elnce me ahd everybody else that Isuot,,
vas Killed. liut let me give Vol, an.
other strong and interesting reason r.,
thinking him dead -
I0hn SUrratt." he con timed a, cn,,,
Try boy. was sitting in n rcSta,lran, a.,
mot Rochester--w what's that other nlac.
up that Way?"
"Syracuse 81
Yes, Syracuse y. y. Iohn surra,t
was sitting there eating his hreaI,sas.t
Ffe picked up a paper ana there VA = :,
account OF the assassination OF Lincnln
This is no place for me rycIn;n,,