The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-05-16
SAW LINCOLN MURDERED.
IT. ". LEWIS WAS AT FORD'S TIE
4TRE ON THE FATAL NIGHT

Shot Pired ana snw Lincoin's Head Drop
Tho Great Commotion That, FoIiowcd--SiEo
OF the Audicncc-The First shot In the War.
A few days ago TMR Sun printed n letter from
a Brooklyn correspondent asking II The SUN
had over heard of or from anybody who at.
tended the theatre in Washington on the night
that Abraham Lincoln was shot besides those
who became more or less we'll known by their
connection with the incidents of that night"
The correspondent added:
There must have bcon a thousand or more
people there, and many have died since then, but
lido not recall having seen in tho papers in
twenty years any reference to any person, living
or dead, that he or she was in the audience at
Ford's Theatre the night that Lincoln was shot."
THE Sun has received several letters from
persons who wero in Ford's Theatre on the
night of Lincoln's assassination, or know of
Others who were there. Ono OF these letters
said that Henry w. Lewis of "a Wolcott street,
Brooklyn. witnessed the murder of the Prcsi.
dent. A SUN reporter went to see Mr.. LOWS
one day last week. Mr.. Lewis is now 81 years
old and somewhat feeble in health, but hns a
vigorous memory. He recalls with lively in
terost the occurrences in Ford's Theatre on the
night of April IL, 1865. In his younger days
Mr.. Lewis used TO be a seaman. by the time
no was 20 years old he had been around
the world. IIc saw the gold rush to
California and that TO Australia. which country
he visited in 1850. In the latter part OF the
civil war Mr.. Lewis was employed Oh the Gov.
eminent transport Constitution, which piled be-
tween Washington and the Army of the Poto-
mac in Virginia.
On April Il tho Constitution reached Wash
ington from City Point, where she had dcliv-
cred q cargo of bread for the army. Sho
brought back part of the Ninth Corps to Wash.
ington. When she reached town tho members
OF the crew read that Lincoln and Grant would
attend Ford's Theatre that night.
81 had often seen Lincoln" said Mr.. Lewis,
but had never seen Grant, and l proposed to
several OF my mates TO go to the theatre to see
Grant and tho play, Our American Cousin
We arrived at the theatre Just before the per-
formancc was to begin. There were no seats to
be had and we passed in on admission prices and
stood up behind the seats in the upper gallery.
We watched the incidents Of the night eagerly
and in the third act OF the play heard the pistol
shot that Booth fred.
INSTANTLY there was much confusion I
think the excitement in the gallery was as
great ms that in tho other parts of the theatre.
u great CONJUNCTION and n great craninR of noCks.
remember distinctly seeing LincoIn's head
drop to his arm. He was unconscious. of course.
and no one had yet reached him. L also saw
one knee. We could tell that he was say.
himself off the stage. The noise in
the place was that Of a roar by this
anne snd we t coSiS 81, see inc me- F mofe. X Y sta@ on DER began tsS,.
such as l suppose occurs at n time OF fire In Il
theatre; To this day do, not know how I
reached the street. have absolutely no recol-
lection about 1t, and never had. Ny mates also
did not remember how they got out. All We
knew was that we were swept out of the place
and found the street throngcd. II was n sad
night, and we were late in reaching our quarters.
what few Journeys l have made since | have
never met a man and never heard of one except
niSht. Instead Of Tf there m roI being II I,ooo pn tons
present, as The SUNS correspondent suggested.
there must have been = 800. There was stand
Ing room only, and II is strange that so few OF
those present have been heard from. For years
the incidents of that night can't to me with q
could shake 1t Off. | have often talked freely OF
that night with my acquaintances, and | sup
did the same. and certainly it is peculiar that
so little has been hoard of the various individ-
uals who composed the audience on that mem
ornble night
Mr.. Lewis has another remlniscencc that his
friends have always liked to hear him tell. He
saw the first shot fired at the outbreak OF the
civil war. 1t was in Charleston harbor on April
y. 1861, but he says !! was not al Fort Sumter.
Nashville. Tho Union fleet, consisting OF tho
| cahontas. and Harriet Lane, had lcft New York
before the Nashville, but the Nashville passed
them and arrived OF the bar Of Charleston har-
line running boats bctwecn Charleston and New
York regulars, and had carried arms and
ammunition to the Southerncrs,~ resembled the
Harriet Lane in her size and rig. and when she
approached The bar the Sontherncrs thought she
that the Harriet Lane was coming down. The
famous battery on Morris Island threw a shot at
opened the hostilities In Charleston harbor. Tho
shot fell half a mile from the Nashville. 1t was
ter Of a mile II of The vessel. Car ", Mnrr" |" WHO Who
COMMANDED the Nashville, gave orders at once
have been certain destruction.
As the Nashville was leaving tho bar the Har-
riet Lane hove in sight. Capt. Murray didn't
want the eu captain of the !, Lane no t to esaminG his
named. Hood. to shake her up" The Captain
blank NIX shot c as = a warning SrnI %" to stop top The = Sas sif'h
went on. The Harriet Lane swung around
0E Ss1sn h sn F Hdo 'lfsd s 4 s" d fH Capt. Murray to
his chief engineer. and forthwith the Nashville
The Captain of the Harriet Lane simply
ships lay OF tho bar and watched not only the
tire Commandment Of thirty.six hours: On sun
day, April u, the day of the evacuation of Fort
sMh NJ. fe;w shs N Win csp Men M 'nfH ,He ana nsaF0o oFbSenFsa.
rowed over to tho fort. The only souvenir OF
the visit that MT. Lewis has retained Is a grare,
Fort Sumter from one of tho rebel batteries In
the harbor.
Among the letters which THE Sun has re-
ceived from those who were present at tho
assassination OF Lincoln is one from William
Elmondorf OF IiOSOken, who says:
II see by losl Sundays SUN that F. Il. B. of
Brooklyn and Silas Owen OF Coloes. y. Y, wish
TO know 4 there Is any. one who was present at
Ford's Theatre in Washington on the night
when Lincoln was shot. / was there. and have
the original programme. My, present. address is
a native OF Kingston, ". Y, and l believe that
some OF the letters | wrote Immediately after the
assassination of Lincoln are now in the old Sen.
ate building In, Kingston, together with some
others placed there by my brother, who now re-
sides at Catskill."