Daily camera., 1899-04-19

to the arsenal to have charge OF the
prison. In this way Capt Rath came
to have n part In the execution He
10 modest and rather shuns publicity,
but the other day he told some OF his
Impressions gained In the performance
OF his duty. 1t will be remembered
that four Of the conspirators were
hanged, Booth himself having been
shot and killed by the soldiers in their
pursuit. The four were: Harold Payne.
Auerot and Mrs. Surratt Arnold,
Mudd and Mclaughlin were sentenced
to lie Imprisonment and spangler to
siH years at the Dry Tortugas. Re-
earding the last named, Capt Rath
said.
"Spangler was employed at the thea
ter before Lincoln was shot, being the
house carpenter. He was Booths lac
key. and although he had evidently
been used by the conspirator. yet II is
my arm belief that he was entirely
innocent Of any intentional part in the
crime. 1t was arranged that he should
he at the rear door OF the theater on
the night Of the assassination to let
Booth out. and yet I know from his
action and conversation afterward. as
we'll a. from the others that he did
not know what he was doing II for.
OF course the whole city was under
martial law and proceedings were not
the same As they would have been II
the civil authorities had been in sway
I remember the day OF the execution
Spansler was pretty nervous. He told
me afterward how he had felt. He
did not know that the military law re-
quired the reading Of the sentence OF
death to the accused, and 20 when he
ssrot and Mrs. Surratt being taken out
he said to himself, That u the nrst
batch. Am I in the second,' And
ne listened to the sounds from the
prison yard. the moving about and the
commotion. then the deathly stiffness
and finally the horrible lurching of the
prisoners to death. Spangler told me
that he lived a year In that one hour
and long year at that, for every min
ute he felt that the door OF his cell
might swing open and the guards ap-
pear to accompany him out to the
scafiold. II was when took him out
of the prison to be sent to the Dry Tor
hiEas that he looked up at the gallows
and blencheA terribly at the thought
OF what had gone through his mind.
and then he told me all about It The
most acute agony could scarcely be
worse than that dreadful waiting.
waiting with Just the half certainty
that death would be his lot before
many minutes were gone. He was the
only one Of tho lot that was not guilty
TIE others never denied their guilt.
disputing sometimes little questions Of
dates and places. But their whole
bearing and the conversation when
they came together In the prison yard
counrmed their guilt The execution OF
the four was delayed considerably by
tAs tardinsss Of Gen. Hancock. score
tary Of the war department II was
10 have taken place At : O'Clock in tho
afternoon, but we had orders not to
proceed without the general Two
o'clock came and went. then ::tb. and
still Gen. Hancock Ad not appear
Finally he came. painting . little, and
seeming to me to be = little excited.
HQ went with me into the prison and
aid: Go ahead
Her. too--all four Of tAsD. gen
sralf' asked.
eyes. all four Of then
sAnA % ~ wsnt ahsaA. The reason
I asked that question aaA get hat
onGWe wao ~ tAne ~ Aas. .>--