The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1899-10-13
Lincoll'S Inst Official Act was to
Save His Life.

Inc last omclal act OF Abraham Lin
coin was to sign Il paper to let man
hour later Lincoln was himself diving:
the man whose life he saved lived nearly
thirty-fve years longer He was George
=: Vaughn. who died the other day in
Maryvillc. Mo.
Before the war Vaughn. with his wife
ana children. lived in Canton. Mo. He
was friend of Martin E. Green. il
brother Of t'nited States Senator James
:. Green. both strong pro-<lavery men,
1T the opening of the war Martin F..
Green recruited Il regiment and r.
ceived coloneIs commission from the
on1rderatt government. George
Vaughn enlisted under Green's command
and fought through the war
After period Of fighting Green and
Vaughn crossed into Mississippi from
Tennessee. camping at Tupelo Miss Not
| having heard from his family Green
was anxious to hear from his old home.
s." he delegated Naug hn to go on the
mission Of delivering letters to his wife
Vaughn had almost completed his
| trip. having reached La Grange. six
miles south Of Canton when he was
captured by Il squad of federal troops
They searched his person. and. finding
letters and papers concealed about him.
| he shot. John Il. Henderson, senator
from Missouri. finally succeeding in get
| ting an order from the President for a
| retral. but the verdict remained as
hitherto. Again Henderson appealed to
Lincoln. who granted third trial. with
the same result
Henderson was not di>concerted and
again went to Lincoln. 1t was on the
afternoon of April II. 1S'5-a melan-
choly date-that the senator called at the
white house. He called the attention of
Lincoln to the fact that the war was
practically closed, and said: MIR. Lin
coin. this pardon should be granted IN
the interest of peace and conciliation.'
Mr.. Lincoln replied: Senator. l agree
with you. Go to Stanton and tell him
this man must he released"
Henderson went to the office of the
secretary of war. Stanton became VIC
lcntly angry. and Swore that he would
permit no such procedure.
Vaughn had but two days to live, and
Henderson fastened to make one more
stand. After supper he went to the
white house. The President was in his
office. dressed t" so to Ford'S theater
when the senator entered and told Of the
meeting he had had with Stanton.
Lincoln turned to his desk and wrote
Il few lines on an official sheet of paper.
As he handed it to Senator Henderson
he remarked: Il think that will have
precedence over Stanton.
1t was an order for an unconditional
release and pardon-the last official pa
per ever signed by Abraham Lincoln. for
an hour later he was assassinated in
Ford's theater by John Wilkes Booth
New York Journal
She was Waiting for the Wrong Lad.
Speaking of the smoking car, when the
train on one of the suburban roads was
waiting for an influx of commuters be-
fore starting from the city station the
other afternoon. i determlned-faced.
maStcrful sort of woman took seat near
the door in the smoker. The trainman
saw her mistake. but when he attempted
to set her right he was told to attend to
his own affairs just before time for the
train to start youth marched in who
held between his lips the longest and fat
test of cigars. Contentment was written
on his every feature. AS he passed the
woman and she caught sight of the gray
suit and blue-banded straw hat she dart
cd forward and seized him by the arm.
"'There; l thought you weren't going to
smoke! she said. He turned around.
looking scared and bewildered, but so did
she, too when she saw his face. She left
the car in humble silence and he put the
cigar away. The scare had been too
great: he couldn't enjoy the smoke.-New
York Sun.