Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1903-10-20

JOHN SHARP. In1S61 he enlisted
at Ogdensburg in the Sixtieth New
York Cavalry, in which he served al
together four years and a half. After
the close Of the civil war a number
Of regiments were stationed in and
about the city of Washington as a
guard. 1t was while with this regi-
ment in this capacity that President
Lincoln was shot by Booth. Files OF
soldiers from the different Federal
regiments stationed in Washington
were sent out in different directions to
apprehend the murderer. Among the
party detailed from the Sixticth New
York Cavalry was Mr.. Sharp. The
party was composed of 1e nlea. COM
manded by Capt Baker.
Speaking of the event Mr Sharp
said that Booth was traced by the
soldiers to a place in Maryland called
Fort Tobacco, near the Potomac river,
and finally located in a barn. An
attempt was made to enter but the
door was fastened. 1t was soon learn
ed that some other person or persons
were with the fugitive, and these prov
ed to be Harold and Payne. Capt.
Baker called to the men in the barn
that they would be given few min
utes In which to surrender and if they
did not do so within that time The
barn would be fired.
"We'll never surrender" said the
voice of Booth.
Then the soldiers were ordered to
surround the barn and fire it. AS this
order was given the door was opened
and Harold and Payne stepped out,
the door being Immediately fastened
behind them by Booth. They declared
that they had nothing to do with 1t
(meaning the murder of the president),
but were at once taken into custody.
After the surrender of Harold and
Payne, Capt Baker called to Booth
that the best thing that he could do
would be to come out and surrender,
but the latter replied, IN die first
Baker then gave the order CLOSE up
and we'll fire this barn" The barn
was set on fire and the flames grad
ually penetrated the inside, and yet
Booth seemed determined to perish
by fire rather than be taken by his
enemies. The interior of the barn be-
came lit up and revealed the figure
of Booth standing in the middle of the
floor. facing the barn door, his gun
cooked and ready to be raised to his
shoulder,
Major Corbett, who was one of the
party. seems to have been standing at
the side of the barn, and as the flames
lit uo the interior he saw. through a
crack, Booth standing in the attitude
described. He at once raised his rifle
and fired through the aperture and
Booth fell. The door was then forced
in and the assassin was found lying
on the floor, apparently dead. The
bullet had entered his head just below
the ear. Capt Baker asked Booth if
he had anything to say.
"Tell my mother" said he, chat l
died for my country"
He was taken out of the barn by
four men whose names were Berbeau,
Frank Longlee, Peter Reid and Jack
SLAYER, all of the village of Malone,
n. Y, and conveyed to the nearest
steamboat landing on the Potomac.
The body (for Booth expired shortly
after uttering the words above, says
Mr.. Sharp was put on board the trans,
port New York and taken to Washing
ton Arrived there it was carried to
the arsenal. The next day Mr.. Sharp
says that he obtained a permit from
the orderly of The day to go to the
arsenal and view the remains of Booth.
But on his arrival there he learned
from some of the riotous and surgng
mob that surrounded the place that
the body of the murderer had disap-
peared, no one knew where. He did
learn, though, that a stone coffin had
been brought TO the arsenal and the
corpse placed into it.
Mr.. Sharp verifes the generally ac-
cepted theory that the body of Mr..
Lincoln's slayer was placed in this
stone coffin and sunk in the Potomac