The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1903-06-09
SAW EDWIN BOOTH
IDENTIFY BROTHER
Body Buried in Greenmount
Cemetery, Baltimore.
Mr.. ROSES RECOLLECTIONS
One of the Few Men Now Living Who
Knew Assassin of Lin
coin.
Mr.. ROSES REC0LLECTl0NS

hose, one or the few men now living
who knew John Wilkes Booth. the as
sassin of President Lincoln, has taker
issue with Basil Moxley, who declares
that the body buried in Greenmount
Cemetery, Baltimore, was not that of
the murderer. Mr.. Rose is welI-known
stage manager. He is a director of the
Actors Society of America, and among
his friends is considered conservative.
He is positive that there was no mis-
take.
At the time Booths body was brought
to Baltimore and turned over TO the
Booth family Mr.. Rose was a member of
John T. Ford's stock company at the
Holiday Street Theater He was going
to rehearsal on the morning of the day
in question when he was accosted by
w E. Burton, a feIlow-actor What
followed Mr.. Rose told a reporter yes
terday.
Burton grasped me by the arm and
whispered to me to follow him. he
said. He ran across the street oppo-
site the stage door of the theater and
climbed a fence around an undertaking
shop. went after him and also climbed
the fence. AS I dropped down in the
Inside of the inclcsure I saw about
twenty-five persons, all men, grouped
about the shop door.
among the persons I recognized Ed
win Booth and Junius Brutus Booth,
John T. Ford. Thomas A. Hall, stage
manager of the theater in which I was
playing. and several others There were
L..
regular army.
mo one seemed to notice US and we
mixed up among the crowd After a
time, in which little was said above
whisper, some one opened the undertak-
ing shop door from within and the people
began quietly to file inside Burton and
knew that the body of John Booth
they called him by his first instead of
his middle name IN those days-was
within, and we managed to get inside
the door. The curtains had been drawn.
the shutters closed, and the only light
Was furnished by two gas jets, one at
each end of long. bare room.
Edwin Booths Test.
''In the center of the room, on two
sawhorses, was a coffin. 1t had an old.
grayish appearance, as though it had
been long in damp or moldy place.
There was however, no mold on the
wood 1t was closed tight and I could
see that the screws in tie lid had not
been removed for a considerable time.
Edwin Booth moved up to the head
OF the coffin, with Mr.. Ford and the un-
dertaker. Junius Brutus Booth stood a
little RI cfd
part in the Identification When the
shutting of feet had ceased Edwin Booth
spoke and said:
If this is the body of my brother
John / can identify it by gold-plugged
stooth on The right side OF the jaw next
the eye tooth
e ''The undertaken and his assistant
then removed the screws in the lid and
raised the cover. Inside was the body
CT man who had been a long time
dead. The undertaken, Mr. Ford and
Edwin Booth then looked at the skull
and found the tooth. II was pointed out
to US all
In looking at the body we saw that
the upper part was clad in a blush
gray shirt, and that on one foot was
riding boot and on the other a slipper.
Under the head was rolled q faded army
blanket Both Burton and myself knew
John Booth, but Burton knew him bet
ter than I. He had been about with him
considerably and had often been skating
with him in the winter.
Suddenly Burton spoke I'D and said
that he recognized the boot, and that
q hole made for the screw Of skate
NCsliH no IL,
WIS examined and the hole was found
Color of the Hair.
Considerable has been said regarding
The color OF the hair. 1t has been claim
ca, believe, that it was not the sans
color as Booths. 1t would have oeen
Impossible for any one to have told the
exact color. The LOCKS were damp and
matted and there was no distinct color
TO II at all It might have been one OF
dozen hues. While we were looking
st il the undertaken cut most of II on
and 1t fell into paper held by Mr.
Ford. The latter retained several locks
ard had them made into an ornament re-
sembling bunch OF flowers This was
still IN the Ford family a few years ago.
There was absolutely no doubt n
the minds OF any of US that a complete
Identification had been made and 1 am
as sure now as I was then that il was
the body Of John Wilkes Booth that we
looked upon. There can be no question
of it,
Some time later Mr.. Rose got an en-
eagement 70 play Horatio in Edwin
Booths company. On the second or
third night OF the engagement he was
standing II the wings with Booth and,
turning 10 the tragedian. asked him If
he remembered him.
why. no." replied Booth ~ don't
remember that l do Where did we
meet?"
Very indisereetly, told him." said
Mr.. Rose. in relating the incident.
Booths face changed instantly Then
he said:
All. yes. indeed. that was very sad.
Rose He paused a moment and then
continued: DO you know believe | ann