Omaha daily bee., 1905-07-21

William s. withers OF Wakefield, who
led the orchestra of Ford's theater Wash
ington the night of April IA. 1866, when
President Lincoln was shot, is dead al his
home in that place at the age Of 10 wilkes
Booth stabbed him after leaping from the
presidents box to the stage and detective
arrested him. In the confusion Of the
moment many in the theater believed With
ers fired the shot that killed Lincoln Hun
dreds screamed XIII him Shoot him!"
and he was dragged out of the angry mob
to the stage Just in time to be saved from
being badly hurt
The old man retained wildly a recollec-
ton Of the incidents of that terrible April
night
wilkes Booth and had had drink to-
gether before the overture" said he, re-
Gently, In describing the event. "He was
an erratic, spasmodc sort Of chap, who did
queer things and would snap you up like
anything all Of a sudden. but I noticed that
night he seemed more than usually fldgety
and excitable
What's come over Booth tonight?' I
said to a member of the orchestra" Not
long afterward the shot was fired which
robbed the world Of the great emancipation
Accident bulletin No. Is, Just issued by
the Interstate Commerce commission, Civ
Ing an account of railroad accidents in the
united states during the months of Janu-
airy, February, and March, 1905, shows that
during that quarter there were twenty
eight passengers and 204 employees killed
and 1851 passengers and 2062 employees in
jured in train accidents. making in all ss2
persons killed and S1S injured in train
accidents. other accidents to passengers
and employees, not the result of collisions
or derailments, bring the total number OF
casualties up to 1896, 300 killed and IA ss7
injured. There was a decrease of forty.
two In the total number of persons killed as
compared with the quarter ending Decem-
Der 81, 1904.
The total number of collisions- and de-
railments was 3,1OS Q.7s7 collisions and l.
3A derailments), of which 2S4 collisions and
III derailments affected passenger trains
The damage to cars engines. and roadway
by these accidents amounted to 50, 44s, 2lS
There was an increase of twenty-seven in
the number of collisions and of 131 in the
number of derailments as compared with
the past preceding quarter
The total number of employees reported
Killed in coupling and uncoupllng cars dur
ing this quarter was sixty-two.
1t is said that the president has received
from day to day during the progress of the
investigation into the typesetting machine
scandal brief report OF the evidence ia
ken, and has been much pleased with the
thorough and lawyerlike way that the lob
has been done 1t Is suspected that there
are a number of species OF graft in ex-
istence in the department, and the COM
mittee will uncover some of them before IL
has got far in its work. 1t was reported
today that one of the officials of the de-
partment was interested as a partner in
large contract Connected with the beef in
spection service and that the committee
had been urged to look into It.
Another matter that is said to have
aroused some suspicion is the Juggling OF
appropriations in the weather bureau ser
vice whereby appropriations for weather
stations have been concentrated into one
set OF buildings In Virginia convenient TO
Washington, where some of the officials
of the department may have a convenient
berth up in the Blpe mountains during the
summer heat. 1t is stated on good au-
thority that congress has never appropri-
ated a dollar for this place and yet large
sums have been spent upon IT, the idea be-
ing to get the institution under fun head
way as a weather college before congress
should learn what was being done. The
Keep committee is expected to inquire into
this natter