The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1915-05-09
Flight and Capture of
Booth AS a Herald
Reader Heard of 1t

.
articles Of Mr.. Winfield VI. THOMPSON
( on Lincoln and Booth in The Washing
ton Herald; but l notice q few state
ments in Mr.. Thompson's article of
April ~. where ii appears to me he Is
! in error as to his facts Mr. Thomp-
son says Booth reached the Garrett
home before nightfan," which would
indicate that il was late in the even
ing. Rev. DIR. r. B. Garrett. late of
Austin. Tex. in published interview
ia Few. years ago, says: My father,
who was Richard Garrett. lived on a
! farm two and a half miles south OF
Port Royal. Va About 3 o'clock on
the afternoon OF April "a. 1865. Capt.
Jett. Ruggles and Booth came to our
farm gate" etc.
| Again MIR. Thompson says. That
! afternoon uhe afternoon of April ..
1861 Booth was sitting in the grow
ing twilight on CARROTS piazza. when
the pounding of hoofs on the road
caused him to start in alarm. Cavalry
was approaching" And further he
says that Booth hobbled from the
piazza and started to go behind the
house. Herold stood in the lane be-
fore the house and watched the cav
airy pass" DR.. Garrett. in his inter-
view says: IN the afternoon (of
April rs. 1859 Lieut. Ruggles drove
up with a companion. who proved to
be Herold. and delivered q message to
Booth. He Immediately sent upstairs
for his belt and pistols. and. after
| buckling them on, left and went into
the woods. The message brought by
the lieutenant was that the troops
were on his track and had crossed the
Rappahannock few miles below the
farm.
| Herold Not There.
The fact is that Herold was not there
at that time, and neither Booth or
Herold. or in fact, any Of the CARROTS
saw the United States Cavalry pass the
Garrett home. They could not have done
so. and they knew nothing Of the pur-
suit of the Federal troops. except what
cambridge and Ruggles. not Rusgles
and Herold. told them.
| Mr.. Thompson also says: Leaving
Booth at the Garrett home. Herold kept
on to another farm, five miles beyond.
where with Russles and cambridge he
secured a lodging. Jett kept on to Bowl
ing Green and put up at the Gouldman
House. The proprietor's daughter was
his sweetheart" etc.
| This is opposed to the statement of
Jett in his evidence given before the
military commission that tried the as
sassins of Lincoln. and even Jett. for
fear of harming the Gouldmaa family.
did not tell the whole truth. Jett. In his
| evidence, as reported by Ben Pittman.
page 81, says: "Herold and all of us
went on up the road latter leaving Ponk
Royal. then, to within a few miles
of Bowling Green. cambridge and Her
old went to Mrs. Clark's. and Rugsles
and myself to Bowling Green"
| 1t will be observed that Jett did not
give the name of the hotel at which he
| y,,rf in in
all probability, he had put UP at the
! Gouldman House. where his sweetheart.
Azora Gouldman. lived, and he did not
want to get her or her family into
| trouble with Uncle Sam over the assas-
| sination of Lincoln. Jett further testi-
fed that The next day april IS, 1865,
| Herold came to Bowling Green. spent the
| day. had dinner, and left in the evening
| mot afternoon, mark YOU, and that
was the last 1 saw of him, except the
night they were caught, when I went
down there" etc.
The Meeting In the Road.
Now. II Herold was at Bowling Green.
more than twelve miles from the Gar
rett home in the evening of April q. how
could he either have come to the Garrett
home with Rugsles in the afternoon of
April IS. as stated by DR.. Garrett. and
haw could Herold have been watching
the United States cavalry pass the Gar
rett home more than twelve miles from
Bowling Green? The fact is that Herald
was never at Bowling Green, as stated
by Jett. and he and Ruggles did not go
together to Bowling Green, as further
stated by Jett. Jett was met just out
side of Bowling Green. about 4 O'Clock,
| p. m. on the afternoon of April %. 1865.
by Jesse Gouldman. the brother OF Azora
Gouldman. Jetts sweetheart. and the son
OF Julia Gouldman. VINO kept the Gould
man House at Bowling Green accom-
panied by Herold on the same horse be-
hind a man by the name of Ruddy. and
as it turned out on their way to Bowling
| Green and to the Gouldman House: but
when goldman met Jett. he being HIM
self on horseback. Jett stopped his horse
in the road to talk with Gouldman.
whom Of course he we'll knew, and after
Ia liking for a minute two. Jett said
to Gouldman. Jesse, do You know who
that man on that horse behind Ruddy
is?" Gouldman told him he did not know
him. Then Jet said That is Herold
one of the assassins of Lincoln
Where is Booth inquired Gould
man."
We have left him at CARROTS I'd near
Port Royal" replied Jett.
We'll. where are you taking Herold?"
asked Gouldman.
Why replied Jett we are taking
him down to your mothers hotel to hide |
him
My God, lett Gouldman said, that |
will never do. Why. the whole coun-
try is swarming with Yankee cavalry, |
and that hotel will be the first house |
searched and II they find Herold there |
they will burn down the hotel and |
hang you and me and all of us" |
Then" replied Jett. what shall do |
with him.
why replied Gouldman. tell that |
man on that horse with Herold to turn |
round and take Herold back to where !
Booth is and you come along home /
with me. and separate yourself as soon !
as you can from these people"
Fact. from First Hand.
Jett so instructed the man on the |
horse with Ruddy, II that was his real |
name. and he turned around in the |
road and about the hour of o'clock J
p. m, on the afternoon Of April -,
1865, rode back toward CARROTS place. |
where Booth had been left the even
ing before. Jett weat home with Jesse t,
Gouldman, put up at the Gouldman
House. and was that very night about |
the hour of = o'clock m. dragged |
out of the same bed with Gouldman and !
taken away. So il will he seen that |
Herold could not have been al the Gar
rett home at the time specified by Mr.. |
Thompson. or the Rev DR.. Garrett
either. for that matter. Being twelve |