Evening star., 1918-04-14

a -
iMMl today, who, living in WASH
uWil ington then. remember the
ANS tragedy Of April II. 1865.
Victorious and joyful in its garIands
of gold and green. yet stricken with
sorrow and in tears. April is mepor-
able month in the history of the Ameri-
can people.
Concord and Lexington, the first in
auguration Of George Washington, Lee
at Appomattox and the Spanish war
Of 1898. all April events. rise up as
great pictures Of the past. To them
will be added In the years to come
Americas decision to rescue the world
from Prussian, greed and barbarity.
Five days after Grant and the brave
commander of the Confederate forces
met at the farmhouse in Virginia and
there again. the sword offered and de-
clined. guaranteed the perpetuity OF
Seward. his Secretary Of State, mur-
derously attacked in his bed. That
night of blood has been described by
those who witnessed its scenes and felt
its griefs and calamities.
Soon, however. the last man living
then and seeing then will be no more
And SO the story of any one of them
has q present and personal value that
will be lost when told hereafter by
some one else.
So
Early in 1865 Joseph 4. Sterling, .
boy almost. came to Washington from
his homo In steuhenville. Ohio. and be-
came attached to the government serv-
ice. In that relation he still continues
Moreover, he is at his desk every day.
His experiences on the terrible night
of April IL had to do with Edwin M.
Stanton. the austere. autocratic and re-
markable man who was then Secretary
Of War.
1.-The scenes of that fatal night" Mr..
Sterling said to the writer. ARE still
very distinct in my memory. Gen.
Leo had surrendered and the Confed-
eracy had fallen. There was great joy.
In Washington.
Employees of the arsenal. celebrat-
ing the defeat Of the south. a thousand
or more of them, came booming
banners, fiags and music on their way
to the home Of Secretary Stanton, q
wide. three-story brick residence on X
street.
Stanton when he made his speech in
answer to the serenade He stood on
the low steps of the house, which was
built on the line Of the sidewalk. As
war, Mr.. Stanton spoke Of nationality.
of the sacredness of the untSh Of states
which the fathers of the republic had
given as a heritage to their children.
a note of gladness in his voice and
some degree of exultation in his man.
ner.
"From Stanton's the crowd swept
along. filing the street from gutter to
gutter, to the home Of Gen. A. B. Dyer.
chief Of ordnance. I did not go farther,
but went to the Falstah House. which
was opposite Ford's Theater. where I
boarded. Albert Daggett. then a clerk
sheriff of Brookiyn. N. =, was stand
ing at the door when I entered the
hotel. Soon I heard him shout: Boys,
there Is a fight in the theater.'
II ran across the street. Tho door
keeper of the theater had left his post,
and a number of us went In. Every
person was standing and many men
and women were on chairs All were
wildly excited and were looking to-
when asked woman In the last
row Of seats the cause of the eoommo-
tion, she said: Lincoln has been shot,
knife Jumped from the Presidents box
to the stage and ran away StruK-
gled forward through the crowded aisle
until was in. the center OF the the
ater, but could get no farther.
X X.
: "Just at that moment an of1cer Of
artillery in uniform left the box in
which Lincoln and his party had been
sitting. and. walking to the front Of
the stage, announced that the Presi-
dent was dead. It would be inpos-
isibls for me 70 describe the confusion
that susued. y. ~ ..