Evening star., 1937-02-07
RY JESSIE FAINT EVANS.

BY JESSIE FAINT EVANS.
Brown blood stains on a daintily-
fashioned cuff worn by Laura Keene,
the leading lady at Ford's Theater the
night Lincoln was aSsassinated, recall
in this, the natal month of the Great
Emancipator, incidents Of that fateful
night.
Instead of having that triumphant
entrance upon the stage which was
to have been the high light of her
professional career before a widely
proclaimed benefit audience which in
cluded President and Mrs. Lincoln.
Laura Keene ran from the stage to
the Presidents box at the call, will
some one bring the President water?"
Here she supported his unconscious
head, already dripping with martyrs
blood, against the cuff which still con-
tains his blood stains.
This cuff is today in the possession
of Mrs. S. Percy Thompson of 3247
r street, who is treasurer of the Gar
den Club Of Georgetown, and whose
home is diagonally across the street
from the Georgetown Branch Of the
Public Library.
Its destiny seemingly is linked with
Georgetown, for Laura Keene, its
owner, when she was not touring,
lived at 1855 Wisconsin avenue, then
the ancestral farm house of her hus-
band and manager. John Lutz of
Georgetown. That fateful night, when
Laura Keene stained this cuff quite
hopelessly in her vain effort to
stanch the life blood of Abraham
Lincoln, her two daughters by a for
mer husband anxiously awaited news
Of their mother within the walls of
the Georgetown Convent of the ViSi-
tation, where they were attending
school.
Gave Cuff to Merchant.
Instead of returning that night to
the Georgetown home of her husband
after the tragic circumstances of that
night at the theater, Miss Keene
repaired to the Metropolitan Hotel,
on the north side of Pennsylvania
avenue between Sixth and Seventh
streets northwest. Visited the next
day by M. j. Adler, q merchant Of
Georgetown doing business at 3148 M
street, who was the nephew of John
Lutz her husband, she at that time
gave the cuff into his possession.
As one of his most treasured pos
sessions, he passed it on to his daugh-
ter, Mary Adler Thompson, in one of
his business envelopes bearing this
notation, The cuff in this envelope
was given to me by Laura Keene,
who was the wife of my uncle, John
S. Lutz, the morning after Mr.. Lin
coin was shot. They called for water
in the box and she rushed up with
some water from her dressing room
off the stage and held his head and
these drops of blood or smears of
blood were from the wound in his
head She gave me this cuff the next
morning at the Metropolitan Hotel"
Both the building in which Adler
had his store and the house in which
he then lived, at 1889 Wisconsin ave-
nue-or High place, as it was more
frequently referred to-are still stand
ing. The house is a substantial red
brick one of fine lines with high
dormer windows, an interesting door,
way, a quantity scrolled porch deco
ration and long kitchen ell. all in
dicative of the gracious and plenteous
living which prevailed there when Adler
occupied it during and just after the
Civil War The last years of his life
he occupied 1925 P street, from
whence Mrs. Thompson went forth a
bride.
When I was visiting Mrs. Thomp-
son she had me sit in her fathers
favorite chair, where he seated him
self to give his family their first
glimpse Of the historic cuff which is
now in her possession.
Stitching Incredibly Fine.
It is of exquisitely fine linen with
incredibly fine feather stitching" to
indicate very narrow hem. Three
button holes of even, compact fashion,
ing, evidently buttoned over three
pearl buttons of fine quality. The
brown blood splotehes on the under
side of this cuff are larger and
deeper even than those on its outer,
in all probability indicating that
President Lincoln's life-blood stream
trickled underneath the cuff next to
Miss Keene's wrist as she supported
his head.
Laura Keene, who was born in Eng
land of family of great respecta-
bility and considerable culture, was
in her youth connected with the
world of art. As child she haunted
the great Turner's studio. where she
in all likelihood developed that
trained pictorial sense which all of
her life she emphasized in the
theatrical productions in which she
played and often managed most sue
cessfully. Famous in her native Eng
land and in Australia as Pauline in
the Lady of Lyons" she came to
America in 1852 and became manager
of the Varieties Theater in New
York and lessee of the Olympic, at
first called Laura Keene's Theater.
In 1857 John S. Lutz of Georgetown
became her second husband
It was after her marriage to this
son of John LutZ, the Revolutionary
patriot of Georgetown who for his
fidelity and incorruptible character
was chosen to guard the tent of the