Year: 1867

The Memphis (Tenn. Avalanche has
alengthy article in which it argues the prob
ability Of J. Wilkes Booth being still in the
land Of the living. The ingenuity Of tho
epistle renders it worthy perusal. The
Avalanche correspondent says:


"The statement which appears in your
paper Of Sunday last, in regard to the point
as to whether J.. Wilkes Booth still lives,
calls to mind other publications that have
heretofore appeared in print on the same
subject. ALLOW mo to call your attention to
these, and also to some circumstances that
would tend to support the idea Of Booths
death being fraud pcrpetrsted on the pub
lie. Early in the spring Of 1865 letter was
received from one Of the West India Islands,
by correspondent Of New York paper,
stating that J. Wilkes Booth had been seen
on the Island Of Cuba, a short time previous
to the writing Of the letter. This letter was
noticed by some, if not all the Memphis pa
pers. Not long after this publication q
statement appeared in some Of the papcrsoi
this country, to the effect that Booth had
been seen in Europe, in one Of the Italian
States.


Some time last summer man was arrest
cd in Kentucky on q charge Of horse-steal-
ing, and lodged in Jail. Ifmy memory serves
me right, he gave his name as King. Tic
wrote to Jefferson C. Davis Of the U. 5.
army, stating that he desired to make con-
fession to him Of importance to the country.
Gen. Davis, accompanied by another officer
of the army Ia general went to the prison,
and the newspapers stated at the time that
they occupied nearly an entire day, taking
down in writing the confession Of the man.
The newspapers also stated that the sub
stance of the confession was that Booth was
not the assassin Of Lincoln, but that the man
King committed the crime; thataftershoot-
ing Lincoln he leaped upon the stage Of the
theatre and passed out at the back door
where Booth was with the horses


The two rode rapidly to the residence Of
Mr. Seward. King dis,nounted and went
in, and attempted to kill Seward. lie then
returned to Booth and the two madetheis es-
cape through Maryland on horseback, and
thence to Canada, and soon after they went
to Cuba, where he separated from Booth in
the spring of 1866 and came to Kentucky.
He called the attention Of the two generals
to the fact that no proof had ever been
made identifying Booth with the killing,
except the testimony of Laura Keen, an ac-
trcss, who, he stated was personal enemy
of Booth She stated she recognized Booth
as the man who jun ped upon the stage with
the drawn dagger. King stated it was not
Booth, but him. He also said that Mrs
Surratt knew nothing Of the conspiracy, and
he gave information to the said official
where certain papers could be found that
would throw light upon the subject. All
this has appeared in the newspapers hereto
fore, and may be taken for what it is worth.
Now, as one who is somewhat in the habit
of looking closely into =. and the circum-
stances surrounding complicated cases, l
propose to call your attention to certain
facts that ha7ean important bearing upon
the whole question as to the probability OF
Booth not having been the man who was
shot in the barn when harold wes arrested.
The history Of the matter, as given to the
public at the time, that Harold was arrest
cd and Boston Corbett had shot Booth ,
they put the dead body in wagon, and pro,
cceded with it to Washington city. the news
Of their success having reached Washington
before theai Baker the Chief Detective
of the Secretary Of War, Mr.. Stanton, went
to meet the party who had killed Booth and
captured Harold. Upon meeting them,
Baker and Co, bett took possessiod Of the
reputed dead body Of Booth, and as they say
buried it in some secret place, that is known
to no person living except Baker and Corbet'
and they both TOOK solemn oath over the
grave they would never reveal tho buria
place. A large reward had been offered BY
the government for the apprehension oI
Booth, aud this being the case, does it moi
seem most natural that If the man who wa
killed in the barn was Booth, that Bake'
and Corbett would have carried the body tc
Washington city, where the body, if that o.
Booth could have been identified by thous
ands who knew him, and thus shown them
selves entitled to receive the reward?


| Where is the testimony showing any proc
Of the statement Of Baker and Corbett tina
the body buried was that ofBooth? 1t wa
not even asserted that Harold confessed
that it was Booth He stated that he wa
with Booth ut the back door Of the theatre
but does not say that it was Booth who wa
killed in tho barn.


The paper stated that after ten. j. c
Davis received the confession Of the maj
King, he forwarded it to the Secretary o
War. Since that time the public has learn
ed nothing of the matter, and the question
is, what has become Of King, oad Gthe pa
pers which he referred Gen. Davis to hav'
been found, what light do they throw on tn
subjcctp That matter is now supposed to b