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nrffiigjK^eoA CONSTITUTION. VOLUME XIV TUESDAY MOKNINX3# JANUARY 17, 1882. PRICE 5 CENTS. BOOTH’S ROMANCE. SENTIMENTAL PRELIMINARIES TO THE GREAT TRAGEDY. A Thrilling Ch*pter from the I*lfo of Mr. Lincoln » A««u»tn-Tbc Bright Eye* of a Northern Girl Enthrellthe Young Tragedian- The State ment of Mr. Matthew., the Actor. Uvr'o IMIrlum. ••Oh! If itnvere not for that girl how clear the fu ture would be to act How cosily could I grasp the ambition closest to my heart! With what a fixed and resolute purpose, beyoud all resistance, could I do and dare anything to accomplish the release of the confederate prisoners! Thus reviving the drooping southern armies, and giving new heart to the waning cause! , _ „ . . "What are those lines In Borneo and Juliet de scribing lovcT I have played them an hundred times, but they are now covered with the mist of greater thoughts and I cannot see them. I am, 1 am in love!" •••O! any thing of nothing first create. Oh! heavy lightness! serious vanity! Mis-shapen chaos of well scorning forms!'” quoted an actor associate and friend into whose room John Wilkes Booth liad strode one morning In April, 1865. and thrown himself upon the bo<l, bis mind torn with conflict- lug emotions. How curiously events shape themselves! Ahra- liam Lincoln died not long afterward from a ballet bent by this desperate young man, in the very room and upon the very bed where Booth had lain, almost In delirium, when he gave vent to the above expression. It was provoked by a wordy contest he had that day had in relation to the release of the confederate prisoners, with his sweetheart's father, who was an eminent statesman. Booth had met the young girl that had captured his heart In the whirl of Washington society (into the best of which he wes admitted and courted), In that winter of 1865, when he had given up even his profession that he might concentrate all his cn crgics on the one great purposo for which he was lion.wlUing to sacrillce cverytlilog-cvcn life itself. He was boarding at the then greatest hostelery in Washington, the National hotel. Here he was thrown in constant intercourse with senators, law yers, military men of rank, and in fact the elite of Washington society. There, with her parents, boarded the young lady, whom, after meeting, Booth soon learned to love, and who-Joved hint truly to the end. Even after the assassination, it is said that she wrote to Edwin, saying— "I am your brother's betrothed and am ready to mnrry him at the foot of the scaffold.” About 10 o'clock in the morning of the day upon wbi -h the crime was committed Booth came down the slei>8 of the hotel to the breakfast rotjm, late as is an actor’s wont. Immaculately dressed in a full suit of dark clothes, with tall silk hat, 3;id gloves and cane, he walked forth the young Adonis of the stage, the man who could marvelously unfold the character of the murderous and cowardly Macbeth live out the cruelty and vindictiveness Richard; the wickedness of Julieu, or impersonate - with ideal perfection the higher character of Raphael. IIow ho prostituted all these great gifts, and by a distorted method of reasoning made him self a cowardly assassin, the startling story which follows clearly reveals. Within 12 hours after he thus seen upon the stairway of the hotel he com mitted the deed which covered his name with ignominy nud cost him his life. I . i„{ !»ic jftiRbe..tBetSiR..fI#»<Te M w.bo was there awaiting hi* coming. They walked into the breakfast room, and took their morning meal together. A few minutes chat in the parlor fol lowed. Those words were doubtless the last she ever spoke to him. He left the hotel and walkedjup to Mrs. Surratt’s, on II street, as is supposed, from the direction in which he wns seen approaching Ford’s theater on 10th street an hour or two later. He walked direct to the hnx office, got his mail, and sat down on -the steps of the theater to read it. One letter was very long, and the contents seemed to annoy him con siderably. He !lnally folded it however, andplacing it in bis pocket, said to Harry .Ford, brother of the manager: "What's on to-nightT” "Our American Cousin, and it'sgoing to be a big night The president, General Grant and General Lee are all to be present and occupy the same box.” “What!" exclaimed Booth Indignantly, as a dark shadow spread over his face, “have we gone hack to the days of Roman despotism, when prisoners of rank were paraded before the populace to humiliate them!” Harry explained that he was jesting about Lee, but that General Grant and Mr. Lincoln would certainly be present, as a note had been sent from the white house to engage the box. II. ' » When the Fatal Purpose was Conceived. This was the first intimation Booth had that the president expected to be at the theater that even ing. “And from this chance remark weean date the alteration in his plans," said John T. Ford, the veteran manager, to me when speaking recently of . Booth and his crime. "His every effort to capture the president, and thus secure the exchange of the confederate pris oners, man ior mai^ had been frustrated,” contin ued Mr. Ford, “the surrender of Lee, and the con sequent drawing to a close of the war, rendered him desperate, and he resolved to try to do by vio lence what he could not accomplish by his conspi racy to kidnap the president.” “It is easy to trace the steps leading up to assas sination by the light of his acts and utteninecs al most from the moment he left the theater that day until the crime was committed. He evidently changed his purpose from the moment he found the president was coming to the theater, and his plans os rapidly as he could." “I can best illustrate this,” said Sir. Ford, “by giving you an incident which occurred almost immediately after leaving the theater that mom lug At the comer of Tenth street and Pennsylva nia avenue, not more than two squares away from the theater. Booth met Johu F. Coyle, then edito: of the National Intelligencer, with whom he was upon intimate terms. As the two shook hands. Booth said: •'What would happen, Coyle, if someone were to put Lincoln and his cabinet out of the way at this crisis?” “We have no Brutuscs in these days, John," re plied Coyle laughingly. "That you are not sure of,” replied Booth, as he turned down the street. "The next scene finds him late in the evening giving his letter of justification for the murder to John Matthews, his actor friend, who was then playing at my theater. They were raised boys to gother in Baltimore, aud Matthews was the only man that ever saw Booth's plea of justification for. the crime. He immediately destroyed it, and then confessed the fact to Father Frank Boyle, of Wash ington, who absolved the act” “Booth's ability as au actor has often been ques tioned?” said I, s "It need not be.” replied Mr. Ford. "Had Johu Wilkes Booth lived he would have been to-day the greatest actor oi his time. He had a magnificent mind, great originality of thought, and he threw the vitality of perfect manhood into every char acter he impersonated. That 1in itself would have Insured his success, but he had other qualities that were attractive, if not necessary. He was the hand somest man I ever saw, not only in feature, hut in physique. Indeed, it was remarked of him on the very day of the assassination, “There goes the handsomest man in the United States.” “He was also an athlete, and prided himself upon that quality. In the scene fn Macbeth when he enters the cave of the witches Booth was notpontent with the usual approach, hut had a ledge of rocks, some 12 feet high, erected and down these he sprang upon the stage.” What were his best roles?” -‘His Richard and Macbeth were very fine. He individualized them In a manner I have never seen before or since. His fighting scene in Richard was simply terrific. He was good in the Apostate; but his Raphael in the Marble Heart was matchless. I have many a time paid him $700 a week, and he could easily cam $20,000a year. When he played in Boston under my management he made the greatest success of the day. People waited in crowds outside the theater to catch a glimpse of him as he left, and I think a man thatcould attain this emi nence before the age of 26 must have had the germs of dramatic talent pretty well developed. “lie was received by the very best people. The lady to whom he was engaged to be manied be longed to the elite of Washington society.” "llfl vnn knmv Do you know the lady's name? Yes, but It shall be sacred. She is married now, and it would do no good to the truth of history to revive it Booth's whole soul was centered upon her, and he loved her as few men lore. Her picture, 1 understand, was taken from his body a short time after his capture, and she was failhiul to him to the very last. “You believe then that murder was an after thought with Booth?" "1 have no doubt of ft. I think that is clearly proved by all the facts that have been brought out since his death. It was a sad ending :o wlmt prom ised to be a brilliant life. 1 think he was led to the crime by his hero worship. He lived in an aunos- ihere of tragedy. He revered the character of irutus, emulated his example when he killed the president and invoked his spirit when he met his death. John Matthews, to whom Booth gave his letter of justification, knowsmore interesting facts abont him than any man now living.” “This is John M l thews,” said a gentleman n few days since as he introduced me to the actor, now on tite boards of the L'uion Square theater. New York. This we* the man that was Booth’s boyhood friend, and -.ctor associate most of the time he was upon the stage. To him Booth had many times confided his desire to capture the president, and thus obtain the release of the confederate prisoners. This was the friend In whose room Booth had lain, and to whom he had poured out the : tory of his love, marred by the conflicting imssion of mliguided S tlriolism, and the one that bad quoted for him omeo’s definition of love. He was the man at whose feet Booth dropped when he jumped from the president’s box to the stage, and whom he near ly knocked over iu his haste to retreat The murder and the thrilling events which fol lowed it have left their Impression upon his life. He seems still to brood over the occurrence, and his days and nights arc never free from some thought of his friend’s life and death. He is rapidly approaching fifty years of age—a iran of medium height and well rounded frame—a dewi-shaven, jolly Milesian face, lit up by a pair of sharp, restless eyes, which twinkle wita the good humor that isappareut in his every act and utter ance. llis manner is quick ana nervous, and his speech and attitude constantly portrays his pro fession. our conversation naturally drifted to the story of Mr. Lincoln’:: assassination, with which he is more familiar than any man now living. lie took up the thread of the narrative where Mr. Ford left It. He is the most important living wit ness as to Booth’s aims and purposes, and has a story full of dramatic Interest. He was the next man of note to see Booth after ho left Coyle and went to find the other conspiratots to enlist their co-operatioff in his changed purposes. Night was fast ar.proaehing, Booth had gone to Naiior's livery stable near 14th street, hired his saddle horse, mounted it, nud was riding down Pennsylvania avenue toward the National hotel. “Poor John,” said Mr. Matthews, feelingly, “the last time I saw him before the scene in the theater was late in the afternoon of the 14th. I was walk ing up Pennsylvania avenue when I saw him com ing down upon horseback. He drew rein os I reach ed the corner of 13th street and the avenue. “My God! My God! Ihcvc-no longer a country! riiis is mo end of constitutions 1 liberty in Amcrl- XL” V"L>iwv ’ as. hs : V r-trLed.-Liusued have they been, fighting for the continuance of slavery. The first Battle of Bull Run did away with that idea. lhcir causes since for war have been as noble, and greater far than those that urged our fathers on. Even should we allow they were wrong at the beginning of this con test, cruelty and injustice have made the wrong become the right, and they stand now the wonder and admiration of the world as a noble band of patriotic heroes. Hereafter reading of their deeds, Thermopylae will be forgotten. “When I aided in the capture and execution of John Brown (who was a murderer on onr western border, and who was fairly tried and convicted, before an impartial judge and ury, of treason, and who, by the way, has since »een made a God), I was proud of my little share in the transaction, for 1 deemed it my duty, and that I was helping our common country to per form an act of Justice. - But whit was a crime in poor John Brown Is now considered (by themselves) as the greatest and only virtue of the republican party. Strange transmigration! Vice is become virtue imply because more indulge in it. 1 thought then, as now, that the abolitionists were the only traitors iu the laud, aud that the entire party de served the same fate as poor old Brown. Not be cause they wished to abolish slavery, butonac count of the means they have ever used to effect that abolition. If Brown were living I doubt whether he himself would set slavery against the union. Most, or nearly' all the north, do openly curse the union if the south are to re turn and retain a single right guaranteed to them by every tie which we once revered as sacred. The south can make no choice. It is either extermina tion or shivery for themselves, worse Ilian acatb, to draw from. 1 know my choice and hasten to ac cept iu 1 have studied hard upon what grounds the right of astate to secede has been derived, when our very name, United States, and the declaration of independence provide for secession. But there is now no time for words. I know how foolish I shall be deemed for undertaking such a step ns this, where, on the one side, I have many friends and eveiything to make me happy, where my pro fession alone has gained me an income of over $20,- 000 a year, and where my great personal ambition in my profession has such a great field for labor. On the other hand, the south has never bestowed upon me one kind word; a place now where I have no friends except beneath the sod; a place where I must either become a private soldier or a beggar. To give up all the former for the latter, beside my mother and sister, whom I love so dearly (although they so widely differ from me in opiuion), seems in sane; but God is my judge, X love 'justice more than I do a country that disowns it; more than fame and wealth, more (heaven pardon me if wrong) than a happy home. I have neverheen upon a battlefield, but oh! my countrymen, could you but see the reality or effects of this horrid war, as I have seen them, in every state hut Virginia, I kuow you wiulJ think like me, and pray the Almighty to create in the northern mind a sense of right and justice, (even should it possess no reasoning of mercy,) and he would dry up the sea of blood be tween us that Is dally growing wider and wider. "Alas! 1 have no longer a country. She is fast approaching her threatened doom. Four years ago 1 would have given a thousand lives to see her re main (as 1 had always known her) powerful and unbroken, aud how 1 would hold my life ns naught to see her what she was. Oh! my friends,-if the fearful scenes of the past four years had never been enacted, or if what has been had been a frightful dream, from which wc could now awake, with wliat overflowing hearts could we bless our God and pray for His continued favor. “How 1 have loved the old flag can never now be known. A few years since and the entire world could boast of none so pure and spotless. But I have of late been seeing and hearing of the bloody deeds of wnich she has been made thccmblem, and shudder to think how changed she has grown. Oh! how I have longed to sec ller break from the mist of blood ard death so eitcled around her folds, spoiling her beauty and tarnishing her honor. Eut no; day by day has she been dragged deeper and deeper into cruelty and oppression, till now (in my eyes) her once blight rod stripes look like' bloody gashes on the face of heaven. I look now upon my early admiration of her glories as a dream. My love is now for the south alone, and to her ^sidc- i go penniless. Her success has been near my heart, and 1 have labored faithfully to further au object which would have more than proved my unselfish devotion. Heart sick and disappointed 1 turn from tiie path which I had been following, into a bolder and more perilous one. Without malice 1 mat and upon that same bed where he afterwards lay and told me of his love and his sweetheart, and on which President Lincoln died. Davenport, Wnllack and I came in one day and found him ly ing mere studying the part of Mare Antony. Wal- lack and Davenport had been to visit some of the hospitals and both seemed affected by the scenes they had witnessed. They began talking of the war in a spirit of sorrow rather than anger, regret- ting that brothers should thus seek each other’s life in the struggle of arms. 1 shall never fotget the pathos and power with which they each expressed a desire for peace. It seemed to make a great impression upon Booth’s mind, and when we spoke of an engage ment to may, “Still Waters Run Deep,” at the Soldiers’ Home, Booth said he would go with us and make one of the audience. From the moment he knew the president intended to be there he set about laving the plans for tis capture. The minuteness with which every detail for the kidnapping had been arranged was surprising, and the faflnre of the scheme cutBooth keenly. At the very last moment a business engagement detained Mr. Lincoln, and Booth seemed to brood upon the subject night and day after this disappointment. I am gratified that the letter I have given you so clearly demonstrates the fact that the murder of Mr. Lincoln hy Booth was not premeditated4n the sense in which It has been insisted. Tbe evidence Is overwhelming that he never tbought of murder until the last hHlf of the day upon which he com mitted it He had great respect for Mr. Lincoln, and the arrangements he had made for his comfort while he was being taken within the confederate linos demonstrates his exalted idea of the import ance of his scheme. Appended to the letter be gave me, which evi dently had been hastily written, were the namesof Payne, Harold and Atzeroth, given as the men who would stand by him in his altered uurpose. “I have preserved a lock of his hair and Tall the wardrobe I wore on that fatal night.” “Do"John the justice to let me say in print what I have told you about the occurrences of that even lug.” "He died game. I never could believe it was other than by hisown hand. A shot was undoubt edly fired at him in the burning barn, but I think the bullet that caused his death came irom his own carbine. When he found that he could not get a chance to fight for his life he took it himself.” This striking picture painted by two of the men who bf all Booth's associates and friends were most seriously affected by his act, might be drawn upon a much larger canvass than 1 have taken. It viv idly. portrays the shifting scenes of play and pas sion which ended in the foulest of crimes. The story of his death I have given the readers of Ths Constitution from the lips of those who wit nessed every one of the thrilling scenes attending il, end the events of the last two days of his life. I will conclude the painful story, with a chapter of his Christian butial, two years after his death, the dramatic circumstances surrouudiug it, a picture pi ' is filial resting place and some interesting fam ily reminiscences of those that are buried in the satr e tomb. F. A. B. THE CHARGE AGAINST MR. DAVIS PEN PUNCTURES FROM OUR YOUNG MAN AT THE CAPITAL. The Discussion over Felton’s Attack on Hill—An In- jud cions Outbreak of Temper—Clerks for the Senators—The Choct-w Railroad Ques tion-Appeal from Independents. This fSOJ' quickly. He was pale as a ghost and laboring un der great excitement He pointed with tragic gest ure toward a number of confederate prisoners who were being marched up the avenue under guard and watched them attentively for a few moments. Then throwing his hand to his head two or three times, he repeated the exclamation to me: "My God! My God! John, I have no longer a conutry! This is tiie end of constitutional liberty in America," He hesitated a moment after the last exclamation, and then turning abruptly to me said: "Will you do me a favor John?” “Command me for anything, ’ I replied. ^Taking from his pocket a sealed letter, directed to Mr. Coyle, of the National Intelligencer, he asked mo, with dramatic air, to deliver it that night by 11 o’clock, unless he saw me bcforcthat time. Jfsolic could attend to it himself. “I put the letter In my pocket and walked on,little dreaming what itcontalued, or what startling events were so soon to follow. I went up the street some distance, and then bock to my room opposite the theater, to prepare for my evening’s performance. “There was a magnificent house that night. Laura Keene, who was playing leading part In “Our American Cousin,” wasa great favorite in Washing ton, and she was a great actress. Then the war wa about over, and every body seemed happy and bent on enjoyment. A shot startled me iu the midst of the scene, which called me upon the stage, and a form leaping from the president's box told me too plainly that a terri ble crime had been committed. 'I recognized Booth's voice, shouting as he jumped, “ ‘Sic sem per tyrannis.’ ” He almost ran over me on his way to the stage door. “I immediately rushed to my dressing room, call ing a servant as I ran. I gathered up all my clothes and wardrobe, passed off beneath the stage to the auditorium and into the street with the audience, which rushed from the theatre in a panic. This foresight doubtless saved mv life, as none of the other actors got out of the theatre. The police arrested all persons connected with it at once. When I got out I walked rapidlv across the street to my room in Mr. Peterson's house, locked and bolted the door, aud began changing my costume for citizen’s clothes as rapidlv ns |<ossible. • In the excitement I had forgotten tiie letter Booth had given me upon the avenue, andl would doubt less have had it iu my possession when arrested the next day, had It not accidentally fallen from mv pocket as I snatched up my coat to put it on. Al most wild with excitement, I picked it up, tore off the envelope, nnd read the letter twice over. Its lines seemed to burn themselves into mv brain. It began: • III. Booth's I*l.a to Ills Conntrymrn. Washington, I>. C., April 14, 1865.—'‘“To mv countrymen.—For years I have devoted my time, my energies and every dollar I possessed in the world to the furtherance of an object. 1 have been battled aud disappointed. The hour has come when I must change my plan. “Many, I know—the vulgar herd—will blame me for what I am about to do, but posterity I am sure will justify me. "Right or wroug. God judge me, not man. Be my motive good or bad.of one thing 1 am sure—the lasting condemnation of the north. "I love p-nce more than life; have loved the union beyond expression. For four vears have 1 wailed, hoped aud prayed for the dark clouds to break and for a restoration of oor former sunshine. To wait longer would be a crime. Mv prayers have proved as idle as my hope. God’s will be done. I go to see and share the bitter end. "This war is at war with the constitution and the reserved rights of the states. It is a war upon south ern rights and institutions. “The nomination of Abraham Lincoln four vears ago bespoke war. His election forced it. I‘have ever held the south was right. In a foreign war I. too, could say, “country, right or wrong. But in a struggle such as ours (where the brother tries to pierce the brother's heart), for God’s sake choose the right. When a country like this spurns justice from her si<)e, she forfeits the allegiance of every honest freeman, and should leave him untram'- meled by any fealty soever to act as his conscience may approve. “People of the north, to hate tvrannv to love liberty aud justice, to strike at wrong and oppres sion, was the teaching of onr fathers. The studv of our early history will not let me forget it, and ritav it never. “I do not want to forget the heroic patriotism of our fathers who rebeUed against the mother coun try. "This country was formed for the white, not ■the black man. And looking upon African slavery from the same standpoint held by the noble fraih- ersof our constitution, 1, for one, have even con sidered it one of the greatest blessings, both for themselves aud us, that God ever bestowed upon a favored nation. Witness heretofore our wealth and power: witness their elevation and enlightenment above their race elsewhere. I have lived among it most of my life and have seen less harsh treatment from master to man than I have beheld in the north from father to son. Yet. heaven knows, no one would be willing to do mure for the negro race thau I, could I hut see a way to better their condition. “But Lincoln's policy is only preparing the wav for their total annihilation. The south are not, nor - Vi -uA_ too late. When Cai-air hail conquered the enemies of Rome and the power that was his menaced the liberties uf the people. Brutus rose and slew him. The stroke of by dagger was g aided by his love for * e spirit aud ambition of Gtcsar that Koine. if Was Die spi Brutus struck at. - “O then that we could come by Csesar’s spirit And not dismember Ctcsar! But alas! Ctcsir must bleed for it!” I answer with Bratus: He who loves his country better than gold or life. John W. Booth.” “Assoonaslhad read the letter I threw it into the fire, watched it burn to cinders, and then stirred the asfics into the coals. My first and only thought then was— “This self-condemnation of my friend shall nut be found with me.” I shudder now to think how narrowlv I escaped n disgraceful death. The angel Saint Michael could never have satisfactorily explained the possession of that letter in those days of horror and delirious excitement. My only thought, however, when I destroyed It, was to put away the evidences of my fn'nrwJ’c Or? A to contract the currency by the withdrawal from circulation of what are known as silver certificates: or to discontinue or further restrict the coinage of ver. “Kesolvedfurtherthat gold and diver coin, based upon a proper ratio of equivalence between the two metals aud issues of paper predicated upon coin and convertible into coin on demand, constitute the proper circulating medium of this country.” As the Georgia senator always talks plainly, we may look for a financial speech that the masses of the people can understand. THREE TOPICS OF DISCUSSION. friend’s crime. What a striking by-play was this to the scene which followed. The ashes of that letter were still smoulderiug in the grate when the president was carried from tiie theater to Mr. Peterson’s house and laid upon John Matthews’s bed in the light of the fire which had a lew moments before consumed the assassin’s acknowledgement of his crime. IV John Matthew's Story. “Did any one ever see that letter beside your self?” "Not a creature after it came into my possession. When I think of it, it seems almost miraculous that the occurrences of that night did not turn mv brain. I was so intimately connected with Booth and liis life, and yet so perfectly innocent of any knowledge of or participation in his acts that it cer tainly seems the most marvelous thing how I escap ed. Imagine my position for one luoiaeut—to see the man whom I had known and loved from a boy so wickedly destroy a brilliant future and a pros perous and happy life. To see him fall at my feet wounded, disabled, aud to feel that eseape for him was impossible. Then, after I had seen him stag ger past me to the door, ill the midstuf tbe confu sion that followed, to read the letter I have given you! It naturally filled me with startling thoughts that have left their impress upon my life.” "Do you think the letter is a correct transcript of the one Booth wrote and you destroyed?” "Yes, except possibly iu some unimportant par ticulars. My profession has trained me to remem ber readily without effort. Then you recollect that almost immediately after the murder a letter Booth had written to his brother-in-law, John S. Clarke, the actor, in many respects identical with the one addressed to Mr. Coyle, which I destroyed, was published. “The arguments were the same, the difference consisting mainly in such alterations os his change of plan from kidnapping to murder would necessi tate. 1 took that letter while the subject was fresh in mv mind arid made the corrections between it and the letter Booth left with me, which could be easily traced. Therefore I am prepared to say that the letter I have given you is Booth’s last plea of justification for his act which it has ever been sup posed no man saw. “The argument he uses in the letter relative to the killing of Ca-sar b* Brutus are characteristic and show the exalted state of reasoning he em ployed to justify Himself iu the act. He had a dis turbed idea of pat: iotism, but it did not run in the direUfoa of murder until the last few hours oi the day upon which lie committed the fatal deed.” “Did he ever confide to you any of his plans for kidnapping the president?’’ “No. not his plans, but we were together a great deal of the winter before the murder, and heseem- ed to have his mind bent upon tnat object so deter minedly that he could scarsely talk upon any other subject. He often spoke to me of the feasibility of securing the release of the coufederate prisoners by kidnapping the president, lie never confided to me any of his plans, however, and yet at one time I unwittingly performed au act toward the cap ture of Mr. Lincoln. '**1 was going over to Baltimore, a few da vs before the time when DaveHport. the elder Wallack and myself were to plays, benefit at the Soldiers’ Home, and Booth asked me to take a trunk, which he would have at the depot, with me and deliver it to a gentleman whom 1 knew in Baltimore. I took the trank, but not being able to see the gentleman I left it for him with a note saying: My Dear Mr. : Please deliver this trank to Mr. , who will see that it is delivered to Mr. , who will have it safely shipped to its destina tion. of which he is informed. Be careful. Very truly. John Matthews. “1 do not fill the blanks because the gentleman to whom it was delivered, and those that were to handle it, are still living, and might not like the useof their names in that connection. "This trank was.to be sent to lower Maryland.and was filled with potted meats, sardines, fine crackers, brandy, wine, aud even toUet articles. They were intended for the use and comfort ef the president daring his journey to the confederate lines. Booth intended to treat him with everv consideration. “He formed his plans for this capture in my room Tiu- Small Fund Set Apart for Use by the Confederate 1’resident's Military Family Captured by tbe Sceond Michigan Cavalry. Louisiana State University and Agricul tural and Mechanical College, Baton Rouge, January 6,1882.—Gen. Joseph R. Davis, Nw Orleans, La.: My dear Sir—Your "letter oftpecemher 29tli, in relation to an alleged in- te.Mew of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston reflecting upm President Davis, has been received. In re: ly I must say that I was greatly surprised wi on I first saw the report of the interview: bt i I confess I was still more so, when _ fo - . id that General Johnston did not contra- d’lt it with an emphatic denial. If I had sup- l v pd that its insinuations required disproof, or)hat they would not he met by witnesses imvre fully informed than myself, I certainly shjDuld have promptly published sU(!h knowledge as I had. But I rested so secure in tiie universal confidence of irij-nd and foe in President Davis' integrity and • patriotic self abnegation thr.t I felt lie might,' in tiie future as in the past, oppose his unsullied re- petbons cognizant of the facts, whose concur rent testimony present an irrefragable record. It lias, furthermore, elicited even from parti sans of General Johnston a response which evinces that President Davis’s honor is asdear to each southern heart as its own. Hence, so far from this assault proving a misfortune to our honored chief, a complete exposure of facts only establishes more fully his noble and disinterested character upon tiie solid foundation upon which it will stahd for all time. The hand which strikes this granite pedestal, wounds only itself. You ask for facts within my knowledge as to the money transactions at the close of the war. I have learned a good deal since the events, but you _ could hardly apply to one who was more ignorant at the time, or who troubled himself less about the general finances or particular funds. My line of duty was in a different direction and occupied all my thoughts. I shall, therefore, confine my self to matters within my own knowledge, and leave to others what came under their observation. I accompanied President Davis, as you cor rectly state, from Richmond till his capture. At Greensboro. X. C., I accepted a loan of $100 in gold, pressed upon me by a friend, as I had only confederate money. I nsed this to pay the expense of our military family, as I was almost always immediately with ' President Davis. The sum was not quite exhausted when we were captured, as onr incidental ex penses were small. Having been an inmate of President Davis’s house, as well as a member of his military family, I know that during the four years of the war, his pecuniary inter ests and personal fortune were entirely neg lected by him, and that he came out of the war a poor man. Very full statements have been made T>y others about what occurred at Abbeville, the Savanna river and Washington, Ga. I did not attend the council of officers at Abbe ville. I knew that there was a military chest with a considerable sum in coin and bullion. I also knew that $20 or $30 were distributed to each soldier. I was told by some one at Washington to draw that amount, but was too much engaged to do so. After leaving Washington, when President Davis determined to part company with the wagon train, Major Van Benthuysen, who had charge of it, handed me $1,200 to transport and took my receipt for it. I regarded it as a trust to be employed, if necessary, in getting our party to the trans-Mississippi department. I am of the opinion that our party received from Major Van Benthuysen some $5,000 or $6,000, but am not fully advised. The full sum of $1,200 was taken from my holsters by men of the Second Michigan regiment when I was captured. I am quite sure that P 1 isident Davis could not have carried much money about him, as he handed me his derringe to carry, being too feeble to endure its weight But there is no reality, no ground for argu ment with any man who impugns the per sonal integrity of Jefferson Davis. Tiie charge recoils upon the author. For twenty years President Davis has breasted a storm of obloquy and calumny from every quarter. Yet, tcnlay, lie stands' unscathed tiie repre sentative 'man of the most glorious epoch of southern history, so that in all our part of the union it is hard to find a man who Iras done his duty by his country who would nut prefer a word of approval from his lips to a erown of gold from tiie hand of the best of his detractors. Of course, no word from me can add any thing to tiie lustre of President Davis’s repu tation in tiie eyes of those whose good opinion we chiefly value. But, as I am putting my self on record, I must permit myself to say Washington, January 13.—[Special Correspond ence.]—As I telegraphed last night the Georgians in Washington have been talking considerably oi the recent letter from Dr. Felton concerning Senator IlilL As they are here in a strange land any bit of home gossip Is acceptable, especially one so spicy as thishasbeen. The general comment is that the letter was too angry in its tone. It seems that some thing in Mr. Hill’s interview nettled the doctor severely though a second reading of the interview since the letter has appeared reveals nothing that seems calculated to that purpose. Mr. Hill, in his Mahone speech, said that there are only two great parties in this country, and a secession from one indicates a drift toward the other. So in his interview he says that while Dr. Felton started out honestly-as an independent in polities, the sharp antagonism in which he has been placed to the democracy has necessnrily driven him toward the republican party. Anybody knows that when the independent movement was first inaugu rated in Georgia it would have been heavily handicapped by an alliance with the republicans, but the tendency pointed out by Mr. Hill iu his Mahone speech has worked so far that now we find the independents seeking such an alliance as their only hope of obtaining control of the state. This seems to be the logic of events everywhere. APPEALS FROM THE HUNGRY. The most importunate prayers sent to the admin istration are from men who were until recently connected with the democratic organization, and who now seek the aid of republican influence in breaking democratic supremacy. As was predicted,' such men are appearing in every southern state. Most of them are arousing Hopes of the political revolution of several states, when anybody who knows the condition of these states and will express an honest opinion, will tell you that they arc bound to be solidly democratic on present issues. There are to-day in "Washington men well in formed on politics generally who really believe that Georgia will be “Mahonized” in October, to such a degree have they been stuffed with the gorgeous prospects of the new coalition. Senator Hill spoke briefly concerning the Felton letter and in terms of anything but resentment toward the doctor. It is expected that he will soon make a speech in the senate, in which he will allude generally to the methods used in the hope of substituting democratic rule in the-south. There is an unwrit ten chapter In the history of these proceedings which onlv the friends of the administration can furnish, but it would be well worth reading if it could he obtained. Mr. Hill’s intention appears to be to take an ac tive part in tiie coming campaign. CLERtyS FOR SENATORS. Senator Brown yesterday offered a resolution that each senator not now authorized to employ clerk be allowed that privilege. Nearly all the republican senators are at the head of committees, and recently there have been sev eral committees made with little oth er purpose than to give some favorite a clerk. There are so -few senators left out that Governor llrbwii thinks they yi(ighi as well si! supplied at once. THE CHOCTAW DELEGATION. There has arrived a delegation from the Choctaw nation to protest against the granting of a charter to the St. Louis and San Francisco railroad as at present reported. Some days ago the hill was favor ably reported to the senate on the representation of a special agent who had been to Indian Territory to examine into this matter. He said that the council had declared iu favor of the charter, and ns it offered many advantages to the nation the committee reported that the charter should be granted. The Indians now here declare that the bill was lost on a tie vote in their council and they bring the records with them to show thnt they are correct. Some of them are opposed to granting charters to any other railroads through their territory, claim ing that the only safety of the Indian is iu com plete isolation from the white man. An increase in railroad facilities will call in white settlers and ad venturers who will renew the difficulties so long experienced on the plains. They say the territory is now intersected by two railroads which are sufficient for commercial pur poses and any further facilities will bring only mischief. The best opinion among the Indians, however, is in favor of the new line, though some of them want the matter remanded to the council where the charter may be more strictly guarded. These liberal men appreciate the dangers of monopoly and are now suffering from exorbitant charges made by Gould’s lines. They are anxious for competition and they think the evils feared by their mote timid brothers may be averted bv provisions in the charter and proper legislation in tiie council., The chartir will proba bly he granted, as it is backed stronglv in the senate, but there may be some important amendments to its present form. Mr. W. O. Tuggle, of Georgia, is counsel for the Indians in their efforts to have the charter referred again to their legislature, Some of the Choctaws present a remarkable fine appearance. They are evidently making rapid progress in the arts of civilization, and in their rea sonings for and against this charter show that they are clearheaded, well educated men. Reports from the Indian territory represent a steady growth and prosperity of the tribes set off there to work out the problem of Indian civiliza tion. Experience has proven that the more they are let alone the better they thrive. They have practically a home rule. Their laws are thorough ly executed, and throughout their rich realm Is the reign of peace, plenty and good order. SHERMAN’S REFUNDING BILL. It is thought that John Sherman's funding bill will'not pass, as several republican senators from the west will not vote for it. One of the severest speeches made against it was that of Senator elumb, who, though not an orator, is a “plain, blunt man,” and speaks his mind out witnout ^ThewUy Ohio statesman is wedded to this meas ure, aud grieves at the prospect of Us defeat. After inducing the pliant Hayes to veto three per cent, funding bill, he has come to the conclusion that a 3 per cent bond can be easily floated but this is onlv a bait to make the demo crats swallow the less lovely features of his pet measure. It looks towards the continuance of the national debt to the distant future. The bonds he proposed to issue will ran far beyond the time when the debt can be paid. The Shtrman bill is a bolster to high tariff, will keep up the debt and thus force the collection of heavv revenues for interest. It also looks to complete protection and strength ening of the national banks in their exclusive privileges. On this point Mr. Vest powerfully as sailed the bill in his speech of ivednesday The prospects are gloomy for Sherman in this contest; He must wait awhile before he scores an other financial triumph. But he is so skillful in political trimming that when he sees he cannot carrv outhis favorite views he may swing around far enough to appear in the lead of a financial pol icy which he really follows. The sen ate is head over heels in financial theories. Members* are ransacking the library for ancient and modern authorities on this most theoretical of subjects. A great store of wis dom will be furnished the country from this intel lectual granary. FINANCIAL MYSTIFICATION. In financial discussions there is always much needless mystification. Men to appear wise force themselves to he obscure. Really the questions in volved In treating the national debt and the cur rency- are as simple as those the small banker and the village merchant decide every day without hesitation. If <*e did not know the laws of finance to be fixed for great matters as well as small, we could see the simplicity _ of la both the senate nnd house currency, national debt and tariff’ will form three great staples . of debate. Out of the conflict and comparison of ideas upon them some light may be struck lor the education of the people. But beyond this it is hard to see what results can come. No radical changes in present policy is anticipated. Men who think as Senator Brown expresses himself in the resolution quoted are resolved to resist changes suggested by the secretary of the trensuary and ap proved by the president The contraction- sts cannot muster the power to contract tho currency by retiring the forty millions of silver clrtificates or limiting the coinage of silver to closer bounds. Some of the^most ardent high protectionists oppose such a policy, while the south and west stand, by a large aud stubborn majority of their representatives, against it. These debates will not result in any clearer de marcation of party lines, for this crook in politics makes strange bed fellows indeed. Alter the talk is over, and the advocates of each idea have warned the country that the supremacy of tiie other would be ruin, we will probably find ourselves about where we are now, gutting along very well with a general confidence in tiie financial system of the government. Mr. Sherman cannot pledge the country to a per petuity of the debt or throw this bulwark in front of the discriminating tariff. The secretary, tho president and the money kings cannot sweep away the silver certificates or stop the stamp iu the silver mint. THE PENNSYLVANIA INDEPENDENTS. The stalwarts are alarmed at the proceedings of the independents in Pennsylvania. The demo crats feel hopeful of capturing the state at ihe next election. Thousands of the disaffected republicans will join them before they will submit further to the Insolent domination of the Cameron ring.Jit will be a capital joke if while tiie administration is wasting its ammunition on Geor gia and the otner southern states it finds Pennsyl vania in open revolt. The republican dilemma is becoming more interesting every day. Judged by every evidence, there are ten chances for a demo cratic Pennsylvania to one for an “independent Georgia in the early future. NOTES IN GENERAL Hon, George R. Black, of the first district, was present at the agricultural congress yesterday, as the representative of the Georgia state agricultural society. Rossi plaved to an enthusiastic audience in “Lear” last night. When he burst out in English with the exclamation, “Aye, every iucb a king!” he at once surprised and thrilled the audience. He spoke the fourth and filth acts in English, a won derful aehlevmeut when we consider that he has studied tbe language only a few months. Mr. George II. Waring, of Bartow county, is at tending the agricultural congress now m session here. *• IL THE PREVAILING PEST. The Smnll-Pox Said to be Increasing to an Alarmlug Extent. Washington, January 13.—The following dialogue took place to-niglit between an offi- 'cer of the national board of health and a rep resentative of the press: Q—Have you any late news regarding the spread of small-pox? A—We receive reports every day. The disease is spreading. Q—Is it confined to any locality? A—No. It is quite bad in many sections. Q—i)o yon attribute the outbreak in tiie: west to immigration? A. There is no doubt but that it was originally imported. The- countries from which persons emigrate to. America are almost without exception in fected witli the disease, Q—Rumors have been received from the •y---t I xiay that >li-. dir-ease is iiK-rearing to au alarming extent. Have you any such ad vices? A—it has increased more rapidly in the west recently than elsewhere, but the ag gregate number of deaths for the ycarjs no greater than in eastern cities. Q—What lias been the number of deaths in the principal cities? A—Wc are preparing a statement now, which will appear in the next bulletin, showing the total number of deaths which have been reported to us from each city during the year 1881 and up to tiie pres ent time. As nearly .as I can remember, Phil adelphia heads tiie list with between twelve and fourteen hundred deaths. The disease lias prevailed there continually during the j last year. The number of deaths reported : ‘roni Chicago will not exceed eight or nine hundred, I think, and those from New York will probably aggregate about six or seven hundred. These figures, of course, do not cover the entire mortality, as there are num bers of deaths which are not reported to us. Q—Have there been any cases in Washing ton? A—A few of a mild character. . Q—Do you anticipate an epidemic here? A—Xo; we can stamp it out here in thirty days should it threaten to become epidemic. Q—How? A—By the appointment of in spectors and insisting upon the isolation of each case. that having stood so near him for four years . q ^ small we couia Fee me ampuaiy oi that no veil to his character was possible, even these big issues when handled by men of cat acity. if he had wished it; he lias left upon my j shennan has a reason for mystifying his financial mind an ineffaceable image of knightly theories in this case, purity, of public rectitude, of undeviating I senator browk on finances patriotism, and of moral grandeur which 1 , a general discussion of the quneucy and finan- shall forever cherish as a consolation in ad- cialstatus of the country tf®?? versityand defeat, and as a standard and I Senator Brown very soon, probablj some day next ideal for myself and my countrymen. | "Yesterday he introduced the following resolution I am, my dear sir. very sincerely yours. ' an( jft will'be tbe text of hisspeecb: Wm. Preston Johnston. Resolved, That it is inexpedient and unwise A DINING TO DAVIS. neel'.acil by the Prcutdcnt of tbe cx-Cocfidcracy. Memphis, January 13.—A committee of young gentlemen waited on tiie Hon. Jefferson Davis (who is here on a visit to his daughter) to tender to him, on belialf of the young men of Memphis, a banquet at a time for him to designate. Tiie banquet was tendered, as ex pressed by the committee, to Mr. Davis to as sert the esteem, veneration and affection of the southern voung men for him, which they declared to be sincere and earnest. ’ Mr. Davis sent to the committee this morning the fol- lowing: Memphis, Tenn., January 10—Gentlemen: I gratefully acknowledge tne invitation of the voung men of Memphis you represent to meet them at a banquet at such a time as I may desig nate. Mv p:esent visit will be so brief as not to permit me to avail of your kind courtesy before my departure, but I hope to be here ogam early in the spring, and it will then give me great pleasure to accept the Invitation as offered. Having closed a long career of public service, nothing could be more gratifying to me than the manifestations of such consideration as is expressed by those to whom the destinies of our country arc to be in trusted. To yourselves and vour associates I pre sent my cordial thanks and assurance of the affec tionate regard with which I am your friend. 1 oLi’PPvnv T» t Jefferson Davis. THE GALVESTON FIRE. The Lost Running Up to a Million Dollar*, Galveston, January 14.—The loss by flic will ex ceed $830,000. The principal losses ard insurance arc as follows: Moody & Jemison, on building$130,000, insurance $60,000; Greenleve, Block & Co., whole sale dry goods, $425,000, insurance $000,000; C. M. Pearre & Co., wholesale grocers, $130,000: insurance, $07,300. Miller & Englbli, wholesale grocers, $130,000: insurance $65,000. County library, $25,000; insurance, 822,5000. M. Kopperl and J. B. Cole, on building, $20,000. Messrs. Wilkins, on building, $18,000: in surance, $6,000. E. Kaufman, on build ing, 820.000; insurance, $10,000. J. S. Brown & Co., wholesale hardware, damaged by removal *15 000- E. S. Wood & Son, hardware, damage to building and stock $10,000; Thompson, George & Co., wholesale druggists damage by removal $3,000. Revenue Raid to Ce*rgl«- Washington, January 14.—The commissiouer of internal revenue to-day received a telegaam from W h chapman, revenue agentat CnrtersvHle. Ga.. stating that he and the deputy collector has just returned from Pickens county, where they seized and destroyed two illicit dLstilteries, complete with thirty-five'hundred gallons of beer and made one arrest. Murder Nc-r Augusta. Augusta, Ga., January 14 —Last night on the Milledeeville road, some miles from Augusta, JeKe Stoke-, colored, was waylaid and instantly killed by an unknown party. Daniel Stokes, bis brother-in- ]<• w. was walking with him when the sheotmg took place. * IXNOIST1MCT