| Show BOOTHS DETECTIVE FRIEND captain billy williams the well known detective who died suddenly on monday night and who is to be buried this afternoon at under the auspices of the local lodge of elks was a man who had played a conspicuous part in those events which go to make up the stirring and tragic history of the country it was given to but few to know him immediately for he was se e cretice in an eminent degree but a close friend who frequently talked over with him war times and war horrors said yesterday captain williams who captured dr samuel mudd and john M Lloyd two of the conspirators in the assassination of lincoln was so just a man that to the day of his death he never ceased to cry out against the outrage involved in the sentence of edward spangler who held booths horse in the alley back of the theater on the night of Lincol ns murder spangler was sentenced to six years imprisonment in hollands life of lincoln spangler is eald bald to have been a sceneshifter scene shifter in fords theater but captain williams asserted that this was wag not true spangler was known as peanut johnnie Johnn le ard was a street arab who turned his hand to any odd job to earn a penny booth found him according to captain statement on 33 street near the alley in which booths horse was stationed on the night of the assassination and told him to hold the animal until he returned prom from the grand and imposing bearing of the actor peanut johnnie naturally expected a satisfactory fee for his service sand this was his sole connection with the assassination si but booth was in such a hurry to mount that when he returned to the alley he leaped at once into the saddle and giving peanut johnnie who held the bridle and demanded his fee a kick which sent him sprawling was oft and away before the poor boy could utter a word upon the much discussed question whether or not mrs was justly or unjustly executed captain Wil willams larns had positive and pronounced convictions he always declared that there was not the shadow of a doubt of her guilt to his mind she was the of all and he was in a position to know conferences without number he asserted had been held at her house in washington at which all the leading actors in the murder of the president had been present she in the wavering and kept inn in close 1 touch with booth for whom she had an admiration akin to worship williams declared that it could be proved that mrs kissed booth aa and bade his godspeed god speed when he left ber her to fire the fatal shot of the personal bravery of tafe as lassins capt williams spoke in terms of contempt save one lewis po aeu I 1 Payne who made the desperate atte attempt rapt on the life of secretary seward he was but a boy but a powerful sped men of physical manhood the osam calm courage with which he met death O on OA A J the scaffold commanded captan wil lams highest admiration that boy he was wont to say would havee have made a I 1 a great man it if he had only been s t right in life payne formed a warm at tach ment for captain williams and I 1 wrote him several letters which th the captain prized highly for some time after his arrest payne begged captain willams who knew hla his real name not to disclose it as it would distress hla mother to know that her son warf hanged as an assassin so tor for quite a 4 time he was known as lewis powell and it was only near the day of tha th execution that his identity was din closed it was the stupidity of thee the sentry rt in front of secretary homo hom now the site of the square squar ete theater that permitted the attack on I 1 the secre life he was pacing and down when payne sought to ent and the thin subterfuge the ansas assas assassin adopted that he had medicine sent bya the doctor wasso was so gauzy in Capt captain alft williams judgment that lie he abw always insisted a term of imprisonment wi s the only punishment fit for the crime crumal of the man on guard I 1 but it was when captain williama William 4 came to talk of john wilkes tooth booth that he grow grew eloquent they had been bogort h friends lends when the actor came ws a washington he sought out the detective and the best seat in the house was ills his when the performance was over they took in the city together booth was an adept at having a high old time and williams then a young vigorous and wiry specimen off of manhood was an able co tor they saw the city together saw it in its every hect aspect and dally those aspects which reveal themselves beewen the hour of midnight and the first streaks of dawn for aror many years this intimacy had existed both booth the handsome and accomplished actor and williams the acute and sharp brained detective hobnobbing hobnob bing as only two kindred spirits can just before booth entered enit ered fords theater on the night of the assassination lie be met captain williams on the street both proposed a drink and they retired to a nearby near by saloon never had captain williams known his actor chum to drink brandy but on this night booth insisted that they should not be served at a table but walking up to the bar lie be asked for a big glass and called for brandy filling the glass to the brim lie be gulped it down hastily said goodby good by and went into the theater only a few yards distant his manner was strikingly unusual declared captain williams but booth was a man of moods and nothing more was thought of it within ten min minutes ultes he had shot lincoln and was on his horse making his way to the navy yard bridge it was captain williams by the way who ft first suggested to the author authorities ittes cihat this was the route both had taken in leav ing the city As soon as the news of the shooting of the president and the assault on secretary seward berward became known steps were at once taken by the authorities to guard all the prominent government officials general augur ordered cap tain williams to look atter after vice president andrew johnson who had his rooms roams at ait the kirkwood house on the of the present hotel raleigh for twenty tour four hours captain williams performed his duty it is enough for me to say that his admiration for the courage of the vice president was not A great reat the captains humorous stories of the actions of johnson Joto naon on that night will never fade from my memory presidents death on the morning fol X lowing the shouting that captain williams should enter upon the pur fault suit of the chief assassin who had been his bosom friend he started at once nd with a squad of cavalry went down the potomac he was ordered to scour the he north side of the river but not tt to cross over he got on the track of booth at once and was the first to t learn that the slayer of lincoln had crossed to the south side of the river under cover of dax darkness kness but his orders forbade his crossing and he re and or on the afie north side he had arrested dr 13 samuel manuel mudd who set booths broken ankle and who whal was afterwards sent t to 0 the dry tortugas Tor for life and john M llo lloyd yd who turned states evidence but he chafed chafee to get at booth and when he learned that he had been surrounded toy by another searching party at the garrett farm on the south side of the potomac he determined to cross over and be on hand at the capture orders or r no orders moreover he was proba bly the only man in the entire party of of officers floers who could identify booth soon after his arrival at the garret home stad the barn in which booth had taken refuge was set on fire and boston corbett the sergeant fired the shot which ended the assassins life it is a curious fact that booth was shot in the ame same spot as lincoln when booth was brought out of the burning barn he was laid on an the grass tinder er an apple tree not a soul pres at erst knew certain ay 1 er the lying dying man was booth fea or not A soldier asked who Is this and captain williams standing by said in a loud tone of voice that is john wilkes booth hearing the sound of williams familiar voice booth still conscious turned half over and said and you are hunting me too billy williams its all useless useless soon after he was dead this is a brief outline of what billy williams told me of the part he played in the greatest tragic drama in the history of the republic and this republic he declared to the day of his death owed him which it wrongfully withheld everywhere in his travels in search of booth he had under instructions posted large placards offering reward for booth and for each of his accomplices captain williams arrested two of these and he felt that the government which offered the rewards should pay him the but he never received a cent and died a poor man washington post |
