Lincoln, the unknown

LINCOLN THE UNKNOWN • 229in the corn-crib ran up to the house and told the truth. With arush the troopers encircled the tobacco barn.There was a lot of talk before the shooting started. For fifteenor twenty minutes the Northern officers argued with Booth,urging him to surrender. He shouted back that he was a cripple,and asked them to "give a lame man a show," offering to comeout and fight the entire squad one by one, if they would withdrawa hundred yards.Herold lost his courage and wanted to surrender. Booth wasdisgusted."You damned coward," he shouted, "get out of here. I don'twant you to stay."And out Herold went, his arms in front of him, ready tobe handcuffed, while he pleaded for mercy, declaring from timeto time that he liked Mr. Lincoln's jokes, and swearing that hehad had no part in the asassination.Colonel Conger tied him to a tree and threatened to gag himunless he ceased his silly whimpering.But Booth would not surrender. He felt that he was actingfor posterity. He shouted to his pursuers that the word "surrender"was not in his vocabulary, and he warned them to preparea stretcher for him as they put "one more stain on the gloriousold banner."Colonel Conger resolved to smoke him out, and ordered oneof the Garrett boys to pile dry brush against the barn. Boothsaw the boy doing it, and cursed him and threatened to put abullet through him if he didn't stop. He did stop, but ColonelConger slipped around to a corner of the barn in the rear,pulled a wisp of hay through a crack, and lighted it with a match.The barn had originally been built for tobacco, with spacingsfour inches wide left to let in the air. Through these spacingsthe troopers saw Booth pick up a table to fight the mountingfire—an actor in the limelight for the last time, a tragedianplaying the closing scene of his farewell performance.Strict orders had been given to take Booth alive. The Governmentdidn't want him shot. It wanted to have a big trial andthen hang him.And possibly he might have been taken alive had it not beenfor a half-cracked sergeant— "Boston" Corbett, a religiousfanatic.Every one had been warned repeatedly not to shoot without