SOUND:

NOISY CROWD OUTSIDE THEATER ... HORNS, COWBELLS, CHURCH BELLS PEALING, HORSES, CARRIAGES, ET CETERA ... THEN BEHIND DALY--

DALY:

(NARRATES, CHEERFUL) Good evening! This is John Daly standing in front of Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. This is indeed a red letter night in the history of Ford's Theatre, April 14th, 1865, because tonight President Abraham Lincoln and his party will attend a special charity performance of the celebrated English comedy, "Our American Cousin." Inside the theater, the curtain has already gone up. Outside, here in front of the theater, the crowd of curious spectators stand around awaiting the arrival of the President's carriage-- (FADES OUT BEHIND--)

VOICE:

(ECHO) Time: April 14th, 1865! Place: Washington, D.C.! You are there!

ANNOUNCER:

"Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre." CBS takes you back to one of the great dramas in our nation's history. All things are as they were then, except for one thing --

VOICE:

(ECHO) YOU ARE THERE!

ANNOUNCER:

YOU ARE THERE is based on authentic historical fact and quotation.

VOICE:

(ECHO) And now, Washington, April 14th, 1865 -- and John Daly!

SOUND:

FADE IN NOISY CROWD ... THEN IN BG--

DALY:

(FADES IN WITH CROWD, NARRATES, CHEERFUL) --the damp and misty weather in Washington tonight has not dampened the ardor of the crowds who for four long days now have been wildly celebrating the surrender of General Lee to General Grant. The people here are in high spirits, gathered around Ford's Theatre, which is a three-story, red stone building; windows and entrances in gray. Taltavull's saloon is on the right; Ferguson's saloon is on the left; and both of them are jammed. The windows and doors of the houses along both sides of the street are open. People are hanging out of them for a look at the President. Although the curtain has gone up on the play, some members of the cast who are not on stage at the moment, stand around in their costumes for a look at Mr. Lincoln. There's John Dyott and Mrs. Helen Muzzy. There's young Miss Jane Goudy -- and John Wilkes Booth, the handsome dashing Shakespearean favorite; he is not in the performance tonight, by the way. I think I see over there-- Oh, yes! There's Mr. Harry Ford, one of the three brothers who manage this theater. Now if I can just get through to him-- (PUSHING THROUGH CROWD) Excuse me, please!

WOMAN:

(INDIGNANT) Oh, I beg your pardon!

DALY:

Let me push through here. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but watch the cables. (CALLS) Oh, Mr. Ford! Mr. Ford!

FORD:

(OFF) Yes, sir?

DALY:

Say, Mr. Ford, this is CBS. You have a great crowd here tonight.

FORD:

(ON, PROUDLY) Yes, the theater is sold out.

DALY:

And have you raised your prices for tonight?

FORD:

Tonight is a charity event. The orchestra is one dollar; the dress circle and the parquet seventy-five cents; and the family circle is twenty-five cents.

DALY:

I see. Well, this is the second time President Lincoln has attended your theater, isn't it, Mr. Ford?

FORD:

Yes, and tonight he's going to sit in the same box. And I brought in that old rocker he likes.

DALY:

Oh, thanks very much, Mr. Ford.

FORD:

Not at all. Any time.

DALY:

Thanks a lot. (NARRATES) I think I see John F. Parker, the President's personal guard, arriving on foot. Evidently he's come ahead of the President to be on hand when Mr. Lincoln and his party arrives. Now if I can get through to him-- (TO CROWD) Excuse me, please! Let me through.

WOMAN:

(SHRIEKS INDIGNANTLY) Quit steppin' on my foot!

DALY:

I'm sorry, but watch the cable. (CALLS) Mr. Parker?! Oh, Mr. Parker?! Say, Mr. Parker, this is CBS. Has the President's carriage left the White House? Is he on his way over here?

PARKER:

Yes, he and Mrs. Lincoln left about ten minutes ago to pick up Major Rathbone and Miss Harris.

DALY:

Well, aren't General Grant and Mrs. Grant in the party?
PARKER: No, they were supposed to come, but General Grant left on the evening train for Burlington.

DALY:

Oh, that's too bad. We kind of hoped we'd see the general as well as Mr. Lincoln. Say, by the way, who is Miss Harris?
PARKER: Well, that's Miss Clara Harris, daughter of the senator from the state of Maine.

DALY:

Oh, yes, of course. And Major Rathbone is an attaché at the War Department?

PARKER:

That's right. Excuse me, please.

SOUND:

CROWD ROARS! ... CONTINUES AT A HIGHER VOLUME, IN BG ... HORSE AND CARRIAGE IN AGREEMENT WITH FOLLOWING--
DALY: (NARRATES) Yes, the President's carriage is just coming down Tenth Street now! It has crossed F Street and is going to pull up right here at the carriage platform. The President is smiling -- bowing -- doffing his high black silk hat to the crowd. And the band that's been waiting here for this moment is picking up its instruments and getting ready to play. Burns, the coachman, is drawing up the horses now. The carriage is stopping at the platform. Forbes, the footman, has jumped down to assist the party as they get out. Mrs. Lincoln and Miss Harris are getting out, and--

SOUND:

CROWD CHEERS! ... CONTINUES IN BG, NEARLY DROWNING OUT DALY AT TIMES--

DALY:

(NARRATES) Now the President, followed by Major Rathbone! The band wants to play a tune. They're asking the President what it is he wants to hear, but it'll probably be "Yankee Doodle," "Marching through Georgia," or "Rally 'Round the Flag." (AMUSED) The President's just said something to the bandleader, but in all of this racket I just can't hear what he's saying!

MUSIC:

BAND STARTS TO PLAY "DIXIE" ... THEN IN BG

SOUND:

CROWD ROARS! ... CONTINUES AT A HIGHER VOLUME, IN BG ... HORSE AND CARRIAGE IN AGREEMENT WITH FOLLOWING--

DALY:

(NARRATES) Yes, the President's carriage is just coming down Tenth Street now! It has crossed F Street and is going to pull up right here at the carriage platform. The President is smiling -- bowing -- doffing his high black silk hat to the crowd. And the band that's been waiting here for this moment is picking up its instruments and getting ready to play. Burns, the coachman, is drawing up the horses now. The carriage is stopping at the platform. Forbes, the footman, has jumped down to assist the party as they get out. Mrs. Lincoln and Miss Harris are getting out, and--
SOUND: CROWD CHEERS! ... CONTINUES IN BG, NEARLY DROWNING OUT DALY AT TIMES--

DALY:

(NARRATES) Now the President, followed by Major Rathbone! The band wants to play a tune. They're asking the President what it is he wants to hear, but it'll probably be "Yankee Doodle," "Marching through Georgia," or "Rally 'Round the Flag." (AMUSED) The President's just said something to the bandleader, but in all of this racket I just can't hear what he's saying!

MUSIC:

BAND STARTS TO PLAY "DIXIE" ... THEN IN BG

DALY:

(NARRATES, EXCITEDLY) Oh, do you hear that?! It's "Dixie!" Mr. Lincoln has asked the Union band to play the Confederate song and they've responded with a will!
MUSIC: BAND PLAYS AN UPTEMPO CHORUS OF "DIXIE"

SOUND:

CROWD CLAPS, AND SOME OF THEM SING, ALONG WITH ABOVE ... AS SONG ENDS, THEY CHEER! ... THEN MURMUR EXCITEDLY IN BG

DALY:

(NARRATES) Well, I hope you can hear me above above all this din! The crowd understands the meaning of Mr. Lincoln's request. It's his policy of forgiveness and reconciliation with the South -- of harmony for the nation! The war is over; the United States of America is now one great nation! And Mr. Ford is leading the way into the theater, up the gray stone steps. Mr. Lincoln's just a few feet away. (CALLS) Oh, Mr. President?! Mr. President?!

SOUND:

DISTANT CHURCH BELLS RING QUIETLY IN BG AS THE CROWD GROWS QUIETER, TO HEAR LINCOLN, BEHIND--

DALY:

Mr. President, this is CBS, sir. May I ask you a question?

LINCOLN:

(GENIAL) Fire away.

DALY:

Well, as you know, Mr. President, the newspapers and a part of the clergy have been opposed to your practice of attending the theater, and I'm sure that--

LINCOLN:

(INTERRUPTS, THOUGHTFUL) Yes, I know. Some think I do wrong to go to the opera and the theater, but it rests me. I love to be alone, and yet to be with the people. I want to get this burden off -- to change the current of my thoughts. A hearty laugh relaxes me. And I seem better able, after it, to bear my cross.

DALY:

I understand, sir.

LINCOLN:

Good night.

DALY:

Good night, Mr. Lincoln, and thank you.

SOUND:

CROWD CHEERS! ... CONTINUES IN BG

DALY:

(NARRATES) Now the presidential party has entered the door! A CBS microphone is inside the theater in the rear of the orchestra. President Lincoln will pass it in just a minute, and so, into the theater and Don Hollenbeck!

SOUND:

CROWD QUICKLY FADES OUT ... FADE IN VOICES OF ACTORS, SLIGHTLY OFF AND INDECIPHERABLE, PERFORMING DIALOGUE FROM THE PLAY "OUR AMERICAN COUSIN" WITH THE THEATER AUDIENCE'S OCCASIONAL LAUGHTER, IN BG

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) The audience doesn't yet know the President has arrived. The ladies might be interested, by the way, to know that Mrs. Lincoln is wearing a white silk crinoline under her cloak. I'm trying to see here. It's an elaborate headdress of flowers and combs over her curls. There're silken mittens and a shawl held together at her throat with a brooch. The President-- Well, he seems to have lost a lot of weight, but-- Oh, he looks happy tonight, very happy. And now the party is turning right and going upstairs to the boxes. The President should be there in just a minute.

SOUND:

THE ACTORS ARE INTERRUPTED BY THE THEATER AUDIENCE, WHICH MURMURS WITH INTEREST AND GROWS LOUDER BEHIND--

MUSIC:

THE THEATER'S PIT ORCHESTRA STRIKES UP "HAIL TO THE CHIEF" ... THEN IN BG

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) The audience has caught sight of the President! The play stops! The orchestra strikes up "Hail to the Chief"! And now CBS has a booth directly across the theater from the President's box, and I see that John Daly's reached it, so over to John Daly.

SOUND:

CUT TO DALY (SLIGHT VOLUME CHANGE OF AUDIENCE AND ORCHESTRA TO INDICATE SWITCH)

DALY:

(NARRATES) We're in the CBS box now. I can see the President entering his box across the theater. We have Columbia microphones on the stage and in the audience. I'm going to open them both and let you hear what's going on!

SOUND:

UP FOR CHEERING, APPLAUDING AUDIENCE

MUSIC:

ORCHESTRA FINISHES "HAIL TO THE CHIEF" BEHIND--

SOUND:

AUDIENCE VERY SLOWLY GROWS QUIET, IN AGREEMENT WITH FOLLOWING, BEHIND DALY--

DALY:

(NARRATES) The President is in his box now. The audience is standing. Mr. Lincoln is acknowledging the welcome. Beaming, he nods his head and waves to the jam-packed crowd. And now, motioning towards the stage and the interrupted play, Mr. Lincoln sits down. The ovation continues, but following the President's lead, slowly, almost by sections, the audience resumes its seats and the play will resume in just a moment. "Our American Cousin" by Tom Taylor, by the way, is an eccentric comedy, as many of you probably know. It's a popular favorite. It's been performed at least a thousand times. The play revolves around a typical drawling Yankee in England who lights his cigar with an old will, burning the document to ashes and thereby throwing a fortune into the hands of an English cousin. And now the CBS microphones on the stage will pick up some of the dialogue.

SOUND:

AUDIENCE FINALLY QUIETS AND THE ACTORS RESUME THEIR DIALOGUE, IN BG

DALY:

(NARRATES, LOW, SETS THE SCENE) Lord Dundreary, a silly foppish Englishman, is being teased by Florence, the heroine, played by the star, Miss Laura Keene.

FLO:

She is a great sufferer, my dear.

LORD D:

Yes, but a lonely one!

FLO:

What sort of night had she?

LORD D:

Oh, a very refreshing one, thanks to the draught I prescribed for her.

SOUND:

AUDIENCE LAUGHS

FLO:

What?! Have you been prescribing for Georgina, Lord Dundreary?

LORD D:

Oh, yes, yes -- quite! You see, I gave her a draught that cured the effect of the draught!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE LAUGHS

LORD D:

And that draught was a draught that didn't pay the doctor's bill!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE LAUGHS

LORD D:

Didn't that draught--?

FLO:

(INTERRUPTS) Good gracious! What a number of draughts! You almost have a game of draughts!

LORD D:

Er-- (FORCED LAUGH) Ha! Ha! Ha!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE LAUGHS

FLO:

What's the matter?

LORD D:

That was a joke, that was. (FORCED LAUGH) Ha! Ha! Ha!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE LAUGHS

FLO:

(MISCHIEVOUS AD LIB) Anyone can see the draft has been suspended!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE ROARS WITH LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE, WHICH CONTINUES BEHIND DALY--

DALY:

(NARRATES, AMUSED) Miss Keene has very neatly injected a bit of the national Peace celebration into the play. With Lord Dundreary making so much of the word "draft," Miss Keene threw in the line "anyone can see the draft has been suspended" -- and everyone in the audience knows that General Grant suspended the military draft this very morning. That was quite keen of Miss Keene, if I may be permitted the pun. Well, the President enjoyed that joke, too; he's smiling broadly.

SOUND:

APPLAUSE DIES DOWN AND THE ACTORS RESUME THEIR DIALOGUE BEHIND DALY--

DALY:

(NARRATES, LOW) The play continues and we'll take you again to the stage presently, but on this gala night the audience is as interested in the presidential party as they are in the play, although, because of the angle at which the box is set, they can only see Miss Harrison and Major Rathbone. The presidential party is occupying boxes number seven and eight, the partition between them having been removed to make it roomier. The boxes are decorated with four flags. The President is seated in that old rocker that Mr. Ford told us about before. There's a chair at the door of the box in which John Parker, the guard, is sitting. He can't see the stage, but he can hear the actors' voices. Oh, evidently John Parker wants to see and hear, for he's now getting up from his chair and taking a seat in the dress circle with a clear view of the stage. Mrs. Lincoln is seated on the President's right and from time to time she leans over on his arm and they exchange a few words.

The President appears completely relaxed and perhaps his mind is on other things. Perhaps he is looking at his wife and thinking, "We've had a hard time since we came to Washington, but the war is over, and with God's blessing we may hope for four years of peace and happiness, and then we'll go back to Illinois and pass the rest of our lives in quiet."

But then it's more likely that Mr. Lincoln is just plain enjoying himself tonight, for the President is listening with obvious pleasure to Mrs. Mountchessington, an English lady in the cast, and Harry Hawk, who is playing Asa Trenchard, the American cousin. Now once again our microphones on the stage pick up the play.

MRS. M:

I am aware, Mr. Trenchard, you are not used to the manners of good society, and that alone will excuse the impertinence of which you have been guilty!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE LAUGHS

DALY:

(NARRATES, LOW) Mrs. Mountchessington flounces off in aristocratic dudgeon leaving the drawling Yankee alone on the stage.

ASA:

(TO HIMSELF) Don't know the manners o' good society, eh? Well, I guess I know enough to turn you inside out, old gal -- you sockdologizing old man-trap!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE ROARS WITH LAUGHTER ... GUNSHOT! ... AUDIENCE MURMURS UNEASILY, IN BG

DALY:

(NARRATES, LOW, PUZZLED) What was that? It sounded like a shot, but there's no shot in the play. One moment. (NARRATES, URGENT, UP) Oh, Major Rathbone is - is struggling with a man in Mr. Lincoln's box! A man who is stabbing wildly at him with a knife! Major Rathbone's giving ground before that knife! And now his attacker has leapt over the railing! He's on the stage!

RATHBONE:

(OFF, OVERLAPS WITH DALY) Stop that man! Stop that man!

DALY:

(NARRATES, TENSE, RAPID) The man has risen; he's running across the stage! He's gone through the stage exit directly under this box! That was Major Rathbone who shouted out "Stop that man!" Someone in the audience has leapt over the footlights after him. Something has happened. Something is terribly wrong. This is not part of the play! Blue smoke is curling from President Lincoln's box. I can't see him because Miss Harris and the Major and Mrs. Lincoln are surrounding him.

MRS. LINCOLN:

(SCREAMS, OFF) He has shot Mr. Lincoln!

SOUND:

AUDIENCE REACTS WITH HORROR ... THEN ANGRY AND CHAOTIC, IN BG

DALY:

(NARRATES) President Lincoln has been shot! That was Mrs. Lincoln who just cried out "He has shot Mr. Lincoln!" The man did it! The man who ran across the stage! The man who grappled with the Major! Don Hollenbeck is out there in the theater, already fighting his way up to the President's box, so-- Go ahead, Hollenbeck!

SOUND:

CUT TO HOLLENBECK (VOLUME RISE OF CROWD TO INDICATE SWITCH) ... MOANING, SCREAMING, CONFUSION, ET CETERA, IN BG

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) This is Don Hollenbeck. I guess we're on the air here. I'm trying to get through this crowd to find out what's going on.

MISS KEENE:

(OFF) Quiet! Keep your seats, please!

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) I don't know what's happened. I don't know what's happened.

WOMAN:

What is it? What's happened? Tell me what's happened!

HOLLENBECK:

Someone has shot Mr. Lincoln.

MAN:

It was Booth!

HOLLENBECK:

Who?

MAN:

John Wilkes Booth!

SOUND:

SOME IN THE AUDIENCE REACT ("Booth ... Booth ... kill him ... hang him ... burn him...") ... THEN STEADY MURMUR OF AUDIENCE IN BG--

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) One member of this frantic crowd has identified Mr. Lincoln's attacker. He says it was Booth, the actor. John Wilkes Booth. We'll try to get to someone who was in or near Mr. Lincoln's box. (TO AUDIENCE) Let me through, please! Let me through! Watch the cable, please! Watch it! Just a minute. Thank you very much. (NARRATES) The whole theater's in an uproar. Everyone's standing, running up and down the aisles. Women are moaning and fainting. Miss Keene is handing water up to Mr. Lincoln's box. (TO AUDIENCE) Watch that cable, please! (NARRATES) Men are lifting up an Army sergeant-- An Army surgeon up on their shoulders!

SOLDIER:

(OFF, BEHIND HOLLENBECK) Back! Back! Everyone back!

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) The stage is swarming with people. We'll get through to Mr. Lincoln's box now in just a second.

SOLDIER:

Stand back! Back! Everyone back!

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) A soldier's blocking the door; his bayonet's poised. That soldier's crying. Tears are streaming from his eyes. There's an officer. (CALLS) Lieutenant! Lieutenant--?!

LIEUT:

Lieutenant Crawford, sir.

HOLLENBECK:

Lieutenant Crawford, what happened?!

LIEUT:

Well, I was sitting in the seat nearest the door to Mr. Lincoln's box. I saw Booth go in--

HOLLENBECK:

Just walk in? But-- Where were the guards?

LIEUT:

Well, I don't know. I - I heard a shot. And I saw Booth leap over the railing. His spur caught in the flag as he jumped. It ripped the flag. It broke his fall -- and maybe broke his leg.

HOLLENBECK:

Oh, are you sure it was Booth?

LIEUT:

I'd swear it!

HOLLENBECK:

What did you do? Did you get into the President's box?

LIEUT:

Well, I rushed it, but the door was barred. Booth had barred it when he went in, from the inside, and we broke through. Major Rathbone let the doctors through -- only the doctors! Look, have they caught Booth? Did he get away?

SOUND:

AUDIENCE MURMURS EXCITEDLY ... THEN IN BG

HOLLENBECK:

Just a minute, lieutenant. (NARRATES) The door is opening. Four soldiers are carrying Mr. Lincoln out.

DOCTOR:

Clear the passage!

HOLLENBECK:

Where are you taking him? Are you taking him to the White House?

DOCTOR:

No, no -- not to the White House!

HOLLENBECK:

Doctor, doctor -- is the wound mortal? Will Mr. Lincoln live?

DOCTOR:

Guards! Clear the passage! Clear the passage!

HOLLENBECK:

(NARRATES) President Lincoln is being carried out of the theater now. I've just been informed that John Daly's out in the street again, so go ahead, Daly!

SOUND:

FADES OUT ABRUPTLY ... FADES IN ON NOISY CROWD OUTSIDE THEATER ... HORNS, COWBELLS, CHURCH BELLS PEALING, BOAT WHISTLES ON RIVER ... THEN BEHIND DALY--

2ND MAN:

(OFF, AN ANNOUNCEMENT TO THE CROWD) President Lincoln has been shot!

DALY:

(NARRATES) Two more soldiers have joined the four who are carrying the President out here into Tenth Street. The street is jammed with people who have heard the news. It's a wild, awed, panic-stricken, swirling mob. The guards are having a hard time breaking through the mob, crossing the street. The long roll you hear is the alert being sounded. There's a light in the house and the door is open. A man stands at the door with a candle, calling to the group carrying Mr. Lincoln. They're taking the President in there. The number is-- (WITH DIFFICULTY) Four. Five. Three. Four-fifty-three Tenth Street. (TO CROWD) Anybody know who lives in that house?

3RD MAN:

Peterson! It's the Peterson house!

DALY:

(NARRATES) It's the only house available.

SOUND:

GALLOPING HORSES' HOOFS APPROACH AND STOP ... TERRORIZED CROWD STARTS TO DISPERSE BEHIND--

DALY:

(NARRATES) The President's White House Guard is thundering into the street. Perhaps you can hear the ring of their horses' hoofs on the cobblestones. They're flashing their sabres and clearing the street. President Lincoln has been shot! President Lincoln has been shot! There's been so much excitement. Only now the full horror of what has just happened at Ford's Theatre is beginning to dawn. We will stay here in front of the Peterson house and bring you immediately any reports on Mr. Lincoln's condition, but we have just been informed that something has happened elsewhere in Washington that we don't know of here on the scene, and so we return you now to our studio.

SOUND:

ABRUPT CUT ... THEN CUT IN NEWSROOM BACKGROUND (TELETYPE CHATTERS STEADILY, PHONES RING OCCASIONALLY, REPORTERS AD LIB, ET CETERA)

CALMER:

(CASUAL) --and I'll give you the bulletins as fast as they come in, Quincy, as soon as we get it back from Daly down there on the street. Right?

HOWE:

(A LITTLE NERVOUS) How much time have I got, though? How long am I on?

CALMER:

(REALIZES, LOW) Wait. Wait a minute. Go ahead. (WHISPERS) You're on the air!

HOWE:

Er-- This is Quincy Howe. John Daly has just announced that an attempt has been made on the life of Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre. Secretary of State Steward -- Seward, I should say -- has also-- Just a second. Here's the bulletin. (READS) "Secretary of State Seward has been attacked. A man entered the Seward house on Lafayette Square in Washington tonight. He overpowered all resistance, gained entrance to the Secretary's bedroom, and slashed at Mr. Seward with a knife. It's not known whether the attacker was John Wilkes Booth or an accomplice -- or whether the two attacks were connected." Now here's Ned Calmer with more bulletins.

CALMER:

All Washington's in a state of panic this terrible night of April 14th, 1865. There are wild rumors that the entire cabinet has been murdered, that General Grant has been assassinated, that the war is not yet over. There's no evidence as yet that these other wild rumors are true. I repeat, the other rumors are not true, so far as is known. Secretary of War Stanton has arrived at the house on Tenth Street where Mr. Lincoln has been taken. He's in complete charge of the situation up to now. Now again, Quincy Howe.

HOWE:

John Wilkes Booth has escaped. He left Ford's Theatre by a rear door -- leapt on a horse that was waiting for him -- and dashed off into the darkness. Someone from the audience chased him -- just missed him -- a matter of inches. Booth left Washington by the Navy Yard Bridge where a sentry challenged him and he gave his real name -- John Wilkes Booth.

CALMER:

The following is the fiend's description. Age: twenty-six. Lithe and sinewy of body. Having probably a broken leg. Intense of speech and behavior. Height: five feet, eight. Weight: one hundred sixty pounds. Hair: black. Eyes: black. Heavy dark eyebrows. Wears a large seal ring on little finger. When talking, moves his head forward, looks down. That is John Wilkes Booth. Rewards totaling one hundred thousand dollars have been offered for his capture. Armed pursuit-groups are after him already.

HOWE:

Booth must have had help. He just couldn't have committed this crime by himself or without lots of preparation. But who slashed Secretary Seward? Who crossed the Navy Yard Bridge a few moments after Booth? Why was it that Booth tried to see Vice President Johnson this afternoon and then left his calling card when he failed? Who cut the telegraph wires out of Washington -- and why? Where was the President's guard, John F. Parker? How could Booth have possibly gained entrance to the President's box without being challenged? These are some of the questions that the tragedy has raised here in this bewildered Capital. How deep do the roots of this plot go? Does the trail perhaps lead right to persons highly placed up in the government? A note has just been handed me. John Daly, in front of the Peterson house, has news of President Lincoln's condition. So we take you now to the Peterson house.

SOUND:

CUT TO BRIEF SILENCE ... THEN FADE IN ON STREET CROWD, QUIETER THAN BEFORE, PLUS HORSES, CARRIAGES, WHISTLES, ET CETERA ... THEN IN BG--

DALY:

(NARRATES) This is John Daly in front of the Petersen house where President Lincoln was carried after he was shot in Ford's Theatre across the street. The President is sinking swiftly. He has not regained consciousness since Booth sent a single bullet, fired at close range, into the area behind the President's ear. The surgeons are discussing now the question of removing that bullet. Mrs. Lincoln is in there at the bedside. So is the President's son, Captain Robert Lincoln. Tad, the President's younger son, is at the White House. He has been assured that his father will live, but this was told the lad only to quiet him. Major Rathbone was slashed about the arm and shoulder by Booth, and fainted from a loss of blood. He has been taken home. In addition to Secretary of War Stanton, most of the cabinet members have arrived, and here comes the Secretary of the Navy, Mr. Gideon Welles. (TO WELLES) Mr. Welles? Oh, Mr. Welles? Uh, this is CBS. We know how great your grief is at this moment, sir, but there are so many questions still to be answered about this frightful tragedy. Will you help us? Who is this amazing madman, John Wilkes Booth?

WELLES:

(WITH DEEP FEELING) This lunatic -- this unspeakable Judas -- is a known secessionist who did not have the courage to don the uniform of his cause.

DALY:

But what possible motive, sir, do you think he could have had in committing this hideous crime?

WELLES:

Only a mind deranged could have given birth to such an act. It may be that he thought to kindle again the dead spark of rebellion. If so, he is as great a fool as he is a villain. The war is over. The Union will stand. Booth has done the Confederate cause more harm than he can imagine.

DALY:

What about the South, sir? What will the South think of Booth's act?

WELLES:

I do not know the mind of the South, but I predict that when the men who fought with Lee -- in uniform, under a flag, and according to a clean code -- hear of this day, they will shrink with horror from this vile deed. Assassination is not an American tradition. It never struck in this country -- until tonight.

DALY:

Thank you, Mr. Welles. I know that as Mr. Lincoln's friend and Secretary of the Navy, you want to go in and see him. (NARRATES) A note has just been handed me. It says-- Oh, this is sad and tragic news. (READS) "The President's pulse is still falling; his breathing becomes more labored." (NARRATES) That's all the note says. As this night of unutterable gloom and sadness wears on, stern resolve melts. Great men weep openly. There's scarcely a dry eye in this crowd here. The door to the Peterson house is opening once again and Mr. John Hay, President Lincoln's private secretary, is coming out. (CALLS GENTLY) Mr. Hay? Mr. Hay, over this way, please.

HAY:

Yes, sir?

DALY:

Mr. Hay, you've been close to Mr. Lincoln. Did he have any fear that he might be struck down before his great work was finished?

HAY:

(QUIETLY EMOTIONAL) Our - our beloved president constantly received threatening letters which he filed away in an envelope. In - in March last month there were eighty letters in the envelope. It was marked "Assassination."

DALY:

You mean letters from cranks and that sort?

HAY:

Yes. In - in 1860, in Springfield, Mr. Lincoln saw a double image of himself in a mirror. One face held the glow of life and breath. The other shone ghostly pale -- white -- portent of a safe passage through the first term and - and death before the end of the second.

DALY:

(SURPRISED) That was five years ago then, that he had this omen of--?

HAY:

Yes. But - but only last week the President dreamed that he was walking through the White House amid the sound of great sobbing. In the East Room he came upon a coffin guarded by soldiers, surrounded by a weeping throng. The President asked, "Who is dead in the White House?" And the soldier replied, "The President. He was killed by an assassin."

DALY:

Well, how did Mr. Lincoln feel about these presentiments?

HAY:

Perhaps he answered that question this afternoon. He was walking across the White House grounds and he passed some profane, drunken men. Mr. Lincoln remarked to his guard, "Crook, do you know, I believe there are men who want to take my life and I have no doubt they will do it. I know no one could do it and escape alive, but if it is to be done, it is impossible to prevent it."

DALY:

Thank you, Mr. Hay. (NARRATES) The tragic news of the attack on President Lincoln has spread around the world. And now CBS takes you to important European capitals. First -- to Buckingham Palace in London, England -- and the voice of her Britannic Majesty, Queen Victoria.

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VICTORIA:

I speak to Mrs. Lincoln. No one can better appreciate than I, who am myself utterly broken-heartened by the loss of my own beloved husband, what your suffering must be. And I earnestly pray that you may be supported by Him to whom alone the sorely stricken can look for comfort.

BRITISH ANNCR:

And now to the French capital.

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FRENCH YOUTH:

This is Paris. I am a French student, speaking for thousands of us in the Latin Quarter. President Lincoln is a fellow citizen. There are no longer any countries shut up in narrow frontiers. Our country is everywhere where there are neither masters nor slaves -- where people live in liberty or fight for it.

FRENCH ANNCR:

From Paris, we take you now to the capital of Russia.

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RUSSIAN:

This is St. Petersburg, Russia. I will read a message from Leo Tolstoi, our great Russian author, who has just been informed of the attempted assassination of President Lincoln. The message reads, "In far places over the Earth, on every continent, the name of Lincoln will be worshipped and the personality of Lincoln will become a world folk legend. Many hardships and much experience brought him to the realization that the greatest human achievement is love. The greatness of Napoleon, Caesar, or Washington is moonlight by the sun of Lincoln. His example is universal and will last thousands of years. Lincoln is humanity." We return you now to the United States.

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CUT TO QUIET CROWD ON STREET ... A MOURNFUL NEGRO SPIRITUAL IS SUNG ... MEN AND WOMEN WEEP ... OCCASIONAL HORSES, CARRIAGES, ET CETERA ... STEADY FALLING RAIN ... THEN ALL IN BG--

DALY:

(NARRATES, SOMBER) This is John Daly in front of the Peterson home on Tenth Street. It is past seven o'clock in the morning, April 15th, 1865. President Lincoln was shot last night at ten-fifteen. Doctors say there is no hope. The long vigil will soon be over. Here outside the Petersen house a cold rain is falling. The sky is dully gray. The early morning mist is like a shroud. The hearts of men and women are overflowing with grief. Some are kneeling; some lifting their voices in the singing of spirituals. We are told that Mrs. Lincoln is not in the room with the President. She has made her last farewell and is seated in a back parlor. Captain Robert, the President's son, is leaning on Secretary Stanton's arm. He has borne himself well. Only twice has he given way to his overwhelming grief. The Reverend Dr. Gurley has spoken a prayer. For Abraham Lincoln there will be black borders on the newspapers today; anguished sermons on Resurrection Sunday tomorrow. [There will be the lying-in-state, the lonely train, the slow journey, the final resting place.] There will be the end of the mortal, but the beginning of the immortal. For Abraham Lincoln will live on -- in the Union he has saved, in the freedom he has given, in the dreams he has dreamed, in the vision he has seen -- the vision, under God, of a new birth of freedom; of government of the people, by the people, for the people.

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DALY:

(NARRATES) Secretary of War Stanton is coming out of the Peterson house now. He pauses in the doorway and the crowd, looking at his grief-stricken face, is suddenly silent. (GENTLY, TO STANTON) Mr. Stanton, how is Mr. Lincoln?

STANTON:

Now - he belongs to the ages.

DALY:

(PAUSE, NARRATES) The dread thing that we have awaited has come. President Lincoln is dead -- the victim of Booth's vicious--

SOUND:

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VOICE:

(ECHO) Washington, April 14th, 1865 -- Abraham Lincoln is assassinated at Ford's Theatre.