The Life of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd: Containing His Letters from Fort Jefferson, Dry Tortugas Island, Where He Was Imprisoned Four Years for Alleged Complicity in the Assassination of A

Dr. Samuel Mudd's great professional misadventure began at 4 o'clock in the morning on April 15, 1865. when he came downstairs in his night shirt to admit two men, Tyler and Tyson, the former of whom had an injured leg which he said was caused by his horse having fallen upon it. The leg was broken. Dr. Mudd set it, put the man to bed for 10 hours' rest, after which he and his companion Tyson resumed their journey on horseback. A week later Dr. Mudd learned that Tyler was John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Lincoln. In another week Dr. Mudd was a prisoner on the charge of complicity in the assassination, and in September he was a convict imprisoned in Fort Jefferson on the Dry Tortugas. Here he was promoted to the carpenter shop after a severe apprenticeship in irons. Two years later, in September, 1867, the fearful epidemic of yellow fever being under way, and the medical officer of the post having died, Dr. Mudd left the work bench and the commandant left his office, at the same hour of the morning, each looking for the other and on the same errand. Their business was practically concluded before they actually met. A third person was able to assure the commandant that Dr. Mudd would undertake the duties of post physician. He stopped the removal of the sick to another island, and insisted that they should be cared for at the fort and should be covered with blankets instead of sheets. He had good luck with his patients. There were 15 or 16 new ones every day. In a short time he was superseded by another medical man from Key West, but continued his arduous labors until attacked by the fever himself. It was soon over, and he was at work again among the sick until but 10 men appeared at roll-call and but 30 all told were fit for duty, not an officer among them. During this period Dr. Mudd's mail was received with the seals unbroken, and he wrote letters, a few. When the susceptibility of the population was exhausted the epidemic ceased. Dr. Mudd could have left the island a dozen times during the height of the epidemic. He went back into irons and washed down the bastions. Refusal to do this work was punishable by death on the spot. This was proved by those who tried it. His mail, both coming and going, had to pass the curious scrutiny of a provost marshal. Re careful how you ask a veteran of those times what a provost marshal was. The title is ephemeral, but its memory is everlasting. Few manifestations of pain are more vivid than the blush of an ex-provost marshal. On February 13, 1869, President Johnson pardoned Dr. Mudd, but omitted to ask the Doctor's pardon. On March 20, 1869, Dr. Mudd was received again into the bosom of his family in Prince George county. He died on January 10, 1883, aged 49 years and 21 days.