GDG- "Loose Bolts Sink....."

[Teej Smith]

> Esteemed GDG Member Tom Ryan Contributes:

>
> One example of this is Thomas Nelson Conrad's memoirs in which he details
> his clandesine observation of the White House over a period of time to 
> learn
> the president's schedule for arrival and departure, and determine a
> propitious time and method to kidnap him.  Conrad was at the time working
> directly for Secretary of Defense James Seddon.  Conrad had moved into
> Washington from his base on the Potomac.  Conrad frequently made his way
> into the capital, and normally operated out of a safe-house only two 
> blocks
> from the War Department and White House.

    Does Conrad offer any proof that he had Sec. of War Seddon's blessings 
on this mission?

     Matthew Pinsker wrote in "Lincoln's Sanctuary: Abraham Lincoln and the 
Soldiers' Home," "The day before the plan was supposed to be executed, 
Conrad claimed that a cavalry detail suddenly appeared at the White House 
and began the practice of escorting the president. He attributed the 
increased security to a newspaper report that had documented similar 
abduction plans by another group of Confederate irregulars. After observing 
Lincoln's new routine for a period of time, Conrad finally left the city, 
conceding the 'unsuccessful termination' of his operation."
    "The biggest problem with Conrad's recollection is his failure to 
acknowledge that Lincoln's cavalry escort had already been in place, in one 
form or another, for three years by the fall of 1864. His account makes it 
appear as if the president had been unguarded prior to the undocumented 
newspaper leak, which Conrad claims ruined his plans. There are other minor 
problems with the story--including misspelled names and many 
self-aggrandizing details--but the fundamental mistake in the account makes 
it difficult to accept."

Regards,
Teej
>