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The 14th of April, 1865, was a tragic day in the history of the United States. For on the evening of that day, President Abraham Lincoln went to Ford's Theatre in Washington [´wPSINtqn] to see a play which was popular at the time - and never returned.
The day had started for the President with the usual round of office duties. The city of Washington was still in a happy mood. The weather was fine, the sky was cloudless, a fresh spring wind was blowing about flags hoisted from many private and government buildings. The war had only ended a few days before, and the whole country continued to celebrate.
The theatre party for that evening had been planned by Mrs Lincoln. The President usually enjoyed going to the theatre and went very often - but this evening he had no wish to go. He had felt very tired all day and looked upset. He finally decided to go, however, because it had been announced in the newspapers that the President would be present at Ford's Theatre.
The President and his party arrived at the theatre when the play had already begun. When he appeared in the box, the audience greeted him with a storm of applause and the performance was interrupted for a moment. Then the play went on, and the President enjoyed it. He didn't know that his life was in danger ...
