Talk:Boston Corbett

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What the hell is a hatter? And why does it require mercury? 09:22, 14 Apr 2005 by User:196.3.48.10

a Hatter is one who makes hats.

Traditionally, hatters used mercuric compounds in the felting of the beaver and other furs to make the fabric hats are made from. Thus the english phrase "mad as a hatter" and the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland.

Specifically, mercuric nitrate was used to wash the pelts which caused the fur to seperate better, and to felt better. This process was called "carroting" because mercuric nitrate was orange. Mercury poisoning attacks the nervous system, causing drooling, hair loss, uncontrollable muscle twitching, a lurching gait, and difficulties in talking and thinking clearly. Mercury was not completly eliminated from hatmaking until 1943 in the U.S. Rick Boatright 18:12, 14 Apr 2005 (UTC)

External link not working

http://members.aol.com/RVSNorton/Lincoln32.html (link is broken.) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.196.60.42 (talk • contribs) 17:34, 26 April 2005

I have a real problem with this statement

"The number of references to Corbett pulling a gun on his friends, or waving a gun before a crowd, suggests that Corbett became something of a legend, casting some doubt on the veracity of such stories."

That's extremely circular reasoning. The only reason the author of this article gives to doubt the stories of Corbett being gun-happy is because he was a legend, and the only reason why he was a legend, according to this author, is because of the stories that he was gun-happy. You don't have to have a PhD in logic to realize that doesn't make sense. I'm going to delete that statement unless somebody can cite references to the claim. (Other than that, though, I found it to be an excellent article.) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Minaker (talk • contribs) 19:27, 26 April 2006

Agony?

To anonymous editor 24.205.251.41, Booth died in agony and there is no POV involved in that remark (slight or otherwise). I'll leave it the way you edited it, and forget about it. Glad you didn't feel the need to tell us he died peacefully. Dr. Dan 04:17, 2 August 2006 (UTC)

Hello Dr. Dan, I just felt that "agony" was unnecessary because it could be interperted as the writer hoping that he died in agony (at least that how I interpreted it). Unless he said he was in agony as he died, how could the writer know how he felt? While I'm sure he did die a painful death, his emotional state at the time of death does not seem relevant to the article. Thank you for pointing out my edit so we could discuss this further. --24.205.251.41 05:10, 2 August 2006 (UTC)

Thanks for your response (one does not typically get them from anonymous users). I prefer to leave the matter alone. In the more detailed and scholarly works concerning Booth's death, that I have read, they point to a prolonged and agonizing death that took several hours. Since I wasn't there, and he didn't tell me so, I'm even more satisfied that I chose to let it go. As a pacifist, and conscientious objector, I would not wish anyone an agonizing death. That was not my intention when I wrote it, and far be it from me, to be some kind of judge of men deemed bad or evil by society at large. Best wishes, Dr. Dan 04:54, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

Passive aggressive much? LOL!173.61.239.187 (talk) 04:14, 26 October 2011 (UTC)

Disobeying Orders?

The John Wilkes Booth article claims that he was "not [firing] against orders as some claim, as no orders were given." That contradicts this article. I don't now which is truly the case, but I just thought I should note this. User:Anonymous 00:51, 8 September 2007 (PST) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.226.227.17 (talk • contribs)

Religious Beliefs

 I was struck by the reference to Corbett becoming a "Born Again 

Evangelical Christian" in Boston in the 1850's. It struck me that this did not appear accurate, given the time frame or the geographic location. The terms "born again" and "evangelical Christian" both have acquired meanings and associations in the late 20th Century which would not have been relevant to the mid-19th Century. I did a little digging and found an article in Harper's Weekly (May 13, 1865) about Boston Corbett which identified that he joined the Methodist Episcopal church at this time. Therefore, I edited the article to include the more precise information.

                                       Bonbga (talk) 20:01, 23 March 2010 (UTC)

Some accounts have it that he hacked off both his testicles after a visit to two Prostitutes. It is said he felt the only way to avoid such temptation again was to remove his testicles. He performed the said surgery (self mutilation) with a pair of scissors.Johnwrd (talk) 00:13, 11 December 2011 (UTC)

Changed link to "Mad Hatter" to "Mad as a Hatter"

The link to "mad hatter" leads to the character from Alice in Wonderland, so I changed it to go to the phrase, fitting nicely with the reference to the phrase. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.41.133.146 (talk) 18:22, 22 May 2010 (UTC)

The man is a hero and I would like it to be put into the article as such.shyjayb 06:48, 22 November 2014 (UTC)

Reference "Swanson 2007"

The reference "Swanson 2007" is used several times in the "Notes" section, but there is not data about this reference in the "References" section. --MrBurns (talk) 01:22, 1 August 2017 (UTC)

You are right. I bet a previous revision deleted the parent citation. Someone needs to rescue it. Ckruschke (talk) 19:08, 11 August 2017 (UTC)Ckruschke

Factual accuracy of his self-castration?

I must confess to a certain degree of skepticism concerning the historical record regarding Corbett allegedly castrating himself. For one thing, why do his Civil War photos show him with facial hair long after the event? According to a source I found online, eunuchs can’t grow facial hair, so I assume that shortly after the act whatever facial hair he might have worn would have fallen out never to grow back. Wrong? Secondly, I am most skeptical of the depiction of Corbett having castrated himself and then having eaten a meal and attended a church service before finally seeking medical help. He wouldn’t have bled to death in the interim? Is it possible that he attempted this act and botched it prior to completion?HistoryBuff14 (talk) 15:04, 2 April 2019 (UTC)

There's a hospital record stating that the testicles were removed. Highlighted at this blog (https://boothiebarn.com/2013/01/08/boston-corbetts-trip-to-the-hospital/) and coming from this collection of records (https://archive.org/details/assassinationofa00redj). According to it the blood clotted but left his scrotum in pretty nasty shape, he was in the hospital for a month recovering. User:Anonymous 13:22, 28 Jun 2019 (MST) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.72.198.248 (talk)

Middle name

What does the H. stand for? Socks2011 (talk) 20:03, 16 October 2022 (UTC)

Mental disorder

The article agrees that the man was ‘insane’ by the standards of the days, however there is no specific mention as two what he had that resulted in the declaration of insanity by the court. Is there any reference out there to what he may have had? Was it Mercury poisoning, or perhaps something like autism or bipolar disorder? If so it would be nice to see that added for some context into the disorder. 2600:1011:B1CC:8521:AC89:49B2:7558:4DE0 (talk) 11:43, 8 October 2024 (UTC)