The conspiracy trial of Lincoln's assassins dominates the front page, with the crucial development that newspaper reporters will finally be admitted to witness the proceedings. Eight principals are now on trial, including Edward Spangler, the stage carpenter at Ford's Theatre who allegedly held Booth's horse during the assassination. The Judge Advocate General plans to release evidence to the Associated Press, while new confessions continue to implicate additional conspirators. Meanwhile, precautions remain in place to prevent the accused from committing suicide. From Mexico comes dramatic news of Emperor Maximilian's panic upon learning of Richmond's fall and Lee's surrender. He abruptly ended his excursion to Orizaba and dispatched his cabinet chief, Mr. Eivin, to rush to the United States — possibly fleeing to Canada. The Mexican Liberal forces under Juarez continue their advance, capturing Saltillo and Monterey, with reports that President Juarez may establish his capital at Monterey.

This May 1865 edition captures America in the chaotic aftermath of Lincoln's assassination and the Civil War's end. The conspiracy trials represent the nation's struggle to understand the scope of the plot against its government, while the transparency decision to admit reporters shows democracy's resilience. The Mexican news reflects broader geopolitical shifts — European powers like France, who had supported the Confederacy through Maximilian's puppet regime, now faced the reality of a victorious United States that would enforce the Monroe Doctrine. Across the reuniting nation, the complex work of reconstruction was beginning. Confederate soldiers were taking loyalty oaths, military governors were establishing new civil authority, and the country grappled with integrating four million newly freed slaves into society.

• The subscription price was $5 a year, with single copies selling for 10 cents — and Canadian subscribers had to pay an extra 25 cents to cover American postage
• A bizarre relic-hunting craze had gripped the nation: people were chipping away the entire stairway where Colonel Ellsworth was killed in Alexandria, and someone was caught pocketing bricks from Lincoln's house
• Thomas Martin of Kentucky came within five minutes of execution by firing squad when a telegram from President Johnson arrived suspending his death sentence
• 'Extra Billy' Smith, former Virginia governor, was now mockingly called 'Surplus William' after he and a state auditor tried to flee Richmond with $100,000 in bank specie, scattering money along the canal as they escaped
• The Quartermaster's Department had just achieved massive savings of $35,000 per day (over $3 million monthly) by reducing ocean transport services

• R.M.T. Hunter, mentioned as captured, was a former Confederate senator who had once been considered presidential material — he would later become a Virginia state treasurer and live until 1887
• The Italian consul being recognized at Richmond reflects how quickly European nations moved to normalize relations with the victorious Union — Italy itself was still unifying under King Victor Emmanuel II
• That yellow fever plot mentioned from Bermuda was real: Dr. Luke Blackburn actually attempted biological warfare by sending infected clothing to Northern cities, making him possibly America's first bioterrorist
• The 'Christian Commission' delegates being recalled for visiting General Lee shows how politically charged even acts of Christian charity had become — the organization was the Civil War's largest religious relief agency
• The Hamilton Bermuda Mirror calling Lee's surrender 'unwelcome intelligence' and the Confederate cause 'noble' reveals how British colonial opinion still favored the South even after the war's end