Powell told soldiers he was at the boarding house to do what?

• A. Dig a gutter at the local road.
• B. Dig a gutter for Ford's Theatre.
• C. Dig a gutter for a different tenant.
• D. Dig a gutter for Mary Surratt.

Answer: (D)

This question tests understanding of how Powell tried to explain his presence at Mary Surratt’s boarding house after the find-and-hlee hunt. Powell and the other conspirators used that boarding house as a meeting place and safe spot, so when soldiers closed in, his best chance to appear harmless was to claim a simple, work-related task tied to the owner of the house.

Powell told the soldiers he was there to dig a gutter for Mary Surratt. That choice fits the context: it presents him as a mundane helper doing a favor for the owner of the boarding house, rather than as a conspirator directly connected to the assassination. The other options don’t align with the setting or the kind of cover story someone in that situation would likely give, since Ford’s Theatre is the site of the crime and would raise suspicion, and mentioning a different tenant or a road gutter wouldn’t connect him to Surratt in a plausible, innocent-seeming way.

So, the best answer is that he claimed he was there to dig a gutter for Mary Surratt.