The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1855-06-11

Man KILLED and Many Seriously
Wounded.
An extraordinary excitement, growing out
of the proceedings of the Mayor of Portland
(Neal Dow,) in purchasing liquor for the City
Agency. under the new law, occurred atPort-
land on Saturday evening, ending in tumut
and the shedding of blood. We give below
the particulars of the affair, as contained in
the Portland Argus. The Argus makes the
following statement;
1t will be remembered that on Saturday
morning we called the attention of tn City
Marshal and the Police, to the fact that
large quantity of spirituous liquors had been
purchased in New York and brought here for
sale. and suggested to them the propriety of
selling them. These liquors, $4,000 worth,
Mr.. Neal Dow had stated to enc of the Alder
men, that he had bought on his own individual
responsibility, and had ordered them to be
brought here and stored in the city. This
being apparently in direct violation OF law,
making Mr.. Dow liable to the penalty, on
conviction, of Imprisonment for thirty days,
and rendering the liquors subject to seizure
and destruction, complaint was accordingly
made to the Police Court, and Judge Carter
liquors; bat whether for the arrest of Mr..
Dow we have not learned. Judge Carter,
however, instead Of giving his warrant TO an
officer who was ready to make immediate
service, put it into the hands of Deputy
Marshal Ring, who for some cause immedi-
ately disappeared and could not be found.
Meantime the Board of Aldermen were
summoned to meet, for the purpose it was al
,f = he frao fpr & ho
to the city, for its agency, which was esta-
blshed on last Thursday night, by the casting
vote of Mr.. Dow, though the liquors were pur-
chased some weeks since. After the A lder-
men had been together a while, Deputy Ring
appeared and seized the liquors upon the
warrant.
Quite little crowd stood about the door
where the liquors were stored, and in the
vicinity. during the remainder of the after
noon, but perfect quiet and apparent good
nature was observed. Soon after o'clock
crowd began to collect about the deposit
of the liquors in the City Hall bui 'ding, and
gradually increased until little after
O'Clock, when the cry of fire was raised, as
we understand, by Dir. Dow's order, aud the
bells rung with a view of diverting the crowd
from the spot! 1t had, however, contrary
effect. and greatly increased it for time, as
the engine companies were brought from
both extremes of the city to the center in
Market square, where the crowd was as
sembed. They, however, soon withdrew, and
the crowd began to diminish.
| Occasionally during the evening, stones
and brickbats were thrown against the dool
of the liquor store, breaking the glass am
sashes, and otherwise injuring the door -
| This was done, so far as we could see, BY
boys.
The whole affair was the merest boys
| play, done in the most apparent good nature
and with the least possible excitement. In
deed, nearly the whole crowd seemed to b.
there without other purpose than curiosity t
see what might be done, and those win
threw the missiles were without leaders o
apparent power to do harm.
1t is our decided opinion, and we have no
met an intelligent person who witnessed thu
proceedings of the evening that does no
concur with us, that an efficient police off
Ger, with dozen good men, could have easily
dispersed the crowd any time perior to g.
o'clock. Soon after 10 o'clock the crow
had materially diminished, and seemed rapid
ly dispensing, when Mr.. Dow, accompanied
by Capt. Green, and a part of the Ligh
Guard, appeared upon the sidewalk on TIL
north side of the City Hall. The Grove
were warned to dispense, His appearance
sword in hand, with soldiers, at once change,
the temper of the multitude. They rallied
around them giving groans and Kisses prio
to the proclamation to dispense.
Mr.. Dow then gave the order, "First sec
ton fire. The order was not obeyed, AM
the crowd then threw missiles. A part o
the company started to escort Mr.. Dow to
I'd mad ho Aor irr,
mediately returned to their armory in tn
; third story of the City Hall building. A
The time Mr.. Dow gave the order to fire
(Capt. Green refused to give it, as we under
stand, on the ground that he did not thin
the circumstances authorized IT'D the com
: pany were standing directly opposite the en-
trance to the hall fthe Mechanics Associa
ton in Clapp's block, and their fire woul
have taken effect, if at all, upon the peopl
on the sidewalk, part of whom were me
chanics just coming from their hall, and VIII
were entirely Unconscious that any such pro
ceedings was called for or contemplated
After Capt. Green's company had retired
the brick5ats flew thicker and stronger, an
the police, who were aiding the deputy Mar
shal,who had seized the liquors, to guard tn en-
commenced firing pistols, charged only wit
powder. A sort of sham fight was thus KEEP
up between the crowd which had now be
come more determined in its character, an
the police. until about i O'Clock, when Mr.
Dow, with portion of the Rifle Guards
under Capt. Charles w. Roberts, descende
from the Light Guards Armory, and witt
the muskets of the Light Guards, to tn
souh-side Of the City Hall The doors O
the liquor store were then thrown open, an
t the firing commenced, by Mr.. Dow's order
through the store upon the crowd in tn
street, upon the other side of the building.