Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1855-03-30
Whittier are we tending?


ton with tie Poole demonstrations, are
sufficient to force conviction on all minds
that there are influences at work Of the
most alarming nature, which must be met
and counteracted otherwise the real
prosperity of the community is arrested
and must assuredly decline.
We believe that our readers are now
generally aware, that for a length of time,
a system of pugilism and prize fighting
has been gaining ground in New York,
and in others of our large towns. The fire.
quenters of bar rooms and groggeries have
become deeply enamored Of the belsily
and degrading scenes connected with this
demoralizing practice A number OF those
ruflians whose brutal passions are infiamed
by strong drink, and whose views of fame
and glory arc connected with manning
and gouging and bruisng of the person,
have kept the New York police in activity
for length Of time, till their feats have
at length come to occupy 4 prominent
place in the courts of justice. Many of
them are foreigners, and others are, it ap
pears, of home birth, With the birth
place, the political connections, or party
views of such men and their admirers and
abettors, We have nought to do. Our OBJ
ject is merely to deal with the moral aspec:
of the question; to hold out a word Of
warning to point to the causes which have
rendered such state of society possible in
/ our country, and to direct attention to the
only remedy.
/ 1t appears that be:weona person named
/ Poole, who WAS a native American, and
others Of Ike character but Of foreign
birth, feui had existed. MOrrissey and
Mclaughlin were the representatives, of
immigrant brutality and misrulc. The
parties were frcquen.ors of drinking and
gambling dens ana all famed for deeds
of outrage and crime. They had come
into brutal collision with each other, and
some of them had nearly paid the penalty
of death for their misdeeds They had
their admirers and patrons in abundance,
and when any Of their breaches Of the law
were expected to take place, steamboats,
were sure to be crowded, and mobs to any
extent were readily at hand
In a drinking den, d;gnifcd by the high
sounding epithe. of Stanwix Hall, in
Broadway, Poole was assaulted about mid
night Of Saturday, or on the morning Of
the Lords Day, and in melee in which
pistols are freely discharged: he received
his death wound, Immediately an ex
element, intense and vile spread, wa:
fel. in society a furor, impassioned aut
ovcrpowering, extends among the masses
He is raised to the rank Of Martyr, ;
= hero, demigod. In him, Imericaniso
, has lost preventative, a champion. 4
f Poole Society is formed to do honor to hi
: memory. The Lords Dag is lrofaned b.
: one Of the largest professions at his fune
, raj, ever seen il New York, involvin:
, more horse labor and toll on the Sabbatl
, than we believe has been displayed OF
, any occasion for several years, even il
connection with demonstrations OF a na
: tional character. And thus the pests 0
t society are seen already to be rnlin!
: powers. The thing indicates how grea
is the amount of social deprayity anon!
us, and how powerless has become the in
tuencc of the coed and the virtuous t
save tie country from the enactment 0
: such shameless scenes.
Let US not be misunderstood. We ab
hor battery, and violence, and bioodshel
whether committed by men born in thi
or in any otLer country. But we protes
against that state of feeling, which woulo
for an instant permit our people to b'
represented in their national character b,
drunkards and bruisers and gamblers, ,wh
are disgrace 70 any land. They are not
and we trust shall never become, the type
Of our temperament or character. W.
hold to it,that in our New England homes
and in the wiic-spreading regions of Ou
hcalthful, moral land, we arc, rs people
r marked by integrity, peace and virtue
, We fear no examination Of criminal sta
tistics, in which cur people shall be con
tras.ed with those of other countries; an
we utterly repudiate tho idea that tn
, national aag of our Union is to be used
the funeral of any victim of his own lif
6 of violence, to enshrine his coiiin, anC
raise him to the rank Of 4 martyr In th
nations cause. Such man is 10 repre-
sentative Of our national greatness, nor Q
our characteristic tendencies, and we notc
the melancholy transactions eOnnectc'
with this murder, and the scenes whlcl
have occurred since it took place, that W
NAV advert to what We believe has mainl,
led to state of feeling which would per
init or endure the existence of such things
In all our cities, the Church has grcatll
L