American Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1855-1860, 1855-08-30

very few, they were incidental to the
pushing and crowding Of the various vo-
ters at the polls and were not the cause Of,
nor were they in any way connected with,
the shooting and killing and manning Of
innocent, unoffending. and unsuspecting
American citizens, by Irish and Germans,
in the quiet streets at a considerable dis
tance from the polls. 4
These unproyoked acts Of violence and
bioodshed committed by foreigners were
the commencement of the riots. We have
promised our readers to present TO them
the proof that these outrages were first
committed by Foreigners, that guns were
first fired by foreigners, that the first
bloodshed was the work Of foreigners, and
that the Americans had given no provoca
ton whatever for the commission of such
dreadful crimes. a,
Certificates and alfidavits TO this effect
have poured in upon us. We find it i'm
possible for us to publish at one time one
half of those we have. and are obliged to
select from among them what We deem
sufficient for our purpose, We publish to-
day such only as relate TO the riots in the
Eighth ward and reserve those referring
to the First ward riots for Tomorrow
We have MOI room to give complete an
alysisof these atlidavits, but It win be seen
that they are for the most part the sworH
statements ofrespectable andreliable men,
who were eye witnesses of the matters TO
which they dcpose. Some of them are
|, statements upon oath Of foreigners and
,cathofts, who lived in theimmediate neigh
borhood of the scene Of the riot, and some
actually were great sufferers thereby. 1
From the testimony of Mrs. Caroline
Wall (whose husband, an 1rishman and a
Roman Catholic, was in all probability a.
mong those Killed in Quinn's houses it
appears that for some weeks previous TO
the election the Irish in the moi e borhood
where the riot occurred la been procur-
ing arms and preparing for fight, and
lhst on the Saturday night of the Ameri-
can torch-light procession she had beard
these llishmen say that fhey were led to
Jeiieoe that the pro eSsion would be small
by Mose rho opposed lie Know-l lNoihi,9s,
that she, saw many ofthem with arms, and
heard them say that they intended TO attack
The procession. -. epas s-A,
Joseph Hurker, a German and Catho.
lie, who lived in one of Quimn's houses
(which were burned, { says there were sev
enty. .fpe or oneghundred L-iskmea living in
that row, ,and they hal many visitors of
their coun'rymen, that during two or three
weeks proceeding the election he saw many
Of item often with pistols and guns, and
neard one of them who had several pistols
say, on the Saturday oeee2re the election
that he was ready, that he had seen Quinn
carrying arms into his house. ana that
Quinn had insisted upon his (Hucker's)
voting. although Quinn knew that he HUI
cker was not entitled to avo!e.
james r. Bickhan saw the Irish, eight
Or ten in number, on the morning Of the e.
lection, moulding large quantity of bull
lets in the cellar of one ofthese houses, ,and
on the same morning, from 10 to 8 o'clock
Thos. w. Flarell saw numbers of these
Irishmen, armed with pistols and bowie
knives, passing in and out from the houses
of this row. These men had begged Mrs.
Walls husband to receive arms into his
house. The women had slept in their
cloths the previous night, SO as to be ready
to leave on the shortest notice, and Mrs.
Ruby Dodd, and Elizabeth Dodd and Mar
garet Dodd, her daughters. corroborate
all these statements as to the preparations
that had been made by the Irish in the
neighborhood of Main and Eleventh streets
! 1t is plain to every one that "those who
were opposed to Known Nothings," who
led these Irish 10 believe that the Ameri-
can procession would bo small and instiga-
ted them to make an attack upon it, must
alludc to the demagogues Of the Sag Nicht
I party, who have thus inhamed and aroused
I the passions of these poor wretches and
misled them to the commission of the hor-
i rid crimes which began the riots in that
neighborhood. This is the key to the
: whole Of the subsequent proceedings. The
poor miserable Irish acre leasto believe that
4 the American party was small, that Amer
leans were their enemies, and that they
4 should treat them as enemies. 1t is un-
necessary for to characterize such con-
duet and the miscreants who could begui
Ity oft as they deserve to becharaoterized
+ A discriminating public WILL without any
| ShS SSSottOho itOti uob paw WV u's' "a SeiN
demnation upon allwho are guilty of sucl
consummate vileness. q Ss7 i'9@ II
Mr.. r. H. Lee states that there was bu
little or no 6ghtinga the eighth ward poll'
during the day and that The foreigners
were not at any time driven9from the polls
All the other deponents concur in theil
history ofthe commencement of the riot
A few unarmed, uususpecting and unoffen.
ding American citizens were quietly seated
atthe corner OF Tenth and Main street con
versing together, harming no one, interfer
ing in no way with any one. These Irish
men went from this fortof Quinn's, flle(
as it subsequently, appeared with men anc
arms, stationed and ready at the window:
aud door-ways to discharge their loaded
: weapons These men, armed each will
a pair of frevolvers, passed through the lit
/ tie knot Of Americana, and without stop
/ ping anywhere returned Immediately rude
j ly pushing against one Of the Americana
!, and without parley, or ceremony, all thre,
|, whipped out their pistols and commenced
firing indiscriminateIy among the Ameri