The Union and eastern journal. [volume] (Biddeford [Me.]) 1854-1858, 1856-02-29
Ito be cOntinued.)
More Border RuRanism. :"

Some few weeks since forcible possession
was taken of the Jail Office in this city, and
n keeper was put into the house occupiedby
Mr.. Norton the old jIilOr, but DC did not
remain there long for lac was ordered out OF
the house on the next morning after he had
bcen placed there, and he left the premises.
Since that time Mr.. Norton has been in
pclccabls possession Of the premises until
Yesterday, when a gang of men broke open
the door of his dwelling house and removed
his furniture lrOla the house.
This proceeding, il is aid, took place at
the instance OF Gov. Wells, who has been
in the city for few days plst, aud who i'm
formed Mr.. Norton last Friday that hemust
leave the premises, that he could IS scare up
greater force 10 hack him than Neal Dow
could, and that he WIS determined the ofli-
GERS he had appointed should have pOSscs-
sion " Wonderfully digni6ed, for "a Gov
crnOr
Il was n specimen Of mob law-On attack
by dozen or twenty men upon house &C
cupicd by one man and sOmc four or five
women We suppose those who were en-
gagged in this transaction, thought they were
doing a most valiant deed, hacked up as
they were BY the Commander-in-chief Ol the
forces of this State
We have always supposed that the law
prcscribos way of getting a man out or
dwelling house, somewhat different from
this, even admitting that he holds poses
sion OF il wrOnglully. We have ALWAYS
supposed that mans fsmily-his wife and
childrcn-and his household furniture could
not b. thus unccrcmoniously thrust out Of
doors without some legal prOcoss in such
casc made and provided. But perhaps We
have been mistaken-tOr, has not his ESccll-
ency, Governor Wells, been n Judge Of the
Supreme Court. and must he no; know the
law But still, this summary process OF
turning a mans family out OF house and
home in the dead OF winter, is somewhat at
variance with the vulgar, old fashioned idea,
that a =. mans house rs his CASTLE" m the
possession of which he is not 10 b. disturb
ed. except by legal process, and in accord
ancc with the provisions of Law, even when
/ he holds that possessions against the right
ful owner.
We learn from the Progressive Age tina,
the Belfast Jail was recently broken into by
a posse of men under the charge Of one Me-
! Clintock, claiming 10 DO Sheriff. lie had
/ never made any demand upon the jailor for
the kew, but took advantage Of his absence
10 f5rcibly enter the house and ransack bu-
reaus and wardrobes in search for it, and
not finding it, prOceeded forcibly TO br,aS
open the Jail. From the account of the
transaction, ~ given in the Ago IL appears
20 have been distardly and most disrcput-
able attack. There was this difference,
boweyer, between that cnss AMI tho one
which occurred here yesterday. Tho assSlil-
ants we're prevented from fully eOnsumating
their lnwlGss purposes, by a strong demon-
str,tion Of the friends OF law and order,
Who demonstrated successfully against the
;rdeesncy Of thrasting the .ailor's family
nnt az doors, ,eAen tAs jaiior ,eas absent and
AZ ,r;Js sicti But for this, the Age says
h;s family would have been turned out Of
doors that night by drunken mob-and il