Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-08-04
CRIMINAL CouRr.-Ths Election Riots.-The

precinct Of the Fourth Ward; has been for the
last three years voter in that ward; went TO the
morning; was there TIL fifteen or twenty minutes
Of one O'Clock; saw a party OF young men that
morning going up ssye1,n s stree, ~ds shamg
arose in conseQ uence Of their arrival; they went
away, and when they retired witness was near
the Tax clerks window, south OF the barricadei
up to the time of the ARRAY cry was several
times raised. of fight! fight! by crowd thatwaS
standing opposite the polls, or little north of
them: saw Captain Goddard at that time; he was
interfering unnecessarily with the crowd; saw
him trying to push them off, this was ten If
teen minutes before the ARRAY could all the
parties at that time; did not hear five distinct ps-
tol shots at the time the ARRAY commenced; when
il occurred, the line of voters there was
some sixty seventy of them) on the pavement,
reaching north Of the polls; the other party was
in the middle of the street; after stones were
thrown, pistol was fired by Captain James w.
Baggott; this was the first pistol witness heard;
witness did not take any part in this matter;
the afray continued five minutes-not more;
the polls during the affray were deserted; the
judges remained absent about half an hour; saw
the Mayor ride mp in an open carriage; the polls
had been re-opened when he came there; it was
then as quiet as polls generally are; saw some
gentlemen go up and speak to him, when he
drove off without getting ont of the carriage at
all; was near the polls up to IS minutes Of
O'Clock; was standing near Esquire Dom all the
time of the ARRAY; saw no man dragged away
from the polls and beaten; was standing near DR..
Mclntire's store talking with some gentlemen,
been beaten; must have seen any one who was
forced away from the polls IL such thing had oc-
cured; saw no man obstructed in his VOTE is IA
miliar with the political character of those who
were voting on that occasion; all voted alike, as
they were disposed to, as far as witness saw;
il was very quiet when the marines came up;
did not see the marines come up; witness was
at dinner when the marines We're coming ND;
heard the cry that the marines were coming
and took his hat and went out; saw a cannon
on the ground; il between the market
house and the sheds; the marines did not 90
up high enough to obstruct the view of witness;
was within fifty yards of them when they charged
upon the gun; had clear view of every thing;
the first fire came from the first platoon of the
marines; previous to that witness heard no dis
charge OF pistol from the crowd; the marines
fred after they took the gun; heard no command
given to fire; the next firing was pistol shots from
the crowd; the marines, after firing first wheeled
around and fred in all directions they shot a
negro on street, between Sixth and Seventh,
within thirty feet of witness; witness examined
after the affair was over, and only saw one mark
of a musket ball at or about the market house;
Allston's corner was obStructed from the view of
the witness by the position of the marines; when
witness saw the negro fall, he backed down to
the corner of Sixth and streets and Il ball struck
the corner of witnesses house and flew by near
WITNESSES wife, who stood in the door, and was
picked up by boy; 1t was fattened by striking
the bricks of the house. ..-
CroSS-e1amined-The polls were open when
the Mayor first arrived; saw the voters going up
as usual at that time; did not see them vote sup
posed that they did; is sure it was not the tax
clerk who talked with the Mayor when he first
came up; saw no rush made al the line of voters;
the judges all left, and then there was general
tight; both sides were firing pistols and throwing
stones; saw no one pursued; the fight was in the
street; did not examine the wounded man who
came down the street; the first fire came from the
marines after they took the gun; they took il and
resumed their places in the line then they brought
their guns to the shoulder and fired upon the re-
treating crowd was not over fifty yards from them
at the time; the first fire was directed to the
ket-house; after that they fred in all directions
the negro was crossing the street when he was
shot, don't know that IL was a musket ball that
shot him; saw the gun after the marines took it;
witness stood at the corner of Sixth street till the
hiring was all over; was in full sight of them
saw some of the marines the left of the line
hrei. every man shot as he pleased.
JdmeS III. Boss, swcrn.-ls a citizen of Wash
ington; resides in the first precinct of the Fourth
Ward WAS one of the judges of the late election
in that waTh; tue polls were interrupted between
and 10 O'Clock; up to that time the election had
proceeded quietly; witness stood at the window
to receive the votes; papers were seldom handed
up till the voters were challenged, then they were
handed in; witness had d better view of the going
out than OF the coming in Of the voters; witness
was IN a position to see what was going on; when
the voting was Interrupted the commissioners
had to leave; the cause Of the interruption of the
foreign voters was that the foreign voters who
Were objected to went out, and persons outside
old them to 70 to the City Hall and get their pa-
Pers properly sealed, and that il was shame that
they had been rejected; witness knows no more
OF the particulars of the riots except that the per-
sons who were attacked came rushing through
the windows, TO get away from the attacking
party; didn't see any fighting; there were MANY
foreign voters among the parties who came
through the polls; witness saw but little Of the
TiOt; could not see il generally; his attention was
called to receiving the votes heard no dis
charge of pistols before the rush was made to the
polisi heard nothing said by the crowd about
pistols being fired, after the affrav was over
the voting was resumed; witness did not see the
Mayor; he heard that he was there, but did not
see him; he saw carriage there; thinks il was
buggy; II was from that time up to the arrival Of
the marines as peaceable any other elections no
effort was made to exclude foreign voters: saw no
person dragged away from the polls; papers
OF voters were kept by the Commissioners of
Election on that day TO the knowledge Of wit
ness; the polls were again closed on the arrival
OF the marines; the Judges had previously deter
mined TO close the polls OH their arrival; witness
told Mr.. Dom TO state to the Mayor that the polls
had been closed, and would be opened again on
the marines retiring from the ground; they were
reOpened as soon az the marines marched down
Sixth street; after the affray in the morning not
so many votes were pOlled up to the time the
marines arrived as were polled previous TO the
aiffay; 1t was orderly up to the time the marines
arrived; saw the cannon when il arrived wit
ness did not know Of any police force being on
the ground except MIR. Watson, who was there;
witness knew Mr. Dom TO lie magistrate. but
did not know him as special policeman at the
time. go.
Mr.. Bradley asked the witness if he saw an
ARRAY m the same precinct last year, and if this
as easily as that of last wear.
Mr.. Key objected to the question, and it was
ruled out by the Court.
CToSS-eIGmiHed.-Witne went on to say that
he heard no pistol fired previous to the ARRAY;
saw nothing that TRANSFERRED outside the POLLS
don't know how many pistols were fired; did not
consider the judges safe during the ARRAY in the
morning; ii was about three hours between the
nrst closing and the last closing of the polls saw
no one forciby taken from the polls; this might
have been done with reference to those coming
up, but not to those who had presented them.
selves to vote.
Question by Mr.. Key-Might not men have
been thus Obstructed?
Mr.. Bradley objected to this style of examina-
ton with regard to what he saw Of these coming
up TO the polls ~
Mr. Key commended that he had right to call
the attention Of the witness to those points that
the jury were entitled to hear all the evidence to
those points. t..
MI Bradley replied that il was not what the
prosecution wished nor what the counsel for the
defence wished, but what the law allowed :; he
commended that that was matter which should
DE ELECTED by the examination in chief :; he did
not, IN his examination, ask any questions in ref
al hat fAoE r.Ia A.