Sugar planter. [volume] (West Baton Rouge [i.e. Port Allen, West Baton Rouge Parish, La.]) 1856-1925, 1857-06-20
a Grave Charge.

the American party Of the former city
with having imported gangs Of rowdses
aud bul'ies from Baltimore for The pur
pose of controlling their recent munici
: pal election, thus making themseIge.
responsible for the acts Of violence aue
bEoodshed which took place on t!at day
No individuals are named AZ conueetes:
with th. affair, no specific charges made
beyond a general sweeping allegation
against the whole party OF the city, aud
as no reason is given for supposlng j;
to have been brought about through lhe
agency Of the America party, the charge
| will not probably be thought WORTH re.
futng there. 4. 4 distance from the
scene, however, It is more essential thai
such statements should 10. be passed
over IN silence.
[. is alleged that band Of Baltimore
desperadoes, forty, fifty OF sixty in mum
bsr, made their appearance on the morn
! ing OF the election, and II the course OF
tl4e day rnurdeTousiy assaulted the Anti
Know Nothing voters at the polls.
diving them away, together with The
commissioners Of election. and causing
the voting places 10 be closed. The
/ row. dies, it is sad, then carried i, with d
high band, Until they were dispersed by
the military, who, 1t seems, IN performing
stis duty mus. have fred with criminal
careiessness, for nuWber of persons
were slain WHO lad nothing to do with
The disturbances, while the immediate
producers of the bloody scene escaped
unscathed, it is stated with a single
exception.
The Washington Union. Star, New
3, ! ork Tribune, lines and Evening Post,
| publish Lighly eolofsei accounts Of the
disturbances aud the fnal tragedy. and
| forthwith draw tie conclusion, and assert
/, Fouutlly, that the Baltimore bui!'es
were imported in accordance with de
iberate arrangement OF 1se American
party, and this without exhibiting par.
tiele o. epldesce TO support The infamous
allegation, beyond urging the improbs-
biiity that the Plug Ugitesa would have
tnads the journey from Baltimore to
! Washington unless melted thereto and
paid for IT. Il IS not even asserted III
! the accounts that any considerable mum
Der oil persons Of either party in Wash
/ lngton actively co-cpera;ed with The BAL
lltuure su.iian<
1t is quite probable that tie Plug
L giles had confedesases 10 y aslslngtou,
but 10 brand Tie Amer ican party OF tIa;
city with So base a crl1I.e is outrageeu US
" atsutd-as much 80 as to call a co.n>
muuty to account OF private individual.
There are ways two sides to a story -
We la published oue view Of the orr
Gin OF tins unfortunate affair, and as an
eutiyely different one claims attention,
it is Just that i: should Do spread before
the public. From an account of the at
fair which we find IN The Baltimore Clip
per we extract the following
Quite early in the marnlug gang OF
Baltln ore Eighth v ard bulI!es stsgger>
ed through the streets OF the Fourth
Ward foursalEs revo.vers, bllIles, s!ung
shots, etc, aud bv way OF diversion ~
aagurated free fight right of, in which
severa, hundred men and boys took
part The immediate cause OF the fuss,
however, seems to have been an attempt
by the Anti. Know Nothiugs to keep such
full possess on Of the polls AS tEa. no
American could approach within stones
throw. For this purpose they crowded
the vicinity with Irish, negroes aud rut-
faus Of every hue, each one Of whom
manifested the most determined resist
ance whenever voter approached who
was adiadged 10 their pastan0, "A fol-
lower OF the dark lantern"
After several fruitless attempts TO de-
posit their ballots, a number ot rssolute
Americans concluded to tieSs their way
through, WREN the Irish finding them
selves overpowered, drew their bl!ies and
commenced slashlng away; in their
drunkenness and frenzy knocking as
many Of themselves down as anybody
else. In the general melee which fol-
lowed, pistols were also fired iudiscrimi-
natey stones. brickbats, and missiles Of
every description hurled violently, pei!
mel, in every direction.
1t is also stated that Edward L. Queen.
a renegade Whig,' declared publicly a
daY or two previous to the election that
:. the Democrats intended to vote early,
and that if the Americans got their votes
in at all, it would be through file Of
marines"
We are advocates Of law and order,
and think that the plug Ug!ies,' aud
every other person who melted or assia-
ted the shameful aad crmin.! riots .p