The American. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1857, 1857-09-19


laws as crime yet if they did not commit the specific
oHence charged upon them, to wit, a riot-you can
not on your oaths convict them
what then, is q rioty You have been told OF
Doyn sioes, ana by the court what constitutes riot
1t is tumultuous disturbance of the peace b,
!nree or more persons, assembled together acting
wrong" asa
What is an affrayp II, as
" II is the fighting of two or more persons in som,
public place to the terror of the people," y
Inere may have been a thousand people engaged
IN an affray or in various arays on the first day
June, yet you cannot convict them under this ndict
ment. Any number Of persons, from three to a mil
lion, may commit riot, but an affray cannot b.
changed to riot by reason of the number Of persons
engaged in il, or by reason Of the number OF fight
which may have occurred during the affray
III Thousand persons were engaged in fighting OF
the trst day of June, unless there was combination
TO effect specific purpose by three or more persons
which they unitedy had in view, and unitedly
sought 70 accomplish. il was not q riot. desir,
your particular attention to this point No matte
what scenes of bloodshed were witnessed on tha
day--no matter how many other crimes were com
| mitted-n0 matter how many iadioiduaLs were seer
| running after others with pistols, nor how many
pistols were discharged, nor how many stones anf
clubs were thrown--unless those acts were done il
coacefh by three or more persons, and with "com
mon purpose, there was no riot
The essence of riot is the mutual purpose con
cert and support of r. three Or more persons wh'
ARRAY "a tight in q public place 70 the terror o
the people Now, Mr.. KEY, in addressing you OF
this subject, and asking a conviction, said, il
recapltulating the evidence, that witness saw
on but he forgot to tell you that if hundred differ
ent witnesses saw hundred different illegal act,
committed, unless they were committed by concey,
and to effect common purpose, mutually agreed
upon, by three or more persons, it was no riot
Now gentleman pass over this case as rapidly as
can VIII briefly repeat to you our defence. We take
the position that there two aays at the first pre-
cinct Of the Fourth Ward. one in the morning ant
another In the afternoon They occurred at the hour
halfpast nine o'clock in the morning, and at on,
o'clock in the afternoon THAT day We take the posi-
tlon and shall maintain, that the first afray wal
created by others than those now on their defence
Il was created in other words, by those called anti
Americans: will not say by Irish and Dutch
use the term ant-Americans in contraaistnction to
those on trial, who are Americans" say, then
that the first afray was commenced by the anti
Americans, and the second, by the Marines. Upon
the first point-who began the affray? 1t is in eyi
dence, and cannot be controverted that the cef o,
Me police Mr.. Baggott (who think the prosecution
has wisely kept from this court, and not summoned
as witness fired the tgo first pistos There can be
doubt of that He fired the first pistol over the
heads of the crowd and the second he fired from the
corner of r and Seventh streets What was bet
ter calculated to excite afray, than for police
officer land he, the chiefly to FIRE pistol over the
heads ofa crowd to intimidate them on the.occason
The Americans at the polls had heard the
rumor, that the polls were to be occupied in the
morning by the foreign voters, and that if the
Americans voted at ALL it would be in the afternoon
through file of Marinesv What was more certain
to excite their indignation, than for police officer to
step out and fire pistol over their heads and then
retiring TO fire another? Was not this conduct well
calculated to give strength to this rumor which they
to the testimony of Mr. Hallack, Mr.. Lowre, and
others who concur in stating, that the first pistol
was fired by Baggott the retiring policeman care
nothing about his purpose ] care not what he in
tended. care not whether he designed to excite
the " Americans" to commence disturbance nor do
care why or wherefore he retreated. No matter
what his purpose, he did the wrong and that wrong
tended to arouse the passions of the Americans. !
consider the point as TO the first firing settled.
Another point settled by the proof is that instead
of its being q preconcerted disturbance OF a riot
originating with the Americans" this first afray
was nautsaIfgh and not call on one side" as our
worthy friend, Justice Dom, has told you II was
not fight in which there was no resistance but q
mutual fight sudden affray between contending
parties. One witness, Mr.. Lowrie, tells you that
both sides we're fighting and firing" Mr.. Randolph
says it was free fight" Mr.. Southeron says it
was general fight" Others confirm their state.
ments. Thus then, it was mutual fight" and /
will show you presently what was the precise origin
of 1.-THE time and immediate cause.
have already told you of the excitement which
prevailed among the Americans" growing out of
afternoon, and then through file of Marines"-and
how that excitement was naturally increased by Bag
gotts firing pistols over their heads 1 will soon
bring you to the point where the aray commenced,
but, before doing this let add, that it is clear,
from the proof, that both Goddard and Dom (anti-
American Justices) pursued course of conduct well
calculated, still further to excite the temper of the
Americans" care not what was their purpose
j speak of their acts. '
Justice Dom admitted, on his cross-examination,
that he "inyited and urged men to come and vote
earlyp His present party associations inform us
what classes he thus invited. Did he invite the
I" Americans" to come earlys He might have dene
this two or three years ago when his associations
were of different character; but doubt whether,
with all the gentlemans apparent frankness and lib
erality, he extended many invitations to Amer
leans" he did TO the anties will not say that he
gave the charge usually given TO the Irish come
early and cote often" But he admits that he in
vited voters to "come early" His invitation was
accepted by the naturalized eitizens-there is no
doubt on this point, and great numbers of that class
came early upon the ground and had control Of the
avenue to the polls.
From the evidence of Mr. Alexander, and several
others, it appears that Captain Goddard's conduct
created no little excitement This testimony must
be fresh in your minds-and from it, you learned
that Goddard by showing pulling, and hauling :;
and Dom, by admitting men to the polls through
favorism at the outlet of the enclosure barricade
did much TO- produce an excitement among the
Americans"
a wOru OF TWO more, DcIOTe out pre-
else origin Of the affray. Captain Davis proves tha
the affray was "no unusual fght;" that he " hac
seen many such affrays at the polls" He was for
merly captain of the police, and last year afray
of worse character was put down by the police
In this connection, Mr. Lori said, that "those whC
were noisy were half grown men and boys" Mr.
Randolph says, some boys we're hurrahing." Mr.
Larner says the same thing, and Captain Davis say:
"there not much disturbance is usual sucl
occasions"
| mention these things here to show you that il
was " no unusual fight" that il was merely sud
den affray, not riot but such a disturbance onl,
as Goddard and Dom could have quelled, by the us
| Of prudent means. '
The learned United States Attorney has ommtte,
| to mention, that the Empires" from the Eight
Ward, Of Baltimore, were present on that occasion
and how are you to know from the proof, what por
| ton Of the crowd were Empires"-how many wer
| plugs" and how many were Washingtonians? ]
is impossible to say. No man has undertaken TO sa
how many of each class were there, nor who wer
the parties 10 the affray. Witnesses say they "un
derstood" they believed the plugs" were in tn
melee, but there is no evidence to show that thi
was not q fight between the Empires and tn
"rlugsl"
If the Plugs" were here from Baltimore, the,
| were here 70 meet the Empires" Hacck tell
you, that there was haloong for the bloody Eight
4 Ward, OF Baltimore, by party called EmpiresW
| The JUDGE. There is no evidence that the
i came to meet the Empires H"
Mr.. ELLIS. Gentlemen Of the Jury, told you
i would come TO the point, and show you h0eC an
i tohen that morning affray commenced There is b,
i ono xvifnesa yh ahows prapiaA1v Lo,, a,,d s,L,,