The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1858-08-13

Gus character Familiarity known to the police an
nails of this city, formerly as frequent transgres
sor of the laws but more recently disreputa-
BILE member of the police corps had visited cur
countine-room and protesting great dissatisfac-
ton at the publication in this paper of report of
his riotous and turbulent behavior, during the re-
cent excursion of the steamboat Lancaster to the
village of st. Michaels, had left written form of
retraction of all that had been said about him, to
be signed by our reporter. The handwriting of
this remarkable document, of which we felt it our
duty to give our readers the benefit is under
going investigation with the probability of proving
the implication in the matter of q public officer
not quite so low down in the official scale, per-
haps. as JOHN ENGLISH. We also adverted, al
though in the same cursory manner, to the threats
made by officer ENGLISH of what he would do in
the event of noncompliance with his demands
On yesterday events transpired which proved that
those threats unmeaning menace About
the hour of eleven in the forenoon, our counting
room was invaded by gang of notorious rulians
and outlaws long the terror and the curse of this
community, who after unsuccessfully demanding,
as officer ENGLISH had done before them, the name
of the reporter who had furnished to this paper
the obnoxious article, proceeded without further
ado to make an indiscriminate attack upon
persons and property in the Office Our furniture
was broken, and our books and papers hurled
about in every direction. Our book-keeper, Mr.
EDWARD F. CARTER formerly of the american of
flee, gentleman well-known and widely respected
in this community, was violently assaulted, was
struck and kicked, and pistols pointed at him with
exhortation on the part of the leader of the
gang, to his followers--to shoot. A lad, named
WHARMBY, employed in our office, barely escaped
similar or worse treatment by leaping from the
window Mr. WILLIAM B. Muse, a gentleman of
this city, in nowise connected with this paper but
who happened accidentally to be in the Office at the
time, receiveda severe blow on the forehead from
rufIian named MADISON, who presented a pistol to
his breast, and was only prevented from shooting,
by the timely arrival and prompt interposition
of Captain JOSEPH MITCHELL of the police to
whom under Gods Providence, both Mr.. Muse
and Mr. CARTER are probably indebted for their
lives. When add to these facts, sufficiently in
dcative in themselves of the character and magni-
tude of the outrage committed, the additional cir
cumstance, unknown perhaps to some of our read
ers at distance that our counting-room is stu
ated at the Northeast corner of Baltimore and
North streets the business centre of the city, the
opposite corners being occupied by orr neighbors
of the Patriot and the Sun, we have said enough
perhaps to dispense with the necessity of
anything further from us upon the subject
of this disgraceful occurrence. Yet the wrong
that has been perpetrated will justify, per-
haps, few words of additional COMMENT
We do not propose to allude to the damage that
has been done to our property; few dollars will
probably repair any trifing loss may have sus-
tanned in that particular. We refer only to the
dishonor that has been brought upon the good
name of the city, and the wound which has been
inflicted upon social order by the preparation of
such an outrage as that of yesterday, in broad
daylight and in the most public place in the city.
and TO the unparalleled effrontery of such an at
tempt on the part of the lowest and most degraded
rulians in the community to prevent public
journal from exposing and commenting upon their
crimes in terms of merted condemnation 1t were
supertiuous to add, what we mean that the columns
of this journal, in the future in the past shall
daily attest that we are as little likely to be de-
tered from the discharge of our duty, by actual
violence, as by threats such as, in the present in
stance, preceded its preparation. We rather
accept the occurrence of yesterday as a painful
confirmation of the truth ofal that we have hith-
erto said concerning the prevalence of ruffanism
and lawlessness in the City of Baltimore, and of
the necessity of those labors in the cause of Right
and Justice, TO which we have dedicated these
columns from the first, and to which we this day
consecrate them anew. Neither Life, nor Property
nor Liberty of Speech, nor anything that mon or
dinarily hold sacred, is safe in this community so
long as the present state of things continues.
For the redress of any particular Wrong which
we may have sustained, and for the vindication
of our individual Rights so far as they
have been outraged, we shall look only to the
constituted authorities of the law. A great crime
has been committed against the community-that
of Riot; and greater one attempted-that of
Murder. We leave the punishment of such often
ces to the officers to whose province they properly
belong. Thus fart is simple justice to add we
have found every disposition on the part of the
authorities to bring to light and punishment the
perpetrators and instigators of the attack upon
our Office. From Mr.. JOHN 7. FORD, the Acting
Mayor of the city, and from Marshal HERRING we
have received assurances of their determination to
spare effort to that end while to the individual
bravery displayed by some of the police, among
whom we may enumerate, without disparagement
TO others whose names have not come to our
knowledge, Captain MITCHELL, Detective GoRMAN
and officers ScHERER and RoTE, we are indebted
for the preservation of our property from further
demolition 1t is true as was stated in the papers
Of last evening" that the only parties actually
arrested-JAMEs alias ToBE MADISON, GEORGE CoUL-
son, and PAUL PLACIDE-were released on bail by
MALCOLM ". MEARs, a Justice of the Peace well
known in similar transactions; MADISON, before the
witness against him had time to arrange his dis
ordered apparel and repair to the Station House
for the purpose of giving his testimony, and the
TWO iaoefi whhe The MARSHAL actually at our
ofhce, WINNER ne had come to notify us of their
arrest and OF The necessity of IDENTIFYING them
We trust, however, that justice will not be cheat
ed of its victims by any subatern derel;ct;ons
of duty, and that the outraged laws of tho Stoto
viii find their vindication, where the resnons;h,;.
ty of their enforcement hsore conspicuons,v rests
We may, it is true, hope against hope in WON,
of what the past has disclosed to Us; and when vo
reflect that several of the ruffians engaged in the
preparation of the crime, are connected with the
administration of the law, and have been contin-
ued in that connection, though known to be en-
gagged in its habtua violation, we may indeed
well despair. But there is nevertheless a remedy
for even that grossest of social evils, a lax and
corrupt administration of justice-a remedy SOW
erelgn and sufficient enlightened and resolute
Pubic Opinion To the People, in whose hands
is that remedy, we now appeal-and to that Peo-
pie, in our vocation as journalists, we pledge our
faithful and unremitting efforts TO bring about its
speedy and effectual application.
As we chronicle the outrage perpetrated mon us