Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-06-03
0gio Statesman,
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY
The Ohio Statesman Company
FRIDAY MORNING, JUNE 8
EXCITING TRIALINMAMONING
COUNTY.

\ 1
COUNTY.
Mob Law i'm Youngstown Female
Vigilance Committee Correcting the
Morals of the Place-The ShOddy
Arist0cracy in TrOuble-Men I'm Pet
ticonts and Women In Breeches-
Tar and Feather Two Lewd Sisters
Heavy Verdict Against the Anna.
IONS. .t.... .....
An exciting trial recently occurred at
Garfield, Mahoning county, in which a gang
of rowdy men and women of the neighbor-
ing town of Youngstown were found guilty
of outrageously maltreating two women
whom they charged with improper conduct.
The parties implicated in the mob belong
o the Shoddy aristocracy of the town-the
character of which may be gathered from
the testimony in the case. Youngstown is
one of the most lawless, fanatical and infa-
nous Abolition places on the Reserve. The
majority Of its people approve Of mobs,
frequently participate in them, and, as it
now appears the women have taken hand
in the lawless proceedings for which the
place is noted. Men have been stoned in
the street for expressing their opinions,
printing offices are destroyed and robbed,
by these people, under the impression that
they were ordained to promote morality by
exterminating what in their cracked and
crazed minds they conceived to be wrong.
On the evening of the 2lst of March last
an outrageous assault was perpetrated upon
the persons of two females residing ut
Youngstown, Ohio, named Mrs. Louisa
Stearn, and her sister Emma G. Ross. These
women were chai ged with keeping disre-
putable house, and a preconcerted arrange
ment was made, by a number of men and
women of the town, to enter their house by
force, on the night above designated, and
tar and feather the Objectionable females.
The scheme was carried out to the letter,
and the mob was characterized by the gross
est violence and brutality.
The men and women who participated in
the disgraceful outrage were generally dis
guised, but most of them were recognized
by the women assaulted, and suit was sub
sequently entered against thirty or more Of
them, by Emma G.. Ross, who laid her DAM
ages at $4,000. The case came up for trial
on Monday, in the Common Pleas of Ma
honing county, and excited an eXtraordi-
nary degree of interest in the community.
The testimony was very voluminous, and
we subjoin few extracts, from which the
main facts may be CLEANED:
THE PLOT.
| Miss Ann Niblock testified as follows:
| Mrs. Hiram Park came to my sisters house
| at o'clock that afternoon; she said tie
| arstocracy was going to put down these
| Ross girls; that they had separated Powers
| and wife, and had caused trouble enough
| in families; they were going to cut off their
hair, and tar and feather them, and destroy
| their furniture, dresses and $50 set of furs;
| she wanted my sister to go. We went to
| Mrs. Parks house that afternoons; Mrs. A.
j. Packard, Sarah Murray, Mrs. Mary Nib
| lock and Mrs. Park were there. When we
came in Miss Murray inquired if these Ia
| dies wished to be dressed; it was about in
| the evening; no one then had disguise on;
saw several revolvers; ladies handled them;
| Mrs. Park put one in her pocket; said she
! knew how to use it; she said she had cay
| enne pepper to throw i'm their eyes, and
| scissors to cut their hair of; said they got
the tar of Mr.. Packard, who said he would
| supply the turpentine if they wanted it. |
went up in the evening with them; saw
| Mrs. Harber coming out of the house; she
| said the tar maze her sick; said, ''Oh, Mrs.
|
| mouth. Mrs. Park and james Reno were
to be on hand; he was good fellow. She
| said they were taking up Mrs. Powers
cause; understood that Charlie HOward's
| family were separated by plaintiff; Howard
| was a man of influence; Emma was about
| sixteen years old when she went away with
| Howard; don't remember seeing Emma ON
| the street for year after Howard left her;
| Ross family boarded with us when they
| first came to Youngstown; am daughter
of Benjamin Niblock, who formerly kept
| the Union House.
Other witnesses corroborated the above
testimony, showing that the assault was
| preconcerted.
! STATEMENT OF THE PLAINTIFF.
Emma G. Ross made the following state
I ment: .-
NV sister, myself and our two children
were all that were in the house. My sister
was in bed sick up stairs. The children had
gone to bed; one up stairs and one down
stairs. heard some one in the alley ask,
SIS this Mr.. Ross's house?" The answer
was s'yes." / heard gentle rap at the
door; opened it and a man dressed in q
wrapper came in, and took me by the
throat; screamed. They rushed in, seiz-
ed me, pushed me down, tied my hands
cut off my hair and put tar and feathers or
my head. They cut open pillow to gel
feathers; there were five or six persons hac
hold of me; others had sticks breaking the
furniture. My sister came down stairs anC
they seized her; there was a bright fire
light i'm the room. Mrs. Adelia Wick was
there; it was Theodatus Harber who took
me by the throat. He was disguised with
stripes down his nose and loose wrapper
on. / believe Mrs. Hannah Ames was
there: Eliza Wick was there; think Lau-
ra Wick, John Wick, William Wick, Jane:
Reno, James Raynon, and Henry Bonnel
were there. My sister called out the name
of Julia Seely, Sarah Parritt and Lucy
Packard. AS she called then names they
would turn their backs. My sister did mo-
come down until they had cut off my hail
and were putting tar on, when they seizeC
her. John Wick and William Wick cam,
4 In while was on the floor, walked rount
and went out James Reno was at the doc
with club in his hand. The women sait
they would fix me; would take my heat
down and make me look pretty; would taxi
! my English out of me. 1t seemed a lon;
time while they held me on the floor, thougl
it might have been but a short time.
They forced feathers in my mouth. Ham
ilton, Brothers and Fifield came in and res
cued me. / went up stairs as soon as tn
crowd went out; there was a light up there
In about five minutes some one came u
the outside stairs. James Ryan ordered th
door open; said che would shoot me If