The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1872-05-25

OUTRAGE IN BALTIMORE CoUNTY.-Some two
weeks ago a colored man named Horace Dixon,
who was in the employ of Leonard Mongar,
Esq, of Govanstown, was taken ill with the
SMALL ox. Mr.Mongar put him in his buggy,
and, like man, christian and hero, drove
him up to the Baltimore county Aims House.
Here the authorities erected shanty for his
reception and furnished him with a nurse. The
shanty was at respectable and safe distance
from the Aims House and all other dwellings,
We are informed that some of the workmen
engaged in the construction of the Aims House
made serious complaint against the presence
of the patient in that locality, and used
threatening demonstrations towards the man
who was nursing the patient, whenever he
would go to the spring to obtain water. The
inmates of the Aims House, we are informed
also demonstrated their opposition TO the
presence of the patient on the Aims House
property and some of them went so far as to
make threats.
Be these things true or false, one thing is
certain. Some time during Saturday night
last, while the nurse was away, and who left
in consequence of threats that were made
against him, the shanty was fired, the small
pox patient driven out in the rain and shot at
several times by the fends in human shape
who applied the incendiary's torch to the only
shelter that protected the head of the sick man.
The invalid fled for his life, as best he could,
with no clothing but his shirt and draws to
way to Towsontown about daylight. Mr.. J.
Wesley Lee and William Bedford saw him at
the car office, furnished him with clothes, gave
him a blanket for covering and conducted him
to shed in the woods of Capt. Charles r.
Chew. Here he was furnished with victuals
and rendered as comfortable as it were possible
TO make him under the circumstances. Drs.
Jarrett of Towsontown and Brogden of Govans-
town, visited him during the day and prescribed
for him.
The same day he was removed to house,
remote from any others, in the woods between
Towsontown and Lutherville, owned by Mr..
Abraham Rider, where he has been properly
cared for and attended. He, strange to relate,
is doing well and will doubtless recover.
We consider the burning of his shanty, turn
ing him adrift in the night and firing at him,
under the circumstances, acts of the most afro
cous barbarity. These engaged in it, directly
or indirectly, if discovered, should be promptly
punished by confinement in the penitentiary,
if the man lives, and erecuted if he dies. We
are amazed at the thought that we live in a
community where a crime so savage, so inhu-
man. so barbarous in all its features can be
committed without arousing storm of indigna-
ton among the entire people No man, who
NAV be unfortunate enough to get the small
pox, can consider himself safe in a community
whose public sentiment suffers with impunity,
SQUAD of barbarous and cowardly incendiaries
to burn the hut that shelters e defenseless
eolored man, who is so unfortunate as to have
the smallpox, and turn him afoat to die
Had some one of the owners of a farm adjoin
ing the Aims House been taken with the small
pox those who burned the colored mans hut
would have as good rig ht to go over and burn
said farmers mansion to get rid OF him and his
disease. The crime is the same an each case. The
law abiding citizens of the community would
be no more safe in the latter case than in
the one in point. Yet if the farmers house
were burned there would be spontaneous up
rising of the community in search for the
offenders. We do not wish to be understood as
viewing the matter in a political light We
claim that no community is safe with this
spirit of mischief existing in it. And we desire
to arouse the people to a full appreciation of
their situation.
The County Commissioners have offered re-
ward of $500 for the arrest and conviction of
the parties. 1t is the duty of the authorities
and every we'll wisher of the community to
exert their utmost powers to bring the criminals
to punishment.
five have made any mistake in relating the
facts we will be happy to make the correction.