The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-10-24

NoNE OLD PRECEDENTS.
Within the past few weeks. renewed in
tcrcst has been excited in the life and
career of Matthew Lyon, and new fact
has been brought ont in his history As
illustrating the temper of the tines. as well
as giving an incident in his life. which
seems to have escaped the attention of all
his biographers, it may not be unintercst-
ing to recall an event which occurred in
Rutland in October 1904. The legislature
was then in session in the ''od state house"
the same building is now standing on
West street, Immediately west of the Adj
vent chapel-and Colonel Lyon was Il re-
preventative from Fairhavcn. In a letter
from Lyon, now before rs, the event is
stated to have occurred on the 1st day of
October, but as the legislature did not as
semble until the second Thursday of that
month, and from another fact to which We
shall hereafter alludc, it is probable that
the tenth day of October, 1894 was the first
and only time that Rutland was disgraced
with such sight. Before this time. Con.
gress, in order to raise funds with which to
carry on the government, had enacted an
excise law, the heaviest taxes being levied
on dlstillercs engaged in the manufacture
OF whisky. At that day, the distlling of
whisky was considered a proper, legitimate
and respectable business, and was, more or
less, engaged in throughout the country.
Western Pennsylvania was more particu-
larly interested in this kind of business /;
II large proportion Of her capital was in
vested therein; considerable number of
workmen were employed, and upon its
profits the people of that section depended
Tor their actual support. Let this business
be ntcrfered with or injured, the whole
community felt the depressing influence at
once. The excise law, of course. inter
fered with and injured the business. all
kinds OF industry were paralyzcd, and, in
the excitement of the hour, all classes. re
sident in that section of the country.
deemed the law specially and intention
ally aimed at their prosperity. The peo-
pie, without reference to their particular
occupations, banded together to resist the
enforcement of the law and the collection
OF the excise tax on whisky. The troubles
consequent thereon have gone down to
history under the name of ''the whisky re-
bellion' or 1.-THE western Instruction" be
ing the first armed organization to resist
the laws of the United States of which we
have any account.
General Washington was, at this time.
President and was determined that the law
should be executed. He not only ordered
out such of the regular forces of the United
States as were at his disposal, but made
requistion on the several states Tor detach-
ments of their militia. His requisiton was
made in accordance with a special act of
Congress and, SO far as Vermont was con-
cerned, simply required "a detachment
g from the militia of this state, to he held
s. in readiness, as minute men," Forum
ately Their services were not required, the
Instruction being suppressed with but lit.
tie or no bloodshed, the offenders brought
to trial. the taxes collected and the law sub
scquently repealed The federal party, be-
ing in power, were held responsible for the
law, and they, as well as the law itself.
were objects OF frequent and bitter denun-
cation by the, then, opposition. Lyon was
"A blatant democrat, one of the leaders of
his party in the state and was wont to
carry matters with high hand. This was
the situation of affairs when the legislature
convened at Rutland in October, 1894. the
fcderalists, however, being in the MAORI
ty Colonel Lyon seized an early oppor-
tunity so Introduce a resolution upon the
subject, the terms of which were peculiarly
offensive to the friends Of the admipistra-
ton, and which, also, failed to meet the
concurrence of his political friends-to the
effect that the governor be directed to write
to the President requesting him to SUSPEND
the execution of his orders for the march
OF the militia against the 'nsurrectionists
OF the western country" until after the as
sembling OF Congress. A portion of the
preamble and resolution we will quote. as
forming the precedents for SO many similar
preambes, resolutions and speeches in the
early Gays of the rebellion. After reciting
the fact of the instruction, the preamble
declares that ''thc warlike ORGANIZATIONS
now making to suppress it, betokons great
danger OF the sword of Americans drawn
against Americans, and that the blood of
our fellow citizens will be spilled" while
the resolution requests the President to
''stay cOeyciUe measures" In order TO meet
this proposition, Stephen Jacob, afterwards
a judge of the supreme court-as one ac-
count has it-but more especially, proba-
bly,, to ridicule it, introduced resolution.
prefacing it with the remark that sit
would, perhaps, answer every wish of
Colonel Lyon The import of the re-
solve was "That thegovernor be directed to
issue his proclamation forbidding the as
sembling of certain self-created societies,
the dissemination of whose rant and
i" quibblings, had tendency to disturb the