Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1874-05-13

/, tIuulng ulrty SHIRT, party conccaieu ny
" red sash and a pair Of gray ~pantaloOu
e. with braid down the sides. The me
III were ~lounging against the gate-posts, on
!, with the muzzle of his piece resting on h
foot, the other holding it at arms length
III and both chewing aud splitting all aroun
lie with a certain leisurely activity. Besid
Of the railing, pacing up aud down with a
/. air of preternatural solemuity, we're tw
=, negroes. clad in rags Of various hues an
origin, aud carrying, one a single-barrele
g the other a ouble.barreled shotgun
Re These were evidently in earnest, and i'm
pressed with the gravity of the occasion
One warned us in sepuIchral tones not t
:. approach tho railing, but was %satisie'
with our assurance that nothing would in
duce us TODD SO. Passing on, we entereI
n the jurisdiction Of his comrade, who warne'
us off the sidewalk altogether. We stare'
a in amazement, and he repeated his order
y We then asked him where we should 90 to
$ He brought his piece TO the charge, ant
t pointing the muzzle menacingly both TO
ward us aud toward the middle of thu
: street, shouted apgriIy, "Down dab (!
Down dab" We accordingly went, hav
ing serious doubts as to his respect for the
constitution and the laws. Inside the en-
t closure was scene in which Carlyle would
have taken a grim satisfaction. There was
a barricade Of timber, forming a kind Of
%lunette at one corner, in the direction Of
Baxter's quarters, and another larger one
about four feet high-across the portion
of the yard in front of the portico. A
similar one extended across the portico in.
side the pillars, and within it, en- barbette,
there was a small ield-piece, with a little
pyramid of balls on the plank in front of
the muzzle. A ragged black sentinel with
a shotgun stood behind each barricade,
evidently intent on the business but this
was all the sign Of war there was. The
yard swarmcd with negro %loafers of all
ages and sizes, and wearing costumes of
which words can give no adequate idea.
They were yelling, hallooiDg, romping,
skylarkirg. playing pitch-and.toss squab-
bling on the ground, gambling and signal
ing to friends outside the railing. They
were all unarmed, and were simply enjoy.
ing the spree of the half-serious holiday.
Moving amongst them were one or two
colored officers, wearing sashcs and dandy
swords, cracking jokes and shouting like
the rest. The ground was covered with
the debris which one would naturally look
for-brokcn crockery, sardiue and vegeta-
Bile cans, old guilds and cigar-ends, the
ashes of old fires, old shoes, rags, hats,
bones, aud in fact, every accompaniment
of an abandoned camping-ground, except
dead animals. The crowd we saw before
us evidently passed their days aud nights
there except when it was rainy. Over
the way, in an empty store, was their
commissariat, which was simple 10 its sup.
plies, consisting mainly, l vas told, of
crackers and cheese.
asking for au interview with Mr..
we were readily passed into the
interior of the building. At the door
and at the foot Of the stairs sat negro sen.
very ragged, and wrapped in old
blankets, aud armed with fowling.pieces.
We found the governor No. . in an inner
room, a middle.sized man, with a large
crop of frowsy hair, a strong, rugged face,
with a cunning mouth. which looked cruel
when he showed his teeth, as he did when.
ever he said anything sarcastic aud bitter.
lie was pale aud evidently nervous, as {
que might expect a non-miIitary man to
be who Was standing a siege, but there is
doubt entertained of his courage and
determination. He has gone down to the |
,arricade with his carbiue like the rest G
when there was talk Of an attack. The
in question: sort Of pistol with
very long barrel-stood behind his chair ,
.pparently ready for use; aud, indeed, '
'istols aud muskcts were plentifully dis. I
ributed in al the rooms. MIR. Brooks Il
made us a full statement of the case, bat a
S your readers are already familiar with n
!, | will not repeat it. Suffice to say :.
it was highly technical, indeed ludi. y
rously so, considering what the office in !
lspute was, and he expounded it to us by b
ne aid of illustrations drawn from the '
lew York code. His main point was that a
Legislature and the Courts had con. k
lrrent jurisdiction wei the title to the il
.-ovcrnorship, and, the Legislature having n
to exercise it when he presented CT
is petition, the Courts were justified in u
lssing on his claim, and had decided in L
is favor. All he asked now was that 81
le federal troops should be Withdrawn,
I'd then he said he would settle the ques- Of
on so that it should not be raised again NJ
fifty years. L
Passing out, we stopped for a few II
inutcs to watch the drill of a squad Of G!
le Brooks forces in a vacant lot near the O
1t was composed of about III
irty negroes Of various sizes aud ages, ra
grounded oy about an equal number of SC
okers-on, and was going through the o,
annual of arm under a very weak-voiced st
wearing a stylish blue frock coat, til
&c usual southwestern dirty shirt and ia
almond pin, and a pair Of light, low of
lmps. The men were clumsy and fool te
Hooking, half-ashamed apparently of sh
hat they were doing, and making one as
ink sadly Of the honest callings in which tn
ey might have been engaged The only vi
al enjoyment of the scene was to be ce
und among the lockers on. One of these, m,
large, jolly-faced fellow, black as the tn
Q of spades, was lying on his belly Oh &C
plank on the grass hard by, turning his lie
ad so as to soc the drill, and grinning TT,
I'M ear to eur as. he did SO. Whenever m,
oo,oht IN oyooaJ ,a.:ool - 7 :