The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1877-06-07
THE STORY OF A RIOT.
The Quarrel Between Two Celebrated Ac-
tors, and Whnt IL Led To--A Terrible
Scene at n New York Thcater in tslD,

scene at New York Thcnter in tslD.
. In the spring of 1849 the Epglisl
| actor Macready was playing in New
York, and during his engagement there
3 the bitter rivalry existing between hin
and Edwin Forrest eliminated in a ter.
3 rlble riot and the death of thirty per
7 sons. Forrest asserted that while h,
was playing in England Macready haf
secretly suborned several English writer,
10 write him down, and when the Eng
! lish actor came to America to play. this
charge was urged against him by the
! ndherents of Forrest. The story of the
, riot is as follows:
: was to appear i'll "Macbeth " at the
, Astor Place Opera House. The en-.
, tire auditorium was crowded with an
assembly of the most formidable char
J acter, resolved that the actor should not
be suffered to play hispaft. There were
comparatively few of the friends of Mac
feady present, most of the seats being
secured by the hard-handed multitude,
who had made the strife an affair of
classes, and were bent on putting down
the favorite of what they called the kid
gloved and silk-stockinged gentry 1t is
disagreeable thus to recall these odious
distinctions, but the truth of history
necessitates it, Suffice it to say that the
tra9edlan was overwhelmed with misses.
yells,. derisive cries, followed by all kinds
OF missiles. Chairs were hurled from
the gallery, smashing upon the stage.
When it was found that life was in dan
ger, the curtain was lowered and the per-
formance abandoned. Macready pro-
posed to break his engagement and re-
turn to England. But the press con-
demned in the most scorching terms the
outrage which had been done him, and
insisted that he should appear again, and
/ should be upheld at any cost. A letter
was also sent him, signed by forty-eight
gentlemen, including many of the most
eminent and influential names in the
city, urging him to continue his per-
formances, and promising him the sup
| port OF the community. He consented to
repeat the trial.
In the meantime the Courier and In
q"trcr had openly accused Forrest of
being the author of the violent scenes on
the evening Of the seventh, but con-
Vihced OF Its error, and threatened with
libel had Immediately retracted and
amply apologized for the slander. For
rest had no share of any kind in these
proceedings. The worst that can be said
OF HIM Is that he refused to interfere to
prevent the Threatened violence. He
sternly refused to interfere in the slight
est degree with the strife which had now
detached itself from him and fastened
itself on the community, and was raging
between its top and bottom. The defiant
and scornful tone of the press toward
those whom it called rabble, rowdies.
lower classes, greatly incensed them,
and called forth the counter epithets-
lordllnSs, English clique goldfish aris-
tocracy. 1t was perfectly plain that
fearful tempest was brewing. Both par
ties made preparations accordingly. The
enemies OF the Englishman placarded
the city with infiammatory hand bills:
and, on the other hand, the civic author
ltles detailed 500 policemen to the scene
OF trial, and ordered two regiments of
soldiers to be under arms at their quar-
ters.
On the evening of the tenth of Nav.
Forrest was acting the Gladiator" in
the Broadway Theater, when Macready
attempted to act Macbeth "in the Astor
Place Opera House. The latter house
had been so well packed by it's friends ,
with stalwart men that the Bowery bows
who were able to get seats found them /
selves in most decided minority. Still,
they We're numerous enough to make a
chaos of liabolical noises when the cur
tain rose, whereupon the most of them
found themselves incontinently hustled
out into the street But their party was
too strong, and filled now with too ter
rble a temper to be thus easily circum-
vented. The mob instantly assailed the
theater III front and rear. The thunder /,
ing plun9es with which they rushed
against the doors shook the building,
and volleys Of stone shattered the barri-
caded windows, while the shouts and
yellE of the crowd might be heard half
a lnlIe away. Meanwhile the Seventh
regiment of the national guard was
marching to the spot. 1t was received
with scotfs and hoots, clubs and paving
stones. The officers, both civil and mil
ltary, used every exertion to quiet the .
rioters and avoid the final alternative of .
shooting upon them. All was vain.
The more they harangued, expostulated,
entreated, warned, threatened, the mad
der the mob seemed to grow. Already
large number of the soldiers were dis
aDlcu by severe wounds, and it appeared
as if soon their thronging assailants
might wrench their weapons from them.
At last the reluctant order was given by
General Hall: Fire !" A single mus
ket replied. The mob laughed in de-
rision, and pressed forward. General
Sanford repeated: "Fire!" Only three
shots followed the word. Colonel Dur
yea shouted: "Guards, fire !'' The
whole volley instantly flashed forth with
that sharper and heavier report which
the service-charge from
the mere powder and paper of tield-day.
The glare Lit up a sea of angry faces.
For an instant were clearly seen the hu-
man forms clustered ON the steps and
roofs of the adjacent buildings, the
broken lamps and windows in front, the
billowing multitude spread through the
square and streets-and then all was
lark. The mob broke and fled. leaving
thirty dead bodies on the ground, and as
many severely wounded. The law by
It's armed force vindicated its authority
1t the cost of this frightful tragedy, and
5aught the passionate and thoughtless
oopulace lesson which it is to be hoped
40 similar circumstances will ever call
'or again.