The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-04-01

DENoUNcNG THE MILITIA.

The Riot Saturday Night
DENOUNCING THE MILITIA.
CINCINNATI, March S0.-When the denst
crowd which had gathered on Main ana
Court streets, in front of the court house last
night, and between and o'clock, heard The
news passed from lip to lip-the news thai
Governor Hoadiy had ordered the Fourth
and Fourteenth regiments of the Ohio Ma
tioaal Guards to Cincinnati and that they
We're expected on the early trains to reinforce
the local miIitia-bitter denunciatious were
INDUCED in, and such remarks as 40 h
with the militia, the lawyers, and the mur
dercrs."
THE FIRST APPEARANCE OF TROUBLE.
At 10 O'clock at night, the.,first really gen,
uine appearance of trouble, was indicated By
the crowd which at that time began to force
down on the platoons of police at Court and
Main streets They were repslled by a volley
of blank cartridges, which were discharged
from the patrolmen's navy SKIES Some of
the more tini1 took flight, but the greater
number only wavered, and in a few
minutes pressed forward again, when a
second volley was discharged. Confusion
reigned supreme. few scattering militia.
men appeared in the throug on their way &c
join their comrades in the court house 70
tunda, when cries of Kill them,7 "Kil
themn came up from the mob, followed by
stones and other ini~sls, which were hurled
at them rs they passed in. No attempt thus
far had been made to keep the crowd out OF
Main street, the purpose only being to keeT
them from passing cast on Court street, rs
il was not suspected any attack was con.
tcmpiated on the curt house. Suddenly a
crashing of glass was heard in the vicinity
of the treasurer's Office, to the left of th1
main entrance to the court house on MaiH
street, AMI a moment later flames began t.
roll ont through the broken doors and win
dows, Ii citing up the streets around. When
the immense throng witnessed this new
scene cheer after cheer went up. The scene
now was q thrilling one. The entrance to
South Court street and North Court at Main
were guarded by platoons of police. In front
Of them was
THE ROWLING MOB
cheering the flames as they leaped higher and
higher. From the canal bridge on the nortl
to Eighth ON the south, Main street was one
dense mass of human beings, while facing the
court house, leading west, Court street 70!
two squares distant, as far as Vine, was filled
with people viewing the awful destruction
The alleys opening inlo both Moth and Soutl
Court streets, between Main and Sycamore
were guarded by militiamen, while the en-
trance to those alleys on Ninth street OF
the south, and the canal on the north. were
guarded by the police Ninth street was also
kept clean from Main street to the canal. and
Sycamore street, at Ninth, was guarded by
platoon of police,
Main street in front of the court house
and Court street far back west, was densely
packed with women, boys and girls-every-
body there waiting to see bloodshed and
carnage. They had-not long to wait-riskine
their lives TO see the fearful onslaught sure
to come when bullets from the rifles of reclz,
less militiamen should be sent mercilessly
into their midst to NOV them down like
weeds.
"How many here TO see mob violence will
be dead in the morning. was an expression
that could be heard on many lips, and still
THE CROWD PRESSED FORWARD,
10th to leave the dread scene already begun.
A would-bo leader, big, heavy German,
on Main street, shouted: Boys, follow me;
let's go around to the jail-yard gate and take
out the murderers, and a yell went up from
those around him. About fifty men and
boys, many of them carrying clubs, axes,
hammers and broom-handles, formed in
the line and went around North
Court street, followed by the ssirginS
crowd. They We're met by a volley from the
soldiery, and pell nell they went, hrNtls low
hrandishing their weapons Two of them
were seen to fall. In similar rush to the
last on South Court street afterward it was
hat the slaughter from the fire of the militia
Was 81 terrible. The crowd were now mad
With rage, and the more boisterous INDUCED
- rea:s. pa Tom Campbell" was upon
.,a s. Tongues ana men swOre by round
ina. ii they cauIi catch Campbell and
,'+1 r. idy they rouId hang them sky
iA4s E.,rI hem to hell"
-. tITt t'r7b.a volley whc h left so
81 Ill > 'l'h Court street. and while
rnDaJnE, young fellow with
-" t.gnd, waving aioft, wheeled and
~Anu id towards, don't run
rr,. TurH back and give 'em hill"
rua CROWD RUSHED PELL-MELL
., .iali street, where the heat of the flames
"a r.Iy from al tde windows of the court
4 5,i.,e was So painfully intense that many of
the retreatjns crowd had to get on'ther
hands and knees and crawl in order to make
the corner of the court house quickly, as q
protection against the deadly rifle volleys.
Then bitter iuprecations arose mingled with
EXPLANATIONS Burn the armoryl" Burn
the town.
They picked up the records which had been
thrown into the street from the court house
and hurting them back into the flames ex-
claimed, ave can't make matters worse" A
dead man picked up, unidentified, had in his
pocket new memorandum book, upon which
had just been. written "Many poor men will
not work to-day"
FOUR YOUNG MEN SHOT DOWN.
A crowd of four young men who had
somehow gotten past the police on
Sycamore and Ninth street, started
up Sycamore street toward the bar
rieade They were called by the militia at
the barrcade to halt They paid no heed,
and without another word they were shot
down, their bodies filled with bullets. This
served to frighten the police, and they
Rugged the walls closely on either side OF
Sycamore sereet the rest of the night.
At | so a drunken man staggered out of
the open alley into Court street, and his body
was flied with bullets.
A crowd of twenty five at 80 alta cked
some street ears at the custom house and took
their lamps from them, and then broke into
Pickering's, hard by, and carried off n large
number of revolvers.
At 3 O'Clock, when the patrol backed to
Kinzbank's drug store, corner Court and
Walnut streets, to take away two dead men
who had been carried in there and seven or
eight wounded. a crowd naturally gathered