Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1884-04-04
TIE CINCINNATI RIOT

IL. >AlEnl3 " tEIS mob when has turned
Cincinnati Int /. Paujemonium was well ex-
pressed By the threat uttered bv one gang
OF r.ot.r.-"N til re sc. good and drunk
ant Wei aJi9. yoa hluc.r1sts from behind
yous bar; q Starring ont with the pur-
pose Of gnchinG murderer the mob a,
once attracted q tgtlf the entire mass of the
dangerous cl,sse8 u the city. 1t soon lost
Sight OF is original purpose, and after the
first night give i.sclt up to wanton violence
and ineXcusablo destruction of property
Made up for the mos. part of roughs and
criminals, iutilmel with LIQUOR and fred
with the contagious insanity which always
charactetzes reckless mob, the
rioters turned from the pursuit of the
murderer 20 sort of cOmmunistic
a!lack upon property in general--the com.
m1aisiic character ii the outbreak being
well evidenced BIZ he cry OF the mob, This
will be the Paris of America sure enough. +"
And II the dispatches are correct the general
public of Cincinnati take a highly cxtraor-
binary view Of the affair, for the opinion is
said TO be that it would have been the bes,
course to surrender the criminals to the mob
and let the latter give them their well merit
cd punishment. We do rot believe how
ever, that such is really the opinion of the
people of Cincinnati. 1t is obvious that such
course as the one spoken of would be sub
versive of all law and order and Justice.
If it were to be generally adopted we migl t
US well abandon our courts, try offenders by
the newspapers, and let the mob both sen.
tencc them and execute the sentence. 1t
would be relapse into barbarism and an
archy and 50 sclf-cvident is the fact that no
argument is needed to establish it.
The point chiefly emphasized by the not
is the necessity of a reform in the way mu-
nlcipal and other offices are filed. The
Cincinnati mob was, like every other mob a
coward, 1t had neither moral or physical
courage. Proof of this is found in this little
extract from our dispatches "When the at
tack was made on Powcll's gunstore at
| night, the first man who enteled was shot
| dead, the second Jared the same and tie
'illu "dS sNNCINlS NOuUucu. An CuOIt was
made TO fire the building but the proprietor
from an upper window fired well directed
shot and the crowd went away" This in
cident shows the character of mobs most
wildly. One determined man beat back the
whole gang-onc man against thousands.
And when the mob attacked the public
buildings there is no reason to doubt that a
resolute sheriff with a small posse made IN
Of men as determined as himself could have
effec.uolly iepccl The rioters. But of
course the Cincinnati sheriff was not that
Kind Of man. There, as in many another
place. man is elected or appointcd to official
position either because he is an efficient party
worker or because he is good fellow"
and popular man. Especial fitness is quite
| a subordinate consideration. 1t is not sur
prislng therefore, to be told that "Sheriff
Hawkens's bad management was severely
commented on"-though Dad management
| is very enphemistic term for what at this
distance looks like gross incapacity. II
Cincinnati had bad prompt, resolute, clear
headed officials the city would not, in all
probability, have been disgraced by such dread
| ful scenes of violence aud bloodshed, nor
would those three score lives-many of them
lnnosent livcs-hevc ben lost,