The Sunday tatler and Jersey City express. (Jersey City, N.J.) 1883-1886, 1885-07-05
"CROW'S NEST RIOT.
AP.R r. DECK HAND FATALLY STAg-
BED BIZ 4 NEGRO.

A p. n. r. DECK HAND fatally STAB-
BED BIZ 4 NEGRO.
An Exciting Fourth Of July ARRAY,
In which Several Persons Were Scr.
fously Gut and Otherwise Injured
At six o'clock last evening seven colored
men stood in semi-circle in o little room
in Police Headquarters. They were George
Vreeland, Robert and Anthony Marshall,
George Thomas, Geo. Leake, Severein Cum
mings, and Levi Stokes. In the Chiefs
private sotfice were Mrs. James Mead, the
wife of a Pennsylvania Railroad deckhand;
Miss Mead, his sister; and a stout Irish
woman named Mary Hogan. The seven
colored men were charged with having
been participants in bloody riot in the
vicinity of the "Crow's Nest, The battle
had taken place about three O'Clock in the
afternoon, and was between the white resi-
dents of the neighborhood and the colored
residents. Mrs Mead's husband had been
fatally stabbed during the affray, and
lay at st. Francis Hospital, suffering from
terrible wound in his side. Mrs Hogan
exculpated Stokes from all participation in
the affray, and he Was allowed to depart.
Leake had been going around all day with
revolver which played conspicuous part
in the ARRAY of the afternoon. Bob Mar
shall, when identified was without his coat.
1t was in Inspector Lange's posse sslon, be-
cause on examination it was found to have
been stained with blood. All save Stokes
were positively identified as having been In
the row, and are held to await the investi-
cation that Police Justice Stilsing is to
make into the matter tomorrow morning.
Chief of Police Murphy had extreme diff
ficulty in learning the facts, but as given
to him by Mrs. and Miss Mead, by August
H. Young, Jr, of 444 Second street, Mary
Bunty, of Seventh and Coles streets, Henry
Lynch, James Harper, John Larkins, Err
nest Fitzsimmons and William Gray, they
are as follows:
A party of white residents of the neigh
borhood played ball during the course of
the day on one, OF the lots fronting on
Monmouth street, The stakes consisted of
two kegs of beer, which were to be drunk
at a neighboring saloon. The colered men
were ugly because they were excluded
from the game and the principally
from the beer-and they went around in
sulting the white folks. Mrs. Miller, an
old woman, living in one of the shanties
fronting on Newark avenue, near the tres
tie works, stood at her gate when party
of colored men came along. They in
suited her, and when she retaliated abused
her. Patrick Kenney and Patrick Stretch,
who live on Fifth street near Newark ave-
nue., rushed over to see what
the cause of the excitement was,
and protected Mrs. Miller sainst
further abuse. Two colored men knocked
Kenney down, ard were beating him bru
tally when Mary Bunty, who is relation
of the two men, ran to their aid. One of
the men. Leake it is said, beat her with
cane, and showing the cold point of his pis-
toll against her cheek, was just about to
press the trigger when a citizen thrust his
arm aside, and saved her life. The excite
ment drew crowd of whites, and black
men and wenches poured out from
every hole in the "Crow's Nest" to take
part Men who interfered in the interest
of peace became combatants, and in the
twinkling of an eye general riot
was in progress. Knives were
drawn, and pistols discharged, and
there were all the elements of frst-class
riot in the scene. Mead and friend ran
down into the crowd. Mrs. Mead had fol-
lowed her husband because she was solicit
Gus lest he should lose his watch. When
she reached him. heswas in the embrace of
q eolored man identified by several as
Cummings.
81 seized the two around the waist with
my arms" Mrs. Mead SAID, telling the
story yesterday afternoon. "The colored
man th1nped my arm to drive me off. but
l clung to the pair in the hope of separat-
ing them. | noticed at the time that the
niger was prodding my husband in the
side, but / supposed that he had whip,
and knowing that my husband couldn't be
badly hurt by a whip, paid no attention
to that part of the business, but kept at
work trying to separate them. Finally |
got him away. He sent me back for his
hat, and / went; and when / returned to
him we sat on the grease factory stoop.
Neither of us knew that he had been stab
bed till he fell back in dead faint Then
] saw blood coming from his side, and that
he had been terribly cut"
Some of the citizens who saw the affray
jumped into the coal Office under the tres
tie works and telephoned to Police Head
quarters. Details were summoned from
each of the four precincts, and placed in
command of Inspector Lange. squad
from Headquarters, consisting OF Officers
Clos, Hutton, Kilburn and the Inspector,
and another from the First Precinct, COM
manded by Sergeants White and Cox, went
to the scene of the encounter up Newark
avenue. A squad from the Third, COM
manded by Sergeants Holderer and Nc.
Nulty, descended down Newark avenue !;
squsd from the Second, commanded by
Sergeant Bnckbee, moved on them up
Sixth street. The rioters were hemmed in
on all sides; but when the officers under
took to arrest them the participants dashed
into buildings, disappearing like rats into
their holes, and leaving no trace behind
them. After diIigent effort, however, they
succeeded in capturing those whose names
are given above, and taking them to the
police station.
After the affray it was learned that
Kenney as cut on the side of the nose
and otherwise badly lzjured. His friend
Stretch waR beaten till he had become un-
conscious, and Mrs. Runty was badly
bruised; and others had their eyas hlaeked.
Mead is the one who was most seriously
injured, His condition is critical. After
he had reached st, Francis Hospital it was
discovered that deep knife thrust had
been made in his side, just beneath the
breast, and it is the belief that at the time
Ms. Mead thought his colored assailant
was prodding him with whip, he was
turning the knife In the wound be had
made. The doctors in attendance dis
covered on examination that Mead's heart
and lung had both been injured by the
knife, and he will die The colored men
were taken to the hospital by Oh eff Murphy
late last night. To the surprise Of every
body he identified Leaks as the man who
stabbed him.
BAYONNE NOTES.
The closing exercises 81 public School No. $