The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1886-08-20
THE BELFAST RIOTS.

Another Night of Terror in Belfast, Sue
ceeded by Sabbath of Excitement-One
Man Killed and Several VYounded-State-
ment of a Participant and Eyewitness
The Police and Military Almost Power
less.
BELFAST, Aug. 16.-The city is again
completely upset. The hour of midnight
had hardly passed Saturday night when
firing was heard in the vicinity of North
Howard street, which runs between the
Shank Hill and the Falls road. at first
there were but few shots, and the au-
thorities did not give serious attention to
the matter. But che shots came quicker,
and it was soon apparent that the mobs
were again at each other. The night was
very dark, and il was almost impossible
to locate the firing, but it was soon discov-
cred the Catholic mob was at the corner
OF the Falls road and Conway street, and
the Protestant mob at the upper end
OF Conway street, about quarter
of a mile apart. The weapons used
were rifles and revolvers, but the range
was too long for the latter and no pos
siblc harm could have been inflicted by
them. There was the greatest confusion
among the police and the military forces.
The mobs shifted their ground and small
to corner and from house TO house. The
policemen made two charges, and
the riot act was read twice by
the resident magistrate without any
result, and the firing grew more
constant. 1t was nearly six O'Clock be-
fore the police and military succeeded
in quelling the combatants.
Strange to say, there was not a fatality
on the Catholic side. One man was
killed and two were badly wounded on
the Protestant side. One of the Catho.
pened to see the killing of an Orange.
man whose name was Samuel McFar
land, n man of twenty. 81 saw" sale
he, tone of our men, an eX-soldier and {
good marksman, climb to the roof of q
house and get behind the chimney, max.
ing rest for his Snider rifle. 1t was II
First street, close to Conway street, and
at about four O'Clock. Mcfarland came
out into the middle of the street, firing
at other men. shot from the mar
at the chimney made Mcfarland throw
up both hands and tumble over.
shout went up from the other side and wC
moved up. Mcfarland Law there fully
thirty minutes, and | knew he was dead
for he never moved. BY and by two mer
came out of a house and started to take
him, but shot from the man at The
chimney hit one of them in the leg anC
they dropped Mcfarland and got back
Later on a woman and a man went out
and carried Mcfarland away"
Mcfarland was taken to DIR. Lewis
surgery on the Shank Hill road. Within
few minutes of his arrival two Others
were brought there who received dan
gerOus wounds, James Smith, of East
land street, aged tWentv-fOUr, who was
struck while endeavoring to assist Nc
Farl;nd, his wound being in the hip
whence DR.. Lewis subsequently extracted
the ball of Snider rife, and secondly
Thomas Johnston, forty years of age, ,whC
was shot at the corner of David street
The ball passed through his shoulder
smashing the blade and inf1icting
lacerated wound at the point of its exit
He walked to DIR. Lewis, and after h
had received surgical treatment he COOL!
inquired from the medical men whethe
he could go to his work in the morning
In the meantime there had been an at
tack on squad of twenty-fOur police
men under the command of District In
spector WarbUrton, who had been sen
out at midnight TO relieve tht
guard on the Springfield road
The attack came from the Protest
ant quarter. They had hardly taker
their places when a report was heard anC
a bullet Whistled between the head of the
inspector and that of one of his men
The marksman was behind hedge. II
a moment two other shots struck the
ground near by. The police toOE
refuge behind pile of bricks, whereup
on the firing was renewed from another
quarter. The inspector then withdrew
his men into a half-cOmpleted brick
building near by, and kept them there
during the remainder of the night. One
of the bullets that struck theneighbOring
Catholic chapel was found in the morning
and was of unusual size.
There was no shooting by the police.
They seemed absolutely powerless. The
firing would be one moment from one
quarter, the next from another, and all
that section of the city was in a state oi
absolute terror.
The police were under strict orders not
to fire and the dispersion of the mob was
accomplished by a company of soldiers
who, however, did no firing. The only
arrests made were those of a man
and his two daughters who lived
in a house from which the police
saw shooting. They were Catholics and
claimed that three men forced their way
into the house against their will, but
small confidence was put in this story
for the house is believed to have been {
rendezvous for Catholics.
I have learnt from a participant that
there were only nine guns on the Catho'
lie side. These were all Snider rifles,
improved pattern. There were about as
many Snider rifles on the Protest
ant side and several Tevolvers.
1t would be difficult to describe The
appearance of the city yesterday.
rained almost continuously, but this die
not deter the people of all sizes
ages and classes from strOlline
about the quieter districts and intC
the riotous portion. The whole pop
ulation seemed to be on the streets in g
state of great excitement. The whole
body of troops and police were under
arms and on active duty. Squads Oi
Royal dragons in long, loose wa
ter-proof coats, rode at quick pace
1p and down many of the streets
and long lines of them were on theil
horses all day in the yard of the college
barracks. At every street crossing in
the riotoUs quarter there was either {
company of soldiers or of police
Several companies of the famous Black
Watch regiment from Scotland were on
the Shank Hill and Falls roads and pre-
sented a picturesque appearance, with
bright-colored kits aud long heavy black
plumes.