The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-03-21

| At this critical turn of affairs, Mayor
| Dow was sent for. He at once hurried
| to the scene and courageously faced the
mob and ordered them to dispense as
had already been done by the sheriff of
| the county. Atlength one man appearing
| to be ringleader in the mob, came to
the door, swearing horrible oaths, and
using most insulting and violent language
toward the police in the room. He called
| them "a pack of damned cowards,n
challenged them to fire, and tainted them
| by saying that they dared not fire. Then
| he harangued the mob, urged them that
there was no danger-that the police
| were towards and had only blank car
tridges, and dared not fire upon them if
they had. The marshal again warned
him upon peril of his life not to attempt
to enter the room. But under his leader
ship the mob again made violent rush for
| the door which however proved too strong
| for them. The police then fired, but in
tentionally aimed over their heads, hop
ing to brighten them and thus avoid the
necessity Of killing.
This checked them for few minutes !;
but the same voice was again heard
rallying the mob, assuring them that no.
| body was hurt---that it was only blank
cartridges, &C., and another rush was
made for the door, the leader reaching it
and attempting to unbar it. The police
then fired, and John Robbins, a mate of
an Eastport vessel, the man who had as
sumed the leadership of the mob, was
| killed. Prior, however, to this firing a
military company, the "Light Guards"
marched through the crowd and took a
| position in front of the door on Congress
| street, when the mob began to pelt them
with stones, and several of the soldiers
were injured. An order was given them
| to fire, thinking that the order itself
might possibly terrify the mob. But the
order was not executed, and the company
| finally retired to their armory somewhat
| in confusion.
After the firing by the police the Rifle
| Guards were called upon, and promptly
responded. Mayor Dow-who is physi-
cally as well as morally fearless-wlth
Aldermen Carleton and Brooks, put him
self at their head, and they marched into
the armory of the Light Guards and took
their guns las their own rifles were with
out bayonets) secured some cartridges,
| and then marched down through the
crowd and into the room through the
door on Middle street. Orders were then
given for them to fire through the door
on Congress street in squads of four.
The order was executed, and ten or
| twelve men were wounded, more OF less
severely. A few rounds suffced to drive
the mob from the door, and gradually, at
about midnight, the mob dispersed, leav-
! ing the police, the military and city au-
thorities in quiet possession Of the room.
But there was another act of the drama
ere the curtain was rung down. 1t was a
trial-at-law, the like of which had never
before been known, the like Of which is
,1va1 10 SCI
| planet.
A few days after the riot the trial of
| Mayor Dow, on the charge of liquor sell
ings took place before Judge Carter (now
| judge of the municipal court, Haverhill,
| Mass.) The hall was crowded, and the
excitement intense. Mr.. Dow had for
counsel Hon. VIM. Pitt Fessenden, after
wards United States Senator, and the
State was represented by Hon. Nathan
| Clifford, afterward a justice of the United
States Supreme Court. 1t was forensic
battle of giants. Mr.. Dow pleaded not
guilty to the charge of ''having liquors
in his possession with intent to SELL and
the trial began.
Mr.. Clifford made mastery argu-
ment, ingenious and plausible, and
evinced great zeal and confidence of sue
cess, based almost wholly on some al
legged informalities-tha Dow had no
right to buy the liquors or have them in
his possession, and, therefore there is
seen the non seQuitua) he intended to sell
them illegally.
That Mr.. Fessenden's plea was like
wise able goes without saying. 1t was
earnest, logical, comprehensive, elo-
quent.
Judge Carter, in an "opinion'' of con-
siderable length, reviewed the entire
case. He stated that the two main points
necessary for the government to estab-
lish in order to convict were: 'sThat the
defendant had the liquors in his posses
sion; and that having them in his pos
session he intended to sell them in VIOLA
ton of law. These he showed, by the
evidence, had not only not been proved,
but that the very opposite had been es-
tablished; therefore it was ordered that
defendant be discharged and that the
liquors seized by the officer be returned
to the city agent from whom they had
been taken.
Il would here remark, parenthetically,
that ex-Speaker Reed, then a lad of about
Is, who was one of the most interested
persons present at the trial years after
paid a high compliment to Judge Car
ter's ruling, adding that ''after hearing
Mr.. Clifford's argument he could see no
way out for Neal Dow, but Mr.. Carter's
'sopinion'' cleared the cobwebs all
away?0
This ended the case for the time being.
But the end was not yet. The entire
State took up the matter, and in the en-
suing autumn one of the most bitter and
memorable political political campaigns
ever known in Maine was fought On
the ground that ''all is fair in war and
politics." the summary suppression of
the mob and the alleged farcical trial
which followed were worked for all they
were worth by the opposition to Dow
and his party Handbills bearing the cut
of a coffin and setting forth that ''Neal
Dow was the wanton murderer of poor
John Robbins" were scattered broad
cast throughout the State, and speakers,
newspapers and campaign documents all
set forth. in glowing colors, that the
murder and the murderer" were
fully condoned and endorsed by the
Maine Law partisans, otherwise known
as the "Ramrod party
The latter desperately tried to stem the
angry tide. Under the lead of the gu