The sun., 1897-08-22
TEN RIOTS IN NEW YORK.
THE FIRST OCCURRED IN 1913, THE
! EAsT IN 1871,
TIVE Dpe 70 slavery. rive 10 Politics. Ono to
Fopuinr Fannticisnn, Ono 20 Economic
Causer. nnd ono to Theatrical Ill Feel
tnE-skstchea OF These Popular Outbreaks.

tnK-skefchea or Eheae Popular outbreaks
In New York's history thcro have been tor
riots. Two Of them were due to slavery, hyt
connected with politics, one chargeable to popu
lar fanaticisrn coupled with superstition. one tc
economic causes, and tho remaining one to the
atrical III feeling.
There was in 17l2 revolt among the slavos
who had d'orgnnizod.to rob and kill their masters
1t began on April 0, whom the slaves of Potcr
Van TilburR, holvcd on Broadway near what
is now Dey street, set his clubhouse ON fire.
When the citizens arrived they were set upon
by the consplrators; several were killed and the
rest driven away. Tho whites repaired to the
fort, situated where Is now the Battery, aroused
tho Governor, and discharged the genornl-alarm
cannon. Soon tho negroes were subdued by a
company OF soldiers, who captured seventeen OF
the original conspirators. The others, six in
number. committed suicide. OF all the rioters,
twenty.one were executed. Some were burnt,
others hanged, one broke on the wheel. and one
hung alive in chains In the town."
In March and April l74l. occurred another
negro riot" It's suppression ' forms the dark.
est blot on tho history OF New York" A con.
spiracy to murder the whites. to make Caesar, a
negro, governor. and Hushson, a white. king.
was said to have been discovered. Tho whites
became panic stricken. especially as tho idoa
became fixed that tho Spaniards wore at the
bottom Of tho conspiracy. Thirteen negroes
were burned to death, eighteen were hanged,
sevonty-one transported. Hughson, his wife
and maid. and tho Rev. John Ury, whites,
were hanged. A historian OF that period says:
This long, steady succession Of executions
and frightful. socpps sccncd temporarily to
change tho nature OF the island inhabitants,
who became prey to n spirit more dcmoni.
acal than human. Tho prayers OF those
lnl IN, fhn ofaka thntr haar
they were bound to It, and their agonizcd shrieks
heard over the bay seemed to make tho hearts
OF the white avengers more pitiless. The ashes
Of the wood which consumed one victim would
hardly grow cold before new fire was kindlcd
in the embers. The oharrcd and blackened
posts were allowed I'd remain as warnings
month after month, and were made more re-
Voting BY gallowp near by, on which many
dead negroes hung In chains"
Next came the Stamp.act riot. When tho first
supply of stamps arrived In London vessel. in
l765. the patriotic New Workers agreed to re-
sist their distribution. They called themselves
''Sons Of Liberty" Ono night In October they
affixed to Tory Gov. Colden's mansion, near
Bowling Green, to the Office OF a Tory named
McEvers. who had been appointed stamp dis.
tributer. and TO many another house and on
fences printed placard in this shape:
PRO PATRIA.
The nrat Man that either distributes or makes use
OF stampt Paper let him take Care of his House.
son, a Effects. vox PorrLI. We Dare.
On All Saints Day, which had been selected by
the thirteen colonies as u day of protest. Gov
Golden fed to his Battery fort. At nightfall the
populace surrounded 1t and demanded the
stamps. Golden sent out o refusal. The crowds
marched to the Commons Fields tnow City
Hall Park. where on an impromptu gibbet they
hanged him In efigy beside figure Of the devil
that held In its stuffed hand big boot, the
symbol of Lord Butte. the reputed author of the
Stamp act. Then the mob formed a torchlight
procession. and carrying gibbet and efiges
again marched down Broadway to Colden's 8
house. Isaac Scare was marshal of the pro-
ccssion and prevented tho rioters from injuring
Coldcn's house. but group found the carriage
house open and dragged out his carriage, and
putting tho effisse inside dragged 1t round and
round Bowling Green. and finally burned it
there.
On April Is. 1888, came 1.-The Doctors riot &"
on account Of the action Of the students in the
medical school in digging into graves in order to
provide subjects for dissection. Tho rioters went
to the hospital. then fronting on Broadway near
Duane street. The dissecting room and labora-
tories and museum were invaded and gutted.
Patients and nurses were left harmless. but
officials and students fed for their lives. The
Mayor and other authorities thought when mid
night came that the rioting had ceased: but on
the next day a similar crowd beset the jail
where the students implicated were confined.
and shouted: Bring out your doctors!" A
large posse OF citizens. among them the great
Jay and Gen. Baron Steuben, was enrolled by
the Sheriff, and they tried TO drive the rioters
away. but unsuccessfully. Then the Mayor
called out the only company OF militia in the
| T,t--
many that the latter laughed at the small force,
and captured the arms and routed the soldiers
The military soon returned with ball cartridges
and the veteran Steuben directed the maneu.
vres. Only one voley and the riot was over for
! the present, for the mob broke up on seeing
| many OF their comrades wounded. But 30 ram
| pant continued the riotous spirit that cannon
were brought up and ununiformed militia were
! detailed to guard the Brdcwell. Then under
| cover OF night the students were taken out.
| They speedily left town.
| Half a century later New York experienced
| it's first political riot. Party feeling never ran
higher than at the charter election In 1884.
New Yorkcra had had only one other popular
| election Of Mayor. for previously that officer
| had been appointed by the Governor. SO the in.
terest was somewhat novel. 1t was the Jack.
of bank or no bank, when labor and
| capital had become antagonstc on the contro-
| vcrsy. Tammany men adored President Jack.
| son. but the Wings. who in dcrsion were called
| "the silk.stocking party" may DO truly said to
| have hated Andrew Jackson. Members of a
| Common Council. ward assessors and ward
constables were TO DO elected also. and
each ofiic0 was voted for on separate
ballot. Tho election occupied three successive
days; there were no registration laws and there
was moro semblance of police; while access to
| the polling rooms WAS free to the multitude
and the polling places might land often did
form part Of liquor saloon. The polling
places were few in proportion to the voting
strength. 80 that in many ways there was Of
fered premium not only to fraud but also to
violence. Cornelius W. Lawrence was tho Tam
many candidate, and utterly irreproachabe as
merchant and citizen. but 80 bitter was the
| Whig feeling against him jackson man that
| the Wings combined with an Independent move
ment for the scholarly Gulian c. Verplanck.
| Tuesday, April 2, the first election day dawned
amid torrents OF rain. Two processions were
organized in tho wet-one by Wings. who pa
| dad tn bya Inra oh