Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-09-23

Quoted Sanders Stock Journal at Chi
cago, drove to Washington and took
an engine from there to Muscatine,
where he got into telegraphic CON-
munication with Governor Kirkwood.
went back on the engine and drove
to Sigourney, finding the town in q
state of great excitement, patrolled by
company of home guards, only half
Of them armed. The town was filed
with ugly, scowling armed rioters
and things looked pretty squally.
Governor kirkwood Spoke.
During the night Governor Kirk
wood came In from Washington, ac-
companied only by Col. Trumbull Of
his staff, afterwards colonel of the 9th
cavalry. They drove direct to the
court house and Governor Kirkwood
proceeded al once to make speech.
"It is only once in lifetime that a
man is permitted to hear such a
speech, and especially to such an audi
ence under such circumstances. The
grand old man seemed to be inspired,
he was utterly fearless, although APP
parently in imminent danger from the
rough crowd that surrounded and
threatened at times to hang him, his
sing curses at him, which, however,
failed to interrupt his speech. And
such speech? Its like never came
from the mouth Of any other governor
of any state. 1t was far from lady
like, in fact would hardly do for print,
but was vigorous, verile and to the
point, filled with good old English and
interspersed with an occasional round
mouth-filling epithet as he referred to
the rebels. 1t was exhilarating, ex-
citing, but fearsome to see that rug
ged, fearless earnest, grand man
standing up in the middle of the
night, hurting denunciations to such
a mob. He told them that he had
come to see that the law was en-
forced; that the people of South Eng
lisn would be fairly tried and If guilty,
punished, but not by such scoundrely
mob as confronted him; that he mad
reason to believe that they were
drawn together, not so much to punish
crime or see that it was punished, as
to throw obstacles in the way Of the
government, putting down the rebel
lion; that he didn't propose to have
any fire-in-the-rear rebellion in Iowa,
and unless they dispersed before
morning he would have them shot
down like dogs; that he had ordered
troops which were on their way and
when they arrived the next day they
would shoot, and shoot straight, and
shoot leaden bullets, not blank
cartridges; that he would put down
this mob if he had to kill every
mothers son of them-although that
was not exactly the name he applied,
but it would not be polite to give it
verbatim.
Old Man Cowed the Crowd.
Ellis appearance and bravery cowed
them and they commenced to stink
away, and before the governor would
go to bed most of them had left town.
The next morning company came
from Muscatine, and during the day
others arrived from Mt. Pleasant,
Washington and other towns, and by
evening there, were ten companies OF
militia quartered in and around tho
town and the mob had entirely dis
solved and gone home.
81 have always thought that there
would have been bloodshed if Gov
ernor Kirlwood had not fearlessly
met the crisis.
"a number of the rioters were as
rested and bound over, charged with
exciting riot but they, together with
the South English prisoners were re-
leased and all prosecution was wisely
dropped at the next term of court,