KIOTS. 



386 



discovery of several "subjects" inflamed the fury of 

 the mob, who now began to threaten the whole medi- 

 cal profession. Physicians took refuge in the jail, 

 where they were guarded by the hastily summoned 

 militia. Dr. Cochrane's house was ransacked in a 

 fruitless search for subjects, while Dr. Hicks escaped 

 by the roof. During the night bands of rioters marched 

 through the streets, and the next morning were joined 

 by some sailors. They now attempted to storm the 

 jail, threatening to hang all the doctors. Gov. Clinton, 

 Mayor Duane, Secretary Jay, Baron Steuben, Alexan- 

 der Hamilton, and other prominent citizens endeavored 

 to stay the fury of the mob. Appeals and threat* were 

 alike in vain. Finally, after Mr. Jay, Baron Steuben, 

 and others had been badly wounded by stones, the 

 governor gave the militia the order to fire. One volley 

 sufficed. Five of the rioters were killed, seven or eight 

 badly wounded, and the rest fled. The riot was at an 

 end. 



Whenever a widely extended abuse has become 

 interwoven with the apparent interests, the prejudices, 

 and the passions of large portions of the people, the 

 early reformers who give utterance to protests against 

 it are liable to encounter riotous demonstrations. 

 From 1830 to 1840 riots of which the anti-slavery men 

 were the victims were frequent in different parts of 

 the United States. These riots were not, perhaps, 

 intentionally but none the less effectually stimulated 

 by the language and conduct of the most respectable 

 citizens. In the summer of 1834 a mob attacked the 

 houses of Arthur and Louis Tappan, prominent anti- 

 slavery men. Having sacked the houses, they made 

 a huge bonfire of the plundered furniture in the middle 

 of the street. Mayor Lawrence called out the militia 

 and they assembled in front of the city-hall. Mean- 

 time the mob surrounded the residence of the Rev. 

 Dr. >S. H. Cox (q. r.), barricaded the streets, and were 

 proceeding to demolish the house. The militia, march- 

 ing to its defence, were assailed with stones and other 

 missiles, but finally succeeded in dispersing the mob 

 without firing upon them. 



Of riots originating in religious bigotry one of the 

 most disgraceful that ever occurred in the United 

 States was that which resulted in the burning of the 

 Ursuline Convent in Charlestown, Mass., iu 1834. The 

 Ursulinc order of nuns of the Roman Catholic Church 

 was instituted in 1536, for the purpose of administer- 

 ing relief to the sick and the afflicted and of superin- 

 tending the education of female youth. 



In 1820, with the aid of funds contributed by a 

 native citizen of Boston, four ladies of this order estab- 

 lished a school in that city. In 1826 they removed to 

 Charlestown, where a building erected for them was 

 enlarged as the fame of the school increased. The 

 number of nuns varied from four to ten, and the only 

 restrictions upon their intercourse with outside society 

 were such as are considered proper in any well-regulated 

 female seminary. The number of pupils varied from 

 40 to GO, mostly children from respectable Protestant 

 families, and the teaching was entirely free from any 

 attempt to influence the religious convictions of the 

 pupils. But the fact that the institution was called a 

 convent and was under the patronage of the Roman 

 Catholic Church excited the_ hostility of many people of 

 Charlestown and the adjoining towns, who gave cre- 

 dence to absurd rumors. On Aug. 10, 1834, an inflam- 

 matory handbill was posted in various places. On the 

 1 1th the select men of Charlestown applied for permis- 

 sion to examine the interior of the building. Accom- 

 panied by the very lady who, it had been reported, 

 had been forcibly detained and put to death for attempt- 

 ing to escape, they searched every nook and cranny, 

 and when they left they assured the lady-superintend- 

 ent that they would the next day in the public press 

 inform the people that everything about the institution 

 was of the most exemplary character. Yet, about 9 

 P. M. a mob began to gather around the building, which 

 then contained 10 adults and CO children. At 11 



o'clock the rioters commenced their attack. The lady- 

 superintendent twice appeared upon the piazza and 

 endeavored to reason with the mob. Finding this in 

 vain, she and her assistant gathered the children and 

 ied them to the garden, where they remained terrified 

 spectators of the destruction of their home. Beds, 

 clothing, furniture, including costly pianos and harps, 

 were piled in the middle of the rooms. About 1 A. M. 

 the torches were applied and the whole was soon in 

 James. The mob next attacked the library, or, as it 

 was called, the Bishop's lodge, which was burned to 

 the ground. Next they set fire to the farm-house and 

 barn belonging to the convent. Finally they even 

 broke open the tomb and wrenched the silver plates 

 Prom coffins. While these things were going on thou- 

 sands of people had assembled from Boston and the 

 adjoining towns, but the authorities to their lasting 

 disgrace did nothing to stay the work of destruction. 



Scarcity of food lias, in all ages and countries, been 

 a prolific source of riots. Such scarcity in almost all 

 3ases is the effect of natural causes entirely beyond 

 human control. The immediate result is a rise in 

 prices, which the poorer classes of society almost 

 always attribute to tne action of speculators, and often 

 by a riotous destruction of the very thing needed ag- 

 gravate the evils from which they are suffering. The 

 distress arising from the great financial revulsion of 

 1836 was augmented by a partial failure of the crops. 

 It became necessary to import large quantities of wheat 

 from Europe. During the winter of 1836-37 the price 

 of flour in New York city rose to $15 a barrel, ana the 

 distreas among the poor was very great. Early in 

 February placards were posted in streets headed : 

 "BREAD ! MEAT! RENT! FUEL ! Their prices must 

 come down," and calling a meeting in the park. About 

 6000 persons, mostly foreigners, assembled, and after 

 listening to inflammatory harangues, started to attack 

 the dealers in flour and grain. Mr. Eli Hart was re- 

 ported to have over 50,000 bbls. of flour in his store, 

 besides a large quantity of wheat. Thither the mob 

 proceeded, and though the mayor with a large force of 

 police endeavored to defend the building, his men were 

 soon overpowered, the doors were broken in, and hun- 

 dreds of barrels of flour were pitched into the street. 

 They were broken by the fall, and the strange spectacle 

 was presented of men who claimed to be starving 

 trampling knee-deep in flour. Other stores were at- 

 tacked, but large numbers of citizens joined with the 

 police, and by nightfall the rioters were dispersed. 



Of riots founded upon personal considerations stimu- 

 lated by national prejudices, perhaps the most remark- 

 able that has ever occurred in the United States was 

 that known as the "Astor Place Riot." The trage- 

 dian Edwin Forrest, having met an unfavorable recep- 

 tion in England, attributed^ the hostile criticisms of the 

 English press to the influence of W. C. Macready. In 

 1849 the latter came to the United States to play a 

 farewell engagement, which was so successful that he 

 undertook a second engagement. Forrest's admirers 

 determined to prevent this. On the first night of Ma- 

 cready's appearance in his second engagement, May 7, 

 he was driven from the stage by the violence of a por- 

 tion of the audience. Again on May 10 he presented 

 himself before a brilliant audience, among whom a 

 large number of policemen were interspersed. Cham- 

 pions of Forrest were also present, and when Macready 

 appeared not only received him with hisses and yells, 

 but hurled at him chairs, eggs, and other missiles. By 

 the joint efforts of the respectable portion of the audi- 

 ence and the police, order was restored and the piny 

 went on. But a crowd of 20,000 persons had gathered 

 outside, many being attracted merely by curiosity. 

 Some active participants claimed to be defending the 

 cause of an American against an English actor, but the 

 larger part of the mob roujrhs. rowdies, and thieves 

 were actuated solely by the love of disorder and the 

 1 hope of plunder. While some were armed with 

 I pistols, others found a supply of weapons in stones 



