From the Richmond Examiner, Wednesday, 4/8/1863 , p. 1

MAYOR'S COURT - April 6, 1863 . - The investigation of the riot cases was continued. Ten men and fifteen women were in custody.

Peter Blake, a young man of twenty, was called up.

Officer Perrin testified - On the day of the riot I arrested two women breaking into Mrs. Sweitzer's; they resisted so violently that I called on a Mr. Levy to assist me; as soon as Levy took hold of the woman this man seized him by the throat. I went to Mr. Levy's assistance and the prisoner ran; I caught him and put him in Castle Thunder.

The accused was remanded to answer for a misdemeanor.

Francis Brown, a tall young man, was called up.

Captain Pleasants deposed - On the day of the riot, understanding that some boots had been carried into the "Our House," I went in there; I found this young man putting on a pair of cavalry boots; he had put on the right boot; I took the man in custody; but on the way to the cage he told me he had taken them from a man in the street to carry back to Mr. Knott's store, from which they had been stolen.

Joseph McKinney, of the city battalion, testified he was with Brown on the day of the riot; a man came along with a pair of boots; Brown took the boots from him and made several ineffectual efforts to carry the boots back to where they belonged; could not get to the store for the crowd; went into Charley Hunt's and asked the bar-keeper to keep the boots; the bar-keeper refused to have anything to do with them; Mr. Brown then said he would put the boots on, and if they fitted him he would wear them back and pay for them; just as he put one boot on the policeman arrested him.; Brown is a shoemaker; works on Government work; have known him for years; he has always borne a good character; he was intoxicated on the occasion referred to.

____ Mayo deposed - Saw Brown with the boots; he said he was going to carry the boots to Charley Hunt's and carry them back where they belonged when the crowd returned.

Brown was sent on for misdemeanor.

Mrs. Mary Jacobs, Jewess, was called up.

The accused is a young woman. Her husband keeps a dry goods store in the house formerly occupied by Thedeorick Robinson. He is the same party who being some time since committed to jail on the charge of receiving stolen blankets, was garroted by the jail birds.

Officer Chalkley deposed - On the day of the riot I understood some things had been carried into Mr. Jacobs' store; I tried to get into the store but it was shut; I went round the back way and saw Mrs. Jacobs; I told her that I had heard that some thing that had been stolen had been brought had been brought into her house; she denied it, but on my finding two bundles of cotton cloth and three shoes in the room in which she was, she said they had been brought in by a woman who worked for her and lived in Rocketts; I asked her to let me go into the store; she said the store was locked and her husband had carried the key off, but that there was nothing in there; I told her I had heard some bacon had been carried in there; she denied it, but still refused to let me go in; I asked Mr. P. H. Butler to go to the Mayor and get authority to break the door open; as soon as Mr. Butler left, Mrs. Jacobs produced the key and let me into the store; there I found a large box containing hats, soldiers' shirts, ladies' white slippers, six pieces of calico, a middling of bacon, some candles, and three large corn brooms, all hid behind the counter; on finding these I asked her where they came from, she said a woman that she did not know had brought the things in there.

P. H. Butler corroborated the testimony of the previous witness.

Mrs. Jacobs - I was standing at my door, and Mrs. Mildred Emory came and asked me to keep the things for her; I didn't know that there was any bacon in the things.

Mildred Emory being called up, admitted that she had left the things at Mrs. Jacobs' to be taken care of.

The case was continued till Wednesday, and Mrs. Jacobs bailed in the sum of $1000, her husband going her bail. He alleged that he owned "a large store and niggers."

Subsequently the Mayor agreed to re-hear Mrs. Jacobs' case on today week, and she was bailed in $3500.

Mrs. Margaret Mudd was called up.

Captain Pleasants testified that he heard that women were breaking into Tyler 's store; went up there and found this lady; she was in the back part of the store, talking with a gentleman.

G. W. Gretter deposed - Friday, about eleven o'clock, a crowd of women came down Main street and stopped near H. W. Tyler's store; this woman was in front, with a man dressed in blue uniform; the party advanced towards Tyler's store; I went there and told this young woman, who was in front, to go away - that she could not come in; she advanced to the door; I caught her and pulled her into the store; she got away and ran out, but came back again, and I caught her again; then the young man with her caught hold of me; I threw him off and drew my pistol, and told the crowd not to attempt to enter the store, if they did I would shoot the first one, this woman made no effort to take anything in the store.

Mrs. Mudd was discharged.

Mrs. Martha Jamieson, of Penitentiary Bottom, was called up.

Officer Kelly deposed - I got information that there were goods in Mrs. Jamieson's house stolen in this raid; I went there and found two barrels of flour and several hams, which had evidently been in the house a considerable time; on a cupboard I found two lots of butter answering the description of butter lost by Tyler & Son; an empty barrel with butter sticking inside of it was found in her back yard; the barrel had the initials on it and the weight, corresponding to the memorandum furnished by Mr. Tyler to the police; Mrs. Jamieson said she was in the riot, and that two young men brought the barrel of butter to her house and divided it there; "T. W. S., 182" were the marks on the barrel.

Lieutenant Carter deposed - On the day of the riot I saw a crowd at Mrs. Jamieson's house, and heard that some of the stolen goods had been carried to her house; I informed Mr. Kelley, and we went together to the house; the balance of my testimony as to what we found in the house is identical with Mr. Kelley's; when I was carrying Mrs. Jamieson to jail she asked me to go by Tyler & Son's; I went there with her; she appealed to Mr. Tyler's clerk, to know if she did not try to prevail on the mob not to destroy his goods; the clerk said she had done so; Mrs. J. did not say that she took any part in the riot, but merely that she was in the crowd.

Mr. Kelley - Mrs. Jamieson told me that Mr. Jackson had told her that if she did not join in the riot that her house would be mobbed.

Mr. S. N. Tyler testified that while his store was being sacked a woman did intercede with the crowd to spare the goods; Mrs. J. may have been that woman; a Mrs. Mays was in the store that day, who has not been arrested; she dropped a ring in the store bearing the initials of her name before she was married.

Sarah Wright and Martha Goode, from Sheep Hill, a locality at the west end of Leigh street , were called up.

Captain Pleasants testified that on the day of the riot he arrested the parties on Thirteenth street , with sundry pieces of bacon in their hands.

The prisoners were sent on to answer for a misdemeanor.

Sarah Champion, from Rocketts' old field, it being proved that she was found in the street with a lot of men's shoes and unfinished shoemaker's work, which she said she got in the riot, was sent on to answer for a misdemeanor.

John D. Lowry, keeper of a cook and shoe shop on Cary street, on whose premises, it had been proved on a precious day, bacon stolen during the riot had been found, was sent on to answer for felony.

Mary Woodward and Mary Wasley were called up. Woodward is young and pretty, Wasley old ad hard featured. These are the two women officer Morris arrested on top of a furniture wagon loaded with bacon, flour, &c.

Officer Morris testified - When I stopped the wagon I arrested Mrs. Woodward; she stuck me and drew this pistol on me; then Mrs. Wasley jumped out of the wagon and attempted to escape, but some citizen arrested her; Mrs. Wasley had a hatchet.

An old gentleman named Johnson, stated that he saw Mrs. Woodward at Tyler 's store, and believing she was not engaged in the riot, asked her to help me to dissuade the women from further violence, and helped her upon a box for that purpose.

Mrs. Wasley - I have no witness at all; Mr. Morris has told the truth; I come from the country; a parcel of men took me and put me on the wagon with Mrs. Woodward; I went up to the Church on Oregon Hill to the meeting on Wednesday night, and was authorized to come up the next day and bring a hatchet.

Mayor - Unfortunately for all of you who were on the wagons on that occasion, they were loaded wagons.

Mrs. Woodward, Sr., Deposed - On the morning of the riot my daughter had on an every day sack and a skirt she had been wearing all the winter; she heard that morning there was to be a woman's meeting on the Square, and went down through curiosity to see what was going on.

Mrs. Woodward was discharged; Mrs. Wasley's case will continue till Friday morning.

Minerva Meredith was sent on for misdemeanor and bailed.

The court adjourned.

We are requested to state that Mrs. Ould, required to give security to keep the peace, for using incendiary language on the City Hall steps, was, on a reconsideration of her case by the Mayor, released from bond

• Prev
• Next