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WILLIAM WEMMS AND SEVEN OTHERS. 417

the people at the Rope Walk a few daya before.” It was also
shown that Killroy’s bayonet was bloody the next morning
after the affray.© A witness swore that Montgomery was the
first one that fired, that when his gun was knocked out of his
hand he recovered it and fired again and that he was the one
who killed Attucks? .

A large number of witnesses testified to the origin of the
affair and that the blame was attributed to the soldiers and
that the circumstances were not such as to justify them in
firing.

The soldiera were defended by John Adams, afterwards
President of the United States, and Josiah Quincy. Their
plea was self-defense. More than fifty witnesses were exam-
ined to prove the facts alleged in their behalf. From their
testimony, it was abundantly evident, that there was anusnal
excitement amongst all classes of the citizens in the begin-
ning of the evening, and there was a general expectation of
a serious affray between the soldiers and the town’s people.
Crowds of people were collected in various parts of the town,
armed with clubs and other deadly weapons. Parties of sol-
diers were also driving through the street, armed with bay-
onets, cutlasses and clubs, and treating all whom they met
in the most insulting manner. In the first part of the even-
ing, several collisions had taken place between the citizens
and soldiers, and one in which the soldiers of the fourteenth
regiment were engaged, had become quite serious before the
officers were enabled to confine the soldiers in their barracks;
a citizen having received a severe wound with a cutlass, It
was also proved, that the sentry at the custom house was
placed there by authority, and could not leave his station;
that he was insulted, pressed upon, and pelted with clubs,
snow balls, and oyster shells, and that he frequently threat-
ened the aggressors that he would fire, before he called for
the assistance of the main guard, It was also proved, that
the soldiers of the main guard, on their way to hia assistance,

Nicholas Ferreter, posi, p. 426.

* Joseph Croswell, post, p. 430; James Carter, post, p. 430,
4 James Bailey, post, p. 425.

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