Page:History of Delaware County (1856).djvu/326

 302 HISTORY OF eight and nine o'clockj on Tuesday evening of last week, con- siderable excitement was created in the village, hj the report that one of the picket guard (Mr. Claghorn, of Mason ville,) had been fired upon, a short distance this side of Mr, Wright's, on the opposite side of the river. The night was very dark and rainy, and hearing a slight noise, he stopped his horse, while his companion advanced a short distance, both listening to ascertain the cause; and while Mr. 0. was in the act of pulling the skirts of his overcoat to cover his holsters, for the purpose of keeping them dry, he was fired upon ; the ball passed through the skirts of his coat, so near to his hand as to cause a numbness, and the hand to swell. ^^Mr. Claghorn remained on the ground to keep a look-out, while his companions made all haste and reported the case to Major Marvine, who promptly dispatched a posse of thirty or forty men, in hopes of being able to obtain some clue to the perpetrator of the foul deed; but the darkness of the night efi"ectually prevented the detection of the assassin. The next morning Major Marvine himself went with others to examine; tracks were plainly seen, and followed through a ploughed field; the track was carefully measured and a pattern^taken. It is ardently hoped that some clue may yet be obtained that will lead to the detection of the person guilty of so cowardly and base an attempt at murder. "At the opening of the court, on Wednesday morning. Judge Parker requested the Grand Jury to come into court. The J udge stated that he had sent for them for the purpose of lay- ing before them the transaction of the night previous, which he did in strong and decided language of condemnation, and exhorting the jury to be vigilant, and use every possible means within their power to ferret out the ofi'ender.'' Having thus briefly reviewed the causes which led to the late anti-rent disturbance, and glanced at their immediate history, it now becomes our province to draw it to a close. It is but