Page:The Wizard of Wall Street and his Wealth.djvu/60

 every direction. As vigorous a defense was made, by a force of fifteen men in the story attacked, with tannery sticks, stones and four revolvers, as was possible against such overwhelming odds. The tannery was finally carried on all sides, and those who did not escape were violently flung from the windows and doors, while the assailants rushed through the buildings, yelling like Indians, pursuing the fugitives with their guns in every direction. In the action many contusions were received and four gunshot wounds, and had it not been for the large number of sides of leather hung up the lofts, very few of the defending party would have escaped without wounds.

Mr. Jay Gould, in his version of the affair, in which he endeavors to exculpate himself, says:

"I quietly selected fifty men, commanding the reserve to keep aloof. I divided them into two companies, one of which I despatched to the upper end of the building, directing them to take off the boards, while I headed the other to open a large front door. I burst open the door and sprang in. I was immediately saluted with a shower of balls, forcing my men to retire, and I brought them up a second and third time and pressed them into the building, and by this time the company at the upper end of the tannery had succeeded in effecting an entrance and the firing now became general on all sides and the bullets were whistling in every direction. After a hard contested struggle on both sides we became the victors, and our opponents went flying from the