fury, the missiles bursting through the window-shutters and making piecemeal of the crockery, glass, and other breakables stored within. Some inmates retreating to the upper region discharged three shots in quick succession from one of the windows, without killing or dangerously wounding anyone. The only casualty happened to a Mr. R. Curie, a clerk of the Returning Officer's, who received part of one of the discharges in the foot. The mob, goaded to fury by resistance, made an ineffectual attempt to force the street door, and lynch anyone found inside. Stones and brickbats were freely resorted to, until the Police Magistrate with some soldiers, and mounted and foot police arrived. Major St. John succeeded better on this than on the prior occasion at the Mechanics', and displayed much judgment and determination. Obtaining a parley with the ringleaders, he premised if they would disperse to force admittance to Greene's house and arrest all he found within; so the mob accepted this assurance, the siege was raised, and something like order restored. The Major kept his word, and, insisting upon an entry, was admitted, when Greene and two other persons yvere apprehended, marched away amidst a din of derisive shouting, locked up for the night in the watchhouse, and refused bail.
The residence of the successful candidate, in Little Bourke Street East, was also interviewed, but escaped with trifling loss. Further up the same street was a tavern known as the Elephant and Castle, kept by Mr. Matthew Cantlon, against whom the mob had what is colonially termed a "down," and thither they moved on from Condell's. The place was attacked, the bar windows broken, and some interior injury inflicted, when a shot was fired without taking effect. About ten o'clock the rioting had died out, and nothing of the tempest remained save occasional drunken quarrelling and the tittering of loud vows of vengeance. As precautionary measures against a possible violent reaction, all the hotels were peremptorily compelled to shut up their "drinkeries" until morning, and the police patroled the highways and byeways until far after "cock-crow."
Through all these scenes of tribulation, the Rev. Dr. Lang, mischief-maker-in-chief, and principal factor in producing this outbreak of popular incendiarism, was at the private residence of his fidus Achates, Mr. William Kerr, in West Lonsdale Street, convivially enjoying the company of a select coterie of "brither Scots," little recking the direful consequences, which might have sprung from the civil commotion they were instrumental in fomenting. Dr. Lang had been advertised to preach on the following evening (Sunday) at the Collins Street Independent Church; but though there was a numerous and expectant congregation, the pulpit knew him not. It was rumoured that he had received a mysterious premonition not to attend; and his friends averred that there was a banditti of three or four disguised bravoes in the gallery, with secreted weapons, in waiting to assassinate him. There is little doubt that this was a cleverly got up canard to cover the Doctor's retreat, or veil his cowardice. If met with on the polling evening he might have had a crack on the head or a knock over; but that there was any deliberate plot to shoot or stab him either in the dark or light is simply a fiction. In truth his courage failed, he showed the "white feather," and although he ostentatiously vaunted himself a missionary of "peace and goodwill amongst all men," his practice and his preaching yvere as disuniting as fire and water.
On the Monday morning, three individuals, viz., Thomas Greene, Christopher Greenaway, and William Martin, were charged at the Police Court with discharging firearms, intending thereby to do bodily harm. There was no evidence yvhatever against them—not a shred of proof as to identity: and under the circumstances, the Bench of Magistrates ordered them to be released unconditionally.
The official declaration of the poll was made at noon the same day - the ceremony was a mere formula, the monotony of which was only relieved by a protest against the return on certain technical grounds, to test which a petition would be duly transmitted to Sydney. Nothing further was ever done in the matter. The excitement would have soon blown over but for an unpardonable indiscretion of the defeated candidate, yvho would be no party to an early burial of the hatchet. Mr. Edward Curr was one of the most trusted public men and prudent advisers of the District in its early agitations; but, with all his shrewdness and ability, was not a Nestor either in Council or newspaper. A day or two after the closing of the election, Mr. Curr published one of the most inflammatory and injudicious epistles that was ever penned. In it he inveighed with truculent bitterness against the sectarianism infused into the contest by the presence and the actions of Dr. Lang, and the virulent attacks levelled against the Roman Catholic portion of the population by the Langite organ, the Patriot. The following extracts were deemed so
