Broadside entitled 'Riot at Dumfries! Hares Arrival'

Transcription

Riot at Dumfries!

Hare s Arrival.

A Full and Particular Account of the
Reception of WILLIAM HARE,
one of the West Port Murderers, at
Dumfries, on Friday morning last, on
his way to Ireland !

This atrocious character was liberated on Thurs-
day evening, the 5th February, from the Calton
Jail, and took his seat, disguised, in the mail for
Portpatrick ; but having been recognized at Dum-
fries, a terrible riot took place in consequence.
The Mob having attacked the Jail wherein he had
taken shelter.....We copy the following paragraph
from the Courant of this day :

"THE MURDERER HARE.?We mentioned in
our last publication, that this wretch had been ob-
liged, to seek refuge from the fury of the populace
in the King's Arms Inn, Dumfries It appears he
was recognised in the following manner: He was
entered from Edinburgh for Portpatrick as an out-
side passenger in the mail by the name of Black ;
and after travelling a stage or two, the guard,
without knowing him, consented to allow him to
get inside the coach, as the night was damp and
cold, but he had only got up one or two of the
steps at the coach door, when a highly respectable
legal gentleman, who was an outside passenger,
and who knew him, having been professionally
employed in the late case against the ruffian, call-
ed out, " Would you put a murderer inside ?"
This led to the discovery, and the coach had not
long arrived at Dumfries when the news of his in-
famous arrival became generally known. A crowd
instantly assembled, evincing the most determin-
edly hostile intentions. For protection, the wretch
was locked up in the tap-room of the Inn until the
Porcpatrick mail should start, which is usually
about nine o'clock Until that hour the mob,
though it continued to increase, many coming no
doubt to get a glimpse of such a notorious charac-
ter, was tolerably quiet, under an expectation that
he would take his departure by the Portpatrick
mail. By nine o'clock, for half a mile on, the
road, the crowd became immense.                  

"The coach drew up to the inn door, but for
Hare to have ventured out would have been cer-
tain destruction, and, consequently, the coach drove
off without him. It had not proceeded far when
it was stopped by the populace, and a most strict
search was made in case he was concealed, even
the boor was examined. Being disappointed, the
people became more enraged, and, in consequence,
the magistrates were seriouly alarmed for the peace
of the town. As a russe, they caused a post-chaise
to draw up at the front of the inn, into which, it
was stated, Hare would proceed on his journey.
They, at the same time, however, got another chaise
to the bottom of the yard of the inn, from whence
he contrived to escape unobserved from a back
window and to walk along to the vehicle, which
was driven rapidly to the jail, followed by the mob,
who soon found out the trick. The jail was then
assailed with stones, the most of the windows of
the Court Room were broken, and one of the doors
forced. The police and constables, however, suc-
ceeded, with some difficulty, in restoring order,
but the crowd remained in the street till after
dark. During the night, the wretch was taken out
of jail and privately conveyed on foot out of town,
on the Carlisle road, under an escort of police
officers," Edinburgh Evening Courant, Feb. 9, 1829.

PRICE ONE PENNY.

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