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Boston Massacre Eyewitness Accounts
Exhibit B: Captain Preston's Account
"On Monday night about 8 o'clock, two soldiers were attacked and beat..... About 9 some of the guard came to and informed me the town inhabitants were assembling to attack the troops, and that the bells were ringing as the signal for that purpose and not for fire, and the beacon intended to be fired in the distant people of the country......
In my way there I saw the people in great commotion and heard them use the most cruel and horrid threats against the troops..... They immediately surrounded the sentry posted there, and with clubs and other weapons threatened to execute there vengeance on him. I was soon informed by a townsman their intention was to carry off the soldier from his post and probably murder him.
They (the soldiers) soon rushed through the people, and by charging their bayonets in half-circles, kept them at a little distance. The mob still increased and were more outrageous, striking their clubs or bludgeons one against another, and calling out, "Come on you rascals, you bloody backs, you lobster scoundrels, fire if you dare, God Damn you, fire and be damned, we know you dare not, and much more such language was used. At this time I was between the soldiers and the mob, parleying with, and endeavoring all in my power to persuade them to retire peaceably, but to no purpose.
They advanced to the points of the bayonets, struck some of them and even the muzzles of the pieces, and seemed to be endeavoring to close with the soldiers. on which some well-behaved persons asked me if the guns were charged. I replied, "Yes." then they asked me if I intended to order the men to fire. I answered, "No, by no means....." While I was thus speaking, one of the soldiers having received a severe blow with a stick, stepped a little too on one side and instantly fired, on which turning to and asking him why he fired without orders, I was struck with a club on my arm, which for some time deprived me the use of it, which blow had it been on my head, most probably would have destroyed me. On this, a general attack was made on the men by a great number of heavy clubs and snowballs being thrown at them, which all our lives were imminent danger, some persons at the same time from behind calling out, "Damn your bloods-why don't you fire?" Instantly three or four of the soldiers fired, one after another, and directly after three more in the same confusion and hurry. The mob then ran away......"
Exhibit C: Andrew's Account (Slave in Boston)
"I heard the bells ringing and went to the gate. i stayed there a little and saw Mr. Lovell coming back with his buckets. I asked him where was the fire. He said it was not a fire. Numbers of boys on the other side of the way were throwing snowballs at the soldiers. the sentinels were enraged and swearing at the boys. the boys clalled them, "Lobsters, bloody backs," and hollered, "Who buys lobsters!" There were also a number of people who stood where I did and were picking up pieces of sea coal that had been thrown thereabout and snowballs, and throwing them over at the Sentinel.
I went to cross over to where the soldiers were and as soon as I got a glimpse of them, I heard someboday huzza and say, "Here is old Murray with the riot act"- and they began to pelt snowballs.
The first word I heard was a grenadier say to a man by me, "Damn you, stand back!"
He was so near that the grenadier might have run him through if he had stepped up one step forward. While I stopped to look at him, a person came to get through..... He turned about and said, "You damned lobster, bloody back, are you going to stab me?"
The soldier said, "By God, I will!"
One of the persons who was talking with the officer turned about quick to the people and said, "Damn him, he going to fire!" Upon that, they cried out, "Fire and be damned, who cares! Damn you, you dare not fire," and began to throw snowballs and other things, which then flew pretty thick.
I saw two or three of them hit. One struck a (soldier) on the hat. And the people who were right before them had sticks, and as the soldiers were pushing their guns back and forth, they stuck their guns and on hit a grenadier on the fingers. The people.....crying, "Damn them, they dare not fire!" "We are not afraid of them!"
One of these people, a stout man with a long cordwood stick, threw himself in and made a blow at the officer. The stout man then turned around and struck the soldier's gun at the Captain's right hand and immediately fell in with his club and knocked his gun away and struck him over the head. The blow came either on the soldier's cheek or hat. This stout man held the bayonet wit his left hand and twitched it and cried, "Kill the dogs! Knock them over!"...I turned to look towards the officer and I heard the word, "Fire!" I thought I heard the report of a gun and, upon hearing the report, I saw the same grenadier swing his gun and immediately he distchraged it.
I ran as fast as I could into the first door I saw open.... I was very much frightened."
Exhibit D: George Sanderlin's Account
"On hearing the noise (of a fight), Samuel Atwood came up to see what was the matter, and entering the alley heard the latter part of the combat, and when the boys (who had been fighting) had dispersed he met the ten or twelve soldiers (who had been fighting with them) rushing down the alley toward the square, and asked them if they intended to murder people. They answered, "Yes, (we do)," (and stuck and wounded Atwood).
Immediately after, those heroes (the British officers) appeared in the square, asking "where were the cowards?" One of them advanced toward a youth who had a stave in his hand. But the young man, seeing a person near him with a drawn sword, held up his stave in defiance, and they quietly passed by him up the little alley to King street, where they attacked single and unarmed persons till they raised much clamor.
Thirty or forty persons, mostly lads, being by this means gathered in Kingstreet, Captain Preston, with a party of men charged bayonets, came from the main gate to the Commissioner's House, the soldiers pushing their bayonets, crying, "Make way!" They took place by the Custom House, and continuing to push to drive the people off, pricked some in several places: on which they were clamorous, and it is said, threw snowballs.
On this, the Captain commanded them to fire, and more snowballs coming, he again said, ".....Fire, be the consequences what it will!" One soldier fired, and a townsman with a cudgel struck him over the hands with such force that he dropped his firelock; and rushing forward aimed a blow at the Captain's head, which grazed his hat and fell pretty heavy on his arm. However, the soldiers continued to fire, successively till seven or eight or, as some say, eleven guns were discharged.
By this fatal maneuver, three men laid dead on the spot, and two more struggling for life."
George Sanderlin's Account mentions a cudgel.
A cudgel is a type of club that was used, to the left are examples of 18th Century English cudgels.
Exhibit E: William Wyatt's Account
"I William Wyatt, of Salem (Massachusetts), coaster, testify and say, that last Monday evening, being the fifth day of March current, I was in Boston, down at Treat's Warf, where my vessel was lying, and hearing the bells ring, supposed there was a fire in the town, whereupon I hastened up to the Townhouse, on the south side of it, where I saw an officer of the army lead out the guard housed there seven or eight soldiers of the army, and lead them in seeming haste, to the Custom House on the north side of King Street, where I followed them, and when the officer had got there with the men, he bid them face about.
I stood just below them on the left wing, and the said officer ordered his men to load, which they did accordingly, with the utmost dispatch, then they remained about six minutes, with their firelocks rested and bayonets fixed, but not standing in exact order. I observed a considerable number of young lads, and here and there a man amongst them, about the middle of the street, facing the soldiers, but not within ten or twelve feet distance from them; I observed some of them.... had sticks in their hands, laughing, shouting, huzzaing, and crying; but could not observe that any of them threw anything at the soldiers, or threatened any of them. Then the said officer retired from before the soldiers and stepping behind them, towards the right wing, bid the soldiers fire; they not firing he presently again bid'em fire, they not yet firing, he stamped his feet and said, "....fire be the consequence what it will"; then the second man on the left wing fired off his gun, then, after a very short pause, they fired one after another as quick as possible, and the people being withdrawn from before the soldiers, most of them further down the street, he turned his gun toward them and fired upon them. Immediately after the principal firing, I saw three of the people fall down in the street; presently after the last gun was fired off, the said officer who commanded the soldiers (as above) to fire, sprung before them, waving his sword or stick, said, ".....ye rascals, what did ye fire for?" and struck the gun of one of the soldiers who was loading again, whereupon they seemed confounded and fired no more. I then went up behind them to the right wing, where one of the people was lying to see whether he was dead, where there were four or five people about him, one of the saying he was dead. And I remember as the said officer was going down with the soldiers towards the Customhouse, a gentleman spoke to him and said, "Captain Preston, for God's sake keep your men in order, and mind what you are about." And further, I say not."
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