When a writer puts his sincerely held opinions on the editorial page of a newspaper, he has to figuratively don a flak jacket and helmet to fend off the expected verbal assaults from those who disagree. But sometimes the attackers use more than words as weapons, and we can look to local history for an example.
This April 24 will mark the 151st anniversary of the violent death of a Westminster editorial page writer. Joseph Shaw (1826-1865) was the firebrand editor of the "Carroll County Democrat" with an office at what is now 183 E. Main St. Nearby, at 132, 132 1/2 E. Main St., were the offices of the competing paper, the "American Sentinel," and both publications were locked in a three-year newspaper war. Shaw was a Democrat and wrote articles critical of local politicians and, more crucially, in support of the Confederacy and slavery. The "American Sentinel" supported the Union, but also the cause of the Know Nothings, a secret society that agitated against immigrants and especially Roman Catholics who were thought to be under the control of a foreign power, the Church of Rome.
Joseph Shaw had earlier been recruited for the Know Nothings by Charles Webster (1810-1898), a prominent Westminster resident who was State's Attorney and in charge of schools. Despite his solemn oath to remain faithful to the movement, Shaw became disenchanted and "bolted" to the Democratic Party. Webster never forgave him for this and responded by supplying a steady drumbeat of columns to the "Sentinel" critical of Shaw. Webster dubbed him Blubberdegullion, a play on words meaning a "mean, dirty sorry wretch who blubbers." This is no match for a Trump tweet, but I guess you had to be there.
The fusillade of verbal attacks continued until Shaw was accused of crossing the line. On April 6, 1865 he wrote: "Some people hope that Lincoln's life will be spared now, in order that the country may be saved the disgrace of an 'incoherent' Vice-President. But is there not a slight chance of improvement in case that Providence should will it otherwise?" These words would have melted into history if Lincoln had not been assassinated eight days later on April 14. When news arrived at Westminster's telegraph office on April 15 of Lincoln's death, a "Vigilance Committee" was formed and marched on Shaw's offices. They told him that he was no longer permitted to publish his paper. That night a mob broke into the building and destroyed the printing press.
Shaw escaped to Baltimore but returned to Westminster on April 24, armed with two pistols and a dagger, and vowing to a witness "to carry Civil War to Carroll County." Shaw had rooms at Zachariah's Anchor Hotel, located where Main Street splits into Pennsylvania Avenue. There, in a scene more akin to a Western than Westminster, five men ambushed him in a hail of bullets on the second-floor landing, but none found its mark. Finally, Shaw was fatally stabbed and left to die on the floor of the bar downstairs. As if to refute the old trope, the sword did prove mightier than the pen. Westminster reeled in horror, and the story was big enough to be reported in The New York Times.
Shaw's political beliefs certainly disqualify him from receiving the hero's laurels. However, it would be nice to report that his story can serve as a cautionary tale for our conflicted times; that his First Amendment rights were ultimately upheld; and that justice was served. But that was not the case.
The five men were brought to trial, but in a bizarre turn of events, Charles Webster, Shaw's chief antagonist, was assigned as State's Attorney to represent his interests. And, to add insult to injury, Webster admitted that he considered the five assailants to be among his "closest" friends. Not so surprisingly, the men were acquitted. A jury of their peers judged them to be acting in self-defense, despite the premeditated aspects of the crime and the five-to-one, perp-to-victim odds. The only thing more perverse than this miscarriage of justice was that the county Orphan's Court reported that Shaw, the crusading journalist and man of principle, left an estate valued at a whopping $33 in cash. Maybe words are cheap.
Frank Batavick writes from Westminster. His column appears Fridays. Email him at fjbatavick@gmail.com.
