Let’s continue with our quest to explain the context of Boston’s relationship with the British regulars leading up to the Boston Massacre… in advance of Stubborn Things, which comes out in 9 days (eep!)
Ensign John Ness was a member of the 14th Regiment of Foot, having been appointed to that position in 1762. On October 22, 1769, he was unlucky enough to have the guard at Boston Neck all night. As he tells it, shortly after 10 am the following day, a constable came to inform Ness that:
He had a warrant for my arrest, for Stealing wood, assaulting, and knocking down one Robt (Robert) Pierpoint between the hours of nine and ten o’clock the Preceding night, near his own house, that he must take me to Justice Dana to answer for it.
Ness then adds, “I was a good Deal Surprised at this,” citing that he had been with his guard the whole night, and could bring his men to prove this. Moreover, he’d never encountered Pierpoint before.
To satisfy the unnamed constable, Ness gave his word that he would report to Justice Richard Dana as soon as the guard was relieved and he had made his report to Lt. Colonel Dalrymple. The constable left, but shortly thereafter, Pierpoint arrived with a number of others, “abusing, and pressing in upon the Sentinels.”
Ness asked why he had come, to which someone replied that they “came to give assistance.” Ness seems as perplexed by this reply as I was reading it: “on asking them what assistance, they again repeated they came to give assistance, and would do it.”
After warning the crowd that he would turn out the guard upon them if they did not disperse and stop harassing the sentries, the very-reasonable mob immediately “rushed” two sentries, and when they went for a third, Ness ordered the guard to turn out with fixed bayonets. This tense situation lasted for about fifteen minutes before Ness and his guard were relieved from their duty… and had to begin making their way back through Boston. With a mob following, throwing dirt and stones.
A shot was fired, though Ness makes sure to emphasize with underlining that this firelock “had been loaded unknown to me.” The musket ball went through the house of blacksmith Richard Gridley, and while no one was hurt, as you may imagine, this escalated the situation. Ness immediately ordered his men not to strike anyone, assuring them that he would inform Dalrymple. The mob fell back, but a blacksmith named Obadiah Whiston struck a soldier named William Fowler in the head with a piece of brick. “Deprived… of his senses,” Fowler began bleeding, and Sergeant James Hickman used his halberd to stop Whiston from a second blow.
As Ness tells it, he finally reached the barrack yard and dismissed the men. Keeping his word, he ventured to Justice Dana’s house. (What he omits: before arriving, Captain Ponsonby Molesworth of the 29th heard the ruckus, ran into the street, and ordered the soldiers to bayonet anyone who attacked them next, an illegal threat for which Molesworth was later charged.)
“A mob was collected outside,” Ness claimed, “and as I pass’d them, they made use of a great many abuse words, Such as Saying here comes the bloodyback Rascall, he will be Soon in Goal [sic].”
Justice Dana promptly asked Ness if he had brought bail; surprised, he replied that he had not, and requested to send for his men to prove his alibi. Dana being Dana, he said Ness could not summon witnesses, as he wasn’t on trial yet, and should be committed to gaol if he could not pay bail of £100. Several regimental officers went to find “reputable inhabitants,” yet were refused “for reasons known only to the Justice“ (underline Ness’s).
Captain Brazabon O’Hara came with £100 in cash, but was also refused. Finally, merchant Henry Lloyd offered himself as bail, and that was apparently acceptable. (Fun fact: Henry Lloyd was uncle to Elizabeth Lloyd Loring, General Howe’s mistress whom we will soon discuss.)
The entire time, according to Ness, Pierpoint:
abused me in a very gross Manner by clenching his fist and Threatening to knock me down, calling me a Rascal, Scoundrel, with many other indecent Names; Said he had a great mind to Revenge himself that minute and That it was with the utmost difficulty he could keep his hands off me.
When Ness complained to Dana, the Justice replied that “he was deaf and Could not hear that I had received any abuse.”
At Ness’s hearing, the case was dismissed, as no one appeared “to support so vexatious, scandalous, and false an accusation.” Apparently, Pierpoint offered three soldiers two hundred dollars to swear false testimony against Ness, and promised to help them leave the army. Instead, the men went to Ness with this lovely information.
Unfortunately, three days later, Ness and Sergeant Hickman were charged for their actions in the street – Hickman for using his halberd, Ness for the fact that a gun had gone off. Once more a gentleman offered himself as bail, and Dana went further, expressing his resentment that the soldiers were in Boston, and warning them something along the lines of they “had better take care not to Provoke us.”
Fortunately, Hickman’s charges appear to have been dropped. At trial, six witnesses were brought against Ness, including Gridley, Whiston, and Robert Pierpoint’s brother Joseph (but not Robert himself, which I found interesting). Ness was unanimously acquitted.
I do tend to trust this story, as it is very detailed with names for certain people, and the facts are backed up by the court record. Now, it is true that Whiston was a witness for the prosecution in Preston’s trial. And Ness clearly omitted the detail about his superior officer Molesworth. But he’s also explicit when he’s quoting or when he’s giving expressions along the lines of what was uttered, which inclines me to believe the gist. And if I may, Justice Dana’s title and name itself seem to be a bit of a misnomer – but I digress. We’ll have more to say on him later!
For his part, Ensign Ness was promoted to lieutenant at the end of 1770, but by 1772 he is no longer included among a list of officers in the British Army. His name is pretty common, so alas, I’m not sure what happened to him.
Next week, we’ll discuss Captain Thomas Preston’s fears about just what might happen after the Bostonians had been “provoked.”
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