On Monday the 5th of this present March, 1770, about 3
o'clock in the afternoon, I called upon Mr. Edward Manwaring,
at his lodgings in the Back-street, Boston, and immediately proceeded
with him and Mr. John Monroe, to the house of Mr. Brown in
Charlestown, to settle an affair between the said Brown and one Dr.
Brown in Boston, relative to a horse which the last mentioned
Brown had hired of the aforesaid Brown in Charlestown, where
we staid till something after six in the evening, and returned to
Mr. Manwaring's lodgings about seven, and sat ourselves down to
spend the evening with him, which we accordingly did. About an
hour and half after our arrival at the said Manwaring's lodgings,
we heard the cry of fire in the street, and thereupon ran to the win-
dows to be informed where it was, when some person made answer at
the south-end; others in the street were also enquiring where it was,
and they were answered "that they would soon see," and other expres-
sions to the same purpose, which made us conclude, that something
more was in the case than fire alone; on which we came to the resolu-
tion not to stir from the said Manwaring's apartment; soon after this
determination, we were confirmed more in our former opinion by a
noise in the street, and some people saying "four out of five were
killed," which words, though we did not know the meaning of,
fully satisfied us there was something more than fire. On this occa-
sion Mr. Manwaring's boy several times attempted to go into the
street to join the multitude, and once had got as far as the gate next
the street, when Mr. Monroe fetched him back, and shut the gate
after him. After this, Mr. Manwaring kept the said boy in his the
said Manwaring's own room, being determined not to trust the said
boy out of his sight. Then we, the said Edward Manwaring, John
Monroe, myself, and Mrs. Hudson the landlady of the house, who
was afraid to stay in her own apartment alone; I say, we the afore-
said persons sat over a bottle or two of mull'd wine 'till half an hour
after ten, when the tumult seemed to be subsided, and Mr. Monroe
proposed to go to his own lodgings, which Mr. Manwaring would
have persuaded him from, apprehending there might be danger in so
doing; but he persevered in the resolution of going, and went ac-
cordingly, but told us at parting, that if any tumult still remained he
would immediately return, but if he did not return we might depend
upon it all was quiet, and he did not return that night. After this,
myself, Mr. Manwaring and Mrs. Hudson (and the boy still in com-
pany) remained together till about twelve the same night, when she
left us to go to her own bed. After this, myself, Mr. Manwaring,
and his boy sat up together about three hours longer; it being then
too late for my returning to my own lodgings, Mr. Manwaring pro-
posed my sleeping with him, which I accordingly did in the same
bed, and the boy was ordered to go to his bed, which he accordingly