and keep them in as long as we could -- but there were so many
that we were obliged to run, but they immediately made after
us & knocked several of us down, myself for one -- some time after
2 officers of the 29th regiment came up the alley & drove the
soldiers home to their barracks, and then the people chiefly
dis-
persed, myself for one, as I was going down
dock square to go
home I heard a number of people hallow run up
Kingstreet,
for the soldiers are knocking people down, after some time
considering what the matter was I ran up
Royal Exchange
alley, so called, when I had got to the head of the alley, I saw
about eight soldiers standing round the centry box by
the
Custom-House with their guns levelled breast
high and a con-
siderable number of people stand in
Kingstreet, when I had
been there about three minutes I heard the word fire (but who
it came from I cannot say) but nobody seemed to mind it,
about half a minute after I heard the word fire again, and some
other words, but could not tell what they were; directly the
soldier on the right hand fired, I had a blow on my back which
I tho't was from the butt of a gun, I was then
a-going off when
I heard five or six guns go off which I took to be nothing but
powder at first till I see two men drop by this the people seemed
to disperse, then I was going up by the Town House when
I saw the people bringing along two dead men, a little while
after the whole of the 29th regiment drew up by the Town
House I stay'd a little while longer and made the
best of my
way home, and further I say not.
JOHN LEACH. Jun.
Suffolk, ss.
Boston,
March 21, 1770. John Leach,
jun., above-
named, after due examination, mach oath to the truth of
the aforesaid Affidavit, taken to perpetuate the remem-
brance of the Thing.
Before, JOHN RUDDOCK, Jus. Peace
& of the Quorum.
And, JOHN HILL, Just. Peace.
(No. 43)
I The subscriber, of lawful age, testify and say, that on
Monday evening the 5th instant, March 1770, being at the
south part of the town between the hours of nine and ten o'
clock, I heard the bells in the centre of the
town ring, and fire
cry'd, ran immediately for
kingstreet, where I supposed it was,
and to my great astonishment, I saw a number of soldiers with
presented bayonets, commanded by an officer whom I did not
then know ; the soldiers formed a semi-circle round the cen-
tinel box to the custom-house door -- I
went immediately up