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Excerpt from MacFarlan diary |
The Eastern State Journal had little to say on the subject of the riots, reporting on July 17, 1863, that "very little damage has been done." One Westchester resident, Daniel MacFarlan, commented on the riots in his daily journal: "Here is a dreadful state of affairs. The Government is responsible for the whole of it. The $300 clause is where the trouble lies. Rich men can get clear of the draft while the poor are obliged to go." View pages 190-193 of MacFarlan's journal. MacFarlan's comments anticipate the way public discussion soon focussed on the ethics of the draft, and more specifically, on ways it might be avoided.
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