. The opinion, that the
persevering efforts of the administration would ultimately prevail,
derived additional support from the passage of an act by the present
congress, containing those provisions which had been suggested by the
chief of the treasury department. The progress of this bill, which
became a law on the fifth of June, could not have been unknown to the
malcontents, nor could its probable operation have been misunderstood.
They perceived that the certain loss of a market for the article,
added to the penalties to which delinquents were liable, might
gradually induce a compliance on the part of distillers, unless they
could, by a systematic and organized opposition, deprive the
government of the means it employed for carrying the law into
execution.

On the part of the executive, this open defiance of the laws, and of
the authority of the government, was believed imperiously to require,
that the strength and efficacy of those laws should be tried. Against
the perpetrators of some of the outrages which had been committed,
bills of indictment had been found in a court of the United States,
upon which process was directed to issue; and at the same time,
process was also issued against a great number of non-complying
distillers.

The marshal repaired in person to the country which was the scene of
these disorders, for the purpose of serving the processes. On the 15th
of July, while in the execution of his duty, he was beset on the road
by a body of armed men, who fired on him, but fortunately did him no
personal injury. At daybreak, the ensuing morning, a party attacked
the house of General Nevil, the inspector; but he defended himself
resolutely, and obliged the assailants to retreat.

Knowing well that this attack had been preconcerted, and apprehending
that it would be repeated, he applied to the militia officers and
magistrates of the county for protection. The answer was, that "owing
to the too general combination of the people to oppose the revenue
system, the laws could not be executed so as to afford him protection:
that should the _posse comitatus_ be ordered out to support the civil
authority, they would favour the party of the rioters."

On the succeeding day, the insurgents re-assembled to the number of
about five hundred, to renew their attack on the house of the
inspector. That officer, finding that no protection could be afforded
by the civil authority, had applied to the commanding officer at