October 30, 1885
Fulton Journal
There is a number of hoodlums in town who often disturb public entertainments by filthy language, whistling, stamping and making nuisances of themselves generally. They are too large to be spanked, not quite large enough to be arrested and don't know enough to behave themselves without an occasional kick. Monday night John Cossman, a loud mouth big enough to go to meeting barefooted and eat soup with a scoop shovel, and Pete Ryan, another hoodlum, created a disturbance in the Opera House. They were ordered out and away from the building. They went away, returned in a few minutes and got into a row. They were ordered away and told not to come back. Ryan went away and stayed. Cossman came back and refused to leave. He was put in the lockup. There was a couple of bums in the cell and Cossman was left in the hallway. During the night someone handed him a wrench through the opening in the door and he got out. Tuesday afternoon he was taken before Justice Terwilliger who fined him three dollars. If the managers of the public halls would refuse admittance to these hoodlums no matter whether they presented money or a ticket at the door, it would keep them out and prevent these disturbances.
