June 8, 1883, and Its Aftermath

Abstract

When Gould and Bristow entered the train car with their students, they saw Elisha Green sitting there and ordered him to give up his seat. Angered by their abrupt demand, he refused. They tried to pull him out; he resisted; Bristow started hitting him with his valise. The conductor intervened on Green's behalf and the train continued to Paris. Green had them arrested for assault. The trial was postponed several times, finally taking place in March 1884. Green won his case. Though the jury did not award more than token damages, Gould and Bristow did have to pay for the cost of the trial. In the weeks immediately following the June 1883 incident both sides presented their case to the public in the Paris and Maysville newspapers, which generally favored Green. Increasingly unhappy with both his job and his marriage, Gould resigned his position in June 1884.