When Mrs. Terry heard the above words concerning the surrender of the alleged marriage contract for cancellation, she first endeavored for a few seconds, but unsuccessfully, to open the satchel containing her pistol.  For some reason the catch refused to yield.  Then, rising to her feet, and placing the satchel before her on the table, she addressed the presiding justice, saying: 

“Are you going to make me give up my marriage contract?”

Justice Field said, “Be seated, madam.”

She repeated her question: 

“Are you going to take the responsibility of ordering me to deliver up that contract?”

She was again ordered to resume her seat.  At this she commenced raving loudly and violently at the justice in coarse terms, using such phrases as these: 

“Mr. Justice Field, how much have you been bought for?  Everybody knows that you have been bought; that this is a paid decision.”

“How big was the sack?”

“How much have you been paid for the decision?”

“You have been bought by Newland’s coin; everybody knows you were sent out here by the Newlands to make this decision.”

“Every one of you there have been paid for this decision.”

At the commencement of this tirade, and after her refusal to desist when twice ordered to do so, the presiding justice directed the marshal to remove her from the court-room.  She said defiantly: 

“I will not be removed from the court-room; you dare not remove me from the court-room.”

Judge Terry made no sign of remonstrance with her, had not endeavored to restrain her, but had, on the contrary, been seen to nod approvingly to her, as if assenting to something she had said to him just before she sprang to her feet.  The instant, however, the court directed her removal from the room, of which she had thus taken temporary possession, to the total suspension of the court proceedings, his soul was “in arms and eager for the fray.”  As the marshal moved toward the offending woman, he rose from his seat, under great excitement, exclaiming, among other things, “No living man shall touch my wife!” or words of that import, and dealt the marshal a violent blow in the face,[1] breaking one of his front teeth.  He then unbuttoned his coat and thrust his hand under his vest, where his bowie-knife was kept, apparently for the purpose of drawing it, when he was seized by persons present, his hands held from drawing his weapon, and he himself forced down on his back.  The marshal, with the assistance of a deputy, then removed Mrs. Terry from the court-room, she struggling, screaming, kicking, striking, and scratching them as she went, and pouring out imprecations upon Judges Field and Sawyer, denouncing them as “corrupt scoundrels,” and declaring she would kill them both.  She was taken from the room into the main corridor, thence into the marshal’s business office, and then into an inner room of his office.  She did not cease struggling when she reached that room, but continued her frantic abuse.