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Bureau Refugees, Freedmen and Ab'd. Lands,
Office Supt. 1st Dist. of Virginia
Norfolk April 17th 1866.

General
I have the honor to report that yesterday the Freedmen of this city celebrated the passage of the "Civil Rights Bill" by Congress. A procession of men, women and children paraded the streets with music and banners, and among them were prominent the returned soldiers of the Colored Regts. recently mustered out of service, carrying their arms, which they had been allowed to purchase from the govt. This Major Stanhope did not object to as they had no ammunition. No trouble occurred till later in the day when the procession was fired into by a white man named Whitehurst, who was killed by the Freedmen. Whitehurst had shot one of the Secretaries of one of the societies, in the procession. In the melee that followed, the brother and mother of this man [[crossed-out]] was [[/crossed-out]] were shot and killed. Late in the day two negroes were killed by the mob. Maj Stanhope  

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