FRONTIER CLASH

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 299, 1 October 1935, Page 5

FRONTIER CLASH

SEVERAL INJURED IN LITHUANIA GER MA NS SMASH POLLING BOOTH United Press Association—Copyright) MEMEIL, September 30. Voters in desperation at the chaos of polling were involved in a serious clash at the frontier town of Jikmaipkai. German voters in the election for the Memel Diet attacked the election committee, smashed a booth, and broke the urns containing ballotpapers, and roughly handled police reinforcements. Six policemen were sent to hospital, and one is not expected to live.

The crowd occupied the railway station and the post office. Order is reported to have been restored, but the situation is critical, as it is feared that the rebels may be aided by Prussians crossing the border. It is reported that in another town near the German border three Lithuanians and two policemen were injured. The Kaunas correspondent of “The Times” says the Lithuanian, Cabinet hurriedly met and amended the electoral law enabling the voting to be concluded to-day. This action was taken because of delays due to the cumbersome method of giving voters perforated lisits containing the names of 187 candidates, from which they had to tear off the names of the 21 favoured candidates.

This method occupied on the average half, an hour, and 1 in the case of old people far longer. Many women were crushed m the struggle to reach the booths.