THE BELFAST RIOTS.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume 37, Issue 9607, 25 October 1907, Page 4

THE BELFAST RIOTS.

♦ . Tho correspondent of a Homri paper | in an article dealing witli the recent , polico and labour troubles in Belfast, , in which three porsons were killed, ( remarks : A thin khaki line was drawn across | one of the streets. In tho shelter at , the corners were other men of the i Royal Sussex Regiment standing , whore tho stones could not reach thorn. The polico, too, were beyond the reach of immediate harm. But , what shall I say of that khaki line? - Tf evor men stood up before a mob to , be pelted those men did. From my | window I could see the stones rico- j allotting at their feet Sometimes a | hoad was deftly turned aside as a , stone whipped past it. Every now and then a lamp or a window was . broken. After standing 15 minutes . of it, the men were ordered to RUSH THE MOB. With the rifles at carry, they dashed forward, accompanied by the magis- 1 trate. and the district inspector. Fifty paces along (hi; street thoy made a t stand, but no discipline in tho world j could have brazened out those vollevs of stone, fn vain the men dodged. In vain they sprang this way and that i way as the misslos fell round and \ about. At last they could stand it no longer. , In an ungovernable moment they ( made the mistake of returning the lire, and soon the space between the mob anil the troops was dark with flying stones. Hacked tip by other reinforcements the mob grew bolder. From my window f could hear their hoarse cries coining nearer, and the Hearer they came the further retreated the soldiers 'I ime and again did the magistrate flourish his stick, time and , .again did he roar out warnings of retaliation. The crowd met his warnings with jeers, and the troops ro treated on the street, just beneath my window, where they stood once more a line of tense white faces. I could see the men's nerves working with excitement; they fumbled at the triggers of their rifles, and started forward as if bursting to get at their tormontois. Behind them paced their oHicers, cool, calm, but terribly in earnest. Suddenly the order rang out, 'FIX BAYONETS. 1 ' The bayonets went home with a rasp, and as the men fixed them the mob jeored and yelled a decisive challenge to come or:. At this moment a dozen policemen made a dive down a nido .street., and returned with a prisoner At the same time a wounded Tom my limped by leaning on tlx; arm of his commander, lie' khaki line made .1 note of the incident and ground ius teeth, and still tlie stones came sc;i tering along the pweiii'tit, angry, vengeful uu'.s.sjig- s ..f detinuce from the wild ragged arm\ beyond. The troop* were splendid Behind the line some of tho men were returning stone for stone, but those pale, silent men across tho street I shall never forget, (hit-f----an officer was struck. He limped away to a wall, against which lie leaned, nursing hi* hurt in silence. Now it was a Tommy struck on the head, the broast, or the leg*, but still the men held on. They knew that, their turn was yet to come, mid it eame at last all in one frenzied moment. Regardless of the stones the magis trate stepped forward and read the Riot Act, He might have shouted to the winds for all the effect it had. A stone whizzed by and he stepped buck, i saw him raise his stick arid (tie sign was quickly nnswered with ' Ball cartridge. Load, present, fire !' Those thousands of stones were at last an «we.- ' ' n - "• - » ■ - 1 - - ' spu> ■ . i■ «i .. in , a. ~u i j the fir>t litne in ine bis'iry of these riots THE TROOPS HAP FIRKI>. Women who had taken shelter with

me in the shop screamed, and the faces that, had been peering out of other window;; bobbed into oblivion. Cau tinusly peering out 1 saw the rifles go up once again, and again the rifles npoko, Another order and the troops dashed along t,he Ktrert. God help any man wild had stayed to look ot those glis tening bayonets. The crowd gave one more, yell and tied down the side streets, from which the soldiers pre sentlyemerged, and once more mounted guard at their old corner. Presently a rioter passed by in the gra.sp of three policemen. The breast ot' his shirt was open, and the flesh seemed to he streaming with blood. Since my first message I have paid another visit to the scene of the riot ing. Now that the heat and passion ot the moment have passed away I cannot help being struck with the .awful pity of it all. THK KILLKIX The list of those killed in the fight ing desciibed above was as follows: Maggie Lennon, single woman, aged -j,'}, f)2 Conway street, shot through both thighs. Charles JVlWlullan, 74 Conway street, ironturner, shot through the lungs (died 15 minutes later). Charles Kelly, no address obtainable but believed to be a lodger in Norfolk si, root. It was siid that the woman Lennon was going down to the end of the street to look for a little boy. Unhappily she got right in the line of fire, and was shot fatally. On the way to the hospital she died