Religious Riots in Lon-DON.

Manawatu Standard, Volume 4, Issue 128, 7 May 1883, Page 3

Religious Riots m LonDON.

; iPhe prbceedings ot the Salvation army i£ London having led to an oppoBitiori- organization called the . Skeleton •Aririy/ trouble '' appears likely' to arise;; through the two "armies" coming into'' conflict. " The Morning Post of I'ebruary sth, contains the following BUgsestite paragraph ;—" Disgraceful as were the scenes enacted m the neighborhood of the Eagle Tavern, the Salvation Army headquarters, on Sunday last, it was apprehended from the open threats of the leaders of the Skeleton Army that the rioting would be even of a more serious description yesterday. Intelligence of all the various sections of the Skeleton Army throughout the metropolis having re» ceived instructions to assemble m the City road early m the day reached the police during tbe week, and special precautions were taken to deal with the disturbances, a force of between 600 and 700 constables being told off for special duty, a large body being held m reserve within the gates of the Holborn Infirmary which faces the Grecian Theatre. ' ■ At a very early hour m the morning: it was that the apprehensions entertained by the neighboring householders, &c, had not been- groundless, for as early as seven m the morning detachments of the Skeleton Army were paradiri^ the 'streets headed by a brass band, .So great had the crowd become by ten o'clock,, the usual hour for the first march, out of the Salvation Army,, that it was deemed expedient by those m chargeof it not to venture out, but to content themselves with holding services inside the theatre. At mid-day a vast crowd assembled outside the theatre, which was to a certain extent kept on the move by a large force of police on duty, but at three o'clock when the neighboring ptblic^houses closed their doors, -the crowd had swelled to such dimensions as to be unmanageable, fully 20,000 perEonshaving congregated. Then commenced such a scene as is fortttfiStely very rarely seen m the Btreets of London, free fight* of almost serious description occurring every few minuteß - ' Between the police and the mob. Every person who could be recognised as belonging to the Salvation Army was Hustled and ktocked about by the roughs to such an extent that some of then! took refuge m the few shops which, were open, the roughs, threatening to murder them if they came out. lihe intermittent struggles continued all the afternoon, and evening, ending m the police making some arrests."