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Otago Witness, Issue 2413, 7 June 1900, Page 27

DEMONSTRATION IN THE MORNING.

PLACES OF BUSINESS COMPELLED TO CLOSE.

* ON TOtTR WITH THE REJOICING

PATRIOTS,

Soon after 6 o'clock a great crowd gathered in front of the Town Hall in the Octagon, called together by the clamorous ringing of the bells. There must have been several hundreds of people on the spot within 20 minutes, and their feel ings 'of loyalty, which were unbounded and unrestrained, found vent in cheers and song?. His Worship the Mayor was not long in turning up. In the semi-davknehs he was seen hurrying towards the hall, pnd the crowd gave him a hearty cheer. Mounting the steps, he called on the citizens before him to ring " God savp ihe Queen," and ths rc.-pon o e was as unanimous as it was enthusiastic.

Following this, the mayor, having regained his breath, delivered a j-horL speech, in which he alluded to the principal eveah. of the war, and to Lho successes of the British, his patriotic remarks being received throughout with the warmest expressions of -approval. Cheers were given for Lord Roberts and the " soldiers of the Queen." and a special round of cheers was accorded Major Robin, the- New Zealand contingents, and her Majesty the Queen. The singing of the National Anthem concluded this interesting portion of tlio day's proceedings.

After breakfast the demonstrations of gladness were renewed with right good will. A band came out, and assisted very materially to keep up the spirit of the proceedings. Shortly after 9 o'clock a large number of workers from the various shops in town which had closed for the day congregated in the Octagon, the Railway Workshops' hands forming a large proportion of the number, and hi& Worship the Mayor was again called on for a speech. Tha chief magistrate was quite equal to the occasion. Speaking from the

Town Hall steps, waving a small flag in hiij hand the while, he again referred to thft glorious deeds that stand to the credit of. the British arms in this South African wai\< to the wonderful resources of Britain's sofo diers in times of hard trial, and to the magni« ficent plans which have been so well and sue-> cespfully carried out by Lord Roberts and* his staff. The speech was given in his Won ship' 6 happiest vein, and the audience, enter, ing with keen spirit into his remarks, cheered* him to the echo, and then cheered again, Cheers were given and patriotic songs sungv and the crowd dispersed.

A feature of the proceedings of the morning wai the demand made by those workers who; had been allowed a holiday that their brother workers in other establishments should als«' enjoy a like privilege, and, with the object of seeing- that the day was closely observed as a holiday by as many as possible, a crowd' of young fellows, whose ages ranged from aboxit 16 to 30, collected between 8 and 9 o'clock, and at once proceeded about the town on their pelf-imposed errand. Two of them found ponies, on which they subsequently rod* throughout the city at the head of the " procession " and another donned a red military coat, which, although it was a bad fit, invested him with a certain measure of authority. They went to quite a number of places. One of the first was the Phoenix Confectionery Works in Maclaggan street, but as only a few men were working there in order to get a f-hiymrnl away by a steamer tlie crowd went elsewhere. Mr Shaddock's foundry, at tho pouth end, was invaded in a manner that waa certainly not appreciated by the owner, but, nothing could bo done to ftop the inrush. Later on the premises of Messrs Cossens and Black, A. Thomson and Co., the City Sawmills, the Crown Roller Mills, Mr Rittenberg' (Hope street), Messrs "Farra and Co. (Stafford street), Messrs Ross and Glendining, the New Zealand Clothing Factory, Maesrs Sargood, Son, and Ewen, and others were invested — it was so, in many capes — a request being put forward in each case that the employees should at once stop work, so that they might, if they desired, join in the general holiday-making. In some cases, the men — or the girls, as the case might be, — were ordered to desist from their tasks, and in others it was agreed thab the workers should knock off at noon. The crowd then continued their victorious march, by way of Macandrew street, to some shops in the north end. In Moray place a halt was called, and the man with the red coat — a well' known Caversham footballer— mounting tha stonewall of First Church fence, addressed his followers, tie said there was to be no destruction of or injury to property. The day, however, had .been proclaimed a holiday, and they were desirous that all workers should have it. — (Cheers.) They then made their way to the Otago Foundry Company and a timber yard in Castle street, and the men at both places were told to put on their coats. One* employer said to our reporter: "We had to do it. You can't tell what they might do." At this point it may be remarked that the police were several times telephoned for to .'.top " the rowdyism of this g3ng," as one man put it. Messrs R. Anderson and Co.'s foundry in Aloray place vas next visited. Tha red-coated man and about 50 others went 'into the shop where the men were at work, and a demand was made by the leader thkt tho men should be allowed off. " Why do yoii order me in this way?" said Mr Anderson. " We are celebrating one of the greatest events

in British history, and the men deserve a holiday," replied the leader. Mr Anderson continued to remonstrate with the conduct o£ the crowd. Someone called for the National Anthem, and it was sung with vehement gusto. " Will you give the men a holiday?" asked tho leader. Mr Anderson would not he dictated to by a mob of boys,, headed by an agitator, and an argument followed about Boer v. Britisher. "Rule Britannia" was struck up, and sung noisily. Mr Anderson was accused by a sallow-faced youth with being a Boer— a charge he indiguantly denied, — and after groans had been given for Kruger another wordy warfare ensued between the employer and the leader of the crowd. Then some of the workers were observed putting on their coats, and cheers were given for the Queen, and after some further remarks had passed between Mr Anderson and some o£ the invaders — very warm on Mr Anderson's port, and \mdoubtedly impertinent on the part; of the young fellows, — the crowd began to disperse. Some damage was done to one or two moulds in the wild rush that was made about the phop. Other parts of the town were also visited. In Rattray street the premises of Messrs Butler Bros., Laidlaw and Gray. Neill and Co., and others were attacked. At Messrs Laidlaw and Gray's the police, under Subin&pector Kiely, put in an appearance, and tried to keep the men from battering on the dcor and shutters, but they were swept back by a crowd that surged on them, with an irresistible sweep. A demand was made that the tramway employees should have a holiday after noon ,"or else," said the leader, " we will ," and no mora was heard, the speaker's audience being. left to draw their own conclusions. The movements of the crowd, subsequent to this threat, were watched with great interest, and at 12 o'clock, when the trams were running as usual and the cro\vd Avas seen making its way in the direction of the starting point at tha Grand Hotel, excitement ran pretty high. On reaching this point, some of the youngerand more thoughtless spirits among the crowd rushed at the horses and began to take off the harness., and no doubt they would have taken the horses out if the police had not come to the assistance of the tram employees and slopped the foolish action. A demonstration was, of course, made agahist the company,