Riverside Fuea.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13638, 4 July 1908, Page 1 (Supplement)

Riverside Fuea.

SAILORS'AT WAR. ' ■.*' RIVAL CLAIMS FOR WORK. Our cable messages reoently ito questions in ihe House of Commons ,relatiug to Chinese on . British ships. ; bearing upon it, the following from' a, London paper of May, 12th is interesting,: Although bowie knives, revolvers,V,,ind noosed ropes were, missihg, East London had some experience troubles" of America; aqcL but for the firmness and control cised by Messrs Catheray & Pot-ten, .among other leaders of the National Seamen's and Firemen's Union, the trouble would have been extremely serious. : ■The difficulty had arisen over the-act-ion of certain shipping firms in engaging Chinese" crews, to the exclusion of' • British and other European sail ore, some hundred of whom had not'a ship for months past.;' On Saturday a crew of the Asiatics were brought to the Board,;, jot' Trade offices for enrolment, but they were met by pickets of the trade union. • When they had "signed on," they were directed to a ship in the Surrey Commercial'-DockE. But Mr. Potten was there,- and being ;jui; importation from the.Tilbjiry'district, Tfjas'" not so well' known as Mr Catheray, .rhe was able to put the chinamen into special compartments of the train, have ytiiepa locked in-, and consigned 'to -Whifcecliapel instead of to shadwell (for the tunnel).; When the" mistake was discovered m»t Whitechapel, the men were sent . back; but it was too late, for 200 European .seamen had taken possession' of the nhip, l and expressed a determination' tot- upset the gangway. The captain and- a. dock official were in a difficulty/ but the Bhip had to be cleared for Cardiff with-the-tide, and a- crew of Europeans had .Bigried on for the tripi at 70s; thus as a result of the tactics of the day over £SO-.went into the pockets of otherwise •unemployed seamen. -. .. •. 'i

UNION. LEADER'S STRATEGY. -- '. Yesterday another' crew was •'•Wanted for a" ship now lying at Cardiff. : v .A"g&in : tlskn Chinese seamen's boarding houses, which have grown up in great • numbets • recently, were ransacked, and: a score or more of . the Asiatics were sent. off' to the Board of Trade offices in East India Dock-road to sign on. . *, Apparently the union pickets were 4joo numerous for them, and the C«ksti«te A were not allowed to enter tie waiting- > room, or even the front. offices. ■ Word had been sent: round to the houses and sailors', homes .where the out-of-world Europeans are crowded together, and sown large numbers. of men in want of., work; tramped through Poplar id . the'.-'Board of Trade offices. :• $ The police, however, had.been'&arns3, and three inspectors, with several. 6cori=> of reserve and other constables, wepe t>n duty. About 3.30 o'clock the Chinamefi,' were seen crossing, the road' to the-Wos'epn. side to escape; observation. As each' h\d his pigtail rolled under his hat, snd ,wqi> dressed in European clothes, .while tie < leader was a smart young' yellow man in a clean straw hat and inaVy blue lounge suit, they almost" escapeds'lKitice. "' But they made the mistake of procitwliiig to the front en< ranee, wlier-e ftJiey ; were met by "Mr.;; Catieray and.iiomej of;. vhiit ' lieutenants,? ; away. * ' The police inspector 'asked - ; Mr. Catlwtay ? on what oulhori'y lie Rcted; and wa.V'irtformed that it whs not the; seamon's.en- , ' trance, which ?s in jWemwh-rtreet, cloSs . to the Wade Arms, in which Mr.. John Burns and othe'ns had their headquarters;, when they organi-ed the great i strikewfor '. the dockers' tanner. • .

The police, finding that; Mr. Cathea*ny had the law side of the argument, t>rdev»'l the' Chinese to the' proper en franco-. -The • stalwart chief inspector, six feetr lirs>h, and broad shouldered, crossed the <road> to v the frightened Chinamen, and placing' 1 an escort of officem witty them, marched ■ them to the proper entrance.. But -Jire-" miah-street was ; theh filled, with European-i-ail ore, ; who were out of work, and tiiev barred the way. Orders; wen* giveiL»to r the police, to "clear "them out,"-nnd «>>>ori the Chinese were got safely into *he office.' and the waiting room was cle^reA,-of' all others for their accommodation.

But the law 6avs -that exoept r iq.;'the case of British subjects a ; language ir, to be appMed, and not one-, in-a hundrM' of the men could understand or " speak' English,' and all were too terrified to -do so, in any case," they were reject-ed—for a time at anv rate. A RACE FOR SAFETY. Then came the trouble of the return trip to the safe, shelter of the boarding house, whence they had come. The. polices had protected them on entry, but thiy did not appear to'-.relish. the work,? an<i before they could arrange plans the Chinese were in full run for cover,, with several hundred yelling and . threatening., Europeans in full cry after them. ; Down - East India Dock-road,...- along North-street,; . and. Oriental-street, ' the chase was oontamied . jnto"" Pennyfield?, ■where, at No: 42, the house 'of Mr!' Chang ;Alton/ they found shelters and;.'safety among a chattering. crow.d of about, fourscore of their fellow countrymen,;-. Nt> damage had been done, except by. an egg or two, although -the temper of some the Italian and Scandinavian (jailors.was threatening. They, were; under the control; of thet Union officers in the same., degree as the British sailors, and one showed this haft of an ugly , knife-hanging at-Jiis "belt, with' a scowl that -warned - euemies:«f.> probable trouble. . !

A "Daily Chronicle" representative-.' I ,wto went into the house found beds or- bedding everywhere ; and men .just awakened, -'qt half asleep, listening eagerly- Vto toe account of' the. narrow. escapes of their, breathless comrades. One who '• could speak- a little caught the intruder by the arm, and seemed; to. desire: information as to a probable Assault-, on the door. : If 6uch an attack had been, carried-.put, as was suggested by 'one -or two: of.,the wilder spirits. out-side,; there would-'..have been murder, for the Chinese Jjvere,-.. in the condition of rats in a corner,.,and,had gathered rude weapons of various degrees of usefulness. .

Mr. Chang Alion liaG another establishment next to the police staticn ,in West India Dock-road.,., Here lie jjeen later, by ..our.-.-representative,-., surrounded by' a' number of his -fellow courttiymen; but he professed entire jgnoranco of. what would be the fate of Jus'<boarders j£.!tbe Europeans were - successful in.; preventing them from getting- a':Bhip;>., The officials of the-Union say i the shipping of Chinese Bailors, who (Saiinot ■speak Englislii is a breach of and that its provisions are being by declaring that all -the men comeCfrOm British China; They ?ire going.td'lmve the question raised in tbe House j>f Commons, and declare that . Mr. Churchill is > with them in the ppsrtion they have taken up. < . > The object of shipowners in shipping these crews, the . leaders of the unibn assert, is to have men serving whoc?p accidents are, not likely - to lead 'to cojnp&nsation claims. To tlus it may his .slflded that the Chinese .on'the. average accept a lower rate than -the aa-well as cheaper dietary-Bc&Ie, - - <■