Reading for Everybody.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2389, 2 January 1909, Page 11 (Supplement)

Reading for Everybody.

A R AL RIOT.

FIERCE FIGiON A STEAMER. On° of the Ist sanguinary .riots which has occjed in Sydney took place on theg and 0. Company’-:* steamer Mond yesterday (says a issue She Sydney 'Morning Herald). Iron arose between the •Punjabis and Idee-boys. On Tuesday evening tl| was a slight disturbance, resuitiffin -a few minor injuries. The |ter police went on . board and' resiM order, and it was thought that | quarrel was over. But yeeterdayte fight broke' out • arresh, and is<| assumed serious dimensions. Thl were about 86 Punj abis, and onl|2 Seedee-boys from Zanzibar. 8 . What actual caused the resumption of, hostilitiis not clear, but the 1 unjabis star® on . the Seedee-boys, and soon a dferate encounter' was in progress. Ives; ..forks,’ hammers, hardwood sticl| shovels, and anyr things that canto hand were snatched up, and fify used in the melee. Although grey- outnumbered, the Africans gave| good account of themselves;. ley used fists and. stjeks against fe knives of the Punjabis. Severajf the combatants on both sides weiinjured. Blood was freely flowingfom a dozen of the fighters. A cdee-boy fell from "a knife thrust itlie body, and a couple of Indiaimvere knocked almost senseless by b|s on the head. Both sides yelled at swore, and their shouts, minglil with the cries of the wounded, email a' veritable inferno. The forecast]] was l slippery with blood from tlicombatants. Just- when niters looked very serious, and' wheel seemed certain that several“would ] killed, the ship’s.officers rushed i| and with difficulty .parted the coijatants. Five of the Seedee r boys we injured, and 11 of the Punjabis Dre oc less seriously. A score bad m|>r cuts and bruises to show. | . * The police oiarriving on the scene arrested six o£he chief combatants. One was charm, with inflicting grievous bodily , bun, one with assault, and four witll disorderly conduct. Two were take] to the hospital for treatment, anrftke skip’s doctor was kept busy for ame time attending to /the wounded, j IN|HE CITY. The Punjabi, resented tlieir companions being liken to gaol. They demanded theixrelease, and, refusing to obey the offers, left the shin .in a body. ShoutiiV and gesticulating, “they made towaas Circular Quay. A crowd soon colleied, and the Indians were'the centre t a surging mob. A number of city jplico and water police were at hani in case of further disorder. The Ppjabis, chiefly firemen and greaserd were attired in all sort,s of disreputable attire. Many were barefooted,. *ie were clothed in garments made fi>m hessian bags—mute evidence of the recent affray. All were black witl soot and oil, and , ' presented a wi 1 d ivcl i s he v e 11 e d aspect. Opposite the eleccric tram loop they came to a halt, girl were harangued by the serang. A/mmber shouted wildly, and brandisjed. their oil rags, then made off in,tie direction of Pittstreet. From /those who could speak a few words of English, it was gathered that theyjwere determined to go - to the P. and Q. Companv’s office and see the manager. While the riofcrs were marching along Pitt-street \lr. Trelawny, superintendent of theVPeninsular and Oriental Co., was informed of their approach. Ho stated that ho would decline to see them,\as the disturbance was purely a matter for the captain of the Mongolia. Ihe chief officer of the Mongolia was in the office., but declined to say anything about the riot. \ Just as the Punjabis reached the corner, of Bridge-street, Superintendent McVane and Sergeant Wallace, of the Water Police, together with the .' chief officer, induced th?m to go up Macquarie-place, and on to the Water Police Court. The motley crowd, suspecting nothing, led by the sergeant, and escorted by a few of \he Water Police officers,, marched right into the station. They were all pat in the yard, and looked like so. many rats in a trap. The services of No. 1 serang, Mahomet Ghee, was then requisitioned, and ho interpreted the words of Inspector McVane. .;■■ . “The men locked’ up; they get proper British trial. If theyffio guilty, they go back ship. You all do no good come ashore. If you no go back on ship you all get - locked up, and fine one pound.” Then the Punjabis jointly •and individually expressed their opinion of the Seedee-boys, of the autliorL ies for* not letting their compatriots go, and of the police 'for bringing them there. All spoke and shouted ■at once. Chief Engineer Watt and Chief Officer Naylor tried' to calm them, but it was useless. Several of the victims in the affray on the ship sprang to their feet, and pulled off their turbans, exposing bloody heads and bandages. They shouted - and swore, and, so far as could be understood, refused to return to the ship until their mates were released. The inspector saw it was useless to argue with them, so they were taken four at a time, and charged .with leaving their ship without leave. Then the Punjabis, turned sulky. They realised that they had been cleverly trapped, and so refused to tell their 'names or answer any questions. A messenger was then despatched to the ship for the roll-book, and the -head serang and 65 men were charged and . locked up.. Subsequently others were arrested, making the total locked up 77. AT THE SHIP. It. is clear from the narratives in pigeon English given , by the Seedeeboys, who were gathered at the end of the wharf after the melee that the fight was of a sanguinary character. Of the 12 Seedee-boys, all of whom hail from Zanzibar, and are typical African, blacks, few escaped injuries. One Was lying on a seat with his body swathed'in antiseptic wool and great strap bandages. He had a knife wound'on one side of the body not far from the heart, and his dirty shirt was stiff with his blood. Three others had head pads and bandages, and' all complained that they were very sleepy. y _ “Why don’t'you go on hoard and jjtfleep ” asked the reporter. “The rPunjabis areuall in the lock-up.” /•/•“No fear,” replied one. “If we go sleep they" cut across de troat,” and he drew his fingers across big, throat. , : fe# 1 fe ’ - ■ \ v ' 7 * ' :■ r / ' • -1 ■

The story fold' by the negroes was largely interlarded Avith bad language; but one of the men, ia worker showing considerable muscular development, had some fertility of expression, .and pictured the fight from his point of view with many dramatic gestures.

“Oh, dose Punjabis,’/.he said; “dey wake..all night, and cley start de row dey’ sef, one-time.. One he come, he hit—ugh—hit wid a big stick, my friend. Ugh—very .hard—any wordsavvy. He jump up; he hit.back, one time, wid his shut hand. Then another Punjabi, he jump one time, savvy, with big stick, like this, and—ugh—he hit too. Then he hit and fight good. Bey—cowards; dey pull out 'knife one time, and cuto-ugn—-savvyand the speaker slashed from side to side as if with a knife. “Bey keep awake .all night, and we very much ’fraid for sleep, savvy, dey kill us. So we watch 'and we watch, and dey come at it in de morning, and we fight some more—ugh! Bey six to one, savvy 'boss, but we knock deni one-time, jf we six more good Seedee-boys wc/settle ’urn de whole 10 b one-time, savvy. Ben ! de ship’s officers dey come and run dem in, and stop de racket. Oh plenty much blood in fo’c’sl, my word. We work in de stokehold, savvy, boss, same like dem Punjabis. Bey" call names, savvv, oh much bad names.”

The injured and uninjured men were subsequently induced to return to their quarters. Two constables were sent f rom the Water- Police Station, to the ship to watch that no further trouble should occur during the night. - .

“After that I became full of the idea of going to ' and’ I approached my 'managers, Messrs. Jarrett and ltico (Rice of “Evangeline” fame), and after a lot of argument iand consideration they resolved to risk a three months’ summer tour of England!—/luring the closedown season in America. We got the company together, and/ crossing the herring pond, opened in Manchester on May 15, 1882. The,piece made a hit from the start, and the provincial tour was most successful, but we couldn’t get ' into .London, there Avasn’t a theatre available. The managers Avianted to get. back, but I argued that it Avas no good playing in England' Avithout a London appearance, so I sparred for breath, and at last unearthed a musty old theatre that had not been ./used for years—the old Olympic. We had it brushed up, and Avere going to play a tAvoAveeks’ season. We opened there on August 7, 1882, but so great was the success that avo played ‘Fun on the Bristol’ for no feAver that fourteen Aveeks, AA'hich Avas a long run for those days. “We were great people. Royalty be a moduli pon A us; AA’hich 'reminds me of an incident. One night the present Kin*? (then •Prince of Wales) sent word thst ihe would attend tiie sIiOAV, and great preparations were made to do him proud, shoAvmg what true Republicans Ave Avere. The conductor Avas a. very conscientious man, and had-his band trained to the second, so that AA'hen the Prince entered he Avas greeted Avith the crashing strains of the National Anthem. 1 should explain that this Avas contrary to all usage, as the Prmce was a o-reat theatregoer and. did not like to be made a fuss of. He was greatly incensed iat the display, but the management pleaded ignorance, an th© Prince graciously l©t the matter pass 'He Avas delighted Avith the performance, and at the conclusion sent for me and honored me Avitlx his congratulations.”