The Sun.
London, England, 1869-06-07 00:00:00

IMPERIAL _PARLIAMENT

HOUSE OF LORDS—'ruts EVENING.

The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on th• woolsack

at five o'clock.

METROPOLITAN RAILWAY BILL.
Oa the motion for the Fe and reading of this bill,
The Duke of RUTLAND moved the insertion of a
elauso calling up n the company to provide smoking
e3rriages.
Lord EIMBERLEY thought the requirement of smok-
ing carriages had been very much exaggerated, but he
did not think it woul I be advisable to compel the com-
pany to provide titcm.

After sumo discussion, in which Lord Redosdale and
tho Earl of Devon took part, their lordships divided, when
tho clause was n jr:cted by 75 to 36.
[LEFT SITTING.

HOUSE OF COMMONS—This EVENING.
The SPEAKER took the chair at 4 o'clock.
THE RIOTS AT MOLD.

Mr. BRUCE, in reply to Mr. 0. Morgan, said he had
received a statement from the justices with respect to the
riot at Mold. It states that in consequence of a riot being
apprehended at Mold, a number of soldiers, about 50, were
telegraphed for, and sent from Chester, with about 38
police-constables. The reason for such a proceed-
ing was that eight colliers were about to
unergo an examination before the local justices for
an assault upon one of the managers in that district. The
result of the examination was that two out of the eight
were sentenced to a term of imprisonment. It became
necessary, in order to carry out the sentence, to convey
the prisoners from the police court to the railway station ;
and here the soldiers and police encountered a mob of over
1,000 persona ranged on either side of the road. The
mob unfortunately had as unlimited command of the
supply of stones, as the roadway in that particular
place had but just been newly made. Notwithstanding
most violent attack, during which the police and soldiers
were very severely hurt by the atones, they were enabled
to carry their prisoners into the railway station. After
that, however, the riot assumed a more serious and deter-
mined aspect, and solely on account of the violent conduct
of the mob one of the magistrates gave directions to
Captsin Blake, on receiving which he gave the
word to fire, which was obeyed, but the soldiers fired
high, so that only one person was shot. The result of
this was to call forth still more violent conduct, and mat-
ters having taken a very serious turn the order was given
to the soldiers again to fire, and unfortunately four per-
sons were killed. The riot still continuing, the soldiers
kept up their fire until the mob began to retreat..
The effect of the attack of the mob was that the soldiers
and police had teen most seriously hurt, twenty of the
former and twelve of the latter receiving severe injury.
The Riot Act was not read. Such a proceeding was
not necessary to justify the soldiery firing. The
effect of reading the Riot Act was solely to make that,
which was at the first a serious offence still more
serious, subjecting those taken after such a proceeding
to a long term of penal servitude. The soldiery were
justified in firing by the serious personal attack that was
made upon them, it being such an attack that fully war-
ranted them, as it would by private indictment, in having
recourse to any defensive weapon that might be ready to
hand. That was the opinion of the jury.