The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-03-14 00:00:00

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bongs must go, and our concern for the itiMaterbf the former
was increased by the report of tirearms from that quarter,
which several times reached 126. The fire-engines sent to
check the flames were driven off, the mob declaring no
one should interfere to save the British hong, and when
that was done they themselves would help to save the
others. This with the eastern factories was impossible; and
Mr. Heard and party, after defending their entrance against
the thieves for some hours, were forced by the fire to escape
by the back passage at about eleven o'clock. Happily they
effected this in safety ; and soon after the flames running
along the verandah, consumed it, and now, of these fine
porches, nothing remains standing but the lower arches and
some broken pillars. Of course the Creek-hong shared the
same fate. Whilst the fire was still intense there, smoke
issuing from Mr. Fisher's showed that that also had been
doomed to destruction. Some new alarm was felt from this
fresh outbreak, but happily the same causes prevented the
fire from spreading westward. The assurances of the ring-,
leaders of the mob that they would fire no other factory were
now corroborated by the evident exertions going on along
the outskirts of the crowd to check the thieving, by despoil-
ing the wretches of their plunder. We became less and less
apprehensive for the rest of the bongs, and after keeping the
terrace till two Or three o'clock in the morning, lay down on'
mat conches and got a few broken snatches of sleep. Some
of our party (twelve in number) sat up till morning.
Towards dawll there was a lull in the popular violence.
and it was determined that the ladies and a large escort
should take Mingqtles boat and proceed down to W hanipoa,
which they accomplished without molestation ; the rest of
us, after an early breakfast, returned to our factories, which
we found quite as we left them; but, again, as the morning
advanced, the mob collected, resumed full possession of the
square, and reneited their work of plunder. They had now
evidently found entrance into some, not empty, treasuries.
Ragamuffins were appearing in quick succession laden with
dollars. This illgotten booty was, however, seldom left iii
their quiet possession ; every suspected fellow was soon
surrounded, seized, and his dollars scattered in the scuffle,
to he scrambled for by the bystanders ; for hours the
square was covered by knotted groups of this kind, strug-
gling desperately fora share in the plunder. By-and-by the
police and hong coolies mingled in the affrays for the pur-
pose of spoiling and punishing the villains. Thus the morn•
ing wore away, and no interference came from the govern-
ment. No doubt the governor passed an anxious night, ready
to interfere, but dreading the power of the popular party. In
the course of the morning, he learned the true state of the
case, and that he had only the thieves to contend with; he,
therefore, ventured tAnterfere, and a strong body of soldiers
at length appeared at about noon, and cleared the square of
the lawless fellows who had been more than 24 hours in pos-
session of it. It was pleasant to sally forth again, and we
went down to the seat of the conflict, where five dead bodies
of the Chinese, torn and bloody, showed that some at least
had not escaped, to run riot again. Numbers of wretches
soon came creeping from the burning embers, evidently
thieves, yet we saw none of them apprehended—the officers
seemed content to scatter them.