The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1886-02-09
Starving Mechanics Egged
on by Socialists.
THEIR LOUD DEMANDS FOR AID.
They Want The Question Settled al
once, Peacefully II Possible; Oiher-
wise Revolution Is Inevitable.
A London Mob

oAOuHu nelson monument, and it
resulted in q riot. The proceedings
were opened with an asselnblage of TO-
600 men. Police were present in large
numbers. They at once saw that the
socialists element OF London greatly
predominated in the crowd, which was
also managed by well known socialist,
ana there was extraordinary vigilance
TO preserve peace at all hazards. Con-
splcuous among the leaders of the
multitude was Burns. who ran rs the
socialist candidate in Nottingham in
the recent election. He sneertd ar the
police and acted generally as If he
wished to bring about a conflict
between the police and peonle
Finally he assembled the pedestal Of the
Nelson column, for the purpose of de.
livering harangue. He was well aware
that this act would not be tolerated and
the police politely ordered him to get
down. This he refused to do, appeal
ing to the crowd to resist interference
with sthe exercise of popular rig0ts.
The officers, however, were determined
and they pushed their way through the
excited and resisting mass and by force
removed Burns from the pedestal. By
this time the crowd had vastly aug
mented and the streets adjacent were
packed with the surging mobs. The
str IN the elevated spot where the Burns
incident took place was easily percep-
uble over almost the entire area covered
by the concourSe ana the sight of he'll
NETS and uniforms in the strug-
gle was accepted as visible
proof of the commencement of
the fight against the law. The in
telligence was responded to with a gen
eral and fearful howl, and an attempted
rush from all directions to the point of
interest. Burns had now been removed
some distance from the position he had
attempted to occupy, He became en-
boldened by the cries OF the throng. and
made desperate effort to recover his
lost ground. He was Sd effectively
helped; by the mob that the officers on
the spot we're brushed out of the " az,
and the orator was soon pressed up
against the monument. He quickly re-
assembled the pedestal, accompanied by a
number of other socialist leaders. Burns
bore red flag and he waved it to the
assemblage as a signal of his triumph
over the authorities. He was greeted
with deafening shouts, raised again and
again. Burns now leiSurely finished his
address. He then read a fiercely
worded resolution. This denounced the
OF the present distress in Eng
land, demanded that Parliament start
public works to give employment and
bread to the tens of thousands of de-
serving men who were out of work
through no fault of their own, but be-
cause of bad government, and declared
It was the duty of government to afford
every facility for the employment of
British people, and 70 give British enter
prlses advantage over foreign, asserting
that the time had arrived for ParlIa-
ment TO earnestly legislate for the relief
Of the depression in English agricultural
industry. The resolutions also de-
the immediate appointment of
Z Minister OF Commerce, and Minister
Of Agriculture, and concluded with the
resolve that copies should be forwarded
10 Gladstone, Salisbury, Parnell and the
Board of Public Works, The reading of
.he resolutions was accompanied by
ierce comment and short explanatory
speeches, by various orators. who stood
With Burns. Some of these orators went
10 far as to warn government that, al
hough the starving mechanics of |
London were now attempting to
lraw attention to their needs, by |
Iuiet and peaceful agitation, they 1
we're bound to get it by attacking
,akers' shops next, if government did
lot come to their relief Burns himself,
n one of these side speeches, denounced |
he present House of Commons as a /
,ody of landlords and capitalists, for
whom hanging was too good He also /
declared that the people had assembled
0 summon Parliament to Immediately |
elieve the distress of British working
nen; that the people wanted the ques-
ion settled at once, and peacefully If /
'ossible; otherwise revolution was in I
vitable. All this aggravated the ex-
itement of the huge mass, SO
hat the police reformed with in
reased force and made another assault.
hey succeeded in forcing their way
.p to the pedestal. They reached this
oint Just as the resolutions which had
lready been offered and seconded were
bout, to be submitted 10 the mob for
pprovar. The officers at once ordered
be proceedings to be disconstnued on L
be pedestal and commanded Burns
nd his colleagues to come down. This
hey refused to do, and the. officers
hereupon dragged them down by force
III QIOVe IQSlu IIOn the peQ6Sldl. 1t |
'as evident that Burns expected that L.
he application of violence to him Z
Tould precipitate riot and it was also /,
pparent that the officers Immediately 6
ngaged in removing the orator feared
n attack but the men comprising the !
lob were not in fighting humor, and
ne mob contented itself for time by
ooting the police and smothering them !
18th flour, dirt and garbage. The
mcers tehayed admirably under
lis abuse and showed no resentment.
-fter their election, neither Burns nor
ny of his colleagues made any further
ttempts to get back. They at once left
lie street and proceeded TO the Reform L
Tub building. They mounted the :
.eps, pointed to the doors and windows
nd bitterly denounced the inmates.
his looked like an attempt to set the
lob on the building The mob was ex
ted, but not up to the point of violence
ct. Burns and his colleagues seeing
lis. vacated the Reform Club steps and
roceeded to the Carleton Club, where
ley repeated their tactics. By this
me the mob was tremendous in num-
srs and verging to desperation. Stories
what the police hac said and done at
lie Nelson column had been circulated
ON mouth to mouth, exaggerated
18th every repetition until the mer-