New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-02-28
SUPPLEMENT.
PAGES 9 TO IL.
THE LONDON RIOTS.
rUE SCENE ON TUESDAY-THE POLlCE AMI
THE HOME OFFICE.

eYcuse themselves by saying they had 10 ho'i0''
That Is denied, but whether true or not IL Is c'i
family true that the notice given on Moho"S vas
AMPLE for Tuesday. But even tuesday INC ''i' nTi
ities either could not or would NOT pio','' w
town. Between and 2 o'clock | drove through
0vrord-st. from the Marble Arch to Regent circus
tbo hest mart. The first shops paSsed
yero closed and | began to thlnK t'a'
tho vreckaoe was greater than had been reported
Ivapt IN and saw shutters up on both sues inc
street and ON nearly every shop. The street Iseii
was filled with vehicles, The Sidewalks were
crowded. certain number OF Policemen were
visible In Re ,ent-st. 1t was the same lhoh
t,rneA hack and came to New-Bond-st., narrow
thoroughfirc down the whole length OF which You
can look from the Oxlord-St arch
II was an avenue of barred and guarded build
ings Here, however, as i'll the other streets, one
or two IN every ten shops were wide open, mostly
shops which offered little temptation for plumber;
stationcrs, Berlin wool dealers ana the like. 1t
was curious comment on the starvation theory
j, was even humorous-that great proportion OF
those omen were provision merchants and bakers.
Another not less striking fact is given in letter
published this morning. Sir Andrew Falrbmm
writes that he bad visit on Tuesday from
his tailor, who came to apologize TOT
not sending home suit OF CLONES
promised for Monday afternoon. The man who was
finishing the suit gave W working at O'Clock to
Join the demonstration Of the unemployed.
In Piccadilly the scene was similar. Along every
sidewalk Oozed masses of people; there were more
than YOU see on a holiday. The 9th of February Is
not holiday vet many of these people looked like
sightSeers. They were gazing abont, inspecting the
damage where damage hal been done; talking and
laughing often chatting the casual policeman,
who, for his part took the chat kindly ard wore
his usual stOlid, clumsy, good natured look. Not
few of the pedestrians were rOughs The wind was
east and had brought with it a smoky fog, rather
thick, which settled down and never lifted during
the day. The East End rclormers had come with
the fog.
What had happeacdi Another riot in the night,
or early moning' l put the question
more than once No, nothing had hap
pcned since Monday afternoon The West
End shOpkeepers, it seemed, were simply
suffering from panic. They had had fright the
day before, some of them had lost good deal OF
property they had lost all confidence in the police,
they were unable to protect themselves aud SO
they had put up the shutters and we're sitting be-
hind their counters PRAYING and swearing accord
ing 10 their moods The bOldeT had the doors open
and the gas lighted inside, but did not see that
much reward in the shape of active business at
tended this display of courage. The gas glared in
the pale faces of clerks aud on full shelves and
empty floors of customers there were almost none.
A paralysis had fallen on the retail trade
OF this great quarter So with suit
able reflections Oh the pOltrOouery of
Bareres nation of shopkeepers, | went on to my
aforementioned club There | heard with IN
creduhty at first but finally came to know as fact
that the West End had put mp its shutters at the
biddingO of the police authorities 1t was not tho
shopkeepers who were the poltroOns or imbecles
Yes, il is literally true that the police authorities
ayowed themselves incapable after twcnty four
hours notice of protecting the streets of the metro
polls. They had sent word on Tuesday morning all
over Mayfair and Belerayla, and Kenslngton and
South KemsingtOn Tybur.ia and Bayswater and
Noting Hill. that the shops had better be
closed soon after midday. | was told by
friend and apOOgist for the Chief Commissioner,
Sir L. W. Henderson, that the riot of Monday was
one in which Scotland Yard could not act without
orders from he Home Office. / cannot say quite
believe this story but whatever the routine may
be- a strong man in presence of danger would have
broken through it. As for the Home Office, 1t may
I've sufficient 10 say that the present head of II Is
Mr.. Childcrs. His appointment was one Of the
recent surprises which Mr.. Gladstone sprung upon
the public He certainly never put there from
any expectation that in an emergency
he would show energy or the quail
tiles Of a man of action While the
regenerators from the East End were p:taging
the West End, Mr. Childers was in Edinburgh
looking after his reelection. The permanent clerk
in charge of the Home Office is Mr. Godfrey Lush
ington man Of marked ability in the red tape
department, saturated with the tradition, univcr-
sal in the public Offices that no permanent official
can be expected to take any responsibility or utia-
tive.
There was some hesitation in the tone of the
press on Tuesday morning about the police. There
is none this morning. The dominant sentiment"
observes The lines some of profound Indignation
ut the culpable and almost criminal neglect
Of their primary duties by those responsible for the
administration Of the police. No condemnation
can be too severe for an exhbtiOnlwhch is mildly
described as one of utter incapacity" If they
were taken by surprise ut frst-for which again
there is no cxcuse-they made no effort to repair
their blunder ON Monday. Within fifteen minutes
after Burns and Hyndman had started their pro-
cesson west ward the riot had begun 1t lasted
two hours and not policeman stirred. i have no
doubt whatever, from the accounts OF friends who
saw the performance, that couple of hundred
policemen across the top of ST. James-st. could
have stopped the riotiDg then and there If Sir +.
Henderson lost his head, there time
enough for some competent officer TO or
gaDize defence for Tuesday against
the anticipated renewal Of the invasion.
They had however bat two ideas at Scotland
Yard. One, as we have seen, was to Deseech the
sbopkeepers to barncdde their shops. The other
10 keep Trafalgar Square clear, or rather to
clear it, after the mob had once more assembled
about o'clock yesterday.
All yesterday morning. In fact, the Social Demo-
Gratis of Shoreditch were streaming toward the
scene of their triumph on Monday Before this
they were everywhere. but they had no leaders.
The heroes of Moniay-BIrns Champion Williams
and Hyndman-were. you may suppose, in
hiding. quaking with the fear of arrest.
Nothing of tao sort. They were engaged
in correspondence with Mr.. Chamberlain,
or engaged in receiving reporters of the daily
press; imparting to both their satisfaction with
Mondays proceedings, explaining the demands