Los Angeles herald., 1907-03-27
CHINESE RIOT
PRECIPITATED D
IN COURT ROOM
Government Officers
Seize Women
Little CeIestials Get Out of One
Trouble only to Get Deeper
Into Another That
Is Worse

In a desperate effort to secure two of
their young women who were being
dragged from the court room by federal
officers yesterday afternoon, a band of
Chinese precipitated a small riot in the
lobby and corridor adjoining depart
ment s of the superior court and had TO
be quieted by officers until the girls
could be hustled into a well protected
room and officers stationed to guard
the door.
The fight was the outcome of the war
between the missionaries and the
Chinese which has been on for the past
two weeks. In the afternoon Wong
She and Lue Lock, two pretty little
Chinese women were up before Judge
Wilbur who endeavored to ascertain
their ages or the details of the mar
riages regarding the legal clause.
After a heated session he found that
he, as juvenile magistrate, had no
further jurisdiction over the young
women and he dismissed them. The
one phrase that they might go home
had hardly been told the two girls be-
fore they leaped to their feet and
started to shuttle their way through
the throng of missionaries who stood
between them and liberty.
Seized by Officers
A crowd of Chinese were grouped
around the door waiting the arrival of
the girls, and in a moment they would
have gained the corridars and their
freedom. Just as little Wong She made
a leap for the protecting arm of big
Chinese who in past years has been
known as a leading member of the
Hop Sing Tong, an immigration officer
seized her. There were six of these
men in the court room at the time, and
the blue and brass of their uniforms
seemed to throw the celestials in a
frenzy. A dozen of them leaped to-
ward the federal officers, who were
making a hasty exit for the door.
Three of the officers stepped quickly
between the Chinese and their intended
prey, and while the. officers swept the
enraged celestials back the girls were
dragged out into the corridor
1t was all done so quickly that hardly
a sound had been made. Inside the
court room a half dozen celestials had
surrounded their attorney shouting and
gesticulating in an effort to make him
interfere with the federal officers, but
he was powerless. Those Chinese in
the outer corridor made a menacirg
dash toward the girls, but stopped be-
fore trouble resulted, and both girls
were hustled into a private room and
a federal officer was placed on guard
The shriekS of the girls when they
learned that they were to be hailed be-
fore the United States commissioner or
charges of having been brought into
the country for immortal purposes were
terrible to hear. One of the girls, in
her agony, threw herself on the floor,
tearing with her tiny fingers at the
masses of black oiled hair and trying
to break the beautiful jade and gold
hair ornaments.
Chinese Are Furious
Outside in the corridor those frantic
yells lashed the Chinese into a fury.
They hung in groups about the door
way, gesticulating among themselves,
muttering oaths against the officers
and twice they stole in cautiously to-
ward the lone guard at the door. 1t
has been a long time since the hatchet
men ran rife in Los Angeles. 1t has
been a still longer time since the peo-
Pile of Los Angeles, in retaliation for
the acts of those highbinders, hung
every Chinese they could find on the
telegraph poles about the Plaza. But
those scenes came nearly being re-
peated yesterday afternoon, and more
than one celestiaTs loose sleeve bulged
Ominously as he stood waiting the
action of the officers. An extra guard
was stationed at the door doing SEN
try duty, and the Chinese drew back
Two other United States officers came
out into the corridor and began to look
the celestials over and in fear they
beat a hasty retreat, for anything was
preferable to the danger of being de-
ported.
Draws Big Crowd
In half an hour after the corridor
L. Al. H..
out by the officers and put in charge
of the matron of the county Jail, who
will have charge of them till then
trials have been attended. AS both
girls were being led away their wild
screams of fright and fear, their ef-
forts at resistance, and above all the
unusual sight of the uniform in the
corridors of the court house caused a
general dash for the scene of excite
ment and the courts poured forth
scores of spectators, all of whom tried
to get a glimpse Of the trouble.
While men and women from all parts
of the building were dashing upstairs
to the fourth floor where the yelling
and screaming had increased to a reg
ular bedlam of sound the officers hur-
ried the girls into the outside elevator
and got away with them.
The Chinese trouble started a lit
tie more than a week ago. when mis-
sionaries and a squad of police in
vaded a house on the north and south
section of Chinese alley. That dis
trict has always been known as a dis
trict where disordeTly houses are nu-
merous, but recently some Of the Chi
nese families have been compelled to
invade the little tumbledOwn shacks in
search of dwellings. Even i'm the past
nv Of