Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-29
CHAINED IN COMMONS
Suffraqettes Fasten Them
selves to Gallery Rail.
REMOVED WITH DIFFICULTY
Grating Taken Of and Bonds Filed
Before Girls Are Put Out.
FOURTEEN PUT UNDER ARREST
Twelve Fined, One Remanded and
Another Observation-Disclosures OF
Parliament Fear Bombs.
FOURTEEN PUT UNDER ARREST

| LONDON, October 29.-Fourteen SUI
| fragettes, arrested last night for persist
ing in haranguing crowd in front OF the
parliament buildings, were arraigned IN
police court this morning.
Twelve were fined $25 each, with the
alternative Of a months imprisonment IN
the third division One was renamed
Another was discharged.
| The house of commons was the scene
last night of the most extensive and oes'
| organized suffragette raid yet
| By preconcerted arrangement disturb
ances were created simultaneously in the
ladies' gallery. the mems gallery and ST
Stephens Hall. outside the precincts oil
the chamber.
Two young and pretty suffragettes
Muriel Matters and Helen Fox, got tickets
| from a member to whom they were
strangers and who therefore obtained a
pledge of honor that they would do moth
| ing contrary to the rules Of decorum.
| Having secured two seats some distance
| apart in the front row of the ladies' gal
! lery, up against the ornamental brass grill
| that separates the gallery from the house
| they proceeded silently to fasten to the
| grill stout steel chains. which had been
| already made secure around their waists
| Then Miss Matters interrupted the pro-
ceedings by demanding attention to the
| woman question, shouting Votes for
women"
Grill Has to Be Removed.
Janitors rushed into the gallery to re-
move her, but after prolonged attempts,
during which the proceedings In the
house degenerated into chaos, the sec
tons of the grill to which the young
women had chained themselves had to
be unscrewed and removed bodily, to-
gether with the shouting, gesticulating
suffragettes.
Just as these women we're being taken
out a man sprang up In the strangers
gallery, at the opposite end of the house.
dashed to the front, and, with a dexter
Gus turn of the wrist. sent a shower OF
suffragette proclamatfons futtering over
the heads of the members. He was seized
A little later another man in the same
gallery yelled: Votes for women His
ineighbors throttled and nearly choked
him before the janitors could rescue
him.
About the same time other suffragettes
jumped from their seats in st. Stephen
Hall, leading to the central lobby scream
ing: Votes for Women!" The police
promptly seized and flung them into the
street.
Chains Filed Off.
1t took ten minutes to file through the
chains that gripped Misses Matters and
Fox to the grill. The operation was per-
formed in committee room. They were
then marched off the premises by the
| police.
On reaching the sidewalk they raised a
disturbance and were taken to a police
station.
All the galleries in the house are now
closed to visitors and will remain closed
until parliament passes a short act en-
abling disturbers to be punished by mag
istrates like ordinary offenders. The
speaker of the house of commons has
power to deal with them. but only by
bringing them to the bar of the house and
giving them opportunity to make speeches
which they ardenty desire to do.
The members of the house Of commons
are in a. sort of panic for fear some OF
the still more hysterical women may
fling bombs on the floor
1t was Mrs. Despards organization
which arranged last nights manifesto
tions, and the bitter rivalry between her
Woman's Freedom League and Mrs
Pankhurst's Womens Social and Political
Union is deemed one of the great sources
Of danger in the situation.