Los Angeles herald., 1908-10-14
100000 People Storm
House of Commons
PARLIAMENT DECLARED IN A
STATE OF SIEGE
CLIMAX REACHED IN GREAT SUF-
FRAoE MOVEMENT
Five Thousand Police and Soldiers
Called to Check Struggling Mass.
Scores Faint and Are
TrampIed On
[Rv Associated press.1

T ONDON, Oct. 13.-The cli-
max of the suffragette
Ia movement was reached to-
night when an immense mob
hemmed in parliament and stop
ped traffic IN all streets leading to
Westminster.
For more than three hours the
crowd scufled with the police, in
terfered with theater-goers, broke
windows and disorganlzed things
generally in the center of London.
The heroine of the day was
Mrs. Travers Symons, formerly
secretary to James Keir Hardie,
the Socialist and independent
member of parliament, who
reached the doors of parliament
by strategy.
The house was debating bill
to prevent children from smoking
cigarettes when the woman
dashed past the doorkeeper to
position in front of the speakers
chair and shouted:
Carried Out Bodily
| Leave off discussing children and
| talk about women"
Three officials seized Mrs. Symons
and carried her out bodily. She was
then led to the outer door and dis
missed.
AS a result of this coup an order was
issued that hereafter women should
not be admitted to the building on any
pretext whatever, and in the future the
historic grill will not screen feminine
spectators.
The appeal issued by the suffrag-
cites a few days ago for $4,000 persons
to help them rush" parliament at half
past o'clock this evening was the
most successful stroke yet.
Not less than twice that number re-
sponded to the call. There We're also
| hundreds of the unemployed and their
| sympathizers.
Parliament was declared in state
of siege. A close line of triple police
was drawn around the three sides in
| front of the building.
The yard within the gates swarmed
with police and 200 guarded the terrace
| in the rear against assault by water,
which the women twice attempted.
A fleet of police boats also patrolled
| the Thames.
Entire Force Called Out
All the mounted police in London and
the suburbs have been mobili2ed at
| this center and loads of hay were un-
stacked III the streets for the horses.
The whole police force, together with
cavalry, infantry and marines. num-
bering more than 5000, was kept busy
| in restraining and pushing the Strug-
| Cling masses about Trafalgar square.
The crowds cheered, sang songs and
hooted. The suffragettes, who disttn-
guished by their orange sashes.
swarmed everywhere, distributing
tracts.
delegation of thirteen suffragettes
which approached the police Gordon
and was formally refused admission to
parliament attempted a football rush,
| but the police chivalrously repulsed the
women with the least possible rough
ness.
The police were pelted with vegeta-
bles and some stones in a few minor
| skirmishes, but nobody was seriously
hurt.
| of the unemployed were arrested. Many
persons tainted in the crush; some
were trampled upon and taken to the
| hospitals.
Mrs. Parkhurst, Miss c. Parkhurst
and Mrs. Lawrence were summoned to
appear in court yesterday for lnciting
a breach of the peace. This morning
they coolly refused to obey the sum-
mons, but agreed to surrender them
selves at 6 o'clock in the evening, which
they did, spending the night in Bow
| street station.
The suffragettes and unemployed
have kept practically the whole police
force on duty continuously for forty
| eight hours.