The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-01-03
When the Police Attempt to Ar
rest Them.
SIX OF THEM KILLED.
The Officers Burn Their House
Over Their Heads.
Many Volleys Exchanged and
Two Detectives Injured.

| hours hundreds of policemen, troops
and guardsmen, a band of suspected
anarchists, almost in the heart of the
| city, today maintained their defense
until the house they had converted into
a fortress collapsed under an attack of
| flames and buried the criminals in the
ruins.
Six bodies were found in the wreck
| age Several firemen were injured and
| a number of persons were wounded bv
/ the bullets of the besieged..
The affair, one of the most remark
able criminal outbreaks London ever
mas known, took on the dimensions of
a battle. It began early and continued
| until afternoon when the civil authors
ties at last became masters of the sit
uat1on Vast crowds gathered in the
narrow streets leading to the scene of
activities while word of the desperate
character of the fighting ran through
out London, causing widespread excite
] ment and alarm. At one time the be-
| sieging force called for machine guns
| but these were not brought into actual
| use.
A member of the ministry, Home Sec
| retary Winston Churchill, appeared
when the fighting was at its height
The suspected ones, the number af
whom is not known. occupied a four
! story brick house in Sidney street. a
narrow thoroughfare.
The police, discovering their head
|
were met with volley of shots. two
detectives being wounded, one seri-
ously.
One hundred shots had been fret
when the house caught fire and the fire
brigade was summoned.
The police, after locating the men and
anticipating trouble, had ordered the
houses in the immediate neighborhood
vacated before daylight and throwing a
line OF officers around the square allow
ed no one to approach within a hundred
yards of the scene of the expected bat
tie.
The police lines had been drawn so
tightly that 1t was believed the inmates
of the house had no chance to escape
The police were satisfied that the
place contained the two murderers
wanted and they had also satisfied
themselves that the aSsaSsins had forti-
4 fed their home and were supported by
a number of friends.
Besieged Fire First.
/ Since the murder of the policemen
almost the entire police force of Lon
don has been. engaged in watching for
the anarchists. Trouble began this
morning when Detective Sergeant Lee
son, watching these premises was fired
upon and wounded in the lungs. In an
almost incredibly short time Gordon
of police armed with revolvers ap-
preached the house and was met with
a volley from rapid fire revolvers.
Police Superintendent ottawa took
charge of the reinforcements and po-
lice from the various parts of the city
poured in and took up positions COM
manding the house.
Whenever the officers approached a
volley of bullets spattered the pave
ment. A detachment of so men with one
officer and three noncommissioned Off
GERS of the Scots guard from the Tower
arrived later and were served with ball
cartridges. They fired a few rounds into
the building. There was a -lull for five
mir hQSiQQP6
1t was impossible to estimate the
number of the besieged, as they were
armed with magazine rifles and fired
with great rapidity
A The excitement spread throughout
the city and enormous crowds f1ocked
to the scene of the affray, although
they were unable to approach near
enough to witness the lighting,
Detective Sergeant Leeson was ex-
amining the suspected building from
the rear when he was shot. His
brother officers helped him up lad
der and over a wall at the back of
the yard adjoining while the men in
the house continued to fire on the
party.
Il AS the situation became more seri-
Gus the thousands of onlookers were
driven back and a space was hurried
ly cleared for a radius of half a mile
about the scene of action. The SOL
diers kept UP a fusillade directed at
the windows of the house and the men
within responded continuously. Mean
time loads of straw were hurriedly
taken to the place for the purpose of
starting a fire and smoking out the
besieged men.
Fire Is Started.
Piles of straw were lighted near the
building and the flames soon COM
municated to the house. The fire bri-
+ gade was then summoned and divided
= it's energies between putting out the
l blaze and trying to flood out the out
laws by streams of water thrown
through the windows. Home Secretary
Winston Churchill appeared early in
t the afternoon and surveyed the scene,
crossing the firing zone at some risk
A corps of nurses was brought to the
vicinity and they. treated the wounded,
among whom were a few spectators
who had been, struck by spent bullets.