The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-02-27
MRS. PANKHURST
IS DENIED BAIL
London Suffragette Leader
Threatens Hunger
Strike

EPSON, England. February 26.-NTrs
EmeIine Pankhurst, militant suffrage
leader, was today committed on the
trial for mciting persons to commit
malicious damage to property.
The prosecutor declared that Mrs.
Pankhurst was a self-confessed acces-
sorry to the explosion which destroyed
Chancellor Lloyd Georges country
house. He read extracts from Mrs.
Pankhurst's speeches as evidence that
she had been "sedulously plotting and
conspiring to commit outrages on prop
erty and persons with the avowed OBJ
ject of overawing the public and rem
dering the lives of prominent men in
tolerable."
Mrs. Pankhurst was refused bail be-
cause she would not agree to refrain
from political activities pending trial.
The prisoner Informed the magistrate
that she would forthwith begin "a hun
ger strikep She declared:
IF l am still alive when the assizes
commences it will be a dying woman
who will be tried"
Mrs. Pankhurst has sent a message
to the women's social and political
union in which she says that the re-
fusal of bail pending her trial renders
it impossible for her to prepare an
adequate defense. She adds: In these
circumstances I repudiate the right of
the local authorities over whose ap-
pointment because L am woman, 1
have no control, to try me. | refuse
to consent TO legal farce being en-
acted and L shall begin by refusing
to conform to the prison discipline
while on remand. 1 shall take no food
from the moment I enter prison.
IF l am still alive when the time
for the so-called trial arrives, the
Judge counsel and jury of men will
have the shameful task of pretending
to give a fair trial to a sick and un-
defended woman"
The hostile feeling aroused by the
tactics of the militant suffragettes is
increasing. AT Leigh-on-Sea, in Essex,
mob broke up a suffragette's sand
wich board parade today, lnjuring two
women.
At Walsall, in the county of Stafford,
mob wrecked the women's social
and political union shop which is de-
voted to the sale of suffragette liter
ature.
At a suffra gette meeting at South
ampton, Miss Kenny and other mill
tant speakers were howled down.
At Nottingham today suffragettes
dropped into many mail boxes tubes
pnOSpHOTOuS, WHICH
into flames destroying considerable
mail.
A meeting of the militant suffra-
gettes at Worthington tonight also was
howled down. Mrs. Israel Zangwell
wife of the author, and General Mrs
Flora Drummond were unable to get
q hearing despite the appeal of the
mayor to the audience to be Sports
men and Englishmen."
n fhnjr
stands and trampled under foot and
the promoters of the meeting were
obliged to seek refuge in police sta
tion to escape the mob.
The suffragettes appear to have
planned systematic incendiary attacks
on London's sporting grounds. Two
suffra gettes were arrested tonight at
the All-England tennis grounds at
Wimbledon with bags containing in
flammable materials. 1t is supposed
they intended to burn the pavilion.
Two others were surprised under
similar circumstances at the Rochamp-
ton cricket grounds but escaped. They
left behind a note reading: This was
done because bail was refused Mrs
Pankhurst."