Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-01-19
WORKMEN
HIDE IN TUNNELS
People Live in Constant Terror
as Factions War in Ulster
Capital
WOMEN, CHILDREN VICTIMS
Special Cable p.spa.on Copyright. ros.

ppeCtut tnote Dtsp1tCh tOpUFtpft. IPxs
Belfast, Jan. 1p.-Your correspond :
ent has spent a day visiting the little
houses in the little streets Of Belfast,
where women and children live in terror
and men crawl to work through tunnels
cut through back yard walls, out of
reach OF the snipers who lie In wait for
those whose only offense is different
religion.
The religious leaders OF Belfast have
condemned the state OF anarchy into
which the city has fallen as dis
grace TO civilization. and now the Ulster
Government has awakened and some
thing is being done to restore order. No
one has been shot for about a week
and members of the Catholic COM
munity. who are the chief sufferers,
are hoping that the flame of religious
passion will be allowed to die down
and the conditions Of two years ago,
when Belfast was as orderly as any
other large industrial city. allowed to
return.
II seems impossible for Belfast to
separate religion and politics. With
Nationalist, and Protestant q Union
ist. So far as can be traced. the present
outbreak of disorder had it's origin in
politics when Colonel Smyth, an Ulster
officer, was killed In Cork In July.
1920. Tho Belfast Protestant shipyard
workers drove the Catholics out Of the
shipyards in retaliation. killing many,
and from that time there has been a
series Of reprisals and counter re-
prisals, the fame dying down for q
time but blazing UP again.
Nearly All Armed
l.t
bad since last November. and although
there is large force Of British troops
IN the city. they cen do little, being un-
familiar with conditions and dependent
upon partisan guides for information.
Hundreds have been killed and wounded
during this period, and practically
every man in the working class districts
is armed. The sound of firing is the
signal for every one to rush for his gun
and battles between snipers often last
for days.
Ny guide through the disturbed
quarter was a doctor whose practice
lies in this district and who has been
called from his bed scores of times to
attend tho victims of the snipers.
These, however, he declares, don't suf-
fer nearly so much as the women and
children who are subject to all kinds of
nervous diseases. The number of pre-
mature births, he says, has increased
out OF all proportion.
This district is known as the Queen
street area from the name of the prin-
cipRl thoroughfare. II comprises net
work of streets lined with little red
brick houses of five or six rooms. each
normally inhabited by one family Of
well-paid shipyard workers. Now the
Catholic homes are occupied by two.
three or four families whose houses
have been burned or who have been
driven out and have taken refuge with
their religionists. In one such house
of six rooms. four families, comprising
sixteen persons. were lodged.
Many of these streets are what is
known as mixed areas. which means
chat ono end of the street is inhabited
by Protcstants and the other by Catho-
lics. Sharp frontiers are drawn across
which sniping takes place nightly. One
house was pointed out from the door of
which II was alleged that a man with
rifle fired nightly at anything that
moved.
Interiors Very Clean
Among the streets visited we're little
George street, We're Grove and Sussex
streets. All these We're typical of the
BclAdsl NOrhluk Quhrler' duu IN spite OF
the overcrowding and abnormal condi-
tions the interiors Of the houses were
scrupulously clean. All of them were
anxious to show their tunnels. These
were made during the period OF rioting
a couple of months ago when, for three
weeks, no one In the Catholic quarter
dared to leave his house by the front
door.
Behind every house is q little yard
separated from the next by a brick
wall and for the whole length Of streets
holes were cut through these walls
large enough for man to crawl
through. The women crawled through,
too, to the shops for food and the mon
who still had work crawled to one end
Of the street, made dash for the near
est house in the next, crawled through
another series Of tunnels and so pro-
gressed until safety was reached.
Most Of the men in this quarter, how
ever. are not employed or have only
casual work. They are skilled shipyard
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