Evening star., 1923-06-24


happened in the heart of London
For some. reason, which I. have
forgotten. I went very early that
morning to the Chronicle Office and
was greeted by the news editor with
the statement that a hell Of a battle
was raging in Sidney street. He
advised me to go and look at it.
took a taxi and drove to the
corner Of that street, where I found
a. dense crowd observing the affair
as far they dared peer round the
angle of the walls from adjoining
streets. Needless. at the moment of
danger. which seemed to me ridicu-
lous, stood boldly opposite Sidney
street and looked down it's length
OF, houses. Immediately in front of
me four soldiers Of one Of the
guards regiments lay .on their stom-
achs. protected from the, dirt Of
the road by newspaper. Sandwich"
boards firing their rifles al house
halfway. down the street Another
young guardsman. leaning against
a wall, took random shots at inter-
walls while he smoked a. woodbine.
AS I stood near him, he winked and
said: What a game"
1t was something more than a
game. Bullets were fiicking off the
wall like peas, plugging holes into
the dirty yellow brick, and ricochet-
ing Enthusiastically. One of them took
neat chip out of a. policeman's s
helmet. and he said: well. I'll be
blowedw and laughed lin foolish
way. 1t was before the war, when
we learned to. know moro about the
meaning OF bullets Another struck
stick on which a journalistic
friend of mine was leaning in an
his dignity suddenly departed from
him. - !. > - -.
That's funny,' he said, seriously,
as he. saw his stick neatly cut in
half at his fee" " -. . ~,
"A cinematograph operator. stand
ing well inside Sidney street, was
winding his handle vigorously, quite
oblivious of the .whiz Of bullets
which were being fired at a slanting
angle from the house, which seemed
to be the target of the PROSTATE
guardsmen.
A large police inspector of high
authority. shouted a command to his
men.
What's all that nonsense? Clear
the people back! Clear 'em right
back! We don't want lot of silly
corpses lying around"
A Gordon Of police pushed back
the dense crowd, treading on the
toes of those who would not move
rapidly enough. -.:-,
I found myself in a group of jour
nalists.
Get back there!" shouted. the
police.
But We were determined to see
the drama out. 1t was more sensa-
tional than any movie" show. I'm
mediately, opposite was a tall gin
paface-the Rising Sun. Some STRAIT
egist said: That's tho place for us"'
We raced across before the police
could outnank us.
A publican. stood In the doorway,
sullenly.
"Whatcher want?" he asked.
Your roof, said one Of the jour
nalists.
"A quid each, and worth it, he
said.
* X x
\ T that time, before. the era of
"A paper money. some of US carried
golden sovereigns in our pockets
did, but, as usual, I had not more
than eishteenpence. A friend lent
me the necessary coin, which the
publican slipped into his pocket as he
let me pass. Twenty of US, at least.
gained access TO the roof of The
Rising Sun.
1t was a good vantage point, or
O.P., as we should have called it later
in history. 1t looked right across
to the house in Sidney street in which
Peter and hts friends were defending
themselves to the .death-a tall, thin
house of three stories, with dirty
window blinds. In the house inn
guardsmen, with pillows and mat
tresses stuffed into the windows in
the nature Of sandbags as. used in
trench warfare. We could not see
the soldiers, but we could see the
effect of their intermittent fire, which
had smashed every pane Of glass and
kept chipping off bits OF brick in the
anarchists, abode.
The street had been cleared of all
onlookers. but a group Of detectives
slunk along the walls on the anar-
chists' side Of the street at such an
angle that they, We're safe from the