Denton and Haughton Examiner, etc. — 1886-02-13 (Denton, Greater Manchester, England)

RIOTING AND ROBBERY.  ONE'S ideas of the state of society in the most elderly city in the world were somewi.at rudely disturbed at the intelligence of the shameful rioting and wholesale robberies which were perpetrated on Monday in the West-end of London by a wad• dosed mob of roughs. Such wild scenes of havoc, plunder, and wanton destruction fie were witnessed between Trafalgar-squa e and Hyde-park would have been deemed impossible by nineteen out of every twenty of the public; and, judging from the inaction of the police, the saute view a; pears to have been entertained at Scotland-yard. An ordinary Londoner would have regarded it as highly iinprobalde—until the hard fact exploded his comfortable assurance that a thousand lawleen despeiadoes could have been gathered from the slums of the capital, and, inflamed by revolutionary harangues delivered in public places set on to loot and thmolish the property of scores and scores of utioffentling tradesmen and private individuals. And even had the peaceably-dispoeed citizen jiidged it likely that snub an unprincipled multitude would have the audacity to make so shameful an attempt, he would have rested confident that the police would promptly have overcome the tioters. But no, our boasted law-abiding has proved hollow and incomplete; and our costly peace-presery Mg and prrperty-protecting system turns out to be attogether at fault in the moment of emergency. Truly a vexatious and alarming discovery for the ratepayers, and a bitter disillusion of all who had fondly imagined that in London at least the ',flu. clime of civilisation had killed King Mob. It would be false aiel unfair to charge these disgiaceful scenes to the account of the undoubtedly lat genumbere of distressed poor who are out ot work against their will. Ostensibly arising from a mass tneet• ing of uuetuployed woikinen, the terrible deede which have so shocked the country wore perpetrated by gangs of desperadoes, chiefly made up of professioual idlers and street roughs, led on by agitators of the so-called Socialist ilk. 1 liese latter it is who are mainly respoileible for thentisehief done and the powers that be should see that for their outrage against the common weal they suffer punishment which does not err at all on the side of leniency. Freedom of 'speech and constitutional liberty of the subject must not be allowed to•laptie into unbridled license with impunity as they have done in Loudon latterly. The public rightly cry out for protection against such dangerous men as these Socialists show themselves to be ; and, liberty-loving as we are, the country at large will oordially sustain the authorities in sternly repressive measures aud &esti(' dealing with the arch-disturbers. hey are destitute of regard for right, infatuated with thirst for power, and thieves suit murderers at heart; veritable pests of society who should be rooted out without remorse by the uufaltering stroke of justice. strong words these, but such only as the occasion calls for. We have a Parliamentary Under Secretary for Houle Affairs who not so lung ago was standing in the ranks of labour, amid who yet claims to be in sympathetic touch with his former fellow workmen. Let him hasten to use his influence with the toilers to purge themselvee of all implication with three reprobate Socialists, who are succeeding in nothing but evoking execration, and alienating sympathy from the genuine labourless labourers. The President of the Local Government Board rightly refused an audience ou ineoday to the self deputed quartette who waited upon him. being on. able to recognise in them representatives of the distressed uuemployk-d ()Mention. After having taken, avowedly, a proinineut part in the disturbances of Monday, the audacious conduct of these men in eedeavouring to force themselves into a Government office is sufficiently apparent. All -those responsible for the lead in the rioting are, however, likely to be called upon to render an account of themselves to the law, and it w.,uld be monstrous were it otherwise. Mertotime, people ask how it is that tne police were powerless to prevent all this pillage and senseless destruction? Scotland. yard should answer the question; and Scotland-yard's master, the Home Office, is at fault iu not Laving moved specie:ly in anteipatiou of possible disturbances. No opposition of any determined kind seems to have anywhere been offered by the authori ties to the rioters, who emashed and stole where and as they chose. From the real distress we trust that publics attention and sympathy will not be turned aside by the mad acts of the sham toilets who would re geld the fiediug of the yob" they are everlastingly professing to ettlek as little less thee a calamity.  TOBSOCONISTS COMlllaloClNU.—Anluttroved gmoo(110 k,4e4 "How to Upeo reopecOady fr.., £BO to show 01amp.-41. )&0000& 10.. Cigar load Tobacco Magolatolgediatildt•Alikkltab.WlWit