KEPT APART.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 238, 8 October 1928, Page 7

KEPT APART.

Authorities Keep Rival Factions Out Of Reach. RAIN DAMPS ARDOUR. (Australian Press Assn.—United Service.) (Received 12.30 p.m.) VIENNA, October 7. Thanks largely to military precautions the rival Fascist - and Socialist demonstrations passed off peacefully. All entrances to Wiener Neustadt, except the main gates, were barricaded and barbed wired. Fifteen machine-guns were posted on the principal square. Shock troops equipped with gasmasks and grenades were held in readiness. Cavalry guarded the danger points. The Fascists started first when at 9 a.m. 13,000 marched with eleven flags, 151 banners and twelve bands. The moderate crowds cheered the procession, which traversed the main square. Saluting the leaders the procession readied the place of assembly • outside the town at 10.30 a.m. Simultaneously about 16,000 Socialists, with country delegations totalling another 19,000, assembled on the square and sang and listened to speeches until 2 p.m. Thus the rivals were effectively kept apart and both gatherings dispersed quietly. A downpour of rain at 3 p.m. damped any remaining ardour. Several Communists attempting to address the Socialist crowd were arrested, but otherwise there were no incidents.