WATERFRONT MELEE

Hokitika Guardian, 2 November 1928, Page 6

WATERFRONT MELEE

N ON- LXI ON I STS ROUGHIA* HANDLED.

(United Press Association—By Electric To I ogra till —Co pv r i gl 11).

MELBOURNE. Nov. 1

Tlii! worst clash arising out of tlio strike occurred to-day between some unionists and volunteers. Seven volunteers were travelling in a train to Port .Melbourne. They were battered all the way from tbc city to the waterside, a distance of four miles, and one was thrown into the sea, stones being thrown at him in the water. Six more were pu bed into a. pit alongside the Port .Melbourne station, despite a, warning that another train was duo. The attackers carried waddies concealed in newspapers. The man was rescued from the sea more dead than alive.

The volunteer watersiders on the pier had to he restrained from making a counter attack. The police state that the men were about to enter the train for Port .Melbourne. They were hopelessly outnumbered, and were knocked down and kicked, and were just able to struggle into the train, where attacks continued. Isolated fights occurred at Port Melbourne wharves for two hours. Mounted troopers arrived and dispersed the rioters, who had grown to a thousand. Some dreadful language was used the whole' time.