THE BELGIAN RIOTS. Conflicts With the Police—Attempt to Wreck a Train.

Te Aroha News, Volume III, Issue 154, 15 May 1886, Page 6

THE BELGIAN RIOTS. Conflicts With the Police— Attempt to Wreck a Train.

Brussels, March 25 — The city was placarded during the night with calls issued by the Workingmen's Federation for a great meeting of workingmen to-night, The striking minors at Liege attempted to renew general rioting last night, but were overpowered by the police. The troops stationed at Antwerp are held within the barracks so as to be available for the suppression of any disturbances that may be created by the unemployed workingmen. The miners' strike has extended to Charleroii There the men demand a 25 per cent increase in wages, and pending the granting of it, have quib work and gone to rioting. The gendarmes have so far been successful in dispersing the mobs that have collected. An attempt was made to-day to blow up a railway train near Hasselt. Ap?ckage containing thirty-fivedynami£e cartridges had been placed on the railroad, but was swept aside by the cow-catcher without being exploded. While the enginedriver was examining the package it ex ploded and blew off three of his fingers. At Liege, a reign of terror continues. The mob broke into a manufactory of firearms last night and carried away its available contents. Troop 3 have been sent everywhere, and this part of the kingdom is rapidly assuming the appearance of being under military occupation. Even the beggars throughout the country are often found armed. Arrests of strikers for disorderly conduct are constantly being made. Charleroi, on March 29, was a vast military camp, from which flying columns are operating in all directions. It is believed now that the worat is over. The Government has authorised the peaceable inhabitants of the city to arm themselves and to use every means in their power to defend their domiciles. There is a more confident feeling. Civilian patrons and troops are overmastering tho rioters. The miners in Glenn and Barinage districts have gone out on a striko, and have destroyed the residence of the mine manager by dynamite. In these districts there have already been several conflicts between the strikers and troops, and many have been killed on both sides. Reinforcements have been sent to the scenes from Mono. At Brussels, on March 29th, the rioters attacked and burned the pottery manufactory at Bouderer, near Mons. They succeeded in resisting the gendarmes, who, however, shot and killed three of the rioters. The citizens of Fleures, eeven miles northeast of Charleroi, have arme^ themselves with pitchforks, clubs and guns, and having thu3 far eucceeded in defending their town from pillage, they drove the army of rioters away by main force, dispersing it utterly Viligance committees are being formed by citizens in other places threatened by the strikers. A Brussels cablegram of April 2 says. — The Belgian authorities are making strenuous efforts to conceal the fact that the riots in Liege, Charleroi, Tournay, etc., are really great anarchist demonstrations, and that the unemployed workingmen are only dupes and tools of the emissaries of secret societies from far and near. Their object in making this attempt is to avoid the stigma of such a wellplanned and successful insurrection and to belittle the arnarchists in the eyes of the world. General Van der Smisset, commander of the whole disturbed district, was interviewed at Mons, to which place he had removed his headquarters from Charleroi. " Do you not believe that the present disturbances have been fomented by anarchist emissaries, both foreign and native ?" " Certainly," said he, "and I have acted on this belief from the first. As soon as I had grasped the situation I saw, that the first step toward strangling the insurrection: was to eliminate the anarchists. This has been steadily done by shooting them down where they gave, me warrant by resisting my soldiers, Or by discriminating

agafn|st them, and in favour of the working men in the matter of releasing prisoners. :JMany had to be released, for I, had not gaols or guard-houses, enough to hold half of those arrested. the 2,000 prisoners now held, I estimate that fully two-thirds never did an honest day's work in their lives. Of, these, a majority are of the vulgar habitual criminal class. The rest are anarchists."