“GIVE US WATER!”

Taranaki Daily News, 2 December 1922, Page 5

“GIVE US WATER!”

RIOTS FOLLOW DROUGHT, TRAGEDY OF A CITY. VAST TURMOIL REIGNS. By Telegraph.—Press Assn Copyright. Received Dec. 1, 10.30 p.m. New York, Dec. 1. The Mexico City correspondent of the New York Times states a protracted • drought, which universally affected all I North America, had an outcome in a terrible tragedy here to-day. This city of nearly a million inhabitants, through Jack of water last week, has suffered tortures of the damned. Working men to-day marched through the main street to the City Hall, shouting: “Give us water!” They found the building strongly guarded by the police but the crowd surged towards the building, whereupon the police fired and the guard on the roof and in a side street .poured a heavy fusillade into the populace. The crowd returned the fire. The correspondent saw twelve dead civilians. The leaders then captured several policemen and marched them to the Mexican capital, where the crowd explained the occurrence to the Legislature. Business throughout the city has leased to-night and merchants are covering their shop windows with heavy steel shutters in expectation of further trouble. The city is now a vast, turmoil and there is rioting in many quarters. Fifty have already been killed and two hundred wounded, and the casualties are growing every hour. The police are powerless. The Federal Go ven men t has ordered out the troops and martial law has been declared. The drought, which left the city water supply very low, also caused derangement of the city water plant, with the result that it ceased to function. The council and aldermen took no steps to repair the plant, and petitions pointing out the sufferings of the inhabitants had Tittle effect upon councillors, who were engaged in a long wrangle over unimportant matters. —Aus.-N.Z. Cable Association.