November 12.
Tax hustling a few days ago of two officials of the Health Department was a clear indication that the precautionary measures taken to deal with the outbreak of plague were being resented by the Chinese. It was not generally realized, however, at the time how keen was the disaffection among the populace in the plague-affected area nor how mischievous were the reports by which this disaffection was being fanned. On Thursday it was no longer possible to ignore the preposterous rumours by which Chinese excitability had been worked up to fever point; but the community was hardly prepared for the form that the disturbances took yesterday morning. The attacks made by Chinese mobs on individual foreigners who fell in with them showed no organization or intensity of purpose that would justify the use of the word "riot." But the coincidence of these murderous assaults which took place at different points in Hongkew within a short time of one another indicated the widespread existence among the Chinese of a state of mind, that required only the favouring circumstance to give rise to a serious outbreak, In Jace of the favouring circumstance, ywever, we had the prompt and effective action of the Police, supported by the calling out of four units of the Volunteers, while in the afternoon a route march of the whole force of Volunteers through the disaffected district must have impressed still more upon prospective disturbers of the peace the! fact that the authorities were fully In all cases of disturbances the rebared for all emergencies.
first consideration must be the prompt restoration of order and the prevention of further trouble. For this reason the community has every cause for satisfaction that the powers that be should have shown themselves so well organized as to be able to cope effectively with the outbreak, while the mobilization of the Volunteers is to be commended as a wise precautionary measure to discourage any false hopes that the Chinese might have had of being a match for the Police alone. The second ster, however, must be to remove, as far as possible and as quickly as may be, the causes of the disturbance. In this connexion the community has less reason for sel£-congratulation, for it is evident that a grave mistake has been committed in putting into force the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.