Bomb to Enforce Payment of Blackmail Canton, Apr, 23.
Martial law was proclaimed here last night following an. attempt by gangsters 0 wreck the Ho Kee Restaurant, which had refused to pay "protection money" to a ring of criminals. The outrage came as a climax to a series perpetrated against Cantonese tea-houses and restaurants which had refused to allow themselves to become the victims of ex-tertian.
'At the time of the affair the Ho Kee Restaurant, which enjoys a wide reputation among Chinese epicures, was filed with customers, who lett their tables and fled from' the scene. 'A. waiter, who was close to the spot where the explosion occurred, had an arm blown off. His conditions 1s Geseribed as critical.
"The explosion caused panic in the neighbourhood of the restaurant, the residents evidently fearing further outrages might occur. The authorites, moving swiftly in an attempt to apprehend the miscreants, instituted a thorough search, first proclaiming martial law. Later in the evening, two suspects were arrested und further arrests are expected.
'A similar incident occurred tonight aboard the Huskee Chang, a passenger junk, prior to sailing for Kaukong. While preparations were being completed for the vessel to sail, a bomb, concealed in one of the cabins, exploded, causing a panic among the' passenger:
'Fortunately, only two persons were near the spot when the bomb went off. They were both seriously injur-fed' and were rushed to hospital. The outrage is believed to have been perpetrated by bandits—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.