Ricshamen -Hankow, "Aug. 9.
The growing animosity of the lower-<iass Chinese to the foreign community in Hankow, race through innumerable small {in the past, has cul incident that "has aroused greatest indignation "among the foreign community here. A\ dasterdly attack on two foreign women "by a mob of Chinese riesha pullers, allegedly. backed by" policemen, was made last Thursday. "These w one "British sand the other the wife of-an American naval officer, were manhandled and almost stripped.
It-appears that three British men, -the British lady, and the American Jady. were returning in rieshas from the: Race Club, When they reached turning. near the Salt Gabelle Building in $.A.D. 1, the two leading rieshas,, which' contained' the two women, anxious to get past the policenian as they' had. ho lights, Increased: their speed and in doing: the two vehicles collided, throw= ing the two Indies out.
Unable to stop a third riesha piled up on the other two causing a worse tangle. One of the S.A.D. 1 Policemen thereupon came over and commenced belabouring the coolies with his baton and they fled.
By this time a Chinese crowd had collected and the foreigners, unable to find their riesha.men, decided to walk the small distance to the dam dividing the S.A.D. T from the French Concession, where one perforce by The ladies following, the mob bringing up the rear, One of the men while walking sion, while the scorching blast received a couple: of hard thumps in shrivelled all the grass in the: "the back followed by an indecent neighbourhood and stripped the remark about foreigners in pidgin-English. On turning around the man found he had, been hit by a riesha man with the wooden seat from his vehicle. The man seized tthe seat, went back to the policemen, gave them the seat and remonstrate ced against the behaviour of he Meanwhile the coolie who med the blows ud speaking to the policemen, Suddenly without "warning the police-sen hit the foreigner with his 'Kicked him, and punched him, Taken by surprise the foreigner backed away and then the crowd attack him with sticks, stones, and of missiles. In a' bad way rescued by the other two Briton They all turned and made haste to the dam at the French Concession, being pelted with stones the whol: way.
Arriving there the attacked man was sent to hospital for medical treatment as he was on the verge of collapse, whilst the other tw: finding no sign of the ladies of the party, reported the incident to both the American and British Cone sulates, While this was happening the Indies had managed to make way to the dam, ignorant of what was happening to the men. On reaching the barrier they made an attempt to engage ricshas on the other side but the rieshas refused to carry them while twenty or 30 pullers standing on the dam began making remarks and offensive gestures. Suddenly the wonien were pulled down from behind by coolies who had seized their legs. Their clothes were torn and they were knocked down.
They managed to, struggle vp and seeing it was impossible to ross the dam, they made their way back through the mob to the S.A.D. 1 police station. There they Were refused permission to telephone their consuls. However, at last van interpreter arrived and after payment had been made for the ricsha fares and the damage -the vehicles they managed to get a policeman to escort them to the French Conedssion barrier Reuter.
Aug. 13.
Public feeling in the British community was rising in: Hankow today-as the result of the attack.
Even in the face of allegations that the women were indecently as—saulted the Chingse authorities are Stilt failing to punish the culprits.
Members of tin local, British community to-day were drafting a Petition to' Mr. Atthur' Henderson, the Brcish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, drawing ing insecurity Brith subjects ili Mankow.? The petition urges n demand for the punishment of the Chinese officials who failed to -take -action again:
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.