On Thursday night stones were freely thrown and several windows were smashed.
A huge stone was flung through the window into the shop of Mr Gwilym Evans,
grocer, Cardiff Road. Four valuable prize fowls were stolen from an out-house
in Belmont Terrace.
Serious riots occurred on Tuesday evening. The strikers
concentrated their attentions on the coal washeries, which
are owned by the Powell
Duffryn Colliery Co. It had not
been anticipated that anything untoward in the district
would happen in view of the fact that the dispute will
shortly occupy the attention of the Coal Conciliation Board,
and consequently the dispute came as a surprise, and very
quickly the news spread throughout the district that an
attack was being made on the washery.
Some 200 or 300 people assembled outside the Aberaman
Institute, and marched in a body to the storm centre, which
is situated between Cwmbach and Aberaman some mile and
a half from Aberdare.
Many hundreds of women accompanied the strikers. When
within a few hundred yards of the washery some 200 lads
were dispatched as a sort of advance guard to the washery,
but they were turned to rout by the police. There were
about 30 policemen guarding the washery, but they did not
anticipate any serious trouble, and at the time when the
200 youths came on the scene a portion of the police were
at tea. They were, however, immediately summoned, and were
soon confronted by 2,000 strikers, many of whom were armed
with sticks and other weapons.
The policemen ranged themselves
in front of the power-house and the other premises, but
very quickly they were made the object of a most hostile
demonstration, and stones and other missiles were hurled at them in
a reckless manner, and with a total disregard to life and
limb or property.
The strikers climbed over a fence, and,
with what object they had in view can only be conjectured,
set fire to some straw which was stored in a railway
wagon.
This very quickly became a huge conflagration, but
it was soon put, out although it smouldered for hours.
The
police played a water hose on the strikers, but they
had to abandon this method of dealing with the crowd, as
it had very little effect upon them. Fusillades of stones
were again hurled at the police and many were injured-Inspector
Rees, Llandaff; Sergeant Griffiths, Barry Dock: and two
other Constables being seriously hurt, more particularly
the former, who suffered a severe gash in the face.
Seeing
that the demonstrators were in an ugly mood, the police
had to resort to more severe measures, and they were
compelled to charge the crowd with drawn truncheons.
These methods proved successful, and the crowd dispersed
in all directions, hundreds running along the railway
line, and others down the canal bank.
Scenes of a remarkable nature were witnessed on the canal
bank. In consequence of the stampede many were jostled
into the canal, but they struggled back on to the bank.
It is stated that about 60 strikers were more or less injured.
One person had his hand seriously burnt by contact with
a live electric wire, while another fractured his leg.
The injuries of most of the others consisted of serious
wounds on the heads.
A reporter mistaken for a 'blackleg'
was struck on the head and elbow with stones and sticks.
