Sinn rein gangs on Thursday night, June 16th, made a
concerted attack on various signal-boxes on the railways outside London. They used motor-cars—in one case stealing- a taxi-cab from the unwary cabman, who was.assaulted and gagged— and were armed. They attacked the signalmen at lonely places and set the aignaloabins on fire. At Clapton the -signalman was shot in the face, but fortunately escaped death. At Southall, the signalman, who happened to be a prominent trade union official, was assaulted and bound ; he will now presumably take a less charitable view of Sinn Fein activities- than his leaders. At Barking the signal-box was destroyed. The Bromley police stopped a taxicab containing 'six armed men. They fired on the police, who returned the fire, wounded one man and captured two others. Later in the night two more of the gang were taken at Greenwich. Similar outrages were committed on 8attuday night in the Manchester district. An old signalman on duty near Marp&e, on the Midland line, was fired upon and badly wounded by unseen assailants, who then ran away. The political partisans- of Sian Fein have not yet attempted to explain or justify these senseless crimes.
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