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PART III THE DISTURBANCES
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dispersed when he appeared in his land-rover. He then proceeded to investigate a reported fire at the Yau Ma Tei Post Office, where he found a fire was still burning nort] by a side door but little damage had been done. Prior to this, he had seen. Roa particularly in the vicinity of the Canton Road market, many fires, lit apparently trap] with rubbish and timber from the hawker stalls etc. and from road works in and the area.
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159. Giving his description of the crowds over the evening, Mr. FERGUS said WOO that, at the beginning there were quite a few people older than 25 and some The women but as the evening wore on these disappeared and at the later stages there to f were very few over 30. As for the dress and appearance of people generally, Mr. hang FERGUS said that they were much the same on the evening of the 6/7th as they Bur had been during the demonstration marching up and down Nathan Road on the previous evening, the main difference being that the older people virtually dis appeared in the later stages of the night of the 6/7th. Asked whether the crowd generally appeared to be angry or enjoying themselves Mr. FERGUS said:
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'We had a lot of jeering, particularly from a distance where we couldn't rev
sub touch people and so forth, and quite a lot of obscene remarks and so on passed-if they were enjoying themselves, they were enjoying them. aske selves by smashing things up, that's all I can say'.
His attention having been drawn to photographs showing youths with smiles and grins on their faces, he said:
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'Yes, I have seen the same photographs-may be the same sort of fun which makes it great fun at home to go and break windows, jolly good fun to throw a stone and hear something smash, I don't know, they may well have been enjoying themselves, but certainly not innocent enjoyment'. up
160. Police Action to quell disturbances-North of Waterloo Road. Mean. bri while, trouble to the north of Waterloo Road had developed somewhat more slow bar ly than to the south. Mr. McNUTT commanding the Sham Shui Po company told us wa how, after the incident in Peiho Street described in para. 135, and on receipt of for instructions from Headquarters, he proceeded with his company southwards hig towards the junction of Waterloo Road and Nathan Road at about 11.15 p.m. Na Two platoons moved down Nathan Road and one platoon down Shanghai Street, Pit but at the junction of Nathan Road and Argyle Street, further passage became impossible because of blocked vehicles. The two platoons therefore turned left into Argyle Street as far as Yim Po Fong Street and then along Yim Po Fong Street, into Waterloo Road, and down Waterloo Road to the junction of Nathan Road where the Yau Ma Tei company was already in position. He arrived there at about midnight and the noise indicated that there was a large crowd in the vicinity but Mr. McNUTT did not at first see many people as it had recently been dispersed.
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