The riots commenced, as stated in my last,* at Peterswalden, in 
the District of Reichenbach, the centre of the manufacturing part 
of Silesia. The weavers assembled before the house of one of the 
most respectable manufacturers, of the name of Zwanziger, singing 
a song, in which the behaviour of this individual towards his 
workmen was animadverted upon, and which seems to have been 
manufactured for the occasion.*? Mr. Zwanziger sent for the 
police, and got several of the ringleaders arrested; the people 
assembled in growing numbers before his door, threatened to 
rescue them, and, the prisoners not being liberated, they im- 
mediately commenced the work of destruction. The doors were 
forced, the windows smashed, the crowd entered the house, and 
destroyed every thing within their reach. Zwanziger’s family had 
hardly time to save themselves, and the throwing of stones at them 
was so incessant that it was found necessary to wrap up in bedding 
the female part of the family, and have them carried in a coach to 
Schweidnitz. To this place messengers also were sent to call in the 
aid of the military, but the commanding officer replied he could 
do nothing without orders from the provincial authorities at 
Breslau. The people, in the meantime, entirely demolished the 
dwelling house of Mr. Zwanziger, and proceeded then to the 
warehouse, where they destroyed all books, bills of exchange and 
other documents, and threw the cash they found, amounting to 
upwards of £1,000, upon the street, where it was picked up by a 
lot of Bohemian smugglers, who had passed the frontier to see 
whether they could not profit by the riots. The bales of cotton and 

* See previous article.— Ed. 

Further Particulars of the Silesian Riots 533 

bags, as well as all the manufactured yarn and goods, were, as far 
as possible, destroyed or made useless, and the machinery in the 
adjoining factory, entirely broke. Having finished up here, they 
left the ruins of the demolished buildings and proceeded to 
Langenbielau, the men of which town joined them immediately, 
and where Mr. Dierig’s factory and warehouse was attacked. Mr. 
Dierig first tried to buy them off, but after having paid part of his 
bargain, he was informed that the military were on the road, and 
he immediately refused to pay the remainder. The crowd im- 
mediately forced their way to the premises, and demolished them 
in the same way as they had done at Peterswalden; while they 
were engaged in this, a detachment of about 160 foot soldiers 
arrived, with the civil authorities; the Riot Act was read, the 
people replied by throwing stones at the military, then the word 
to fire was given, and twelve of the rioters were killed and many 
wounded. But the enraged crowd rushed on against the soldiers, 
and wounded such a number of them by stones, that the 
commanding officer, who had been dragged from his horse and 
severely beaten, retreated with them, to await reinforcements, 
while the destruction of property continued going on. At last two 
battalions of infantry, a company of rifles, some cavalry and 
artillery appeared, and dispersed the rioters. Further attempts at 
similar proceedings were stifled by the military keeping the town 
and surrounding places occupied, and, as usual, when everything 
was over, the proper authorities came forward with proclamations 
and such like, declaring the district in a state of siege, and 
threatened the most horrible punishments for every breach of the 
peace. The riots were not confined to these two towns; in 
Alt-Friedland and Leutmansdorf similar scenes took place, though 
not characterised by such a violent manifestation of feeling 
towards the manufacturers; some arms were broke and some 
windows were smashed before the military could restore tranquili- 
ty. The people throughout the district profited on this occasion by 
giving to the manufacturers such a display of their feelings as 
could not be mistaken. The causes of these affrays were the 
incredible sufferings of these poor weavers, produced by low 
wages, machinery, and the avarice and greediness of the manufac- 
turers. It will scarcely be believed that the wages of this oppressed 
class, in a family where father, mother, and children worked, all of 
them at the loom, amounted to a sum which would buy no more 
than six shillings would in England. Besides, they were all in debt, 
which is not at all a matter of surprise, when wages are so low; 
and the manufacturers gladly advanced them small sums, which 

the men could never pay, but which were sufficient to give the 
masters an absolute sovereignty over them, and to make them 
the slaves of the manufacturers. Then there was, besides that, the 
competition of the English article, which had an advantage over 
them from the superior machinery of the English factories and the 
low wages there, and which tended to bring down their wages too. 
In short, it was the factory system with all its consequences that 
pressed upon the Silesian weavers in the same manner as it has 
done, and now does, upon the English factory workers and 
hand-loom weavers and which has occasioned more dissatisfaction 
and riotous outbreaks within this country than anything else. It is 
to be noticed, that during all these disturbances, according to the 
statements of all German papers, not one single robbery has been 
committed by the starving weavers. They threw the money on the 
street; they did not convert it to their own use. They left the 
stealing and plunder to the Bohemian smugglers and poachers.