CHINESE PIRATES. TIMARU

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXV, Issue LXV, 5 June 1913, Page 3

CHINESE PIRATES. TIMARU

ATTACK ON A BRITISH PASSEN- ■■■■■-;, GEE STEAMiiH/ .

EXCITING INCIDENT OIF CHINA COASi. Particulars of a ciarmg piratical attack on tiie i3riti.su stoaiher Tai On, off the China coast (of which a brief account was cabled at the time), were brought to Sydney by the steamer Changsa. Tlie piracy was not one in which an attack was made from outside, but was carried out in a manner which is essentially Chinese, by the robbers going on board in the guise of ordinary passengers. The Tai On, owned by the Yik On Steamship Company. Jtiong Kong, is a vessel of ■. 438 tons. She left Hong Kong on April 2, boun<\ for Kongmoon, crowded with passengers. All went well until near Lintin Island, . which is in Chinese waters. Suddenly shots were heard on board, and before the captain and the European officers could do anything they were confronted by men armed with automatic pistols and revolvers. They were -promptly ordered to put their hands above their heads, and in this position they were kept for some time, during which the pirates ransacked the ship. They relieved the passengers of all their valuables, and did the same to the officers, taking the rings off their fingers and the watches from their pockets. The pirates took! complete possession -of the ship, and i made for Kongsu Bank, where they j | beached her. Then they launched two! of the ship's lifeboats, and got away. I In a crippled condition the vessel managed to return to Hong Kong. Captain H. J. Holmes told a thrilling story. He said that the Tai On left Hong Kong at night, bound for Kongmoon, with 400 passengers on board. All went well until the fares were colected and the manifest was brought up to the captain's room to be signed, i This was about six rnil»s south of | Lintin. j PIRATES AS PASSENGERS. i Suddenly the ship was rushed fore i and aft, the pirates coming apparently! \ from" everywhere. They attacked the ! ! wheel-house and the European officers ' on deck, as well as the people aft. In I attacking the wheel-house they fired \ several shots into it and killed one I of the crew who was assisting the ; quarter-master. At the same time about fifteen swarmed into the captain's room, where they found the chief engineer conversing with the captain. The chief engineer was, rushed on to the settee,1 and the captain was rolled on the floor. both men beinc; confronted with revolvers, and told that if they moved it meant death. _ When the captain and the chief engineer had been overpowered the chief officer was brought into the room with his hands over his head, and all there were made to sit upon the settee. They had | to remain in this attitude for more than an hour. Meanwhile the piratos ransacked the rooms of each of the European officers, after which they were allowed to lower their hands, but they had to remain seated on the settee. SAID OFFICERS SHOULD BE SHOT Afterwards several men came up from below and said that the Europeans ought to be bound. Accordingly the! men had their hands tied. Several of the pirates were not satisfied with this, and demanded that the officers should be shot, but the well-dressed Chinese who had mounted guard over the Europeans protested "against this, and! advised the others not to behave like children; the men had been captured I without resistance,, and were not of-' Fering any. He added that it was not fair to shoot men in this way. His counsel prevailed, but it was an anxious moment for the Europeans, who thought that their end was at hand. THE OFFICERS' LOSSES. PLUCKY LADY MISSIONARY. The chief engineeer, Mr McCartney, stated that his captor was a man who i told them that he had been in Africa and in the Malay States. Mr McCartney reckoned that the pandemonium started about a quarter past ten and lasted till nearly two o'clock. He himself lost about '200 dollars in "addition to his ring and his watch; the captain lost about 100 dollars in money, and Mr Cornwell, chief officer, lost about 600 dollars in money. He! remarked that it was not very pleasant to have a loaded revolver prodded into one's breast, which was the way the pirates had of impressing them with their advantage. He 'paid a high compliment to a European lady missionary who was a passenger. She talked to the pirates in a friendly way. and told them of the folly of killing Europeans, and all believe that to her good offices they owe the preservation of their lives." DAMAGE TO THE SHIP. When the chief engineer was released he found that parts of the engines had been removed. The gauge glass was smashed, and the two covers of the high-pressure cylinders were taken off, one being found in the stokehole and the other between decks. The nuts were thrown over the side. However, Mr McCartney found sufficient parts to repair one engine, under which the ship returned to Hong Kong. When the Changsha left Hong Kong for Sydney six of the pirates were arrested and one shot dead by a Chinese police patrol. The Hong Kong Government were offering a reward of two thousand dollars for information leading to the arrest and conviction of other persons concerned in the piratical at tack on the Tai On.