A WALK ROUND THE WORLD.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XVIII, Issue II, 9 January 1897, Page 31

A WALK ROUND THE WORLD.

Mr C. B. Rendall, formerly a cadet in West Point College, New York, who started from Boston, America, a little over two years ago, to walk round the wotld within two years, barring sickness and other unavoidable causes of detention, has completed his task, and is at present resting at Shanklin for a few days prior to the last stage of the journey to New York. He is due to reach that city by the 30th inst., and by accomplishing the feat he wins a wager of 25,000 dollars. He had reached the south of Ireland, and booked his passage across the Atlantic, when his arrival became known to Sir William Hudson, Commander of the Bahar Light Horse of India, who, spending his holiday at Shanklin, induced him to return and pass a few days with him, a very warm friendship having arisen between the two gentlemen as the outcome of the traveller’s strange experiences while walking through India. RAISING THE WIND. Mr Rendall, interviewed on Wednesday, told a thrilling account of his wanderings over the globe. The conditions of the contract, he said, were that he should walk round the world, starting without a penny or a scrap of clothing. Before leaving Boston he exhibited himself in nature’s garb, charging a fee for admission. By this means he was able to buy a newspaper and some pins, and with them made a suit of paper clothing. Then he was engaged at fabulous prices for business advertisementpurposes. For instance, among other things, he sat in a shop window at five dollars an hour. Within ten days he had raised a fund of 1.300 dollars, and before he left New York he had in the bank. After walking 4,400 miles, from New York to San Francisco, he took steamer to Hawaii, arriving on July 4tb, 1894, the day the island was declared a Republic. Thence he proceeded to the Samoan Islands, where he spent three days with Robert Louis Stevenson, who then was quite sick and unable to leave the house, but believing he was getting better, though actually growing worse. Arriving in New Zealand, he walked from Auckland to Wellington, 600 miles ; and in Australia he walked 1,400 miles. IN THE CHINESE WAR. He took boat to Yokohama, and proceeded thence to Tientsin, China, where he had a pleasant interview with Li Hung Chang, who gave him a letter to the mandarins, charging all who saw the document with personal responsibility for the safety of the bearer. This was rendered necessary owing to the war with Japan, which was then raging, and to the fact that the Government had interdicted all foreigners from penetrating into the country more than twenty five miles. With this permit, he put in about 400 miles, but finding things rather rough, he turned back into Japan, obtained an interview with Count Ito, and received from him a letter to the officers of the Japanese army then in China. Count Ito also appointed him to the hon. rank of lieutenant in the Japanese army, so that he might have the right to go with the soldiers into China. He was with the Japanese army three months, serving as an officer, and engaging in twelve different battles. Mr Rendall, who is a young man of twenty-six, showed several bullet and bayonet wounds, received while engaged in fighting against the Chinese. He has a nasty gash in bis left shouider, a right

rib is broken, so is his breastbone, and on his back is a scar from a deep and broad wound he received from a Chinese soldier. He was shot in five different parts of his body. When he had sufficiently recovered, he reresumed his journey, arriving in Siam at the time of the Franco-Siamese trouble, and walked from Bangkok to Canburi, 500 miles, and from Canburi to Rangoon in Burmah, and thence reached Calcutta by steamer. THE SHAH’S KINDNESS. Walking over the Grand Trunk road from Calcutta, he reached Quetta, 3,200 miles, and there was arrested as a suspected spy and detained for two months. It was here he found a friend in Sir Wm. Hudson, who provided him with an escort of 100 men for the next stage of the journey, a walk of 1,000 miles to Persia. The idea of a man walking filled the Persians with amazement. If it had been a woman, they said, there would not have been so much reason for surprise, but for a man to walk was an indication of extreme poverty and exceptional lowbreeding. The talk reached the ears of the late Shah, and he sent round to the British Resident, Sir Mortimer Durand, to ask him if he would bring to him this strange traveller. Sir Mortimer accordingly introduced Mr Rendall, and the Shah was more than ever puzzled when he found that the pedestrian was not a low-bred individual, but one who had been sufficiently educated to be able to converse with the monarch in his own language. He took tea with the Shah, and told him all about the strange wager, the way it had been carried out so far, and his adventures by the way. The Shah took a deep interest in his narrative, and when he left provided him with an escort of 500 soldiers from Teheran to the Armenian frontier, this being regarded as necessary, owing to a rebellion in connection with the religious sect one of whom afterwards murdered the Shah. He arrived in an Armenian town called Julpha on October I last, and

while he was there the place was attacked by Turkish soldiers, who killed 5,000 of the inhabitants. A SPECTATOR OF ARMENIAN SLAUGHTER. He was at Erzeroum on October nth. 12th, and 13th. He was about to resume his journey on the morning of the nth, when Turkish soldiers rushed into the place and began the three days’ massacre. He was at the British Consulate with Mr Shepley at the time and both saw the appalling slaughter. In one disused stone quarry Mr Shepley and he saw, tier upon tier, thousands of lifeless bodies of Armenians, old and young, of both sexes. They estimated that there were at least 22,000 victims cast into the quarry, the result of the three days’ massacre at Erzeroum. In another village, between Erzeroum and Var, it was impossible to find a man of the native class, all having been slaughtered, and what male children were left had been hamstrung, so that the poor things were unable to stand. On arriving at Mocul, he was imprisoned for four months by the Turkish Government. He was never told why he was imprisoned, and could only come to the conclusion that he had seen too much of the cruelties perpetrated by the Turks, and they knew that if he ever got to Europe he could make statements which would be detrimental to their Government. On regaining his liberty he proceeded to Bagdad, and crossed the Arabian desert, hiring a cavalcade of camels to accompany him, and carry water and other necessaries. Returning to Constantinople, he walked thence through Bulgaria, Roumania, Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Belgium, taking passage to Southampton at Antwerp, and from Southampton walked to Liverpool, steamed from Liverpool to Dublin, and walked through Ireland to Cork. His journey is now practically ended, and out of his /Soo with which he left New York he humourously boasts that he has provided his passage to New York, and has in hand a balance of between Z'ls and /'i6.