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SERIOUS SHOOTING AFFRAY AT YAUMATI.
EUROPEAN SERGEANT SHOT.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND ·
Scenes of wild excitement and disorder were witnessed at Yaumati on the 21st inst. consequent upon armed robbery. At about 10 p.m. five men, each carrying a revolver, entered the shop at 43, Kennedy Street, and at once threatened the master and his two fokis with
instant death, if they raised an alarm. They then tied the occupants of the premises together, placed them on a bed, obtained the key of the safe, and proceeded with their work of robbery. The thieves extracted from the safe notes and money to the extent of $4,300, while from the shop till they took about $60 and a silver watch. Having obtained all they desired, the robbers made their departure, but soon an alarm was raised, and the whole village was in a state of tumult as chase was given to the thieves. Lance-Sergt. Mills, of the Police, was soon on the track of the men, and had got within close distance of one of the men when the latter turned round on him and discharged the con- tents of his revolver into the police officer's abdomen causing him to drop to the ground immediately. Just prior to this, however, P. C. Hedge appeared on the scene, and seeing the shooting incident, he quickly made for the robber and brought him down with a shot. Both Lance-Sergt. Mills and his assailant were immediately taken across to
Hongkong, and about eight hours after arrival the robber, an unusually big-framed man, died. Lance-Sergt. Mills was taken to hospital in a
serious condition. Up to Saturday five arrests had been made in connection with the affair, but only two of these could be identified as being members of the gang.
The four natives arrested in connection with the fatal shooting affray which occurred at Yaumati on Thursday night were arraigned before Mr. Wood at the Magistracy on Jan. 25. They were charged with entering No. 43, Kennedy Street; Yumati, while armed with revolvers, and stealing money and jewellery to the value of $4,344.25`and with using personal violence. On a second coun they were charged with killing and murdering Lance-Sergeant H. A. Mills. Accused were remanded for a week.
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which the dagger found at complainant's house fitted.
After hearing further evidence his Worship committed the defendant for trial at the Criminal Sessions.
SUCCESSFUL POLICE RAID.
The meshes of the law have closed in on one of the supposed bands of armed robbers who of late have terrorised the inhabitants of the Yaumati district, and gained for that district an unpleasant notoriety. On Wednesday night Inspector Dymond and a posse of police proceeded to Cheungshawan and surrounded a house suspected of being a den of thieves. When a guard had been set on all passages of escape the remainder of the police entered, ready for any emergency. As it happened, however, the inmates were unprepared for their visitors, and were soon placed under arrest. A search of the house follow d, and besides a large quantity of stolen property and numerous pawntickets, the police are said to have found many daggers and loaded revolvers.
We understand that some of the men arrested have an unenviable record. The police, however, are not yet disposed to disclose the story of the raid, but when the case is worked up some sensational facts are expected to be revealed.
FUNERAL OF LANCE-SERGEANT
MILLS.
[February 1, 1909.4
CORRESPONDENCE.
HONGKONG FOOTBALL CLUB AND
THE SHANGHAI INVITATION.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE “HONGKONG DAILY PRESS."]
4.
DEAR SIR,-As certain statements with regard to the proposed visit of our Association XI to Shanghai and its subsequent abandon- ment have appeared in your columns, my Committee have desired me to write to you and clear up the following points. The invitation was from Club to lub and hence the use of the word Interport" with regard to the fixture is a misnomer. I may point out in addition as a further proof of this that, through the Shanghai Football Club we received a challenge to play the Shanghai League, after playing our match with the hanghai Football Club, but again no question of an "Interport" team arose." As to the statement that appeared in the Press that it was impossible for the Hongkong Football lub to send a team of its own. members to Shanghai without paying their passages and supplying them with pocket money, S I have to point out that this statement is quite erroneous for the following reason:-When at the last moment it was found necessary, in order to raise a team of any reasonable Hongkong Football lub a special letter was strength, to go outside the members of the written to Shanghai explaining this and re- getting our inability to send a team composed entirely of our own members. This appeal to players outside the Hongkong Football Club entailed
& heavy expenditure in passage money and expenses which the Club would have found it very difficult to raise and when further withdrawals took place it was deemed advisable to cancel the fixture, not without deep regret.
My Committee trust that this statement will clear up finally any uncertainty in the matter.- Yours faithfully.
H. L. O. GARRETT. Hon. Secretary, H.K.F.C.
THE YUNNAN RAILWAY.
The remains of Lance-Sergeant H. A. Mills, the unfortunate young police officer whose tragic end was recorded in our last issue, were nterred in the Happy Valley Cemetery on the 25th instant. The funeral was one of the largest known in the Colony for a police officer. and the large and cosmopolitan crowd of mourners who composed the cortege was a Yesterday we learned that Lance-Sergt. Mills testimony to the popularity of the promis had succumbed to his injuries, his conditioning young officer whose sad end provoked having been regarded as hopeless from the time general sympathy, Shortly after five o'clock of his admission to the hospital. The funeral the funeral passed the monument at Happy takes place this afternoon.
Valley, the hearse, which was laden with wreaths, being followed by a large body of police in full uniform. Following them W88 nearly a company of the Royal Garrison Artillery, of which deceased had formerly been ย unit. Next came & squad of Indian Police, then a body of lukongs. These were followed by a number of Excise Officers, who were succeeded by many Chinese firemen A body of native merchants from The Foreign Affairs Committee, telegraphs Yaumati and other parts of the olony next, the correspondent of The Times in Paris on and the rear of the mournful procession was December 25, has now presented its report upon brought up by civilian friends of the deceased. the Bill authorizing the Government of French The large concourse of mourners included | Indo-China to raise a loan of £2,120,000 in order the Hon. Mr. F. J. Badeley, Captain-Super- to meet the expenditure which has been charged intendent of Police, Mr. G. N. Orme, Assistant to the Budget of that Dependency in connexion Superintendent, Mr. King, Deputy Superinten of the Yunnan Railway. The loan is to be dent, Lient. W. Beckwith, R.N., Assistant guaranteed by the French Government. The Harbour Master, Mr. J. R. Wood, Second reporter of the committee, M. Deloncle, Deputy Police Magistrate, Superintendent Lane of the for Cochin China, reviews the financial and Fire Brigade, Chief-Detective Inspector Han- other vicissitudes of the enterprise since the son, Chief Inspector Baker and numerous concession for building the railway was granted Police Inspectors.
by China ten years ago, and states that in conse. quence of various alterations in the plans the initial cost of the work will amount to £6,620,000, as compared with the original High up on the hillside the remains of Ser-estimate of £3,840,000. Of this increase gent Mills were laid in their last resting place, the impressive funeral ceremony being conduct The robbered by the Rev. F. T. Johnson.
Chan Chi was placed before Mr. J. H. Kemp at the Magistracy on Jan. 28th on a charge of armed robbery on the 19th inst. The defend- ant, armed with a dagger, and accompanied by two other natives not in custody, entered the dwelling of an Indian named Inder Singh at 18, Temple Street, and stole money and clothing to the value of $50.
Bahader Singh, the first witness called, gave evidence to the effect that at 6 p.m. on the night of the robbery he left the house to
go for a walk, locking the door behind him. When he returned at nine o'clock he found the
door closed but the chain broken. On entering he saw a Chinaman running towards the kitchen, and seized him by the queue. struggled, and with a dagger he held in his hand, cut witness across the throat, head and body. In the meantime two other Chinese who were in the cook house escaped by means of a rope which they descended. Witness held fast to the man who attacked him until the latter threw down the dagger. He then proceeded with him to the station, but meeting a lukong on the way, handed him over. Witness was unable to give description of the other intruders, but he found that a box belonging to Inder Singh had been removed to the kitchen, broken open, and the contents scattered about.
Inder Singh gave evidence 8.3 to the property that had been stolen, and stated that he recognised the prisoner as a man he had previously seen going up to the floor
above the one on which he lived.
Inspector Dymond deposed to seeing the defendant searched at the Yaumati Police Station, where certain of the exhibits before the Court were found on his person, also a sheath
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The pall bearers were Lance-Sergeants Edwards, Foley, Fox, Burden, Watt and Brennah.
been the case in the past, in order that the recurrence of costly errors may be avoided.
in the estimated cost a sum of £2,060,000 is to be borne by the colony and the re- mainder by the company to which the con- Among the numerous mourners who supplied cassion has been assigned. The hope is expressed- wreaths were His Honour Mr. H. H. J. that the work of construction will be superin- Gompertz, Captain F. J. Badeley, Deputy-tended with greater care in the future than has Superintendent King, the Detective Staffs and Police from all stations in the Colony, Indian Jemidars and Sergeants- Major, Indian Sergeants and Constab es, the sisters of the Government (ivil Hos- pital, the staff-sergeants and sergeants of the 88th Co. R.G.A., the junior non-com- missioned officers of the same company and the Chinese police, excise officers and firemen.
The Tramway Company provided special trams for the police mourners to return to the city.
A Washington telegram to a Manila contem- porary states that, owing to personal differences with Mr. Luke Wright, the Secretary for War, Commissioner Tavera will shortly resign his position, and Commissioner Shuster, who is to report to the Secretary of War in the near future will not return to the Philippines.
For the rest it is stated that so far the most difficult section of the line, the track from Laokai to Mengtze in, the valley of the Nam-ti, has practically been completed. The construc tors have to reach Mengtze by next April or May, and with the opening of this section it will become possible to conduct traffic over a considerable portion of the line. It is caloplated that the line will have been laid as far as Yunnansen by 1910. In view of the results which have so far been obtained on the section which is already open to traffic the 'report expresses the confident expectation that, not- withstanding the inordinate cost of construction, the Yunnan Railway will yield good returns and will materially add to the economic resources of French Indo-China.