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Always having his pass with him, Khan Beg went to Peshawar and effected the sale of a rifle. Then returning to Rawalpindi, he came on to Kolat, sold the rifle recovered with Diyal Singh's pass and returned to Rawalpindi. A second time venturing to Kohat he was arrested. The rifle lodged in the lines of the 20th Punjab Infantry has been recovered, together with the three referred to above.
There appear to be several points worthy of attention in the case of which the above is an outline:-
(1) The ease with which sepoys obtain passes from Military Officers to carry arms. Officers of the Indian Army grant passes in a lavish way. Usually, no attempt being made to specify the weapon, an enterprising man has Klian Beg's method open to him, with a fair chance of success.
(2) A trade, the existence of which Khan Beg admits, in rifles between Hong-Kong and
this country.
Apart from this case, Khan Beg has given the names of fellow-gunners who have brought arms into the Hazara district. The District Superintendent of Police, Hazara, is satisfied of the truth of this, but has failed to obtain the return of any rifles.
(3) The very slight risk run in transporting rifles, provided there is no attempt at con-
cealment.
Khan Beg in his many journeys was rarely questioned, and never in the Punjab. The Sergeant sent from Kohat in returning with the rifle recovered in Mean Meer, though in plain clothes, was never spoken to.
(4) The probability that the export of arms from Hong-Kong is not restricted to the
"Asiatic Artillery," but shared in by the Infantry and Police.
(5) The necessity of a closer watch on the movements of sepoys, especially when travel-
ling with boxes nearly four feet long, as was that of Khan Beg,
(6) The help afforded by regimental sepoys in the secretion of arms.
Men of at least three regiments (11th Bengal Lancers, 20th and 33rd Punjab Infantry) gave Khan Beg all the assistance they could. Commanding Officers of the 11th Bengal Lancers and 20th Punjab Iufantry are taking regimental action in this
case,
It only remains to describe the recovered rifles. They were made in Liege (Belgium) and Steyr (Austria), and one by J. Hollis & Sons, London and Birmingham. District Sup- erintendent of Police at first thought the continental weapons might be of the "condemned barrel type" referred to by Mr. Hastings, but such officers and armourers as have seen them pronounce them first class weapons. They were probably brought from W. G. Hum- phreys & Co., or Tang Hing, carpenter, 180, Queen's Road, West, Hong-Kong, for with both of these firms Khan Beg has evidently had dealings.
Khan Beg has been convicted under sections 19, 20, and 22 of Act XI of 1873, and sentenced to two years' rigorous imprisonment: the rifles and box in which they were brought over have been confiscated.
The 29th November 1893.
H. A. CLOSE,
Ofg. District Superintendent of Police, Kohat.
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produce no authority entitling him to purchase and carry ammunition. He was travelling in company with about 80 other sepoys. He was fined by the Cantonment Magistrate Rs. 10
and the ammunition was forfeited.
Sepoy No. 705, Muhammad Ali, son of Sayad Ali Pathan, resident of Garhi, Thana Mardan, Peshawar, was arrested at the Rawalpindi Railway Station on the 23rd April 1894, under Section 20 of the Arms Act, for being in possession of six-chambered revolver and 100 cartridges not covered by any license or letter. He was sentenced by the Cantonment Magistrate to a fine of Rs. 30 or in default to three months' rigorous imprisonment, and forfeiture of the revolver and cartridges.
Sepoy No. 836, Nakib-ullah, son of Fakir, Pathan, resident of Shamatkor, Thana Mardan, Peshawar, was arrested at the Rawalpindi Railway Station on the 23rd April 1894, under Section 20 of the Arms Act, with the above named Sepoy, being also in possession of a six-chambered revolver, with 200 cartridges, not covered by license or certificate. He was sentenced by the Cantonment Magstrate to a fine of Rs. 30 or in default to three months' rigorous imprisonment, and forfeiture of revolver and cartridges.
Sepoy Khanzada, son of Ajib Gul, Kamazai Khel, resident of Wata in Swat, was detect- ed by the patrolling constable between Lala Musa and Rawalpindi to be in possession of one six-chambered revolver, 100 revolver cartridges, eight blank and one loaded snider cartridges, as well as two boxes of percussion caps. He was arrested at the Rawalpindi Railway Station on the 26th April 1894, and sentenced by the Cantonment Magistrate to a fine of Rs. 30 and forfeiture of the revolver and ammunition. This man had a letter from his Commanding Officer, permitting him to carry a rifle and 100 cartridges, which were taken from him by the Calcutta Police.
Subadar-Major Hassan Ali Khan, son of Fazal Khan, Khatak, of Jabbi Madauri, Kohat, of the 16th Hong-Kong Regiment, alighted from 3 Up Mail at Khairabad on the 26th of April 1894. He was in possession of a double-barrel gun, a Henry-Martini rifle, a cavalry carbine, a pistol and 500 cartridges. As all these were covered by a letter from bis Commanding Officer, he was not interfered with.
Enclosure No. 2.
Report from the Punjab Police.
ILLICIT TRAFFIC IN ARMS, &c.
On the 19th April, a telegram was received from the Commissioner of Police, Cal- eutta, intimating that 150 sepays from Hong-Kong had that day left Calcutta for their homes in the Punjab, and that they were suspected by their Commandant to be in possession of contraband fire-arms. All Station Masters and Railway Police, Peshawar to Delhi, on the North Western Railway were put on the alert by wire, and Inspectors, Railway Police, were ordered to see that strict vigilance was maintained. The following is the result :-
Sepoy No. 259, Amir Shah, son of Muazzam Shab, resident of village Jallo, Thara Mansehra, Huzara, was arrested at Ambala Cantonment Railway Station on the 23rd of Apri 1894, under Section 19 of the Arms Act, for illegal possession of two boxes Enfield gun-caps, English manufacture, and two boxes military percussion caps made in Germany for the Hong Kong market. The sepoys stated that he had bought the caps in Hong-Kong, but could
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