CO129-508-4 Cases of attacks by pirates 6-11-1927 - 23-11-1928 — Page 158

EXPERIENCES of the

SECOND MATE.

Mr. Forster, the second officer of this ill-fated vessel, was too tired to give his own experience to our representative and he left the tell- ng of it to Mr. Thompson. After learning what he had been through, one could not grudge him a little

rest.

Mr. Forster, it appeared, was in his cabin when a pirate knocked at his door at 4.15. He opened and found himself face to face with a pistol. He nevertheless kicked the pirate who tried to hold him up and succeeded in knocking the weapon away. Just at the same time another pirate fired at him and missed him. Mr. Forster then got out of his cabin and ran round the saloon deck and eluded his pursuers. He went to the poop deck where he woke up Mr. Thomp-

son.

44 'My Brother Shot."

The two pirates who were pur- suing Mr. Forster thought he had gone up to the bridge and they went after him. On reaching the top rung of the ladder, they saw the outline of a man and thinking that it was the runaway officer, the two pirates fired. One shot went through the heart of the man who fell. The robbers thinking that they have killed Mr. Forster, then left the bridge.

man

After the ship had got underway, the pirate chief went on the bridge and on turning the dead round, found that his own men had shot his brother. Oh my brother, they have killed," he said, and flung his gun into the water.

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a

When the officers later saw coffin being ordered by the pirates, it then dawned on them that the coffin was for the dead bandit.

This incident set the pirates against Mr. Forster and when they were taking him ashore in Bias Bay, they told him that they would shoot him, and as a preliminary punishment, the robbers made Mr. Forster do the rowing.

On looking round they saw that they were pursued. This put the pirates in a flurry and in their haste to get ashore they smashed the two boats against some rocks on the beach.

Mr. Forster's Lucky Escape. Just on the beach a pirate turned round and fired point blank at Mr. Forster. Luckily the bullet mis- fired. Mr. Forster then ran toward a boulder, but from another boul- der, come forty or fifty feet away, another pirate opened fire at him.

Mr. Forster at once dropped into the water as if he had been shot, but to the pirates' surprise and anger, Mr. Forster struck out toward his ship as soon as he touched the water. The pirates sent a fusilade after him, but all the shots went wide. Mr. Forster was then picked up by the pursuit party from the Yueng Shing. He returned to his ship with ugly bruises on his knees and body.

The Humorous Side Of A Tragedy.

Laughingly, Mr. Thompson told our representative that the piracy and the tragedy that following in its wake were not without a touch of humour. "There were many deck passengers sitting over a hatch, you know, and these people began to secrete the few dollars they had with them. They had nowhere to hide the money, so they dropped it into the hold through the crevices in the hatch. After the pirates had left, these men and women refused to budge. They claimed that any money found under the position in which they were sitting belonged to them. To pacify them the hatch was opened and in the hold several dollars were found. This money was all discoloured as well as the paint work. There was awful small in the hold and it was evident that the pirates had fumigated the holds with some sort of acid so as to smoke out anyone who might have been hiding them.

Where Is The General? There was a Chinese general, Mr. Thompson said, travelling as a first class passenger. After the pirates had taken control of the ship, this general stood outside his cabin to see what the commotion was all about. Two pirates went into the general's cabin and ran- sacked it. They found a medal pinned on a coat which the general was wearing. They at once turned round to the general and asked him "Where is the general?

"The general, oh I will take you to him," said the proper general, and he took the two pirates for a walk around the ship. When he came to a dark corner, he successfully eluded the two robbers and went away to hide himself.

He is supposed to have thrown overboard about $5,000 in notes which he was alleged to have had on his person. He then hid himself in the coal hold, from which he was taken in a semi-conscious con- dition when all was again quiet.

A Braggart Pirate. One of the pirates in this band boastfully told Mr. Thompson that he had

several taken part in piracies. He mentioned the Sunning and the Hong Peng, and from a description given by Mr. Thomp- son, the man appeared to resemble the pirate arrested in connection with the Sunning affair but even- tually discharged.

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