THE OREGON SUNDAY JOURNAL, " PORTLAND, . SUNDAYCORNING, . TRIE- 12, 1903
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IKILIZATION
has- driven the. , -
black fiag'Jrdm ', .
the high seas. But .-. -
; Aa there are pi-',
' rtfi; nowactneU ..'
, flying their trade . - '
li a ati nut gen; t .
i, A if s peaceful
dais of 1008.X
JThey ore she last of '.the world's bucca
neers, it is true, but they are a pic fur-
: esque lot, with an inheritance of romanced
and a bloodthirsty, thieving taste- that
might have come-from a Kiddd Mor '
ran or a Leach, "?,: ':. ' ' T ''. ' "' ". " -7
, ; They swarm the rivers and canals of
China, and sometimes venture upon the .
v adjacent high seas In Chinese waters C
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coastwise vessels whether sail or steam,'
'. are 1 never; safe from 'sudden attacks;
while the smaller and more shallow river , ,
! vessels are captured and exploited in cer ,
tain sections almost at will.; ' ' . ;
! History and fiction have found rich ' '
material in the outrages of Chinese pi-r
rates, JJ rncnt,yi;uj 1 , ,
name? fgunboatif have cruised . Ae .
roMf and explored the rivers and harbors ,' -?
search of -the murderous marauders. ',
; their depredations continue. 0y a '
: few weeks ago a series 'of piratical out'
rages on the Grand Canal was reported. ; ."
:. These aroused both local and for- .
'. governments to activity War of S
extermination was declared on the tig-, '. i
buccaneers remaining in the nefari- - .
ous business, They are now fighting for
life,1 and the hope of civilization is that j
" yv may soon be removed from their un.i'
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with" wonderful ' placid 4 ' anflclty, ther ' lp
upon' th,pUr vmL - .. '
Capture 'pf tb Chanfook eoraparatlTl
' 1 .. (air vndar th clreumataaoM. Tb ahlp raa ma
prUwd,' and that waa all thera waa to it- LaUr
- tha plratea abandoned tha Tltnam ' and batook
. Abemaelrea to tha Cbanfooki'wblok tbar ftarward
, ran afborl .v' VM ',' ' '
' ' ' In 'on day! work .tbaaa robbara aaeurad about
f , ;. 110.000. ; Thara.waa no radraae;;thar Yanlahad'amW
. .. tba hftla aa- aoon aa tbar raaobad abora. Wblla
' tha Cbineaa foraromant mibt- bava bM bonaat
la tryln to traca tbem, uotblnf arar cama ot tba
, purault. '; . , , ' ( ,
m Seldom baa anything- araT. coma of purault of
Chlneaa plrataa, nnlaaa that purault waa by war
' yaaaola of a foralm nation.)
. In tha aoutbaro watera tba, Franch bava baaa
; ' wiping out, with commandabla Induatry. piratical
. . lalra and fiaata. EnglUh erulaara bara kept down
," buccanaarlnir raids In tba north, and English author i
' lUaa ara now aroualng Cblnaaa Ira by, threatening to
patrol tha jlvara and aaaJa to Order to wlpa out
.'-tho' raraalnloaJ freebooter of' tho" aea' wno persist
; ', to plying their trade upon tba Inland wata oouraaa.
, 80 strongly baa tb Kablt of piracy beeoma to-1
'grained In tb Chinese character that berolo nieaa
urea may b necessary to uproot It
'KTi Tlma was when U tha adjacent waUra of tba
., ' Taciflo wera cruising grounde for piratical-Junka,
"" and many a merchant vessel liM faJlen, prey to tho
. slant-eyed bandits of tb aeiu, . ? . ,
', a hundred yaara, ago the.Vloodlaat pirate fleet ta
Chinese history waa commanded by Woo-che-tainai
who assumed the romantic two of Scourge of tho
. ; . Saatern Seas." At tteeo thousand of Junk war
v - M m mai . ....... v . ' -
':". i'. About thl time too,, one, of the .most adrea
M J..- anMMM IllMfM 11 ttmmP&11
lurous anu w mjc wwum v - -
'' into the UmellghtJ jj ' ' ' '.. .
- . ' la 1307 the chief outlaw of all tho Chinese coast;
. ' : Chlng-ylh. perlsbedtln a -.violent -gale.' His-widow
at once took" command of tho plrate fleet; and la
s more than. hundred flghta.ahowed-that bar teeui
were those of the barbarian. ; -f:
She waa the "newi woman" of ber. tone la tba
! East : Men feared Tier and 'obeyed., area, h moat
1 iuneontrollabl and bloodthirsty; ' "' '
Algid discipline and ajfact aubmlasloa tnr de
xnkhded by her and 'readily , given, Shaypkld for
what juppllea ah demanded ashore,?but was mercl-
v ies in her-exacnona irom pnsca "' ,
lr ' Of ., late years there have 'been .'comparatively
niMtiPAi. outraires on the bJkk aeas off China's
, ' coaaL'.'BUt'the old pirate system 'of Tobbery ha
,. been working" at. fuU blast In' a6ofa' of-aecluded
. i harbor and. on the rlvora and canals i ot the In-
terlor. ' r' ' , ,
' Almost- any piratical r expedlUon ; may be or
xanlxed at Shanghai. - There, one may find the Hot-
saxa'acd'JeUani of the world awalUng employment.
v .; These becom on occasion. -modern buccaneer.
They organise ralds.lan piracies, and engage la
any' desperat;' enterprise , thatj promise., targe r ,
'-. i.m,m-s nl-k aimntv following the example set
... .nh.tiKiM that the nation of the
world have to overcome are those , that Aave to do
with tboTfaal Oriental-charaoter. -- r.. '-J
W Driven.. .virtually, from the Wgh. aeas.-the, Chi-.
h, nese pirate hae now taken,tohe.riyers;and canals.'
There are ions; ,sirciuuc , f .ni
afpETAIlS eached.here today," a recent dls-j,
I 1 patch from Shanghai stated, "of piratical
'- I J outrage committed within the last few '
: day oa the Grand Canal, eight .hours
Journey from thl city. ; The attack, were the .most
daring known Inc the day 1 of tba .Klplngs. , j .
"Three tow of crowded launcbe coming , from '
Kashlng were held, up by; hundred of pirate,, who .
are believed to be soldiers that hav. deserted, from,
the disaffected districts of Cheklang. All the passen-:
gers refusing to Immediately , deliver t up their valu-'
aWcs were mercileiwly ahot" XCr;:?. rx :,lri
It hasn't been so long, since Chinese pirates In
tested the sea along the coast of that country, and
ventured far from land In their .unlawful' enterprises..-
a trade la CecMry for a large part of the goods.
Hardly'bave the goods left Hong Kong when they.,
are subjected ' to -, the' risk " of being, selied ; by pirates,
and' la three case out of five consignment . for up
'. river town never reach their destination., ' 1 ' - '
''..' The; Chinese pirate travel "light In Ilong. . awlft
river junks..' Their favorite trick is to. await the com
" tag of night la on of the lagoon of the Canton delta,
-and then sUp up to laden boat as It pushes It way '
' lowly up the river," board ,lt,and Iay thecrew. Then
that boat disappears from the register rof the ; Far ?
' Eastern trade and her good are never more aeen by .
.the owners. . ,
' .- There are mar reasons why. the pirate remains on
the Chinese coast Una ..and hr the Interior. Almost -every,
Pacific ocean .port has It quota of. soldier of :
L fortune, but most of these are now-gathered la Chinese ,
?ports. - ",,,.
rtual .war against, nauyea, di
. a ' ' a a . ' M . m if. . . J . 111 A . a .Aiialni
Regressive measures aimed at slracv unnn th hih
uiiiveraaiiy maooiea . or iilta ttiflt:fmiMi ,wu ikumv. iiblutvh. uui jiey. arts .carerni -rn
uninese nave oeen eonflnlng ? ' employ nauve cuitnroai ana marauaers ,va carry out '
-frequented -harbor -and to .'their plamt. ' ; - ,
rv-- Tnese .may-mean- in - capture- ana t-iooung or- a about 140,000 by tne steamer.
seas hHve been so
no.st of the buccaneering
tiii'lr ritwratiooa to llttl
ion river Btretcnes iimtde of beaoiands. , k H ... Thwi mav-mean
At tbi e.iine. time few ships are absolutely safe In ' coastwise veasel or attacks upon river craft proceed.
r-rtnln t'hin-Ko watcrn. A British vessel, jor exam- lne from seaport towns to the interior. If the capture
indi n with s;oods ronsiKned to Canton -or towns . Mh made without bloodshed," good and welL 60 much
'up ta river." may come all the way from JJverDooI , Ukk is the Chance of discovery. But even of lata
t Hi.i-r Kav unmolested by pirates. At If on Kone vonm most darinir aUacka have been mada by. Chlne
; -v One might- cite,; for . Instance,' the -capture of' the ';,-One' of -the; boldest, depredations, ever, committed
British .steamer ; Slanam . by buccaneera ' near. Canton .-'.was about two year ago, . when two 'steamship were
not many yt8j ago. r Murdered by' the . pirates ;wer - captured by the pirates. . , , r .
the". Rev. ' Dr. MacOonald; a : mlaslonary. and four , j ' Just" ,below "Wuchow was. the. British steamer. FI-
" Indian members of the erew; while the commander of,' nam, in need of a. crew.; :On' night a Junk came
the vessel, . Captain Joalin,'- waa-serlously", wounded. alongside with a large force of j Chinese,v who volun-
;- f In - thl Instance the 'outlaw secured about 14000 la V teered for service, i Once on deck they took possession.
money-and some ammunition. ' waa aupposea-that -A -.j- They overcame and tied'up.the .omcers ana .crew
the Chinese provincial authorities had intended to ship.' and drove the passengers into their . Staterooms, .where
'rm louS that lit ue'of thrm0n.u; they were apeiily. robbed of all; Valuable, wwi. this
was aboard ' ' 1,5, act, of robbery, was going, on the-vessel, was tnett on
Thi. rnhiun AfTfTfA fmtn most of -the oneratlnni
of the pirates In that a number of the piratical gani
ii aiifcii ment to snialier boat and Junk of the river, pirate upon vessel on tb high ceasr v t
This robbery differed from most of -the operations
1 la mat a numoer or xne piratical gang'. 1"'"r'lt1";1' v....... -
'took passair on-the steamer and arose-to capture t- jvviid grw-siuii, ae P"! 'a '5U1"" . ti.L't
the high seas another steamer was seen approaching.
-It -was a larger-and faster "Steamer, ine vjnanrooa.
When an opportune -time . came. ..
-aide the Chanfook, until the ships touched, and then.
Accordingly, the pirate may?, bold up ; traveling ,
Junk as be will. He may pillage to bla heart' con-tentandsoap-iat
-the . Interior, safa from pur- -suit.'
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It may be a long time before this form of piracy
is'dlscountcd'and stopped.,It:ta. the- last, form -of :
the famous piracies of China and those plracie are
th last piracies of the world. , - , .
Oifflcult, indeed, has it been to convince these
people thaf-their -buccaneering exploits were un- -lawful.'
without the indorsement. of .civilization and
Tbif nat?ewaUSlrt..yfor centuries; they wish
to be pirates still, and they resent bitterly the edl-t
of civilization,, that they shall . no .longer bath s
scourge of the eastern seas. . ;
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