The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1876-06-20 00:00:00

A PROFM.SIONAL POISONER IN INDIA.

We have obtained some particulars relative to an affair
which is creating a good deal of excitement in the Central
Provinces and Item. It is the apprehension of a
professional poisoner who by his own confession has been
guilty of sixteen murders within the last four years. The
mania • Mahometan of the Borah class, Kandur by name,
a native of the town of Soonvale in the Zillah of Ram.
nooree, within the native territory of Oojeen, not far from
lndore. Kalidur is a wello-do man, about forty years of
age.
.sad his father possesses some property in Soonvale.
Ile is one of these, however, whose cases go to disprove
the theory that 'civilisation makes men good; for eleven
years and a quarter of his life have been passed in prison,
and he gives fair promise to end on the gallows a career
begun, it is to be presented, with many advantages, but
pursued without fear of God or regard for man. His first
experience of gaol life, as far as has been discovered, was
in the House of Correction here in Bombay, where he got
hard labour for a year in IWO for some theft or rubbery
committed tiering a visit to this city. After his release
on that occasion he seems to have travelled about the
Presidency without any definite end in view or any
laudable habits in practice till he once more fell into the
bands if justice for thefts committed at the Myjee Fair,
and was incarcerated for another year in the Dhoulia
awl. Ile next turned up In Benz, where his tnalpnwtises
caused him to be an inmate of the Akola and Oontraottee
gaols for various periods amounting altogether to about
eight years. He was eventually relessedsbn June, 1t172,
and he seemed then to have had enough of gaol life,
for he successfully kept himself clear of any more such
charges as had long established him in the ranks of "old
offenders."

But almost immediately after Kandur's liberation in
11472 there began • series of crimes which baffled the polies
of both the Central Provinces and Berar till about April,
1874, when they ceased. Carts and bullocks started on
journeys from Khundwa, Nursingpore, Bholanporc,
Pathos,. Nandoora, and other places, but never returned.
More than once the dead body of the missing driver was
found by the side of • lonely path in the jungle, but so
far advanced in decomposition as to be totally unrecognis-
able; and for some time it was impossible to say that the
persons whose bodies were so found had not died from
natural causes. These mysterious eccurences, after ceasing
for a year, began again early last year. Complaint after
complaint was made of • man with his cart and bullocks
having started on a journey and never been heard id
again. But nothing could be learned to explain why they
had not reached their destination. At length it was
noticed that Kalidur Borah was the name given by
various portion as that of the person who had hired a cart
which had disappeared : and this clue being followed out,
a circular was issued, not many weeks ago, for the arrost
of a loan answering to the name and description of
Kandur Borah. Before long the man wanted was arrested
at Kamptee, and readily recognised by the relatives of
more than one carter whom he had taken away in an
ill-fated journey. It deserves to be noticed that, although
such • notorious character, his arrest took place under the
most ordinary and commonplace circumstances, for be
was in the custody ef the police on • charge of smile
trilling character, when the terms of the Inspector
General's circular led to his being suspected as the very
man wanted. At the time of his arrest he had arsenic on
his person.
The important part of the story now began to come
out. When the Ilorah saw that his conviction was clear
beyond all hope of escape, he made a clean breast of his
crimes and informed upon two ruen•as his accomplices.
Since then he has been rendering the police much assis-
tance, even to the length of pointing out where the bodies
of his victims lie buried, as if be were anxious not to
leave this world without clearing everybody else of all
suspicion of crime chargeable on himself. He, in the tirst
Instance, made a formal confession, according to which be
took to systematic poisoning as a means of livelihood as
11000 NI he came out of gaol in 1872, and the reason of his
I suspending operations in PC I was that he then paid
another unlucky visit to Bombay, and so quickly COlll-
- himself that he had to appear before the criminal
sessions and WWI compelled to prolong his star here far
beyond the time that he intended. Kandurs plan of
operation was te 20 to a town and give out that he wanted
• respectable-looking cart to take him to • distant place to
see his relatives or on busing,' of some kind. He always
selected a good cart and good bullocks. the property of amen
of • better class, who was likely to carry money about with
him, and he made the fatal mistake of Airing his correct
name at every place he went to. Having started on his
pretended journey ef 20, 30, or even 50 miles, he chose
some quiet part of tlie road to administer arsenic to his
unsuspecting companion, the driver. This, if the latter
was a Mahometan, be would have no difficulty in doing as
the two would probably take their evening meal together;
and if the striver was • Hindoo, the murderer either
offered him some poisonous sweetmeat or watched an
opportunity to sprinkle arsenic over the Hour the poor man
woe about to make his elexppalliee. The villain then
coin-
poeedly looked on while his victim first complained of pain,
then became too ill to drive his cart, and finally lay down
on the roadside and died in agony. He then stripped the
body of whatever valuables there were upon it, and either
threw it down in the jungle or buried it under the
ground, and taking the dead luau's place upon the cart,
I drove to some town or villse where he was not
likely to arouse suspicion, and disposed of the turnout for,
I say 50 or 60 rupees. In his confession Kahilor relates the
Particulars of 13 murders he thus committed in Berar and
the Central Provinces, and several of these are cases that
I have baffled the police for two or three years past. But
there are several besides which be has admitted since his
confession was taken down. We are told that there is
considerable excitement wherever he is taken, the inhabi-
tants turning out in numbers to seethe fiend who has been
working so subtly and so fatally among them. Moreover,
apprehension has so seized the people in some districts
that it is feared there may be difficulty in procuring carts
to go long journeys for some time to come. The Borah
himself is as cool as if be had never done a wrong thing
in his life, and opens up the narrative of his crimes with
less emotion than the police, detective he is assistieut.lie
is now at Nursingapore under trial for a murder com-
mitted at that place.
We have said that Kandur on his arrest gave up the
names of two men who he said had been his accomplices.
One of these, a Bennis named Heeralall, and an old gaol
bird, waa, it appears, arrested without trouble in his own
shop at Khamsrautu. The other, a Mahometan, is, we
believe, still at large. Heeralall has confirmed • good deal
or his principal's story, and has confessed to two mut dors
committed by himself, but there are also great ilissre-
pancies between the account* of the two toes. The
Booms was tint let into Kandur's secret only to help the
latter in procuring poison and in disposing of the carts
and bullock. but it appears, that, seeing the profitable
nature of the enterprise, he had begun work on his own
account. If this fact could be established, it would pro-
bably corn out that there were more than two accomplices
engaged, and that a gang of professional poisoners was in
course of being organised. Altogether the affair is one of
the incise serious that have come to light in the history of
crime in India since the suppression of Thuggeeism.—
I Bolaboy Gazelle.

QUZZNSLAND Enleaenon.—The well-known Aberdeen
built chip "Queen of Nations," embarked the following
emignucts for Br(sbane, Queensland, at the South West
India Doan, onwodnenany last, and took her departure
from Gravesend, CC Friday, viz. : —ll7 single men, 73 single
women, M niarried couples, rill children between the ages
of 12 acid 1, and II) infanta. making a total of 244 soulN
Nual to 221 adult& Dr- Maui* iate of the Brompton
Eofficiates as Surgeon-Superintandent, and the
girls are 1n charge of Kra. Wadley, an experienced

IMPUDENT INTOLERANCE.
The dismissal of a gentleman from an Mike simply on
account of his treed is a somewhat startling fact in the
present day. This generation knows nothing of the laws
that once made Dissent from the "Established - religion
a di.jualification for nutny employments, awl we should
almost as soon expect to see a revived Inquisition in
Spain as • restoration in liberal and tolerant England of
the policy ling ago abandoned by our statesmen. The
(net, in the new case of Mr. Maxwell, an Assistant
Master in the Perse Grammar School, are simple and not
disputed. He has served under two Heads The first
Mr. Ileppenstall, on leaving the school, wrote a certificate
testifying to Mr. Maxwells remarkable abilities as a
teacher. It may be said that this is only the view of one
Inan who may lone been hilluenced by strong personal
friendship. We have, however, the testimony of his
successor, the present Head Master, who is not even on
terms of social intimacy with Mr. Maxwell, and who,
nevertheless, speaks of him in eulogy equally emphatic.
Mr. Allen says that he i 4 "a man of high-minded and
honourable character, and. unflagging energy and perse-
verance.- Will it be believed that this gentleman, so
eminently fitted for his post, so successful in it every
way, trusted by his superiors and beloved by his boys, has
been ilisinieeed simply because he is a Dissenter t The
new Master wishes to have none but Church teaching in
the school, and therefore he discharges hini. Ile adds, as
a aerundary reason, there is "a difference of social
position" between Mr. Maxwell and his colleagues: but
this, we take it, is only the first reason stated again (rein
a society rather than a Church point of view. It would
be wasting indignation to throw it away on Mr. Allen,
who probably believes in his Church and looks at the
rest of the world as outsiders. The sight of one of the
Masters fropienting a Wesleyan chapel, however, is
enough to lead young men astray--to unsettle their minds
so to the sinfulness of schism, and make them believe
that outside the pale of the Church there are respectable
lurn. Indeed, from this point of view Mr. Maxwells
merits are positively mischievous. If, being a Dissenter,
he would drink, play dice, neglect his duties, flog the
boys, and make himself hated, he might have 'been
retained at Purse WI a kind of educational helot. Mr.
Maxwell was educated at St John's College, Cambridge.
No Englishman can spend any time at either of the great
Universities without seeing clearly that, as regards
"getting on" in society and in the world, it is better for
a MAU to call himself a Churchman. He need not
believe any one of Thirty-nine Articles, but if he can
manage to compound with his conscience, and sign them,
while attending the services of the Establishment, he
clears from his path a distinct obstacle, and in all matters
of appointment and. promotion has a great advantage
over Dissenters. This is ii premium on hypocrisy ;in
past times it had a great effect, and down to the present
day it is also powerful. It is said that "three genera-
tions o 'Dissenters never keep a carriage." The meaning
of th ,phrase is that when once a Nonconformist has
attaine 'wealth the sons, or, at furthest, the grandsons,
seek social standing,. and ass means profess themselves
Churchmen. That Ur. Maxwell did so simply shows
that he has a conscience, and relied on merits entirely
distinct from his formal adhesion to any creed. Ile
must now see that he was mistaken. His seal, his
abilities, his energy, the lovingkindness of nature that
made him troops of friends, young and old, all this
availed him nothing, because he will not utter the social
shilitoleth of the day, or bow his head to the legalised
idol exiled Establishment, because he is not hypocrite
enough to 'iodise; a belief he cannot conscientiously
entertain. It seems to us astounding that narrow-
minded bigotry should be invested by law or authority
with the power to drive from his post and harass and
injure an honourable man, in the name of a Christian
Church, whose hest precepts are violated by this act, and
through the delegated power of a nation that detesta
intolerance and injustice. Formerly the Church con-
trolled a mass of men and women, all lukewarm
believers ; now scepticism has sapped one half, but the
remaining moiety believe and do anything their priests
tell them, awl make up for their want of numbers by
intense zeal, devotion, and, we regret to say, developed
bigotry. There was a time when English Churchmen as
a rule looked upon Nonconformists as fellow-Protestants !
now a liberal I hurchman is considered by the Ritualists
as a traitor to the CaUse, and is attacked in the coarsest
language by the little organs of the clique. The insolence
of Mr. Allen is an outward and visible sign of this
acclesiaetical intolerance. In the case of the Perse
Grammar Scheel the redress Iles with the Governors,
who are bound to call Mr. Allen to account, but the
arrogance of caste shown by other clergymen can only
be kept within bounds by bringing the priests closely
underlay controL —Telegraph.