Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1876-07-29
MURDER AS A TRADE In INDIA.
How u Suspected Individual was DiscON
ercd--COufcssiOn OF Thirteen Murders.

How "a Suspected Individual was Discov-
ercd--C0nfcssiOn of Thirteen Murders.
A London newspaper of recent date
contains the following: The story of
strange crime comes to us from India.
From the seething mass of humanity Ill
the valley of the Ganges weird beliefs
and sects spring up, such as Thuggism,
which is a religion of murder for the
caste of thieves, who, from generation
generation, follow the same profession,
and who, so far from being locke upon
with contempt, have their patron deity,
and consider themselves important and
even reputable members of the commu-
nifty. The last tale which reaches us is,
however, that of an individual who pur-
sued murder as trade. For years past
wagon drivers have mysteriously disap-
peared. At intervals all would go well,
and then again they would begin to dis
appear. Sometimes bodies would be
found i'll the jungle off the highway, but
generally so decomposed that, though
they were believed to be the missing
people, yet their identity could not bt
established, and the mystery still con
tinues. At last clew was obtained. Ii
was found that Kahdur Borah was the
name given by various parties as that OF
the person who had hired cart which
had disappeared. A circular was issued
giving a description of the suspected
man, but without effect. At last, in the
examination of a criminal arrested at
Kamptee, for some other otfense, the
iailer's suspicion was excited that this
was the Individual wanted. His suspi-
cions proved to be true, and the murder
er has now been identified by several OF
the relatives of the murdered people al
the man who had hired the cart. He il
Observation-Disclosures forty years OF
age-a well-to-do man, and son of a per,
son Of some property. Eleven and o
quarter years of his life have been passed
in prison for comparatively petty otfenses.
After 1872 he kept clear of gaol and
begun to be looked upon as a reformed
character. In reality his career as q
murderer then commenced in earnest,
and had he not, strangely enough, al
ways given his right name, he might
have been still at large. He had
previously followed the same trade,
though not to the same extent, and the
lull in the disappearance of people was
owing to the fact that every now anC
then he had disappeared from his scene
of operations into prison. Finding es
cape hopeless, he has now, with the ia
tality of his race, made clean breast o.
his crimes. His mode of going to worl
was to enter a village and hire a cart
with the ostonsible purpose of going t.
distant village to see his relatives or t.
transact some business. He always tool
care to select good cart and goo>
bullocks, the property of man of ,
better class, who was likely to carr,
money about him. After proceeding TO
thirty or forty miles on their way, hi
chose some quiet part of the road to ad
minister arsenic to his unsuspectins
companion, the driver. This he had ne
difficulty in doing, if the driver was
Mohammedan, for i'll that case the,
would take their mess together. If hi
companion was a Hindoo the murdere
would offer him some poisoned sweet
meats, or watch his opportunity t.
sprinkle arsenic over the flour the poo
man was about to make his chupGttje
out of. After death he would rob hi
victim, and either throw the body int
the Jungle or burn it. The wagon ant
bullocks he would dispose of in tn
nearest village for, say, fifty or sixt.
rupees, and in few days more go Oh
the same round of assassination and rob
berry. He has already confessed the par
ticulars OF thirteen murders committe'
by him within short time.