Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1888-07-27
VOL. XVI.

junk came steadily forward to within
hailing distance before she came up into
the wind. This was proof, whether she
was honest or not, that our appearance
deceived her. The men on deck yelled
and shook their fists, as drunken men
might do, but at the first opportunity q
voice hailed us.
Schooner ahoyl What schooner is
that2"
"The Revenge, Capt. Thatcher, bound
to Shanghai" answered the man aloft.
Whats the matter aboardm
Screw in a state of mutiny for the last
three days. They have lashed the Cap
tain to the mast and driven me aloft."
whats your cargo"
General merchandise. "
"Any arms aboard"
"Only few muskets."
There were a dozen men aboard the
junk, but they dared not attempt to
board. They chartered away among
themselves for a while, and then the
spokesman called out:
Very well, we will bring you help. I"
With that the junk headed back for
the bay, accompanied by the yells and
curses of the apparently drunken crew.
We had native aboard called Shin
Lee. He had been in the headquarters
for several years, and could be de-
pended upon. He gave it as his opinion,
that the junk was spy boat sent out
by the pirates, who never attacked a
vessel by daylight without taking all
due precautions. He said we would see
the pirate fleet come out, in case no sail
appeared ON the horizon, and his words
were speedily verified. We had been
gradually edging inshore, and were not
over five miles from the land, when we
caught sight of five junks coming out
after us. There was good working
breeze, and now, as was only natural,
we began to crawl off. BY seeming to
want to get away very badly, but by
carefully manipulating the helm, we
were seven miles off the land before the
feet reached us. We were satisfied of
their intentions long enough before. 1t
was not to help vessel in distress, but
to take advantage of one almost help
less.
The iunks kept pretty well together,
and when within rifle shot each one
raised Chin-Lung's flag and uttered a
cheer. Each had a couple of howitzers,
with which they opened fire upon the
schooner, but no harm had been done
when we were ready to spring the trap.
At the word of command every man was
on deck, the gun crews jumped to their
stations, and things aloft were ship
shape in moment. Then we wore
round to get between the pirates and
the bay, and opened fire. 4 Chinese
junk is mere shell. One solid shot
went through them as if they had been
paper The poor chaps were unnerved
as soon as they saw the trap into which
they had fallen, and devoted all
their ensrgies to getting away. We
could outsail any OF the junks, but it
was quick work with four of them.
They were sent to the bottom one after
another, and as we came up with the
fifth we ran her down. Our stem struck
hef full on the starboard broadside and
cut her almost in two. She had at least
thirty men aboard, and there was one
long, despairing shrek as they went
down to watery graves. A few came up
to clutch at the wreckage and beg to be
taken aboard, but not one of them would
the Captain lend hand to. Such as the
sharks did not get hold of drifted out to
sea with the tide. 1t was fearful retri-
button, but these men were monsters.
Inside of thirty minutes from the time
we opened fire the feet was at the bot
tom and at least a hundred pirates had
paid the penalty OF their crimes.
Our Captain was lamenting the fact
that he had not picked up one or two in
order to secure information when there
was row forward, and it was an
nounced that pirate had been found
hanging to the chains. When brought
aft he was ready TO do anything to save
his life. His name was Mupg-Hang, and
he had good cause to believe that we
would reverse it. He was the Captain
of the junk we had run down, and was
ready to tell us all about old Chin Lung.
The bay was his rendezvous, but bis
plunder was hidden on the coast near
Foo Chow. There were barracks for the
men up the bay, and thirty or forty
men there at that moment. They had
captured French brig several days be-
fore, and she was then at anchor in the
bay waiting for Chin-Lung's return. He
was then up among the Lioo Kioo
Islands with four junks to capture a
large ship which had drifted into sheal
water, but was not abandoned. If we
would spare his life he would pilot us
anywhere and prove his gratitude in
any way. Shin-Lee took him in hand
fora few minutes, and then announced
that we could depend upon him. We
ran into the bay, brought up alongside
the brig, and sent forty men ashore tc
clean out the place. Not a pirate was tc
be seen, all having bolted for the woods.
Everything which would burn was sci
on fire, and a prize crew was put aboard
the brig to navigate her to Hong Kong.
She reached that port safely, and our sal,
wage money went far to reimburse the
company for its outlay.
When we sailed out of the bay it wat
to look for the boss pirate. He wal
nearer than we thought for. At O'Clock
the next morning we saw his feet ahead
on its way back to Formosa empty
handed, and by 10 we had the junk
under fire. These were Drawer lot oi
men. Knowing that they could not out
sail us, and seeming to suspect that we
were an enemy, they closed right in fol
fight. 1t did not last long, however,.
We had one man killed by the fall of ,
block from aloft, and three or foul
wounded by the bullets from their an
cient firearms, and in return not mar
of them escaped. In less than an hour
fighting altogether we sent nine Junk
aud 200 men to destruction. Butehery
wasn't it2 Well, call it So but remem
Der that in the previous twelve months
the feet of this old pirate had captured
no less than ten fojeign craft and sll
traders, and that every man, woman