The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1893-02-10
CLEVER PIRACY.
A Boat Load of PASSENGER
DrueSed and Robbed.

The following clever robbery is
reported to have taken place on
board passenger boat running be-
tween Shek-lung, Ping-an and Can
ton, says the Hongkong Weekly
Press. 1t seems that number of
pirates-of peaceable nature in this
instance fortunately-took passage
in the boat, distributing themselves
all over the compartments. Amongst
them were two females, apparelled as
lady and her maid; but these two
did not join the boat until it had
reached a point midway between
Shek lung and Ping-an. During the
passage one of the pirates 50 exer-
cised his skill as a taleteller that he
seemed to have enchanted the atten-
ton of everyone on board the boat.
Suddenly he said: eff you gentlemen
would like to see trick will show
you one" Consent being given
at once by all present, he drew
from bag a snake three or four feet
in length and went through some
tricks with it, and at last said that it
was SO docile that any one could
take hold of it. Hereupon confed-
crate offered to test the truth of the
remark and so held out his hand to
take it, but upon the snake being
handed to him, he pretended to be
suddenly afraid and allowed the
snake to slip from his hands down to
the boards of the boat and the snake
suddenly disappeared underneath.
Whereupon the first pirate exclaim-
ed that the snake should be caught
at once as it was dangerously poison
GUS if trod upon or touched by a
stranger, whenever at large.
Search therefore was made at
once for the missing snake all
over the boat, even to the female
compartment. While search was
being made in this compartment the
female pirate, dressed as lady, sud
denly cried out that she missed a
gold bracelet and called upon the
boat owner to search the passengers
for the missing ornament This being
explained by the boat owner to the
other passengers, of course the
pirates said it was but fair to all to
do SO, and SO a general opening Of
trunks, and bags, pockets and bed
ding was going through with, until
the woman again suddenly cried out
that she had found the missing brace
let, which, after all, was in her small
jewelry box. Ofcourse general growl
arose from the other passengers,
those proceeding from the confeder-
ates being the loudest, and their de-
nunciation being more severe than
the rest. At last one pirate said that
for the trouble the woman had caused
she should be punished by handing
cups of tea oil around in person. The
woman, after some pretended demur,
at last consented, and calling for cups
and large teapot from boat-owner,
she supplied the tea leaves and went
through what is called her open
ance." Being young and pretty, she
was freely ogled by the younger
passengers, the older ones not being
averse to little Irritation either.
All the passengers, the confederates
included, having drunk each cup
of the tea at the woman's hands, one
of them said that the helmsman,
owner, and crew should also be
treated with cup each. This was
also done, but in a few minutes after
wards every one On board but the
two women felt sudden dizziness
and drowsiness and one by one, in
Guiding owner and crew, lay down
just as they were in a deep sleep, the
tea being drugged with some kind OF
stuff. The other confederates hav-
ing in the meanwhile had a large
cup of cold water each (the only
remedy required), the luggage and
trunks were speedily ransacked OF
everything of value, even to the
money box of the passenger boat,
and the booty carried on shore, the
boat being left to the mercy of wind
and waves with its cargo of drugged
inmates. The sleep continued for a
couple of hours, when all having
slept off the drug, found that they
had been cleverly duped from begin
ming to end by half a dozen pirates.
Elk.