The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1895-06-26

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country, and vye tor- we're beginning
to hope that the time was at hand
when we might safely go off with our
shares of the plunder. In moment,
however. our hopes were shattered by
our being arrested as the murderers of
Achmet.
..It came about in this way: When
the rajah put his jewels into the hands
of Achmet he did it because he knew
that he was trusty man. They are
suspicious folk in the east, however; so
what does this rajah do but take Sec
ond even more trusty servant and set
him to play the spy upon the first?
This second man was ordered never to
let Achmet out Of his sight, and he fol-
lowed him like his shadow. He went
after him that night. and saw him pass
through the doorway. OF course he
thought he had taken refuge in the
fort, and applied for admission there
himself next day, but could find
no trace of Achmet. This seemed
to him so strange that he spoke
about it to sergeant of guides.
who brought it to the ears of
the commandant. A thorough search
was quickly made. and the body was
discovered. Thus at the very moment
that we thought, that all was safe we
were all four seized and brought. to
trial on charge of murder--hree of
us because we had held the gate that
night, and the fourth because he was
known to have been in company OF the
murdered man. Not a word about the
Jewels came out at the trial. for the
raiah had been deposed and driven ont
of India; so no onc had any particular
interest in them. The murder, how
ever, was clearly made out, and it was
certain that we must all have been
concerned in it. The three 'Sikhs got
penal servitude for life, and was con-
demned to death. though my sentence
was afterward commuted into the
same as the others.
"It was rather queer position that
we found ourselves in then. There
we were, all four tied by the leg and
with precious little chance of ever get
ting on. again, while we each held a
secret which might have put each Of us
in a palace if we could only have made
use of it. It was enough to make a
man eat his heart out to have to stand
the kick and the cuff of every petty
jack IN Office, to have rice to eat and
water to drink, when that gorgeous
fortune was ready for him outside. just
waiting TO be picked up. 1t might have
driven me mad; but I was always a
pretty stubborn one, so just held on
and bided my time.
s.At last it seemed to me to have
come. I was changed from Agra to
Madras. and from there to Blair island
in the Andamans. There are very few
white conv:cts at this settlement. and,
as had behaved we'll from the first,
soon found myself sort of privileged
person Twas given a hut in Hope town,
which is a small place on the slopes Of
Mount Harriet, and I was left pretty
much to myself It is dreary, fever
stricken place, and all beyond our little
cIearings was infested with wild cann1-
bal natives, who were ready enough to
blow poisoned dart at us if they saw
a chance. There was digging. and
disching, and yam-planting, and a
dozen other things to be done, so we
were busy enough all day; though in
the evening we had little time to our
selves. Among other things, / learned
to dispense drugs for the surgeon. and
picked up s1nattering of his knowl-
edge ALI the time was on the look
out for a chance of escape; but It is
hundreds of miles from any other land,
and there is little or no wind in those
seas; so it was terribly difficult job to
get away.
The surgeon, DR.. Somerton, was a
fast, sporting young chap, and the
other young officers would meet in his
rooms of an evening and play cards.
The surgery, where used to make MP
nv drugs, was next to his sitting-roo1n,
with small window between as.
Often, if felt lonesome. used to turn
out the lamp in tne surgery, and then,
standing there, could hear tn cir talk
and watch their play. l an fond OF a
hand at cards myself. and it was al
most as good as having one to watch
the others. There was Maj. Sholto,
Capt. Morstan and Lieut.. Bromley
Brown. who were in command Of the
native troops and there was the sur
geon himself, and two or three prison
officials, crafty old hands who played q
nice sly safe game. a very snug little
party they used 20 make.
We'll, there was one thing which
very soon struck me, and that was
that soldiers used always TO lose and
the civilians to win Mind. don't say
that there was anything unfair. but SO
it was. These prison chaps had done
little else than play cards ever since
they had been at the Andamans, and
they knew each others game to a
point, while the others just played to
pass the time and threw their cards
down anyhow. Night after night
the soldiers got up poorer men. and the
poorer they got the more keen they
were TO plav Mai ShOltO was the