The Republican., 1899-04-27
OUR EXPERIENCES WITH
PIRATES
By Wardon Allan Curtis

IN the east. The article SAID that piracy
is quite prevalent among the Chinese,
Maays and other eastern races, and
that many native vessels and few
European ones are plundered efery
year"
Il had some experience with those
piratical fellows while in the Aretbuse
On the Tonquin station" said the Rhod
islander who had been in the French
navy, land but for me one of our finest
vessels would have been lost.
at was on a beautiful spring afser-
noon that our fleet came to anchor off
the mouth of the Gumchew river, where
we had been sent to investigate pratt
cal outrages reported to have occurred
in that vicinity
I'VE had heard that the head man of
ahs di~triet had been killed by the
pirates, so we were glad when u whole
fleet of little boats came out of the
river bringing messages from him and
presents of all kinds of fruit, vegetables
aud poultry. l don't know why, but
when | saw that procession of natives
come up over the ships side, with their
baskets, l couldn't help fearing treach-
cry, and | said as much to the admiral.
The natives ran around the vessel,
handing fruit to the crew and max
ing friends. but l wouldn't have any
thing to do with 'em, and stood by
the foremast talking to the admiral,
who was eating a banana. All of a
sudden there was a chorus of yells,
the ship was ablaze with flashes Of
glistening steel. and every one of those
natives stood with a long snaky knife,
a creese, they call it-pointing at a
sailors throat. The creeses were made
of timber steel, and those cusses had
wound 'em around their waists inside
their breech-clouts.
''rhe admiral and | skipped up into
ihe cross-trees of the foremast at the
first alarm, and there we sat and
watched the natives bind the crew and
stow 'em below decks.
The admiral hoped the rest of the
feet would notice that something was
wrong, but it didn't, and, when night
fell, the natives hitched on their lit
tle boats and the Arethuse began to
creep slowly to the shore. Only two
natives stayed aboard, and they stood
side by side on the fOrecastle beneath
US, to keep us from getting down.
1--WE must attack them at once
said the admiral, and, if we overpower
ihem. discharge all the guns and alarm
The rest of the fleet
Just Let me arrange it, said |.
There was a coil of rope on the
cross-trees, fastened around a little
rosler-and-crank arrangement used for
OF This rope and put it through a pull
ley high above US. Then | tied it
around my body.
80 \ want you to set me and this rope
swinging like a pendulum across the
ship said l. Let the rope out a foot
every time get to the end of the swing,
and when | yell let it out six feet
"GraduaIly l neared the two men di-
rectIy under me. Swish, swish, swish,
swish; still they didn't hear me.
MY feet swung by within two feet
Of their heads, and as l completed the
end of the swing and was high in the
air, [ gave a yell, the rope slackened
and | came back with terrible force
just on the plane of the two natives.
The blow swept them off the forecastle
into the sea.
In. two minutes we had the Gatlings
working on the little boats ahead. and
in few minutes more the water red
dened and the air shook with the dis
charge of the great guns. As a re-
ward the admiral ordered me a lieu
tenantcy; but l was already lieu
tenant in the Rhode Island militia. and
was only in the French navy to learn
French, so | declined. Then he said |
could have all the jewelry on the ma
tives we had shot, and they all wore
big gold earrings"
Did you make much out of that?"
asked the storekeeper.
"CrocodileS ate all but one of the
natives, and his earrings were plated
ones, and were made by Connecticut
firm, said the Rhode Islander who had
been in the French navy.
"I've met them ere Malay pirates,
loo said the eX-sergeant of the Devon
shire Blues. 81 wasn't in the army
then, but belonged to little theatrical
and circus company what 'ad been
Playin' in Australia. We was bound
for lnjy in a little sailin' vessel and
got becalmed in Torres straits. The
sailors at once begun to talk about
pirates, and sure enough about four
in the AFTERNOON along come a mess of
'em and attacked the ship. We fought
as well as we could, but VERY soon
they boarded and drove us into the
cabin and shot at us whenever they
got chance, and we treated them the
same
There was one of 'em who could
talk Henglish, and he got our clown
terrible 'ot' by maxim fun of our fat
woman, who was engaged to be mar
ried to the clown.
"Arter awhile we 'eerd the pirates,
chopin on top of the cabin, and pret-
ty soon there was a 'ole there and they
threw in fire-pot. We put it out, and
bowed off the pirates 'ead what looked
in to see 'ow it worked.
Cant scare 'em fightin'.' said the
captain. Them fellers believe that the
time for 'em to die is all arranged by