Evening star., 1901-08-15
ADRoIT HlNDoo THIEVES
REMARKABLE ACCOUNTS OF THEIR
DARING AND SKILL.
Tunnel Houses to Enter the Zenana
where Valuables Are Kept-Make
Themselves Invisible.

A very interesting and vatuaDle report
was issued several years ago by the IN
spector of prisons of the Indian empire. In
which almost incredible accounts are given
of the practice Of invisibility by the
thieves of lower Bombay. The thieves
themselves, with better reason, feel doubly
secure, for If. in spite Of his invisibility.
by some unlocked for and unlucky chance.
one is seized. his oily body slips away like
an cells; and in the still more unlikely con-
tingency of his being held with an un-
breakable grip. he has. slung by slender
cord about his neck, a little knife with an
edge as sharp as that of the keenest razor,
with which he cuts the tendons of the in
truding wrist. This, however. he considers
a last resort, for he prides himself upon
doing his work without inf1icting bodily
harm upon his victims. To enter zenana
or the women's apartment in a native
house, where all the family treasures are
kept, is the ambition of every native thief.
This is no easy matter, for the zenana is
the center Of the house, surrounded by
other apartments occupied by ever-wakeful
sentinels. In order to reach it the thief
burrows under the house until his tunnel
reaches a point beneath the floor OF the
room to which access is sought. But the
cautious native does not at once enter.
Full well he knows that the inmates Of
the house sometimes detect the miner at
work and stand over the hole, armed with
deadly weapons, silently awaiting his ap-
pearance.
Pushes Up n Dummy Head.
He has with him piece Of bamboo, at
one end Of which bunch Of grass repre-
sents human head. and this he thrusts
up through the completed breach. If the
vicariOus head does not come to grief, the
real one takes it's place, and the thief, en-
tering the zenana, secretes himself; or,
finding every thing already favorable for
this purpose, proceeds to attempt what
seems impossible undertaking. This.
inueed. is no less task than to remove
from the ears and arms and noses the
earrings, bracelets, armlets, bangles and
nose rings of the Sleepers without awaken
ing them, and to get safely away with his
plunder. Who but a dacoit would be equal
to SO delicate, dangerous and difficult q
piece Of work? But the dacoit seldom fails.
these adroit burglars, says my authori-
ty, commit the most daring robberies in
the midst of the English army. Knowing
the position Of the tents, they mark out
one which Is occupied by an officer of high
at the tent, their sharp knife makes them
door in the canvas. and they glide undis-
covered into the interior. Indeed, SO won
derfully adroit are they that even the very
watch dogs do not discover them, and a
thief has been known to actually step
over dog without disturbing the animal"
Faculty Of InvisibiIity.
But the most narvelously clever device
practiced by the thieves Of lower Bombay
Is that used by the MoOches In throwing
pursuers Oft their track. The Mooches
come down in gangs from the back country
and raid the settlements. Their specially y
is poisoning cattle. They smear plantain
leaves with their own particular brand
of cattle exterminatOr and scatter them
about among the herds at night. In the
morning as many Of the cattle as have par
taken are dead. ard have been abandoned
by their owners. The Mooches fiay the
dead animals and sell their hides Pur-
sued, these honest creatures make at full
speed for the jungle. II they reach 1t all
hope of capturing them Is at an end, but
even when they discover that they must
be overtaken before they reach 1t they by
no means lose heart, and are measurably
sure of escaping, especially If. as is often
the case in India. the surface Is burned
over and the trees and bushes that have
not been consumed are charred and black
ened and bereft Of their foliage, and many
perhaps reduced to little more than black
ened stumDs by the fire by which the fields
are annually burned over. If hard pressed
In such country as this they cease to fly
time the English troops which policed the
districts where rhey made their raids were
completely nOnplussed; again and again.
on the very point of being captured the
Mooches escaped by miraculously vanishing
and the officers as well as soldiers became
superstiGous. With the power of MAIN
tanning fixed. fmmoyable postures in which
their race seems to excel, these Indians
grasping in their hands such blackened
branches as they pick up in their fight
can instantly assume and retain for a long
time an almost perfect mimicry of the
groups Of blackencd stumps and half
burned, stunted trees with which the coun-
try abounds. In Abyssinia the Bareas
tribe have the same trick Of becoming In
visible, added to which they place their
rounded shields, that disposed in the grass
look exactly like Doulders. before them for
screens, while thay lie fiat. Watching un-
seen, for travellers to rob or enemies to
kill