The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-10-05

stronghold before his day and the young
man had an eye to the eternal fitness of
things. The treasure ship made her
course up the China sea, followed by
the slouchy looking old brig at a re-
spectful distance, and one morning
about 10 O'Clock was within five miles
of the islands. The pirates were waiting
for her. They not only came sailing out
from the lee of the group, but they
raised the black flag to show their hand
Chin-Fin wasn't going to play any
baby business by sailing under a false
nag The brig was sighted in the dis
lance but treated with contempt The
treasure ship naturally tried to get
away She turned on her heel and put
back to meet the brig, but the pirates
pursued with yells and a great waste
of ammunition. They saw that they
could capture two ships where they had
counted on but one
BY and BY things got 20 work and
Chin-F'in felt his back hair curl The
brig began hammering away with six
guns to his two and at the end of
eighteen minutes thirty of his fifty ras-
cSls were dead IT wounded and his craft
IN sinking condition and he had to
cry for quarter 1t was granted him
and his men taken aboard While the
treasure ship pursued her voyage, the
brig started back for Singapore. She
had had seven men killed or disabled
i AAG pirates were SndEklEQ ana CODT0eQ
between decks, and for two days they
were as tumble as cats. There was no
need for Chin-Ffn, who was natural
orator, to tell them how the case stood
They were going back to the Straits for
trial. conviction and execution Had
those pirates been able to get a pro-
fessional jury and a weeping lawyer
from the United States they could not
have been acquitted. None of them felt
like dangling at the end of a rope. and
ca Fin least of all. He had made a
blunder in starting out as pirate but
he wanted to live to rectify it. If he
could get free he would go to Bulgaria
and become a brigand and rake in a few
American missionaries. With this idea
in mind he worked at his shackles until
he freed himself and then freed his
companions
In the dead Of night. with one watch
sound asleep below, the pirates made
their dash. They at first carried
everything before them. and it looked
as if the brigand business might come
to a head but they were eventually
overpoWered. Chin Fin and four com
panions only were left alive after the
combat and they did not get another
chance to break out. They raised
money from some unknown source
and fought the case in the courts for
a whole year, but in the end a verdict
OF guilty was reached. One day, If
teen months after the raising of the
black flag to the music of the band.
the five pirates stood on the gallows
with ropes around their necks. Chin
Fin had done no talking since his cap
ture except to claim that it was ali
mistake and that he was d good young
man. When he saw that three was no
longer any hope. however he made a
speech He admitted that he had been
a boss bad man from head TO heel, and
that the world ought to rejoice that
he was to die. He spoke for half an
hour, pllng it on to himself as hard as
he could, and then excused his con
duct by saying that it was all owing
to his mother having forced him q
attend Sunday school when he had
heap rather go fishing. He warned
parents to take warning by his sad
fate, and with a dignifed wave of his
hand he signa1led the hangman to let
er 60 and was launched into eternity.
M. Quad