Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-12-03
miscellaneous Beading.
coNvIcTs AS HUNTERS.
How They Escaped From an island
Rusa to Obtain Food.

How They Escaped From an islano-
Ruse to Obtain Food.
The three survivors Of the five con-
victs who escaped recently from the
Andamans told the following remark
able story Of their escape and the ad-
ventures which followed 1t:
On the morning Of May 2S six con-
yicts-Bissan Singh, under sentence
of fifteen years; a Bengali (term Of
seven years), and four Burmans, Nsa
Naing, Nga Tun, Nga Pya, and Nga
Pc Lo, all 'lifers," under the charge
Of two military policemen with two
Martini Henry rifles and one hundred
rounds Of ammunition were sent In
forest boat to a small island in the
Middle Andamans with seven days
rations for each convict and the po-
licemen.
On reaching the island Bissan
Singh, Nga Naing, Nga Pya and Nga
Tun were set to work, while the two
policemen with Nga Po Lu and the
Bengal went up hill in search Of
golden" bird that is highly priced In
Port Blair and has a ready sale. The
policemen, before leaving, took on (the
recaptured convicts state) their band
oilers Of cartridges and laid them
with the rifles in the bottom Of the
boat, which had been hauled up on
the beach and made fast. Pc Lu, who
was the convict overseer, professed
to know where birds were to be found
in plenty, and led the policemen and
the Bengal into dense underbrush,
then gave them the slip. and made his
way quickly back to the other men.
The men got the boat into the wa
ter and raising the sail started in the
direction Of the Burma coast. A strong
wind, almost gale, was blowing
when they left the island, but the
boat, which had both sail and oars,
proved seaworthy, and after seven
days heavy weather they reached the
Tenasserim coast only to have the
boat dashed to pieces on the rocks.
They managed to save what rations
were left, however, before the mishap
occurred which prevented their con-
tinuing further along the coast as
was intended. Nga Naing, Nga Tun
and Bissan Singh were very Ill dur
ing the voyage to the Burma coast.
Po Lu and. Nsa Pya, who were well
throughout, assumed command Of the
party and took charge Of the guns
northward until the food supply gave
out and one Of the party returned to
Ye to buy rice, where he explained
the possession Of government arms
by saying that they were government
elephant hunters.
The party received every assistance,
then struck out for the Siamese bor-
der, which they reached after some
weeks hard travel, privation and de-
lays through three Of the party being
i'll. They crossed the Siamese border,
their food gave out and on the verge
Of starvation they recrossed the from
tier to the little hamlet Of Kyun-
choung, Amherst district, to try and
get food. They went to the house OF
a cultivator on the outskirts Of the
town to whom they said they were
government elephant hunters. After
they had been fed the tea house Goung
was sent for, to whom they repeated
their statement He brought them into
town and gave them shelter for the
night
TIE neadman arranged a deer shoot
with the two convicts who had guns
and next morning shortly after they
had gone shots were heard, but be-
lieving their companions and the Go
ung were firing at deer the three con-
victs left behind thought nothing of
it until some little time afterward four
Burman policemen entered the hut.
The three convicts then learned that
Po Lu and Nga Pya had been shot
and were themselves arrested. The
headman appears to have been in COM
munication with the police from the
beginning.-The Englishman.