The daily star-mirror., 1923-02-07


Down During Fight - American
/ Astonished at Deeds of Amazons-
One HercuIean Woman Pulls Down
House Over Husband Who Had
Locked Her Out-Are Backbone of
WateFborne Traffic.
First-hand details of the attack by
| pirates on the passenger steamship
Sul-An, November 10, near Macao,
were brought to New York by George
X. Webb, a mining engineer, who has
inst arrived from China. In an IN
terview he said that the Sui-An, a
twin-screw steamship of 1,245 gross
tons, owned by the Hong Kong, Canton
and Macao Steamship company, made
her usual excursion ON Sunday, No
vember 10, to Macao, and carried a
big crowd of people from Hong Kong
who wanted to gamble.
"All went well on the outward pas
sage" Mr. Webb said, "but on the trip
back band Of pirates numbering
about so, who were among the deck
DuSSeuS6ISt anu lhC SOiAAhcAAN
of a woman, suddenly held up all the
Europeans In the first cabin at the end
Of revolver, and got away with about
$4,000 in cash and jewelry. The two
Indian guards on board who were
armed with rifles, put up fight, but
they were taken by surprise and were
shot and then dumped over the side.
The pirates then rushed the gangway,
firing their revolvers as they went
along the deck and very soon had the
whole ship under their control.
zone of the European passengers at
tempted to seize the pirate captain,
the fiercest of the gang, when one of
the band rushed up and shot him in
the back. The captain of the Sui-An,
who was in the after-part of the ship,
the first officer being on the bridge
came rushing forward along the deck
to see what was the matter, when the
pirates shot him as well as the first
officer.
"The whole thing had been planned
and carried out by the female pirate
captain, and under her directions the
pirates stripped the Sui-An of every
thing they could lay their hands upon
and then took the steamship to one OF
the islands past Hong Kong and left
with their plunder in big junk which
was waiting for them.
Spare Captains Life.
"Before leaving the ship the pirate
leader ordered some Of the band to
throw the wounded captain of the ship
overheard, but he pleaded for his life
and he was left lying on the deck.
"When the Sui-An arrived in sight
of the signal station at Hong Kong
after the pirates had left the second
officer, who was in charge, hoisted a
signal, Doctor and Police, Urgent and
the harbOr launch, which was at the
pier. Immediately took police and doc
tors to the ship.
Mr.. Webb said that the casualties on
the Sui-An in the attack made by the
pirates were three killed, the captain
first officer and chief engineer badly |
wounded, and four or five other Eu. /
ropeans and a number Of Chinese whc |
were among the passengers wounded
He added that a few days after the |
attack on the Sui-An the Hong Kong |
police were on board one Of the coast |
steamships bound for Shanghai and |
took off all the Chinese passengers |
and brought them ashore. 1t was be-
lieved that the pirates had been cap |
tured with a great deal of the loot
taken from the Sui-An, but the repor
had not been confirmed when he left |
Referring to the pirate queen. Mr.
Webb explained that the women wle
earned their living in the sampans
and on the junks in the rivers and
canals in China were bronzed, brawny
and were equal in intelligence and
strength to any three average China
men to be found in Canton, Foochow,
Swatow. Annoy or Tientsin
He added that he saw one of these
women perform the Samson act at
Wampoa after her husband had locked
her out because she had thrown his
.hopsticks and rice bowl into the Pearl
river
Brings Down the House
Planting herself firmly between the
,wo big bamboo poles that supported
me side of the house standing on the
liver bank, the woman got firm grip
md then gave q mighty heave of her
shoulders which uprcoted the supports
md brought the fragile building top
,ling down on the discounted hus-
,and.
The man emerged from the ruins of
lis home exclaiming "Tsung.' which
s the Chinese equivalent of the Amer
can expression, "Stung,' so the chez
hee walla told him, Mr.. Webb de-