Year: 1871

Six Hundred Cinnamon Roasted Alive on


aCOOIie Ship-A Fiery PrIsOn-Story of n


Survivor.


The Hong Kong Mail of the 18th of May gives
the following particulars of the burning of
coolie ship off the coast OF China, of which some
mention has already been made in our tele
graphic dispatches


On the 4th inst. a ship formerly known as the
Dolores Ugarte sailed from Macao under the new
name OF Don JUAN with $50 coolies, for Calao. On
the 9th, when sixty miles the southward of Hong
Kong fire broke out. How the fire was caused is
not yet positively known. The fire gained the mas
terry over the ship While twas doing SO the hatches
were kept battened down upon the passengers for
the space Of one hour. When the captain and most
of the crew had made their escape the fasten-
tngs OF the matches were removed
were nearest to the deck ''1Ss'' were thereby by
ana ultimately to be picked up by a fishing junk
and brought on TO Hong Kong; but all the rest OF
the passengers" remained on board, sufocated and
''stewed In their fat" until the ship totally
burned. That is tie simple state 1enJ of an Incl.
ever before occurred in the history OF Gne Macao
coolie trade.


Leupg Ashew, one of the coolies who was
rescued and brought to Hong Kong, gives the
following narratiVe:-


Nobody was allowed to smoke We had five lights
in the hold all night long. There about ten
foreigners acting sentrles in the hold. They had
swords and rattans. have not seen them the
rattans. They were on duty night and day. on the
third day after we sailed shortly after our break
fast, there a fire on board The fire occurredtf<
The aft part, in room adjoining our hold. The
smoke came into our hold in great volume. 1t had
q strong smell of gunpowder heard no explosion
whatever before the alarm of fire. There was no
foreigner in the hold at the time. No foreigner
INTO our hold during the nre. me hatch grating
In very thick, snd a great many were sufiocated.
More than one hour after the smoke first came into
our hold the hatch grating was torn OF oy somebody,
by one OF the cooks believe. We all made push
for the hatchway. was partially sufocated when 1
got to the hatchway, and could not get up it.
Some Chinamen pulled me up. The fire had then
reached the hatchway. My face was severely
of the left side Of this mans face presents mass
OF roasted flesh, besides several burns about the
from the mainmast to the stern, was mass OF
flames. The foremast had not caught fire then.
About 20 men cluDg to the rigging, and there were
more than 10 others holding TO the powsprit. was
holding to the anchor chain. The anchor was dang
ling at the side of the ship, in the bow. L seated
myself on the anchor, and my hands were holding
hIn this position watched the progress of the fire.
When the fire reached the woodwork which held the
anchor-chain, was tumbled into the sea with the
anchor. l could swim little and l swan to a
burned spar which was floating on the water.
There were three or four others besides me holding
TO this spar. 1t was small spar. When fell into
out Of the hold. When 1 came on deck l could
not see any foreigners, nor did / see any boats.
was very much confused, and was partly insen-
was larger spar floating the water, and more
than ten men were holding on it. l could not say
larger SPAR / and the others that held to the
smaller spar were carried away by the current and
IL was because OF CIls Ihat ala not see Wnat nad
become OF the larger spar and It's men. We were
carried away much faster by the current, as we
had fewer men and our spar was much smaller
] was carried far away from the burn
ing ship that could hardly her. was
picked up by fishing junk that passed In the
was no fighting on board on the day OF the fire
Nothing unusual took place in the hold that day
We could play at dominoes or dice in the hold My
treatment on board the fishing junk was very good,
but could not eat, as my pain is very great.
could not tell how the fire originated. On our way
fShing
the water, but the junk people would not receive
them, as they had no money. Before left the
burning wreck saw blood ooze out from the sides
of the vessel from the hole where the coolies were
lodged.