TURKOMAN MARAUDERS

Dunstan Times, Issue 1197, 6 February 1885, Page 3

TURKOMAN MARAUDERS

Whether a settlement O' a caravan is to , be attacked, midnight is always the time . chosen (or the surprise. Separating thems ives into several divisions, they will make one or two. but rarely three, assaults on ' their unsuspecting prey. If these be not successful t hey will usually desert, for what saiib the Turkoman proverb : “Try twice, r , turn back the third time.” If the party J; attacked have firmness to withstand the attack, the robbers can usually bo beaten , off ;if not sa l is their lot. The Persians usually fall an easy prey to their savage r neighbours, to whom they are in every respect inferior in the cardinal qualifies of courage, resolution, and firmness Not unfreqnently one Turkoman will take four or five, I’erstans present, ami think little of 1 attacking live or more people of that effe ■ minute race. If they resist, they are out down ; if not, they are either bound on a t horse, tied tithe horses’ tails, or driven on foot for days and days until the desert homes of their captors are reached. If they are to • weak to keep up with the tr op of horseman, they generally perish. Arrived at. the camp, the plunder is divided among I those who look partin it. M. Vahibery relat is an anecdote of this division which is sufficiently amusing to be repeated in this place. “An Alamau returned richly laden with captives, hors.a, asses, oxen, and other movable property. They procee led to the division of the booty, separating it into as many portions as there had been parties to the act of violence. But besi It s, they left in the centre one separate potion ; this was done to make all good, as I aftei wards remarked. The robbers went up each in his 'urn to examine his share. Ine was satisfied, a second also ; the third ex* amin-d the teeth of the Persian woman who had been allotted to him. and observed that his share was too small, wherenoon the chief went to the centre heap and planed a youn > ass by the side of the poor slave. An estimate was made of the aggregate value of the (wo crealur s, and the robber was contented. This course was often repeated ; and although ray feelings revolted at the inhumanity of the proceed mgs, 1 could not refrain from hutching at the droll coin osv tion of their diff-rent shaves of spoil ” These slaves are treated cruelly—so cruelly, indeed, t at even the pilgrims (ha ijis), wi o are s i hospitably entertained in the Turkoman's tents that they are during their slay virtually masters, gel disgusted with the inhuman! y they see practised. After being seized in a night attack and hurried to his captor’s homo, the c tp.ive has to exchange his dress for a few rags, which arc hardly sufficiently r o cover his nakedness, laden wit a chains hat gall his flesh and give i him paiu pain every time he moves, and has ' to suppott life on the p.-orst di t. At ■ night, to prevent him from attempting to ! gain his freedom, an iron ring is attached ! to bis neck and fastened to a peg, so that--1 the rattle betrays the slightest movement • he mak s. Happy is he who has frien is 3 to ransom him ! In every Turkoman tent i the nttle of these chains is never out of the ear. and the smallest off nee, or no offence at all, su : jeots the poor wretch to a load of abuse. Of late the JRuss : au occupation of • Central Asia has closed most, of their mar ke‘s for slaves.- From The Peoples ol the f World.