"AMOK" 313 



hearing this, dropped the axe, and with a small American knife, 

 kept for husking coconuts, attempted to kill both Ali and Yusuf. 

 They, however, got beneath the floor of the hut and made their 

 escape, the former with a slight wound. 



Sam-tat-yon then fell upon old Osman and slew him with the 

 knife. 



He next went up to some Burmans who were gambling, and 

 dispersed them, after doing one of them some slight injury. Sam- 

 tat-yon then ran off to the village of Perka. 



At Perka, there were sleeping in a house his brother — a man 

 named Kichyeti, — one Chestu Chulia, and some women and 

 children. 



Sam-tat-yon entered, closed the door, and stabbing his brother 

 first in the chest and then in the abdomen, killed him. At the 

 first cry of Kichyeti, Chestu Chulia and the others got up, and 

 giving the alarm, tried to snatch away the knife. Some women 

 from a neighbouring house then came and helped to arrest the 

 murderer, whose own wife — one of those arriving to rescue 

 Chestu Chulia — was wounded in the struggle. 



The populace not unnaturally wanted to kill Sam-tat-yon on 

 the spot, but they were prevailed upon to keep him for trial. 

 Not being accustomed to guarding prisoners, and not liking to 

 keep him in any of their houses, lest they should become polluted, 

 they prepared a strong wooden cage, similar to those made for 

 pigs that are to be slaughtered, and left the man in it with his 

 hands tied. 



(The Nicobarese fear the presence of a desperado, and are too 

 ignorant to know how to guard him, and for these reasons they 

 always kill the men of whom they entertain fear.) 



After three or four days of the cage, Sam-tat-yon became 

 quite subdued, and answered any inquiries about the occurrence. 

 He fully admitted his behaviour, but attributed no cause to it. 

 He simply said that he had been unwell for the last month, and 

 could not take his meals properly, that he was unable to drink 

 coconut milk, but lived upon warm water, and that he had not 

 slept for several nights. In such a state of health he lost his 



