News has reached us of a ghastly crime committed by persons unknown upon three Russian hunters in the forest of Northern Kirin. These were residents of a small town named Shihtowhotze (meaning Stoney River) on the Eastern Section of the Chinese Eastern Railway not far from Imienpo, where hostilities have recently been taking place. The oldest of the three was named Konoyoff, and he, his son and his nephew, named Kislizsky, left their home on February 26 on a hunting trip. As they did not return when expected, other professional hunters of the district organized a search, discovering the bodies of the three missing Russians hanging from trees in the forest. There was evidence that before being shot the wretched victims had been tortured by their murderers.

The theory that these murders were the work of local hunghutze, or bandits, is scouted, because the three hunters were well known to and on friendly terms with the latter. It is believed that the murders have a political background, though what that might be is not indicated.

This kind of thing is not very encouraging to sportsmen who might wish to hunt in the wonderful forest country of North Manchuria, and we deem it only right, after we have so often advocated a hunting trip in this area, which we ourselves visited in 1914 and 1915, to publish this grizzly story and to warn those who have intended to go there of the danger that might threaten them.