THUG (from the Hindustani thaga, deceive; hence, literally, a deceiver, a cheat) is the name of a religious fraternity in India, which, professedly in honor of the goddess Kali, the wife of is addicted to the commital of murders, and chiefly lives upon the plunder obtained from its victims. The name of Thugs is that by which this frater nity is generally known among Europeans in the more northern parts of India. In some provinces to the southward they are called Phansigars, or "stranglers" (from the Hin dustani phansi, a "noose"). In the Tamil language their name is Ari Tulukar, or " noosers;" in the Canarese, HaNni, or " thieves who use a cat-gut noose;" and in Telugu, Darla Vanilla, or " people who use the noose." In the s. of India they used to live under the protection of the native chieftains, who, on the consideration of a set tled contribution, and probably also of a share in the result of their depredations, con nived at their practices, which, to the uninitiated, were generally concealed under the guise of an honest industry, especially that of the culture of land.
The proceedings of the Thugs are generally these: Banding together in gangs of from 10 to 50, but sometimes also of a much greater number, they assume the appearance of ordinary traders, traveling, if enabled to do so by their wealth, on horseback, with tents, and all the comforts of opulent merchants; but if this be not possible, also in more humble characters. Each gang has its jortadar, or leader; its guru, or teacher; its sothas, or entrappers; its bhuttotes, or stranglers; and its lughaees, or grave-diggers. On arriving at towns and villages, they pretend to meet by accident, and to have no previous acquaintance with one another. Some of the gang are then employed as emia caries to collect information; and when learning that any persons of property are about to undertake a journey, they endeavor to insinuate themselves into their confidence, and usually propose to them, under the plea of safety, or for the sake of society, to travel in their company; or else they follow them, waiting for the proper opportunity of carry ing out their murderous work. The latter is generally perpetrated by throwing round the neck of the victim a rope or cloth, which one of the gang holds at one end, while the other end is seized by an accomplice; and while the two Thugs draw the noose tight, and press the head of their victim forward, a third seizes him by the leg, thus causing him to fall to the ground. The fatal injury is then easily inflicted. Travelers staying in the same choultry, or public resting-place, are sometimes murdered in the night. In attacking a traveler on horseback, generally one of the gang goes in front of the horse, while another keeps himself in the rear; a third, walking by his side, when finding him off his guard, suddenly seizes him by the arm, and drags him to the ground: the sufferer is then strangled in the usual manner. Three Thugs are therefore generally required to
murder one Man; two, at the least, are thought necessary; for to strangle a man single handed is a rare occurrence, and a feat of this kind is esteemed by the fraternity a most honorable distinction, which goes far to ennoble, in the eyes of his fellows, the Thug who has accomplished it, and even his family, for many generations. After the murder is perpetrated the body of the victim is generally mutilated, in order, it seems, to expe dite its decomposition, and thus to guard against discovery. For the same reason, care is taken to inter the body at a spot where it is not likely to be found; and thus it could happen that entire parties of travelers were destroyed, and not a vestige of them was discoverable. The indiscriminate slaughter in which the Thugs seem to indulge, is to a certain extent restrained by superstition; thus, it is deemed unlucky to kill certain classes and castes; and, as a rule, the female sex is exempt altogether.
The mode of dividing the plunder is probably various. According to one account, "a portion of it is usually appropriated to defraying the expenses of religious ceremonies; and sometimes a part was also allotted for the benefit of widows and families of deceased members of the gang. The residue of the booty being divided into several parts, was generally shared as follows: To the leader, two shares; to the men actually concerned in perpetrating the murder, and to the person who cut the dead body, each one share and a half; and to the remainder of the gang, each one share." The practice of Thugs is not restricted to adventures on land. The rivers of India also are infested by bands of these robbers, who have similar habits to those of the land Thugs. They generally go in considerable parties—the one assuming the dress of travelers of respectability, the others acting as boatmen. When going up the river, they always pretend to be men going ou pilgrimage to Benares, Allahabad, or some other sacred place; when going down, they pretend to be on their way home from such places. The travelers intended for their victims are inveigled on the high-roads, and murdered inside the boat, while some of the gang above sing and play. At a signal given by these that all is clear, the bodies of the murdered men are thrown into the river.