Burma Headhunters

By Debbie Young Chase and Harold Mason Young

This is an old writing about the Wa tribal people. During the period of this report written by Harold Mason Young, he was associated less frequently and gained knowledge of their ways from direct contact as well as from the Lahu people. His perspective of the Wa tribal people is unique, especially as it was in the early part of 1900 when the Wa were still practicing their traditional way. It offers some interesting information on the Wa, of which few foreigners ever saw during this period of history. There are likely studiers of ethnic tribal people that will find some of the book useful and maybe even entertaining.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 12, 2014
• ISBN: 9781503514171

Debbie Young Chase

Gordon Young was born in 1927 to American Baptist missionary parents in Banna, China. The family soon moved to Northeast Burma where Young hunted with Lahu tribal boys, learning by age ten to survive in mountain jungles alone, armed only with knife and bow. World War II impacted on Young’s amazing childhood adventures in Burma and India. Later he served the U.S. Army in Korea, obtained a B.S. degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo; then moved to Chiang Mai, Thailand to work for the U.S. Government. There he field collected for museums, helped found the Chiang Mai Zoo, compiled the first informal ethnography of Thailand’s northern tribes, and received “Great Hunter” status from a Lahu high chief. Naturalist-hunter-conservationist-ethnologist, Young’s travels and tales span forty years throughout parts of Asia. A keen compassionate observer, his exciting storytelling also offers rare insight on vibrant peoples, cultures and wildlife in remote, seldom-trodden places. Other titles by Young are: The Hill Tribes of Northern Thailand; Tracks of an Intruder. (Visit: www.GordonYoungBooks.com)

Book preview

9781503514171-4.jpg

Copyright © 2014 by Debora Susan Chase.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2014920356

ISBN:   Hardcover     978-1-5035-1418-8

             Softcover       978-1-5035-1419-5

             eBook            978-1-5035-1417-1

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 04/22/2015

Xlibris

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

551818

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Preface

Chapter One The Wa

Chapter Two The Wa Country

Chapter Three Headhunting And Practices

Chapter Four Feuds And Heading Raids

Chapter Five The British Annexation Of The Wa States

Chapter Six Work Of Christian Missions Among The Wa

Appendices

Appendix A Regional Map

Appendix B My Grandfather, Harold Maso N Young

References

Appendix Cdeath Announcement For Harold Mason Young

Appendix D Photographic Overview Of The Life Of Harold Mason Young

Appendix E Harold Mason Young—Important Dates

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

After completing my grandfather’s first book To the Mountain Tops, I began work on his shorter manuscript on the wild Wa entitled Burma Headhunters. The time period dates back to when my grandfather, Harold Mason Young, was born and raised in Kengtung, Burma (September 25, 1901), and extends to his adult years living in the mountainous regions of Burma and the southwestern part of Yunnan, China (1919-1934), as well as his return to Burma after World War II (1945-1950). Harold wrote this report on the Wa tribal people as if to keep a memory of all he had experienced and learned from living in the original homelands. It is hardly a professional writing, nor was Harold trained in the science of anthropology. In fact, his writing ends abruptly as though he either grew weary of the work or became distracted with other projects. We will never know. Regardless, the material within is unique and provides an interesting perspective during an age that is certainly lost forever.

During the course of preparing Burma Headhunters for publication, some important criteria were followed. Keeping the book authentic was the highest priority; information, writing style and arrangement was left as originally written by my grandfather. It pains me that my grandfather is no longer living to see his book in print. I know he would be both surprised and amused that any of his writing made it into publication.

The process of publishing Burma Headhunters involved a lot of helping hands. Many of the talented individuals who gave time and expertise during the publishing of To the Mountain Tops once again provided critical advise, guidance and information. Without their encouragement, support, expertise and inspiration the lengthy task would have been both lonely and difficult. It is my pleasure to recognize the following people who were essential in assembling this book and to offer my thanks and gratitude for their generous service:

My dear father, Gordon Young, who has continually provided answers to biographical, historical and geographical questions. I am grateful for all his expert help. I feel blessed to have him and will fondly remember all our talks for the rest of my days.

My warmest thanks to my husband, Jeff Chase, who is always in the middle of these book projects. He remains my anchor, my sounding board, and confidante.

My sisters, Julie Young Howell and Carolyn Young have once again provided their editing skills and advice on content. I will always be grateful for my sisters who find time to help me despite leading busy lives.

My son, Stephen Young Chase, for again helping his mother at all stages of assembling this book. Steve has been instrumental as an editor and has an eye for detail, yet keeps the big picture. I will always treasure our lively discussions.

My daughter, Caroline Chase, for offering boundless encouragement and last minute editing. How grateful I am for her quick smile and reassurance.

A special thank you to Tim Forsyth, Ph.D. (London) for his exceptional editing skills. I greatly appreciated his suggestions on polishing up my sometimes mangled English as well as his scholarly advice on content.

My gratitude and sincere appreciation to Gary Wagner, the great-grandson of William Marcus and Lilla Ethel Young, for providing many old photographs, which were beneficial in completing the photo layout in the appendices, just after the biography. His sharing of old letters and journals that contained information with crucial dates and events also helped me finish the biography.

Marcus Young, the great-grandson of William Marcus and Dell Mason Young, was very generous in also providing photographs for the biography which is now included in both books (To the Mountain Tops and Burma Headhunters).

Helen Elizabeth Suter and Ann Marie Suter, for providing many valuable photographs from the old albums of Ruth Young and Dr. Benjamin Pinkerton. Helen is my aunt (sister to my father, Gordon Young) and Ann is my cousin (Helen’s daughter).

Once again, I would like to extend my heartfelt appreciation to Betty Nagel, a member of the Young’s tribe in California, for providing last minute biographical information. She helped in a huge way by contributing facts concerning the final years of William Marcus Young (my great-grandfather, and father to Harold Mason Young).

Philip Young and Nelda Widlund (son and daughter of Vincent Young, who was Harold Mason Young’s brother) for providing me with valuable information concerning their parents, Vincent and Vera Young. Both were born in Burma (Philip in Kengtung and Nelda in Taunggyi), and they grew up around the various missions in China (Banna) and in Burma (Kengtung and Taunggyi). After exchanging numerous emails what a joy and honor it was to meet Nelda in person this last March.

It has been a delight to work with the team at Xlibris Corporation, and I cannot thank the hardworking individuals enough for their endless labor, all done with patience, friendliness and professionalism. In particular, the editing team was outstanding in their attention to all the details that come forth in publishing a book with this subject matter. I would like to list the exceptional team and thank each for their fine work:

Great things come in small packages and this is the case with Julia, our Jack Russell Terrier. How lucky I am to have such an energetic and fun-loving dog. She reminds me all through the day to get up and get out for fresh air and a brisk walk. She sits in the chair next to me as I type away and all it takes is the word walk to get her in motion and leaping about in unabashed excitement. I’ve enjoyed having Julia with me and she has no idea the important role she plays in keeping my perspective fresh and spirit uplifted.

Debbie Young Chase

PREFACE

Just the idea of headhunting causes most of us to feel frightened, and certainly, if we are passing through mountain jungles that are known for attacks, we would naturally fear for our lives. If you were someone living in a peaceful neighboring tribe, such as the Lahu, or a trader passing through the area, you would definitely be concerned. Without warning, you might hear the high pitched yelling that initiates a raid and experience the bone chilling and sickening fear that instantly takes over. This would be the last few seconds of a person’s life, and only a few escaped to live and tell the story. For the Wa people of Burma, the headhunting practice was crucial for invoking the spirits to provide successful crops for their fields. A practice maintained for generations by the Wa, they developed the warrior persona needed to become very skilled at carrying out the violent task. The practice has been completely eliminated for many decades and the best estimation is that it was discontinued in the 1970s¹. However, the Wa still maintain a fierce warrior image.

Burma Headhunters is an original writing by my grandfather, Harold Mason Young. I never called him grandfather but rather Pu, the Thai word for paternal grandfather. As a child I had never seen or read any of Harold’s writing and it wasn’t until my later adult years that I learned of his works. He told so little of himself as I was growing up in Thailand and it came as a bit of surprise when my father, Gordon Young, gave me the entire stack of old typed pages. I began to wonder if, at long last, I would be allowed to learn more about the life of my mysterious grandfather. It was this curiosity that led me to take a closer look. The pages of Harold’s old manuscripts were fading with age, so I decided to type all of the various works onto a computer so that we could keep an electronic file. As I typed along, I read from start to finish the entire manuscript for Harold’s writing on the Lahu tribal people entitled To the Mountain Tops (published, Xlibris Corp., April 10, 2014), and this was followed by typing his report on the Wa tribal people entitled Burma Headhunters. I discovered rare information contained within on the defiant Wa tribal people during a fascinating period of history. Once again it seemed fitting to make this candid report available to all.

Few Americans lived as Harold did in the remote parts of northern Burma and China (southern Yunnan) during this transitional time in history. He was there in the early decades of the twentieth century (1901-1950), during and for a couple of years after the British period, a time when the Wa were known as the wild Wa due to their practice of headhunting. What makes this written perspective on the Wa unique is that Harold not only lived in the original homelands, but he had fluency in speaking many languages. While his language ability was to be admired, it was the cultural understanding he gained from years of living closely with and conversing regularly with these people that gave him important insights. Thus, he could translate into English not only the words, but the often hidden meanings. Anyone can learn a language well enough to translate, but few can explain with such accuracy the true intent or how one word might take on different meanings. For example, a word spoken can have different meaning when it is used in a song. It takes a person who has lived closely with these ethnic tribal people to understand the whole meaning. Harold had that ability.

Harold was born on September 25, 1901 in Kengtung, Burma. His parents were missionaries and started the journey under very hazardous and rough living conditions during Burma’s tumultuous years under the newly established British rule. Aside from English, his first and most favored language was Shan. In his youth he developed fluency in the Lahu language, and the Wa dialect of Eun. Much later and during his years in Thailand (1952-1975), he easily gained fluency in northern Thai Kham Muang since the language had similarities to Shan. Harold spoke five languages fluently, and was also functional in other languages, such as Mandarin, from his years in China. Amazingly, he learned to read and speak Pali – the sacred language of Buddhism. How he gained this knowledge one can only speculate.

Harold’s father, William Marcus Young (my great-grandfather), was the leading missionary to contact the Wa². Together father and son rode on horseback to carry the Gospel message to many populations; the Lahu tribes in hard to access high mountains, the Shans of the valleys, and finally to the fierce headhunting Wa people. This was a huge task with obstacles at every turn of the road. William Marcus Young was a man with enormous faith in God. Harold heard him on countless times speak his Master’s words Lo I am with you always, and when preparing to face impending dangers, he encouraged himself and his men with his favorite verse My times are in Thy hands.

The first encounter with the Wa proved to be a very unfriendly one, and the elderly missionary was almost stoned to death. The date and exact location of this first meeting has been lost with time. We know it occurred during the