The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-04 00:00:00

Jgei
qu to an, wer whether the man would have been living
now or not, if he had not been flogged. He certainly would
not allowed him to be flogged if he had considered him
in an unlit state of health. Had no instructions from any
glArter as to how he should act. He wished to state that
- rg-tle• wls a most rinful thing to witness, and he should
• bove, pv if he bud never to attend another.
Dr. wa- next callod, and adhered to his former testi-
nt atmett a lengthy statement, in which he attributed
tL;, ition of the lower layer of tunnies on White's back,
And wltich Dr. Wilson grounded his opinion that the
';I7N iv
caused the man's death, to decomposition,
roct4ifiv other cause.

-7-15 r-,.. -1 rattribute(' tir4tli to inflarnation of the heart and
--- pig' lis pro. iked rather by atmospheric any
changes than an
ttii:ir -_-•-;€ ht ta-1 heard ; but he was strongly of opinion that
'ilp; ilo- .;-I,lg d nothing whatever to do with the cause of
iti,..:; • 0. -w•
`I l ia*'slaid inflammation of the- membrane of the
a
;4;4,-. pi; 61 was the cill/4t) or death, produced by the
~
4,,

-, 'Ji

Itaw

present. :He particularly requested that only jurymen
should inspect it.
Colonel Whyte regretted that the order of the Coroner
la I not been attended to.. At the request of the Coroner
the medical gentlemen inspected the ladder. He also wished
to kndw whether the jurymen had, from the exhibition on
i
the ladder, been able to form an opinion of the way in which
he received the lashes?
A juror remarked that Matthewson hal stated that the
exhibition of the ladder by Critton did not corectly show its
proper position when the man was punished.
Elmsworth was then called, and his v
Mr. WAKLEY here stated that he
had Feadththeealrenticgltehs of
f
war, and could find nothing in them specifying
the handle of the lash, the thongs
natthtaecmh.edlsto:trth, ehme,thoorngthhet
size of the knots which werettie
that
the officers of the regiment
it right to state this, in order
might, if they thought proper, produce some specific rules on
the eubject.
Dr. 'Warren said he knew of no specific instructions oa the
subject. It was not necessary inthasekßiorigtistra.
WAKLEY Satid he was not rraWYS.rren what
took place in our armies.
Dr. Warren repeated that he knew of no instructions on-the
subject.
WAKLEY—NO instructions how you should strip and
fasten him, and how you should inflict the punishment upon
Itizn
? If the man was satisfied, he (Dr. Warren) was satis-
tad too.
Dr. Warren said he was.
Mr. WAKLEY inquired if Colonel Whyte had any instruc-
tions on the subject?
Mr. Clarke said he had not. They had no information to
offer with respect to the punishment.
, Colonel Whyte said it was administered according to the
...lissom of war " in like cases," a term which concluded each
article. •
Mr. WAKLEY said the case they were investigating was of
a peculiar nature, and was, therefore, one of great difficulty.
It wed el be well, he thought, to have sonic person there
who could state whether the " cats " used in the case of
White were similar to those used in the Britis:t army.
Mr. Clark said the wish should be gratified.
Eleworth then went on to state that a regimental court-
ma• tial was appointed to be held because he swept a por-
tion of the yard without:orders. He appealed against a regi•
mental court martial, and claimed a district court-martial,
but t•:e Commander-in-chief stated, if he would forego his
cla;m, a court-martial should be dispensed with. Was re-
commended at Ipswich for promotion by Colonel-Whyte. He
was senteuced to receive five dozen bodies with a whip three
yards I me'' doubled, on a table, on which he was held down
by rtes. He was laid down on a table. He bad his over-
alls on, but nothing else. But he only received a dozen
stripes. This was not done by order of a court-martial, but
by the order of a sergeant-major. I could not look up after that
(Ideal the witness) and I deserted; but being deceived by
my friends, I came back again. I wes disgusted, for I was
ashamed to sea myself walking about. I was ill after I
left the regiment. Did not give the man into custody, and
bring him before a magistrate for an sesault. He was not
aware that the same punishment had bent inflicted on any
one before him, nor that it had bon applied to any one
since. The witness explained that n f.tching meat from
the " Cook of the Rump," he forgot 0 fetch eotne suet to
make puddings; and as they had try go without, they said
they would report him, when the sergeant-major said,
'- Give him five dozen."—(Laughter.)
Eeans, the farrier, said he learned to flog under the in-
structions of Adjutant 'related, on a sack, which was marked
in the middle, at which weak he was directed to strike for
practice Ile did not like to flog.
Farrier Major Criteon of the regiment was then examined.
—?logged White en the 4th of June. The sentence of the
court-martial was read, and he was told by the adjutant to
prepare for file punishment. %ought the whips from the
veterinary surgeon, where he kept them locked up in a box
He made them himself. Two, he thought, had dark
handle*, and the others had light. Made them front the
pattern of other sergeant-majors. No one bad been punished
with the dark-handled " cats" for two years. There was a
slight elferenee in them, which he attributed to the difficulty
of getting similar card at different places. The thongs of the
black-handled ones might be a little thicker, but not much ;
so little that if the a refs were taken off a grain of difference
• would not be found in them.
. Mr. WAKLEY remarked that some of the cats had eight
knots, some seven, one ;ix, and one nine. Every knot had
a deuble knot.
Adjutant Ireland would undertake to say that the knots
were single on:t.te lash with which White was Cogged.
Witness—HA no instructions whether he was to strike
hen! or ligh.t. Cannot answer whether the man suffered or
not; he did not appear to suff..:r mere than others. He made
one reenerk, namely, "lower," when Evans struck hint on
the Deick, because the cat got twisted. Had seen some men
sufeet- more than bite. because he was a spare man. Both
be anti Evans were on the best terms with the deceased.
'White was tied up like others. Was never told where to
strike except by the farrier major, whom he succeeded.
Weed swear that he had not flogged thirty in his lifetime;
nail dogged about three during the last four years. It was a
palpable falsehood to say that he rose on his toes when he
struck. If he did not do his duty, he no doubt would be
told of it. Ha did not strike with his full strength ; he
twirled the cat in the air each time he struck; the time
occupied in the punishment was less in the 7th Hussars than
in other regiments—about twenty m;nutes. Had seen mei.
receive half minute strikes by the roll of the drum, which he
considere 3 inflicted much more severe punishment. The cats
ware not stamped or issued by authority.
Rey. Joseph Benson, D.D., chaplain to the 7th Hussars,
eeid he saw the deceased on the day of his death. Was lie
the !cubit of visiting the hospital, so that he saw him once a
week. When he saw him on the day he died, he wile too fa'
. gone to understand the purport of his obs-Tvations. He in-
quire-.l the cause of his illne6s, and was informed that he had
been suffering from the pain in his side. Nothing was saie
about iris having been flogged. He never spoke to him or
any subject, or made any complaint. Service was performer:
in the riding-school, and prayers were read in the hospital
once a week.
WAKLEY said, as nothing should be kept from the
jury, he iseed to state that he questioned the deceased',
berth •r en the eubjert of hi, state of tnind. In the letter he
bat received trom him to-day, he stated that when he wee
it irte en years of age, he Suffered from abberacion of intellect,
and i hat for sortie months he was excessively weak in hi,
mind, and tad evinced at times meet unfeeling conduct to the
members of the family, and his mother, when she was
dangerously ill. His brother wrote to him about her, but he
never received any reply. His mother considered he was in
sane, but she had, not heard to his sufferings. His father,
during the last few years of his ,ife was obliged to resign are
official appointraent on account of the weak state of his mind.
and a broth(); of his father was affected in his mind. He
(the deceeeed) was violent and daneerou) when in liquor.
Celete'el Whyte then, by pertuissi -1 of the Coroner, state,
that. ''eetore he called Cooke from the ranks, as stated, he ha.
he' r 1 from Matthewson, in the office the day before, that the
eoner had asked him if he ha.l received any punishment fot
a- y evidence he had given at the inquest. He begged him
to dismiss from his mind any apprehension that he shoulo
steer punish him or any other man for evidence given 'Defer
the jury; neither would he refer to it in any way. He tok
hint tie was a smart soldier, capable of anything, and that
lie conducted himself well, he woull always be a friend to
; but if he behaved ill, he should punish him as he would
any other man, and that his future position in the regiment
depended upon his future conduct; and finding he:was under
going puoishment) he ordered him to be liberated. He told
him teat this Statement applied to all who had so given evi-
dence. (Matthewson was here called in, and at the request 01
Col. Whyte, the statement was read over to him). Matthew-
Bon the statement was correct. On the following morn
the apjutant informed him that there was great excite-
ment in the regiment in consequence of what he had stated
to Matthewson, who had informed his comrades that he (Cot.
Whyte) handed him a chair, and asked him to sit by the
eide of tint ; that he told him he would make him a corporal
, immediately, and that the adjutant knocked at the door, and
that he (Col. Whyte) inqeired if he had any objection to
admit him.---(Laughter.) The non-commissioned officers in
he regiment felt themselves aggrieved at such a man beine
prculeted, awl great excitement prevailed. He felt
it would hot be well to speak to Cooke priyatela
and lie tod( the opportunity of speaking to him in the ranks.
as u;t impression was created in the regiment that he was
tudeevouring to compromise the matter.
. Mr. Wakley considered that the Colonel should not have
speken to Cooke whilst the inquest was sitting.
alatthewison repeated that Colonel Whyte stated in the
e)ffica whilst they were alone, that he would make him a
cureerel, and that he never told anv one about it.
C9ltuel Whyte std, if the jury doubted hie statement that
the; alight :teed tor Sergeant Wright, titnwhpeci Cook made
the statement.
Mr. Wakley considered that they could be thus traveling
Oat of their cooree.
Colanel Whyte said lie considered that everythm to his
1-trojaaic..: was heard, and nothing to his advantage; Li; cha-
racter was involved in the matter.
Mr. Wakley thought in justice to Colonel Whyte he
slight be called.
Sergeant Wright corroborated the statement of Colonel
Whyte, and distinctly stated that he did not say he should
tnalc7c him a corporal, and he heard the whole of the .con-
vereation.
Maethewson strongly asserted that Wright was not present
the whole of the time. He believed that Colonel Whyte had
takeit advantage of his position, and brought Wright to give
evidence against him. He was on oath, and he was quite as
incapable of committing perjury as any man in the room.
Wright said, on being pressed, he did not leave the room
for more than two minute:. He might have gene to tee
window to ea 1 the orderly.
Mtwatewstai went on to say that he told the colonel, when
he offered to promote him to the rank of col pot al, thet two
etripee on arm would not compensate fir the strides on
his bark. In fact, tie refused.
Colette' Whyte said he was in a position to prove that the
whole statement of Elsworth was untrae, and garbled from
the beginning to the end.—(He here handed iu a list of his
offences to the Coroner.)
Private Senior contradicted the alleged statement of Cooke
after leaving the Colonel.
Quartermaster Burns, of the 7th Hussars, for the last five
years, etelhed been in the army thirty-two yeas ,J and a half,
but had tot held rank in any other regiment. In the In.
Goan lie had seen 3CO lashes, and upwards inflicted by
drummers.
The evidence of Drs. Hale and Reid having been read and
sigted, .fir. Day's evidence was proceeded with. At is
conclusion, he stated that both himself and Dr. Wilson agreed
in a taper, atter examining the body of the deceased, that
the punieenent he received had nothing to do with the
cause of the deceased's death. Dr. Wilson, however, en
Montley, came down with a long report, quite opposed to the
Utioa they had formed.
his,
Dr, Wilson
insui Mr. Day's opinion had nothirg to do with
to cadhered.
Alm Ilramaiv called the attention of Mr. Day to aportion
of his evidence at the last inquiry, which act forth that the
muecles of the back were disorganised.
lii reply to questions from WAKLEY, Mr. Day stated
that itilitanmatie
n in the veins which intersected the skin
of the back or arias might cause pleura.
The evidence of Dr. Erasmus Wilson having been read
over a-. I signed,
1 tic t 'onoetea; requested the medical gentlemen, with the
~t Dc. Warren, to withdraw.
ine 11 aeren, in reply to the Coroner, repeated his former
oeta.te
•.• e ---id considered that the man did not die from the
•
era of the fl gging: at was a difficult and a dangerous