New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-01-19
speech Witnoat the Tongue.

hut it r. welestahshed fact, and although the ar
icalation i mot very distinct, still, person can
~ himself perfectly understood. Col. Churchill,
b work entitled Lebanon, describes the mode In
which he Punishment Of outing out the tongue was
performed on certain emirs BY order of Djezzar
sPasha
!. Each emir was held down in asquattng position,
Nth his hands tied behind him, and his face turned
apW6rda The officiating executioner now approached
III victim and, standing over him, az ii about to
tract his tooth, forced open his mouth and darling
hoax through ths top Of bis tongue, pulled i out
until The root was exposed one or two passes or
Gsxor suficsd 70 cut IL Oh. I'd
~ The following passage occursin Sir John Malcolms
- Sketches Of Persia.n Sir John Malcolm had
been Ambassador to the East India Company on
special mission to Persia and the book published
during his lifetime in 1928. In the account Of his
Say IL Teheran, speaking Of Zal, Khan Of Khisht,
The writer says
4Thh remarkable man had established great name
u his native mountains, between Abushezar and Shi
Ia1, and he Was long distinguished as one of the
hrvest and most attached followers Of the Zand fam
ily When the death OF Lootf Ali Khan terminated his
power along with the other governors provinces
and districts in Ears, submitted to Aga Mahommed
Khan. That cautious and cruel monarch, dreading
~ ability and doubtful Of the allegiance Of this chief
ordered his eyes to be put ont An appeal for the
call Of this sentence being treated with dsdain, Zal
Khan loaded the tyrant with curses. Cut out bis
nPerfectIy executed; and the loss of half this mem
Der deprived him Of speech. Being afterwards per-
suaed that ts being cut close to the root would en-
able him to speak 20 IS to be understood he submit
"a 10 the operation and the effect has been that his
voice. though indistinct and thick is yet Ineligible
+ - persons accustomed to converse with him. This
experienced from daily intercourse. He often spoke
70 me- Of his suffsrngs, and of the humanity Of the
present king, who had restored him to bis situation
~ bead of bis tribe, and Governor of Khsht, / am
not anatomst, and cannot therefore, give reason
why man who could not articulate with half q
tongue, should speak when be bad none at all; but
tbs facts are stated, and had them from the very
best authority, old Zal Khan himsef.n A
On considering the above passage, it was deemed
advisable 70 write to Sir John M'Neil, the late
British Ambassador in Persia to inquire il bis expe
xsncs In that country enabled him to give informa.
lion on the subject. The following letter was receiv
~ in snswer, bearing date Jan. 8, 1857:
Il IN answer to your inquiries about the powers Of
apeech retained by persons who have had their
tongues cut out Lean state IRON persona obserya
Who had been subjected TO that punishment, spoke
fnteligbly TO be able to transact important bust
meas More than one Of them finding that my curios-
IN and interest were excited, showed me the stump
Asd one 0f them stated that be owed the power OF
speech TO the friendship Of the executioner Who in
atead Of merely cutting of the tip, as was ordered,
had cnt on all that was loose IN the mouth is,
I'll that could be amputated by single cut from be-
low Tho conviction in Persia is universal that the
power Of speech ia destroyed by merely cutting off
the tip Of tho tongue, and 10 TO useful extent re-.
aored by cutting Of another portion as far back as
perpendicular section be made OF the portion that
Y ee from attachment at the lower surface Persons
70 circ1nsanced appear to me to use the arched pOr
t!un 81 the tongue which Is beyond the point Of Sec
aonss substitute for whole tongue or rather for
the tip This precladed the articulation Of certain
conaonants bnt Cultural substitutes came to be used
which, etter little Intercourse when had found
out tne IN the case Of persons with defective
tn.cr liz - tx