Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1867-02-19
Statement Of the Man who Whipped His
Child 10 Death.

The Rev. Joel Linsley, the man who
was recently tried in Western New York
for whipping his little son to death, and
sentenced to five years imprisonment,
has published statement 1t will be
recollected that the child's offense was a
refusal to say his prayers. He says;
The instrument used was a piece of
shingle taken from some old shingles
used for kindlings, thirty years old or
more, and the wood / should think, was
hemlock, certainly not hard wood. My
impression is that it might have been an
inch and quarter wide, possibly, but l
cannot state with precise accuracy the
width of it. 1t very likely was less, as
was stated in court. 1t was not thick
shingle; nothing like club about it.
1t occurred TO me that obedience would
be secured more readily by it than by
using the hand, if it were necessary to
use corporeal punishment at all. |
rocollect distinctly of feeling, when /
commenced, that / would rather the
blows would fall upon myself than upon
my boy. AS l continued to punish him,
stopping at very frequent intervals and
talking to him, felt convinced that he
knew what wished him to do, as his
reply to my question, "Why will you not
do it, Johnny 2 Pa is sorry Johnny will
not mind" was, | do not wish to; |
wish to do something else" stopping
crying at the same time l had under
taken to secure obedience, and felt that
| must accomplishit twill be said that
/ erred in commencing at that hour,
when my child was tired by the play of
the day. i did err in so doing, but as |
have said. had no idea of any serious
conflict at all. But if / had had should
not have commenced
But it was part Of my education, and
was my own judgment, that child at
that age, however much as general
thing the parent should avoid coming
directly across the will of the child yet,
when that did occur, that there was no
better or wiser way than for the parent
to wisely enforce obedience. In this
case felt that unless my boy, with his
firmness OF will, obeyed, he could not be
made to obey when older.
this. / wish to state this fully and
without reserve, that, if know anything
of the action of my mind, was not
angry. l never could have punished my
child for an hour, or half an hour, or
anything like it, in anger. Were it so l
should have felt very guilty, and to have
done so would have been monstrous.
But never for one hour or one moment
have | been conscious of any criminal
intent in this case.
A word as to why the limbs and arms
were so extensively dscolored. 1t arose
from this, that aimed not to repeat the
blows in the same place. l carefully
avoided the vital parts of the body.
There were no blows at all upon the body
of my child. | am not aware that |
struck the head at all with the instlu-
ment used, nor with anything else. |
think the slight marks must have been
produced accidently, as they might have
been.
As to the time spent in actual punish
ment could not state it with accuracy
At frequent intervals l stopped and
talked to him, endeavoring to induce
obedience. The larger portion of the
time was spent in this way,
The coroner testifies that said pun
ished the child until | saw signs of weak
ness. This is mistake, ! do not wish
to provoke controversy with the coro
ner, nor am ! accusing him OF intention
al misrepresentation, but it is a mis-
take.
| made statement to DR.. Crawford
on the same day, and he will testify to
the truth of what / say, although it could
not be brought into court | stopped
punishment because l felt that it was
useless to go further. took my little
boy and laid him upon the settee, and
for some time afterward, saw no signs
that the child had been injured he had
talked during this time, and appeared
natural. Then there was a change, and
soon aferward the child died. Then it
was | began to realize my fearful loss,
and the terrible pang the circumstances
of the case gave to it; then it was | felt
and said, not long after, to my father,
that could have given my own life for