Tama County Republican. (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1867-1872, 1867-07-05
The Horrors of luxembourg Castle.


| luxembourg. Bavaria:
"Come with me TO this old town, enter some
| of these elifces and look upon the adYninis-
| tration Of government as it was in the 10th
and lTth centuries. We enter one Of the tow
| ers Of the castle, descend five steps and find
ourselves in museum, where are preserved
| the books ofrecords, giving us history Of the
past; and not only books, but implements anu
instruments which show more clearly than
written words the administration Of those days
| with which the government Of the United
| States is now compared. Here is post four
leet high in the center Of The room, with two
curious fixtures on tic top, having some rosenl-
b'ancc to gun-locks.
"What is this The girl who acts as an ush-
er raises the hammers which come up with
click. She touches a sprngand down they 90
| with snap that startlcs you-forcel down by
! strong springs. with whack that would have
mashed year fingers to ajelly hal they been
under the hammer This is finger crusher, a
delicate little instrument used to exlort cons
| fessions from reluctant witnesses or suspected
criminals. Hers are bracelets for the wrists,
| net Of gold or silver, but Of iron and Tic parts
which touch the wrists are studded with need
les. Put them on your arm and turn screw
and they close upon the flesh, the needles
piercing through cords, tcndons, flesh ana
bones. II is one degree more excruciating
than crushing the fingers.
| - boa.1
been Worn by many men ana women. It Las
sharp knives which cut through the scalp to
| the skull. Here are chains and weights, locks
and keys handouts and clasps for the ankles,
stocks for the feet, and weights to hold your
feet to the foor, anu pulleys to draw your head
at the same time TO the ceiling. Hereis bench
Of solid oak with corrugated surface, upon
which many men have been laid. held down
BY cords, toundergo the kncading process, and
that roling>pin, knotty and knobby. also Of
oak, which lies upon the table, has beer rolled
backward and forward over the naked forms
of men end women, kneadinr live flesh to
bloody dough. Time anl space would fail me
were to enumerate the instrume nts Of torture
| lock at the clalle-a huge trough of oak Oh
rockers-the bottom and sides ihickly set with
pins, in which many victims have been rocked
| TO death. Think Of lying on bed Of oaken
pins, rolling to the right, to the left-always
| against pins--till the flesh becomes liyd jelly
Here is a string of oaken beads, each bead
sixteen sided, about as large as hickory-nuts
This was for saving off legs and arms.
',Herc is an instrument shaped like pear.
| It is of iron, but to all appearance harmless
thing. But justtake it for a moment into your
mouth, and let me give gentle pull at the
| string attached to the stem of the pear, and it
| will be no longer pear but q full blown lilly
An iron lilly unfolding its leaves so sudden
| ly and violently that yeur jaws are forced
open till the joints crack in the sockets, while
| the delicate petals become pincers, which grasps
your tounsue. No outcry now. No utteranee
of words. No screaming to raise the neigh
borhood Means and sighs only from the suf-
ferer One twitch of he string and the tom
que is torn out by the roots.
awe must leave this museum without men.
tioning the hundreds Of curiosities. We 60
into the court yard, stopping moment to
pluck leaf from lime tree which was in
full yigor 700 years ago, and then we enter
another door, descend longer fight of steps,
to dark, dismal dungeons, where no light ever
falls except through narrow, iron>grated win
dews. Hero are ladders with windlasses and
pulleys, on which victims were stretched till
bones snapped. till joints leaped from their
sockets, and cords and tendons were torn asun-
der. Here are racks and wheels, pillories
and stocks, whips and menaeles. This was the
place Of torture. We leave these and creep
through narrow passage, through doorway
after doorway, and reach at last, far under
ground, far beneath all sight or sound Of the
world, darker dungeon. This is the room Of
| the Iron Maiden.
"Here is the statute or image-a maiden
with hood upon her head, an iron rutac around
her neck, enveloped IN an iron cloak. sudden~
| ly the folds of the cloak are thrown apart, and
BY the dim light Of the candle you see that the
lining Of the garment is set withsharp spikes.
Take one step forward and the folds enclose