Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1872-01-26
Prison Punishments.

AND now Tor the chamber OF horrors"
Passing through a small entresOl in the hos
pital wing, found myself in that relic of
barbaric ages, the prison punishment
room, or, as prefer to term it, the torture
chamber AS glanced hurriedly around
at the various implements of legalized
cruelty, | could almost imagine / saw
Prynne, minus his cars, or the Jesuit garb
and shaven crown of some long-dead CON
ductor of the inquisition. There are no
thumb-screws no racks but there are
other appliances relatively as brutal, con-
sidering the enlightenment of the age, and
1t is no secret that they are often and
vigorously used. There are five modes of
punishment in vogue in the prson-the
dark CELL" the "ball and chain" the
collar and crown" the black handeuf," "
and the 'thumb pulley" the last the most
| ingenious torture of the whole collection
The ball and chain are attached to prison
ers who have attempted to escape, by
band of iron rivets round the leg, just
above the ankle. This may be a neces-
sary precautiOn TO prevent them from re-
peating the attempt, but 1t is unnecessarily
cruel to keep them on the prisoners when
locked in their cells as their weight and
inconvenience must render them most un-
desirable bed-fellows, and likely to inter-
fere with the amount of rest the wearers
| require to enable them to go through the
next days labor. The collar and crown"
is put on for trivial offences, such as talk
ing. 1t is composed of q circular band of
iron, which is fastened round the neck
with paddock, from which five or six
iron bars spring and join over the scalp,
forming a sort of rude crown. These in
struments vary in weight from four to
seven pounds. They are constantly in
use; saw several prisoners wearing them,
both in the dining-hall and in the work
shops. 1t does not require IeTy lively
imagination to conceive the distress and
annoyance of having to stoop for ten
hours over the shop-bench with seven
pounds of iron dragging at the nape of the
neck, and weighing down the head, or the
dexterity required at night to pad and
stuff the machine artistically with dirty
stockings, pocket-handkerchiefs or any
thing that comes to hand, in order that
the wretched prisoner may rest his head
on his pillow without the iron grinding
it into the skin,
The other pEnishments are all for re-
! fractory or violent prisoners. The dark
| cell is an ordinary cell, without stick of
furniture, which is closed by a solid iron,
migrated door The floor is covered with
sawdust Asthe door closed on me could
| fully appreciate the horrible situation of
the Egyptians of old, when they were
visited with the plague of darkness that
might be felt" But the dark cell is, in
many cases, punishment very detrimen-
tai to the health of those who suffer it.
Prisoners of the degraded class--a crime
to which large majority of the prison
ers at Sing Sing belong-are desperately
obstinate, and will suffer considerably be-
|
| has passed two or three weeks, and even
longer, in the dark cells at Sing Sing
But the exclusion of light means the eX-
clusion of air and stoppage of all ventia-
tion-a fearful deprivation and, more
over, any medical man will vouch that
is in itself very necessary to health.
| Many doctors declare that sunbath is al
most as useful in its way as a cold-water
bath. There must, of course, be vigorous
punishments for breaches against prison
discipline, nut Ine most auyisiUle Iorms
have not yet been hit upon. Next spring
the international Prison Convention as
sembles in London. Let us hope that
this matter of punishment will receive
their most earnest consideration, and that
thorough reform will follew.
By way of delicately leading the read
ers of the Times up to the horrors of the
pulley" will first tell them something
about the "back handouts Along the
wall of the punishmentroom are FIVE
stout hooks driven into the wall about
four feet from the ground. When prison
er refuses obedience his hands are put in
handouts fastened behind him. To the
connecting link strong ring is attached,
and this ring is hoisted on to one of the
hooks on the wall, forcing the head and
shoulders forward, and drawing up the
arms behind and the lower part of the
body into cramped and painful posture.
The keeper told me that they once had a
prisoner who bore his punishment for six
hours and half before he would give in
and agree to behave himself.
But the most diabolical of all these in
struments of torture is the thumb pull
ley;" for its power of inflicting agony far
surpasses all the others put together
do not hesitate to say that its use in an
American or any other prison is an out
rage on Christian humanity, and a burn
ing disgrace to the boasted civilization OF
the nineteenth century. can speak from
personal experience. I was o Mortified at
the keepers explanation of the mode OF
working that turned round and request
ed HIM to try it on me. The fellow was
rather taken aback, and suggested that it
would not be pleasant-in fact, that it was
"rather painful" Rather painfull 1t il
the most eXcruciating agony. l re
piled, "That is the very reason
why l want to try it," He some
what reluctantly consented, and the
operation of torture began. He produced
about foot of very stout whip-cord, will
a slip-knot at either end, and putting my
thumbs in the loops, drew the knot tau
! below the first joint. The cord was ther
hung on a hook attached to the end of {
rope which dangled from a pulley in thu
ceiling, and the preparations were com
pleted. On my giving the word 'ready,
a brawny-armed convict seized the othel
end of the rope and quickly hoisted m,
from my feet till could with difficulty
touch the floor with the tips of my toes
the whole weight of my body, of course
dragging on my thumbs. / was literally
suspended from those two small portions
of the human frame. hung there fo
about five seconds, after which the pail
. became insupportable, and l requested t
/ be let down. In those few seconds
, experienced quite enough to assure mi
what must be the indescribable suffering
of poor creature suspended for even {
! minute. And yet the keeper told m
! that prisoner once endured this hellisl
, torture for five minutes and half with
. out fainting 1t seemed to me that m,
,, thumbs and the tough sinews on the in
side of the wrist were being drawn out
: felt that my arms must leave tn
+ shoulder sockets, and that the muscles o
my back would be literally torn away if
were not let down Immediately.
found when my thumbs were released from
! the slip-knots that there were eviden
] signs that the cord had almost buriet
$ itself in the flesh An indentatiol
: over an eighth of an inch deep en-
circled each thumb. 1t was of a transpa
rent white color Then came ban,
] slightly discolored, and then band o
3 red The flesh did not altogether regain
e its natural appearance on one thumb fo
. some time after. And vet was the vic