The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-09-17
FlOggiDg Round the Fleet,

A well-known English gentleman
Mr.. James Silk Buckingham-late
deceased, was about sixteen years ole
when he volunteered on board an Eng
lish ship of war, where, however, he
soon became disgusted with the severity
of the discipline, and deserted. The
scene which impelled him to take this
course was the "fogging round the
fleet" of deserter.
The poor fellow had been impressed
and torn from his wife and children.
He had deserted, and, when recaptured,
he struck the officer who took him. The
merciful sentence of the court-martial
was that he should receive twelve lashes
at each vessel in the fleet. A boat from
each vessel attended the execution, and
Mr.. Buckingham was in one of these
He says: "The prisoner was in the
launch, one of the largest boats of his
own ship, in the center of which was
erected triangular framework, made o1
handspikes or poles. To this he was
fastened, by the arms being extended
upward and outward, and his wrists
bound tightly to the framework by
cords, his body being perfectly naked
to the waist.
In this boat there were about O
dozen of his own shipmates, the officer
uperintending the punishment, lieu.
| tenant of his own ship, and surgeon of
the same, whose duty it was to see that
the punishment was kept short of in.
iicting death.
con reaching the leeward ship, the
launch hauled alongside and at least
twenty boats, in one of which I was
stationed at the bow, clustered round
the vessel on the starboard side, q few
yards only from the launch, SO we
could see every lash that fell, and heai
every shrek and groan of the sufferer.
From the ship there descended an
officer, with two boatswains' mates. and
an assistant surgeon. The naked body
of the victim was exposed, and we heard
the order given: 'The prisoner was to
receive dozen lashes from each ship.
Boatswains' mates do your duty
"The strokes of the lash fell heavily,
and at what to me seemed long inter
walls Ga minute between each at least).
The very first brought blood the suf-
ferer restrained his utterance till about
the fifth or sixth but then the pent up
agony had vent in shrek, enough to
rend heart of stone.
"At the end of the first instalment of
dozen lashes, the victims back was
one mass of lacerated flesh and blood ;
and over this spread blanket, which,
we were assured, was stepped IN vine
gar and brine, as some said to augment
the suffering, as others contended, to
prevent modification.
"The boats now all fell into line
each towing the one next behind her at
an interval of about boats length
with the prisoner in tow, all purnng
against a stiff head wind to the ship
next in order to windward; occupying
from fifteen to twenty minutes.
"Here the same horrible scene was
repeated, and so onward till about ten
or twelve ships had been visited, there
being six or eight more to go to when
the victim having several times tainted,
and his voice ceased to give forth either
shrieks or groans, he was reported by
the surgeon to be incapable of bearing
any further infiiction, and was ordered
to be rowed ashore to the hospital, be-
fore reaching which he was discovered
to be dead and some declared that he
had received the last heavy lashes on
his body after the spirit had quilted it's
earthly tenement"
ham deserted, and was fortunate enough
to escape re-capture, and it's consequent
repetition of this disgusting and dis
graceful scene, with himself for the
principal actor.