The Russellville Democrat., 1877-05-17

wclgnts, wnicn Dr0ko neT rlDS, while Jne stone under her back broke her spine. The poor woman uttered only one ex- clamation and was soon dead. Trai- tors were usually beheaded or put to the rack, but those of lower class were changed, drawn and quartered," literally cut in pieces while life yet re- mained in the body. It need scarcely be mentioned that for "heresy," a great many persons have been burnt alive at the stake. The last instance of burning alive in England occurred in 1912, when Bartholomew Legate was burned at Smithfeld for holding opinions similar to those of the Unita- rians of our day.
 In Spain and in her colonies capital punishment is inflicted by the gdrrotte, which is a species of violent strangu- lation, which is instantaneous and is said to be painless.
 The punishment by the k,,o,a, which formerly was general throughout Rus sia foralmost every variety of crime. and which barbarously murdered many persons by slow and prolonged, and most horrible torture, was abol- ished by the present czar, Alexander II. The culprit was bound to two stakes, and received on his bare back the specified number of lashes from a whip of plaited thongs interwoven with wire. From one hundred to two hundred and twenty lashes were the highest number inflicted, and were considered equivalent to a sentence ot death. If the criminal survived he was banished for life to Siberia. For merly, the nose was slit, the ears cut off and the letter V (for uor, rogae) branded on the forehead.
 In China, simple beheading is the mode of capital punishment, and the unfortunate victim is usually half starved before his execution, besides being exposed in view of the whole community, who taunt him with :he vilest and most abusive epithets, some times alternated by blows and the peltinc of stones, sticks and mud. Sometimes the bastinado Ca baton or cudgeD is used, and the punishment often destroys life. Another Chinese mode of legal life-taking is horrible. The cuIprit is placed between two blanks, around which rope is firmly bound, and the executioner saws tim Der and man through the middle.
 A singular mode of execution pre- vails in the empire of Japan. It was called hara-kari, hara-kiru (which means "belly-cut ,, and was recog> pointed knife. It was often done by the person himself, but there were professional performers in most of the large cities of Japan. The tycoon would intimate to such or such per- sons that he was dissatisfied with them, whereupon, taking the hint, they made way with themselves. The Japanese have little fear of death, and endure the most cruel tortures with passive fOrtitude.
 Punishment on the wheel was first employed in Germany on the mur- derers of Leopold, Duke of Austria, in the fourteenth century. Accord ing to the German mode of this sav- age execution, the criminal was laid on wheel with his arms and legs ex- tended, and his limbs, in that p osture fractured with an iroG bar.
 Between the years of S3O to 900, the laws of Scotland was barbarous. The following are some of the laws:
 That all persons convicted of theft shall be hang'd and all convicted of manslaughter shall lose his head, and any woman convicted of capital crime, shall be drewn"d or buried alive.
 He that blasphemeth God or bis saints, shall want his tongue.
 If d son injure his parent, by word or deed, he shall first lose either tongue, hand or foot whereby he offended his parent and then be hangd and his body remain unburied.
 Jugglers, wizards or any person known to use familiarity with the devil or evil spirit shall be burnt to death.
 Alloppressers and invaders of other mems lands shall be beheaded.
 In Turkey, when the sultan was dis satisfied with any pasha or other supe- rior officer, or wished to obtain his wealth, it was usual for him to send a messenger to the doomed man, who politely communicated to him the i'm perial desire that his death should take place and produced warrant to that effect, together with tough bow string (made of cat-gut), which-the action being instantly suited to the word-was thereupon placed around the neck to produce strangulation.
 At one time great culprits were fastened to four horses, limb to each horse, and the horses being urged diff. ferent ways, pulled limb from limb. The last person who so suffered in Flu rope was Robert Francisco Damiens, for an attempt on the life of Louis XIV, in 1757.