Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1878-02-22
Impalement, as Practiced in Japan.

hama, writes contributor to the Hornet
Annual, | was Informed that criminal
was about to be publicly put to death, and
the morbid curiosity, which has more or
less strona hold upon most of us, induced
me to sally forth and witness the execu-
ton. This is what [ saw:
When 1 reached the place appointed to
carry into effect the capital sentence, the
unfortunate convict-'a fine-looking Jap
anese, in the prime of youth and strength
was standing under a huge post in the
middle of a lit tie posse Of guards. The
post had a cross-piece.
Nearly nude, he was standing erect. but
as mntionless as a statue, whilst his fear
less but dreamy eyes gazed into the dis
lance before him, as if he was looking at
some far off object upon horizon visible
: only to his distracted vision. There was
no token of terror in his determined face,
no sign of shrinking in his quiescent but
tensely strung body.
| Presently there was a movement among
she little knot of those surrounding him.
His jailers moved aside, and there strobe
into the circle q gaunt, repulsive-looking
native, clad from head to foot in a dress of
; dingy yellow. The executioner-for it was
he-was accompanied by couple of assis-
tants, who carried some half dozen long,
round bamboo rods, about couple of fin
gers thick at their largest end, and taper
ing to half that size at the other. which
was sharply pointed The rods were laid
upon the ground, and the tri ity of death
eelapped hold of the living statue before
them. In trice the human efflgy, who
| made no attempt at esistance, and who,
as far as | observed, never opened his lips,
wss grimly dangling On the post, his arms
stretched out right and left along the cross
piece.
4 There was now slight pause.
| The .executioners dallied with the bam-
| b0os, and the poor creature, sprea1-eagled
on the post, still looked INFO the shadoWy
distance, still was dumb; but | thought [
could detect yellow pallor stealing up his
faee. Perhaps he was collecting all his
resolution to meet the terrible ordeal he
knew was close upon him. The principal
eNecutioner, who meanwhile had selected
couple of bamboos to his mind, now
stepped to the left side of his eXpectant
victim, spat upon the point of one of his
weapons, and with d twisting. pushing
motion, thrust it easily into the flesh about
half way between the hip and the armpit.
The poor wretch upon the cross turned his
gaze slowly down upon his tormentor, and
his lips slightly opened. But he made no
struggle--he uttered no cry. His resolu-
ton, his courage were superhuman.
l looked at the executioner. He was
calmly con tinuing to push and wriggle the
bamboo further and further into the body.
In couple of minutes, though it seemed
much longer, the bloody point OF the in
strument enc rged from the top of the suf-
ferer's shoulder. IAyI y ezz-
clamation of sd tisfaction from the crowd,
Just the sort of hum that escapes from
those watching a. daring swimmer when
his head appears above the SUI face after
long dive; and the fend at the other end
of the bamboo stopped Wriggling, let go
mis- hold and stepped back.
Now, thoughG, he is going to give the
poor tortured creature his coup de grace.
Not bit of it. He crossed to the opposite
side of the post, calmly inserted the second
weapon in the same spot on the sufferers
other flank, and worked away till it, too,
came out above the armpit.
All this time not single gEOan, not one
despairing cry for mercy escaped the man
thus d'oubly lmpaled. His head dropped
little upon his chest, and his eyes were half
closed, but he was evidently alive and
conscious.
At his moment, to my amazement. the
execut Toner and his assistants, picking up
the I'm used bamboos, began to walk away.
"What,' asked, els the execution end
ed? Are they going to leave the man in
THAI fe arful agony?'
ooh, yes,'' | was told, call is over. The |
criminal is finished with. He will die
an hour two hours, or, as he
seems very strong, perhaps not till night
fall; but nobody will touch HIM any more.
The bamboos will be left in him, and when |
he is quite exhausted he will expire"
L
to interfere, but, sick at heart, l turned
on my heel, loathing the barbarous cruelty |
| had just witnessed, and cursing the |
damnable civ ilzation that permitted it.. l |
learned after wards that the unfortunate |
wretch had fingered ten long hours before |
Death (which in Japan would seem as
brutal as justice) remembered and released |
him.
His slow death is accounted for by the |
fact that a Japanese executioner is care
fully taught to avoid the vital organs of |
the criminal he has to impale. The more
slowly the victim expires, the greater the
reputation of his butcher.
HORROR OF. HORRORS PIT is stated |
that the gard ens attached to the residence |