Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1882-12-24
MILL.

ing men and women. A Slngularly
cheerful piece Of furniture is large,
heavy wheel, on one side of which
stands out a large, sharp piece OF iron.
In the glorious days of old an offender
who had to be punished with the wheel
was stripped naked and firmly bound
to q plank, face downward. The piece
of iron on the wheel was heated hot,
and the wheel was rolled up and down
and across the victims back till justice
was satisfied or the victim was dead.
Inasmueh as the spike was long enough
to 90 halfway through the mans body,
and was always heated red hot, the
victim generally died, and Justice was
entirely satisfied. 1t was not as expe-
dItious as the guilOtine, but it was just
as certain. The only man who ever
survived it was adjudged magician
because he survived 1t, and was prompt
ly beheaded for being q magician. That
settled him. He didn't bother Nurem-
berg any more.
There are also displayed switches
made of fine threads of steel, which
were laid on the bare back with great
effect. A little of these things goes
great way, but on being told that ia
the adjoining tower is the steel
maiden you get over your qualmiSh-
ness. Your party is taken in charge by
a guide, who shows you q large assort-
ment of horrors before you come to the
chief one, as a sort of preparation.
There are stocks Of all kinds, gags for
tattlerS, handouts, anklets, and cradle,
the bed of which is filled with spikes,
i'm which old-time offenders were faith
fully rocked to sleep-a sleep from
which there was no waking. There are
long tables with a screw at the top ana
bottom, to which men were strapped by
the hands and feet, the screws then
turned till the unfortunate man was
torn apart. In those cheerful days,
when a merchant, baker or butcher was
found selling his goods by false weight
or measure, he was placed in a cage
and carried all through the city, with
his name and trade fastened conspicu--
ously in front. After making the grand
tour he was taken, cage and all, TO the
river and ducked again and again, till IL
was thought that his lesson was sutfi-
cient to prevent repetition. Perhaps
some such form might be advantageous
in these days.
Wife-beaters in those times We're Sc
verely punished. They were furnisned
with ciose-fitting helmets, from whlcn
heavy weights were suspended. Tney
| were given q conspicuous place In the
public square, appropriately labeled,
! and placed in stocks, with heavy
weights attached to their arms and feet
| and there they sat the livelong day,
! subjected to the jeers and ridicule OF the
/ town. Scolding wives were put IN
cages with gags in their mouths, and
| exDosed i'm the public square, You are
| shown all kinds OF beheading blocks and
| OaIlows upon which noted villains had
gone to their reward, while the walls
ara covered from top to bottom with
pictures of the practical operations, oil
| the various instruments that hlled the
room. H.,
All this preparatory to the steel
maiden, which is kept in a room ABOVE,
precisely as she was in the days OF mel
usefulness. You are shown what APP
pears at first sight to be rude statue OF
woman clumsily hewn out OF WOOD
The guide noiselessly opened 1t, one
door swinging to the right and the oth-
er to the left. The statue was hollow,
and lust the size of the average man
Inside were straps by which the offend
er was bound SO that he could not move
a single muscle. Both the doors were
lined with long, sharp steel spikes,
thick and strong. When the victim
was firmly secured, the door on the
left was slowly but firmly shut, and the
long spikes went into his body, two be-
ing so arranged as to pierce his eyes;
Then the door on the right was closed
in a similar manner, and he would re-
ceive another compliment of spikes, the
closing of the doors being done very
slowly, that the torture of the man In
the embrace of the maiden might be
kept up as long as possible. The very
last spike pierced his heart; After re,
naming shut up for while the straps
were unloosened from the outside, q
spring was touched, and the man fell
fifteen feet into cleverly constructed
machine that ground him up as fine as
mineemeae and dropped him into the
river below, making food for fishes.