The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-11-02

Tho Horrible Punishmcnfs hn"iesso
Upou Criminals I'm Former Ages

meDt nowadays. lucy arc ho'n,'-' =.
the Cincinnati Enquirer, to what they were
In the middle ages when there weie' AZ
cording TO the learned writer on crilnIna'
cases, jesse Damhondere, thirteen amer,
ent WAYS in which the executoner cousu
Infict punishment. They were ire, lne
sword, mechanical force, quartering, Tue
wheel. the fork, the gibbet, draw,ng'
spiking, cutting of the ears, dismemDer-
ING. f,orging or beating. and the pillory.
Torture by fire was horrible, ana was
managed by the eXecutioners with devil
ishpess and malignity that was as compre-
bensiye as II was pointed. The victim 10
he burned was dressed in shirt sneareu
with sulphur. having been stripped OF al
his other clothes. A stake was driven lnto
the spot where the burning was to take
place. and alternate layers OF straw ana
wood were piled up TO about the height oil
man. There was narrow opening leau-
ing to the stake. to which the victim was
led. and then this passage-way was nlleu
I'D with straw, so that the victim. securely
bound to the stake by chains, was
completely surrounded by the COM
bustibles. The living were not always
burned TO death. but frequently the party
was first stranged, and at other times
large iron pike or bar was so arranged a.
TO fall upon and kill him before the burn
ing began. The bodies OF those who died
natural death were burned, and II. after
person's burial, his guilt was proved, his
bones were disinterred and carried TO the
stake for burning. Fire was the punish
ment IN eases OF heresy or blasphemy.
Death by decapiiation used to be per-
formed by either a two-handed sword or
an axe. The victim was allowed TO choose
whether he would have his eyes blind
folded or not, and the skill OF the execu-
TONER was usually so great that the head
came off at single blow. Not always,
however, for there are instances where the
bungling body-chopper whacked away
eleven times at the head Of the I'M
fortunate victim. The party sometimes
knet, placing his head on the block,
and at other times knet IN an upright
position. An old cut representing the de-
capitation Of Guillaume de Pommiers and
his confessor, at Bordeaux, 1877, as record
ed i'm Froissart's chronicles, represents q
headless body lying beneath the scailold,
the head few feet of, while on the scat
| fold is the eXecutioDer with long-swOrd,
crasped by both hands uplfted, about to
descend on the neck OF kneeing victim
on whose face was depicted pain and an
pujsh. while about the scaflold are gaping,
grieying crowd OF spectators and dogs.
| The eXecutioner was not always held in the
odium that attaches to the Marwoods, Jack
Ketches, and Calcrafts of modern times.
In France, Italy, and Spain a certain
amount Of odium attaches TO them, but IN
Germany successfully carrying out anum-
Der OF sentences was rewarded by titles and
the privileges Of nobility. In FrancOnia the
last councillor to get married was eXecIl-
TONER. In France he possessed certain priv
| ileges, such as the right TO have all the
grain he could take hold OF and hold in his
hand. besides the right to collect toll on
foreign traders and boats arriving with
fish. Under the head OF mechanical force
The "maiden" may be described. II eX-
listed In Scotland as early as the sixteenth
century. and English historians relate that
Lord Morton, Regent of Scotland during
the minority OF James VI, had il con-
structed after model OF Yorkshire ma
chine. This machine was much like the
guillotine, but preceded it by several GEN.
turtles. II was perhaps invented to facili-
tate executions, and possibly alleviate the
su0erings OF the victims. But sentiments
of this sort could not have actuatcd the
Judges OF the middle ages 10 any great eX-
tent, for their regard for decency was en-
tirely limited. rs we read OF a woman
named Perette, in 400, accused OF theft
and receiving stolen goods, being buried
alive before the gallOws at Paris.
Quartering was probably the most horri
bic death-penalty ever concocted by Tho
devilsh ingenuity Of the judges. II is Of
very ancient origin, though in modern
times il has been only inflicted on regi
cides, who are looked upon rs committing
the worst OF crimes. As 4 sort OF salad foI
this punishment the victim underwent
preliminary tortures, such as having hi
right hand cut off and the mutilated stumI
burned in pot Of sulphur. Then again
his arms, thighs, or breast were laceratet
with red-hot pincers. and hot oil, pitch, OF
mouten lead poured into the wounds
After these prelimnaries rope was attach
ed TO each limb OF the criminal, one being
bound around each leg from the foot to the
knee, and around each arm from the wris
TO the elbow. These ropes were then at
tached to four bars, 10 each OF which
stout horse was harnessed. The horse
first gave short jerks, and WHEN the unfoT
tunate man shouted in agony, feeling hi
limbs dislocated without being broken, TIN
four horses were all OF sudden whipped
up and urged in different directions.
; the tendons, muscles, and ligaments still
resisted the power Of the horses the eXecu
toner cut the Joints with Ratchet. Thi
performance sometimes lasted seVera
hours, and when the limbs were all pullct
apart they were collected and placed near tn
trunk and burned. Sometimes the sentenc
| IL Al. H. IL 10
four quarters OF the kingdom, in whicl
case each was separately labelled and dis
patched.
The wheel. which does not date bacl
further in modern times than the days o
Francis L., is thus described: The victim
was first tied on his back TO two ioists
forming st. Andrews cross, each of hi
limbs being stretched out. Two place
were followed out under each limb abou
foot apart, in order that the joints alon
might not touch the wood. The eXccu
toner then dealt a heavy blow over eacl
hollow with a square iron bar about tw,
inches broad and rounded at the handle
Thus breaking each limb in two places
B, To the eight blows required for this tn
eXecutioner generally added two or tire
on the chest. which were called the coup
dc grace, and which ended this horribl
torture. After death the broken body wa
? placed on wheel which revolved Of
a pivot. Sometimes the victim wa
strangled first. in which case it wa
called garroting. The nobility of Spain ar
u thus executed: The criminal sits on
chair, his neck in an iron collar and hi
L head against beam. The executione
turns screw and the spinal column is dis
:, located, and death is speedy.
\ The modern gallows is by no manner O
+. means the ancient gibbet. Down to tn
French Revolution gibbets used to stan,
in every French town and village. The
% were generally composed OF pillars @
stone, Joined at the summit by woodel
E trayerses, to which the bodies Of maleiac