The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1883-02-17
Methods of Torture.


in one of the stations, reporter ventured
upon the subject of corporal punishment,
when the policeman suddenly became in
terested and said: Oh, hanging don't
amount to anything. I've seen men kill
ed in manners far more horrible. I've
seen them die all sorts of ways. [ will
only say in what manner have seen men
punished for crime. When very young l
entered the Danish navy, and remained in
the service until I was thirty years
old. During all the time | was cruising
mostly in the East and about the coast of
Africa. was young, and having an uncle
in the Admiralty, I always had such
voyages as [ liked. One of my earliest
cruises was along in 1884 along the Chi
nese coast. On that voyage [ witnessed
my first fogging, and saw several insubor-
dinate seamen keel-hauled, two or three of
them being killed by the punishment,
Keel hauling is gone out of fashion now,
but it used to be quite common. A line
was passed from larboard to starboard under
the vessel. The sailor was fastened to one
end of the rope and dragged him out on
the other side This was often repeated
two or three times. If the sailor who was
being keel-hauled was a good swimmer he
would not be badly injured by the punish
ment; but if, as often happened, the sailor
could not swim aud the gang pulled the
rope taut, the sailor was often pulled up
dead. The vessels bottoms were lined
with copper, which Clipped off and stuck
out from the bottom. The sailor being
dragged against these sharp points was
often terribly lacerated, if not killed.
While in China | witnessed some very
horrible executions, and was the means of
having native of the Celestial Kingdom
soundly bastinadoed. In business, trickery
and scheming the heather Chinee certainly
is peculiar, and it was in those early days l
landed at small town on the coast and
desiring to purchase some curiosities went
into store, where / picked out number
of articles and turned over the necessary
money in silver to the Chinaman. Then [
started out, when the Chinaman demanded
the full price of the goods. [ informed
him that he was paid, but he said no, and
putting his hand into his money-box, laid
my money upon the stand and called for
his goods [ gave him his goods, took the
money and, walking out, went into a store
near by and bought some more goods,
turning the money over to the store-keeper.
He looked at the money, and then a soft
grin spread over his features. "NO good"
he said. What [ said wouldn't look well
in print, but | maintained the money was
good [ was convinced that was in error,
however, when the store-keeper threw
three dollar pieces down upon the counter
and they shivered to pieces. Then l re-
allied that the first Chinaman had exchang
ed my good money for counterfeit, and [
Immediately laid the case before the Man
DARN in fifteen minutes the swindler was
before the Mandarin in fifteen minutes
more he was tried and bastinadoed, and
limped away to his shop after having paid
me my good money.
In another part of China witnessed
the execution of a number of rebels who had
been captured some time before Some
distance inland from the town there was an
open piece of ground, and one condemned
criminal was taken out there. A hole
about FIVE feet deep was dug near an ant
hill, and the man was placed In the hole
with his arms tied to his side. Then the
dirt was thrown in and pattted down
around him. He was completely buried up
to the chin. When buried a gag was
nlaced between his teeth and his mouth
kept wide open. The inside of his mouth
and far down his throat was then thorough
" smeared with sweet, honey-like sub
stance, and he was left alone. Immediate
ly the ants perceived the smell OF honey
thew started from an adjacent hill in a
swarm and went in a stream down the
throat Of the victim. He was devoured
by the ants, and his suferings cannot be
described, in fact they can scarcely be inn
agined. Another execution I witnessed
was nearly as bad as the one I've just told !