Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1885-06-12

now Prisoners Were Formerly Tortured In
French Galleys.
Boston Transcript.

were better than the present, and that
the affairs of this world do not move
so smoothly as i'm old times.
Undoubtedly there may be reason
In such assertions, rs Ia some in
stances our days show degeneration
from those of our forcfathcrs; tho be-
lief in the oyerruling providence and
goodness of God, the respect of youth
toward old age, the sentiment of ODE
dience to the commands of law, we
fear have lost somewhat of their in
fluence over the actual generation.
But without stopping to cnumcrate
the many points in which our own aye
has made a decided advance over
those that have preceded it, let us
merely reflect on the position of pris-
oners and sailors at the present day
as compared with those when men
were condemned and not always for
crimes committed TO the living death
of the galleys.
Barras de In Peuve, who served for
ty years as an officer In u galley, thus
writes in 1913 of them:
"Those who enter galley for the
first time are surprised to see so many
souls on board. There are in fact in
Europe an iniinity of villages which do
not contain so great number of in
habitants. But that which causes
still more establishment is TO find so
many men in so small space. 1t is
true that the greater part have not the
liberty 10 lie down at full length
Seven men are put on each BENCH
that Is, in space of about four feet
wide by ten in length. AT the PROV
are TO be seen even thirty sailors, who
have no other lodging place than the
plans des rambades, which are two
spaces of two feet in length by eight
in width. From stern to PROV one
can see nothing but heads. The cap
tain and officers are hardly any better
lodged, their only refuge is the poop,
which, considering its size, one is
tempted to compare with the tub of
Diogenes. When the pitiless wind
from Lydia, sweeping across the Ro-
man beaches, surprised the galleys on
the open sea; when the impetuous
Aquilon assailed them, or the Gulf of
Lyons delivered them to the humid
wind of Syria. the galleys must have
been an image of hell itself. The
mournful lamentations and frightful
cries of the crew, the horrible howl
ings of the chain gang, the groaning
OF the vessels frame, mingled with
the noise of chains and the roaring of
the tempest, must have produced
septiment of terror in the most intre-
pid heart. Rain, hail, lightning, the
habitual Accomplishments of these vio-
lent storms, the waves washing over
IN l.. aI 80 hp 9
situation. Although people are not
generally very devOut in the galleys,
some would then be seen praying TO
God. whilst others were offering vows
TO all the saints. Some even, in spite
of the rocking of the vessel, would
try to make pilgrimages on board.
Much better would it have been for
them not to forget God and his saints
Is soon as the danger was past.
Calm weather itself has its incon-
veniencies. Bad smells are then so
offensive that they cannot be escaped |
from i'm spite of The snuff with which
you are obliged to fill your nose from
morning to night There are always
on galley certain little pests, which
are tho torment of the inhabitants.
Flies exercise their empire by day,
bugs by night, ilcas and lice by day |
and night Whatever precaution may !
be taken, one cannot succeed i'm get |
ting free from these annoyanccs. The |
frightful vcrmin do not respect even
Cardinals, ambassadors or crowned |
heads.
With respect to the size OF the gal
lcys. the largest of those in the six |
1. 4
a length of about forty-seven to fifty |
five metres in width. They were of |
very light draught, and consequently |
shallow; were moved by fifty oars of |
twelve metres in length. and carried |
a crew in all of about 400 men in that |
circumScribed space.
Here is the testimony of Jean Mar
seille de Bergerac, who in 170l was
condemned to serve in the French gal |
leys for the crime of being Protest |
ant, and therefore speaks from Bit |
ter experience of many years:
''All the convicts are chained to |
benches, six TO each. These are four |
feet from each other, and are covered |
with sack stuffed with wool. over |
which is thrown a shecpskin that de- |
scends to the fOot-rest The comite, |
that is the master of the chain-gang, |
stands at the storm, near the captain, |
to receive his orders. There are two |
sous-comites-one in the middle. the |
other at tho prov. Each is armed |
with a whip, which is applied to the |
naked bodies of the slaves When the !
captain gives orders to weigh, the CO.
mite gives the signal with n silver
whistle that hangs from his neck. |
This signal is repeated by the sous
comites, and Immediately the slaves |
beat the water with their oars to- |
gether; you would say that the fifty !
oars were but one. Imagine six men !
chained TO bench, naked as when |
they were born, one foot on the rest, |
the other on the bench in front, hold |
ing in their hands an oar of enormous !
weight stretching their bodies toward |
the stern of the galley, their arms ex-
tended so as TO push the oar above the |
backs of the rowers before them, who |
themselves take the same attitude. |
The oar being thus advanced they |
raise the end they hold so as TO plunge |
the other in the sea; this done they |
throw themselves back and fall on
their seat, which bends beneath their
weight. The galley slave thus rows
sometimes ten, twelve and even TWEEN |
ty hours in succession without a sim |
gle stop. On such occasions the CO.
mite would thrust piece of bread |
soaked in wine into the mouths OF the |
NOR oarempn IN provopf thpir faint \