The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1888-06-09
THE WHIPPING COUNTESS.

THE WHIPPING COUNTESS.
Alleged Extraordinary Confession
by a Woman of Her Criminal Elk
| perience.
A correspondent, who gives hel
name and address and declares he
statement to be true in every particu
lar. sends us, says the Liverpool eng
iand) Courier. the following narrativ,
of her criminal experience:
Il am the daughter of poor mason
who. l am sorry to say, used oftentime
to get drunk. then return home ant
abuse his wife and children. For some
time the former bore with meeknee.
the rough treatment of her spouse. bu
ultimately she too sought to drown hel
cares in liquor. With parents who bott
quaffed the intoxicating cup is it any
wonder her children 0hree girls and &
boy) went to ruinP The son went from
one degree of iniquity to another til
ultimately he ended his days on the
gallows for the murder of his sister.
OF the two women then left one oil
them was transported for life for bur-
glary. oftrepeated;' and the other
Il. e., MYSELF fast followed in her foot
steps. but succeeded in escaping with
few months's Imprisonment for each
offense. until the last of my parents
was laid in his grave.
"About a week after I went one
night and stealthily opened the draw.
ing-room window of widow lady. the
wife of an earl. l entered the room
and stole money, together with many
valuables, to the amount of about E1O0.
AS l lived near to this residence and
my character being we'll known, the
lady, on discovering her loss, at once
fastened to my poor abode, and was
not long in finding part of the money
for l had willingly spent about f20-
and most of the jewels. She at once
brought me by force to her home, made
me follow her upstairs to an attic with
only chair and a wooden bed for
furniture; then she spoke to me serious
and kindly about this and other misde-
meanors, and told me she would not
give me into custody but I was to re-
main in that room for two months, be
fed on bread and water, and she would
come three times q day. at morning.
noon and night and administer the
birch with her own hands. At first felt
inclined to rebel. but after ali thought
anything better than gaol. The next
morning after breakfast, which was
gwen to me at o'clock, l was brought
into an adjoining apartment where l
was stripped of all my clothing by the
lady and one of her servants. Then
was stretched on a cushion as soft as
down. after which my hands and feet
were securely fastened by means of
leather straps, so that was utterly un-
able to repel the strokes of the rod,
which fell swift and smart.
':At first, although 1 was whipped
till l cried (for my lady would never
cease the chastisement till the tears
came to my eyes in earnestly, when l
was released I at once declared /
would leave and go to prison, when
the lady said she was quite willing l
should do so if 1 preferred it. but l
dreaded gaol too much from my former
experience. so decided to continue as l
was; but after the punishment began
to give mock laugh and thank my
lady ironically, but whenever I did so
l was always again refastened and re-
punished, which was repeated once as
often as three times. Another time l
resisted and would by no means allow
myself to be so treated. when two
more female servants were called up,
and l had to submit. The servant who
helped always went away before the
punishment. Ultimately used to I'M
dress and lie in position myself, as the
lady after that came alone, though the
whipping was as severe as ever. When
the two months were expired was re-
leased, with much prayer and good
advise, and never after stole anything
to the value of pin, and I am now
the wife of a respectable mechanic,
and bless God for the experience of
those two months. Twas at the time
% years of age.
II relate this circumstance. as I be-
lieve it the cat is beneficial in pre-.
venting men from committing atrocious
crimes. that castigation might also be
performed with good results on the
female prisoners by some of the female
warders."