The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1891-06-06
cHINA's FIELD OF BLOOD.
Fifty Thousand People Beheaded
on It In One Year.

AuSpCCIlOu VI uAucOuo 1UOl6, party
of us who were visiting Canton de-
cided to go through some of the
prisons. We start early in the morn
ing. Leaving Shamein, we cross
the canal which separates it from
the new city, and are at once in the
Chinese babel. In these streets, so
narrow that one can reach from the
chair in which he is carried into
the shops on either side, everywhere
are naked coolies hurrying along
with their burdens. Having passed
the street where the merchants who
do business with the foreigners are
located, we cross another arch stone
bridge and at once plunge into the
gloom of the gateway through the
city wall. Out into the narrow
streets again, with their bamboo
awnings, we shortly come to Jade
street, where are the curio shops,
and ten minutes afterward we turn
up long, narrow alley to the left,
and stop at a small door at the
end. This is the entrance to the
greatest prison Of Canton.
"We leave our chairs and after a
short palavar between our guide
and an official, are admitted into
the yard of the Jail. All prisoners,
both men and women, are herded
together promiscuously, and crowd
ing around US ask for 'kumshaw,
the Chinese word for aims. By
means of an interpreter we converse
with some of the more striking in
appearance, and get to know the ma
ture of some of their crimes. There
does not appear to be any distinc-
ton made in the treatment Of the
prisoners, whether they are in for
petty or capital offenses; all seem
to have the freedom of the yard and
communication with each other.
"One poor woman who is more
persistent in her petitions for money
than any of the rest, we learn has
been sentenced to crucifxion for
poisoning her husband. This pun
ishment is the most terrible meted
out to criminals in China, and, in
deed, it would be hard to conceive
of more horrible death if the vic
tim be entirely without money or
friends. The culprit is tied upon a
rough wooden cross, and in front of
him is placed basket containing a
number of knives, sometimes twen-
ty or thirty. On the handle of each
knife is written in Chinese charac-
ters the part of the body to be mu-
tilated with it, and the executioner,
who is supposed to take them at
random from the basket, is thus
enabled to prolong the agony of the
victim indefinitely, as it is easy for
him to choose a knife which is not
marked for any vital part of the
body. So it is customary for the
sentenced to bribe the executioner
to choose the knife which will give
the death blow at once.
"The poor woman we met, who is
to suffer this punishment, hopes,
by means of the money she begs, to
gamble with her fellow prisoners
and gain enough to bribe her execu-
toner to make her sufferings short.
If she should lose, then some other
unfortunate will be made happy in
the thought of comparatively
painless death.
Leaving the central courtyard of
the prison, we 60 to side building
where torturing is carried on
where are a few poor wretches more
dead than alive. One man is sus-
pended by his thumbs from the
rafters overhead and, having been
there but short time, his shrieks
of agony are already heard all over
the prison.
GAS our eyes get accustomed to
the gloom we see an object which
we at length make out to be a man.
His arms are drt IN tightly back
over his head. and his thumbs tied
by a thong to his big toes. On closer
examination he shows no signs OF
consciousness; his face is blush
white, his lips are black, as though
he were dead, and only a low, con-
tinuous moan shows that he is not.
"These horrors are too revolving
to attract one long and we are glad
to escape into the prison-yard again.
"In another yard we find mllder
form of torture exhibited. Here are
the men with the tonga, or wooden
collar. This heavy collar, made OF
boards, is locked on the criminals
neck. At first it is simply incon-
venient, but by degrees its weight
causes excessive pain to the cords
of the neck. In the corner OF the
fence is one who is evidently an old
offender, for he sits slantingly on
the ground, cross-kneed, supporting
a corner of his collar on his hand.
Turning away from here, as re