The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-06-05
MACHINES OF TORTURE.
THE BAEBAROUS METHODS OF
PUNISHMENT IN FORMER TIMES.

glish Customs Particularly Annoy
ing.
From the Washington Stdr.
LONDON, May 2O.-Four centuries ago an
inventive genius with the brain of a Cat.
ling, but lacking his experience. facilities
and opportunities. produced a death deal
ing instrument of warfare so constructed as
60 fire fifteen balls at one time. 1t was in
those days called "hell machine and it
was considered so violent an innova on
the civilization Of the time, and as being so
much outside the pale of fair warfare, that
its use was forbidden by international agree
ment. This curious forerunner of the mitrail-
leuSe or gathng-Run is now the property
of the Earl of Shrewsbury and TALBOT, and
opportunity was afforded me of examining
it. A few weeks previously had examined,
at the naval exhibition in Liverpool, the
very latest hell machine built at the
Armstrong works and designed for the use
of Johnny Bull in any future trouble be
may have with his neighbors. 1t was a
steel 20-pouuder of marvelously beautiful
workmanship, manipulated by electricity,
with scarcely perceptible recoil and oapa-
BILE of disoharging twenty shots Q minute.
There is no international agreement to
prevent the use of this in present day war
fare, and this fact may prove good text
for the pessimists and croakerS, who mourn
for the civilization Of the good old times
and think the world is going to the demni-
ton bow-wows in the closing years Of the
nineteenth century.
Pretty bad and fiendish old times these
good old times were-the days Of hell
machines =" so devilish in purpose as 90 al
most convince one that they were planned
in the regions of his satanic majesty. and
beside which the l5-ball gun would seem
as harmless to the fifteenth century ciYiliza-
ton as q baby's popgun to the nineteenth.
have had an object lesson that l will tell
you something about. and that will be a
text for the optimlsts who know they are
living In the most glorious period that was
ever experienced. | spent day among
some hundreds of the hell machines" Of
past ages, comprised in the famous histor-
zeal collection of instruments of torture
from the royal castle of Nuremberg, be-
longing to the Earl of Shrewsbury and Tall
bot, but temporarily in the possession of 8.
Lee Bapty, F. r. G.. s. This collection is
the most complete in existence and is of
wonderful educational value as showing the
progress which the world has made in the
interests Of truth, humanity and justice.
THE CELEBRATED IRON MAIDEN.
Its most conspicuous ornament is the
celebrated Iron maiden" OF which all stu
dents Of history have read To approach
inasion TEEN with horrors as one pictures
the many wretches. of noble birth or mean
God-hating or God-loving, murderous or
dove-liko, guilty or innocent, who we're led
up to her smiling face aud Enclosed in her
stomach, in that awful embrace Of death in
its most horrible form. This iron maiden is
In very good state Of preservation and
still quite capable of hugging an individual
to death, though her interior arrangements
are somewhat rusty. She is built of strong
wood and iron, and from her shoulders
down stands out after the manner OF the
old-fashioned crinoline. Two doors under
her chin opened to admit the victim aud
disclosed scores of long and still very sharp
iron spikes. When the doors were pressed
to these prongs forced their way into vari-
Gus parts Of the victims body. Two ems
tered his eyes, others pierced his chest-in
fact, he was impaled alive in such a manner
that he died in the most agonizing torture
TERRIBLE TORTURE OF INCREASING WEIGHT
The iron maiden now bliuks through her
battered eyes on other instruments Of tort
ure as cruel as herself Near her are to be
seen the machinery for carrying out that
most terrible torture known as the "peine
forte ct dure,n which was peculiar to
England. This was the punishment to
which was condemned the person who re-
fused 70 plead TO the otfense with which he
was charged. He was laid fiat on his back,
with his arms and legs drawn as far as I'M
der as possible by ropes Then as much
weight as he could bear was piled upon him,
which was increased day by day until he
pleaded or died. He was given the very
smallest possible amount of food, and the
day he ate he was not allowed to drink.
Who can picture without a shudder the
terrible agony of the vicLim-agony
which was afflicted in the name OF religion
or justice in the good old times"
MOUTH OPENERS.
There are in the collection several speci-
mems from various countries of the pear
shaped screw gag. II was known In Spain
as the mouth pear. 1t is made of iron in
sections and can be squeezed together in the
shape OF pear. IL was an especially handy
adjunct for the torture of those privately
seized, as when forced into the mouth il
sprang open and the victim could not utter
sound. There are about half a dozen
mouth openers, instruments with grada-
lions TO open the mouth to a certain size.
They were used when it was found neces-
sary 70 slit the victims tongue or tear them
out by the roots, or while boiling oil or
molten lead was poured down the throat
Ii prisoner, fearing a more awful end
tried to starve himself to death, these
mouth openers were used while ne was be-
ing forced to eat. Another mouth instru-
ment is known as a tongue tearer. IL is in
the shape OF pair Of tongs with a screw,
aud by it a strong hold could be taken on a
tongue, so that Ii could be torn out by the
roots. This was principally used on bias
phemers. An iron implement to be affixed
70 the ears before they were cus off was in
common use for comparatively minor Of
lenses. Many poor devil took ride to
death on spanish donkey" and instru-
ment formed with a A or cone-shaped top,
worked to sharp point. The victim was
placed straddle-legged on this and heavy
weights were hung on each foot, until the
sharp point of the donkey's back cut clean
through his body or broke him right in
halves Spain is also credited with the in
Ventlon OF a boot made Of two strong
pieces of heavy wood, fitted inside with
protruding iron knobs or buttons and made
70 screw up 80 as to completely break the
leg and intlct the most agonizing torture.
A PRISON FLOOR.
A portion of the flooring of prison is in
teresting for ingenuity. 1t Is of oak, cut
into diamond-shaped points, so as to be a.
hurttul to the prisoners as possible, and as
In many cases the walls were also OF the
same material it was very painful to lean
SIT, lie or stand. Another ingenious instru,
ment Is an iron Drank, made only In skele
ton, but so constructed that parts cover The
mouth, nose and eyes. IL has long out.
standing headtop, and was worn by a pris
oner perhaps for years, until his identity
was almost lost. The Iron spider" wa
very frequently used on women, whom i